Dengeki Bunko
N-Nagi-neesan...
What's with that getup, anyway?
Who talked you into it?
Sorry, Nagi-neesan!
Hey!
You're strong, Masaki.
No... I'm not strong at all!
I can't even tell what's right or wrong on my own!
That's why I have to live according to other people's reactions!
I'm sure you can become Boogiepop.
And... I actually felt like I could...
As long as I was with you.
What are these?
People called her "Public Toilet" behind her back.
From: Kirima Nagi To: Taniguchi Masaki Subject: Apparently, Kinukawa Kotoe was brainwashed.
Have you ever thought about why you were taking on that stupid façade
in the first place?
Hey, Masaki. Do you—
What the hell was I even looking at?!
The number you are trying to reach...
Damn it!
What am I trying to see?
Café Tristan
Please answer, Orihata!
Orihata! It's you, isn't it?
It's me! Taniguchi Masaki!
Yes, I know.
Are you all right, Orihata?
Yes. Why do you ask?
I talked with that Kinukawa girl.
I see.
She said someone brainwashed her.
That's correct. So please, don't hate her.
Are you in any danger?
No, I'm fine.
Is someone else there?
Orihata, I want to help you.
I want to save you!
I don't care about the fact that you were using me!
I really enjoyed the time I spent with you.
That alone is—
Masaki, that's enough.
Huh?
Please, just forget about me.
You'll be better off with a normal girl.
That's not what I'm talking about! I—
You found out, right? What I've been doing.
It's all true. You never would have believed I'd done all those things, would you?
That's—
Sorry. That's the kind of person I am.
I was deceiving and betraying you this whole time.
But...
You need to wake up.
You're such an idiot, Masaki.
But... I love you!
Orihata, where are you right now?
I-It doesn't matter to you!
Just leave me alone.
Orihata...
Goodbye, Masaki.
Is someone there?
You're listening, aren't you?
Taniguchi Masaki In call...
I don't know who's listening, but whoever you are...
I don't care who you are.
But if you do anything to Orihata, I'll make sure you regret it!
Hey, are you lis—
Were you happy that you got to hear his voice?
Yes...
I see. Then I guess your life wasn't a complete waste.
You're better off than me, at least.
How are you feeling?
I'm okay.
I see... That's good.
Everything that happened must've surprised you.
Well, a little bit.
The other day surprised me more, though.
The other day?
I mean hearing about how your reputation had suddenly changed.
They must be saying all sorts of things about me.
I'm sure everyone's opinions will change once they hear about what happened.
Rumors are always like that.
Thanks... Did you come to cheer me up?
No. I wanted to ask you something personally.
About what?
Who was the one controlling you?
How'd you know?
Because people can't change that easily.
Do you have any idea?
I'm not sure... But remember when you told me not to see Jin-niisan?
I remembered that because it was such a shock...
Sorry! That was just—
No, that's not what I'm saying.
There's a place I go whenever I get depressed.
I remember going when that happened, so it might've happened after that...
Where is that place?
No Trespassing
An amusement park that was never completed, called Paisley Park.
Have you heard of it?
Yes, I know it.
There's a tower there called The Ladder. That was where...
It's hazy, but I remember...
Jin-niisan told me goodbye.
And that my feelings for him were just admiration.
I already knew that, though.
I'm such a little kid... It's ridiculous.
Kinukawa-san, do you still have feelings for him?
I'm not sure.
I don't know, but... But...
But... I want to see him again.
I want him to tease me and bicker with me like we used to.
How'd it go?
I'm sorry, Touka,
but could you go home by yourself?
Is something wrong?
I think I have to go.
Go? Go where?
To Paisley Park.
I promised her that I would do something about this!
W-Wait, Suema!
Sorry, Nee-san. I promise I'll return your motorcycle.
Just a little more...
Just a little bit more...
Just a little more, and I'll be able to get through.
Are you going to kill me here?
No, not yet.
I should have some time before the Towa Organization
finds out about Spooky E's death.
I see.
And I'm not technically going to kill you.
I will be tearing out your heart, though.
Then you will longer be yourself, or anything worth calling human.
In that case, I'm already...
No, it's nothing...
We'll begin late at night when most people will have settled in.
I'd rather not cause a panic.
The seed I'll create from your heart will probably
only be enough to influence the people of this city,
but that's more than enough.
Huh?
A new seed should be born within the people your seed takes root in.
How much will this affect everyone?
Not much, really.
They probably won't even notice.
They'll just notice one day that they aren't feeling pain anymore.
That's all.
I see. In that case...
What's the matter?
There's someone heading over here.
Who is it?
It's the boy. The boy who was masquerading as Boogiepop.
I see. Deal with him, just as we discussed.
Understood.
Orihata!
Wh-What the...
So that's what's going on.
There's nothing to fear, Boogiepop-kun.
There's nothing to be frightened of.
You'll understand soon enough.
There's nothing to fear.
There's nothing to be frightened of.
You'll understand soon enough.
There's nothing to be frightened of.
Damn it! Let go of me!
Don't worry. Once you awaken, you'll be one of us.
S-Stop it!
Wh-Who are you?
You should already know
who I am.
