บท 52: Chapter 83&84
Chapter 83: The True Purpose of the Nightmare Plan
"Perhaps if all of you are prepared, there may still be a sliver of a chance to stop Nightmare."
After much hesitation, Eye-Patch Three finally softened her tone, "Since that's the case, I'll risk being discovered by Nightmare and take a gamble with you."
Upon hearing this, the group breathed a collective sigh of relief. Until now, they had no clear understanding of Tokisaki Kurumi's plan, other than that the arrival of the "Combination" was part of her strategy. Even Edogawa Rampo, due to lack of information, couldn't offer any reliable guesses.
Now that Eye-Patch Three was willing to cooperate, it was a massive breakthrough. As the incarnation of Kurumi closest to the original "Nightmare," she knew far more than Bandage Three, who had long been discarded by her true self.
"Perhaps you already know this, but my ability, or rather, Tokisaki Kurumi's ability, Kokoro-tei (Chronos), was given to me by a mysterious figure called Phantom," Eye-Patch Three explained. "Phantom granted Tokisaki Kurumi the power over time, hoping she would work alongside her to punish the wicked and protect the innocent. You've probably heard this story from my younger self, right?"
"Yes, once we deduced this child was a split personality of the traitorous Nightmare, she revealed her background to us," Edogawa Rampo replied.
"But what if I told you," Eye-Patch Three continued, "that this story is a lie?"
"Absurd!" Bandage Three immediately retorted, "Are you implying I lied to them?"
"No, I'm not saying that," Eye-Patch Three responded with a hint of pity in her voice as she looked at Bandage Three. "After all, you only told them what you believed. But you were too young back then. After gaining power, you were blinded by it, forgetting that all gifts from fate come with a hidden cost."
"Wh-What are you saying?" Bandage Three asked, her face full of confusion and anger.
"It's simple," Eye-Patch Three sighed. "You were deceived by Phantom. That being isn't a righteous partner, and she didn't give you the power to control time because you had the potential to save the world."
"What evidence do you have?" Bandage Three snapped.
"The existence of Nightmare itself is the proof." Eye-Patch Three's voice became darker. "On my timeline, I began noticing Phantom's suspicious behavior. I didn't want to consider it at first, but after being summoned as a split personality and seeing the current version of Kurumi, I realized my suspicions were correct."
Upon hearing this, both Dazai Osamu and Edogawa Rampo exchanged glances. It was becoming clear that the mysterious "Phantom" had given Kurumi her powers for an entirely different reason.
When Bandage Three had shared her story with them, Phantom had always been portrayed as a force for good. However, Eye-Patch Three, being the version of Kurumi that was closer to the current "Nightmare," had long since suspected Phantom's true nature. She now confirmed that her original doubts had been justified.
"So, Phantom must have done something that led to your downfall and transformed you into Nightmare, right?" Edogawa Rampo speculated. "Do you have any clues as to what it was?"
"I do," Eye-Patch Three's expression wavered slightly, "but I don't want to talk about it."
"Alright, we understand," Dazai Osamu said, acknowledging her reluctance. "But based on your reasoning, we can infer that Phantom did something that made you extreme enough to become Nightmare. Is that right?"
"Yes, that's right."
"But why did Nightmare come to Yokohama? What's her plan here?" Dazai asked. "Could Phantom be hiding in Yokohama, and Nightmare is trying to cause chaos to flush her out?"
"No, I don't think that's very likely," Eye-Patch Three shook her head. "If my deductions are correct, causing chaos won't expose Phantom because her righteous partner persona is entirely a facade."
"Then why is Nightmare causing so much trouble in Yokohama?" Dazai pressed.
"About that... I must apologize," Eye-Patch Three said, "The information I gave to Mr. Sakaguchi earlier wasn't complete."
At this, Edogawa Rampo quickly spoke up, "Though the information you gave us didn't mention it, I managed to deduce something. It was quite simple, really."
"You figured out what the missing abilities are, didn't you?"
