Disclaimer :
The characters, scenarios, locations, and images used in this fanfic are the property of their respective creators and/or rights holders.
This fanfic is a non-profit work created solely for entertainment purposes, with no intention of infringing any copyright.
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— Dimensional Breach:
Hanging Gardens of Babylon:
Laboratory —
The day after Aiden tested Leen's [Sacred Gear], [Chastiefol], and following the visit of Le Fay and Kuroka (who had become friends with surprising ease with his girls while he slept peacefully on Kurumi's lap) the routine continued.
When he woke up from his short nap, he noticed the new friendship that had formed in his absence.
But that was yesterday's matter.
Now, Aiden was in his laboratory, where time passed faster inside and slower outside, thanks to the temporal acceleration of the place.
Even though the girls insisted he should rest, he didn't want to delay his goal: splitting Yoshino/Yoshinon's existence into two.
That's why he was immersed in the study and experimentation of the [Kabbalistic Formula].
"This is turning out to be much harder than usual… It's mistake after mistake," he murmured to himself, frustrated.
Each failed attempt was a blow to his patience, but it made sense that it was difficult.
In fact, in his opinion, this was even more complicated than creating some [Sacred Gears].
After all, he was trying to split a being into two without harming it in any way, ensuring that Yoshino/Yoshinon's soul remained intact, without alterations or wounds.
There was no room for mistakes.
If anything happened to Yoshino/Yoshinon, he would never forgive himself.
That's why, for Aiden, there were only two options: achieving a perfect spell or nothing.
As long as the success rate wasn't 100%, he wouldn't stop.
So, he spent days locked inside his accelerated laboratory, fully dedicated to his goal.
…
One day later inside the laboratory
"Error…" Aiden murmured, his gaze fixed on the magic circle in his hand and the floating soul of the lab rat before him.
To develop this spell, he needed test subjects.
And for now, rats would be his starting point.
…
15 days later inside the laboratory
"Error… again…" he said, frustrated.
Despite his efforts, the spell kept failing, even though he was working with a simple soul like that of a rat.
If it was already this difficult with such a basic being, how complex would it be with more advanced souls?
"Damn it…"
…
40 days later inside the laboratory
Aiden continued his experiments without rest.
Whenever he started missing the girls, he simply used [Michael] to seal that concept within his personality.
It wasn't necessary, but he wanted to finish as soon as possible and avoid distractions.
Besides, it wasn't a problem, as he could unlock that feeling at any moment with [Michael] if he wished.
…
80 days later inside the laboratory
Finally, there was progress.
His understanding of soul manipulation in rats had improved significantly, and the spell's construction was taking shape.
Aiden had managed to solidify the "idea" of the spell, which would make the development process easier.
Now, he had to perfect it so it would work with other soul types: more intelligent animals, demons, fallen angels, humans…
Of course, he wasn't a villain or anything like that.
He didn't plan to harm innocents.
For his experiments, he would simply capture some of the many pieces of trash that roamed the world and turn them into test subjects.
…
240 days later inside the laboratory
"[Soul Separation Spell: Harmonious Division]," Aiden murmured.
In his right hand, a complex magic circle shone, built from the [Kabbalistic Formula].
With precision, he aimed it at the rat on the table.
/Squeak!/
The small rodent screamed, but Aiden remained unfazed.
After so many days locked away perfecting his spell, he had sealed his boredom and some unnecessary emotions to avoid distractions.
However, he knew he had already spent too much time inside the accelerated laboratory.
If at least 12 hours had passed outside, he needed to leave before someone came looking for him… and scolded him for his obsession with experiments.
From the magic circle, a mirror formed, from which threads of energy emerged, wrapping around the rat, trapping it.
When the small animal passed through the mirror, something unexpected happened.
Now there were two rats.
One of them, with its physical body intact, looked around in confusion.
But the other… was different.
Its form was identical, but its body was not material—it was a floating ethereal specter.
No.
It was a soul.
A soul born from the body of the rat that had passed through the mirror.
The ghostly rat was also confused, but in a different way.
Its bewilderment wasn't that of a normal animal, but that of someone who didn't even understand what they were.
'Makes sense…' Aiden thought.
It was as if a soul had been born from scratch, but with the memory and personality of the original.
Like giving a newborn some memories but without the ability to fully process them.
"Success…" he whispered.
This spell hadn't been created to generate new souls but to separate them.
And from what he could see, he had achieved his goal.
When he used this spell on Yoshino, the confusion the rat had shown wouldn't happen.
Yoshinon would simply emerge from the mirror in spirit form.
"So, I just need to give her a [Spirit Piece], and she'll be able to have a physical body as well…" Aiden reflected aloud.
However, his work was not yet complete.
Rats weren't enough to guarantee 100% success.
He needed to test it on more complex souls: demons, fallen angels, humans…
But that would be a problem for another day.
Sighing, he began organizing the laboratory, put everything in order, and took a shower.
When he finally stepped out, time returned to normal for him.
Before leaving the Dimensional Breach, Aiden summoned [Michael] and unlocked his personality, restoring it to exactly the state it had been in before he began creating the spell.
"Ugh…" he murmured, feeling a strange chill run through his body.
All at once, the boredom, frustration, and emotions he had sealed during his time in the laboratory came rushing back like an avalanche.
It was as if he suddenly carried the weight of the past months in just a few seconds.
