In the manor's basement, the mirror that had been cloudy and dim suddenly flared with a clear, brilliant light.
Kawashima Toya stepped out, bringing Sawamura Spencer Eriri with him.
"Is this... reality?" Eriri looked around, her eyes darting suspiciously at the familiar surroundings.
"Of course it is," Toya nodded gently. "Come on, let's go outside."
As they reached the basement entrance, they found Nyaruko sitting there, looking bored as she waited for their return.
"Darling! You made it out!" Nyaruko's eyes lit up with pride. "As expected of my Darling, you cleared the banquet!"
"However, Darling, you shouldn't attempt the remaining two banquets just yet."
"The 'Present' and the 'Future' are the most troublesome of the three. Please wait until you've grown stronger before challenging them."
"Understood," Toya replied, though he couldn't help but sigh. "But Nyaruko, since you know what the banquets entail..."
"Why can't you just tell me the meaning of this mirror?"
"Nope!" Nyaruko grinned mischievously, pressing a finger to her lips. "Knowing the mirror's function right now won't help you, Darling."
"Once Darling completes the 'Future' banquet and prepares to face the 'Present,' you'll understand everything yourself."
"Just remember: this mirror seems useless most of the time, but when it's truly needed, it will be indispensable."
"Speaking in riddles again," Toya muttered, deciding not to press further.
Since Nyaruko refused to spill the beans, no amount of questioning would get an answer out of her.
Next to him, Eriri looked completely lost. "Future banquet? Present banquet?"
"What are you guys talking about?"
Toya shrugged. "Sorry, even I don't know the full details, so don't expect an answer from me."
"Eriri, get some rest tonight."
"I'll take you home tomorrow."
As they walked away, Nyaruko watched Eriri's retreating figure with a playful glint in her eyes. "Darling probably didn't notice, did he?"
.....
The next morning, Toya arranged for a private car to take Eriri home.
Along the way, the sky was a clear, brilliant blue, and the sunlight was warm—a stark contrast to the bizarre, faded world of the "Past."
"This is the real world..." Eriri stared out the window nostalgically as the scenery passed by. "No need to worry about monsters..."
"Believe me now? This is reality," Toya chuckled.
Thirty minutes later, the car arrived at the familiar residential district. Eriri's family home was just ahead.
"Finally home!" Eriri stretched her arms, filled with anticipation to see her mother again.
"Eh?!"
But the scene on the front lawn made Eriri freeze in her tracks.
Toya looked into the yard and frowned. "There's... another Eriri in the villa?"
Sitting quietly on the lawn, with her back to them, was a figure identical to Eriri. She seemed to be basking in the sunlight.
"Another me?" Eriri stared at the figure, her mind in chaos.
Toya's brow furrowed. "Two Eriris?"
"What's going on? Is the one in the villa a fake?"
He activated his Mystic Eyes of Death Perception. The world looked normal.
The Eriri on the lawn had no anomalies; she wasn't a monster in disguise.
"The Eriri beside me is also normal," Toya muttered, examining the girl next to him. She was a living, breathing human being.
"This is troublesome."
Just as Toya was puzzling over the situation, he noticed something odd. The Eriri on the lawn hadn't moved a muscle for quite some time.
They had been standing there for a while, yet she remained perfectly still. For a living person, that was highly abnormal.
"Eriri, let's go inside and check."
Toya spoke to the Eriri beside him and effortlessly hopped over the gate into the villa grounds.
"..." Eriri stared at him with a complicated expression. "Kawashima... you jumped over, but what about me?"
"That gate is three or four meters high! How am I supposed to jump that?"
Toya smirked and pointed to the gaps between the iron bars of the gate. "Eriri, you shouldn't doubt yourself."
"You...!" Eriri's face turned pale with indignation. "If you weren't my savior, I'd kill you right now!"
"Emergency situation! Don't get mad!"
"We still don't know what's wrong with the 'you' inside."
Toya watched with a pitiful expression as Eriri managed to squeeze through the gaps in the bars.
Such a cute girl, yet she fits through the bars like that... what a waste.
"Eriri, let's go take a look."
"You just thought something rude about me, didn't you?" Eriri glared at him suspiciously. "I'll let it slide this time, but I'll get you back later."
.....
"The priority is to figure out why this happened."
When Toya and Eriri approached the figure on the lawn, they realized the issue was simpler than expected.
The Eriri on the grass was sunbathing, but her eyes were dull and lifeless, and her face was completely blank.
She stared at the sky like a doll, devoid of any expression.
She looked like... a complete idiot.
"Pfft!"
"Eriri, look at yourself. You look so stupid right now."
Even with his rigorous training in keeping a straight face, Toya couldn't help but laugh out loud.
Eriri's face turned black. She bared her cute tiger tooth and hissed, "Don't laugh! What's so funny?!"
"Shouldn't we be finding the cause?!"
"Give me a second," Toya wheezed, unable to stop smiling.
.....
Laughing at Eriri right to her face was a bit mean, but he couldn't help it. The Eriri on the lawn just looked too goofy.
Eriri's face flushed red, her anger rising rapidly.
Just then, a woman's surprised voice came from the villa, instantly extinguishing Eriri's rage.
"Eh? Am I seeing things?"
"Why are there two Eriris?"
A beautiful woman with long, silky black hair, dressed in a kimono, walked out slowly. She looked back and forth between the two Eriris in shock.
"Since when did I have two daughters?"
"Mom!"
Eriri, having not seen her mother in what felt like forever, rushed forward and hugged her.
Sawamura Sayuri held her daughter, confusion flashing in her eyes. "Eriri... there are two of you?"
"Can someone give me an explanation I can accept?"
Toya nodded with a smile. "Before that, Sayuri-san, could you explain what's going on with the... intellectually challenged Eriri over there?"
He didn't know the cause either, so hearing Sayuri's perspective on the situation was the logical first step.
"You can't call me 'san' like an old lady, you know," Sayuri said with a gentle, playful smile. "But given the emergency, I'll let it slide."
"Next time, remember to call me Sayuri-oneesan!"
Saying this, Sayuri patted Eriri's head and spoke softly. "It all started about a month ago."