"Haahhhhhh!!"
At the same time, in the spiritual world, the veins on First Timeline Yuki's temples nearly burst as he pulled with all his strength. At last, the massive door tore open, and someone emerged from it...
The pure white Astral Dress and the flowers brimming with vitality were enough for Yuki to confirm her identity.
(I did it...!)
He had been through so much, and at last he succeeded.
(I won!)
For the first time since arriving in this timeline, his razor-sharp aura softened. Just as he was about to embrace the person who came running out of the Sky Castle, she ignored him completely and rushed past his side.
"Shinji!!"
"...?!"
Only then did he see the face of the one who had come out of the Sky Castle. His eyes widened as he murmured,
"Mio... why? Did Raphael make a mistake?"
It made no sense. Mio Takamiya had come out instead of Reine. Raphael's chains were designed to bind and retrieve the Angel Ain Soph along with her Spirit, preventing an error and extracting the Demon King.
"Angel? Oh..."
That was when Yuki understood. Raphael hadn't made a mistake. Mio Takamiya wasn't a Demon King right now.
Which meant Reine was the current Demon King.
"They switched places... I miscalculated..."
His chest sank. What had happened for Reine to trade places with Mio?
"Reine..."
Did they fight? It didn't seem possible. He didn't believe Mio could win—at least not in the condition she was in...
"I lost again...."
So many losses weighed heavily on Yuki. Still, one of his floating swords transformed into a spear. He turned toward the Sky Castle, where the Domain was on the verge of collapse.
"Michael: Segva...."
Before it could end, Yuki thrust the spear toward the Sky Castle, twisting it like a key. A brilliant sword emerged at the same time.
Est had returned....
BROMMMMMMMM
The Sky Castle trembled, and the wails of the Demon Kings echoed through it.
"Goodbye, Reine...."
Filled with regret, Yuki said his farewell one last time toward the Sky Castle. Whether Reine heard him or not didn't matter anymore....
Mio, meanwhile, ignored First Timeline Yuki completely. The moment she emerged, she ran straight for the portal the Beast had entered through. That portal had never closed, and through it, Mio could feel her beloved on the other side. Without hesitation, she ran toward him....
On the other side, Yuki was still imprisoned by Requiem's chains. They were no longer consuming him. From the moment chaos was eradicated, Requiem entered a dormant state, and the chains stopped crushing him.
Even so, they didn't release him. He remained bound.
"...."
Yuki wasn't thinking about that. Reine's final words left him with a terrible premonition. He stared at the portal, waiting for answers.
"Shinji...!"
"Huh?!"
The wait was short. Someone leaped out of the portal and slammed into him, knocking him down as the woman wrapped her arms around his neck and showered his face with kisses.
"Shinji... Shinji... Shinji..."
Burying her face against Yuki's chest, Mio whispered her lover's name again and again.
Her appearance had changed, but this aura—this scent—was unmistakably his. Mio was happy. Once more, she was in the arms of her greatest love...
"Eh?!"
"What?!"
"Impossible!"
Yuki was frozen in shock. Mio Takamiya—the one who had dragged him through countless life-or-death situations—was in his arms, kissing him, then curling up against him like a kitten.
Everyone saw it, mouths hanging open. The Spirits on the Thrones. Eggy. Est. Aiwass.
Mio Takamiya—the first Spirit and the one responsible for all this disaster—was now acting shy with her boyfriend. It was shocking at first, then unbearable for some of the girls....
"I see... so that's what happened."
One person understood everything.
First Timeline Yuki.
The one behind all of this was Reine. She had implanted Shinji's aura into Yuki. And because they shared the same soul, the aura caused no rejection.
(She probably did it through Kotori...)
Reine had done something to Kotori. When Kotori later touched Yuki, the effect transferred to him. Since it wasn't harmful, it slipped past Yuki's defenses and altered his aura without him noticing.
In the same way, Reine left something behind in Mio when she touched her shoulder—distorting her perception so she would recognize Yuki as Shinji.
(From the beginning, you never intended to leave...)
Reine's love for her Original was so deep that she chose to sacrifice herself—taking on the role of the Demon King and sealing herself inside the Sky Castle....
(But this still isn't over...)
Shaking his head, First Timeline Yuki regained his composure and left the spiritual world. There was still something he had to do....
With the Demon King sealed, the chains of the Arms Coffin vanished. Requiem's lid closed and fell silent, as if waiting for something else. After all, at this moment, there were two "Masters," and it couldn't serve both....
At the same time, with chaos eradicated, the Coffin regained its original color—a milky white, bearing the large insignia of the Holy Trinity Goddess on its lid....
Even without the chains, Yuki was still trapped in Mio's embrace, unable to free himself—defenseless and exhausted.
For him, this was the first time he had truly faced Mio. Even though the previous timeline had been a disaster, he could still endure her actions.
(Reine... what did you do...?)
He thought of the girl he had made a deal with. Reine had been mentioned to him before....
Did he hate Mio Takamiya?
First Timeline Yuki did. But he didn't. And the fact that Mio Takamiya was clinging to him only confirmed that his instincts were right....
So should he hate her, even though Reine saved her?
As an Impostor, Yuki had no authority to question another Impostor.
This was Reine's decision....
And it didn't matter, because—
(I'll go after her....)
Reine was still alive. Yuki knew it, and that was why he wouldn't give up on her.
Creakkkkkkkk
With Requiem no longer a threat, the Domain collapsed, and the Thrones within the Crown lit up....
"Yuki, we did it!"
The Spirits cheered from their Thrones. They had protected the World and slain the Beast. Yuki smiled back in relief. It had been exhausting, but they won.
Buzzzz
"Guhh?!"
Suddenly, the tip of a spear burst out from Mio's chest and twisted like a key.
"Yuki!!"
Everyone who saw it was horrified by the sudden turn of events. Mio Takamiya herself was the most confused. She turned her head, eyes wide.
There stood First Timeline Yuki.
There was no emotion on his face. The coldness in his gaze terrified her.
"Impostor...."
She had been so happy to be with her beloved that she had forgotten about him....
"Michael: Segva...."
Unfortunately for Mio, the Impostor gave her no time to summon her Angel. He turned the key, sealing her Spirit Power and her consciousness.
At the same time, a Crown expanded and enveloped the World.
"Activate Incomplete Domain Haniel: World of Infinite Dreams."
[First level: World of black and white]
The World shifted, swallowed by dreamlike mist.
At the same time, Requiem trembled—but it didn't interfere with the Domain. Instead, it floated gently, as if waiting for the outcome....
"No... Shinji... Shinji..."
Mio squeezed her eyes shut in fear. She wanted to stay with her beloved, but she had been ambushed. Something might happen to Shinji—she didn't know what this Impostor would do.
She wasn't afraid of him before, because she could control the Crown. But now, without her power, she was helpless.
Yuki smiled faintly and caught her weakened body, keeping her from falling from the sky.
There was no surprise for Yuki in what his other "self" had done. He had been expecting it. He just hadn't thought Mio would be the first one to face his fangs.
But remembering his other self's weakness when it came to the Crown, it was obvious why he attacked Mio and forced the Spirits into space.
She was the only one who could threaten the Crown.