I Came Back but the World is Still a Fantasy!?

『…I see, though I don’t know if I should say ‘as expected of Tomoe’s mother’ or ‘as expected of your daughter’.』

Mother and daughter alike were unusually sharp.

The Mask chuckled at that, as though he found that to be charming.

And Shouko too similarly puffed up her chest in an expression of joy – though unlike her daughter, hers were quite the bountiful pair.

『But of course! That’s the daughter I’m so proud of, after all! Interested?』

Her behavior showed affection for her daughter, but there was something off about it.

『…You’re quite different from what I’ve heard.』

『Huh? Oh, well… That’s because I do my best to act like a mother in front of her!』

Shoko said with a resolute face, though her eyes could be seen swimming a little.

Apparently, the mother had been playing a character for her daughter. The Mask sighed at that and shook his head.

『That’s definitely not something I can tell Tomoe..』

『A mother’s secret that can’t be told to her daughter? …Oh my! How indecent!』

『…Please, stop already!』

For the sake of her daughter’s dignity, for the sake of her ideal image of a mother…

Or so the Mask lamented, but Shouko just smiled.

While the two elders were being ignored, the old man muttered.

“…They seem to be hitting it off quite well despite meeting for the first time.”

“Takuma?”

What was that supposed to mean? Mikoto smiled at him coldly.

A burst of cold sweat appeared on the old man, but his only recourse was to try and fool her with a dry smile.

“Shouko-chan, wasn’t there something you wanted to ask?”

But it wasn’t as if Mikoto was seriously pursuing the issue, so she just turned her attention back to Shouko.

But Shouko suddenly went quiet and glanced at the Mask.

───Do it!

The feelings behind her gaze was so clear that there was no way for the Mask to mistake it.

『Good grief, like mother like child indeed… Excuse me.』

“Huh?”

“What?”

They were definitely mother and child, the Mask thought as he chuckled internally before matter-of-factly removing his mask.

In the next moment, the dark robe that clad him dispersed, and the face of an average boy was revealed.

“Nice to meet you. My name is Nakamura Shinichi, and I’m a young boy of 15 years old!”

Then he introduced himself with a cheerful and suspicious smile.

It was an atmosphere very much like when Mikoto revealed her age.

“…”

“…”

Perhaps it was because of that, or perhaps, because not even that managed to reach their ears and eyes, that the two elders remained there frozen, shocked to their very core.

Who could have imagined it? That the existence pulling the strings behind the world – that which bestowed judgment upon the members of their clan and casually destroyed that demonic sword – would actually be a child?

This was an existence that could easily quarrel with Mikoto, an existence whose depths she could not measure, yet against all odds, that existence turned out to be a child.

Above all, it was a boy even younger than Tomoe and Ryou. Indeed, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration that not even in their dreams could they imagine such an absurd truth.

“…H-Huh? 1-15 Years Old? No way! You’re not just faking your appearance, right!?”

Amused by her agitation, Shinichi rid himself of his cheerful(suspicious) smile and answered in a tone with no respect for the elderly.

“This is my real body. I didn’t switch it out via teleportation either. In the first place, you didn’t fake your looks either, did you? You just stopped your body’s time. After all, it’s obvious when there’s a big discrepancy between the soul and the flesh.”

“!”

Mikoto gulped when she realized that she’d been seen through, but the spiritual sword(mother) interjected.

『But enough of that, Mikoto-sama. I would like an explanation on why you ignored Tomoe’s predicament. I knew you’ve been lurking there for a while already, and my future son has also witnessed it, so I won’t be hearing any excuses.』

“Future?”

“Son?”

However…

Shouko’s soul-chilling voice drove the two elders into a corner, but it was those two words that caught their attention, so Shinichi forcefully brought the topic back on track.

“…It is indeed as Tomoe’s mother says. I saw you come when that lightning was summoned.”

『Call me Mother-in-law, won’t you, dear? …Though I see that you really did know about that.』

“I’m the one who told her about the problems surrounding the usage of Raijin Call, after all.”

For some reason, Shinichi felt uncomfortable by the way she smiled so happily, but regardless, he still turned and told her that politely.

“I also told her that if she needed to use it despite that, then she might as well take advantage of its conspicuousness to send a message – a message that something was happening where she was and to attract attention,” Shinichi said.

Tomoe’s plan back then was to call Mikoto, the most influential person in the clan, by calling forth such a massive lightning to crash into the barrier.

Though the sound and impact couldn’t be perceived by normal people, exorcists, especially, Mikoto, the person who erected the barrier, would definitely be able to.

“But of course, the grandma over there came knowing that but still hid herself and just watched.”

Tomoe’s plan was mostly a success, but it still ended in failure because Mikoto just hid herself.

But of course, Shinichi was able to see Mikoto and the old man approach.

His eyes back then were just as cold as they were now.

“…F-Fu fu fu, and just as I said earlier, didn’t you do the same?”

Perhaps, she’d shaken off some of the shock, or perhaps, she’d merely forced herself to be calm, but Mikoto glared at Shinichi with a smile while tacitly acknowledging his accusations.

Alas, Shinichi’s expression wasn’t about to change because of a few words on that level.

“And just as I said earlier, are you seriously trying to piss me off? Going as far as to politely pretend that you don’t understand… I see that you’re itching to die.”

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