Chapter 12: I Love You the Most

"Ichi, are you hiding something from me?"

Seeing Ichi's expression now, even Nagi Sanzenin, who usually paid little attention, knew for certain that Ichi was hiding something from her.

"Mmm…"

Nagi's persistent questioning made Shizuku no Miya Ichitō even more conflicted.

"Little Nagi…"

"But never mind."

Just as Ichi was about to confess, Nagi Sanzenin, who had just been pressing for answers, abruptly gave up.

"If you don't want to say it, then fine—I just need to know that Ichi's situation is the same as mine."

Nagi Sanzenin was never one to dig deep, especially when the subject was her most trusted and closest friend; there was no need to keep dwelling on it.

Some things will inevitably become clear over time.

"Little Nagi…"

Looking at Little Nagi right then, Shizuku no Miya Ichitō felt a faint ripple in her heart, and her soft, gentle voice prepared itself.

"Since you've already come into contact with these things, you'll inevitably encounter them again. Rather than keep hiding it from you, perhaps telling you is better."

Hiding is equivalent to leaving it unknown—and if you later face something unknown and have no idea how to handle it, that's far worse.

"Little Nagi, there are special powers in this world, and likewise, there exist evil spirits endowed with special powers."

"Evil spirits… like ghosts?"

"Yes, Little Nagi is terrified of things like that, so I never told you."

"…So that's why."

Indeed, Nagi Sanzenin feared ghosts and similar things most of all.

Even now, just hearing about them, she felt her legs tremble at the thought of those invisible, intangible ghosts.

Yet she looked at Ichi before her and placed both hands on her shoulders.

"What about you?"

"Me?"

Shizuku no Miya Ichitō looked at Little Nagi, puzzled.

"Aren't you the same age as me? I'm scared of those ghosts—aren't you scared too?"

"…"

Shizuku no Miya Ichitō fell silent for a moment, then gave a slight nod.

"I'm scared too. At first, when I faced them, I didn't even know what to do. After coming into contact, I gradually learned how to use the power—but during exorcisms, I've also met people who fear me because of my power."

"At that time, I realized: people fear unknown powers—anything they cannot control, that fear remains forever."

"So that's why you didn't want me to know?"

Nagi Sanzenin took a deep breath and gripped Ichi's cheeks tightly with both hands.

"Ichi, I will never feel fear toward you. You with that power aren't some monster to be feared—you're a knight, always leaping out to help when someone's in trouble."

"This is punishment for not trusting me. Next time something like this happens, tell me right away—we're the best friends, after all."

"Mm, next time I'll tell you, Little Nagi."

Meeting Little Nagi's sincere gaze, the stone in Shizuku no Miya Ichitō's heart lifted.

Unconcerned with her pinched cheeks, she stepped forward and hugged Little Nagi.

"Little Nagi, I love you the most."

"Why say something like that out of nowhere? But I love you the most too, Ichi."

Surprised by the confession, Nagi Sanzenin's cheeks flushed slightly, yet before Ichi, she said nothing awkward—she admitted that the person she loved most was Ichi.

The invisible barrier between them had been shattered by this sudden force.

The two, now open with each other, remained the best of friends.

"Heh, Little Nagi and Young Lady Ichi are just as close as ever."

Maria couldn't help but sigh as she watched their bond.

Ever since she began caring for Little Nagi, their relationship had always been strong.

Little Nagi loved telling familiar people about her favorite anime plots, and sometimes even drew her own manga.

Though to Maria, Little Nagi's manga plots and art style were a bit surreal, only Ichi could accept them effortlessly, even frequently discussing them with Little Nagi.

Perhaps that was why they became such good friends.

Today, this reason seemed to have grown one more.

After expressing her personal feelings, Nagi Sanzenin felt uncomfortable with the atmosphere and quickly changed the subject.

"By the way, Ichi, what do you think this diary is about?"

"I don't know."

Shizuku no Miya Ichitō shook her head helplessly.

"This thing is strange—according to Little Nagi, just reading the diary grants a chance to win a prize, and even gives you this strange power. The cost and reward are completely disproportionate."

The cost is too little, the reward too great.

This situation is utterly incomprehensible.

Isn't this just pure unearned gain?

"It's not just the diary that's strange—even the person who wrote it is strange."

"That Mr. completely let his name be known without any caution, just to get people to investigate. Anyone who investigates him can easily find out what he's been doing lately—testing him is unavoidable."

"Why did that Mr. write his own name out is also a question."

In Shizuku no Miya Ichitō's view, even without revealing his identity, he could have still achieved his goals—hiding his identity might have brought even greater gains.

"Indeed."

Nagi Sanzenin also came to her senses — this really was a major problem.

"Completely exposing one's own information is practically putting oneself in danger. Normally, one should hide their information, grow stronger little by little, and only then reveal it. By that point, that person probably wouldn't face any real-world threat."

"But once someone sees the benefits of the diary and directly tries to control the person involved, that person would be in grave danger."

Having faced kidnappings and the like since childhood, Nagi Sanzenin had known from a young age just how strong the malice in people's hearts could be.

For the sake of something like money, people would do anything.

So now, for the sake of even more miraculous power, how many people would do things that go against human nature?

Probably even more.

"That person should be well aware of this point."

"And this time at noon, that person even deliberately reminded me, who had seen the diary's contents, about the lottery — that was clearly intentional."

"So, is he fishing?"

PS: Hmm, exposing his name from the start was a plot hole. I've decided to patch it up with some setting adjustments — Fuyin Chao really does listen to feedback.