During this stretch of days, Toyokawa Sakiko spent her mornings stalking Shinomiya Kaguya, while letting her ordinary-person double sit in class for her.
After school each day, she conserved her energy and sent that double into the subway's Impression Space to grind for cash.
On paper, the double was nothing special—just an ordinary human body, no supernatural traits, no Persona.
But Sakiko had already fixed the ability Junyan into the collective unconscious through her Chu Zi Xiang double earlier. That meant even her "normal" Sakiko double could roast standard Shadows with ease.
Against low-tier fodder, all she had to do was charge into the cluster and drop a single Junyan. Clean sweep.
The work was so repetitive it barely required attention—just a thread of focus to keep the process running.
In the beginning, the annoying part wasn't the fighting. It was picking up the money.
After a Shadow dispersed, it would drop stacks of yen. But bending down again and again to collect scattered bills was slow and exhausting, and it murdered the efficiency.
Thankfully, once Eisen produced the spatial storage device, that problem vanished overnight.
As long as Sakiko aimed the storage device's "mouth"—the youth edition of a painted-world pocket space—toward the floor and willed it, a silent pull would catch the loose bills and sweep them inside.
The pickup speed was excellent now. It was no worse than the old method, back when Chu Zi Xiang's double would go into "fourth-stage bloodburst" and use Wind Authority to vacuum everything up.
Of course, the kill speed still wasn't comparable.
That was mainly because, under Wind's protection, fourth-stage bloodburst Chu Zi Xiang moved so absurdly fast. Normal Sakiko—Impression Space buffs or not—only had Chu Zi Xiang's baseline physical stats. Even her nerve response couldn't keep up with that bloodburst movement speed.
Once everything had been explained and arranged, Sakiko activated the Navigator app. Sakiko, her ordinary double, Nagasaki Soyo, and Kochou Shinobu were all pulled into the subway's Impression Space in an instant.
Twisted red lights bled along the tunnels. The ground wasn't concrete anymore—just discarded rails crudely welded together into jagged, uneven pathways. Somewhere deeper inside, muffled Shadow whispers drifted like static.
"All right. This is yours," Sakiko said evenly to her companions.
Then she vanished again with group transfer, returning to where Gojo Sakiko was waiting.
The ones left behind moved out.
Ordinary Sakiko, operating under only a sliver of attention, stepped forward first. Expressionless, she walked into the dark.
Shinobu followed close behind, eyes sharp with caution—but after surviving countless hunts, this kind of eerie atmosphere barely touched her.
Soyo was the real difference.
Without the Willpower Glasses, she would've been a normal high schooler in a nightmare—legs shaking, unable to move.
But now, she took one slow breath and forced the turbulence inside her chest into stillness.
When they reached the first layer and Shadows began to appear, ordinary Sakiko spoke in a flat tone.
"Begin."
Soyo and Shinobu exchanged a glance.
Then, at the same time, they entered possession mode.
Soyo closed her eyes and felt something cold and violent flood her limbs.
When she opened them again, her gentle gaze was gone—replaced by blood-red eyes that made the air feel sharper. Beneath each lower lid, the skin split soundlessly, and a narrow, chilling eye opened in each tear.
Her casual clothes shifted into a plain, stark training outfit.
Black markings crawled across the exposed skin of her neck and arms like ink seeping through paper.
Even though Sukuna's knowledge—every technique, every instinct—had already been absorbed as pure information and could be used as naturally as breathing, Soyo still felt a flicker of wonder when that terrifying power filled her body for real.
On the other side, Shinobu's transformation was just as striking.
The temperature around her spiked—like standing beside molten steel. Even looking at her made the air shimmer.
Heat rose from her like a tide as she slipped into the Flame Hashira Shinobu possession state, layering Flame Breathing cleanly over herself.
Something like firelight clung to her aura, pushing the darkness back by sheer presence.
No one needed to speak.
The three split across different layers to farm efficiently—because none of them could shut off friendly fire through sheer will.
Even though Soyo could fire Dismantle with no wind-up, she deliberately added the chant and hand signs, and slowed her output so the Shadows could clearly see her actions before they died.
She wanted the collective unconscious to build the simplest, most rigid impression possible—fast.
Shinobu, meanwhile, killed even more slowly than Soyo.
She fought with her eyes closed, executing forms that forcefully braided Flame Breathing's rhythm into Insect Breathing's dance.
But she wasn't actually doing this to fix abilities into Sakiko's world.
Because for Shinobu, that would be meaningless.
She couldn't take those fixed abilities back to the Demon Slayer world—and she couldn't even use them in Sakiko's real world. What was the point?
No—she was testing Flame Breathing itself.
She wanted to see whether, by pushing Flame Breathing to its peak, she could absorb something from it and refine Insect Breathing.
The result was bad.
In her world, what Breathing style you can wield is inseparable from your spirit.
And Shinobu realized she fundamentally didn't resonate with what Flame Breathing demanded from the heart.
Right now, the only reason she could fuse Flame and Insect so smoothly was the chat group's absurd support.
