I, Kenneth, am going to get to the root of the problem today.

Page 70

It wasn't that Kenneth was generous, but rather that Aozaki Touko was capable of reaching this point. As Kenneth said, these laws are ultimately incomplete, and the qualification to be a law cannot be obtained solely through personal effort. Whether Aozaki Touko can obtain the qualification to be a law depends entirely on whether she can be recognized by the Root.

"I've made up my mind, boss. I'm sticking with you for life. I'll be yours in life and in death. If you ever have any good things like this again, you have to tell me."

After carefully putting away the documents, Aozaki Touko felt that her initial choice was incredibly wise. She walked up to Kenneth and, without saying a word, began to massage his shoulders.

"Hey boss, look, I've given myself to you, so can all those things from before be forgotten? If all else fails, I can do what Lydia did and we can start as pen pals, how about that?"

"Claw!"

Kenneth mercilessly rejected Aozaki Touko's offer, giving the thoroughly pickled Aozaki Touko a look of utter disgust. A tool should obediently contribute its surplus value; trying to escape debt? Not a chance.

"Think about it, boss. We have all ages, and I can even accommodate those weird and wonderful dolls. It would be embarrassing for me if you just refused. I'll come and warm your bed tonight. Boss, please don't cut my salary! I can't afford to pay my loan at the end of the month!"

With a snap, just as Aozaki Touko was shamelessly begging for her wages, the kitchen door twisted open, and Asagami Fujino, carrying a clay pot, walked out gracefully with a gentle smile.

"The door lock seems to be broken. I was a little rough, Mr. Kenneth, Ms. Orange, please don't mind."

Pausing for a moment, and looking at Asagami Fujino who seemed to have done nothing wrong, Aozaki Touko, now serious, slowly brought her head close to Kenneth's ear.

"Half, just half. If you promise, I'll warm your bed tonight."

climb!

Kenneth brushed aside Orange's outstretched arm and walked calmly toward the table, ignoring Kenneth's refusal. Blinded by money, Orange continued to push herself on Kenneth.

Chapter 180 Twisted Demon Eye

The sound of running water came from the kitchen as Asagami Fujino cleaned up the mess after dinner, patting her bulging belly and lying on the sofa like a dead fish, while Aozaki Touko relentlessly harassed Kenneth.

"Boss, are you really not going to consider it? I'm a great beauty, how can you bear to refuse me?"

"Yeah, she's just a beautiful woman who's all sweaty and smelly, lying around picking her toes, and doesn't look like a human being at all."

Kenneth had always wanted Orange to repay him handsomely, and following his desires, Kenneth was honest. But one thing at a time, Kenneth wouldn't take Orange's jokes to heart, and Aozaki Orange also kept her temper perfectly in check, the two of them wasting time on pointless banter.

"Lord Kenneth, Ms. Orange, it's rare for you to come back. I'd like to go out for a walk."

After finishing her chores and changing into casual clothes, Asagami Fujino asked to go out. After checking on Asagami Fujino's condition, Kenneth handed her his Moon Spirit Essence Liquid.

"Keep it for self-defense; things have been a bit chaotic in Guanbuzi City lately."

"Bring me a pack of cigarettes when you come back."

After Kenneth agreed, Orange, who had been hesitant to speak, finally managed to utter only this sentence: Kenneth gave the Third Law Mystic Code to Fujino for self-defense, specifically to protect himself from Araya Sōren, that fake bald monk.

The abnormality had been affecting Asagami Fujino's soul. It was a good thing that she could vent her distortion. As for what would happen to those blind fools, that was not Kenneth's concern.

"You've noticed Fujino's condition, haven't you? She's still a child. Aren't you worried that she won't be able to control her origin?"

After Asagami Fujino left, Aozaki Touko looked at Kenneth with a serious expression. If Kenneth hadn't spoken first, Aozaki Touko would definitely have stopped Fujino from going out.

“Her twistedness cannot be resolved by suppression. Suppression will only make her more twisted. Fujino is not someone who can be easily covered by the origin. She must sever her own destiny. I will be watching her.”

"It's good that you're confident. I don't want my apprentice to become a monster covered in the Origin..."

Walking on the empty streets, Asagami Fujino felt lost as she returned to her homeland. The Asagami family had fallen, and those clansmen who had regarded her as a monster had become history in the struggle. Twisted and confused, Asagami Fujino wandered the streets like a lost soul.

Where should I go?

Muttering to herself, Asagami Fujino decided to see her remarried mother. Following her memories, the elegant and demure Asagami Fujino walked to the other end of the street. After the bubble burst, Japan had no shortage of idle thugs. Under the influence of alcohol, these scoundrels wandering the night followed Fujino, their arms around each other's shoulders.

