The presumably original Kurumi Tokisaki raised her hand to her forehead, her expression revealing an indescribable awkwardness.
Social death.
She had never been so humiliated!
Logically, she should have absolute authority among all versions of "herself." Even if it came to killing herself, or being killed by herself, it wouldn't be an issue.
But there were exceptions.
And that exception was the four versions of herself in front of her now.
Just as Haruto had suspected.
These four Kurumis were time-slices from Kurumi Tokisaki's chuunibyou phase in her early years.
Pure rebellion incarnate.
They were also the clones she found the most troublesome to deal with.
Usually, Kurumi wouldn't assign these four chuunibyou clones any tasks at all.
But unfortunately...
This time, the first one to sense Haruto's presence was the Kurumi wearing a kimono.
"Um, to distinguish us, greetings Lord Haruto, I am Tokisaki 'Wa-san'."
This was the kimono-wearing Kurumi Tokisaki.
"I'm Tokisaki 'Bandage-san', pleased to meet you."
This Kurumi was wrapped in a large number of bandages. Maybe it was because she was so wrapped up, she simply called herself 'Bandage-san'.
"You are Lord Haruto, correct? What an astonishing existence! I'm Tokisaki 'Eye-san'!"
This was a Kurumi wearing an eyepatch, dressed in a cute puffed skirt. Though she looked identical to the other Kurumis, she gave off a well-behaved aura.
"And I'm Tokisaki 'Sweet-san', please remember it well!"
The last Kurumi was visibly different from the others.
Dressed in a pure white Gothic long dress, she embodied the cute loli style. Moreover, her age was clearly younger than the other Kurumis.
Tokisaki Eye-san, Bandage-san, Sweet-san, and Wa-san—
Adding the original Kurumi made five in total.
Standing together, they were quite a sight.
Haruto couldn't help but chuckle and nodded as he spoke,
"You all really look exactly the same. Are you quintuplets or something?"
Hearing that, the Four Heavenly Kings all nodded in unison.
"Mhm! That's right!"
"We really do look super similar."
"The five of us often get mistaken for one another~"
"We are... The Quintessential Tokisakis!"
Listening to those four speak, Kurumi Tokisaki's expression was falling apart.
Her fists clenched, joints cracking audibly.
She had originally felt excited upon sensing the high-level temporal presence from Haruto.
But now... that excitement had completely vanished.
All that was left was social death.
She really wanted to punch each of these four in the head. Then have them squat in a corner in shame.
"Apologies for the embarrassment, Lord Haruto… actually, I've come to ask for your help."
Under normal circumstances—
Kurumi would have first probed and assessed. But today, that clearly wasn't an option. Even if she wanted to pretend to be an innocent and harmless girl—
These Four Heavenly Kings would absolutely expose her dark past.
Her embarrassing history was standing right next to her in the flesh. So she decided to cut straight to the point.
Upon hearing this, Haruto wasn't surprised.
"Ask for my help? Why? With what? And what would I gain?"
Haruto threw out three questions in a row.
After a moment of silence, Kurumi raised her hand and brushed aside her bangs.
Revealing her other eye.
What was shocking—
Was that within the eye previously hidden by her hair, there was now a reflection of an antique-looking clock.
Such a strange eye was captivating.
In fact, this was Kurumi Tokisaki's Angel—
Zafkiel (Emperor of Time).
An angel capable of manipulating time.
The twelve numerals each represented a unique temporal power.
Including acceleration, time delay, precognition, conscious regression, and many other abilities.
All of which simply required spirit energy to activate.
Even returning to the past, or connecting awareness across different timelines, could be achieved.
Although she hadn't specialized in any one ability—these near-omnipotent time powers were definitely worthy of a higher plane of existence.
"I am the 'Spirit of Time', yet in the past, I committed a sin that cannot be undone. A sin I cannot forgive myself for. No matter what, I wish to return to the past to make amends. But with my own strength alone, it's hopeless. It seems impossible to accomplish.
Therefore, I wish to borrow Lord Haruto's power… to return to the past and atone for my sin. That is my wish. And as long as Lord Haruto is willing to help me, after it's done, I'm willing to offer everything I have to you.
Whether it be my life, or my powers—anything—I will give to you, Lord Haruto, if only you'll help me."
Kurumi spoke calmly, even with a soft smile on her face. As if what she spoke of offering was someone else's possessions and not her own. If someone else had heard these words, they would no doubt interpret them romantically.
Haruto, however, merely sighed.
"Tampering with the timeline... the result may not be what you hope for."
This wasn't a scare tactic.
It was simply the truth.
Altering the timeline was easy but the butterfly effect was real. At the time, nothing might seem out of place.
But as the timeline stretches forward—even the flap of a butterfly's wings can lead to a great storm.
That's why Haruto had always avoided using his World ability to change the past in his main universe.
Even if it meant stopping many anomalies or tragedies.
Temporal fluctuations were just too unpredictable.
But in the face of Haruto's warning, Kurumi Tokisaki's eyes were resolute.
Clearly, mere words would not change this Spirit's determination. Meanwhile, Origami at the side had a glint in her eyes.
If it were possible to return to the past...
Feeling the burning gaze beside him—Haruto sighed deeply.
So it is fated.
"Well, it's simple enough. Since you wish for it, I don't mind helping."
Haruto said plainly.
Kurumi, upon hearing this, could no longer remain calm. This was something she had been desperately chasing after.
Now it was being granted so casually.
How could she remain composed?
Actually, Kurumi did possess the ability to return to the past. Zafkiel's Sixth Bullet and Twelfth Bullet both had that effect. But unfortunately, the Sixth Bullet only allowed her consciousness to be sent back to a short period in the past—
Overwriting her past self with her current awareness.
And what she wanted to correct had already gone beyond the range of the Sixth Bullet.
As for the Twelfth Bullet—it allowed her to physically return to the past and coexist with her past self.
And it had no time limit.
But the spirit energy cost was astronomical.
Far beyond what Kurumi could sustain.
Even with all the energy she'd collected, it was barely enough to support the trip. Any slacking in energy gathering would cause her to regress instead.
It was like rowing upstream.
A struggle between her speed of advancement and the natural flow of time.
Barring miracles, Kurumi would need to gather spirit energy for decades or even centuries just to reach the time she aimed for.
That was why she came to seek Haruto's help.
For Haruto—tugging on the timeline was as easy as snapping his fingers. He reached out his finger and touched Kurumi's forehead.
Immediately, a magnified version of Zafkiel appeared behind her.
Its clock hands spun rapidly.
Kurumi felt the energy flowing into her and was overwhelmed with awe. Meanwhile, Origami also stared intently at Zafkiel.
She too wished to return to the past.
The hands of the clock quickly spun in reverse and finally returned to zero—or more precisely, to twelve o'clock.
"Twelve Bullet...!"
Kurumi murmured softly.
A black pistol appeared in her hand—
And she pulled the trigger.