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

4-36: Peace Continues Yet (5/5)

When Kutoria was completely shrouded in the night, in a certain place within Japan, within an expensive mansion, was a black-haired young man lying on a sofa, speaking listlessly to the person on the other side of that black screen in the air.

The person he was talking to was the complete opposite of listless, however.

What is the meaning of this!?

Nothing. Due to some circumstances, Ive been completely busy these past few days. Of course, since its my fault, Ill be paying the penalty for breaking our contract.

Although the young man had admitted his own fault, he was flippant about this situation.

Evidently, he wasnt the slightest bit apologetic.

If the person he was talking to could see him, he wouldve surely blown his top.

You said youd make it by the appointed date! Dont tell me youre afraid of that ridiculous mask?

A threat video from someone calling himself Masquerade.

The video itself hadnt reached the man, but its been getting around in their industry.

There was scorn in the voice of the man as though to ask you dont actually believe that cr*p, do you?

Ha, dont be ridiculous. Only fools would watch that and not be afraid.

What was that!?

I recommend that you stay quiet for at least half a month. I wouldnt want to lose a valued client, after all.

The young man confidently declared that only a painful ending would await him were he to move now, and the person took that for contempt.

Unacceptable! Theres only six days left until the appointed day! How many years do you think weve been waiting for this day!? The two worlds shall know that a mere video cant scare us!

I see. Good luck then. If youre still safe two weeks later, Ill be sure to send you the payment.

Dont forget those words, Doctor!().

One voice cold, the other emotional, the call ended in a quarrel, and silence filled the room, but a strange smile surfaced of the young man.

What an idiot. Hell only mark himself if he makes a move now I got too heated up too.

In a sense, his words had baited the man into making this foolish choice. That wasnt something he would normally do.

Ah~ This line cant be used anymore. Gotta get rid of all my traces.

He didnt sound the slightest bit regretful as he said that.

In fact, his cheeks loosened because he could understand the reason behind his actions.

To think there would still be such a human side left in him.

Im back.

Ah, welcome home.

It was then that another young man entered through the window hed left open.

From their calm attitude, it could be seen that the man was not an intruder.

This was the 80th story, but even that was normal for this two.

The man approached the young man, lying on the couch, and immediately knelt.

Master [1](), Ive recovered the blade that person threw away as youve instructed.

Like a knight offering tribute to his king, the man presented a blade.

Though this knight was indeed male, he was a beautiful young man with blonde hair.

So much so that the way he looked as he offered that sword would fit right in a painting.

What era are you from? Ah, but then again, youre not human

But the person on the receiving end of that knightly ceremony was just dumbfounded.

Despite the unremarkable response, the blond man just smiled as he watched his master become flustered.

The young man, who was his master, took the sword and placed it on the table, then he fiddled with his terminal, and immediately, the surroundings changed.

Wow!

Although the blond man was already used to this, he still let out a voice of admiration when that rich living room suddenly transformed into a research lab.

Various pseudo examination equipments composed of photons appeared as well.

The young man did not create matter from air, rather he took the various systems in his terminal and made them both visible and bigger with photons.

Quiet down, Ein.

It was true that the young man had made these himself, but they werent anything new, and yet Ein was all praises for him, so he couldnt help but sigh.

Using his terminal, a machine arm grasped the blade, and he examined it using various sensors.

I-Im sorry, Master. The prototype you went out of your way to make was stolen by the enemy when I wasnt paying attention.

Its fine. Either way it was broken the moment you struck him with it. Repairing it now would be difficult, though, since I had to use a number of rare metals to fix it. I wanted to recover those metals thats why I wanted it recovered That and I was certain this() would be left behind.

What would?

A trace left by Masquerade.

After all, he already had it.

Usually, it would just be a possibility, but in this particular incident, he was sure that a trace would be left.

But even without this, I wouldve still had a way to figure him out. The more evidence the better, though.

Master, are you planning on getting involved with him?

He made an appointment, after all.

A one-sided reservation that arranged for a meeting on June 14.

A date that was meaningful to them(). Thats why it was hard to reject, and that was also why the possibility that had flashed through his mind became even more likely.

Im against it. That person is strong. To be honest, I dont think I can win against him. Even if the whole world fought with us, I doubt I could win

To lose even with the whole world backing them up It was such an absurd thought, but Ein was convinced of it.

He could tell when theyd fought that the enemy hadnt taken him seriously.

And yet his master just took that as a matter-of-fact.

I know Ive known that ever since.

Huh?

At most, you might be able to win against the famed General Ortis. As I thought, the world really is big. Even an All S like you couldnt do anything.

Ein knew that his master was hiding something from him, but since his master wished to hide it, he wouldnt pursue.

But as a servant, there were things that he had to say, so he stiffened his face and advised his master.

