“Hey, grandpa,” The feeble voice of a young Rin Kagane resounded. A voice, filled with sadness. “....Why? Why am I so different from all of you?”

A cold silent draft flew about, prompting the small girl to bury her face in her scarf. With watery eyes, she looked high in the sky, observing the small droplet of snow falling around.

She trembled from the chilly air but also from the silence the one she considered to be her paternal figure was giving her. With a restless feeling, she let out a small breathe, further painting her vision with a small cloud of white.

“...I don't know.” Finally, her grandfather responded. “Frankly speaking, you should already be an Elite by now.” The old man lowered his gaze on the ground before repeating himself. “I don't know why you still aren't.”

The dreadful words slowly entered the young Rin's ears, making her tremble even more. Her eyes, which were already wet, shook and blurred her vision. Before long, a small cold sensation caressed her cheek.

She was crying.

“...But,” It was at that moment that a big, gentle hand found its way on her head, calming her down. “I'm sure that one day, you'll be the best one of us, of this family.”

The warm sensation and the comforting words from the older man, fortunately, managed to dry the little girl's tears. However, instead of a smile on her face, she gave out a determined expression.

Three people. That was the maximum number of people that ever believed in her. Her brother, her sister and, her grandfather. Outside of them, only indifference, hate, and disgust were shown to her.

Still, for the Rin of that time, having even one person on her side was all she could ever hope for. That was why she needed and wanted to respond to their faith in her.

She would work hard, give her best so that those who loved her, would be proud. Proud and not ashamed of sharing the same blood as her.

Unfortunately, however—

[It's impossible.]

—This wasn't a story of the past.

And as soon as the present began to mingle into it, the snow-white scenery crumbled down, piece after piece as though a glass. Darkness seeped in, engulfing everything in its passage until only two figures remained.

[All you'll ever manage to be is a weak, pitiful little girl who can't do shit!] One of the two continued, with an eerie sounding voice.

That's right, it was Rin's own voice albeit a lot more intimidating. It was as though several people talked about the same thing, at the same time, using the same voices. It was unsettling. All the more so for the young Rin.

“..Y-you...!” The little girl gasped, at the sudden change unfolding before her very eyes.

She failed to comprehend any of what was happening, but, the face that looked straight at her was the only thing she could concentrate on. It was the exact spitting image of Rin's modern version, except for two essential features.

White, ashen-colored hair and two vivid red eyes.

[What? Are you wondering who I am?] The unknown Rin asked in a condescending tone.

Then she opened her arm in a grand, dramatic manner. [Can't you tell just by looking?]

The young Rin gulped down her saliva in response. Nervousness creeping into her spine at the development of things. And surely, the, now entirely darkened area didn't help her in the slightest.

[I'm...] The white girl spoke, trailing off on purpose. [A murderer.]

The black girl trembled from the statement. Her own heart tightened in her chest, and slowly, she suffocated. Her breath hastened and became longer, making her lose her mind all over again.

[That's right,] The white Rin continued, her expression clouded by some kind of dark mist. [Just like you.]

Three unknown hands suddenly grabbed the black-haired Rin, who at some point reverted to her sixteen years old appearance, on her shoulder. She gasped in fear and in understanding of what was happening.

With mechanical movements, she turned her head toward her back. And sure enough, dead people were glaring at her.

◇

Rin's eyes shot open almost instantly. With an abrupt movement, she sat up from where she was in cold sweat. Her hand reached out to her fast-beating heart, and her breath escalated to an unhealthy degree.

Still, she tried her best to calm down, closing her unfocused eyes to gain a little peace of mind. She loosened the grip on her chest and focused entirely on regulating her breathing.

At last, she inhaled deeply, filling her lungs to the brim before finally letting out what she thought to be the longest breath of air of her life.

“...” She stayed rooted in place for a little while longer, making sure to reorganize her thought. Or at least, she focused on regaining complete control of her own body.

After all, bad as it may have been, she remembers fully well what she did before she passed out. That's why being driven to insanity again was what she was trying to prevent. One time was enough. Amply enough.

“Don't contain it.” A voice cut her out of focus, and she was forced to open her eyes.

