I'm in Teresin, dedicated to playing badly

for a long time.

"Solar eclipse".

"what happened?"

Shinji Kitahara patted her head: "Over the next few days, I plan to further test the power within me, so it's not really suitable for me to stay in the academy... Do you want to come along?"

"Have I ever left you?" Eclipse asked rhetorically.

"...That's true."

Shinji Kitahara smiled, then reached out and pulled her into his arms.

Just like countless days and nights before.

After another period of silence, Shinji Kitahara's voice rang out again.

"I mean, just the two of us."

He paused, then gently patted the eclipse and repeated the sentence softly once more.

"Just the two of us."

Eclipse did not answer his question. As always, she nestled in his arms, motionless, her expression unchanged.

However, if Shinji Kitahara were to use his newly acquired abilities to examine the eclipse at this moment, he would be able to discover it.

The speed at which something was escaping from the cavity at the heart of the eclipse seemed to have increased significantly.

It contained a hint of pain.

Chapter 194: Change

Shinji Kitahara couldn't possibly keep his departure from the academy for a few days a secret from the horse girls in the team.

Although he would definitely tell them about his departure, Shinji Kitahara did not elaborate on the specific reasons for leaving.

He worried that even after explaining his reasons, the little pony girls probably wouldn't believe him.

When the time comes, it's a small matter if we have to spend a lot of time explaining, but if they insist on proving it themselves, then something big might happen.

So, after meeting with Rudolf, Shinji Kitahara went to the chairperson, explained the situation to her, and asked her to cooperate in fabricating a mission for him that would last about a week.

With this reason, the little pony girls had no doubts. Although they seemed somewhat unwilling, none of them objected in the end, and they all watched him leave the academy gate.

After leaving the academy, Shinji Kitahara first accompanied Eclipse for a while, strolling around a place some distance from Treson, and bought her some food and decorations.

After lunch, I turned around and embarked on a somewhat familiar road.

That was the road to the apartment he and Eclipse had rented before entering Tressen.

"Actually, I'm still renting that place."

Shinji Kitahara walked ahead and spoke slowly.

"I didn't tell you before, but actually, two months after I started working at Treson, I was chatting with my landlord on Line when she told me that after we moved out, the apartment hadn't been rented out for a while..."

“I had some spare cash at the time, and as you know, the rent for that apartment wasn’t expensive, so I renewed the lease, and I’ve continued to rent there ever since, but I haven’t gone there again…”

"But at the time, I didn't have much money in my pocket, and I was afraid you'd think it was a waste, so I didn't tell you. Later, since I never went, I gradually forgot about it..."

As for why he chose to renew his lease on that small, run-down apartment, which was clearly inferior to the Tresenne dormitory in every way, Shinji Kitahara didn't say.

But the eclipse knows why.

After all, even those who haven't known Shinji Kitahara for long can easily tell that he is a sentimental person.

As for Eclipse, he clearly understands that compared to things like money or fame, he actually desires a 'home' more.

No matter how good the dormitory is, it's still a dormitory; no matter how bad the apartment is, it's still a place where they once lived.

Although the time spent living there was not particularly long, and it was only a rental rather than a purchase.

But for the two who have been homeless for years, even a temporary home is a very precious thing.

I easily found the slightly dilapidated apartment building and took out the somewhat faded key.

Unscrew it, then insert it.

Because the landlord helped arrange for a cleaning service to clean the house regularly, the house is relatively clean and doesn't require two people to clean it.

Returning to this place after a long absence, feeling that familiar sense of security, Shinji Kitahara let out a long sigh of relief, and then, as always, collapsed onto the sofa.

To be honest, the quality of this sofa is not good, especially after getting used to the high-quality sofas in Tresson's dormitory. This sofa feels a bit hard and uncomfortable to sit on.

Even so, the familiar touch made Shinji Kitahara feel that this thing was more comfortable to lie on than the one in the dormitory, and he was more relaxed mentally.

While he was sprawled on the sofa like a useless person, Eclipse went to the refrigerator to check the situation inside.

After confirming that there was nothing spoiled inside, but also no remaining stock, she closed the refrigerator door and turned to look at Shinji Kitahara.

"What do you want to eat tonight?"

"...Stewed carrots and pork?"

The solar eclipse nodded.

"Okay, I'll go buy groceries later."

Although they now have enough money to eat out nicely, and Eclipse's cooking skills aren't actually that good, compared to Treson's cafeteria, it's even arguably terrible.

Even so, neither of them mentioned the matter, as if everything was still the same as before.

Then, time went by.

After lounging on the sofa for a while, Shinji Kitahara sat up and began to continue experimenting with his abilities.

Because there was no one else there, and the only eclipse was immune to his ability, Shinji Kitahara could recklessly activate that ability and make various attempts.

To guide, to dominate, to flow, to spread, to expand, to weave...

Although Shinji Kitahara still doesn't understand what this ability is or whether it poses any danger.

But he also had to admit that this new ability was almost too useful for him.

If this ability were placed on another person, and they couldn't control it, that person would at best become a walking emotional time bomb.

Even if the other party manages to survive the initial period and gradually master some uses of this ability, at most they will just become a Ma Bohe (a type of wild herb).

But for Shinji Kitahara, this thing was the key to unlocking a new world.

