Null shifted slightly, leaning back on his hands as if the question had just casually slipped out of him.
"…So, Sora-san."
His voice was lighter now. Still tired—but stable.
"When are you leaving for home?"
Sora blinked.
The sudden shift caught her off guard.
"…What?"
Her brows knit slightly.
"…Where did you learn that—"
She stopped mid-sentence.
A flicker of realization crossed her face.
"…Ah."
A small pause.
"…Right. Illiana did mention it yesterday, didn't she…"
Null tilted his head, watching her.
"Well yeah," he said dryly.
"You just didn't realize till now because you were too flustered at that time."
Sora's head snapped toward him.
"I am not flustered!!!"
She protested, her voice adament yet lacking conviction.
Null didn't even hesitate.
"You are."
A beat.
"But then again, it's a tsundere's nature to be in constant denial, I guess."
He tapped his chin thoughtfully.
"Although you're only a half-tsundere. That doesn't make it any less tsundere-like."
A pause.
"And as for the other 'dere' potential you have…"
He stopped himself.
"…Nah. Forget it."
He waved a hand dismissively.
"I'd rather not say that dangerous word. lest I jinx things."
Sora stared at him.
Completely lost.
"…Tsundere? Dere?"
Her head tilted slightly.
"What are you talking about, Null-san?"
Null's lips curved with faint, secret amusement.
"They are forbidden beings from my home world."
A dramatic pause.
"Even the knowledge about them is forbidden."
He lowered his voice conspiratorially.
"Only dark entities known as 'otaku' are privileged to this knowledge."
Sora's eyes widened slightly.
"…Eh?"
Her curiosity instantly sparked.
"Eh? Isn't your home world absent of mana?
She leaned forward slightly, genuinely intrigued.
"How is it possible for such supernatural beings to exist?"
Null hummed.
"Hmmm…"
A small pause.
"…About that—"
He stopped.
Then shook his head.
"On second thought, forget it."
A faint smile.
"You'll eventually get to learn about the heaven-shattering mysteries of my home world when you visit it in the future."
Sora blinked.
"…Visiting your world?"
A beat.
"How?"
Null looked at her—really looked this time.
"Well…"
He shifted slightly.
"When I become strong enough to travel between worlds…"
A quiet certainty settled in his tone.
"I plan to return to my home world."
A pause.
Then, a little more softly—
"If you want, why don't you come on a vacation trip to my home world with me when that time comes?"
Sora stilled.
Null scratched his cheek lightly, almost bashful now.
"I'll make sure to escort you personally."
A faint smile.
"Give you a tour you'll never forget."
His gaze softened.
"Even though it's a mortal plane without mana… I assure you—it has its own beauty."
A pause.
"Mundane wonders that a supernatural world like this could never compare to… regardless of how pure it is."
Silence.
Then—
"Really!!!"
Sora's voice burst out.
Bright.
Unrestrained.
Even her usually aloof persona melted away
Gone.
Completely.
Her sky-blue pupils shimmered—
Faintly shifting toward cyan—
Sparkling with pure, unfiltered excitement.
Before she realized it—
She leaned forward, breaching his personal space.
Far too close.
Null blinked, slightly taken aback.
"…Yeah."
A small nod.
"If you want to."
Sora's face lit up.
"Then count me in, Null-san!"
Her voice carried an almost childlike joy.
"I've always dreamed of visiting a mortal plane!"
A small breath.
"I heard those mana-less worlds are very peaceful."
Null rolled his eyes.
"That's an exaggeration."
His tone steadied.
"You should know that no world is truly peaceful."
A quiet pause.
"As long as clash of wills and ideals exist… perfect peace is impossible."
His gaze drifted slightly.
"Whether that world has supernatural power or not."
Sora blinked.
Then—
Giggled softly.
"Oh my, Null-san."
Her eyes curved.
"I didn't expect you to be so philosophically mature."
"What a surprise."
