"When oh, when oh, shall we meet again?"
"At dusk, beneath the Obon light!"
"Pinky swear, pinky swear, never tell a lie!"
"Break the vow, and you'll shatter to pieces!"
"Pass through, pass through, the path to the gods."
"Offer ■■■■..."
Almost the instant the girl's playful yet slightly unhinged voice faded—
A distant, flickering children's rhyme, sometimes clear, sometimes muffled, echoed simultaneously in Fujimiya Makoto and Nelliel's ears.
As the lighthearted, childish tune played, their surroundings rapidly transformed.
The barren wasteland morphed into an ancient colosseum, large enough to hold hundreds, surrounded by towering, staircase-like walls adorned with extravagant gold accents.
Fujimiya and Nelliel stood at the center.
Above their heads, a number [3] appeared.
The spectators around them were like unactivated puppets—their eyes vacant, frozen mid-cheer, as if time had stopped just as they were shouting something.
Seeing this, Nelliel's usually indifferent expression finally showed a trace of wariness, her gaze nervously scanning the crowd.
Even if she was ignorant of many things, she had heard that Soul Society had noble families whose power rivaled that of Vasto Lordes.
Was this Shinigami's ability to summon allies?
But when she turned to Fujimiya, she found him equally frozen in place, standing motionless in an eerie stillness.
Not only that—
His severely injured arm had completely healed.
What an absurd ability.
—I must break this Shikai immediately.
With that thought, Nelliel's expression turned cold. She raised her lance and thrust straight at Fujimiya's arm.
"Sshhk!"
The pure-white bone lance pierced the air, instantly severing Fujimiya's left arm.
The dismembered limb tumbled through the air before hitting the ground with a dull thud.
Nelliel's hooves clattered sharply as she turned like a true knight, her upper body still poised in the thrusting stance, her gaze locking onto the Shinigami behind her.
Yet when she turned, the scenery remained unchanged.
Her brows furrowed.
Instead, the same girlish voice from before echoed in her mind.
[Role: Centaur ♡ Love Gladiator]
[Rule Violation: First Offense]
The moment the voice spoke, Nelliel noticed the number above her head drop from [3] to [2].
At the same time, her spiritual pressure began draining at an unnatural rate—as if she had been locked in fierce combat with an opponent of equal strength. Her body even started to weaken.
Nelliel's eyes sharpened.
Something's wrong.
This world… is far too abnormal.
Is this a rule-based ability?
It can even steal spiritual pressure outright?!
In that moment, she failed to notice—
The heart-shaped pattern in her pupils had gained a second, concentric layer.
"…No need to rush."
"My 'script' hasn't even begun yet."
Just as Nelliel tensed, Fujimiya's voice whispered eerily behind her.
The Antelope Knight turned, her pupils constricting.
Fujimiya's severed arm was regenerating at a speed comparable to a Hollow's High-Speed Regeneration—bones weaving, flesh stitching, skin forming—until it was completely restored.
Not only that, the number above his head had risen from [3] to [4], and his spiritual pressure had surged beyond its original level.
Had Nelliel been able to measure spiritual pressure precisely, she would have realized—the amount Fujimiya gained was exactly equal to what she had lost.
Fujimiya lowered his eyelids slightly, then raised his right hand. An ordinary Asauchi materialized in his grip, its scabbard adorned with two pink-and-white tabi socks—a decorative preference entirely belonging to his annoying sword, with no relation to Fujimiya himself.
He turned to face Nelliel fully.
His gaze was complicated.
In that brief moment, information about this partial Shikai's abilities had flooded his mind.
Unbelievable.
That Soul Society could have such a bizarre, absurd power…
This time, even the simple-minded Antelope Knight sensed something amiss and cautiously refrained from attacking.
Seeing this, Fujimiya could only chuckle dryly before explaining:
"This place… is a 'Playlife Script'—a forced roleplay scenario woven from my 'self.'"
"In this script, both of us must abide by 'rules' as we compete to steal each other's spiritual pressure… until one side's points are depleted."
