CHAPTER 231: SECRETS

"Oh, that HURTS!!!" I scream in anger and pain, a pain as if someone had hit me in the head with a baseball bat.

"Calm down, Shizune!" Nyzz appears, and unlike expected, it’s the "real" Nyzz, at least a tall humanoid body that reminds me of the Japanese legend, but she seems weaker, so I guess it’s an avatar.

"That hurt! A lot! It was like having my brain stabbed!" I say, holding my head that still suffers from these pains.

"Well, well, your soul was taken and thrown into another body, so it makes sense, but it’s over now. How about a hug and a treat?" She says in what seems like an insult.

"..." I decide to ignore this to check out my body, it’s the usual pattern, but this one seems more beautiful somehow.

"I see you’ve noticed, it’s a divine body, so it must be much better than the mortal bodies you’ve inhabited before," She says with a big smile as I see that I’m wearing an elegant black and purple evening dress that reminds me of the universe.

"This dress..."

"It’s a special taste of Yui’s, she likes clothes in this style, so I’ve already prepared it. I also managed to get the type of food she likes, the flowers she loves the most in all existence, the crystal-clear water from the small purple star, and world-class wooden materials for the table and house."

"Wait! You summed that up too much," I say, confused by everything.

"...Okay, I’ll speak more slowly. Yui likes this style of long dress, like the nobility of the older centuries, closer to medieval. She said something about liking the overall style of the dress."

"She also likes certain very specific foods that I’ve obtained, and I’ll keep the source a secret for you to try without worrying, since I think you really wouldn’t want to know where this food came from..."

"As for the flowers, she likes the frozen roses of Glacios, the coldest planet in existence. The flower is a rose that reminds of crystal, with a magnificent cyan color, considered the most beautiful blue of all."

"And for the water, she likes the Crystal Water from a planet called Small Purple Star, the hottest planet in existence. It has a special water that can withstand all that heat, because the water itself has vitality."

"To the point where a bottle of this water can cure any mortal disease," She says, leaving me confused.

"Wait, none of the planets I’ve been to had these things," I say, and she nods in agreement.

"More or less, the planets you’ve been to really didn’t have the exact ingredients, but you know the problem with these things? Their sheer natural lethality if used in pure form."

"The Roses are so absurdly cold that they freeze everything around them, to the point where they can literally freeze a star if thrown directly into it."

"And the water has a natural temperature of 8 trillion degrees Celsius, meaning it’s not exactly a pleasant drink. To cut these effects, there are some materials I’ve been gathering," She says, and I’m surprised.

"These super-dangerous things are things Yui likes?" I say in disbelief, never imagined she would like such deadly things.

"Shizune, humans like to observe stars, and they find a supernova beautiful, even though it’s deadly. It’s the same thing for Yui. Anyway, are you going to keep questioning things, or are you going to use them to win over Yui?" She says, now a little impatient.

"Of course I’ll use this! No matter what it is, if it’s no more dangerous, I’m more than happy to accept the help, but how will it be?" I ask to know how she’ll set up the encounter.

"I’ll take you to a wooden cabin in front of a beautiful lake, it’s a setting Yui would love. There, you should do whatever you think will help you try to win her over with the date."

"Then I’ll invite her to see you, it’s better than the weak invocation magic you were planning to use," She says, making me feel a bit humiliated for calling Yui’s invocation magic weak.

"Okay, okay, so can we start?" I’m quite excited to start this and see Yui again.

"Sure, I’ll take you to the place, and invite Yui, so just wait calmly inside the wooden cabin until Yui arrives, and don’t mention what we’re doing or the reasons for it."

"Also, don’t say that I had a hand in choosing the items, even though it’s kind of obvious that it wasn’t you who got them," She says, and I nod.

...

...

...

"Nyzz?" I hear someone knocking on my door, and somehow, since Nyzz is helping me with my task, I deduce that it’s her rather than a servant.

"That’s right, it’s me, Yui. I came to call you for a date with Shizune. She doesn’t know I’ve told you a lot, but it’s okay," She says as I go to the door.

"I’m glad you’re free," She says as I open the door.

"Ah, well, I actually have some papers to..."

"As I said, I’m glad you’re free, now come with me," She says with a smile, gently taking my hand and pulling me along, completely ignoring what I was going to say about being busy.

"..." I decide to just give up and let her guide me, since it’s obvious she’ll ignore my opinion completely.

"Where are we going?" I ask.

"To your room, I’ll put you in a beautiful dress so you can go on a date with Shizune. I don’t think you needed to ask when I already said it before," She says, leaving me confused.

"You said?" When I ask, she freezes, stopping and looking at me.

"..."

"Yui... your situation is getting worse... why do you keep piling on work in this condition?" She says, while I avert my gaze with the tone of disapproval and the exaggerated arm movements she makes.

"It’s not that bad," I say, but she doesn’t seem to believe me.

"No matter what you say, your situation is horrible and you won’t fool me... Anyway, let’s go," She says, pulling my hand towards my room.

"Why the date with Shizune?" I don’t understand even with her saying all those things.

"You don’t need to understand this, Yui, you just need to do it. I swear this will be good for you and Shizune... Plus, it’ll help you relax a bit and forget about your work," She says, but I notice the hesitation in her voice.

"Nyzz, tell me the truth... please," I say in a tired voice as we reach my room.

"Look... I can’t. If I tell the truth, you and Shizune wouldn’t accept it so well, but it’s the best for everyone. My plan will help Shizune not suffer from her curse anymore, and it will also prevent you, Yui, from collapsing the entire existence," She says, leaving me even more uncertain.

"Nyzz, are you really doing something good for me and Shizune? Or is it just revenge against my sister and Nyar?" I ask, which seems to offend her.

"Of course it’s..." She hesitates before speaking.

"...For you two... Yes, it’s obviously to help you both," She says, but this doesn’t inspire much confidence in me.

"Look, Yui, I like you as a friend, it’s true, and I even like Shizune, not in a love way, which is good since I don’t want to become a psychotically passionate Yandere. But I do have my appreciation for her, not just for revenge."

"But also because she helped deal with the boredom of everyday life at least for a while," She says, not convincing me at all.

"Why are you trying to justify yourself?" I say, which takes her by surprise.

"..."

"I know you’re angry... my sister did something terrible to you by killing the Order... but you don’t need to lie to me and Shizune about your motivations. If you’re going to do something that will cause problems, why do you think I’ll participate in this?" I say, trying to convince her not to be hasty.

"You’ll help because that’s just how you are. You know what happens to Shizune is no longer about justice, she’s already suffered more than she deserved, and your kind heart, when given the chance to help her, will seize the possibility," She says coldly.

"..."

"Will you go on the date with Shizune?" She asks with a smile, going to my closet and picking out a beautiful dress I have.

"I will..." She’s right, if this plan of hers can help Shizune, then I have no way to deny it, when it was a problem that my sister caused.

’Until the end, I’m cleaning up Sayuri’s messes...’ It’s regrettable, but I can’t change it.

"Okay, then. I just hope, Nyzz, that your plan... doesn’t do anything bad to the others," I say as Nyzz gives me a big smile.

"Of course, I promise. This plan will save many, in fact, this plan is kind of going to save the entire existence since your death would kill everyone," She says, giving me more confidence.

"Then I hope at least to have an enjoyable date to forget about work," I say as she averts her gaze, but gives a smile.

"Yes, I think Shizune will give you an incredible date..." She says, bringing me the dress to wear.

"Get dressed, and I’ll take you to the place soon..."