I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

"Understood... JOK!"

After watching Hifumi and her group leave 'Urd Spring' and disappear from sight, Amamiya turned her gaze to 'Noren', who remained silent on the cross.

“Saint Ya…”

He slowly opened his mouth and said, "Stop pretending."

"...Shall we talk?"

Chapter 45: What happened to Saintia after she went too far...?

"..."

Faced with Amamiya's 'straightforwardness', Saintia, who had always identified herself as "Noren," felt somewhat guilty.

The blonde, fox-eared girl bound to the cross hesitated for a moment, then, her face glistening with sweat, turned her head slightly away, avoiding eye contact: "What...what are you saying...I...even someone capable of foreseeing fate can't understand..."

Amamiya didn't speak, but stared directly at her.

"..."

"..."

"No, please don't look at me like that... I, I also..."

'Noren'... no, it should be Saintia, slightly opened her mouth, her eyes darting left and right, hesitated for a moment, and then still guiltily turned her gaze away.

After a brief moment of silence, Amamiya sighed softly.

She probably didn't expect that she could see through her temporary intrusion through 'precognitive dreams' so easily, and replace the special changes created by 'Goddess Norn' in a special way.

Since she's willing to act like this, wanting to experience a 'dream of another world'...

"...Really? But you look somewhat similar to that blonde girl with fox ears that I know."

Seeing that the other party was really unwilling to budge, Amamiya didn't want to forcefully expose the truth, so she opted for a second-best option: 'deliberately not exposing it'.

He had reason to speculate that Saintia came here not only because she wanted to experience a novel 'journey to another world', but also for other reasons.

For example... of the many futures she foresaw, this one was the most beneficial to her.

For example... she was brought here by Beatrice using special methods.

Amamiya knew that "predicting fate" was not a very meaningful thing.

Whether it's spying or manipulating the threads of fate... all such actions are extremely dangerous when one lacks sufficient strength.

If things go wrong, a standard plot from classic fantasy novels might unfold—

Those transmigrators from other worlds who are bound to a system generally have a unique destiny bestowed upon them in the fantasy continent. In a sense, they are destined to be "unrivaled throughout the ages" from the very beginning (after all, they will eventually become something like an emperor, and even the Heavenly Dao will be overthrown).

Transmigrators like these usually have a plot where they cause trouble during their growth period, only to have it predicted by a master who can deduce the secrets of heaven.

In this situation, what will be the next steps?

Let's set aside for now the main characters who are relatively miserable, like the "own sons" whom the author dotes on.

Take the kind of protagonist who's practically a "favorite son"... Under normal circumstances, the "master who can deduce the secrets of heaven" is very likely to be the one who suffers an unbearable causal backlash and dies on the spot.

Saintia's ability to foresee fate and casually predict things related to herself... is only because Amamiya herself did not 'predict fate' or 'sever ties across eternity'.

If he really did that... not to mention Saintia [who had absolutely no idea who he was]...

It really could be like the 'diviners of heavenly secrets' in fantasy novels, who, after deducing heavenly secrets, suffer a backlash from cause and effect and die on the spot.

Amamiya had reason to speculate that Sera had completely offended the Mystic Arts, foreseen the Mystic Arts' master, and was subsequently discovered and imprisoned.

Such a thing is entirely possible—after all, without revealing the full map, Amamiya has reason to speculate that this mysterious society possesses completely similar abilities.

After all... even those in black suits can somehow get into the halls of the [Caesar Group].

“Is that so…?”

Saintia, of course, couldn't fathom Amamiya's thoughts. Seeing that she had seemingly fooled him, she breathed a slight sigh of relief: "The thoughts of a 'trickster' are truly unpredictable, always beyond our expectations..."

"Speaking of which..."

Feeling reassured that she had gotten away with it, Seiya relaxed considerably. She took another look at Amamiya, who was radiating an unusual charm in her phantom thief form, with a rather novel gaze.

"Why...why haven't you released me yet?"

Amamiya cleaved a nearby empty cross in half with a single stroke, cutting it into a cylinder about seventy centimeters high, and then used it as a high stool to sit on.

"That's because... my companions are still on the run. I need to give them enough time."

"...Is that so? Well, that makes sense."

Saintia loosened the purple-black thorns binding her, then slid off with a 'whoosh' and landed on the ground with a 'thud'.

Amamiya glanced at Seiya's actions with a hint of surprise.

It seems... she wasn't imprisoned at all...

Or rather, were they not completely imprisoned?

Saintia's proactive measures directly helped Amamiya reduce the range of her predictions.

There are two reasons why she was able to 'untie herself' like this.

Firstly, she wasn't imprisoned at all; she really came here to 'experience a journey to another world'.

Secondly, she wasn't completely imprisoned; she was indeed brought here... but the 'Shadow Azusa' guarding the place made an exception for her...

Her consciousness does remain here, but like today, the shadow of the 'Arius Branch School Student' will withdraw at fixed times.

After that, Shadow Azusa will untie her, giving Saintia some time to move around freely...

Or perhaps, this was Beatrice's deliberate arrangement—she used the method of 'incomplete confinement' to give Saintia a brief period of freedom so that the others at the tea party wouldn't notice anything amiss.

In this way, Beatrice could capture Nagisa and Mika without them even realizing their existence.

Noticing Sera's actions, after a brief moment of surprise, Amamiya made some room for Sera to sit.

The blonde, fox-eared girl blinked, watching the scene with a mixture of curiosity and bewilderment.

"You... are quite a unique being indeed."

【~???~】

The cross that binds Saintia, and the 'remains of the cross' where Amamiya sits, though called a cross... are actually quite tall and wide, resembling a 'spectacle' of architecture.