"Until then—or until the 'pact' is fulfilled—"
"Neither of us can die."
"Here, the [Rules] are absolute."
As he spoke, Fujimiya's heart-filled eyes slowly lifted to meet Nelliel's.
The Antelope Knight's entire body instinctively stiffened.
Her expression turned grave.
A script based on this Shinigami's 'self'?
Though she had heard countless tales of the Shinigamis' varied Zanpakutō and their reality-warping abilities during her time in Hueco Mundo, experiencing something this bizarre firsthand was a first for Nelliel.
Her gaze bore into the man before her, her thoughts heavy.
Then… what kind of 'self' does this Shinigami have?
If it's a colosseum, is this a battle of wills in an unkillable state?
Or will some terrifying beast be released from the cages outside?
Or—worst of all—will the entire crowd turn on me at once?
It seems another bloodbath is inevitable.
The thought of such a gruesome scene made Nelliel frown in discomfort, her mind racing through countermeasures.
Most importantly… what exactly are these 'rules' the Shinigami keeps emphasizing?
If violating them can steal my spiritual pressure, they must be incredibly strict.
Just as Nelliel braced herself—
Fujimiya let out a long sigh.
As much as he hated to admit it, this 'script' was indeed the purest reflection of the 'beast' within his heart.
Once all the rules were laid out—
Fujimiya's eyes snapped open.
His voice, like a tidal wave, crashed through the colosseum as he roared:
"Playlife—World of Pleasure!"
The instant his voice faded—
Every single spectator in the colosseum seemed to awaken from their puppet-like state.
Their eyes, movements, voices, expressions—
Everything about them came to life.
Even Nelliel, who had long forgotten the liveliness of the living world, felt as though she had been transported back to the deathmatches of millennia past—standing in the arena's center, surrounded by cheers and jeers.
But when she actually heard what the crowd was shouting—
She froze in confusion.
"Go, centaur girl!"
"Use your supa-speedy big lance to crush that little guy!"
"Yeah! After beating him, pin him down with your huge sheep butt and give him the ○○○○ of a lifetime!!"
"YEEEEES—I wanna see the big horse-drawn carriage run over the tiny bean!"
"What are you two waiting for?! Fight!"
"FIGHT (Close-up)!"
Nelliel stared blankly at the obscenities raining down from the stands.
Her gaze slowly turned to Fujimiya, as if hoping he might clarify the rules.
This… is his 'self'?
Something's wrong, right?
Something has to be wrong!
Even after centuries as a Hollow, the usually aloof Nelliel had never encountered anything like this!
What kind of mental damage does this Shinigami have?!
Wait—
Are all Shinigami like this?!
Meanwhile, Fujimiya—who had just been coolly explaining the rules—now wore an expression of deliberate ignorance, his head turned away as if he had suddenly gone deaf.
Yes. My deepest apologies.
This was one of my favorite works of art.
For it to be randomly selected as a battle script—I am truly, deeply sorry!!
Just as Fujimiya's self-loathing was about to reach critical mass—
The same cutesy voice echoed in both their ears.
[World of Pleasure: Ultra Battle ♡ Love Colosseum]
[Theme: Fight and Ultra]
[Rule: After defeating your opponent head-on, you must thoroughly defeat them in another sense!]
[Note: As this is a forced proxy script, the 'host' has no privileges.]
The moment Nelliel processed the rules—
Her face turned ashen.
Her gaze at Fujimiya was now filled with utter disbelief.
Shinigami… even prey on Hollows?!
It had been centuries since Nelliel last felt something like fear—her fluffy tail shot straight up in alarm.
Fujimiya, however, had already embraced the madness.
He raised his blade toward Nelliel, putting on his best berserker act as he roared:
"WAAAAAAGH—!"
"FIGHT!!!"
"..."
Nelliel's bone-masked face stared at him.
The sheer intensity of her gaze made Fujimiya briefly consider seppuku to end it all.
Their eyes met.
An awkward silence fell.
"..."
Then—
Nelliel turned and ran.
This bizarre colosseum rule—
Who would follow it?!