The Geukin's Command

Looking over the system, I was finally able to get a real grasp of my ability.

While I was inside a manga world, time in reality stood still. Likewise, when I was in reality, time inside the manga world didn't move either.

"So that means I can stay in Hikaru's world without worrying about time at all?"

I clenched my fist. I'd been fretting over how to juggle college life with Hikaru's world — a pleasant miscalculation, as it turned out.

"System."

"Manga list."

"Bond relationships."

At Level 1 I'd unlocked skill sharing and character summoning, and at Level 3 the number of manga I could enter had increased by one, bringing the total to two.

But I had no intention of diving into somewhere new just yet. Hikaru's world came first.

"Physical ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠ability is… about this much, huh."

I threw a few punches into the empty air and got a feel for it. I was incomparably stronger than before awakening, but even so, it was only on the level of an ordinary person who'd trained for a decade or two.

Reaching the realm of true superhumans — the ones they actually called Hunters — was going to take a few more levels.

Probably because there aren't any level-up bonuses attached to this ability.

Hunters saw their physical capabilities improve across the board as they leveled up. Depending on their awakening ability, they also got secondary growth in things like strength or mana.

But with Erotic Manga Avid Reader, it seemed like the system itself was what upgraded — not me.

"Alright, then — time for the long-awaited skill check…!"

Skills were almost impossible to obtain outside of the moment of awakening. You could get one by shattering a skill stone that occasionally dropped from a Gate, but those were astronomically expensive and only hit the market maybe once every few months.

And I get one every time a bond hits 50%. Yeah — my ability really is broken!

I checked the skill description.

"…A little underwhelming, but hey — I'll take it."

It wasn't a direct combat skill, but it was still a solid one. And there was room for it to grow, too.

I'd been fretting over what to report as my awakening ability to the Administration Bureau, but claiming I'd awakened as a Rogue would work just fine.

"Alright — time to head back in?"

It was still afternoon in reality, so that was fine, but the moment I re-entered I'd probably be hit with a wave of drowsiness. The fact that I felt perfectly fine right now suggested that my body in reality and my body inside the manga world were separate things.

I stretched once, then stepped into Hikaru's world. And immediately fell asleep.

Three-thirty in the morning.

At the sound of a low tapping against the window, Hikaru's eyes snapped open.

This is…

That distinctive, irregular rhythm. A signal from the clan.

She braced a hand against the bed and slowly pushed herself upright. Looking toward the window, she found a masked man crouched on the sill.

Hikaru opened the window. The man spoke in a low voice.

"Kunoichi."

Hikaru's brow twitched faintly. That was the title she'd once been called by within the clan.

Perhaps because she'd grown used to the name Hikaru without realizing it — she found she didn't much care for being called kunoichi.

"We've confirmed the mission was a success. So why are you still here? The clan is looking for you."

"I have no choice. The injuries. You already knew that, didn't you?"

Hikaru's voice was cold as frost on the wind. The man didn't react, as if he were used to it.

"The clan has its own physicians."

"So I should go back and be treated like a piece of luggage?"

At her barbed words, the eyes visible through the mask narrowed.

"…That's not like you. Has something changed?"

"Stay out of it, shinobi."

"Okada Reiji. Not shinobi — Reiji."

At Reiji's words, Hikaru's face went sharp. Something inside her snapped clean through.

A name. In the clan, that was a privilege granted only to human beings. And it was something that had never, in the end, been given to Hikaru.

"You dare… speak your name in front of me?"

The killing intent lasted only an instant. But Reiji slowly raised a hand and touched his own throat.

Just now. He had died once. Cold sweat beaded on Reiji's forehead.

The kunoichi was this strong? Then why the hell would the clan…?

Hikaru fixed Reiji with a look that could kill. She knew full well what he meant by speaking his own name.

"A mere Middle-class Ninja looking down on a Geukin. Even wounded as I am — do you think I couldn't kill you where you sit?"

"A G-Geukin?"

Reiji stared at Hikaru with eyes full of shock.

The clan divided its ninja hierarchy into five ranks, excluding the elders, the direct shadow corps, and the clan head.

Apprentice Ninja. Low-class Ninja. Middle-class Ninja. High-class Ninja. And above them all — the most perfect ninja the clan had ever forged, its final deterrent.

Geukin. The Ultimate Ninja.

Hikaru had already ascended to that rank two years ago — the youngest in the clan's history. The only ones who knew were the clan head and the elders.

She murmured coldly.

"Kneel."

Thud. Reiji dropped to his knees before he even realized it. The hard window frame crushed into his shins as if to shatter them, but he could not resist her voice.

"Bow your head."

Reiji slowly lowered his head. Only then did Hikaru withdraw her killing intent.

"Tell the clan head this. Once my injuries are healed, I will return of my own accord."

"Hah… hah…!"

Reiji gasped for breath. Hikaru hesitated a moment, then added:

"Two months. I will return within that time."

Kenji had said her injuries would take two months to fully heal. Reiji looked at her for a beat, then turned away.