"Hey, young lady over there, what's bothering you out so late? Want to come have some fun with us? We promise you'll be free of worries, hiccup!"

"Out so late, did you have a fight with your family? Hiccup! We love counseling lost girls..."

The pungent smell of alcohol filled the air. The thugs, their bodies stained with the smoke, staggered and blocked Fujino's path. They lifted her dyed blond hair, and the group of thugs were instantly drawn to the gentle Fujino. Their eyes were filled with greed, and the nine thugs surrounded Fujino in unison.

"Miss, it seems you're in a bad mood. I know a way to relieve your sorrow. Would you like to try it with us?"

"Sure, I know a way to vent my emotions too. But this is a street, and we can't let people disturb us when we're venting. Can we go somewhere more secluded?"

Asagami Fujino, her heart churning with turmoil and desperately needing an outlet for her distorted emotions, looked toward the alleyway not far away.

"Hehehe, I knew this young lady was very knowledgeable. Interested, interested, young lady, please lead the way."

Following the path cleared by the thugs, Fujino walked into the alley. In the shadows where light and darkness met, a smile played on her lips as she looked at the scumbags who had followed her.

"Then please follow me. And please don't shout too loudly, or I'll be in a lot of trouble if someone notices."

The moment Fujino stepped into the alley, the group of thugs, their minds clouded by hormones, rushed into it. The barrier flickered, and the dark alley slowly transformed into a wall under the flashing lights. Then, heart-wrenching screams were blocked by the barrier, and stimulated by the smell of blood, the alcohol that had numbed their bodies was expelled from their bodies along with cold sweat.

"Monster! What kind of monster are you... Kill her! All of you, kill her!!"

"Damn it, I can't get through on the phone. This woman is a witch! She's a witch..."

After Asagami Fujino stopped, the blond guy with the failed hair dye tried to put his arm around her. Then, to the amusement of the group of thugs, their leader's body was twisted into a pretzel, blood and bits of flesh soaking several nearby thugs. The group of idle thugs instantly went into a daze.

"Didn't you guys say you'd help me relieve stress? How was it? Pretty relaxing, huh? Let's continue!"

With a twisted smile, Fujino, who had walked through the pool of blood unscathed, suddenly raised her head, her eyes gleaming with iridescent light. The two thugs at the front were torn to pieces before they could even utter a scream.

"Whoosh! Where's the way in? The way we came in has disappeared! What happened to you...?"

With a bang, like a balloon, the fastest-reacting thug exploded on the spot, his internal organs and bits of flesh splattering everywhere, the entire alleyway instantly stained red with blood. Turning around, looking at the thugs who had pulled out knives and were trembling as they retreated, Asagami Fujino revealed a gentle smile.

"Thank you all for your cooperation. I'm so happy, all the pressure has disappeared! Now let's play a game, a hide-and-seek game where I'll die if I see you!"

"You monster! Who wants to play games with you? Die!"

He pulled the pistol belonging to the blond-haired thug from the shredded flesh. The next second, the air distorted, and the thug's entire hand was instantly entangled with the broken pistol.

"Ten seconds have passed, and I'll be here to grab you in another fifty seconds."

At that moment, Fujino, with her gentle smile, was more terrifying than a devil in the eyes of these cowardly thugs. They threw their companion, whose arm had been twisted by Fujino, to the ground, and the group of thugs scattered and disappeared into the maze-like alley. When the countdown ended, the first thing Fujino saw when she opened her eyes again was the thug whose body was convulsing because of his broken arm.

"Looks like I'm in luck, I caught one so quickly. Sir, you're out."

"No...please let me go, Mita! That guy Mita ran that way, and Oniyama is right behind you..."

With a snap, the head exploded like a watermelon, and the headless corpse spurted blood. With a faint smile, Fujino gently placed her finger to her lips.

"Leaking secrets is against the rules, you know."

Turning around, she glanced at the mountain of trash, then stepped over the pool of blood and disappeared into the alleyway entrance. The thug named Oniyama, clutching his own neck, only began to breathe heavily, suppressing his urges, after the footsteps faded away.

"That bastard! He actually betrayed me!"

Breathing in the stench of decay, the thug, who had hidden nearby, listened carefully to the sounds coming from the alley. A few minutes later, the thug, who was already impatient, lifted the garbage off his body and crawled out.

"Bastard, you damn it!"

He kicked the still-bleeding corpse, spat, and the thug named Onishima crept toward the exit blocked by Fujino. He tentatively reached out his hand, and to Onishima's ecstatic expression, his arm slipped through the wall.

