[3] Chapter 3: Schrödinger's Cat
Evening
Finally, school was over.
"At least that's done."
Stretching lightly, Luceris rose from his seat and took his bag from where it hung.
Beside him, Minato did the same.
"Ceris, heading home already?"
"Yeah. Sorry, the tour can wait a bit."
He gave a small apologetic gesture, one eye closed as his hand lifted briefly in front of his face.
Minato only shrugged.
With that, Luceris made his way across the classroom, sliding the door open as he left.
Step by step, he moved through the halls, out of the academy—
And into the streets.
Students and pedestrians filled the road beneath a sky painted in orange, the sun slowly sinking toward the horizon.
Just as he walked, his pace slowed until he eventually came to a stop in front of a shop.
A café, judging by the glass display that revealed its warm interior.
But that wasn't what caught his attention.
It wasn't the issue.
The real issue was that, despite standing directly before the reflective window..
Luceris' body.
It wasn't reflecting.
"Half-dead corpse, huh?"
Those words, along with a smile, played on his lips as they parted.
At those words, anyone would think of a Vampire.
But it was more than that. What he was at this point, he didn't even know.
Something closer to Schrödinger's paradox was more fitting.
"What am I… I don't even know."
It began three months ago.
While it was true he found himself in this world lying in a trash bin.
But when he appeared into this world, he had been nothing more than a ghost.
Ghost in the sense that his body didn't even feel like it was existing.
As if he existed outside the world, overlapping with it, yet never fully part of it.
Fortunately, his anchor had been that cat.
Because he was observed, he was able to fully anchor himself.
It was suffocating.
Being a Schrödinger ghost.
"Yet, if it only were that easy."
Anyone familiar with Schrödinger's thought experiment would understand, at least to some extent.
That was his condition.
In the end.
He was still a half-dead corpse.
Though Luceris appeared physically present in the real world, the truth was different.
Luceris' actual body existed in a separate dimension, one that overlapped with reality.
His interactions were merely the result of interference along the boundaries between those dimensions.
Picking up a pen.
Carrying his bag.
Even the clothes he wore.
All of it was achieved by manipulating the structure of that adjacent space.
But because of this unnatural state, there were things he could no longer do.
Eating.
Bathing.
Even something as basic as using the toilet.
This condition had changed him in ways that distanced him from being truly human.
What difference was there between him and Schrödinger's cat?
Still—
Through practice, he had learned to manoeuvre around it.
To understand the sensation of his existence and work around its limitations.
"Well… the worst has already passed. I'm grateful."
He had adapted.
And, in a strange way, it was even… interesting.
Perhaps, with time, he could move freely through that overlapping dimension.
Or even step into entirely different, unseen ones.
The possibilities crossed his mind.
But for now—
There was only one practical use.
Choosing to focus on the positives, he continued walking until he reached a bridge.
It stretched over the expressway, connecting to the other side.
Just as he stepped onto it—
"…Hyoudou Issei, right? Please go out with me."
What?
Luceris stopped in his tracks.
He heard the voice of a female coming from the top, and when he glanced overhead to catch a glimpse.
A girl and a boy were there.
Right now, the boy was being confessed to.
Though he wasn't the one involved, Luceris still had his mouth parted in shock.
Seriously…
Two lives. Still single.
'Am I the literal embodiment of zero luck with women?'
His dad's genes really be doing wonders, huh?
Funny enough, his dad, by his age, was more average-looking than him, so why?
Or rather, how did he even have a chance with his beautiful mother?
Though the woman had always been telling him that he would eventually get noticed.
Lies.
He never did.
Regardless of what he thought, going up now wouldn't help the guy.
With that in mind, he waited.
Only the sounds of cars passing filled the air until, after what felt like a minute—
Tap Tap~
Luceris lifted his head.
A girl was coming down, her face flushed crimson.
Their gazes met, but the moment they did, she lowered her head and quickened her pace.
"Heh."
Letting out a quiet breath, Luceris finally moved, climbing the stairs.
Reaching the top, he saw the boy.
Around his current physical age.
Much like him, the guy had average looks, yet he stood there, stunned.
He wore the same uniform Luceris wore, so he judged they might be in the same school.
And, what's more, Luceris could clearly see the happiness in his eyes.
How lucky.
Even as he thought that, his expression barely changed.
But was that really true?
Luceris would be lying if he said he didn't feel a twinge of jealousy.
But it ended there.
Right now, he was Schrödinger, whether he liked it or not.
He walked past the boy, whose expression had already shifted into something… perverse.
"...yeah! I have a girlfriend! Woohoo!"
Luceris tilted his head.
'Grown ass man, by the way.'
With that thought, he shook his head lightly, though the boy's happiness didn't go unnoticed.
Resuming his pace, he continued on until he stopped in front of a convenience store.
Cling~
A soft chime rang out as he pushed the door open, grabbing a basket.