This gave him the key to glimpse the 'other side' that he had previously guessed about but never understood.

On the other side, since it wasn't time yet, Eclipse didn't go out to buy groceries and had nothing else to do, so he simply sat down next to Shinji Kitahara.

I watched his various attempts while listening to his rambling.

'Seriously, isn't this kid's talent a bit ridiculously high?'

'This is genuine 'power', something even those horse girls bound by 'rules' and rigorously trained might not be able to control.'

'But now that he's a human, he's managed to get to this level of control in just a few days, isn't that a bit too much...?'

'You just realized?'

"Furthermore, you've overlooked something: our 'little sister' is relatively new, and her powers are inherently unstable. She herself probably can't even control her power very well."

'At this rate, her "chosen one" will probably master this power before she even matures, and she might have to come to him for instruction then...'

'Hey, if that's the case, then why don't we just skip the solar eclipse and let this kid replace her?'

'What are you thinking? He's a human being, after all.'

'Although I don't know why, our little sister is able to share her powers with beings other than the horse girl.'

'But even if we could share with him, the essence of humans and horse girls is different, which means he can't become 'us,' much less replace her. The only candidate at present is Eclipse...'

'Are you sure?'

'I'm sure... well, I'm not sure, after all, he's a bit outrageous, managing to control this power to this extent in just a few days.'

'And if it weren't for our sake, this kid would probably have already turned Ma Niangjin and the truth about this world upside down.'

'And what he can achieve later... well, no one can predict that.'

As always, the three voices conversed without any restraint.

Because there's no need to worry about it.

After all, the way the three of them exist is rather unique.

Let alone ordinary humans, even a horse girl with a special form like Sunday Tranquility would not be able to hear their conversation without some special means.

In fact, so far, apart from the fact that they 'specially created' it to replace their younger sister, giving her a solar eclipse similar to their 'essence', they have done so.

To date, unless some other means are used, no one has heard or even noticed their normal communication, including Shinji Kitahara, for more than a decade.

But the problem is that they seem to have forgotten that Shinji Kitahara has never been normal.

Although in the past, due to racial limitations, it was indeed impossible for Shinji Kitahara to do so, and he had never actually heard them converse.

But now, that 'power' has spread and, under his manipulation, has caused some changes.

Just as he said, something he had previously guessed about but had never actually encountered was revealed to him.

For example, their 'voices'.

Of course, this doesn't mean that Shinji Kitahara could hear the entire conversation between the three of them.

In fact, because they were just starting out and not yet proficient in their skills, their words reached Shinji Kitahara's ears.

Not only was it distorted, obscure, and chaotic, but it was also discontinuous; it was impossible to form sentences or even understand a single word.

It was less like words and more like a roar from the depths of the world, highlighting a chaotic and disorderly state.

Moreover, Shinji Kitahara actually thought so too.

After confirming that the noisy sounds were not his hallucinations but something real, Shinji Kitahara immediately realized that he seemed to have come into contact with something extraordinary.

However, despite realizing this, he did not react further, nor did he intend to mention it to Eclipse.

Because his experience from another world told him that...

Shouting in an unfamiliar space, or even making the 'beings' inside aware that you know you are there, is extremely dangerous.

Especially after hearing about the three types of the domain, if it weren't for the fact that we were still missing one Slaanesh.

Shinji Kitahara probably thought he had come into contact with the subspace at this point, and if something went wrong, it might attract the attention of some unsavory characters.

Then, time went by.

Accompanied by the roar that came from the depths of the world, Shinji Kitahara completed his daily training.

Throughout the entire process, he pretended not to hear those sounds, showed no intention of investigating further, and did not let anyone notice anything amiss.

After finishing his training, Shinji Kitahara opened his eyes and checked that the 'power' in his body had almost completely subsided.

I went out with the eclipse and bought some vegetables and snacks at the supermarket, which I put in the refrigerator when we got back.

Cooking, eating, washing dishes.

After finishing everything, I turned on the slightly old-fashioned little TV, tuned to a familiar channel, and watched the familiar host telling familiar jokes. Gradually, a familiar little black rice ball appeared in my arms.

Even though I hadn't experienced this kind of life for more than half a year, for some reason, after coming back...

Shinji Kitahara and Eclipse entered the zone very easily, as if they had always lived there and nothing had changed.

But this was ultimately just an illusion.

I opened my phone and saw the trainers chatting enthusiastically in the group chat, and many new names had appeared in my contact list.

The pony girls in the group are still waiting for him to return, and the chairman is also waiting for him to help resolve his problems...

Miss Junchuan is still having him pretend to be her boyfriend, and Rudolf is also waiting for him to help stir things up during the New Year...

There's also Satomi Hikari, Meishou Nutsou, and all sorts of other people and horse girls...

Although less than a year has passed, he has indeed experienced a lot, undergone many changes, reunited with many old friends he had parted ways with, and made many new friends.

Moreover, it is foreseeable that in the coming period, he will meet more people, experience more things, and undergo more changes.

He was no longer the child who spent all day with Eclipse in the house, worrying about what to eat next, where to get the food, and where to continue scavenging after they finished eating.

Even if things feel similar to before now, and even if he and Eclipse behave the same as before, he can never go back to the past.

He was well aware of this, but he didn't feel much regret.