Tokyo Psychic

A beautiful young woman stood in front of the door. She had elaborately decorated long ears and a smooth, shiny tail. She spoke fluent French, "My name is Zofu. Are you my trainer?"

In short, it's the story of a Cinderella-like, unpopular racehorse girl and her taciturn trainer embarking on a triumphant journey together.

"Our goal is to become the champion of the Arc de Triomphe!"

(A Uma Musume fanfic that you can generally understand as a slice-of-life story even if you have no prior knowledge of Uma Musume or Pokémon.)

305. [Witch's Ultimate Move] (See Takihara Showdown Arc 3/5)

I love rainy days, when the boundaries between light and shadow are blurred, blending together like an amateur painter's palette.

Most of the time, when I open a comic book I've been looking forward to, the brightly colored cover turns into a stark black and white scene like this.

In a corner of the coffee shop, Akira Kurusu poured some milk into her coffee cup, filling the air with a rich and mellow aroma.

Homura Akemi sat opposite him, flipping through a fashion magazine she had taken from the bookshelf.

Outside the glass curtain wall, the rain pattered softly, and the distant sounds of car horns could be faintly heard.

Rainy days are always synonymous with "traffic jams" and "accidents," creating a desolate atmosphere in the stillness.

In a world shrouded in mist, it seems that nothing is surprising.

It could be an encounter between roses and an umbrella, or it could be a disaster accompanied by death and suffering.

What are we waiting for by sitting here?

"Wait for the rain to stop," Homura Akemi said softly.

What she really meant was that she couldn't tell Akira Kurusu the truth for the time being.

Lai Xixiao took a sip of coffee and felt a little melancholy.

Although Homura Akemi transferred all of Akatsuki Kurusu's memories from all the timelines to him through [Dioscuri], the timeline that is currently being developed has exceeded the amount of information available.

Those girls who were supposed to become witches to stop the Phantom Thieves and magical girls either lived ordinary lives like normal people, or joined their ranks and became reliable forces.

Only Homura Akemi herself knows about those things that haven't happened yet "now".

The phantom thief looked at Homura Akemi sitting opposite him.

The protagonist who once only existed in comics has become a living, breathing person in reality, and no matter how many times you realize this, you will feel a subtle sense of unease.

Especially when recalling the cruel, cold, or selfless sacrifices that this magical girl made in those timelines, bloody scenes flashed through my memory... In fact, I haven't been able to see Homura Akemi as an ordinary girl for a long time, and it's even hard to see her as a human being.

After all, Homura Akemi is far removed from the concept of "human" both physiologically and in terms of existence.

She probably rarely considers herself as a human being when analyzing situations.

Akira Kurusu has a multifaceted understanding and knowledge of "Homura Akemi" through various information media.

Of course, after going through countless "endings" together, the question of whether Homura Akemi is human or not has completely lost its meaning for discussion.

From "Witch's Night" to "Nyarlathotep", countless desperate situations have been overcome, and the trust accumulated to this day is enough to support Akira's understanding of any almost cruel and immoral or unethical actions by Homura Akemi.

……

The development of things and people's understanding of the world often go through four stages: affirmation, negation, negation of negation, and taking it seriously. The great philosopher Hegel discovered the first three stages and wrote them into his work "Logic".

For example, Akira Kurusu's understanding of Homura Akemi is like this. He went through four stages in succession: Homura Akemi is so cute, I'll smash anyone who dares to object. Genshin Urobuchi is so shameless and black-hearted. People who like Homura Akemi are all brainless. She is a complex and three-dimensional character and cannot be generalized in black and white. Everything is a conspiracy by the producers and screenwriters. Why should I take a two-dimensional character seriously?

Now, the fourth stage has been ruthlessly rejected by reality. The person in question is right in front of him, smiling sweetly, and he has no choice but to silently retreat to the first stage.

Homura Akemi rested her chin on her hand, idly flipping through a magazine. As if suddenly noticing Akira Kurusu's rambling thoughts, she gave him a bewitching yet innocent smile.

Such a smile appearing on a junior high school student would probably only seem unbelievable, and then make people feel ashamed of the overwhelming sense of guilt that wells up in their hearts.

"Mr. Phantom Thief, you've now remembered the prerequisites for perfectly defeating 'Witch's Night,' haven't you?"