"Yes. The abilities of the 11th and 12th Balls are time travel," Rampo confirmed.
"That's right. You're sharp," Eye-Patch Three said with approval. "The 11th Ball allows the user to travel to the future, and the 12th Ball lets them travel back to the past."
"Why did you deliberately hide these two abilities?" Bandage Three demanded, her voice sharp.
"Because I was worried you would lose hope. After all, these two abilities are far too extraordinary," Eye-Patch Three replied.
"Now that you've brought them up, is it because they're related to Nightmare's plan?" Dazai asked.
"More specifically, it's the 12th Ball that's relevant," Eye Patch Three explained. "If I'm not mistaken, Nightmare plans to use the 12th Ball to travel to the past and kill Phantom."
"That explains it," Edogawa Rampo said, nodding thoughtfully. "If Phantom did something monstrous that caused Tokisaki Kurumi to fall and become Nightmare, then Nightmare could use the 12th Ball to go back and kill Phantom. This would change the timeline entirely."
But just as Rampo finished speaking, Dazai's face went pale, as though a sudden realization hit him. He recalled the information they had received earlier, and his eyes widened in fear.
"Nightmare consumes time to use Kokoro tei," Dazai muttered under his breath. "The further down the list the Ball is, the more time it consumes. And her Time-Eating City has the power to drain time from others..."
The others immediately understood the terrifying implication.
They had misunderstood what Eye Patch Three meant when she spoke of the "destruction of Yokohama."
They were wrong. They were terribly wrong.
"Nightmare plans to steal the time from Yokohama's citizens!" Dazai said, his voice grim.
"She intends to turn Yokohama into a dead zone!"
Chapter 84: The Appearance of the White Whale
At an amusement park in Yokohama.
Tokisaki Kurumi and Izumi Kyōka were sitting in a slowly rising Ferris wheel, quietly overlooking the entire park below.
A clone emerged from the shadows, breaking the serene atmosphere, and reported to Tokisaki Kurumi, "The plans from Eye Patch Three and Bandage Three are proceeding smoothly. We can start our operation against the Combination at any time."
"Good."
Tokisaki Kurumi gave a slight nod and waved her hand, signaling the clone to retreat.
This outcome was, of course, as she had anticipated. After all, sending Eye Patch Three to stir things up today was partly to push Bandage Three to join the Armed Detective Agency as quickly as possible. The scene that had played out in front of Sakaguchi Ango and the members of the Armed Detective Agency had been carefully planned in advance by Tokisaki Kurumi, Eye Patch Three, and Bandage Three.
With such a smooth and flawless script, it would be strange if there were any issues.
"One less thing to worry about."
As she sipped on the strawberry milkshake Izumi Kyōka had bought her, Tokisaki Kurumi thought to herself, I hope the next phase of the plan goes as smoothly as well.
With Side Mission 1 completed and Side Mission 2 about to start, there weren't any significant issues with Side Mission 3 either.
Now, the only thing left to focus on was the main mission.
According to the system, in order to move on to the next world, the main mission must be completed it was a strict requirement. Side and random missions didn't matter, and could be ignored.
However, completing side and random missions would affect the final performance rating, which in turn influenced the reward draw after finishing the main mission. The higher the performance rating, the greater the chance of drawing useful abilities.
Tokisaki Kurumi didn't want to spend all her time completing the main mission only to end up with useless abilities in the draw.
So, as a non speedrun player, she had decided to take care of side and random missions before completing the main one, as much as possible.
Now, there were no pressing side missions left, and only a difficult random mission remained. It was time to focus on how to complete the main mission.
The main mission was simple: become the nightmare that makes Yokohama tremble in fear.
This task was simple, but also difficult.
The easiest way to complete it would be to go on a random killing spree in the streets, and once the body count reached a certain level, the task would be finished.
However, such a method was the least suitable for Tokisaki Kurumi's character. Despite being known as the most vicious spirit, she mostly killed bad people or villains, at least in the majority of cases.
To preserve her image, she decided to choose a more complicated method that wouldn't ruin her character.
