"We're getting off track. So, you came here to get my permission for a duel between Araragi and those three hunters? To fight for Kiss-shot's limbs?" Sū ěr swirled the cola in his cup.
"Well~ that's only part of it~" Meme Oshino waved his hand. A hint of worry was visible on his face. "Mostly, it's because of you, Sū-san."
"Balance?" Sū ěr asked back.
"Exactly. Sū-san, just you sitting here is a major problem," Oshino sighed. "To anyone else, it might look fine, but to my eyes, you're like a massive maelstrom, constantly pulling everything from the outside toward its center."
"...I've broken your balance?" Despite being described like some sort of "All the World's Evil," Sū ěr could accept the explanation. Compared to every other living being in this world, he, Think, and Jibril were outsiders. "Are you going to exorcise me? Like how you stole her heart for the sake of balance?"
Whatever the reason, he wouldn't just sit and wait for death, nor would he give up his life.
"No, no, no! I have absolutely no intention of doing that," Oshino said, looking genuinely nervous for the first time. "Actually, given my strength, I couldn't even influence someone like you, let alone 'balance' you."
Seeing the confused looks on Araragi and Hanekawa faces, Oshino flipped over the lid of the wing bucket and placed it flat on the table, white side up.
"If we treat you and the King of Oddities as points, the range she can influence is a city or a small country. Wherever she appears, all other oddities and anomalies will treat her as the center, gathering around her consciously or unconsciously."
Oshino drew a circle on the lid with his fingernail, then drew a straight line next to it. He kept tracing the line until it curved, almost overlapping with the circle.
"The direct manifestation of this is that the frequency of people encountering oddities increases, and the strength of the oddities that appear will get higher and higher. Even yōkai will inadvertently encounter her multiple times. Over time, the 'human' part of this city or country will become the minority—the balance will be broken. Can you imagine that?"
"...Yes."
Araragi and Hanekawa answered in unison. In the extreme scenario Oshino described, many urban legends would stop being mere legends—like Hanako of the Toilet or the Slit-Mouthed Woman.
After all, oddities exist because people believe in them. The more people fear them, the stronger they become.
The more the balance is broken, the more likely these oddities are to physically manifest in the world.
At the very least, Araragi didn't want to open a bathroom stall and find Hanako. What a nightmare... he began to agree with Oshino.
"As for you, Sū-san, it's completely different," Oshino's "headache" seemed to intensify.
On the back of the lid, he drew a circle, then drew a line next to it that reached almost across the entire lid. He made the line curve, approaching the circle. He didn't finish drawing, but the others understood.
"The King of Oddities can only influence a city or a small country. But the range you can influence is so vast I can't even estimate it. Should I say it's as large as a continent? Or an entire world? Ah, what a pain~"
"...You can see intangible things like balance?" Sū ěr was slightly surprised.
"No, no, it's based on observation~" Oshino laughed, waving his hand. "It's judged by the number, frequency, and location of oddity incidents. Hmm... I also asked some of my classmates~ They're investigating the cause of these anomalies too."
"A few months ago, centered around Japan and including the country across the sea, various oddity incidents suddenly surged. Then, for a few weeks about a month ago, the frequency suddenly dropped. But it didn't last. For the past month, they've surged again... That's why my classmates investigating abroad asked me to come take a look."
Sū ěr remained silent. Oshino's words were too pointed; he had no reason to think otherwise—the frequency of oddities was clearly tied to his presence in this era.
Think began to think as well.
"What happens if this continues?" Araragi couldn't help but ask. This was exactly what Sū ěr wanted to know.
"Who knows?" Oshino shrugged. "Probably yōkai and oddities will no longer be able to hide in the shadows. They'll be openly recognized by humanity."
"But I've heard some interesting news from the yōkai in Kyushu~" Oshino blocked the side of his face with one hand and leaned toward Sū ěr, whispering: "Apparently, the yōkai there are convinced that if this continues, an era of yōkai revival will arrive—according to them, the 'spiritual power' in this world is increasing~"
Spiritual power is increasing?
Sū ěr looked up, observing the air. He hadn't noticed this before, but looking closely now, he realized the spiritual power in the air was indeed higher than when he first arrived.
Was it because of Amaterasu's death? The shattering of the small world? Or the collapse of the Galaxy, its energy merging into heaven and earth?
In other words—his actions in the past had changed the future he knew from Nurarihyon?
"Then this is an unsolvable problem, isn't it?" Sū ěr said calmly. "You don't expect me to give up my life just to balance the number of humans and oddities, do you?"
"No, no, of course not. I only seek balance; slaughter is not my goal," the frivolous man turned serious for a few seconds. "Actually, a senior of mine has a theory, but let's set that aside for now. Isn't Araragi-kun's situation more urgent?"
"Let's balance the King of Oddities situation first. That should at least reduce the number of oddities... to be honest, it's already becoming more than we can handle..."