On a small, isolated island cut off from any shipping routes stood a DEM research facility.
The building looked cold and soulless—metal, thick glass, and watchtowers rising like massive spears.
Inside, soldiers in full combat uniforms, equipped with modern weaponry, moved back and forth. Their steps were precise, eyes vigilant, as if not a single shadow could escape their watch.
Deep within the facility lay a large laboratory bathed in sterile white light.
At the center of the room, surrounded by thick, magically reinforced glass walls, sat a woman—a Spirit.
Her body showed no external injuries. Yet her arms, legs, and torso were restrained by specialized metal bindings. Thin cables adhered to her skin, monitoring her spiritual energy waves in real time.
A few researchers approached.
One of them pushed a cart filled with medical equipment—syringes, surgical tools, and bottles of experimental liquids in unnatural colors.
"Experiment 103," said one researcher, lifting a syringe filled with a deep blue fluid. "The nerve-stimulating dosage will commence."
"Vital parameters are stable," replied another.
But before the syringe could touch the Spirit's skin, a loud explosion rocked the entire facility.
The floor trembled, glass groaned, and the lights flickered.
Several researchers fell, medical equipment rolling across the floor.
The emergency alarm blared instantly, red lights flashing in succession.
"An external attack?!"
"Impossible—!!!"
Panic began to spread.
Almost simultaneously—outside the facility.
Thin smoke rose from the main gate, now reduced to rubble.
Amid the debris of twisted metal and flying sparks stood a young man with long white hair, wearing a long black trench coat adorned with silver ornaments.
In his right hand—he gripped a Zanpakutō.
Facing him were ten Wizard Units armed with Realizer Units, alongside dozens of DEM soldiers who had formed a firing line.
The barrels of their weapons were aimed at him.
The Realizers activated.
Yet Gabriel showed not the slightest tension.
The corner of his mouth lifted ever so slightly.
"Heh…" he chuckled softly. "You… instead of retreating, you chose to stand right in front of me."
His eyes narrowed.
"Do you understand the difference between courage… and mere recklessness?"
Silence.
Not a single one stepped back.
Fingers remained on the triggers.
Gabriel gave a small nod.
"Very well," he said quietly. "Your recklessness… I will respect."
He slowly raised the Zanpakutō in his right hand. The tip of the blade pointed downward, like an executioner taking his time.
"Shatter…" he murmured. "Mugen Kyōen."
A symbol resembling a mechanical eye appeared etched near the tsuba.
And in the next instant—Gabriel vanished.
The Wizards froze.
Their Realizer sensors could no longer detect the target's position.
"Target's gone?!"
"Impossible—he must still be in the area—!"
Suddenly—Gabriel appeared at the side of one of the Wizards, smiling. Reflexively, the Wizard fired a close-range energy attack.
The blast of light erupted.
But the one hit wasn't Gabriel—
it was another Wizard standing in the line of fire.
"—WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
"THAT'S HIM! HE'S BEHIND YOU—!"
Panic spread.
In their vision, the "intruder" appeared among their own ranks—moving swiftly, shifting positions, attacking from impossible angles.
Shot after shot was fired.
Defensive Realizers activated.
Close-range assaults were launched.
Yet every time they thought they had Gabriel—the one they destroyed was only their comrade.
Formation collapsed.
Coordination shattered.
Suspicion turned into total chaos.
At the edge of the battlefield, the real Gabriel stood unseen, like a shadow unacknowledged by the world.
His eyes observed calmly, devoid of emotion.
"Hmm."
He nodded slightly.
"This chaos should be… enough to give Nia a chance to escape from that facility."
Screams, explosions, and bursts of magic continued colliding behind him.
Gabriel slowly turned his body.
Without looking back—he walked away, leaving a battlefield transformed into a graveyard by illusions taken as truth.
As if he had never been there.
***
Two weeks had passed since the incident at the secret DEM facility.
That afternoon, under the warm sunlight, Gabriel walked through the city streets carrying a cardboard box filled with festival decorations.
He had been tasked by his classmates to buy a few class supplies. A trivial errand—but for some reason, it felt… peaceful.
Gabriel's gaze dropped to the box in his hands.
"It's festival season, huh…" he murmured softly. "Makes sense. Last week, Shido already started the Miku route."
His steps slowed, then came to a halt.
A gentle breeze drifted through his black hair.
"Should Ash intervene…?" he murmured almost inaudibly. "If the flow doesn't change… Tohka will be Ellen's target."
A faint curve appeared at the corner of Gabriel's lips. Not a warm smile—more like someone who had just watched a chess piece move exactly as predicted.
"Then…"
He adjusted his grip on the box.
"All that's left is to set the position."
The thought made his steps feel light again.
Not out of concern—but because he enjoyed the moment just before something significant happened.
Gabriel continued walking.
However, as he entered the narrow alley that served as a shortcut to the school, his steps paused.
A young woman with short white hair lay on the ground. Her gray shirt was wrinkled, her trousers dusty, and though her breathing was slow, she was clearly alive.
Nia Honjo.
Gabriel's gaze lingered on her for only a few seconds—without surprise, without panic.
Then he walked on, passing her as if she were nothing more than an abandoned object left by the roadside.
One step.
Two steps.
Finally, five steps.
"Oi… OI?! Seriously?!"
A hoarse but energetic protest echoed.
Gabriel didn't turn around.
Nia lifted herself slightly, grimacing.
"This isn't some NPC passed out in the background, you know! Help me out! At least check my breathing or something, like a standard protagonist scene, geez?!"
Gabriel finally stopped on the fifth step.
He let out a small sigh, then turned his shoulder slightly.