She would use Time Eating City to spread fear.
Telling the Armed Detective Agency and the Special Ability Bureau about Tokisaki Kurumi's plan to steal the time of all Yokohama's citizens and turn the entire city into a dead zone was the first step in spreading fear.
Eye-Patch Three had informed them that the nightmare was preparing to use the 12th Bullet to travel back in time and kill Phantom. This was something Tokisaki Kurumi had instructed her to do.
But she didn't actually plan to drain the entire city's population of their time. After all, her main objective was simply to make Yokohama's organizations and citizens feel fear there was no need to go that far.
Moreover, the 11th and 12th bullets were the most special of the Time Eating bullets. To use them, only enormous spiritual power was required, without consuming any time.
However, neither Dazai Osamu nor anyone else could know this. To them, since the 1st through 10th bullets required time to use, the 11th and 12th bullets must logically also require time to activate. This was basic reasoning, and even a detective like Edogawa Rampo couldn't deduce otherwise.
As long as Tokisaki Kurumi didn't reveal it, no one would know about the special nature of the last two bullets.
"Look."
Suddenly, Izumi Kyōka, who had been gazing out at the scenery, pointed to the horizon, her eyes wide. "Something's flying toward us."
"Hmm?"
Tokisaki Kurumi, lost in thought, looked up and squinted toward the sun drenched skyline. A blurry object was slowly approaching Yokohama.
More and more people in the amusement park began to notice the object and either gathered in groups to watch or took out their phones to record videos.
Because what they were seeing was no ordinary aircraft.
As the object drew nearer, a massive flying steel whale became clearer in the sky.
The Combination's mobile headquarters the White Whale!
"They're here so soon?" Tokisaki Kurumi chuckled softly. "It seems like after hearing about the transport ship being hijacked, they finally couldn't sit still anymore."
"Does Sister know what that is?" Izumi Kyōka asked.
"That's the White Whale, an ability-based creature controlled by the Combination, an airborne castle. It's my prey."
"Prey?"
"Yes, I've been planning this for a long time, just waiting for this moment."
"Do you need my help?"
"Kyōka, just stay at home and wait. No matter what happens, don't come out."
"Yes..."
"Don't be disappointed. I don't think you're weak. It's just that I'm too strong."
Tokisaki Kurumi gently patted Izumi Kyōka on the head, a warm glint in her eyes.
At first, she had taken in this girl out of guilt. But as the days passed, the cold yet warm-hearted young girl had truly grown on her.
When the time came for their inevitable farewell, even Kurumi found her heart heavy.
"Sister..." Izumi Kyōka pursed her lips and asked, "Are you leaving?"
"You're such a perceptive child."
"You brought me here today to play, but it's really to say goodbye, isn't it?"
"Yes, my time in Yokohama is probably coming to an end, so I wanted to make it up to you before I leave."
"There's nothing to make up for. You gave me my life."
"Don't say such formal things. Aren't you my cute little sister?"
"Then... can I come with you?"
Faced with Izumi Kyōka's playful and persistent antics, Tokisaki Kurumi felt a pang of reluctance.
If only she could take her along.
But Kurumi wasn't a traveler exploring Earth she was a traveler between worlds, and even if she wanted to, it was impossible.
Unless the system allowed it?
Of course, that was impossible.
The system wasn't some agreeable entity; she only came out when issuing random tasks.
"The place I'm going isn't one where ordinary people can follow," Tokisaki Kurumi said, opening her arms for a light hug. "But before I go, I'll make sure you're well taken care of, just as I promised."
"Yes..."
"The White Whale arrived faster than I expected. It looks like our fun amusement park trip has to end here."
Standing up from the seat in the Ferris wheel, Tokisaki Kurumi was gradually swallowed by the shadow beneath her feet.
"Let's head home, Kyōka."
Before she left, she left a final word.
"Because the riot is about to begin."
สถานะพลังงานรายสัปดาห์
-- การจัดอันดับด้วยพลัง 
-- หินพลัง