For the first time, she remarked she was inside a small, perhaps average-sized room, that allowed the warm ray of the sun. It was a quiet place, a little dry at most but seemed to be rather comfortable. The bed she was sleeping in further accentuated her positive impression.

However, she grandly noted the presence of another person beside her. Another girl, fortunately, who had around the same age as her. Grey-colored hair, that had a small shade of blue around them. Cut short, about shoulder length, and a bright black pair of eyes.

She was a beautiful girl if it were to be summed.

“Trust me, when you bury things,” She continued, looking at Rin with a bright radiant smile. “They tend to come back at you twice as hard.”

The unknown person stated, taking a step to reduce the distance between her and the black-haired girl.

“...who are you?” Rin asked, still a little confused.

The other girl further spread her smile to reassure Rin. Then she slowly advanced toward the bed.

“I'm your ally, Rin.” She said in a soft tone.

Then, in a completely sudden movement, she placed her hands on the black hair in front of her. She did so in a simple, gentle manner before she stroked the hair, spreading her warmth to the recipient of her act.

Rin's eyes widened in response, but, for some strange reason, she didn't have the will to reject the hand that was patting her. She found it pleasant. Oddly so.

“That's why I'm gonna need you to open up to me.”

◇

“You've got to be kidding me, right?” One handsome man said in a loud tone.

He was sitting in a large, imposing chair, all the while reading a piece of paper with an unsightly frown. It seemed as though he would snap at any given time, showing how much frustration he tried to contain.

“Sadly, master, I am serious.” An old butler responded apologetically. “The signal of Red-level monster has been confirmed to appear in Talia city.” The old man continued, him too, with somewhat complicated expressions. “Adding to that the Black one, I am afraid to say no one in the Gram continent is safe anymore.”

The handsome man brimmed with anger at the word spoken to him. At some point, he ripped apart the paper in his hand before burning it with his singularity. Then he stood up, ready to depart away from the room he was in.

“You can't go, master.” However, the butler readily stopped him by blocking his path. “Now, more than ever, Ode need you.”

“Get out of my way!” Nevertheless, the younger man didn't back down and simply pushed away the older one. “I have to go.”

He advanced with determination backed with anger. His decision was final, and for those that knew him, few things, if not nothing, could make him stop. He needed to go, no matter what.

“Master, please!” The butler followed after him in a hurry. “As the heir of the Kagane family, you must not act this rashly.”

“Shut up!” With sheer pressure, the handsome man glued the butler in his place. “You guys may not care about it, but, my sister's life is in danger here. I have to go!”

No further words left his mouth, making the older man pale at the unrecommended decision. Whether the master likes it or not, he must not go!—He thought, panicking at the lack of solution that came to him.

“You stay here, Rei.”

Fortunately, today may have been his lucky day. The only person that could ever solve this situation appeared at the perfect timing. And thankfully enough, she, too, seemed to be against his master's action.

“...” The handsome man immediately stopped with the new voice. “Rena.”

A young, beautiful girl appeared quietly in front of him. Exactly like him, she had black-colored hair and deep blue eyes. A scarf was wrapped around her neck showing the shortness of her silky hair.

“You going away would cause a large uproar in the family, and I'm not even talking about the problem that will come with it.” The girl said, patting the taller man's hair while flying above the ground. “That's why I'll go instead.”

The man's eyes widened at that statement. “—No!”

“Yes.” Rena shrugged off her brother's refusal in a nonchalant manner and with a bright smile. “And don't worry, I will not let anything happen to Sis. Never.”

◇

“I made a grave mistake, I know that.” Rin said quietly.

She hugged her knees to mask her expression from the other girl in the room. She had returned to her powerless, weak high school girl state, making one want to comfort her.

“This isn't the result I had worked so hard to achieve.” She continued, her hand clenched on her skin. “This isn't what I wanted.”

The image of those that had died showed themselves vividly in her eyes. Achille and the sword she pierced him with, Edward and the last wish he pronounced, the nameless girl and her destroyed body.

All of them were people she knew didn't deserve such a fate.

“But,” Tears streamed down on her cheek as time passed. “all the other path I had never opened up to me.”

