The Price of Truth

Filna was about to activate the device when I raised my hand.

—Wait. Who is Galadriel ? — I asked.

—The current queen of the elves and former guardian of the God of the One World— Filna replied matter-of-factly.

Me and Shouta we widened our eyes.

— What?! — we shouted at the same time.

— Can I press play now? — she asked.

— You can. — I nodded .

Filna brought her finger closer to the crystal, but Yumi interrupted her:

"Did our father build this device?" Yumi asked.

Filna looked down.

— It was. — Filna replied.

—That's what I needed to know. You can continue. — he said Yumi .

Filna touched the crystal. A blue hologram filled the room.

Galadriel (hologram) — Filna , Yumi , I leave this message. I managed to keep an eye on Elfherinsei and Karina for a while, but I was discovered. Still, I found something important: the one who killed Karina was Elfherinsei .

Filna paused. I froze. Yumi and Shouta also paled.

— I remember the news of my mother's death being broadcast live… Reporters, police, everything. — I said , swallowing hard.

— What news? — Filna .

"They found Director Katamuta covered in blood, Karina lying on the ground... Then the place caught fire. Her body wasn't removed," Yumi added.

—So they never found the body… — Filna muttered.

— No. — I confirmed .

— Let's continue. — Filna resumed recording.

Galadriel (hologram) — I also discovered that Karina had two children: Alisiya Fedorova and Fujimoto Satoru . Alisiya hates her mother… and her brother.

Filna paused again.

— Fujimoto , have you met your sister? — Filna asked.

“…Never. And yet, she hates me?”

—I already know where you're going with this. I don't understand this hatred. I've never seen her. — I replied.

Yumi shivered.

— Her name is Alisiya … One day, on my way to skating class, I bumped into a polite girl. She helped me pick up my things from the floor. The name she said was… Alisiya . — he said Yumi .

The three of us looked at each other, stunned.

— Continue. — he said. Filna , taking a deep breath.

Galadriel (hologram) — Alisiya is powerful and could be decisive against Elfherinsei and Lucifito . I wanted to recruit Fujimoto , but if we do that, Alisiya might want to kill us. In fact, even without recruiting him… we might have to eliminate Fujimoto to count on Alisiya .

Filna paused. My stomach sank. Yumi clenched her fists in fury.

— You knew about Alisiya and still brought Fujimoto here ? Do you want to put my life, yours, and Shouta 's at risk? — Yumi exploded.

"I did what I thought was right." Filna glared at her sister.

—Satoru​ Fujimoto ! — she turned to me.

— W-what 's wrong? — I asked.

"Promise me you'll make Alisiya see the right side," Filna begged.

“…I want to understand why she hates me. And I want to stop this from turning into a war.”

— I promise. — I replied firmly.

— So let's go to the end. — Filna called again.

Galadriel (hologram) — I have discovered Elfherinsei 's plan . He wants to erect a colossal statue, visible throughout the realms, for worship. I also leave two potions against his parasites: if an ally is taken, make them drink it or throw the potion at the parasite to free them.

The hologram dissipated. Filna took a vial from her pocket and placed it in my hand.

— Take it. If you need it, use it. — Filna gave it to me.

— Thank you. — I put it away carefully.

“It could be the difference between living and… becoming something I’m not.”

Yumi took a deep breath, irritated, but didn't argue. Filna crossed her arms.

— Fujimoto , it's time to go back and solve your group's problems. — he said Filna .

— Okay… there's just one detail. How do I get back to Lilibel ? — I scratched the back of my neck.

"My sister and her boyfriend will take you." Filna smiled briefly, tiredly.

I smiled back.

—Thank you for everything. I won't let you down. — I replied.

Yumi , Shouta , and I made our way back to the forest to Lilibel.

We walked through the woods: me in front, Yumi and Shouta close behind. The wind smelled of damp earth. My chest felt heavy.

“ Yumi still looks at me like I'm a flaw to be corrected. And if Galadriel is right, I might be the wrong piece on Alisiya 's board …”

A metallic glint caught my attention. Yumi pulled a knife from her dress. Her arm began to move. Shouta grabbed her wrist in time.

— Stop, Yumi ! — he growled.

I turned around, terrified.

— Y- Yumi …? — I said scared.

useless he is ! If we want peace between the worlds, we need to kill him and bring Alisiya to our side! — she spat.

"Enough of this nonsense!" Shouta kept her arm immobilized.

— “ Fujimoto is the best”, “ Fujimoto is the smartest”, “ Fujimoto is the bravest in the world”… — Yumi scoffed.

A pang burned in my stomach. My power activated on its own, the Hidden Observatory hurt like a red-hot iron. Lies hurt.

"Stop! It hurts him!" Shouta yelled.

"He can't even control his own ability!" Yumi retorted.

"He'll learn. We don't have the right to make decisions like that." Shouta held on tight.

