"This Bubble Universe really is strange enough. Even among all the ones I've seen, it's one of the weirdest."
Brain split open, cooked, crushed, and flushed down the drain... that was what Lin felt upon waking up. His fragmented vision assembled into a complete shape. He heard Yama low murmur. He grabbed something nearby for support, waiting for the headache to subside.
Once it eased, he realized he was holding onto Yama shoulder. He looked up and met Yama eyes, which were less than five centimeters away. Yama eye color was the extreme opposite of her hair. Her hair was a silver-white without a single blemish, but her eyes were a pure black—a deep tone that could swallow light itself.
"Want to kiss?" she asked coldly.
"..."
They were indeed too close. Lin let go of her. She gave him one more look but didn't press the matter, treating it as compensation for her sleeping on his lap earlier.
After separating, he noticed his body seemed to have returned to its original state... not. His eye level was indeed much higher, and his previously weak frame had regained the strength of an adult, but he could tell this wasn't his original age. It was a younger point in time—about seventeen or eighteen.
Yama, however, looked exactly as she did when Lin first met her. Perhaps her appearance had stopped aging at a relatively young point.
The surroundings had changed too. Previously, they were in a carriage being transported, but now they stood in a long-forgotten, familiar place.
Chiba Academy.
The bustling high school campus filled with youthful energy was the turning point of Lin life. His reconstruction and his step into another world had all begun here.
"A Bubble Universe that pushes time forward about ten years every twenty-four hours..." Yama pinched various parts of her body, seemingly confirming something. "This is likely the inherent rule of this world."
Lin looked into the distance and saw that towering clock tower. It seemed that even after ten years, it still existed, and it had "moved" to Nagazora City.
"Ten years. We don't know what happened to us during this time, or how our relationships changed... however..."
Lin saw Yama stand in the crowd and reach out, clenching her fist in the sunlight. Immediately, a mechanical arm covered in armor flickered over her arm for half a second before vanishing. No one noticed but Lin.
Her rigid face relaxed slightly. "My Herrscher authority has returned a bit."
"..."
This wasn't good news for Lin. The return of her authority meant she had the ability to break out of the Bubble Universe. If she could leave on her own, their partnership would instantly shatter, and she would fulfill her promise to kill him without hesitation.
Fortunately, Yama didn't seem to have such intentions yet. She adjusted her shoulder bag and headed toward the classroom. Lin was about to follow when he suddenly stopped, staring at Yama unwavering back.
Why...?
"Yo! Lin! Morning! Did you check out that dish I sent you yesterday? Can you replicate it?"
A strong arm hooked around Lin neck. He turned his head to see a bright, slightly goofy face leaning in.
"Kevin..."
"Why do you look like you haven't woken up? Did you stay up all night gaming? Catch some sleep during history class later. I'm coming over to your place tonight, after all. As the host, you can't be listless."
Kevin cheerful appearance was no different from the high school days in Lin memory, before he became that humanoid refrigeration machine.
"By the way, what's your parents' temper like? Should I try to act more refined?"
"...I don't have parents."
"Hahaha! Are you sleeping-drunk? At the last parent-teacher meeting, your and Yama parents came. They only stayed for a bit before leaving, but how could you possibly..."
Yama stopped walking and turned back. Her eyes met Lin, and both saw a hint of strangeness in each other's gaze. Yama felt her bag was bulging. She opened it and saw the object inside.
Compared to before, it had grown more fur, and it was more twisted and pitch-black. It no longer looked like a monkey's paw, but like... the arm of a demon.
"My dearest friend, Kevin, remember that night back in school when we gamed so late at the net cafe that we couldn't catch a taxi and had to get a hotel room?"
"..."
"There was only one king-size bed left. You suggested using pillows and blankets to separate the middle as an 'anti-gay device.' I didn't say anything then, but I was actually wondering if you were a closeted gay guy."
"..."
"After all, think about it—you actually needed an 'anti-gay device' to prevent yourself from doing me in the middle of the night. What does that imply? If it were me, seeing my bro sleeping next to me, I'd just think about continuing to sleep, not doing your rectum. But you waking up and thinking about doing me... the only reason you didn't cross the line—and the 'exhaust port'—was because of that device."
Lin shrugged. "That's truly terrifying, isn't it? To the point that until you actually started chasing Mei, I wondered if you were just using 'chasing girls' as an excuse to get close to me."
Everyone present, except for the expressionless Kevin, looked as though they had seen a ghost.
"Um... is Captain Lin..." Dystopia gave a dry laugh and poked Kosma waist. "...possessed?"
Kosma looked like he wanted to say something, glancing at Lin and then at Dystopia, but ultimately chose silence. They were all still mentally preparing for the Project Soldier surgery in half a month when they received news that Lin might be suffering from side effects caused by the surgery.
"Um... my friend, what... happened to you?"
The usually steady Eden was also staring at the smiling Lin with suspicion. Lin change was so great she almost couldn't recognize him. Not just in appearance—she had always felt Lin was a very calm and profound person. How could he suddenly become like this?
"I think I'm fine, my friend. May I ask if you have time tonight so I can invite you for a small drink?" Lin gave her a slight smile. "Then we can discuss the essence of art and philosophy—such as Andromaque and Nietzsche—and perhaps refine our friendly bilateral relationship."
Ato stood dumbfounded as he watched Lin smooth sequence of flirting. He walked over with a sigh and patted Lin shoulder.
"Lin, you finally..."
"Yeah, I finally..." Lin also patted his shoulder with a sigh.
"I think he's Big Brother Lin." Pardo, with her mouth full of chicken from the snacks Lin had stuffed her with, raised her hand to share her opinion.
Mobius pushed her away expressionlessly. "Like hell he is."