The moment she dropped possession—even if the chat didn't strip the memories—she still wouldn't be able to use Flame Breathing.
Worse: wavering like that would blur her path, and Insect Breathing itself would weaken.
With a quiet, resigned sigh, Shinobu let go of the experiment and focused on the Shadows again.
Meanwhile, Sakiko had already returned to the Wakaba residence—standing beside her Gojo Sakiko double.
Without hesitation, she lifted the limiter and entered Gojo Sakiko possession.
Power flooded her body. Under the Six Eyes, the world changed entirely.
If she ended up forcing her way into the core of Wakaba Mutsumi's Palace, her real body might have to face danger head-on.
So borrowing the Limitless and its absolute defense was the safest possible choice.
Sakiko clenched her fist, ran a quick check on cursed energy flow, confirmed the condition—then willed herself forward.
The real world's colors peeled away.
A blood-black filter settled over everything as she stepped into the seam between reality and cognition.
With Gojo Sakiko's physicality, breaking in was effortless.
She moved down the corridor from memory and stopped at Mutsumi's bedroom door.
Then she pushed it open and walked straight in.
The sight made Sakiko's heart sink.
The room was a disaster.
Plushies, shoes, socks, clothes—everything was thrown across the floor in chaotic piles.
Sakiko's brow tightened.
"Mutsumi's condition… really isn't good."
Then her gaze snapped to the owner of the room—Wakaba Mutsumi.
Or rather…
Metis.
Metis lay on the bed, calm and empty-eyed, hugging her guitar like it was the only thing tethering her to the world. She stared at the ceiling, unfocused.
In less than a hundredth of a second, the Six Eyes completed a full-body scan.
Heartbeat. Breathing. Blood flow. Neural response. Every biological signal lit up in Sakiko's mind like a dashboard.
Conclusion: stable vital signs. No obvious injury. No clear disease.
Once she had that, Sakiko didn't bother physically checking Metis.
Not because she didn't care about Mutsumi—but because Six Eyes had already given her more information than any hands-on exam ever could. Walking closer would be redundant.
Sakiko began conditioning her mind with a single intent:
Enter Wakaba Mutsumi's Palace from here.
The moment she formed that thought, she checked the glass beads on her wrist.
Every bead remained intact.
Not a single crack.
Which meant: at least in Gojo Sakiko possession, forcing entry into the "core position" of Mutsumi's Palace registered as essentially zero danger.
And somehow, that didn't comfort her at all.
With Six Eyes accelerating her thinking, several grim possibilities flashed through her mind in a blink.
Maybe Mutsumi's bedroom wasn't the true "core" at all—just another ordinary region.
Or maybe Mutsumi's Shadow was already so degraded, so weak, that it couldn't harm her even if she appeared right in front of it.
It wasn't baseless paranoia.
All signs suggested Mutsumi's Palace was linked to Mori Minami's Palace, and that Mori Minami might even hold the dominant position.
Mutsumi's Palace could already be suppressed—overwritten—at some deeper level.
Sakiko decided.
She was about to use the Navigator app to force entry.
And then—
The Six Eyes caught something.
A gaze.
A line of sight that pierced the seam between reality and cognition and locked directly onto her.
Sakiko's internal alarm screamed.
She was in the seam. Ordinary people couldn't perceive her here.
So who—
Her eyes traced the gaze back.
And the one looking at her… was the girl on the bed.
Wakaba Mutsumi.
More precisely: the personality currently wearing Wakaba Mutsumi's body.
Metis.
Metis was no longer blank and unfocused.
She stared at Sakiko with raw shock.
"Why is Sakiko suddenly in my room?"
Sakiko's mind snapped from surprise into analysis. She activated Thought Singularity and pushed hard—feeding it the eye contact, Mutsumi's state before Metis appeared, the Palace's abnormality, and the fact that Metis could perceive her inside the seam.
A conclusion formed instantly.
Metis was extremely likely not a "split personality" at all.
Metis was Mutsumi's Shadow.
The result hit Sakiko like a physical blow.
A Shadow was supposed to be a cognition-world entity—the embodiment of a person's darker self.
How could it manifest in reality, stabilize long-term, and suppress the host's consciousness?
It overturned her understanding of everything.
But she couldn't afford to freeze.
She had to find out what the Shadow wanted.
Sakiko didn't leave the seam. She held her current state and stared at Metis.
"Metis. You're Mutsumi's Shadow, aren't you?"
She stepped closer.
"The fact that you can see me right now means you're not something from the real world."
Metis's shock deepened.
At first, she'd been shocked that Sakiko appeared at all.
Now she was shocked that Sakiko even knew what a Shadow was.
The instinctive hostility Metis held toward Sakiko—the one who hurt Mutsumi—began to peel away.
In its place rose something else.
Interest.
Because Sakiko, at this moment, represented a new kind of possibility.
The first real human Metis had ever met who could walk into the cognition world on purpose—and wield power like this.
Metis hopped down from the bed, guitar still in her arms, and circled Sakiko's slightly unreal silhouette like she was pacing across an invisible stage.
