Attractions lined up in a large area, the Ferris wheel in the distance, and the flamboyant performances unfolding one after another in front of the eyes of the audience. A magician in a phantom mask spreads cards in front of the boy.「Now, Rintaro, choose one card you like!」

The boy with glasses and a mean look in his eyes timidly chose a card from the ones offered to him. The magician placed the palm of his hand between the eyebrows of his white mask and snapped his fingers.

「Mmmm, I get it!　The card chosen by Rintaro-kun is definitely the ace of spades!」

「Wow, that’s amazing, SHIVA! How did you know!」

With a twinkle in his eye, the young Rintaro compared the card in his hand with the magician’s.

「That’s because I’m an archmage of the highest rank!」

When SHIVA tapped his cane, the surrounding attractions all began to move at once. Lively music rang out, countless playing cards rained down from the sky, and white doves flew around.

「Waaaaaaaaaah!」

「Rintaro, take my hand! Let’s go, we’ll fly!」

SHIVA gently held the boy’s hand, and his body floated softly, defying gravity. As if in a fairy tale, the two soared into the sky, hand in hand.

「Wow, we are flying!　We are flying, SHIVA!」

「Fufu, how is it Rintaro-kun, is it fun?」

「Un! It’s very fun!」

When the young Rintaro gave a big smile, SHIVA also smiled under his mask.

「I see, that’s good. The innocent soul choking with joy will be embraced by the black darkness and reach Cocytus.」

「……Eh? What? What is happening?」

「The puppet pulls the strings and shoots the red arrow that pierces the saint. The chain will be broken, and the silver rain dew will curse the budding of a new evil. The gods will mourn, the people will be terrified, the sky will fall, the sea will wither, and the earth will turn black. Pray for their eternal blessing and destruction!」

「I- I’m scared, SHIVA! What is wrong with you?」

The young Rintaro looked into SHIVA’s face, frightened.

But it was not SHIVA who was there. Under his butterfly-shaped mask, his thin, venom-colored lips smiled suspiciously.

「Hik…… Uwaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!」

The hand that was holding him unexpectedly let go, and young Rintaro fell headfirst from the high high sky.

The paradise of magic tricks spread out on the ground was dyed purple. They melted into sludge, mixed together, and transformed into a gigantic monster.

Jaws like scissors, two huge scythes, and a scorpion-like tail that slithered like a snake. What emerged from the swamp of insect venom was a monster that looked as if it had been boiled down to a hideous mess.

「The time of the black feast has come. Gishaaaaah!」

「He- Help me, Victor Rangeeeeeeeeer!!!」

…………

「NNhaaaa!! ……Haa…… Hah……」

Rintaro woke up, gasping for breath, and fell off the bed with such force that he hit the back of his head hard against the leg of the bed, and this time he writhed in agony from the impact.

「Aーーーi!!! Aーーーーーu!!!」

A thin, mosquito-like scream that barely functioned as a voice echoed quietly in the corner of the room.

Once the pain had passed, Rintaro laid on his back on the carpet with his arms and legs stretched out.

In the dimly lit room, he can vaguely see the ceiling. It is the ceiling of his room, which he was already familiar with.

「Dream…… Somehow, I feel like I just had a very scary dream……」

Perhaps because of the damage he sustained in waking up, the content of the dream had completely slipped from his memory. Incidentally, Rintaro’s interest in magic did not begin until after he entered the Hero School, so his memory of this dream was obviously a fabrication.

Holding his aching head, he slowly raised himself up and fumbled with his hands to see if there was anything wrong with himself.

A watery sensation was felt on his fingertips. His pants and the bandages wrapped around his body were soaked with sweat.

At the same time that he became aware of his night sweats, a chill swept over his entire body. However, the sheets are also soaking wet, and he had no desire to return to bed.

「Uu…… So cold so cold…… Sneeze!」

Rintaro shivered and turned his attention to the door from which light was leaking into  the room.

「……Hurry, ta- take a shower……」

When he opened the door, the changing room was filled with warm steam.

When he stepped into the bathroom, the tub was already filled with slightly hot water.