— Yes, we do! I'll fix it myself — Yumi kicked me to the side, freed her arm and advanced.

— Yumi , no—! — she screamed Shouta .

When she got close, the pain in my abdomen turned into a purple flash.

I felt the energy surge, cutting through my skin. A bolt of lightning escaped my navel and shot out.

— What—?! — Yumi tried to dodge. There was no time.

The lightning struck her and Shouta .

Frozen, I swallowed hard.

“I… killed them both?”

They remained standing. Uninjured.

“Now I ’m really dead.”

— I-I'm sorry… — I whispered.

Yumi dropped the knife. She walked toward me. I closed my eyes.

“She’s going to break me all over.”

Instead, I felt hands on my waist and her mouth on mine.

A kiss. Long. Hot.

“…What the hell …?”

She pulled away, panting.

— I bet that was your first kiss. So? — he asked Yumi .

I was burning all over.

— Why did you do that… and in front of Shouta ? — I asked.

"Because I wanted to be first. I wanted to kiss you first." Shouta pouted, irritated.

I put my hand to my abdomen, still tingling.

“That ray… wasn’t offensive. It was… succubus. A forced attraction to the caster. My… 15% inheritance. Damn.”

Yumi and Shouta looked at me with sea-like eyes. In love. And I saw, on the floor, ropes.

"If I don't do anything, they'll try something... and when the effects wear off, Yumi will still want to kill me. I need time. And control of the situation."

I forced a smile.

— I have an idea, — I said.

— Which one? — they said, in chorus, luminous.

"Do you have any coins with you?" I asked.

— We do. — they both replied.

—Can you give me all of them? — I asked.

"Of course!" Yumi and Shouta dumped their bags into my hand.

"Now, please strip down to your underwear and hand me your clothes," I said.

" Okay !" They took them off without a second thought and handed them to me. I walked to the bank and threw the clothes into the river.

"Last step. I'm going to tie you to the tree trunks, just until this effect wears off, okay?" I lifted the ropes.

— If that's what you want… — Yumi smiled, sweetly bewitched.

"We trust you." Shouta nodded, dumbfounded.

“I’m sorry, Filna . This is humiliating for your sister, I know. But I won’t touch anyone without permission. My father taught me that. And I’m not a monster.”

I tied Yumi to an oak tree, securely, without hurting her. Then, Shouta tied her to another nearby trunk.

Two minutes and thirty seconds have passed since the Hidden Observatory's beam struck Yumi and Shouta .

“By calculations, the effect lasts exactly three minutes. Just a few more seconds and it will be over.”

They both fainted.

Moments later, they opened their eyes and, looking around, realized they were tied to trees, wearing only their underwear.

Yumi turned red with anger.

— Get me out of here, you bastard!!! — Yumi screamed.

— Try to calm down, I just want to talk. — I asked , raising my hands.

Shouta looked at Yumi and then at himself.

— Yumi … we 're just in our underwear and panties… — Shouta said embarrassedly.

— What?! You pervert!!! — she screamed, desperate.

“With her screaming like that, I won’t be able to say anything.”

I sighed, took some tape from my pocket and stuck it over his mouth.

The silence was immediate.

— Shouta , can I trade with you? — I asked .

Yumi started shaking her head frantically, warning him not to accept it.

— I accept. — he replied. Shouta , ignoring her.

— Hmmmhmm ! — Yumi moaned irritably.

"Apparently, that purple lightning was a succubus' power. And, about the kiss… I wanted to apologize," I explained .

Shouta shook his head.

"Neither you nor Yumi need to apologize. She was under the influence of your ability, and you were just caught off guard," he said . Shouta .

—Even so, I'm sorry… really. Especially her. — I took a deep breath .

— Okay. But… can you let us go and give us back our clothes? — he replied . Shouta .

I scratched the back of my neck.

— There's a little problem with the clothes, — I said.

—What problem? — he asked suspiciously.

— I threw them in the river. And, well… I think the current already took them away. — I replied.

They both looked at me in horror.

Yumi : — HMMMMMMM!!! — Yumi said irritably.

Shouta : — So we're going to have to walk around the city in just our underwear?! — Shouta asked.

—Unfortunately, yes. — I replied , trying not to laugh.

— Okay … but at least untie us, come on. — Shouta insisted.

"Before that, I need to confirm something." I walked over to Yumi and removed the tape from her mouth. She spat in my face.

— Yumi , stop acting like a child. — he said Shouta sighing.

I wiped my face and looked at the two of them.

"I want to know why they were watching us. I doubt they were targeting me," I asked.

Yumi crossed her arms.

— I was monitoring Demonic Shana . — I answered Yumi .

— Shana ? Why? — I asked, not understanding.

"Because the deputy leader of the Demon Realm, Derek, asked Galadriel to appoint someone to protect Shana . And that someone was me," Yumi replied.