"…"
— World: Draconic Deus
Earth, Japan, Tokyo:
Avalon Residence —
"Well? How long were you trapped in that laboratory this time, hmm?" Natsumi asked while enjoying her ice cream.
She was comfortably seated on Aiden's lap, and the two were alone in the living room.
The other girls were either in their rooms or simply not home.
She knew Aiden had isolated himself in the lab, but what she wasn't sure about was how much time had actually passed inside.
After all, he had the ability to manipulate the speed at which time flowed at will.
"I-It was just a few days…" Aiden replied, averting his gaze as a bead of sweat rolled down his temple.
He wanted to lie, but his attempt was a complete failure, and he knew it.
After all, Natsumi could feel exactly what he was feeling thanks to their connection.
"Come on, you know you can't lie to me… I can literally feel what you're feeling right now, you know? Don't try to play dumb with me."
Natsumi narrowed her eyes with a smile, leaning slightly toward him.
"So, tell me, how long was it really?"
"…"
"If you don't tell me, I'm going to let everyone know that you were locked up for a really, really long time."
Natsumi flashed a mischievous smile, wagging a finger in front of him.
"And that's despite the fact that we agreed you'd take it easy when creating the spell to help Yoshino and Yoshinon… Hmm, what a shame it would be if someone found out~."
Natsumi stared at him with her intense green eyes, waiting for an answer as she "threatened" him.
Aiden swallowed hard.
He knew he couldn't win this situation.
He had a certain "fear" of his girls when they got angry, and the last thing he wanted was to worry them or make them mad.
Sighing in resignation and with no other choice, he began to speak, telling Natsumi everything he had done in the laboratory over the course of no less than 240 days.
…
"So, you were locked up in there for 240 days this time, huh…?" Natsumi murmured with a languid tone, letting out a sigh of exasperation.
"Seriously… you're so over the top. Sealing your emotions with [Michael] and all that… I know you want to give Yoshinon her own body so she can live like a normal person, but… why the rush?" she added, looking at him with a mix of reproach and barely concealed tenderness in her expression.
Aiden gently wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his chin on her silky green hair before responding:
"You know I don't like leaving things unfinished for too long… Besides, I want Yoshinon to have her own body, too. I know she's not in a hurry or anything, but… I just want to do it as soon as possible. It's… just a selfish wish of mine…"
"…"
Natsumi watched him in silence for a few moments before curving her lips into a slight smile.
"Wow, how sweet… You really care about her, huh? But hey, don't you think you could count on me from time to time too? Don't ignore me like that, hmm? I'm quite skilled with the [Kabbalistic Formula] as well, so I could help you if you need it. After all, I also want to see my adorable little sisters even happier…" she said in a sweet tone, though a faint hint of reproach remained in her gaze.
"Unn." Aiden nodded.
"That's also something Nia could lend us a hand with," Natsumi commented casually, making Aiden nod again.
"Well then, let me see that spell," she added curiously, leaning forward slightly.
Aiden stopped embracing her with both arms, extended his right hand in front of Natsumi, and activated the [Soul Separation Spell: Harmonious Division], making a radiant magic circle appear in his palm.
Natsumi observed the magic circle attentively, analyzing every detail in silence.
"So this spell aims to divide a being into two separate entities without harming them… Hmph, interesting," Natsumi murmured, narrowing her eyes as she examined the magical structure.
"It uses the [Kabbalistic Formula] to calculate and project a magic mirror… a conceptual filter that extracts a part of the soul and turns it into a new existence… Wow, what an extravagant idea," she added, deciphering the spell's concept.
"Unn," Aiden nodded again.
"Wow, this must not have been easy to create, huh?" Natsumi asked, not taking her eyes off the magic circle.
"Yeah… and I still need to perfect it," Aiden admitted with a sigh of frustration. "For now, it only works with 'low-level' souls, like rats or creatures with few 'data points.'"
The two continued discussing the spell, exchanging ideas and possible improvements.
Aiden realized that, with Natsumi there, his mind flowed more easily, and new ideas surfaced more quickly.
Or maybe… was it because Natsumi was smarter than him?
After talking for a while, the afternoon slipped away without them noticing, and soon, it was dinnertime.
The whole family gathered around the table, enjoying a variety of dishes while chatting animatedly.
Once dinner was over, Aiden headed to his room.
As soon as his head hit the pillow, the exhaustion accumulated over 240 days without sleep in the laboratory finally caught up with him.
He fell into a deep sleep instantly.
"Zzzzzz…"
/Creeeaaak…/
The bedroom door slowly creaked open, allowing a small figure to slip into the darkness.
She wore pajamas and had snow-white hair, with deep red eyes that glowed in the dark.
In her left hand, she held a puppet.
"Aiden-san… looks really tired…" Yoshino murmured softly.
"Even though we told him we could wait without any problem…" Yoshinon responded, currently controlling the body, expressing her concern.
"But… we already know how he is… He always pushes himself too hard for us," Yoshino murmured with tenderness, a hint of sadness in her voice. "The same thing happened with the [Spirit Pieces]…"
Yoshinon nodded silently, fully understanding those words.
Without making a sound, she slipped into the bed beside Aiden and gazed at him for a moment, watching his relaxed face in deep sleep.
After a few seconds, she closed her eyes and, embracing his warm presence, allowed herself to drift off to sleep by his side.
…
..
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A/N:
Here are some images:
[Image]
As always, thank you for reading my fanfic.
It really means a lot to me.
I love you, dear reader.
Peace out.
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