"Then, congratulations," he said flatly. "You officially become the first person to unlock the alternative secret route."
He glanced at her briefly.
"Achievement unlocked: First Secret Route."
Two seconds of silence.
Nia blinked.
"…Huh?"
Then her expression shifted drastically.
"OHHH, a cold meta-type character who's aware of story structure?! SERIOUSLY?!"
"Jackpot genre mashup?!"
She immediately sat upright, still a little wobbly, pointing at Gabriel as if she had just found a rare drop.
"Is this a hidden heroine route?! Or a bad ending branch?! Don't tell me you're the final boss pretending to be an NPC?!"
Gabriel looked at her expressionlessly.
Nia squinted, then suddenly went dramatic.
"—Wait. Don't answer. Let the hype build. Let the readers think."
She flopped back onto the ground.
"…But seriously, help me up first. My waist is error 404 from being in the wrong position."
Gabriel was silent for a moment. Then, without moving closer, he focused his mana slightly.
Dark Matter shifted subtly—not wind, not a perceptible push—but the space around Nia seemed to lift her.
Her body rose slowly, about five meters off the ground.
Almost simultaneously, Gigan's output increased.
A geometric, complex, layered magic circle appeared—but only within Gabriel's perception.
The circuits spread into the surrounding environment, affecting the perception of all living beings within a wide radius.
Gabriel altered it so that, in the eyes of others, there was no girl floating. All they saw was a woman walking normally beside him.
Nia's eyes went wide.
"Whoa—WHOAA—are you using an ability this big in public?! You're the type to pick lore over social logic, huh?!"
"Relax," Gabriel said calmly. "Visual perception around us has been adjusted."
He lifted the cardboard box in his hands slightly.
"Besides, my hands are full."
His gaze returned forward.
"So, the question is—where exactly am I supposed to take you? The police station with the excuse of 'found a bugged NPC in the alley'?"
Nia floated beside him, her white hair swaying gently in air that wasn't really moving.
She stared at Gabriel for a few seconds, then pointed at herself.
"First: I'm not a missing kid. I'm premium content sealed by an evil developer."
She grinned widely.
"Second: if you're not an enemy, take me somewhere with a roof, a comfy chair, and cosmic Wi-Fi. I need a proper recovery arc before the plot continues."
She squinted suspiciously, but her tone was excited.
"And third… you're clearly not a background character. So congrats. You just got hit with a forced character join event."
Gabriel kept walking.
Box in hand.
Nia floating beside him.
The narrow alley suddenly felt even narrower than before.
***
"Why did you suddenly ask me to come to the café?"
A few minutes had passed.
Now Gabriel and Nia sat across from each other in a fairly busy café. A box containing festival supplies was placed neatly beside her chair.
"You know," Gabriel continued flatly, "I still have class hours left. I just got permission to step out to buy festival items."
Nia waved her hand lightly, as if that fact were just a pop-up ad that could be closed.
"Ah, life needs side quests," she said casually. "Does the protagonist never skip class?"
She squinted her eyes.
"Or… are you the type who's a professional truant but wears the face of a model student?"
Gabriel tilted his head slightly.
"Did Raziel tell you?"
Nia immediately pointed at him. "Bingo~ The all-knowing book never lies."
She then leaned back comfortably in her chair. "Oh, and by the way—I'm treating you. Consider it a thank-you."
She leaned forward, whispering dramatically.
"Because some mysterious person, with white hair, carrying a sword, stormed the DEM facility, caused total chaos, and somehow made it possible for me to escape."
She grinned widely. "Anything you want to order. This is the trendiest café around lately."
Gabriel stared at her flatly.
"Who helped? I'm just a regular high school student who follows the rules."
Silence.
Nia stared back at him without blinking.
Then, slowly, she pulled out her phone and jotted something down.
She nodded to herself, satisfied.
"Okay, got it. That can be a reference."
She pointed at Gabriel with her straw.
"But relax. I'm also a former illegal experiment subject, so our idea of 'normal' is equally broken."
She smiled, this time more genuinely, not over the top.
"Seriously. Thanks."
Then her expression brightened again.
"Now for the pricey order. Consider this a dungeon clear reward."
Gabriel smiled faintly and nodded.
"Alright, then—I won't hold back."
***
After being treated by Nia, Gabriel returned to school with calm steps, carrying a cardboard box filled with decoration supplies.
His goal: to hand it over to Mai Hazakura.
But upon arriving, Mai was busy elsewhere, so the task was delegated to her representative.
A girl stood there.
Her hair, uniform, posture—everything looked convincing.
Too convincing.
Gabriel paused for a moment.
His gaze dropped for a fraction of a second… then rose again to meet the "girl's" face.
He knew.
But chose not to acknowledge it.
"You… Shiori Itsuka, right?" Gabriel asked quietly, his tone flat, as if merely confirming a name.
"Y-yeah?" Shido replied awkwardly, his voice pitched as high as possible, even with Fraxinus technology in use.
Gabriel gave a small nod. No hint of suspicion, no strange comment.
He handed the box to Shido.
Task complete.
Without adding a single word, Gabriel turned and walked away. Yet his mind was far from as calm as his steps.
Cross-dress, huh…
A faint smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.
"Maybe… someday, I'll try it too," he murmured quietly.
His eyes narrowed slightly, as if gazing at something only he could see.
"Ash is a sign."
A brief pause.
"And if the possibility is added into existence…"
His smile widened just a little—not playful, but like someone who had discovered an intriguing concept.
"…no one can truly know whether Ash is a woman… or a man."
The evening breeze drifted softly through the corridor.
"Cool…"
___
Author's note:
This chapter is too long. That's why I'm only updating it once. (•_<) tehe~
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