"There is no need! We merely have a split personality! We are only complete when we are together! We cannot be separated!" Unsurprisingly, Veliona instantly began hissing at Shu.
She hisses, but she doesn't scratch. Like a regal, aristocratic cat.
"Just a split personality?" Bronya narrowed her eyes, leaning in so close her nose was practically touching Veliona's.
It was highly likely Bronya had a personal vendetta she was pursuing here.
"Y-Yes, it's just a split personality, Sister Bronya! Seele and I are the exact same person. We... we just have slightly different emotional tendencies..."
"But Bronya feels that you and Seele are completely different people." Leaning in for a closer look, Bronya boldly reached out and gently pinched the girl's cheek.
"Furthermore... even if it were a split personality, that is still a psychological condition," Mei smiled, joining the fray.
"Mhm!" Kiana nodded seriously in agreement.
Watching the three of them form a tight perimeter around her, "Veliona" felt incredibly small, pitiful, and helpless.
"I... I..." She stammered, unable to form a coherent sentence. In the spiritual world unseen by the others, she turned around and cast a nervous glance at Seele, whom she had just shoved aside.
Just a moment ago, she had watched Seele struggling internally, wanting to ask a question but too timid to speak up. Frustrated by the girl's timidity, Veliona had forcibly taken control of the body, confidently telling Seele to watch and learn.
If you want to see the older sister from another world, just ask!
The worst he can do is say no. It's not a big deal!
But why did the situation develop like this?! Why are their senses so sharp?! How did they instantly deduce that we swapped places from a single sentence?!
Nope. I'm returning the body to you!
Unable to handle the crushing pressure, Veliona reached out to Seele in the spiritual world, attempting to hand control back.
However, Seele, who had docilely stepped aside just moments ago, suddenly resisted. She stood on the sidelines as an observer, suppressing a laugh, completely refusing to retake control of the body.
You're rejecting it?!
Since when is Seele this strong?!
Veliona "won" the tug-of-war for the body. Her senses returned to reality, and the moment she opened her eyes, she was greeted by three faces looming inches from her own, and a grinning Diva standing nearby with a leek hidden behind her back.
How are they all so certain I'm not just a split personality?! Did I expose myself? Did Seele secretly tell them when I wasn't paying attention?
Or did that guy Shu get bored—or maybe he's just a giant pervert—and use some kind of X-ray vision to inspect Seele from the inside out, completely exposing my existence in the process?!
No, no, no, there's no way that's what happened, right? Shu seems like a good person. He acts like a good person. He wouldn't do something like that!
Oh! Wait! Speaking of 'perverts,' there is one!
The Akashic Records!
They definitely read the Akashic Records and found out about my existence!
That despicable book! I knew it wasn't a good person when I talked to it before! To think it would casually leak a secret like this!
In reality, no one present had done any of those things. As for how they were so certain she wasn't simply a split personality...
Canon plot knowledge. You gotta love it.
People who had seen the "movie" were simply built differently. Everyone had always kept Seele's unique dual nature in mind. Not to mention, Seele had her very own animated short!
While the rest of the fandom was obsessed with her punching her way out of the Sea of Quanta, they had focused heavily on Seele's completely unreserved plea: "I'm counting on you, my other self."
Mhm. They were all Dementors who cared about the deeper emotional bonds, not the powerscalers in the battle forums who only cared about raw feats.
"Miss Seele? Miss Veliona? Miss Seele?" Kiana waved a hand in front of Veliona's face. "This is actually our first time officially meeting, isn't it? What would you like us to call you?"
"There is no need!" Veliona continued to hiss. She wasn't close with these people!
They were Seele's friends, what did that have to do with her? Was Seele really that important to her?
Yes.
Veliona was completely unaware of how adorable she looked huddled up and hissing without any real malice. Furthermore, Shu's rapid-fire transformations had already thoroughly inoculated everyone against shock.
"Ahem... Kiana, stop teasing Seele." Mei patted Kiana's shoulder. Kiana smiled and stepped back, finally giving Veliona a tiny modicum of safety.
"This is a decision Seele should make for herself," Mei said, looking at the girl.
Bronya nodded, completely abandoning any intention of offering her own opinion.
Speaking up now would only add more pressure on Veliona.
After all, everyone clearly wanted Veliona to have her own independent body. And for Shu, that was absolutely not a difficult task.
In the past, Shu would have had to consider his cooldown periods, the massive expenditure of [Wish], and even doubt whether his technical skills were refined enough to execute such high-precision biological engineering.
But now, he had an abundance of [Wish] power fueled by [Hope]. He possessed the confidence, and he completely trusted Kiana and the others. All the pieces were in place. If Veliona gave the word, Shu could instantly synthesize the exact body she desired.
Yes, even if she wanted to look entirely identical to Seele, he could do it...
Well, he would obviously construct a body that perfectly matched Veliona's exact desires. He could just use the most fundamental application of [Wish]: directly copying the desires projected by the target on a 1:1 scale. No need to worry about client-contractor miscommunications.
But right now, it seemed Veliona herself was somewhat unwilling?
"Yada!" The reaction they had all desperately wanted to see from Shu earlier was currently being perfectly executed by Veliona. She crossed her arms tightly over her chest, guarding herself as if the evil Shu were going to forcibly extract her from Seele's body the next second.
"Why would I want an independent body?! I'm perfectly fine staying here with Seel—with the coward!"
Even in her panic, she completely abandoned the "split personality" excuse, but still stubbornly swapped Seele's name for an aggressive, blustering nickname.
Such textbook tsundere behavior... We should really bring Sirin and Sin Mal over so they can see exactly what they look like to everyone else.
However, it seemed Veliona genuinely didn't want to come out.
Truthfully... Veliona's treatment inside Seele's body was quite good, wasn't it?
Whenever she needed the body, Seele never refused. Whenever Veliona wanted control, Seele willingly surrendered it. There were no arguments over "territory" or restrictions on what she "couldn't do."
In fact, the biggest problem Veliona had ever faced with this arrangement was right now: being unable to return the body!
Dammit... Seele is definitely laughing at me right now!
Veliona trembled as she guarded the body, thinking bitterly.
Frustrated, she dove back into the spiritual world, intending to warn Seele not to laugh too loudly. But the moment she arrived, she heard Seele's gentle, tender voice.
"But... if you stay inside my body forever, you'll be very lonely, won't you?
"After all... you rarely ever want to appear in front of everyone. Are you truly okay with that?"