My thoughts were clear: eliminate Kumagawa. I'm not a psychopath, I have never killed anyone, and I hoped to never do it. But for years, I was forced to make quick and effective decisions. If I hesitated, whether out of compassion or empathy, I would end up dead.
Kumagawa is not someone I would like to have living with me because this insane child could decide at any moment that he is bored of humanity and the world, and destroy them without hesitation.
So my actions were decided in an instant: eliminate Kumagawa Misogi.
That was the plan, but just before killing him, a revelation passed through my mind. I had noticed something strange while dragging Kumagawa through the city. It seemed that All Fiction did not work against me, or rather, my will protected me from its direct influence.
All Fiction is very powerful, almost omnipotent, but that "almost" is the issue. All Fiction cannot erase other Minuses or powers equal to itself. Therefore, it is not omnipotent.
So, my will is so strong not only to avoid being erased but also to literally nullify All Fiction.
So, I will seal it.
I repeat, I am not a psychopath. I do not take pleasure in killing a child, no matter how insane and dangerous he may be. So, if there is another option, I will not kill him. Of course, if there really is no other option, I will eliminate him without hesitation.
Using my power, I fired an energy sphere at Kumagawa, far from an explosion that would be expected. The energy surrounded Kumagawa and pressed him from all directions. Then it turned into chains that strangled him until he became unconscious, and then disappeared. Those chains will limit the scope of All Fiction, and it will no longer have universal influence.
If I leave Kumagawa defenseless, someone could steal his power, and that someone could be worse than this child.
I left the unconscious child on the ground and returned to the facility. I noticed that someone had recorded my confrontation with Kumagawa. It looked like a normal young man, he must be the typical guy who records and uploads videos to social media.
I didn't pay attention. From what I know about this world, people with powers are public. So sooner or later, everyone will know about me.
=================
After finishing Kumagawa, I returned to the facility. I guess I have to deal with the princess too.
*Sigh*
*POV Medaka*
What happened?
I couldn't understand...
My mind processes information at the speed of a quantum computer, but still, I couldn't understand anything. My senses allow me to see the bullets stopped in the air, but I couldn't see him. It was too fast. Out of nowhere, the child I thought of challenging had disappeared along with Kumagawa...
"I'm surprised you're still here," the boy's voice whispered in my ear. I froze again because I couldn't feel him approaching.
"Jiren..." My lips trembled. I had never felt so apprehensive with someone. It's as if the air became a solid mass impossible to pass through my throat.
"I thank you, Kurokami Medaka," the boy caressed my head and then walked towards the broken wall. "If you hadn't come here, I wouldn't have known that Kumagawa Misogi existed in this world. I could have died at any moment without even knowing why."
"Is that child so dangerous?" - my gaze drifted as I remembered the boy. It's true that he didn't have an air that inspired confidence, in fact, he looked like a madman, but other than that, I didn't think he was so dangerous. Although I'm realizing that my perception and judgment aren't as reliable as I thought.
"That's right, Medaka-chan, he was terrifying. Kumagawa could remove the crust of the earth and make every living being on the planet fall into the Earth's core," Jiren extended his hand towards the destroyed wall, and as if time went backward, the hole that pierced the building began to close.
"What?!" - I opened my mouth in surprise at seeing this.
My mind felt a tug of reality. It seems that I misjudged the power of the humans in this world, or rather, I think I don't know as much about the world as I thought.
If what he said is true, Kumagawa is more dangerous than I imagined, and worse, he was defeated by Jiren. Otherwise, the one who would be here would be Kumagawa...
"I thought I could take you to my abyss of despair," I shook my head, thinking about Kumagawa's words. I don't want to be a monster, but something told me that I'm one step away from being one, and if it weren't for Jiren, I wouldn't have even realized.
"Jiren..." - I called out in a low voice to the boy - "Fight with me..."
This should be the simplest solution. I want to be defeated, but not just defeated, I want to be overwhelmingly defeated. Perhaps then, I can live with myself.
"Medaka, you are wrong in many things... to begin with, you look for yourself in others, and desperately want an anchor that allows you to live, you want a purpose," the boy walked up to me, despite being the same age, he was a few centimeters taller.
