After waiting for a while, it was almost midnight, and Shido couldn't help but feel a little nervous. After all, only if this experiment was successful, could he prove that his previous hypothesis was true, and he could use the power booster to increase his power, which was the only way to help the Spirits stay.
If this method did not work, then he could only try to think of other methods.
Yoshino sat quietly by the side, her little hands clasped Shido's sleeves, apparently not feeling very calm.
Because she may be able to stay in this world for more time because of the increase in reiryoku, and thus accompany Shido.
Even the noisy Yoshinon didn't speak, for she was quite nervous too. Now, everyone was quiet, and there was no sound in the air.
After a while, a red light circle appeared out of thin air, and Shido looked back and saw that Yoshino was still sitting next to him!
In this case, his experiment worked!
Shido waved his fist excitedly, knowing that this was the way he thought about it for a long time. If it didn't work, it would be difficult to find another way. Now then, all he had to do was find more reiryoku for his beloved Spirits.
"Shido? Shido?"
A girl with red hair and two ponytails shook Shido's shoulders, and she couldn't help but be a little worried when she saw that he didn't respond.
"Why is Yoshino here?"
Kotori asked with a bit of surprise. You know, the time they set was just right. It would take 30 seconds for her to cross the world at midnight, and the same for the Spirit who was returning to the original world. In this case, they should not run into one another.
"Shido, did you succeed?"
Kotori asked excitedly.
"Maybe half..."
Shido smiled and said. Although it had been proven that the extra reiryoku he received could help Yoshino stay in this world, it was not clear how long she could stay.
Moreover, this was only given to Yoshino. In order for everyone to get the power, it was necessary to find the power that Maki said. But the thing was, she spreaded the power everywhere.
After a while, Shido, Kotori, and Yoshino were sitting at the dining table in the living room, a situation that had not happened for a long time.
After Shido fed Kotori the lollipop, she returned to commander mode and asked him:
"Shido, what the hell happened at the shrine today?"
"Today..."
Shido seriously stated what he knew, including the shrine maiden, and the two little girls who seemed to be gods in a strange garden.
"That shrine maiden shouldn't be the one, but those two little girls..."
Kotori frowned. If it involved such mysterious gods, they must be careful.
Fortunately, neither of these two gods had any ill will towards Shido, and even gave a gift of reiryoku to allow Yoshino to stay here longer.
"They were Maki and Rio. Maki should be the incarnation of the Tree of Life, but Rio seems to be a higher-level god. It's still unclear what her identity is."
Shido said softly. As for his familiarity with Rio, he had been forced to forget.
"The bigger problem is that god named Rio, she said that Maki gave her power away because of an ominous premonition, so maybe in the near future, something terrible may happen in this world... ..."
Kotori frowned.
"It seems so."
Shido nodded lightly. He hadn't thought of it just now, but after Kotori reminded him, he realized that something dangerous was about to happen.
Otherwise, the Tree of Life would not actively share its power.
Moreover, it would not be a trivial matter, and it may even be a major event that was enough to destroy the world, so it was necessary to use the power of the Tree of Life to protect the world.
The shrine maiden had also mentioned about saving the world or something. If her divination was accurate enough...
"Shido, it looks like you are going to take on the task of saving the world again!"
Kotori smiled helplessly. She knew that Shido only wanted to be an ordinary person and live a stable life, but the impending situation would not allow that.
"It looks like this. If I can find those powers, I will help protect the world, otherwise the world may be destroyed for some reason; if I can't find them and others get them, I'm afraid I have to ask them to lend their powers so I can protect the world..."
Shido made a detailed analysis. No wonder Maki was not in a hurry, because no matter what, he had to help protect this world, otherwise he would not be able to live in peace.
But it was estimated that Maki didn't want to give him all the power, so she didn't tell him the locations.
"I have a headache now..."
Shido gave a wry smile.
"Then don't think about it so much, just make plans when something really happens!"
Kotori smiled and waved the lollipop in her hand. She still absolutely trusted Shido's ability.
"Maybe I should ask the fallen angel..."
Shido nodded, maybe Gabriel knew something.
Kotori didn't have any objection either. Although she didn't know why Shido kept calling that blonde girl "Fallen Angel", she knew that it was an angel named Gabriel, who told Shido the location of the Tree of Life.
Thinking about it this way, Gabriel should know more, maybe she could help.
Moreover, according to Shido, Gabriel had become an internet addict girl who only liked online games. Such a person would be the best to talk with.
The two chatted for a while, but there was no substantial progress. The current direction was mainly to find the whereabouts of the power of the Tree, then they might think about other things.
Yoshino didn't speak at all. She didn't understand their discussion very much, but she knew that the two of them were talking about serious things, so she didn't want to disturb them.
After listening for a while, Yoshino felt a little tired. Usually, she would go to bed after 9pm, but because of the rare opportunity to come to this world and spend time with Shido, she forced herself to stay awake so she could feel his presence more.
It's past 1am now, Yoshino fell asleep peacefully, the corners of her mouth raised slightly, as if she was having a wonderful dream.
Shido carried Yoshino in his arms and walked to the Spirit's bedroom, covering her with a blanket nicely, then asked Kotori to sleep with her. As for him, he went back to his room and thought about things quietly...
"Now, let's begin our date."
Epilogue
"So it worked! Yoshino-onee-san is able to stay longer..."
Sitting in a secret garden, the little girl with plum hair exclaimed with her little feet kicking the ground.
The little girl was Rio, the one who gave powers to Shido earlier today.
To be honest, she was a bit nervous meeting Shido today. After all, she did not expect him to find her lead so fast. But it could not be helped, since she told Maki, the goddess of the Tree of Life, to disperse her powers all over the world.
Although Maki's powers were not as great as Rio's, her reiryoku was still powerful enough to do serious damage. If lost in the hands of evil, it would cause great casualties.
And now, it's her duty to make sure the "evil" doesn't get her hands on it.
"Papa, I will see you tomorrow~"
Author's Note:
The story is completed! I am gonna take a break, but don't worry, I will write the sequel on April 11th, and the journey will begin officially.
The sequel will be named "Shido's Path to Help the Spirits Stay".
Thank you all for staying with me on this journey so far! You have no idea how much this means to me. Please continue supporting me on my sequel as well.
Hope you have success in your school and life as well!
PS: Enjoy the Spirits gallery down here! (Origami to Tohka)