Chapter 230: Prime War [IX]
The metropolitan city that never sleeps—usually alive with the flickering dance of neon lights on skyscrapers, the incessant blare of vehicle horns, the endless flow of people along sidewalks and shopping centers, and the vibrant melody of nightlife—had now transformed into a ghost town.
The main roads, typically clogged with traffic, were now completely empty.
Office buildings, bustling with activity during the day, displayed only dark windows. Even the sound of footsteps or faint conversations was nearly nonexistent.
It was a strange silence, both eerie and calming, as if the city were holding its breath.
This wasn’t just Tokyo or other major cities shrouded in night. In parts of the world still bathed in sunlight—from New York, London, Paris, to Jakarta—the same scene unfolded.
Empty streets, shuttered shopping centers, and vanished human activity. Only three hours remained before The Day of Silence began.
People gathered at home with loved ones. Families huddled on sofas, watching special broadcasts about The Day of Silence on television or simply holding each other, awaiting the mysterious phenomenon that would plunge all of humanity into a deep sleep for a full twenty-four hours.
They treated it as the greatest collective holiday in history, a natural phenomenon still shrouded in mystery but accepted as part of modern reality.
Only the homeless, without protective walls, had to seek safe shelter during The Day of Silence to avoid attacks from wild animals scavenging in the silent cities. They crawled into building crevices, under bridges, or other hidden spots, hoping to pass the day without danger.
Of course, society’s upper echelons, who knew the truth behind The Day of Silence, behaved very differently. National leaders, high-ranking military officials, select scientists, and mystic practitioners—they did not sleep.
In secret headquarters, underground bunkers, and hidden advanced laboratories, they were preparing for the impending Prime War, a cosmic-scale conflict that would determine Earth’s survival.
To them, the silence outside was a thin veil hiding the massive storm about to erupt.
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*DING-DONG!*
The sound of a doorbell at a luxurious residence in Tokyo’s Bunkyo District pierced the deep silence of the night. It rang out sharply in the eerie stillness.
*TAP!* *TAP!* *TAP!* *TAP!*
Soon after, the sound of light but steady footsteps approached from within, and the door opened.
The person opening it was a beautiful Japanese-Irish girl, Hayasaka Ai. In her neat maid uniform, she exuded a calm and professional aura.
"Welcome, Ichika-sama, Nino-sama, Miku-sama. Itsuki-sama has been awaiting your arrival."
As she spoke, Hayasaka handed clean, comfortable guest slippers to the three women standing at the threshold.
"Good evening, Ai~ sorry for the trouble."
Already familiar with Hayasaka, and not visiting Ren’s residence for the first time, Ichika was relaxed, treating the house like her own. She even flashed Hayasaka a sweet smile.
"This is my first time at that guy’s place." Nino muttered to Miku while slipping on the slippers, a hint of displeasure in her tone.
"Same. It’s my first time here since Ren-kun moved to this house." Miku added, her gaze sweeping over the luxurious interior she hadn’t seen before.
Hayasaka then guided them to a spacious, elegant living room. There, three beautiful girls—Itsuki, Masha, Alya, and Ririka—waited on the sofa, each with expressions ranging from anxious to curious.
With her swollen belly, Itsuki stood out among them. Meanwhile, Masha and Alya, in the early stages of pregnancy, looked no different from ordinary girls.
"Itsuki, how are you? Any complications?"
Seeing her youngest sister, pregnant and ready to give birth any day, Nino immediately sat beside her on the sofa, her voice filled with concern.
"Relax, Nino. Everything’s fine." Itsuki replied softly, stroking her belly.
"Glad to hear that. Who would’ve thought, out of the five of us." Nino mused, gazing at Itsuki’s belly, "Yotsuba would be the first to marry, but you’d be the first to get pregnant... Huuu... The future’s unpredictable, huh..."
She sighed, half in disbelief at the twists their lives had taken.
"Let me listen to your baby."
After lamenting life’s surprises, Nino carefully pressed her ear to Itsuki’s belly.
"Wow, it’s kicking!" she exclaimed in awe, her eyes widening. She could feel the tiny kicks from within.
"Feeling its aunt’s arrival makes it happy." Itsuki giggled.
Through examinations, she knew the child she and Ren were expecting was a girl.
"By the way, Itsuki, has Ren-kun arrived in Australia?" Ichika, sitting next to Miku, asked curiously.
"He’s arrived. Hubby called us right after landing in Australia." Itsuki answered gently.
"Huh? Australia? Why is Rokuhara traveling abroad at a time like this?"
Hearing her sisters’ mysterious conversation, Nino was filled with questions. She sensed something big was happening that she didn’t know about.
"What are you talking about, Nino? Of course, Ren-kun is a frontline fighter when the Prime War begins." Miku replied as if it were common knowledge, her tone slightly surprised that Nino didn’t know.
"Huh? Frontline? Prime War? What are you all talking about? Explain it in plain language, okay?"
Nino looked around, confusion clear on her face.
Sensitive to the atmosphere, she could sense the astonishment from the other girls in the room directed at her. She felt left out, out of sync, as if there were a massive secret only she didn’t know.
"Nino... Don’t tell me you don’t know?" Itsuki asked, her voice tinged with suspicion and surprise.
Except for Yotsuba, who was already married, Itsuki had invited her three other Nakano quintuplet sisters to watch the live broadcast of the Prime War.
Ren had told her that Ichika, Yotsuba, and Miku knew about his Campione identity and the hidden truths of the world. So, Itsuki assumed Nino did too.
"What? Stop beating around the bush and explain what you’re hiding from me!"
Crossing her arms over her chest, Nino demanded an explanation, her tone firm and slightly accusatory. She hated feeling left behind or deceived.
"Well..."
Miku seemed unsure how to begin, not expecting Nino to be the only one still in the dark among them.
"Yare yare~ In that case, let Onee-san take on the role of sensei~"
Seeing that Nino wasn’t pretending and genuinely didn’t know, Ichika volunteered to explain everything.
A soft, faint smile curved her lips, but her eyes were serious. She took a deep breath, preparing to tell a story that would change everything for her little sister.
And so, over the next few minutes, Nino’s worldview collapsed. The reality she knew—about history, science, and even humanity’s place in the universe—shattered into pieces.
With every word Ichika spoke, from the existence of magic and gods to Campiones, aliens, and the true meaning of The Day of Silence, Nino’s perspective was reshaped.
Shock, disbelief, anger, and then gradual acceptance; these emotions rolled across her face.
Nino was now part of the small group of humans who knew the hidden truths of the world.