That enemy was powerful, Master. But more than that power, what was really terrifying was his mentality. He might really have the power to contest against the world. Moreover, he made a decision like that in that moment I wonder what kind of human he is.

Was he a fool, a deviant, or someone amazing?

As Ein said that, he showed his master a fearful face for the first time.

And yet, his master didnt think anything of it.

I get what you want to say, but unfortunately, that guy is just an idiot.

Huh? What do you mean?

All that Masquerade is doing is sidestepping the problem by doing something in a way that no one knows so no one can ignore him, and by becoming a threat that no one can solve.

An existence as small as a human that could travel throughout the whole world in a short time.

Moreover, one that could bring about that much destruction. Already, that was an existence that had gone far beyond a simple threat.

So much so that even the thoughtless use of cruise missiles was left in the mist.

Dont tell me, in order to prevent any chance for conflict from being left by the warmongers, he intentionally created an even bigger commotion?

Thats the general idea, yes, but it was also meant as a greeting for the actions he would be taking from here on.

Unbelievable. Ein trembled when he realized the decision that that person made.

His master just enjoyed his reactions, however.

Ku ku, but in the end, how many people has noticed it, I wonder. That this threats real goal is to buy time. A complete but indirect delegation of the problem to the people concerned. How nostalgic.

Master?

But as usual, hes messing up in all the weirdest places. I cant believe he left so much of it He should be grateful that I recovered it for him.

This was the first time Ein heard these kind of words from his master.

Words spoken of in a gentle voice toward the person underneath that mask.

Master, do you know that person?

Yeah. When we were talking, it was just a possibility, but with how his brain works, there could only be one guy.

Why?

Theyd both spoken to the man, and yet, Ein couldnt figure out at all why his master was so convinced.

In response to his doubts, his master shrugged his shoulders and said.

He knew that you were at least four tails. In other words, he had the ability to know that you were an Amaryllis. But the Amaryllis are too strong, so theyre not being researched or observed even in Garesto. In that case, only someone who has an Amaryllis would be privy to such knowledge.

Ah.

That was enough for Ein.

After all, there was only person that was known to have an Amaryllis.

W-Wait a moment, Master! Does that mean that Masquerades true identity is!?

The evidence doesnt end there. His Recognition Interference ability is indeed terrifying, but his eyes can be seen.

I-Is there supposed to be an evidence there?

The young man chuckled, then fiddled with his terminal to project a screen in the air showing Masquerade.

Because the black mist was expanding from the eyes, it was easy to tell that the creature was humanoid, but with the whole body indistinct, learning anything else was impossible.

After all, this was already the result after analyzing it with all sorts of video analysis software, however

Look at the mask that can be seen clearly. Now, zoom.

On the screen was Masquerade when he glared at the young man. The screen zoomed in onto the white mask, and then enhanced the image, filling the entire screen with the eyes beneath the mask.

Upscaling the image all the way from that tiny point was possible thanks to otherworld technology, and by processing that image through various tools, new information could be extracted.

At this point, Ein finally understood what his master was getting at.

I see. If the eyes can be seen, then a retinal scan and an iris recognition scan can be done!

Bingo.

Both were ways to identify a person through their eyes.

The retinal scan relied on patterns on the retina specific to each individual, while the iris recognition relied on pattern recognition technology to match the pattern of the iris.

8 years ago it still wasnt possible to use such technologies from this distance, but it was possible now.

Of course, without any prior data it would still be impossible to know who it is, but I never got rid of his data from 8 years ago.

Confident in his conjectures, he began the analysis of the two data, and the result was a 99.99989% match.

With the trace left on the blade and the matter about the Amaryllis too, there was no mistaking it any longer.

All of the data was pointing to that boy that was projected on the biggest screen.

Ku ku ku I thought this day would come eventually, but it was a lot earlier than I expected. Regardless The only humans worthy enough to stand in my way is either you or Daigo.

The young man laughed with delight.

It was as though either of the two becoming an enemy was a happy event.

It had nothing to do with their abilities, he felt from their nature that that would be the case.

Thats why they were able to become best friends.

Its really scary, actually. To think that a person like you would be given power Like giving a monster a weapon.

He didnt know how, but the boy he knew had gained power.

Moreover, enough power to threaten the world.

But despite saying how scary such a thing was, his face was full of delight.

Just where and what have you been doing in your two years? You chose that date because you realized it was me, right? Im sure you want to meet me even now too, isnt that right

Full of yearning and anticipation, the young man gazed at the boy on the screen, and uttered that name after so long.

Shinichi?

In a gentle voice deep with affection.

[1] This one is actually using the word Master, whereas Youko uses nushi-sama, an old respectful way of referring to men, when referring to her master.

Tl Note: No chapter tomorrow.

Update: Still no chapter today. Well resume tomorrow.