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Ei's inner world fades back into reality in a show of red and purple tiles. Aether is immediately greeted by the sight of Paimon, who is hovering right in his face.
Paimon flits around in the air nervously. "What happened in there? Did you win?"
Aether says nothing, only shooting Paimon a small smile. She'll see what happened in a few seconds. He can see the realization start dawning on Paimon's face, from how her scared expression is hesitantly turning into a smile.
Ei's voice rings loud and clear over the entire small battlefield that is Tenshukaku. "Stop! As of this moment, the Vision Hunt Decree is no longer in effect." The voice she uses is that of the Shogun, while her wording is more like that of Ei.
Aether is momentarily taken aback by the fact that he noticed such a small difference at all.
The Resistance and Shogunate soldiers that are still standing all immediately stop, and the whole courtyard falls silent for a few collective moments of disbelief.
Then, the Shogunate soldiers drop their weapons and everyone in the Resistance cheers. On closer inspection, even the Shogunate soldiers look relieved.
Almost immediately, Aether sees Kazuha quietly slip away. He almost follows Kazuha, but he ends up staying put because Gorou beats him to it. Hopefully, Gorou will help Kazuha talk everything out.
Paimon cheers, "We did it! Just another day of saving the world for Paimon and Aether!" She flips around in the air.
Aether smiles at her enthusiasm, but then he looks towards Yae and Ei, and the awkwardness sets in. It's hard to feel comfortable when they were fighting each other with all their might only a few moments ago.
Neither of them say a thing, so he says, "So, what's going to happen now?"
Yae replies, "Don't you remember? I'm going to spend the next several centuries telling Ei about everything she missed."
Aether snorts.
Ei gives Yae a small smile, but then her expression turns serious. "Once everyone calms down, I will gather my soldiers and formalize the repeal in writing. Then, I suppose it is time to begin returning Visions to the citizens of Inazuma."
Yae says, "For what it's worth, I think you are making the right decision."
"It would be strange if you did not, considering you were the one who persuaded me."
Yae laughs, covering her mouth with her hand. "Of course, silly me."
Paimon flies in front of Aether's face, like that's the only legitimate way to get his attention. "Hey, now that everything's settled, we should go tell Thoma the good news! And Ayaka! And everyone!"
Paimon gestures towards the rest of the city, but Aether keeps his feet planted in place. "Wait, Paimon."
"What is it? Let's go!"
"It's just..." Aether pauses for a second, "doesn't it feel like we're forgetting something?"
"Forgetting? What do you mean? Everything is solved!"
"Yes, but isn't there something we're supposed to do first?"
"Hmm..." Paimon crosses her arms and closes her eyes in thought. "Well, if neither of us can remember, then it must not be important."
"I guess you're right..." Aether is still hesitant, but he decides that it might be better to just leave and figure it out later.
He's about to turn around when Paimon's eyes go wide. She exclaims, "Um, what is that?"
"What is what?"
Aether turns around to see a blur of a person running through the courtyard, shoving people out of the way. He's yelling something that Aether can't quite make out.
Fortunately - or unfortunately - the person is running towards them, and Aether can soon make sense of the boom of the person's voice. "Where the hell is Kujou Tengu!?"
"Tengu?" Paimon repeats. "Is that some member of the Kujou clan we haven't heard of yet?"
Aether is pretty sure the word sounds familiar. "No, I don't think-"
Paimon squeaks, "Ah! He's getting closer!" Aether draws his sword, in case this is another enemy.
In a whirlwind of yelling and footsteps, the man stops right in front of their little group. Now that he's not moving, Aether can see that he has large horns on his head.
The man looks right at Aether and yells, "Where is Kujou Ten-" He stops short and slaps a hand to his forehead. "Sorry, I mean," he starts yelling again, "where is Kujou Sara!?"
Aether slaps his hands over his ears. Man, this guy is loud.
It takes a moment for the horned man's words to process.