There's definitely something going on.
I had no real intention of showing up,
but if this wasn't taken care of quickly,
a certain little busybody would've gotten herself mixed up in this.
Three, two, one...
Isn't this Wagner's...
"Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg"?
The electricity in the park should be shut off.
What's going on?
It was almost like magic.
But they aren't a wizard.
They're a reaper.
Hey, there.
We finally meet.
This is who I was pretending to be?
Well, you'd been brainwashed.
Brainwashed? What are you talking about?
Just what it sounds like.
There should have been at least one moment
during your time with Orihata Aya when your memories became vague.
That's when Spooky E paralyzed your fear.
But that's—
Looks like that rings a bell.
But then... I...
If I was brainwashed, then... then my feelings for Orihata...
I was just being controlled, and my feelings were lies?
You thought everything you've done up to this point was due to your own free will?
Have you ever done anything that you were completely sure was of your own free will?
Adapting yourself to society is essentially being
brainwashed to meet societal expectations.
And you don't even know by whom.
Now the problem is, within your psyche—
which has no freedom—what do you value the most?
I... I...
What do you desire, while you are so tightly bound to this world?
I...
The music stopped. What was that all about?
Music is highly effective in stirring people's emotions.
It rattles them and robs them of their rational judgment.
But to think that boy is...
What's wrong?
It seems we have no more time to waste.
I'm going to have to deal with you right away.
I see. Then please, get it over with.
I will.
Who's there?!
I-It can't be...
There's no need to be surprised, Camille-kun.
Haven't you been searching for me this entire time?
Wh-What? Who are you?
You should already know
who I am.
You're being rather violent just because you can't see a flower within me,
Imaginator.
You know that much?
You're not going to forgive me, then?
Well, whatever. Why don't you go ahead and do whatever you were going to do?
What?
I'm telling you to go ahead and do whatever you want.
If you can, that is.
Wh-What? What's going on?!
I thought this might happen.
You wanted to use me to do something to humans, right?
So what if I did?!
I knew it. I figured this wouldn't go well, then.
Because...
I'm not human!
I see.
Regardless, it appears that you had already lost.
Wh-What do you mean?
The moment you met this girl,
your defeat had already been ensured.
I'm not sure how you met, or what kind of ironic twist of fate it was, though.
B-But...
This is what happens when all you care about is the future, Imaginator.
You believe yourself to be the only option, so your feet get swept out
from under you as soon as another unexpected possibility shows up.
Damn it...
It's not going to work, Imaginator.
He can never break through.
You're just going to keep falling.
There are no possibilities left for you.
Even if it were to snow in April,
it would never accumulate, melting away because of the spring's warmth.
Did he die? Did you kill him?
Well, he may suffer from whiplash for a while.
Why did you save him?
Because he wasn't worth killing.
Now that the Imaginator is gone, he's no enemy of mine.
So if someone was truly your enemy, you wouldn't hold back.
Correct.
As for those... I guess I can leave them.
I'm sure the Towa Organization will come and deal with them if we leave them be.
B-But why?
Why are you helping me? I'm supposed to be your enemy.
And why would you be my enemy?
Because the Towa Organization is—
The Towa Organization itself is not my enemy.
Though I am unsure of what you all think about me.
Same goes for Asukai Jin.
His powers were never a concern of mine.
Besides, he gravely misunderstood his own powers.
What do you mean?
You appear to believe that Asukai Jin couldn't harm you because you aren't human,
but sadly, that doesn't matter.
B-But...
Apparently, he could see people's hearts,
but people's hearts grow through communication with others.
An unparalleled psyche that could solve everything
simply doesn't exist.
No matter how much he tampered with someone's heart,
the results would only be temporary.
Even if he had ripped out your heart,
you would've quickly recovered.
Because you have something protecting you deep within your heart.
Damn it... Wait for me, Orihata...
It appears that Asukai-sensei was
too obsessed with what was missing in people's hearts.
Whatever was missing merely presented the opportunity to make something new,
but didn't provide enough strength to break through.
You're quite impressive.
This is as far as I go. There's no future for me...
But I know that someday, someone will be able to break through.
I'm reminded whenever I see someone strong like you.
That's the reason why Asukai Jin couldn't harm you.
He only asked me to help out.
Oh, yes. If you have nowhere to go,
you should go talk to someone close to that boy.
She's a rather strange one called the Fire Witch, but I'm sure she'll help you out.
What is this?
What in the world is going on?
Hey, are you okay?
Y-You're Masaki-kun!
S-Suema-san.
Perfect timing...
Hey, what's going on? What in the world happened?
Suema-san...
There should be a girl somewhere around here.
Could you help her for me?
Huh? A girl?
Please...
Wh-Who is it, Masaki-kun? Who are you talking about?
That girl is atop a tall tower called The Ladder.
N-Now who is it?!
It doesn't really matter who I am.
If you could bring that girl down to see him, I'd greatly appreciate it.
The Asukai Jin you're looking for is also up there.
Who are you?
Who in the world are you?
Answer me!
Ow...
Once again, another incident had passed right by me.
But in the end, whoever that voice belonged to happened to say...
You should already know
who I am.