Reclaiming her Onee-san image, Natsumi brought a hand to her lips.
"Our copies... they're dead."
Watching everything through the shadows, Natsumi swallowed hard.
Camael's energy beam was fierce and precise enough to kill their copies, who had taken on the identities of Origami's parents...
"Yes, unfortunately, this had to happen."
Yuki was not surprised by this; he shook his head and sighed. This was something that had already been written into history...
Origami's parents were killed by a spirit.
Whether it was the same Origami from the Alternative timeline or from the first or second timeline, this was an event that couldn't be changed.
After all...
(It happened, and it's an irreversible damage...)
One of the reasons the paradox was created was tied to the death of Origami's parents...
Since Origami's real parents died because of the Order's energy, all those who die due to Chaos and Order are erased from history in all timelines.
They cannot be reborn, whether in chaos or order.
Their souls would be annihilated, and it was impossible to revive them because they never existed—they were beings that would not be remembered. So, even if you go back in time, it would be useless since such people were 'erased' and their 'ghost existence' was a paradox that Yuki had to close using himself and Natsumi.
Only beings like Gods, Champions, or Overlords would be able to remember such beings since the Rules didn't apply to them. Of course, there are also anomalies that can remember those erased by Chaos and Order, but for that to happen, such beings would have to be involved in the death or experience death itself, though this too would create paradoxes.
And since Origami's parents never existed, Origami herself shouldn't exist. Only then would the cycle close, and the paradox wouldn't exist.
However, due to Metatron being connected to Mio Takamiya and Yuki by the force of Order, the rules couldn't bind her, and her existence wasn't denied. That's why she was able to live, and the world itself was forced to change. However, the memories of her original parents were erased, and she was born without parents as a miracle of a turning point, because, after all, the story needed Origami to exist.
This is why Origami was in an orphanage...
However, since the story needed Origami's parents to continue and also because of Origami's 'Revenge' already written in history, Yuki had to replace those parents.
Therefore, their copies had to die, repeating the paradox cycle to close it completely...
"Couldn't we change the story?"
"No, that would do more harm than good."
Yuki would have gladly changed the story and the future, but that would have caused more harm than good. If that had happened, then many things wouldn't have occurred, like the invitation to Kurumi's chat room. Without Kurumi, Yuki wouldn't have come to this world, and therefore, the battle against Mio Takamiya wouldn't have taken place, nor all the deaths. In a moral sense, this would have been fine, as Yuki wouldn't have carried any moral burden.
But Origami's parents were killed by Order, and the damage from erasing their existence was something Yuki couldn't fix.
"Will she... be okay?"
After hearing Yuki, Natsumi's eyes showed sympathy. Origami had suffered a lot, but they couldn't change anything.
"Don't worry, she'll be fine..."
Yuki, on the other hand, wasn't concerned. From the shadows, a Sephira crystal appeared—the same crystal that had fallen from Mio Takamiya. He played with it for a moment before sending it to where it belonged...
----------------------------
High in the sky, Yuki frowned, unable to believe what he had caused. He had killed Origami's parents. Ever since Origami helped him in his fight against Mio Takamiya, Yuki had promised to help her resolve the issue of her revenge.
"Impossible..."
But now it seemed that the reason for her revenge was him. This left him stunned and unsure of what to do, because if Origami found out, she would hate him forever.
Fortunately, he quickly recovered and shook his head. He was the Time Emperor, so 'Time' was his best weapon. No matter what, even if he made a mistake, he had a way to fix his errors—and that was by traveling through time, no matter how many times he had to do it.
"No, I have to bring them back!"
Holding the spark gun to his head, he didn't hesitate to pull the trigger, disappearing in an instant...
"Zafkiel: Yud Bet!"
-------------------
"He's gone...."
Sighing, Yuki shook his head toward his other 'self.' The latter had hoped to bring back Origami's parents by going back in time, but unfortunately, it was impossible. He had also tried other methods, all to no avail.
"Wait for me here..."
"Huh?"
*Poof*
Forming a hand sign, Yuki walked toward Origami, his body covered in a cloud of smoke, and transformed into a boy of about 12 years old...
This boy was identical to Itsuka Shido...
Natsumi witnessed how Yuki gently comforted Origami, and after a few minutes, he returned, leaving Origami even more heartbroken...
"Let's go, there's still one loose end..."
"Wait! Are you going to leave her?!"
Perhaps because she had grown attached to Origami or out of sympathy, Natsumi stopped Yuki, who had turned away. She didn't want to see such a cute girl suffer like that, but Yuki shook his head again.
"Don't worry, someone else is already on their way..."
And as if to prove it, someone walked toward Origami at that moment.
Natsumi's mouth fell open in shock because the person approaching Origami was 'Yuki'—the one who had left earlier...
"After I couldn't revive Origami's parents, I returned and decided to do the right thing..."
Perhaps noticing Natsumi's confusion, Yuki explained while they watched his other 'self' take Origami's hand and slowly walk away...
Origami had helped him a lot, so he couldn't leave her alone, and his other self returned to live with her, care for her, support her, and love her like the family he had taken from her.
This is also the reason why Yuki became Origami's Onii-chan.
Turning around, Yuki still had to close the last anomaly. Natsumi followed him but glanced one last time at Origami, who was already being embraced by Yuki like a little princess, a smile forming on her witch-like face.
"Goodbye... little Origami..."
-----------------------------------
"Male Spirit... hihihi, I can use him..."
At the top of a building, a girl with long black hair, a black gothic outfit, and an eyepatch murmured with satisfaction.
This woman was Kurumi Tokisaki, the spirit of time...
She had been present from the beginning of the fire until the end, witnessing an unprecedented event—Mio Takamiya had been defeated. As someone who hated her to the core, Kurumi was in a very good mood. At the same time, she wanted to know more about the Male Spirit who appeared out of nowhere. After all, he was the key to killing Mio Takamiya, and if possible, she wanted to use him.
"Hihihi, I wonder if I can tempt him? Would he be delicious?"
Even if it meant giving herself to that spirit, Kurumi wouldn't hesitate, as she already had a wicked plan in mind. Men and women get along well, after all—this was perfect...
"The answer to your question is yes, you can tempt me, but now is not the time."
"!?"
Unfortunately for Kurumi, her plans were interrupted by a voice that startled her. Just as she materialized her spark gun, her body froze, as a raven with crimson red eyes stared at her...
[Kotamatsukami!]
Emerging from the shadows, Yuki wrapped his arms around her, hugged her, kissed her head tenderly, and murmured...
"I'm sorry, darling, but you must forget everything. We'll meet again in 5 years..."
Kurumi was one of those who suffered the most during these events with Mio Takamiya, and only time could heal it.
Erasing her memories and simultaneously implanting new ones, Yuki returned to the shadows as the raven flew into the sky. All the events had been closed; now it was up to his other 'self.'
(I have to return)
No matter what, Kurumi had to receive the chat room invitation in the future, and she couldn't miss it because of this paradox.
---------
TN: Sigh...