Null immediately frowned.
"That's rude, Sora-san."
He puffed his cheeks slightly.
"Despite us being the same age, I possess my home world's forbidden knowledge."
A small huff.
"It's only natural for me to be more mature than you."
Sora laughed lightly.
"Hehe… Only an immature kid would say something like that."
A pause.
Then, softer—
"But still…"
She looked at him directly.
"It's a promise, okay?"
Her voice held quiet sincerity.
"When you find a way to return to your world…"
"You absolutely have to take me there at least once."
Null looked at her.
Then smiled faintly.
"…Yeah."
"It's a promise."
A small silence followed.
Then—
Null tilted his head slightly.
"…By the way, Miss Saintess."
A beat.
"how much longer do you plan on keep breathing in my personal space?"
Sora froze.
"…Eh?"
And then—
Realization hit.
Hard.
Their faces—
Inches apart.
Breaths brushing against each other's cheeks.
Her eyes widened.
Her face—
Instantly—
Deep red.
She stumbled back abruptly.
"I—!"
She turned away, covering part of her face.
"I wasn't—!"
Silence.
She tried—desperately—to regain her 'pretending to be cold' composure.
Meanwhile—
Null watched her flustered actions—
With absolute amusement.
After a minute of silence.
The air was still awkward.
Then—
Null coughed lightly, he attempted to diffuse the awkward tension by repeating the question derlaid earlier.
"So, Sora-san."
His tone deliberately casual.
"When are you leaving for home… and how long will you be gone?"
It worked.
Like flipping a switch.
Sora turned back, composure restored.
"Hmm…"
She tapped her chin lightly.
"I'll be leaving the day after tomorrow…"
A brief pause.
"And return by the end of this month."
Then—
A small smirk formed.
"What, Null-san?"
Her eyes gleamed slightly.
"Are you going to miss me?"
She tried to tease him for the first time, but it spectacularly backfired.
Null didn't hesitate.
"Yes."
Silence.
"…What?"
Sora immediately stepped back again.
Flustered beyond recovery.
"I—That—"
She finally found a chance to engage with him casually, and yet it seemed she was still too green.
Null chuckled.
"Hehe… I can't believe the revered 'Saintess of Living' finally dropped her 'pretending to be cold' persona and bit back at me like a normal person."
Sora turned away.
"Hmph."
A pause.
"…Actually…"
Her voice softened.
"This is how I should have grown up… if it weren't for—"
She stopped.
Then shook her head.
"…Forget it."
Sora folded her arms under her modest breasts, shyly continuing
"This is the first time I've shown this side of myself to anyone…"
A small pause.
"…Other than my parents, my master…"
A slight hesitation.
"…and my childhood swe— childhood friend."
Her gaze returned to him.
"…Null-san."
A faint breath.
"You really are something."
Null narrowed his eyes slightly at her cutoff phrase but didn't press further
Instead—
He dramatically placed a hand over his heart and grinned. "I'm honored. Oh, Revered Saintess of Living."
"…You should be."
Sora twirled her pure white hair strands to offset her embarrassment at his dramatic phrasing.
—
The night deepened.
Moonlight slipped quietly through the tall windows.
"…Guess it's time to call it a day."
Null stretched slightly—then immediately regretted it.
"…Miss Saintess."
He looked at her with pitiful eyes.
"Would you kindly help me get on my feet and back to my room?"
A weak grin.
"My body is still numb all over from that monstrous training, and I'm not in an optimistic state for movement".
Internally—
he cursed that monstrous lion for the umpteenth time.
Sora exhaled.
"Hah…"
"Geez, Null-san."
"You really are hopeless without my supervision."
Null smirked lightly.
"Don't worry."
"I'll make sure to return the favor by ensuring you become just as hopeless without mine."
Sora paused.
Then looked at him.
"…Are you flirting with me?"
"Yup."
She closed her eyes briefly.
"I shouldn't have asked."