"Haha, what a smokescreen! A bunch of idiots! Just you wait, monster, after I get out..."

Footsteps sounded, his body went numb, Onishima's maniacal laughter stopped abruptly, and he stiffly turned his head to find Asagami Fujino had appeared behind him at some point.

"It's a pity you've been caught, but since Mr. Onishima has already found the exit, I have no choice but to let him go... What a shame... I'll just let go of your escaped hand!"

From despair to hope and back to despair, this complex expression was vividly displayed on the face of a petty thug. With a dull thud, a severed arm fell onto the deserted street. With a calm smile, Asagami Fujino walked towards the place where the other thugs were hiding.

"Are there three left? We still need to buy things for Teacher Orange, so we need to speed things up."

With her hands folded in front of her, Fujino, having finally released her pent-up emotions, began her hunt at a leisurely pace.

Chapter 181 Action

Before dawn, Asagami Fujino, having released all her stress, pushed open the outer door of the agency with a gentle smile. Just like before she left last night, Aozaki Touko patted her belly, while Kenneth watched TV with little interest.

"Lord Kenneth, Ms. Orange, I'm back."

"Okay, go and rest for a while. Breakfast will be delivered from the hotel."

After Tenno left the hall, Aozaki Touko, who had been slacking off all night, looked at Kenneth, who hadn't made a single move.

"You felt it, didn't you? There's the smell of blood. Some things, once opened, can never be undone."

Unlike traditional magicians, Aozaki Touko has taken care of Teng Nai and Sakura. Having witnessed the madness of magic firsthand, Aozaki Touko truly doesn't want her apprentices to go astray.

“Tengna is different from us. She is twisted by nature. Suppressing it will only crush her. Don’t worry, Tengna will not be misled by the blood of some scum.”

"Okay, okay, you're right. I was worrying too much. By the way, when is breakfast? I'm starving after talking to you all night."

With her belly slapping loudly, Aozaki Touko, who had long since let loose in front of Kenneth, acted as an emotionless eating machine. During the morning news, the professionally dressed anchor reported on last night's murder, and upon seeing the torn, severed arm, Kenneth seemingly asked a question unintentionally.

"Your classmate is in Guanbuzi City now, right?"

"Are you talking about Araya Sōren? I'm not really sure. He hasn't shown up yet, and my only connection with him is through familiars."

There aren't many people who can truly be called Aozaki Touko's classmate. Aside from Aruba, who was sent to meet God by Touko for his sharp tongue during the Clock Tower's internal strife, the only other one is Araya Sōren, who insists on the idea that "appearance reflects the heart." Having received Touko's answer, Kenneth gradually delved deeper into the topic.

"How much do you know about Araya Sōren? I may have to face that man whose goal is to provide relief."

That's right, Araya Souren's initial goal was also to become a partner of justice. It has to be said that in this world, a partner of justice is a debuff. The old bug has become a real bug; Araya Souren went from saving humanity to believing that humanity shouldn't be saved; Emiya Shirou went from a student to a black woman... There are too many things to complain about, Kenneth doesn't even want to talk about it anymore.

"You want to harm Araya Souren?!"

She stood up abruptly, staring at Kenneth with an incredulous expression.

"What, don't tell me he's your beloved family member, brother, or sibling, and you need to pay extra."

"How can it be!"

After rejecting Kenneth's suggestion, Aozaki Touko took a stack of bills from the drawer and slammed them in front of Kenneth.

"We were classmates, and if you want to kill him, you'd better pay me his commission first! Three times the amount!! Not a penny less!!"

In the distorted world of magic, camaraderie among classmates is practically nonexistent. Aozaki Touko's teacher personally sent her to the sealing mission, so the so-called bond between fellow students is even less of a possibility; they're at best strangers who can barely speak to each other. Aozaki Touko only feels apprehensive towards Araya Souren; they don't interact much, but his pursuit instills a deep sense of dread in her.

During the graduation Q&A session, someone asked Araya Souren what he hoped for. Araya Souren replied, "I hope for nothing." While everyone else mocked Araya Souren for being unambitious and having no goals even as a magician, only Aozaki Touko didn't laugh. Because Aozaki Touko understood Araya Souren's meaning:

[Expecting nothing doesn't mean having no expectations, but rather expecting "nothing at all." "Nothing at all" represents the state of emptiness.]

The so-called lack of desire is merely an illusion; it skips too many intermediate steps. In other words, simple and easily understood values ​​can no longer satisfy Araya Sōren's desires. What Araya Sōren pursues is an emptiness that can encompass everything.

Remembering Araya Souren's pursuit, Aozaki Touko, realizing something, looked at Kenneth with a serious expression.