"So, what do I do? Just keep being myself? I've simulated my future thousands of times, and every outcome is the same. I always end up being some kind of perfect goddess to whom everything goes well, no matter the obstacles I encounter along the way... nothing takes more than a few moments to be resolved. My life is too simple and easy to live."
My mind is my curse. Every action I take is accompanied by many more processes and an end. It's like taking a step in a labyrinth but instantly knowing where to exit.
The boy smiled and petted my head - "To begin with, the fact that you call yourself perfect is wrong. Perfection is subjective. You say you were born as a perfect being, but here you are scared of the future because you don't know your reason for being."
What?
I opened my eyes in surprise. I didn't really realize that contradiction...
What is perfection? Being smarter than everyone else? Being born with all possible abilities and talents? Having everything go well for me? Being beautiful? Beauty is also something imposed by humans.
"Life isn't as simple as that, let alone the world. Everything you know comes from books. You're a little girl, how do you know all the mysteries of existence? Five minutes ago, you thought you were invincible," as if the boy was reading my thoughts he hit my forehead with his finger - "Don't allow people to influence you. You almost became a monster because of Kumagawa's words. If I were a different kind of person, I would take advantage of that for enslave you just by giving you a purpose."
"I..." - I have no words to reply, everything is true. I'm so simple that an unknown child can destroy my will with a few words.
"The biggest limit of someone is their creator..." - the boy whispered words I didn't understand while looking at the ceiling.
"I still don't know what to do, but at least I understand that I shouldn't let others influence me. Thank you, I guess." - I don't know what else to do now, I just want to go back to my bed and sleep for a week or two.
*End of POV*
I looked at Kurokami Medaka, dejected. It must have been a harsh blow of reality to realize how naive she truly was. Every part of the Medaka that everyone knows and will know was formed by someone else. There was never a Medaka made by herself.
The author of Medaka Box gave his characters absurd powers, but as an author, it's difficult to control those characters, so he gave them limits, and these limits were always something psychological.
He turned Kumagawa Misogi into a depressed lunatic, despite being invincible, he will be defeated on many occasions because he believed he should be defeated.
Kurokami Medaka told herself that she was perfect but ended up being fan service that showed her underwear on every occasion. She only moved for the sake of others. You could say that if Hitoyoshi Zekkichi had not existed, the Medaka that everyone knows would not exist. But at the same time, if Kumagawa or anyone else had influenced her, Medaka would end up with a different personality.
So where is the true Medaka?
Probably no one knows... only by freeing herself from the limits of her own author will she be able to be the true Medaka and not a shell of fan service.
She is not a character to me, she is a human being since I met her in my new reality. She doesn't need a limit or an easy-to-manipulate personality.
"Medaka..." - I called out to the girl who was leaving the room, feeling dejected.
I know that meddling more than this could end up affecting the girl if I do it wrong, but I don't want to let her leave in such a depressed and hopeless manner.
I have a lot of life experience, I mean, I saw an infinity of my alternate lives, so I have plenty of life knowledge. My only fear is that she will end up doing the same thing that Zekkichi or Kumagawa tried to do.
"Medaka, let me tell you a story..." - I proceeded to tell her a long story.
(What Jiren told her here will be remembered forever by Medaka as an invaluable treasure, but it's a story for the future)
After finishing, I saw the light in Medaka's eyes. I have to admit that I myself grew as a person after this.
*POV Hitomi*
Damn it, damn it, damn it.
Stupid regulations, stupid government, stupid prime minister.
"Too risky? Can't I take my son home? Should we protect our country's 'treasures'?"
"Damn it! We all know they're just trying to have the most number of Espers under their control."
Ever since Vought created The Seven and other 'superhero' teams, all countries have seen it as a provocation - "We control our monsters."
"No, calm down Hitomi. Now that you're a mother, you can't do anything stupid. There must be a way, I won't allow my son to live in a cage."
Governments are hypocrites, as they claim to want to protect people but only do so with controlable Abnormals and Minuses. They won't even touch the Omega category for fear of provoking them. Kumagawa and Kurokami should be under surveillance like Jiren, but they don't even bother with them.
Boom
"What?! The building is shaking, I heard an explosion!"