I understood everything right away.

—That's it then. I'll let you go. — I murmured .

I untied them and freed them. Shouta , as soon as he got up, tried to hug Yumi , but she moved away, embarrassed.

"You don't need to apologize. I still love you," he said .

Yumi blushed and looked away.

— That's why I love you, Shouta . — Yumi said.

you something confidential . — I said , seriously.

— What? — he asked. Yumi .

" Koharu is the heir of the Angelic Ones," I revealed to them.

Both of them widened their eyes.

— What?! Angelic 's daughter Hamarina ?! Yumi almost screamed.

—Exactly. Use these to cover yourselves. — I replied , throwing two cloaks to them.

— Thanks. — Shouta put his on.

— I'm still furious, but I'm going to take you back to Lilibel . — she said Yumi grumbling.

Back to Lilibel

The ride was silent. Yumi and Shouta dropped me off near the city gates.

— Now we're going to buy clothes. — he said. Yumi .

— And the coins? — he asked. Shouta .

"I have them. Thank you for saving me... even with all this." I took the bag out of my pocket and handed it to him.

They walked away, and I watched.

“It's time to put everything in order.”

I climbed the stairs to the second floor of the Adventurer's House.

Koharu was in the room, awake.

— Fujimoto ! I knew you were alive. — she hugged me.

We talked for a long time. I told her everything about the Mayumi sisters, the attack, the power, Galadriel 's message .

—So… what are we going to do with Shana ? — she asked.

— Let's gather everyone together. But we'll only talk when she's present. — I replied .

Koharu nodded.

"It's risky, but it's okay," Koharu said.

I called Max, Cassandra and Kairo to my room.

— Fujimoto , how did you manage to escape? — Max said .

I noticed that Cassandra looked dejected.

— Let's wait for Shana to arrive. — I replied .

Minutes later, the door opened. Shana walked in, still drowsy.

—Fujimoto died, and you all gathered here for the wake? — Shana asked .

She stopped, frozen, when she saw me.

— Surprise? — I asked .

— I missed you, Shana . — I said sarcastically.

“How… how did you manage to get back alone?!” Shana cried out in surprise.

The atmosphere was heavy.

Everyone was confused except me and Koharu .

— The person who saved me was the elf assigned to protect you. — I said .

Shana paled.

— Don't worry. I asked her not to mention anything in the report. — he said .

"Who is she?!" Shana shouted.

"She asked me not to reveal her name. But she'll be out soon," I said calmly.

Max frowned.

"Does anyone want to explain what's going on?" Max asked, confused.

“Don’t you dare tell!” Shana tried to stop him.

"People deserve to know the truth. Especially Max," I said firmly.

I told her everything, the plan, the blackmail, what she tried to do to me, and also to Kairo and Koharu .

The silence was absolute.

Max was shaking.

— "True love"? That's a lie, Shana . You don't love anyone. — Max shouted angrily.

She lowered her head.

— I'm sorry. — Shana apologized.

Max turned to me and punched Kairo , who fell.

— Max! — I shouted .

Kairo raised his hand in acceptance.

— It's okay, Fujimoto . I deserve it. — he said . Kairo sad.

Max then started towards Shana , but Cassandra and I held him back.

"How nice, attacking a defenseless woman?" Shana scoffed.

Koharu crossed the room, and slapped Shana hard across the face.

— Because I'm a woman. And I can hit you. — she said coldly.

Shana put her hand to her cheek, furious.

— You damn… — Shana said angrily.

" Fujimoto ! Kick that bitch out of the group. If you don't, I'm leaving!" Max yelled .

Shana started crying.

— Max, I'm sorry… I messed up. Let's try again. — Shana begged.

— No. You're rotten. — Max turned his back.

— Max, please! Don't leave. — I begged .

He pushed me, throwing me to the ground.

"You're a coward, Fujimoto . Or a fool for keeping this woman here," he said . max with hate.

Kairo tried to intervene.

— I want to apologize too. — he said Kairo .

— Shut up! — Max yelled.

He opened the door and walked out.

Little Kupi , the dragon, flew to him.

— I'm going with Max! — he said , deciding to accompany him.

The door slammed.

Silence.

Koharu turned around, furious.

—Are you happy, Shana ?! Did you get what you wanted?! — he asked Koharu sad and crying.

Shana didn't answer. She was sitting on the floor, crying.

Cassandra sighed.

"Let's go to our rooms. We need to cool off," Cassandra said depressedly.

Kairo looked at me.

— Fujimoto , I'm sorry. To all of you. — he said kairo sad.

I nodded.

"We'll rest now. Then… we'll figure out how to bring Max back," I said.

Each one went to their room.

And I was left there, alone, staring at the ceiling.

“I've lost control of the group… but I won't give up. Tomorrow, I'll start again.”