Kujou Sara is the thing they forgot! They left her unconscious on the floor of the main building!
By the open-mouthed look on Paimon's face, she probably realizes the same thing. She exclaims, "Um, she's in there!" She points to the building. "But she's, uh, how does Paimon put it? Unconscious?"
The horned man raises his eyebrows. "And you all just left her there?" He's met with silence from the whole group, including Yae and Ei. "I can't believe-" He shakes his head. "I swear to-" He suddenly takes off running, straight towards the building.
Paimon turns to Yae. "Who the heck was that?"
Yae looks lazily towards where the man ran off to. "Oh, him? I believe that's Arataki Itto."
Ei asks, "Who?"
"My, it really must be Ei if you're already making jokes like this."
Ei shakes her head. "No, I am being serious. I do not know who that is."
"Really? Well, I actually had an eating contest with him once. He thinks he won because he ate more ramen than me, but I really don't think throwing up at the foot of a sakura tree truly counts as a win."
Aether isn't sure how this information is relevant at all.
Paimon crosses her arms. "So, you're saying that he won, but you don't want to admit it?"
"Of course not. I'm just saying that it's silly to eat yourself sick just for the sake of a competition."
"You're just a sore loser!"
Yae raises an eyebrow. "I know we're all on the same side here, but you've got some guts, little fairy."
"Ah!" Paimon screams, quickly hiding behind Aether. "Please don't curse Paimon!"
Aether sighs. He hopes he won't need to break up a fight right after they just stopped the war.
He's saved by the sound of a door slamming open, and he looks towards the main building to see Itto walking out of the building, carrying Sara bridal style. Sara's arms are crossed, and she honestly looks kind of pissed.
It's such an odd sight that he blinks hard a few times before looking at them again, just to make sure what he's seeing is real. Bridal style? Really?
As they get closer, Aether can hear their voices.
Sara says, "When I said you could carry me, I didn't mean like this."
"Ha! So you'd prefer it if I slung you over my shoulder like a sack of potatoes?"
"Yes, actually!"
"Too bad! I'd never give in to such a request from my rival before getting my Vision back. Looks like you're stuck like this!"
Sara looks towards the group, and her eyes lock with Aether's for only a moment before she turns her glare back to Itto. Her tone of voice is urgent. "Then, at least put me down. They're all looking at us."
Itto grins. "No can do! We went over this; I know you can't stand by yourself right now."
Itto stops in front of their group, adjusting Sara in his arms. "Thanks for telling me where the tengu was, flying elf."
Paimon puts her hands on her hips. "Yup, you're very welcome!" After a moment she yells, "Wait, who are you calling a flying elf ?"
Itto ignores Paimon and continues, "You all should be grateful that she isn't too badly injured-"
Sara interrupts, "I was fine."
"Is 'fine' how we describe being knocked unconscious on the floor and covered in injuries?"
"I would have been fine."
"Whatever you want to tell yourself." Before Sara can retort, Itto says, "As I was saying, you all should be grateful that she isn't injured too badly, or there would be a price to pay." Itto shoots a glare at Aether - which Aether doesn't bother returning - and then at Yae. When he sets his eyes on Ei, he jumps a little and says, "Oh! Um... Except for you, Almighty Shogun."
He starts to bow, but Sara fidgets in his arms. "Hey! Don't drop me."
Itto quickly stands back up. "Oh, sorry! I didn't realize."
"You better be."
"Don't worry though, I wouldn't drop you- Woah!" Itto suddenly unlocks his knees and pitches his arms to the side, like he's dropping her.
Sara lets out what is definitely the most girlish squeak Aether has ever heard from her, and she wraps her arms around Itto's neck lightning-fast.
Before she can completely fall, Itto suddenly stops moving and goes back to a standing position. He starts cackling. "Ahahahaha! I knew you'd fall for it!"
Sara's face is searing red. "That is not funny, and you know it."
Itto adjusts her in his grip so their faces are closer together. "Sure it isn't." And then it somehow turns into a silent staring contest.