Beneath Akemi Homura's school uniform skirt, her slender legs, encased in black pantyhose, overlapped, and her dark purple eyes were filled with a watery quality, exuding a gentle and warm feeling.

Upon hearing this, Akira Kurusu, who was sitting opposite him, immediately fell silent.

He restrained himself from lingering his gaze on Homura Akemi, lest the witch deliberately use her magically amplified allure to disturb his mind.

Homura Akemi quietly raised her right leg and gently rubbed the tip of her little leather shoe against Akira Kurusu's ankle.

Her eyes gleamed with mockery, affection, and a deep greed and longing.

"You can't run away... Xiao, the power to defeat that stage device is all here, please come and take it yourself."

She seemed to feel her heart racing, unable to suppress the deep throbbing within her. She couldn't help but lick her lips, and a cherry-red blush spread across her fair face, which was being cupped in her hands.

To defeat "Witch's Night" as quickly and with minimal loss as possible, a crucial prerequisite is to obtain "Witch's Soul Extract" from a witch whose abilities are no less than its own, thereby granting Persona the power to directly harm witches.

The simplest way to obtain "extracts of the witch's soul" is, of course, by exchanging bodily fluids...

To put it more bluntly and simply, it's what's known as "enchanting".

While Akira Kurusu was immersed in the painful yet blissful memories of being relentlessly "enchanted" by Homura Akemi in countless reincarnations, she was being pinned down by her.

He suddenly remembered that he possessed powers he had never had before in this timeline...

That was a special move called "Victory Roar".

Homura Akemi seemed to realize the effect of [Victory Roar] earlier. Her blush deepened, and she stared at the boy opposite her with eyes filled with pure desire.

Their intertwined thighs rubbed against each other unconsciously, the thin stockings rubbing against their burning skin, creating a soft rustling sound, composing a warm and ambiguous atmosphere in the quiet coffee shop's private room.

...

As the downpour subsided, a series of raindrops fell from the eaves, pattering onto the puddles on the overpass. Inside the underpass, cars rushed by, their hooves whistling through the rain.

As Akira Kurusu held up the umbrella, feeling the warmth of Homura Akemi's body as she leaned close to him, her arm linked with his, and the touch of her delicate, slender form, he couldn't help but feel a stirring in his heart.

Homura Akemi seemed to be having a hard time suppressing the negative emotions that had accumulated from countless missed rewinds. If the occasion hadn't made it difficult, she would have liked to immediately vent all the pressure she had been holding onto Akira Kurusu.

306. [The Final Battle Against "Pride" and the Witch] (See Takihara Final Battle Arc 4/5)

Two hours have passed since Akira Kurusu completely completed the "enchantment".

But in fact, this was his sixth day soaking in the love hotel room.

Out of consideration for the "integrity of the ritual," Homura Akemi strictly forbids Akira Kurusu from leaving the room.

What is unspoken is that this so-called "ritual integrity" is essentially just Homura Akemi wanting to enjoy time alone with Akira Kurusu out of her own selfish desires.

She seemed certain of final victory, so even though she felt a little guilty towards Madoka Kaname, she still chose to do it.

In the past timeline, this should have been the time of Madoka Kaname's encounter...

Homura Akemi felt guilty about this, but had no intention of repenting.

……

Today marks the start of the "Calculation League".

The bleakness and chill following the autumn rain still lingered inside and outside Mitakihara Junior High School.

In preparation for this competition, the school emptied its student body in advance and made arrangements to suspend classes for a week.

8:00 AM

Fully prepared, Akira Kurusu arrived at the school gate on time, carrying an umbrella.

Ryuji Sakamoto, who had taken advantage of his family member quota, quickly approached.

"Joker, we have completed the route reconnaissance of the Impression Space in Mitakihara City and are ready to begin operations at any time."

As he spoke, Ryuji Sakamoto took the umbrella from Akira Kurusu.

On the other side, Ann Takamaki, who had also taken advantage of Makoto Niijima's family member quota, was whispering with Haru Okumura.

"You said... what has Joker been doing these past few days?"

"It's probably preparation for the final battle."

Strictly speaking, this is the truth.

Having been "enchanted" by a witch, Akira Kurusu now has a certain degree of overlap with the concepts of "magical girl" and "witch" on a cognitive level. This gives him the ability to directly harm witches while also bearing their instinctive hostility.

Although those moves with 'all-powerful' abilities can ignore those fancy defensive techniques, this is considered an additional damage-boosting range.