He made his way toward the pet section, one hand resting against his chin.
"If I remember correctly, Bern likes this flavor."
He picked up a box.
Cat food.
For a moment, he stared at it before placing it into the basket, adding a few more after that.
Since his body didn't require food, there was nothing he needed for himself.
In a way, it was convenient.
Aside from a place to stay comfortably, he didn't really need much else.
With that done, he made his way to the counter.
"That'll be ¥706."
"Here."
Luceris paid, watching as the cashier packed the items into a nylon bag.
While that was happening, he opened his wallet once more.
Immediately, he turned his head away as if struck.
Well, he was—by the near-zero balance staring back at him, that is.
"Fumu… now this is bad."
Luceris thought this without any particular expression. More night shifts it was then.
Deciding that, and having finished his business, he grabbed his bag, heading out of the store.
Cling~
As he exited the convenience store, Luceris lifted his gaze.
The sky had already begun to darken.
With that in mind, he quickened his pace toward home.
Tucked away in a quiet neighborhood on the outskirts of Kuoh's residential area—
A small apartment was there.
"..I'm home."
Creak~
With a creak, the door to a small apartment opened as the male strode in.
It was small.
Although it was cozy in its way, in front was the living room, and right behind was the kitchen.
It also served as a dining place.
Further inside was his room, which thankfully had its own bathroom, although cramped.
But someone like him didn't need a mansion to be comfortable.
Pah!
With a flick of the switch, the room lit up.
Meow~
Right on cue, just as he flipped the light switch, something light tapped against the floor.
It was a cat.
A black cat, a ribbon tied neatly around its tail.
"Hey, Bern. I'm back~"
Meow~
In response, it gave a soft purr before turning away, padding toward the kitchen.
"Ah, right—I got something for you."
Luceris lifted the shopping bag, dangling it slightly with a smile.
Meow~
But the cat had already leapt onto the counter, placing her paws on the surface expectantly.
"Alright, alright."
This unusual cat had been with him since the very day he arrived in this world.
And somehow.
It always felt like she understood him.
He talked to her often, and though all she gave in return were meows and purrs.
Oddly, there was a strange sense of comprehension behind those purrs of hers.
Even more bizarre.
She had trained him, as ridiculous as it sounded.
After all,
Being chased by a cat with sharp claws was more than enough motivation to run for your life.
Even during his studies.
Whenever he dozed off, he'd be met with a sharp scratch.
Not that it always affected him, because of his condition, but it was more than enough to wake him most times.
Setting her bowl down, Luceris poured in the newly bought cat food.
"I heard this one's new. What do you think?"
Meow.
It ignored him.
"So do you like it or not?"
He tilted his head, then let it drop as he slumped forward, resting his chin on the table.
"I'm tired…"
He muttered.
One eye closed while the other lazily watched his cat, who was far more interested in her meal than him.
Slowly, he reached out to pet her.
Meow!
Yeah… no.
"Come on, there's no need to be this sassy…"
Luceris let out a sigh.
If this cat ever turned into a cat girl, she'd definitely have an attitude.
Best not to think about that.
"I'll be heading off for a while, so keep watch as usual, Vern."
With that, he rose, the chair scraping softly against the ground.
The moment he did, however,
His body vanished.
Completely.
Vern merely lifted her head for a brief moment before resuming her meal.
Limbo.
That was what he called this dimension.
It existed as a transparent layer, overlapping the fabric of reality itself.
Faint grid-like patterns stretched endlessly, accompanied by a sense of omnipresence.
Countless tiny white specks, like distant stars, filled the boundless expanse.
His vision warped into something akin to a fisheye lens.
Or rather, it was the dimension itself that imposed such a perspective upon everything.
Disorienting.
As a 'cat,' he could move freely within Limbo, as this was, in truth, where his real body resided.
There was nothing inherently extraordinary about the place.
In simple terms, time flowed here just as it did outside.
He had once considered the possibility of instantaneous movement.
But with time remaining constant even within this dimension, such a feat was impossible.
The only viable method would be to manipulate the space within Limbo itself.
Since he already exerted influence over it, allowing it to interact with the physical world, such control was not beyond reach.
And once again, he instinctively grasped just how formidable his variation of Schrödinger truly was.
If it were him,
By distorting the boundary between dimensions, he could likely draw forth King Arthur's sword.
After all, he wouldn't be holding it directly, but rather anchoring it within nonexistent space.
It should be possible.
'Let me rest.'
Manipulating dimensional folds was, as expected, exhausting.
Simply withdrawing his projection and remaining within this space brought a sense of calm.
Even so, he could still perceive the physical world, especially Vern quietly eating.
Now, however, he drifted weightlessly within Limbo, his eyes gradually closing.
He rested.
This was how he slept.
One could say it was also the reason why he skipped having the tour today.