"How strange…" Metis tilted her head. "You're in the seam, so you're not fully in the real world… but you can still use power this strong."
She leaned in, eyes gleaming.
"How did you get this kind of strength in reality?"
Sakiko's expression cooled. Metis was dodging the question that mattered.
"I'm the one asking," Sakiko said flatly.
"If you were just a personality Mutsumi split off, fine. But you're a Shadow."
Her voice hardened.
"You suppressed Mutsumi's consciousness and took her body. What are you trying to do?"
Metis froze for a beat.
Then, as if she'd heard the most ridiculous joke in existence—
"Pfft…"
And then she burst out laughing.
Not a quiet laugh.
A manic one.
She laughed so hard she doubled over, clutching her stomach, collapsing onto the messy floor like her bones had turned to jelly.
The laughter grew louder, sharper, more unhinged—so full of mockery it made Sakiko's skin crawl.
Metis pounded the floor with her fist as she laughed, convulsing, almost choking on it.
Sakiko stared down at her, ice-calm on the surface.
But unease spread through her chest like a stain.
"What's so funny?"
After a long while, Metis sucked in several harsh breaths and finally got control of herself.
She wiped the tears of laughter from the corner of her eyes and looked up at Sakiko again.
The smile on her face was no longer playful.
It was cruelly pitying.
"An 'objective'? Suppressing the 'real' Mutsumi?"
Metis enunciated each word like she was savoring Sakiko's confusion.
"Toyokawa Sakiko… have you ever considered the possibility…"
She leaned forward, voice bright with malice.
"…that there is no 'real' Mutsumi?"
Sakiko's face went rigid.
A horrifying possibility crashed through her mind.
Metis held Sakiko's gaze and continued, slowly, deliberately:
"Whether it's me standing in front of you right now…"
"…or that quiet, taciturn 'Mutsumi' you spent your whole past with…"
Metis suddenly threw both hands up, grinning like she was presenting a surprise gift.
"Every single one of them is a Shadow~"
Her tone rose, cheerful and lethal.
"From beginning to end… there was never any 'real' Mutsumi at all~"
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 80)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 178)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 165)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League ( 126 )
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter110)
Yu-Gi-Oh! — Transmigrated into the White Dragon Girl (Chapter220)
"Is this chat group even serious?" (Chapter125)
I, Lord Ravager, Utterly Loyal! (Chapter250)
Can Playing Games Save the World? 65
Crossover Anime Multiverse: The Demon Hunter of an Unnatural World 77
From Junkman to Wasteland 66
Weekly Refresh of Overpowered 31
I'm Grinding Proficiency Like 46
From Kiana, Lord Ravager, Onwa 220
Honkai: Is This Still the Prev 42
Elf: My Starter Pokémon Is Inc 65
Warhammer: My Primarch Is Remi 185
From Demon Slayer to Grand Ass Volume2/20
The Way the Umamusume Look at 68
Uma Musume, but My Cheat Power 248
Naruto: Weaving the Future, Be 65
Zenless Zone Zero, but Kamen R 76
Multiverse Crossover: The Perf 66
My Cyberpsycho Girlfriend 65
Uma Musume: The Dark Trainer 230
Uma Musume: A Calamity Born fr 154
I, a Reincarnation-Loop Player Volume4/40
The Violent Girl Group Is Beat 125
Uma Musume: The Horse Girl Who 67
Uma Musume: From Beginner 145
Becoming a Horse Girl, I Will 85
Uma Musume: I Want All 120
I Can Copy Unique Skills 115
Summoning an Evil God, but the 75
Supernatural Multiverse 110
My Harem Is Indescribable 100
Jujutsu Kaisen: Heroic Spirit 105
"I'm just a Valkyrie passing through." 67
Uma Musume: Today Is Another Romantic Battlefield 105
Still playing traditional Honk 80
The Most Filial Son Under Heav 85
What Should I Do After Switchi - Volume2/3
Reincarnated as a Demon, Skill 78
Hell-Difficulty Dungeon? 55
Transmigrated as Sukuna 80
Checking In in Demon Slayer 85
The Reincarnating Trainer of Tracen Academy 100
I Refuse to Become a Heroic 85
My Best Friend Into a Slime? 80
A Saiyan Stands Above Marvel 90
What Do You Mean by Using a Lab Mod to Be the Hero? 75
Tanya Starts from Re:Zero 80
Why did they assign me to Uma 75
MYGO Beauties 70
DanMachi: Emiya the Giant Hero 70
The Gacha Merchant Who Started 80
Honkai's Otherworld? Wait—Who Are You People?! 80
Emiya Shirou, Determined to Slay Every Curse and Evil Spirit 57
The Uma Musume Who Became 55
I'm Definitely Not the King of 60
After Maxing Out Every Class 45
Naruto: I'm Konoha's Local Men 35
Honkai: World Modulation Mode 34
I, the Elden Sword Saint 27
Dio Brando Is Challenging FGO 24
No One Knows Pokémon Better 18
I, Sakazuki, Won't Go Down Tha 20
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