Tokyo: Oreimo

Ling Nai stared at the screen.

My fingers hovered above the mouse, trembling slightly.

It wasn't out of fear, it was out of anticipation.

"How could I not go?!"

Even knowing that it might be the devil whispering, if there's even a sliver of hope to revive Makise Kurisu, it's absolutely worth the effort.

"If that guy dares to mess with me, I'll teach him a lesson!"

"I have no interest in those 57 billion people in the future, but... for Kurisu, I have no choice but to take the plunge."

Well done, Rintaro Okabe.

Ling Nai waved her little fist, her eyes getting a little hot.

"Let's go... let's go! We'll go save her, we'll definitely reach that place, the perfect timeline!"

Chapter 223 The True Cause of Makise Kurisu's Death

"July 28th, the day I saw Kurisu lying on the ground covered in blood."

"Mayuri and I came to Dr. Nakabachi's reception, and then we heard a sound from the roof."

"After that, Mayuri went to the place on the 7th floor that sells kimbap."

“That’s right, the idea is clear. First, we need to avoid meeting Okabe Rintaro at this time…”

Ling Nai stared at the lines on the screen and muttered to herself.

"Then go to the room where Makise Kurisu was assassinated and wait. If I remember correctly, it's on the 8th floor?"

As the plot unfolds, Makise Kurisu reappears in our field of vision.

I just happened to run into them.

"She's still alive at this time, don't worry, I will definitely save you!"

"Uncle, can you confirm who Makise Kurisu is, right?"

"The first thing to determine is who the direct perpetrator of her murder is; otherwise, the probability of the timelines converging is very high."

"To make that clear, waiting at the location where she was assassinated would have been a wise choice."

Ling Nai and Okabe shared the same idea.

Because that's the highest probability.

If you wander around the building or keep following Makise Kurisu, not only is the probability of being discovered by her very high, but if you encounter 'Okabe Rintaro' from this timeline and trigger a time paradox, that would be terrible.

As expected, Makise Kurisu did indeed arrive at the room where she had been attacked.

He had an argument with Dr. Nakabo.

"Dad finally contacted me after seven years, is it to invite me to the reception?"

"....."

"This paper looks passable."

"Really? I think as long as Dad thinks it's okay, co-authoring is fine, because Dad inspired me..."

"Don't talk nonsense. Go back. This paper will be published under my name."

"Is Dad going to steal my thesis? I thought you would never do something like that..."

"Shut up! How dare you accuse me of stealing your paper? Why are you so outstanding? A daughter shouldn't be better than her father. As long as you're not around, I can remain outstanding."

"As long as you're not around!"

"That's terrible!"

Ling Nai cursed.

"But these two are actually father and daughter?"

She was quite surprised.

Aside from their research interests, she never felt that the two people had anything in common.

It's unbelievable that a father would be jealous of his daughter's talent.

After reading a few lines of dialogue, she roughly guessed how things would develop.

After all, they already knew the outcome.

Dr. Nakabachi, jealous of his daughter's talent, stole her thesis. When Makise Kurisu revealed this, she was enraged.

So violence ensued.

"Given the future development of Makise Kurisu's death, could it be that this father killed her with his own hands?"

"So, as long as Okabe prevents this from happening, she won't die?"

But that's too easy.

Ling Nai suddenly had a feeling that things had gone too easily.

"But thinking about it carefully, it makes sense. After all, it's a time machine that travels through physical time, so it might not be within the convergence range of world lines."

Assuming Okabe hadn't arrived, there wouldn't have been anyone at the scene who could have stopped Dr. Nakabachi from committing the crime.

He is special; if he can stop the other party from committing the crime, he might really be able to change the future.

"Well done, Okabe!"

Seeing Okabe Rintaro appear to stop her, she bumped into Dr. Nakabachi, who was choking Makise Kurisu to the ground.

Ling Nai couldn't help but praise her.

But it didn't end there.

Upon seeing Okabe, Dr. Nakabachi became even more enraged and pulled a switchblade from his pocket.

They considered the two to be in cahoots.

"Despicable bastard."

However, in terms of physical strength, although Okabe was weak, he had the advantage of youth. After a few exchanges, Dr. Nakabachi was pushed down and could not even hold onto the switchblade in his hand.

Taking advantage of Okabe's momentary daze, he casually picked up a screwdriver that someone had left on the ground, intending to stab Makise Kurisu.

"How can we allow this to happen!"

Ling cursed and watched as Okabe picked up the switchblade.

"Even killing this old man is better than watching him kill Makise Kurisu!"

"Go! Okabe!"

But what Ling Nai never expected was...

Just as Okabe was about to use his switchblade to save Makise Kurisu, the girl pushed her father away with all her might.

Then....

"It's fake, right...."

Ling covered her mouth.

She saw Okabe holding a switchblade, which eventually pierced Makise Kurisu's abdomen.

"How could this be? How could this happen...?"

No, that's not right.

Ling Nai suddenly felt a chill in her hands and feet.

Because she remembered what had happened in this building at the beginning of the game.

"It seems to match up."

It matches my earliest memory.

At that time, Makise Kurisu was lying face down on the ground, with blood spreading from her abdomen.

The current developments are exactly the same as the original timeline in my memory.

"This is the true cause of Makise Kurisu's death in the β world line?"

"Did Okabe kill her with his own hands?"

“Are you kidding me?!”

Ling Nai was so angry that her whole body was trembling.

Traveling back in time in a time machine ultimately led to Makise Kurisu's death. Could this have been a predetermined event in this world line from the very beginning?

In other words, Okabe will not return to July 28 if he does not accept Amane Reiha's invitation.

If he hadn't come back, there wouldn't have been any movement on the roof. It was precisely because of the movement that Okabe in this timeline made those moves.

Dr. Nakabachi hadn't drawn his sword initially, but he decided to use it because Okabe appeared.

"So from the very beginning, everything in the β worldline was already predetermined. Amane Reiha would come back, drag Okabe back to the past, and ultimately cause Makise Kurisu's... death?"

This was the first time Ling Nai had felt such a strong sense of despair, which was even more shocking than when she saw Mayuri die.

Because the cause of the other person's death was actually himself.

"This is outrageous! Why did things have to develop like this...?"

Ling covered her mouth.

But this is a logical development.

What's happening now is something that guy had already decided at the very beginning of the game.

"Did this guy plant this seed from the very beginning? Why is he tormenting the players?"

Thinking of this, Ling Nai almost ground her teeth to powder.

What? They gave people hope, and then they had to give them this kind of ending?

She actually guessed right.