It's roughly like three Egyptian pyramid bricks stacked vertically, with two thinner bricks placed horizontally on top.

(Note: The bricks of the Egyptian pyramids are approximately 1.5 to 2.5 meters long, 1 meter wide, and 0.5 to 1 meter high.)

The remains of such a large cross could easily accommodate two people, let alone two people sitting on it, or even lying down on it.

After a moment's hesitation, seeing that Amamiya seemed unguarded, Saintia asked curiously, "Aren't you... afraid I'll attack you?"

Amamiya smiled and replied, "I believe... that the goddess Norn, who foresees fate, knew this outcome."

【~???~】

"How 'arrogant'... But indeed... since you can easily defeat that powerful 'Ice Goddess,' I, who can only foresee fate, am certainly no match for you."

Saintia chuckled, jumped slightly, and sat down in the seat that Amamiya had given up, with her back to Amamiya.

"Hoo hoo... It feels so strange and rare to be in contact with a 'being from another world' like this."

Feeling the girl's clothing rubbing against him, seemingly separated only by a thin layer of fabric, and the warmth she was trying to convey in this way, Amamiya smiled, straightened his back in cooperation, and looked up at the sky.

"This is the first time I've ever had such a peaceful and friendly encounter with the 'shadow'."

【~???~】

The girl behind him paused slightly in her hesitant movements.

"Why...why do you describe me like this? Do I, and we, the shadows of this other world...have no redeeming qualities?"

“Shadows are ‘collections of negative consciousness,’ ‘monsters’ born from the evil thoughts in people’s hearts… This is true of the vast majority of shadows. At least, this is true of the vast majority of shadows that roam the temple.”

Amamiya sighed, then said softly, "But... shadows aren't entirely without merit—like those 'shadows,' if their negative connotations are washed away... you've seen that before, haven't you?"

"They will transform into those 'balls of light'... that is, 'fragments of hope.' Usually, after being cleansed of most of their negative consciousness, they will lose all their abilities and become insignificant and weak beings—after all, compared to the vast amount of negative consciousness..."

"Hope, especially the hope deep within the human heart, is always faint."

"..."

【~???~】

Saintia's voice was very soft and slow: "I see... I understand now."

"That 'Ice Goddess' who imprisoned me initially, and then temporarily relaxed her guard against me, is only restraining herself with the last vestiges of her conscience. She's not going to kill me..."

"..."

Seeing that Amamiya remained silent, seemingly acknowledging her own speculation, Seiya paused for a moment before softly saying, "She hasn't given up hope, so she just waits."

"I await the day when that 'future,' which I have described to it, will arrive..."

Amamiya nodded.

Actually, there's another reason... that is, Beatrice saw Azusa's "resistance" all along...

Even if she has the perception that "Zi will be her subordinate," her subconscious will be affected by Zi's frequent resistance, and she will subconsciously think, "This troublemaker always rebels against me, and I will get rid of her sooner or later."

Such subconscious impressions influenced Beatrice, and naturally reflected in her temple.

Even if a person can control their cognition, they cannot destroy and then reshape their fixed subconscious.

It's not something that can be solved simply by hypnotizing someone, erasing their consciousness, or altering their perception... After all, the soul is not something that simple.

Even if you don't remember, and your perception has been altered, your "soul" still records it and remembers everything.

"In that case... why don't you believe that I am necessarily evil? Why don't you guard against me?"

"That's because... I have the courage to face fate, and I have indeed done things that changed my fate. Therefore, I assert that fate cannot interfere with me."

Amamiya said calmly, "And you happen to be known for manipulating fate."

【~???~】

"..."

"hehe……"

"As a 'deceitful con artist,' you truly foresaw everything... No wonder you are a 'deceitful person who swindles fate.'"

Saintia said nothing more, then suddenly hugged Amamiya gently from behind, her hands passing over Amamiya's shoulders and landing on Amamiya's neck, pinching Amamiya's cheeks.

Taking this opportunity, she also touched the black and white mask that was the embodiment of Amamiya's 'persona', and tried to take it off—

She thought it would be difficult to do, but she accomplished it with ease.

"This... is this your reliance...? It feels quite ordinary, yet it can summon various beings similar to me..."

After carefully examining the mask in her hands, Saintia attempted to tear off the strange black and white smoky makeup mask.

Seeing that Amamiya didn't react, she asked curiously, "Aren't you... afraid I'll tear it apart?"

Amamiya smiled and said, "You can give it a try."

Saintia refused to believe it and tried to tear it with even more force—even though her physique was considered weak among the students, with her halo and being in another world, her strength was still astonishing, and tearing the fabric was nothing to her.

She tore it apart very easily.

The mask, which had turned into 'shreds' in her hands, suddenly burst into a ghostly blue flame and then flew back to Amamiya's cheek.

"The Persona is the embodiment of the human heart. It absorbs the spiritual power of its owner and grows along with that power... Furthermore, it is not something that can be easily destroyed. Unlike a 'halo,' it is not something that can be destroyed."

Amamiya removed her mask again and handed it back to Seiya: "As the goddess of fate, have you ever heard that saying..."

"A man can be destroyed but not defeated."

"Unless you use endless denial and psychological torture to destroy, disrupt, and shape a person's values ​​from birth... you can't possibly 'destroy' a person's personality."

【~???~】

"..."

"Hehe...that's true."

"So that means... if your companions are truly as resolute as iron, then... no attack can destroy them?"

“You can think of it this way… Persona is a power generated by the heart. Once you’re truly certain that you can’t be attacked, then you’ll be virtually unharmed.”