A sigh.
"…Really, What kind of abominable world could produce an insufferable person like you?"
Null replied with a playful grin.
"Hehe. A world of your wildest imaginations,"
Sora didn't bother to retort; she simply extended her hand to the sitting Null.
Null took it.
Slowly pulling himself up—
But—
Sora (inexplicably?) slipped—
"—!"
Falling backward, and Null followed suit.
In a flash—
Just as Sora's head neared the floor, Null reflexively placed his right hand on her back to support her fall while pressing his left hand against the floor to halt their descent mid-motion
Barely.
The impact trembled through his arm.
Instinctively—
He drew Sora closer.
Preventing her from touching the ground.
Bright moonlight spilled through the windows—
illuminating their tangled figures as close as could be.
Very close.
Their Dark-red pupils and sky-blue pupils—
Now faintly glowing cyan.
Locked with deep intensity, with unexplainable emotions glazing through them them.
Unspoken.
....
After a minute of locked eyes,
Null was the first to regain his senses, feeling his left hand tremble from the effort of maintaining their combined weight along with its earlier numbness from training.
He gently lowered her onto the floor.
He gently eased Sora onto the floor, her pure white hair spilling around her like a halo, contrasting beautifully like liquid silver under moonlight.
Using his now-free right hand, he pressed against the floor to steady himself and heaved a breath.
Now—
They both were in a very—
Very ambiguous position.
Sora laid on the floor with Null hovering over her.
If anyone were to see them now—
They might misinterpret and think these two are in the process of doing 'ecchi' things.
Null noticed.
Opened his mouth—
Then stopped.
Because—
Sora hadn't yet come to her senses.
Instead, she remained lost, staring at him.
Utterly mesmerized.
Entranced.
"…Hehe."
Unable to resist, he teased.
"Miss Saintess."
A pause.
"Are you that bewitched by my beautiful appearance?"
The sound of her name jolted Sora back to reality, and she flushed deep red. She tilted her head to the side, murmuring, "As if."
She turned her face away, blushing deeply.
Null chuckled, enjoying the exhilarating moment between them.
"Don't worry."
A softer tone.
"You're not the only one."
She blinked.
"…What do you mean?"
Null's gaze softened.
"…Whenever I'm in your presence, I also sometimes get dazed and feel these unknown emotions I can't articulate."
Sora gasped slightly, eyes wide.
"You too?"
"Yes. I've been experiencing this unexplainable sensation since the day we met."
A quiet breath.
"…Me too."
Sora admitted, her voice barely above a whisper. .
Null playfully smiled
"I know."
"I can tell from your reactions."
Sora pouted slightly.
"…Am I that easy to read?"
"Hehe. I'm very intelligent and well-versed in reading people's reactions"
"Hmph. Don't brag."
A small silence.
Then—
Null spoke again.
"…Anyway, you felt it too, right? That strange existential-deep familiarity between us. It's as if we share a mysterious connection that transcends logic and lifetimes"
He said thoughtfully.
Sora didn't argue.
She shyly nodded.
—
Null paused, lost in thought for a brief moment
He mused that he had felt this same mysterious connection with two other girls before: one was that 'yandere bitch',
The other—
…?
Unclear.
he couldn't quite (recall?) that one.
Suddenly, Sora's eyes narrowed as she grabbed his waist and pinched it, causing Null to groan in surprise.
"Ow—!"
What?" he exclaimed.
Sora's fingers were at his waist.
Her eyes—
piercing Cold.
"…You were just thinking about another woman, weren't you?"
Null stiffened.
'How did she know?' Null thought, cold sweat forming.
Damn it, it seemed the legends about the instinctual skill of women known as 'woman's intuition' were indeed true.
Abruptly,
Something shifted.
Null's dark red pupils locked intimately with Sora's now cyan-hued ones, and he voiced his thoughts wishfully, "Sora, will you please go on a date with me?"