The memory of one months ago replayed in her mind. The night she had accepted Aiden's proposal. She had known this was how it would end, yet she still chose to take this path.

“This....this was the only way left.”

Regret filled her.

However, she remained incapable of rejecting the power she had been given. She didn't want to.

“I know this is wrong”

She clung to it. Onto the fake, temporary feeling that the upgrade gave her. Turning a blind eye to how her future would go, and simply remaining a puppet of the present. A puppet, with a will perhaps, but with no apparent objective.

“Even so!”

I still wished to approach that dream, to reach the Elite, even if it was in a twisted manner.

“Because that was the only thing I ever put effort in. That was my life.”

And unfortunately, that also leads to what she was now.

Hollow and inconsistent, lacking her former determination and vigor for the future.

“...I see.” The yet unknown girl finally opened her mouth, noticing that Rin had stopped talking. “In short, you don't know what to do anymore, correct?” She said in a nonchalant tone, trying in vain to lighten the mood.

Then, she closed her eyes with a deep breath, reaching inside herself and activating her singularity. Soon, the black color her eyelids made her see changed drastically into a snow-filled scenery.

She had activated retrocognition. On who, you might ask. On Rin, obviously. It took less than a second for her to enter the past of the black-haired girl.

‘Hmm’ She hummed looking around her new surrounding.

And sure enough, the young Rin's appearance greeted her.

The little girl was vehemently swinging a sword in the distance, all the while covered in sweat. Even if it was just a reproduction of the real past, the fatigue, and the determination Rin showed were clearly being transmitted.

‘How old was she at this time? Five? Six, perhaps?’

The scene changed after a few minutes, making way for a slightly older Rin covered in head to toe with books of all sort. Historical, chemical, and, majorly, books on genetics and all that concerned an Elite.

Contrarily to how most of the kids her age acted though, she didn't just look through the image, she did far more than that. She took notes, derived one, or even some who outshined some of the book themselves.

No doubt would the adult around be put to shame were they to try to understand what she wrote. It wasn't on the level of a kid anymore—no, it was above that.

‘Makes you wonder why she still needs to go to school.’

With another comment, the scene changed again to a Rin having mastered martial arts. Several people were at her feet, wrenching from the pain she had inflicted. Some were even unconscious.

Meanwhile, she was, again, drenched in sweet, but, with additional, worse injury on her body. Blood oozed out of her nose and it was apparent she could barely stand on her feet. In fact, she couldn't. With a pale blue face, she lost her consciousness by falling onto the ground.

‘A real hard worker, isn't she?’

And the scene changed, this time to an extremely recent past.

“If I run away here,” Rin's voice spoke up, confirming the increase in detail of the reproduction. “It would be the same as denying my whole existence up until now.”

The sixteen years old Rin stood up, facing off against a monster, a demon. She didn't run, like most would, on the contrary, she ran with determination to challenge the impossible.

‘...’

The scene changed one more time, showing Rin talk with another person.

“Just say the word, princess.” A man spoke up with a smile.

And Rin responded resolutely, “Give me the power I need.”

It was with those words that the white-haired girl's projection ended. She slowly opened her eyes, taking in the form of the current, original Rin.

And then, she made a wry smile.

“Well, I wouldn't know what to tell you.” She said avoiding the other's face.

Rin twitched in annoyance from the unexpected answer. “...So much for wanting me to open up to you.” She replied, in a sad voice.

The unknown girl laughed a little from that. “Sorry, but you know, you're probably older than me so I don't think I can give you valuable advice. What's more, the experience I have isn't probably the best one to share.”

Scratching her head a little, the girl stood up from her place. In a slightly awkward manner, she once again advanced toward Rin.

“But,”

And in the small time she had before arriving, she used her singularity one more time. However, it wasn't retrocognition she activated, it was precognition. In a small window of moment, she shot a glance at Rin's future.

And what she saw made her smile.

“In whatever you do, I think it shouldn't matter whether it is wrong or right,” She said, caressing Rin's hair. “What should matter is if you want to do it or not.”

She looked directly into the deep blue eyes in front of her,

“And, especially for you, I think it's okay to be selfish.”