IBHJ 1221

Manaka was completely surprised. She hadn't expected that at all.

In that moment of surprise, the mud-covered Ritsuka suddenly burst from behind her, having circled around during the confusion. Mud dripped from her body as she closed the distance in a flash.

"Since you're my friend, don't give up on yourself! Wake up!" Ritsuka shouted, her voice raw with emotion. "AHHHHH!" Her hands began to glow with intense light that swirled and concentrated, transforming into a massive pillar of pure energy. With a furious roar, she slammed this energy directly into Manaka's body, the force continuing upward through her body and blasting straight into the black vortex swirling in the sky above them.

BOOM!

The churning mud sea instantly stopped moving. It hardened like lava hitting ocean water, forming what looked like a mountain range stretching across the land.

A moment later, Ritsuka broke through the surface of the hardened mud, her fist punching upward through the brittle crust. She clawed her way out of the jagged opening, gasping desperately for air as mud fell from her body in hardened chunks while she crawled to the shore. With one final burst of strength, she reached back and dragged Manaka out of the mud sea.

Completely exhausted, she collapsed onto a nearby rock, breathing heavily.

"Cough! Cough! Cough!" Manaka sputtered, spitting out several mouthfuls of black mud before finally opening her eyes, looking utterly confused.

"Oh good, you're awake." Ritsuka wiped sweat from her face and smiled. "If you hadn't come around, I'd have been completely out of ideas."

"You actually knocked her unconscious..." Manaka looked at her with a complicated expression. "Why? Why would you help someone like me?"

"Aren't we companions?" Ritsuka asked, looking genuinely confused.

"That's ridiculous," Manaka scoffed. "We barely even know each other, let alone have any kind of shared history. This so-called 'bond' doesn't exist at all. How could we possibly be companions?"

Ritsuka just blinked, pointed at Manaka, and burst out laughing.

Manaka's face darkened. "What's so funny?"

"Just this whole situation," Ritsuka said, still laughing.

"What's funny about it? Am I wrong?" Manaka's voice had an edge to it. This woman was even more annoying than her brother.

"Sorry, sorry," Ritsuka said, wiping tears of laughter from her eyes. "I just didn't expect you to be so scared."

"Scared? You think I'm scared?" Manaka looked offended. "I could literally destroy the entire world if I wanted to. Or save it. I was born with all knowledge. And you have the nerve to call me scared?"

"Yeah, because you've trapped yourself inside this 'Manaka Sajyou' identity. You refuse to connect with anything outside of that little box."

Manaka just stared at her, mouth slightly open, like Ritsuka had just read her diary out loud.

"That's it, isn't it?" Ritsuka continued. "You're afraid of the outside world. Afraid of actually talking to people. Afraid you'll mess up. So you just can't step out of your own little world."

"No! I'm not that weak!" Manaka snapped. "Listen, Ritsuka, you need to take your chance right now while she's knocked out. Destroy me. If you don't, you, your sister, and your brother will all be in serious danger!"

Manaka pressed her lips together. "Our meeting wasn't some meaningful connection between kindred spirits. It was just a mistake—something that shouldn't have happened."

"You know what my brother once told me?" Ritsuka said. "There are no truly strong people in this world. It doesn't matter if someone's ten or even a hundred times more powerful than everyone else. It doesn't matter how brilliant they are. A person who never makes mistakes just doesn't exist anywhere." She smiled and held out her hand to Manaka. "Even if I'm wrong about this, I'm willing to take that chance on you. I'm willing to trust you with my life. So what do you say? Can you put aside all those doubts about yourself? Step out of that bubble you've been living in? Become my companion and start writing our story together?"

Manaka stared at her outstretched hand, something stirring inside her. If she took that hand, maybe she—this fake version of herself—could break free from the curse of being "Manaka Sajyou" and create her own path.

How nice would that be? To just reach out and take it?

But I'm not really me. Manaka slowly raised her hand, and with a soft pat, pushed Ritsuka's hand away.

"I'm sorry..." she whispered.

"No," Ritsuka shook her head firmly. "I refuse to accept your refusal."

Manaka stood up slowly, staying quiet for a moment before asking, "Why do you care so much about saving me? If it's just out of kindness, you're being incredibly naive."

Ritsuka didn't answer right away. Finally she said, "You remind me of my friend. She was manipulated by a powerful version of herself too. Trapped in her own world, just like you. But back then... I couldn't save her. I just had to watch helplessly while she destroyed herself."

Manaka's face softened with understanding. So that's it—this is all about guilt.

"Ritsuka!" Xuanzang came running over from a distance. When she saw that both Ritsuka and Manaka were unharmed, she let out a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness you're both safe!"

"Sorry for worrying you, Xuanzang," Ritsuka said with a smile.

Manaka turned to look at Ayaka who was standing behind Xuanzang. When their eyes met, Ayaka quickly looked away, refusing to make eye contact. Manaka just gave a small, resigned smile.

Xuanzang, sensing the awkward tension between the sisters, quickly changed the subject. "Hey, where's my staff?"

"Your staff..." Ritsuka's eyes widened. "Oh no! I left it in that mud pile!"

"What?" Xuanzang looked surprised.

"I'm so sorry," Ritsuka said apologetically. "I'll go get it right now."

But to everyone's surprise, Xuanzang shook her head. "Don't worry about it. Even though Bodhisattva gave me that staff, it's just an object in the end. People are what really matter. Everything follows the law of causation. If it's meant to be lost in the mud, then so be it."

Ritsuka had accidentally left the nine-ringed staff in the black mud, which was still bubbling with endless malice. The black vortex in the sky hadn't completely disappeared either. Xuanzang was worried Ritsuka might get hurt if she went back for it, so she was willing to let it go.

"Xuanzang, you're too kind," Ritsuka said with admiration. "But if I just let your staff get lost on my watch, I'd feel terrible about it. Just give me a minute—I'll grab it real quick."

She was about to jump into the black mud when Manaka suddenly grabbed her shoulder, stopping her.

"Manaka?" Ritsuka turned around, confused.

With a serious expression, Manaka said, "You've been hiding in that imaginary space watching us for long enough. Time to show yourself."

The moment she finished speaking, the quiet air around them rippled like the surface of a disturbed lake. Then, slowly, the figure of Demonic Bodhisattva appeared before them.

"Well, well, as expected of the Queen of Evil—you could even sense me hiding," Demonic Bodhisattva said, looking at her with genuine admiration.

"You're—you're actually a Bodhisattva?" Xuanzang stared at the figure in shock.

"I've been aware of your presence this whole time, but this is our first proper meeting, Master Xuanzang." Demonic Bodhisattva gave her a gentle look before turning to Ritsuka and Manaka. "To be honest, I expected Manaka to wake up and then get defeated. But what I don't understand is why you'd want to spare her after seeing what she really is."

Before Ritsuka could answer, Ayaka jumped in, glaring at Demonic Bodhisattva. "We're the ones who are confused here. Laeticia already told us your real Master is the Lord of Salvation. You should be on the same side as Manaka, so why do you keep coming after her? She's just a fake anyway!"

Manaka couldn't hide her surprise as she looked at Ayaka, who was actually standing up for her.