「Did Sametchi put it in for me out of consideration? …S- Sneeze! No, I really will catch a cold if I don’t shower quickly.」

He unwrapped the damp bandage, took off his wet pants, and threw them in the washing machine. After pouring the bathwater over himself, Rintaro threw the bath salts from Noboribetsu Onsen into the bathtub, which had been prepared for some reason.

Then, slowly, toes first, he sank his body into the wide tub.

「Aaaaaaaaaaa…… aa……」

The milky hot water warmed his frozen body. The blood slowly flowed to the bruises he’d gotten from falling underground and to his side, where the bones were just beginning to heal. But the most affected part is his heart.

The hot water of Noboribetsu sinked into his wounded heart.

「…………………………………………」

Tears streamed down Rintaro’s cheeks as he realized. Was it water from the melting ice in his heart, or was it blood shed by the wounds in his heart?

Rintaro quietly sank into the white water to prevent further tears from flowing.

………………

…………

……

「Hey Kirika, why do we have to go through the trouble of taking a bath!?」

「Of course it’s to cleanse your body. And when you get out, you brush your teeth. I even brought a new toothbrush from my room.」

As Rintaro was drifting like a jellyfish under the bathtub, the changing room suddenly became noisy. However, the voices do not reach Rintaro, who has been so traumatized that he had turned into nothing.

「Do I have to brush my teeth every time I want to draw body fluid(blood)?」

「Of course. It’s common sense, Minato-san.」

「Is it common sense!? Uumu, I didn’t learn that when I was in medical school ……? I guess it’s different between a human and a mysterious being……?」

「It’s fine, just hurry up and take your clothes off. I’ll go first.」

The bathroom door rattled open. The sound of the door slamming faintly in his ears brought Rintaro back to consciousness.

At the same time, he was reminded of the basic act of life, breathing.

「Huh? Minato-san, have you put the bath salts in yet?」

「Npuhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!」

A man emerged from the bottom of the white bathtub like a monster. He stood before the stunned Kirika.

「Haa…… Haa…… I thought I was gonna die……」

「…………………………………………Eh?」

「……………………Ah?」

Rintaro wiped the water around his eyes with his hand and stared into the steam that fills the bathroom.

Even without glasses, she was clearly visible at a distance.

Her beautiful silvery white hair flowed freely, and her sky-blue eyes were wide-open. Her shoulders and hips were in a graceful line, and her legs were slender and white.

A devout person seeing her completely naked appearance would mistake it for the birth of a goddess.

「……………………Huh?」

「～～～～～～～～～～-!」

Rintaro is quick to take in the situation, and quietly returned to the bathtub. And despite his attempts to settle the situation peacefully, young Rintaro was not at all calm.

On the other hand, Mayuzumi Kirika has a reputation for aggressive offensiveness, but is vulnerable to irregularities.

Being alone with other women, she was completely off guard, but in an instant her face turned bright red all the way to her ears.

「…………Umm, the weather is nice today.」

「Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa! ! ! ! !」

Not only the bathroom, but the entire Ark Dominion underground secret base trembled. A shriek that tore through silk was followed by a whip-like leg slicing through the air.

Hyugoooh!!!

Kirika’s backward kick, which was quickly executed, hit Rintaro in the chin

With a “kokyoku” sound, Rintaro’s strength drained from his body. Like a boxer collapsing on a white mat, Rintaro and the young Rintaro sank into the white bathtub of Noboribetsu.

「Wh- Wh- Wh- What happened, Kirika! Wha-…… Ri- Ri- Ri- Rintaro!?」

「Hah…… Oh no! I accidentally did a spin kick! Senpai, please pull yourself together, senpai!」

There was no referee to count to 10.

…………

「…………u……」

Rintaro woke up on his bed.

In the dimly lit room, he could vaguely see the ceiling. It was the ceiling of his room, which he was already familiar with.

「Dream…… Somehow, I feel like I just had a very good dream……」

「Good morning senpai, did you sleep well?」

Beside the large bed, his kouhai was sitting in a chair and smiling. However, the smile seemed somewhat awkward.

---

<164: At Dream’s Mercy
166: Yokohama Encounter>