When facing an enemy like "Witch's Night," Akira Kurusu's biggest weakness is what she lacks most: so-called "basic stats."

Unless he intends to use the [Sin Armor-Piercing Bullet] before taking over from Dioscuri and Nyarlathotep at "Witch's Night".

Countless timelines show that Akira Kurusu's single [Sin Armor-Piercing Bullet] was not enough to immediately kill "Witch Night".

That incredible stage setup, after being modified by "Nyarlathotep," now possesses power comparable to any evil god.

To be precise, the "despair" that the magical girls gathered and constituted has been elevated in the Sea of ​​Hearts, becoming a cognitive aggregate of "despair" in the collective subconscious.

In some ways, its destructive power far surpasses that of "Dioscuri," capable of shattering both the "matter" and "spirit" levels in the instant it fully activates. In numerous time rewinds, the Phantom Thieves and magical girl-led extermination teams have suffered fatal blows due to the upgraded "Witch's Night."

Therefore, we must unite all available forces to defeat "Witch's Night" without suffering any casualties.

The reason why the three evil gods will not gather together is that "Witch's Night" is completely out of control.

Even Nyarlathotep, who once destroyed the world, dared not confront this extremely twisted despair.

......

"Private Xiujin Academy!"

Upon hearing the organizer call out his name, Ito Sansui, who was standing at the school gate, quickly brought Xiujin's ace to the registration point.

Teachers waiting at the registration point were flipping through the list of contestants.

Then he looked at the ordinary-looking boy in front of him... in his view, he was just an ordinary-looking boy.

"Ren Amamiya, is that your name?"

The teacher spoke of this name, which was quite popular online, yet maintained a very calm demeanor. He suddenly realized that he seemed to have forgotten something very important, but the altered memories prevented him from recognizing these anomalies in his life.

Akira Kurusu keenly sensed the other person's abnormality, which was a kind of almost harmless "memory manipulation".

It was Dioscuri deliberately using this method to provoke, declaring that he had planted his spies in every aspect of the school.

Akira Kurusu showed no anger or annoyance. He walked into Mitakihara Middle School hundreds of times and began the rehearsal in front of the village, following the established procedures. A dim and unclear coolness hung in the air. The members of the Phantom Thieves had disappeared without a trace.

Entering the teaching building, Akira Kurusu took a Bluetooth earphone from her pocket and put it into her Earlion earphone. As soon as the power button was pressed, Futaba Sakura's voice immediately rang in her ears.

"Joker! This is Navi!"

I can hear you.

"Alright~ The entire Phantom Thieves have infiltrated the school's memory space. Please give your instructions, Master!"

"Hold your positions. A magical girl named Homura Akemi will soon join you. Just follow her instructions."

"Roger that!" came the sound of Sakura Futaba's rapid typing on her laptop keyboard through the earpiece. "Do you need me to give an additional report on the situation of the teams led by Naruto-senpai and Yuuki-senpai?"

"Do not report any information about either side until the 'Witch's Night' appears."

"yes!"

Sakura Futaba closed her laptop screen, and out of sheer boredom, she leaned to the side and lay down on Shiomi Kotone's lap.

"Sister Qinyin, shall we wait here?"

She looked at the outline of Mitakihara Junior High School in the distance and felt a little puzzled.

Kotone Shiomi was watching TV on the sofa. This was the top floor of a luxury hotel with a panoramic view of Mitakihara. Through the huge glass curtain wall, the first thing you could see was the gray sky of Mitakihara City.

Hearing Futaba Sakura's words and sensing the worry within them, Kotone Shiomi calmly replied, "Please rest assured. Although this is your first time facing such incredible enemies, the Joker has challenged them countless times."

"So...we'll just stay here and wait patiently."

The school was unusually deserted because of the school closure.

After walking through the empty corridor, I saw four junior high school students eagerly waiting in a nearby empty classroom.

The mature and composed girl with the air of a young lady from a wealthy family waved to Akira Kurusu.

Akira Kurusu briefly told Sansui Ito that he "had some acquaintances" and then temporarily left the competition team.

He pushed open the classroom door. The lights were off, and the girls looked very nervous.

After all, the news that "Witch's Night" had arrived ahead of schedule was a huge shock to them.

Of course, compared to this, the information about "time rewind" is even more shocking.

"Hello, I am..." The girl who had waved and greeted Qi Xiao earlier was about to introduce herself.