[EMERGENCY]
"Jiren-chan!"
I ran as fast as I could. I had never been so scared in my life. If anything happened to my son, I don't know what I would do. I arrived at the hallway where Jiren was. In front of the game room, there were many of my subordinates. It seems the incident was in that place.
"Wait, Director, it's dangerous to go in!"
"Get out of my way!" With an annoyed face, I pushed everyone aside. Nothing will stop me. Today is the day when Kumagawa and Kurokami, two children so dangerous that they were placed in the Omega category despite their age, come.
In this world, the power of people with abilities is divided into six categories or levels, where level six, also called Omega, is the highest. This category is used to identify superhumans and creatures that possess a power or potential that cannot be measured.
I had a bad feeling about this.
I didn't want to leave Jiren-chan today, but since Jiren is only at level 4, I need the minister's permission to let him have a normal life. It's impossible for Jiren-chan to live discreetly, but it's still my duty as his new mother to try to give him the best life possible.
"Look, Director, please see this!" Seeing me, the woman in front of me knew that if she stopped me, getting fired would be the least of her worries. Still, she didn't move out of my way.
"I don't have time-!" Reflexively, I saw the holographic screen she had.
It was Jiren and Kurokami Medaka, they seemed to be talking, and Jiren was stroking Kurokami Medaka's head.
A part of me was relieved to see this. It's too easy for people capable of anything to lose their humanity, the very things that make them aware of their surroundings, empathy, tolerance, values, and respect. When you're omnipotent, you begin to forget the value of things.
As much as I hated it, I waited outside the room until they finished talking. I faced Kurokami Medaka as she exited Jiren's game room.
"If you or your father so much as harm a hair on my son's head, I swear I will do the impossible to make you pay," I confronted the princess with a firm and hostile tone. I was willing to do whatever it takes to protect Jiren.
"Are you the director? I apologize for causing trouble," Kurokami Medaka bowed in apology and then left, leaving me in shock.
What? Eh? Ehhhhhhh?!
I sat on the floor without strength.
"Director!" a researcher shouted, but I couldn't respond.
That Kurokami Medaka bowed! The Kurokami Medaka who ruthlessly humiliated the Nobel Prize winner in Mathematics!
No, that doesn't matter now. I ignored my subordinates' voices and entered the game room.
"JIREN-CHAN!"
Jiren was on the floor reading some books, he looked at me confusedly. "Mom?... Mother? It still feels weird calling you that, I'll call you Hitomi for now..."
Ignoring Jiren's discomfort, I hugged him.
*End of POV*
Time passed quickly and in the end, I got bored of being locked up, so a week later, I left the facility.
I realized that I could leave whenever I wanted, it seems my level increased from four to six without me noticing. Someone deliberately hid that from Hitomi, I had defeated Kumagawa, so that must be why.
She was furious when she found out, so she searched for the culprit and hit him. Far from blaming Hitomi, the government apologized and fired the responsible person. Although it doesn't take much to know that he was just a scapegoat. Level six seems to be like diplomatic immunity that ambassadors have. I don't know how to feel about it, basically an Omega can kill and not be held accountable for it.
Personally, I didn't care because during my time at the facility, I learned a lot about this world. Still, it was time to start my new life. Hitomi bought a small house in Hakoniwa and we moved there. She is the director of one of Japan's most important paranormal research institutions, so a mansion is not beyond her means, but neither of us likes excessive luxury.
========
That same day, I looked out the window of my room at the sky. This world is dangerous, but compared to my previous life, I no longer feel the dagger at my neck all day.
Furthermore, even if I were to face all that again, now I can defend myself... In my right hand, the scarlet of my will shone, and in my left, a sky blue. This is my second wish, and it consumed half of the Wish Note...
*Ding Dong*
Someone rang my doorbell, so I went down to open it. The first thing I saw was the familiar blue ahoge, then I saw her eyes and mischievous smile. It was Kurokami Medaka, she was standing in front of my door in a very peculiar white dress, although something strange, it didn't seem like something a little girl should wear.
I had a strange feeling that I should run away from here, she looked at me with her shining eyes and rosy cheeks.
"Marry me!"
My mind couldn't process her words, what did she say?