When it becomes obvious that their staring contest isn't going to end anytime soon, Paimon says, "So! This was an eventful day."
Aether nods. "It felt like we were going from fight to fight all day. At least the Vision Hunt Decree is finally over."
Aether feels the sense of being watched, and he turns towards Itto and Sara, only to see them both staring right at him.
Sara says, "The Vision Hunt Decree..."
"...is over?" Itto finishes.
Aether is so confused. They seem so bent on annoying each other but are also so in sync.
Also, why are Sara's arms still wrapped around Itto's neck?
Yae says, "Yes, though none of us got the chance to tell you yet. Our Shogun here has agreed to stop the decree and pursue eternity in a different way."
Sara stares at Ei. "Is this true, Almighty Shogun?"
Ei briefly nods.
"... I see."
After a brief silence, Itto says, "So, does this mean I get my Vision back, Kujou Tengu?"
"I... suppose so. What about our rematch?"
Itto grins. "I always knew you secretly looked forward to those. Don't worry, we'll be settling who's stronger in due time."
"I believe we already decided that I am superior in battle."
"Yeah, yeah, just hand over the Vision."
"I can't right now, you idiot. It's embedded in the statue."
"Oh." Itto looks towards Ei. "If you're going to tear down the statue anyways, can I grab a pickaxe and get my Vision out of there right now?"
Ei replies, "I do not see why not."
Sara's jaw drops. Aether's would, too, if he hadn't already seen the true Ei in her inner world.
"Great!" Itto shouts, and Sara immediately covers the ear closest to his mouth, wincing. "To the archon statue, it is!"
Sara rubs her ear. "I swear, one day you're going to blow out my eardrum."
"No one can resist the power of an oni's vocal chords!"
"You've got that one right."
Itto starts walking away, towards the rest of the city. "So, what happened with the Kujou clan? When I asked Takayuki where you were, he threw a hissy fit."
Sara sighs. "Honestly, I'm not sure if they'll accept me back as a member of the clan anymore. Or if I want to be accepted."
"Oh. Damn."
Sara's tone changes to a joking one. Aether didn't even realize she could joke. She asks, "Are there any spots in your clan, by any chance?"
Itto stops short. "Did you just ask me to marry you?"
Aether kind of wishes he could see Sara's face. She exclaims, "No, of course I wasn't asking you to marry me!"
Itto laughs and then keeps walking. "Honestly, I'd think someone like you would..." Their voices fade out as they get out of earshot.
Aether says, "They seem to have a..."
"...interesting relationship?" Yae supplies.
Paimon says, "That's certainly one way to put it."
Ei says, "Miko, I still do not have a clue about who that oni is."
"Don't worry, I'll tell you later. Not really much to tell, though."
Suddenly, a figure falls from above and lands in front of them. From what Aether can tell, it's a girl in a ninja suit. The ninja's face is mostly covered by cloth, though, so Aether can't be certain.
The ninja asks, "Hey, has anyone seen the boss around here?"
Yae says, "Boss? You mean Arataki?"
The ninja nods.
Aether points to where Itto and Sara just left. "You just missed him. He's taking Kujou Sara to the archon statue."
"Oh, great. I'll catch you guys later; I need to knock some sense into that guy."
Aether starts, "Okay..." but the ninja is already gone before he can say anything else.
The whole group watches as the ninja catches up with Itto. When she does catch up, Aether hears Itto's distant yell. "Oh, I almost forgot!"
Aether sympathizes for Sara's ears.
Itto shouts, "Where the hell is the nearest doctor!?"
Yae says, "Oh, right. I also forgot that she needs medical attention."
Ei says nothing but a soft, "Hm," and Aether gets the feeling that she forgot, as well.
Aether sighs. He can't believe how quickly this changed from a high-stakes battle saving the country to this odd, peaceful chaos.
It seems he risked his life to save a country full of absolute buffoons.