She is not an investigator.

Why would a fake like this say such a thing?

Why... do I have to... lift him up?

"Are you pitying me... in the posture of a victor?"

“No… Igris, no. I am not the victor, and you are not the loser. I am not an imposter, and neither are you. I am you… Don’t you understand?”

"..."

She didn't understand; she truly didn't understand.

No two people in the world are exactly alike.

Her past is incredibly clear and incredibly real; she couldn't possibly be a fake version of herself. So, isn't the person in front of me an imposter?

This should be a very simple matter.

All she needed to do was defeat the imposter in front of her, win the game, find the others, and leave safely.

And that was the end of it.

But why... why did it turn out like this...?

“Igris…”

She grabbed Igris's hand and placed it on her cheek.

That expression and appearance were almost identical to her own.

She didn't understand, she couldn't figure it out.

She didn't know what to do.

“Listen to me, Igris… I know you can’t understand, and I know you’re incapable of thinking right now, but I mean no harm…”

thump——

The piano music started again.

Noise and commotion are annoying and unsettling.

"...Let me go."

“Igris…! Your mind is already in trouble. Those voices are constantly affecting your reason and judgment. Don’t you understand?”

"I said let me go—!"

Ta-da!

The music started playing again, chaotic, agitated, yet comical and full of irony.

It seems to be mocking Igris for trying to end the fight, and also mocking another Igris who is so easily influenced and infected.

The show is far from over; it will continue. Their struggle will not cease; swords and flames will clash once more, an endless, relentless battle...

Battle, endless battle, battle between the closest of friends, a meaningless battle.

Keep going, keep performing, again and again.

"Igris!"

"Let me go! Ugh...!"

"..."

Deng.

The music stopped.

The piano music quieted down, leaving only a wrong note that seemed to have been unintentionally played out of sheer surprise.

The church had never been so quiet, so quiet that even a speck of dust falling to the ground seemed excessively noisy.

The lifted dome served its purpose, casting a crimson light down upon the two figures, making them the only two distinctive colors in this vast white church.

"…cough."

"..."

Their arguing stopped, and their fighting stopped.

Their opinions merged, and their predicament was thus resolved.

…No, there is probably no predicament.

"you…"

"It's not my fault! The situation was just too critical..."

Igris remained silent, looking at her own self-justification, pursed her lips, and only after confirming that there was no strange taste did she ask in a low voice.

Why did you think of doing this...?

"Waaah... Stop talking... I already regret it..."

She covered her face, turned her head away shyly, and tried to avoid Igris's gaze, but her bright red ears gave it all away.

Although, Igris wasn't much better off either.

"...I'm just curious why you subconsciously chose this method."

Igris's words even began to stumble, not only because of her shyness, but also because she was having trouble thinking clearly.

After all… she really didn’t know why the other person would kiss her when she was emotionally unstable…

The feeling of being kissed by yourself... is quite peculiar.

"Sorry…"

"No, you don't need to apologize. You just need to answer my questions."

Meeting Igris's earnest and curious gaze, she opened her mouth and whispered something that was difficult to hear.

"...Because, you... um, you're very beautiful..."

"……The same to you."

What are they saying?

They all look exactly alike, yet they started praising each other.

"Well, anyway, can we explain to each other what's going on now?"

Igris coughed lightly, abruptly steer the conversation back on track, and the other person nodded in agreement.

After all, she had originally planned to explain things properly to Igris.

The Gods' Folly - Beyond the World: Chapter 30, You Belong Here

"You mean...you are indeed another version of me, but compared to the current me, there will be a slight...difference?"

"Yes."

She nodded and continued speaking with a serious expression.

"For example, my body doesn't catch fire... so how do you do that? Aren't you... hot?"

"...I can refuse to answer that question, but you and I seem to have a lot in common."

As Igris spoke, she placed her straight sword in front of the two of them.

"For example, this one."

"Just like you."

She also took her own weapon and compared it with Igris's.

"But... why is your sword glowing? And... you're so much stronger than me...?"

This was the part that Igris couldn't understand the most. After all, before the battle started, Igris was already in a relatively poor state, while Igris was in full strength. In the end, Igris was the one who was kicked down by her.

Moreover, logically speaking, if the other party did not possess that strange ability, she should be even weaker, and the difference shouldn't be this significant.

"I don't know why you're so weak, but if you're asking about this sword..."

She put the sword on the ground and took out several other items from her pocket.

Igris felt an overwhelming sense of familiarity with those things: a scalpel, a mask, and… a baton?

"This is…"

"baton."

"...Of course I know it's a conductor's baton, I mean, what's its purpose?"

She paused for a moment, then hesitated before speaking.

Conducting a symphony orchestra?

"..."

"Just kidding. Now that you've got that sword, you must have been inside that tomb, right?"

Igris nodded.

Seeing this, she continued speaking.

"These are the things I brought out of there: a sword, a scalpel, a mask, and a baton. Each of them has its own function, but they all require certain conditions to be used."

As she spoke, she held up the mask.

That mask belongs to the Phantom of the Opera.

“I once…performed a spectacular show in front of the whole city, and stole a priceless treasure in front of tens of thousands of people, and after that…it responded to me and gave me new power.”

As she finished speaking, the mask suddenly melted, turning into a strange color that merged with her body. Her clothes also changed dramatically, becoming more flamboyant, like a theatrical costume.

She stood up, adjusted her cloak, and twirled in front of Igris.

"How about it…?"

"It looks pretty good."

Igris nodded, giving a very fair assessment.

“Wearing this outfit makes me harder to spot in many situations… and this too.”

She picked up the baton from the ground and waved it casually in the air a few times, instantly freezing everything around her.