He didn't know.
And that uncertainty bothered him more than he wanted to admit.
For a moment, nobody said anything.
Shin'ya eventually leaned back in his chair.
Aki looked at him.
"You know... you don't have to decide right now."
Shin'ya glanced at him.
"Yeah?"
Aki nodded.
"Honestly, I don't even know what would happen if you got involved."
He paused.
"But if you're serious about helping, then... I won't stop you."
Shin'ya nodded.
"Alright."
Aki leaned back.
"Still, you probably shouldn't get dragged into this mess."
Shin'ya raised an eyebrow.
"That's a pretty weird thing to say after agreeing to let me help."
"I'm just saying."
Aki shrugged.
"You've already got your own problems."
Shin'ya thought about that.
He couldn't exactly argue.
After all, he had no idea when he would be taken away from this world.
"Fair enough."
Eventually, the three of them left the deeper part of the library.
Shin'ya decided to find somewhere else to sleep.
There was no reason to stay around the library after everything that had happened, and honestly, he just wanted somewhere quiet.
After walking for a while, he found a secluded spot in the forest.
A large tree stood nearby, with enough space beneath it for him to sit comfortably.
Shin'ya sat down.
"...Yeah."
He looked around.
"This should work."
He rested Ketsugai beside him and leaned against the tree.
Then he heard footsteps.
Shin'ya opened one eye.
"...What?"
Aki stepped into view.
Shin'ya stared at him.
"Why are you following me?"
Aki stopped.
"Nah, bro."
He looked around the forest.
"We can't let you sleep alone."
Shin'ya raised an eyebrow.
"There's no need for you to do that."
Aki shook his head.
"Accord has already seen your face. If they find you while you're vulnerable, that's a problem."
He looked back at Shin'ya.
"So let me guard you for now."
Shin'ya stared at him for a moment.
Then he gave a small smile.
"Okay."
He settled against the tree.
"Aki, thank you so much."
Aki nodded.
"Yeah. Don't mention it."
Shin'ya closed his eyes.
Eventually, he fell asleep.
Forty minutes passed.
Aki waited.
Nothing happened.
He waited a little longer.
Still nothing.
Aki looked at Shin'ya.
His expression slowly changed.
He walked over to him.
Then he kicked him awake.
"AGH—?!"
Shin'ya jolted upright.
His mind was still completely foggy.
Before he could understand what was happening, Aki had his pistol pointed at him.
"LIAR!"
Shin'ya stared at him.
"You said you would be transported after forty minutes! Now explain it!"
Shin'ya's mind was still catching up.
He looked around.
The forest.
The tree.
Aki.
He was still there.
Oh, yeah... why didn't I disappear...?
He paused.
Wait.
Oh, yeah.
I just guessed.
Forty minutes was convenient, but I'm not actually sure how long I need to sleep before I get transported.
Shin'ya slowly raised one hand.
His other hand rested on Ketsugai's hilt.
Just in case.
"Wait, Aki. Let me explain."
"There is no more explaining, you Puppet of Accord."
Aki pulled the trigger.
But Shin'ya had already disappeared.
Shadow Slip.
His body vanished into his own shadow.
Aki immediately looked around.
"YOU CAN'T RUN, YOU LITTLE—!"
He stopped himself.
His hands slowly lowered.
"Tch. Forget it."
Aki sighed.
"What's seriously going to happen if he gets away? It's not like he can beat me or anything."
He stood there for a moment.
Then he frowned.
"Was he actually lying... or telling the truth?"
Aki rubbed his forehead.
"Gah. My head hurts just thinking about it."
He looked toward Koharu.
"Koharu... let's go."
---
Shin'ya was back in the forest.
He sat on the ground with his legs crossed, Ketsugai resting on his thighs.
His forehead rested against his right hand.
What is the maximum amount of time I can sleep before disappearing?
He sighed.
Man, I really want to find out.
But there's no one to help me test it.
He suddenly stopped.
Wait.
Shin'ya touched Ketsugai.
His shadow stirred beneath him.
He pushed his arm into the darkness and searched through Shadow Storage.
After a moment, he pulled something out.
A mechanical clock.
The same clock he had gotten in Sera's world via Ms. Roxy.
Shin'ya stared at it.
"Maybe I can use this..."
He paused.
"Wait, no."
He looked at the clock again.
I'll need it.
He didn't know why.
He just had a feeling that he would need it sooner or later.
Shin'ya threw the clock toward his shadow.
The darkness rippled like water.
The clock sank into it, just like a rock thrown into a pond.
Then it disappeared completely.
Shin'ya stared at his shadow.
"...Yeah."
He rested his forehead against his hand again.
No need to hurt my head thinking about this stuff.
He slowly lay down.
Let me sleep and get out of this organ-harvesting-organisation bullshit already.
Shin'ya closed his eyes.
And soon—
He fell asleep.