"No, this is clearly wrong!"
Shadow stared at his small world, which was being continuously eroded and was about to be dragged back into the main world, forcing concepts such as space and time to reconnect. Sweat covered his face.
At this moment, his face was no longer concealed beneath pitch-black shadows. Instead, he revealed the extremely ordinary appearance of an Asian man.
His expression was filled with unease and confusion. Sweat continued dripping down his face, yet he did not even bother to wipe it away.
"This world is devouring my small world! This is wrong. Something is definitely wrong! There is a problem with this world!"
Based on the information he had gathered throughout the night, Shadow had noticed something extremely abnormal.
Putting aside the countless incidents related to sex that occurred throughout the city almost every moment, those could still be explained by the nature of this adult world. After all, different worlds had different rules, so the appearance of certain unusual circumstances was not strange.
What Shadow found most abnormal was that despite the endless stream of bizarre incidents occurring throughout the city, its social structure had not collapsed.
He had deliberately visited the police station and even the city government to investigate.
Although people were present in those places, none of them ever worked seriously. Almost all of them were indulging in various forms of pleasure.
The problems here had already exceeded anything that could reasonably be tolerated. Under normal circumstances, the entire city should have collapsed long ago, yet it continued operating as usual.
Everyone behaved like an NPC following a fixed script.
However, they were also unquestionably real. Their bodies, souls, and every other aspect of their existence were completely normal.
Yet if someone observed the entire city from above and understood the circumstances of every person within it, they would discover that these people were constantly acting out their own scripts.
Like characters from all kinds of strange works, they endlessly performed different stories.
Combined with the fact that his small world was now being pulled out of isolation and devoured by the larger world, Shadow was certain that something was seriously wrong with this world.
"If this had only been happening before, I might have assumed it was merely one of this world's natural characteristics. But the moment my small world began to be devoured, my intuition started warning me that there is definitely some dangerous problem I haven't noticed!"
After thinking for a long time, Shadow voluntarily withdrew the small world that was being devoured.
He then removed another precious item from his inventory, one he had always been reluctant to use.
[Item: The Patient's Joker]
[Type: Single-use consumable.]
[Effect: Ask one question and receive an accurate answer.]
[Usage Requirement: The user must be inside a restroom.]
[Note: This item was left behind by an unknown existence before it fell asleep and can indirectly draw upon its power. However, the usage requirement seems to be the result of some peculiar sense of humor.]
In an instant, Shadow exchanged positions with one of the shadows he had dispersed throughout the city, which happened to be inside a public restroom in a remote area.
He hid inside the innermost stall of the men's restroom and locked the door.
After taking out the Joker card, he began quietly reciting a strange prayer that no one could understand.
Once the incantation-like words had been fully recited, an extremely indistinct voice sounded beside Shadow's ear.
Its meaning was simple.
Ask your question.
"Great Fool, has this world been interfered with by a power of an exceptionally high level?"
[Yes.]
The moment the question was answered, the Joker card in Shadow's hand shattered.
It transformed into a transparent worm that fell to the floor, merged into the tiles beneath it, and disappeared.
Shadow stood in silence for a long time.
"Damn it! Did the System send me here to die?"
In Shadow's understanding, an existence of such a high level would be at least Sixth Rank.
He was only Fourth Rank.
"Ever since I received this mission, I've felt restless, as though something was wrong. Now I know that something serious has definitely happened."
"This world itself has a problem."
"If I continue with this mission, I may obtain the enormous benefits hidden behind that problem, but I will also be taking on an unprecedented level of risk."
Should he eliminate his opponent before the problem fully erupted, claim the generous reward, and quickly leave this world?
Or should he refuse to gamble on such a dangerous situation and find a way to forcibly escape the mission world using the resources he currently possessed?
Shadow fell into deep thought.
...
On the school rooftop.
"Alice! I have no reason to deceive you!"
"I swear on my honor as your magical-girl companion and as the purest fairy among the fairy race that everything I said is true!"
"Your teacher really was devouring your classmates' desires!"
"But that might not necessarily be a bad thing, right?"
"Look, after their desires were devoured, everyone started studying seriously. Their grades might even improve."
"Couldn't that be considered a good thing?"
"Alice, human emotions are fragments of the soul and manifestations of spiritual power."
"Do you know what serious consequences could occur if too much desire is devoured?"
"In mild cases, a person may temporarily lose all desires and become like a walking corpse."
"In severe cases, they may even fall into a vegetative state!"
Alice found herself caught in a dilemma.
On one side was the teacher who had saved her life and for whom she already felt considerable affection.
On the other was the little fairy who had given her a new life, granted her the power of a magical girl, and called her the savior.
Choosing one side meant hurting the other.
Alice could not make a decision at all.
She was kind and did not want to hurt anyone or disappoint either of them.
Lief seemed to realize that Alice was currently unable to decide.
In the end, she deliberately sighed helplessly and said, "All right, all right. Perhaps I really am overthinking things."
"Your teacher might not do anything like that. After all, he is also a hero who saved your life without asking for anything in return."
"Besides, you only just became a magical girl. You don't yet have the ability to uncover the hidden truth behind this matter."
"So let's put it aside for now."
"Focus on growing stronger first, Alice."
After hearing Lief's words, Alice became extremely happy.
Her trust in and affection for Lief immediately rose by several levels, and she cheerfully continued talking with her.
After returning to the classroom, Lief looked at the three girls gathered together and chatting.
She tilted her head in confusion and asked, "Why does that girl look a little familiar?"
Alice followed Lief's gaze and asked, "Mabel, Norden, and Pricket?"
"Is there something wrong with the three of them?"
"Mabel is my friend. I'm not especially close to the other two, but Mabel says they're both good people."
"Hmm... Perhaps it's only my imagination."
"I just feel as though those three are somehow strangely familiar."
"Really? Maybe you met them while wandering through the human world?"
"Perhaps."
Lief played with her hair as she answered uncertainly.
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)