Is it empty?

After much thought, Aozaki Touko concluded that the only thing Araya Souren could attract Kenneth's attention was Sora, whom he was pursuing.

"Yes and no."

Upon hearing Kenneth's answer, Aozaki Touko fell into deeper thought. Using Araya Souren's apparent theory to deduce the clues, Aozaki Touko revealed an expression as if she had just met Shuten-dōji.

"That's the root cause!"

"Correct answer, but unfortunately there is no reward."

Kenneth admitted that the knocking had left Aozaki Touko's head buzzing. Since Kenneth had appeared, it meant that Araya Souren's theory was correct. While she was still working illegally, her former classmate had already found the path to the Root, which made Aozaki Touko feel a sense of regret that everyone else had evolved without her.

Araya Souren seeks the Root, and so does Kenneth; Kenneth doesn't hide this fact. Knowing Kenneth's desires, Aozaki Touko slowly recounts her understanding of Araya Souren to him.

Kenneth maintains a consultative but not blindly following attitude towards the original characters. He lives in a real world, and any slight change can cause unexpected deviations. Right now, Araya Souren has openly invited Touko to participate in the design, breaking away from the original work. The world line that Kenneth knows has long lost its reference value.

More than half a year ago, Kiritsugu Emiya's peanut had already woken Kenneth up. Although it wasn't the closest he came to death, it was definitely the most impactful. The two bullets took away Kenneth's arrogance, and from then on, Kenneth no longer looked down on any character.

While Kenneth was comparing Araya Souren's information with Aozaki Touko's description, at the Ryougi family mansion, as the personality switched, Ryougi Shiki, who had been asleep all night, opened her eyes. With a pain in her shoulder, Ryougi Shiki, who had propped herself up, fell back onto the bunk. Taking off her kimono, the bruise on her shoulder left Ryougi Shiki bewildered.

Ryougi Shiki's grandfather fell into chaos during the process of denying personality. In his final moments of lucidity, the six-year-old Shiki realized the horror of the proxy personality. Ryougi Shiki denied her grandfather's dying wish that she accept the existence of Oori, because in Ryougi Shiki's perception, 'killing' was the first emotion Oori felt towards things. In order to make the existence of [Ryougi Shiki] barely exist in morality, Ryougi Shiki kept denying the existence of Oori in her heart.

In the present state of not recognizing herself and not understanding the meaning of Origami's existence, Shiki continuously generates abnormalities in the confrontation between her personalities, and these abnormalities are all accepted by Origami. The minds of the personalities are not connected, and the memories between the personalities are not shared. As Origami goes out more and more frequently, Ryougi Shiki, who does not know Origami well, instinctively attributes the recent serial murders to Origami.

"Did you make this?"

The murder case from last night was still being reported on the news. In the alleyway filled with dark red, Shiki's calm mind was stirred. Looking at the dagger on the table, Ryougi Shiki fell into thought about the origami.

Chapter 182 Encounter

Dressed in a cherry blossom-colored kimono, Ryougi Shiki arrived at the scene of last night's murder. The dark red stains in the alley had been washed away, but the lingering smell of blood in the air sent a shiver down her spine. Passersby quickened their pace as they walked through the alley; as Kenneth had said, the restless city wouldn't remember a few idle scoundrels.

"Zhi, did you make all of these?"

Unfortunately, although they share the same body, Shiki and Ori's personalities cannot manifest at the same time. Ryougi Shiki's question is destined to receive no answer from Ori. Touching the bruises under her kimono, Ryougi Shiki walked into the alley where bloodstains still remained in the corner. The coldness penetrated her skin and pierced her nerves. Ryougi Shiki, who was not thinking clearly, tried to find some possible memories from the dampness in front of her.

"Um, miss, something terrible happened here last night. If it's not necessary, you'd better leave as soon as possible."

A gentle voice rang out from the alley entrance. Turning around, Ryougi Shiki looked coldly at Asagami Fujino, who was standing in the sunlight carrying a vegetable basket. Her eyes flickered, and Ryougi Shiki, who had a keen sense of abnormality, walked towards the alley entrance.

Are you like me?

Her voice was cold, and Ryougi Shiki sensed a similar feeling in Asagami Fujino—a feeling of seeking solace amidst contradictions. Without answering Ryougi Shiki's question, Fujino's face remained adorned with that gentle smile.

"No, it's different. You smell different from me."

With her smile unchanged, Asagami Fujino held the vegetable basket in front of Ryougi Shiki. Looking at Ryougi Shiki, whose face was full of confusion, Asagami Fujino's voice also revealed a hint of satisfaction.