Alisiya's Interrogation

That night seemed endless. I lay there, my eyes fixed on the cabin ceiling, but sleep wouldn't come. My head was spinning, replaying everything that had happened that day… a nightmare I couldn't wake up from.

I glanced to the side; Max and Koharu were fast asleep, breathing calmly, oblivious to the storm raging inside me.

"I need to get out of here... before I go crazy."

I stood up slowly, put on my sandals, and carefully opened the door. The cold desert air cut through my skin, and the icy sand beneath my feet made me shiver. Still, I kept walking, without looking back .

Hiroshi's words still echoed in my mind, like invisible currents: "You can become a woman once and for all."

"I need to get out of here as fast as possible, even if it's without a destination."

I kept walking, guided only by the desire to get away from him.

The moon illuminated the desert with a pale light. With each step, the sound of the wind mingled with my thoughts. The body I carried felt strange, heavy, different, distant. I looked at myself… at the full breasts that were now there, at the absence of what once defined me.

"I can't feel anger... just a tremendous emptiness."

Memories began to mingle with the mirages of the night. Faces, voices, screams. Everything merged into a mosaic of pain and helplessness. I walked until I reached a small oasis, the same one where we had bathed yesterday.

The water was calm, reflecting the moon. I knelt down and looked at the reflection.

The face I saw... wasn't mine.

It was a woman's face.

That lost look in her eyes, the longer hair, the soft features, and yet, there was something of me there, hidden beneath it all.

The lump in my throat tightened. My vision blurred. I felt the tears burning.

I picked up a stone and threw it into the water with all my might. The reflection shattered into distorted waves.

"My name is not Fujinomiya !!! My name is Fujimoto !!!" I shouted , and the echo of my voice spread across the dunes until it disappeared.

For a few seconds, I stood there, breathing heavily, while the cold wind embraced me like a reminder that, even if I screamed, no one would answer.

So I lifted my head, wiped away my tears, and kept walking aimlessly, without a destination. I just wanted to disappear from everyone's sight. Maybe even from myself.

Meanwhile. In the basement of Alisiya 's house .

The air there was heavy, damp, and tense. Aioze watched the sisters Mayumi and Shouta , while Alisiya struggled in her chains, screaming incessantly.

— Please, let me go! Filna ! Yumi ! Shouta ! Help me! — she screamed , her voice cracking.

Aioze approached with slow steps, his gaze as cold as steel. Without hesitation, he took the sword and placed it in Alisiya 's mouth , pushing the blade until the metallic touch echoed.

"I hate hearing your voice. If you open your mouth one more time, I'll break your teeth and cut off your tongue," she said in a firm, low voice.

A deathly silence filled the basement.

Filna , looking downcast, gently tugged at the sleeve of her sister Yumi 's shirt .

Yumi understood the gesture, but looked away, her face hardening.

"Unfortunately, I'm not going to help. That wretched woman deserves to suffer all kinds of bad things. She and her mother made life hell for many... especially ours," he replied coldly.

Aioze smiled slightly, satisfied.

"You're smart, Yumi ," Aioze praised her.

He turned to Filna with a warning look.

"Don't be fooled by malicious people feigning remorse," Aioze warned Filna .

Filna let go of her sister's sleeve and stepped away.

But suddenly, he raised his face, his gaze now burning with fury.

"Hiroshi violated Alisiya , and you want to take her to the same place he did?!" she shouted. FILNA .

Everyone turned to her, surprised.

Yumi noticed the subtle glow surrounding her sister's body—the same glow that always preceded the activation of an ability.

— Filna , don't do that! — she shouted . Yumi .

"I can't allow something like this!!!" he yelled . Filna .

Filna 's Teleportation magic activated, and in an instant Alisiya vanished from her chains, transported out of the house.

Aioze , Lysandra , and Yumi stood paralyzed for a second, unable to process what had just happened.

Then, the silence of the basement was broken by the distant sound of the wind and the certainty that, at that moment, the pieces had moved on their own.

The atmosphere was tense, the air heavy with dust and residual magic. The silence was broken by a scream.

— Filna , have you gone mad?!!! — she yelled Yumi , her eyes wide.

"You allowed hatred to corrupt you," he replied . Filna , firm, but with a trembling voice.

Yumi raised her hand, attempting her magical pose to use her Time Reversal ability. Yumi 's body glowed purple, but nothing happened.

"Why... why doesn't it work?!" Yumi shouted.

Filna looked at her with a cold, almost pitying gaze.

"Have you forgotten that your power has no effect on a Guardian of God?" Filna said.

Yumi bit her lip in frustration.

Aioze , who had been silent until then, took a step forward. His gaze was filled with anger.

"Do you have any idea how much effort we put into capturing her?! Do you know how much each of us suffered?! What we went through because of her?!" he shouted .

Filna maintained her composure, even with the threatening tone.

Yuuki approached slowly, with clenched fists.

"I hate Hiroshi. I hate that worm from the bottom of my soul. But even so, I worked alongside him to capture Alisiya . And you… you threw all our hard work in the trash," she said , her voice heavy.

Filna looked away, her eyes welling with tears.

Gerald stepped between them, raising his hand.

"That's enough. Arguing now won't change anything. We'll think of a plan tomorrow," he said calmly.

Aioze sighed angrily, sheathing his sword.

Okay. Let's sleep here tonight. We'll see what to do tomorrow.

Footsteps echoed through the basement as Aioze , Yuuki , Gerald, and Lysandra climbed the stairs. The door slammed shut, and the sound of the lock echoed like a hammer blow.

"No! Wait! Don't leave us locked in here!" he shouted . Yumi , desperate.

"Consider this a punishment for Filna 's actions ," Aioze replied without looking back.

Silence returned.

Filna lowered her head, her breathing heavy.

Yumi looked at her coldly.

"I agree with Aioze . I won't use my power to go back in time. You made a mistake saving Alisiya ," he said . Yumi .

Filna didn't answer. She just sat down in a dark corner, hugging her knees.

Shouta watched everything, speechless, only hearing the sound of the wind passing through cracks in the wall.

Yumi sighed and sat down on the floor next to her sister, without looking at her.

The basement fell silent.