"…You will return. That is the clan head's order."

Reiji ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠vanished. Hikaru watched the place where he'd disappeared for a moment, then closed the window. She fastened the latch, then drew the curtains as well.

She bit down hard on her lip.

Idiot. Why did I react so sharply?

Ordinarily she would have brushed off a provocation like that without a second thought — but this time she hadn't been able to hold back. Had something in her changed, just as Reiji said?

Hikaru shook her head. There was a more pressing problem than the fact that her status as a Geukin had been exposed.

This location has been compromised.

This was Kenji's house. The clan had no reason to harm him — but if she stayed away from the clan for too long, the fallout could still reach him.

But…

Hikaru sat on the bed and drew her knees to her chest. Kenji's face drifted through her mind.

The voice that called her name every morning. The hands that steadied her so she wouldn't hurt herself. The face that smiled and asked if the food was good.

Hikaru squeezed her eyes shut.

Once the injuries heal, I have to leave this place.

But every time she imagined leaving, something in her chest ached.

— Hikaru. You awake?

— If anything feels off, tell me right away.

— Got it, Hikaru?

Kenji called her by name. In all her years with the clan, she had never once lived as herself. The clan had never given her a name — only a role.

Ninja. Assassin. Mission operative. Tool of the clan. Weapon.

In short: kunoichi.

If I had never spoken my name…

Then the dilemma wouldn't have lasted long. She would have repaid the kindness of the man who'd let her taste an ordinary life, and left without lingering.

But in Kenji's house, she was Hikaru.

Living as a person, not a tool. A desire she'd buried so deep she hadn't even noticed it herself kept stirring her heart without end.

"…"

Hikaru spent a long time staring into the dark, wide awake through the night.

"Director, you're in early today?"

Okada Reiko, who'd been resting in the break room, started to rise. I waved a hand and motioned her back into her seat.

"Yeah. She was still asleep — must've been worn out from recovering. So I just left food on the table and came in."

The clinic's lunch break was two hours. I always went home during that window to eat with Hikaru.

"Oh my — then you haven't had lunch yet?"

"It just kind of worked out that way. Any snacks left in the clinic?"

I started rummaging through the break room cupboard, and Reiko caught my wrist.

"Reiko?"

"Absolutely not. A doctor skipping meals like that is unacceptable."

Reiko's expression was firm. I gave an awkward laugh and tried to free my hand.

"One day won't—"

But Reiko only gripped my sleeve harder.

"There's a new sushi place nearby, apparently. We've still got plenty of time — let's go together. I haven't eaten yet either, as it happens."

Sushi? Come to think of it, trying authentic Japanese sushi had been on my bucket list.

I was pretty hungry, honestly. I'd considered just grabbing something alone, but going to the trouble of making a proper meal for myself too felt like a hassle.

"Alright. You lead the way, Reiko."

At my words, Reiko's face lit up noticeably. The other nurses resting nearby needled her in teasing tones.

"Reiko, looking after the Director again?"

"You should take care of us like that too."

At the staff's teasing, Reiko's face flushed red. I clapped my hands to clear the air.

"Everyone rest up. Call me right away if an emergency comes in."

I left the clinic with Reiko. Just as she'd said, the sushi place was less than a five-minute walk away.

We sat down and ordered the mixed sushi lunch set. I was humming under my breath, looking forward to just how good Japanese sushi would taste, when Reiko looked at me.

"Director."

"Yeah?"

"That woman who came by last time… has she recovered much?"

"Ah, Hikaru? She can walk on her own now, but she's still got a long way to go."

"…Her name is Hikaru?"

I hesitated for a beat, then nodded. It wasn't information Reiko wasn't allowed to know, and simply telling her a name didn't seem like it would cause any problems.

"That's right."

"I see. And nothing dangerous has happened?"

"It's fine. So you don't need to worry so much."

Ever since Reiko had seen Hikaru, the number of times she struck up conversation with me had jumped. She fretted over me constantly, too.

She probably thought I was being threatened by some group of thugs — and with no way to prove otherwise, I was stuck.

Well, what can you do. It'll settle down with time.

Then Reiko hesitated for a moment before asking:

"Hikaru… she's quite pretty, isn't she."

At that, I found myself picturing Hikaru's face for a moment.

Black hair tied neatly in a high ponytail. Greyish-white eyes settled in quiet stillness. Skin so pale it was almost translucent, from a life spent in the dark.

Looking like that, Hikaru had coldly told me to stay out of it. She'd furrowed her brow and scolded me for being an idiot. She'd asked why I'd saved her.

She'd sworn to repay the debt. She'd let out a cute little scream. She'd spoken a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠name she'd never told anyone.

The shy smile when she ate and found it delicious. The habit of reacting half a beat late when her name was called. The way she averted her eyes in flustered embarrassment but never, in the end, left her seat.

As those moments rose one by one, a faint smile spread across my lips before I knew it.

"Yeah. She's incredibly beautiful."

Reiko pressed her lips together tightly. The surface of the tea in the cup she was holding trembled with a small ripple.