Part 200: The Final Crusade begins

"Kurisu collapsed in a puddle of blood, observed by Okabe Rintarou. That past has been decided. But conversely, that means that's all that has been decided.
Deceive the first you.
Deceive the world."



"I pray for your success, you insane mad scientist.
El
Psy
Congroo."



Mayuri and Daru are dumbfounded - or rather, bewildered without understanding anything - and the atmosphere passes through my back.

I.

"Fu... huhuhu..."

I wonder why. I start laughing spontaneously. Until now, I was cursing my own thoughtlessness for having killed Kurisu myself. I was in despair over everything. And now I'm laughing.

"Heheheh, hehhehheh..."

Operation Skuld, was it?

"El Psy Congroo," was it?

"What stupid things am I saying, even at the age of 33...? Deceive the self, huh. Deceive the world, huh. That's such pretentious hipster bullshit...!"

It really is pitiful. I can't bear to watch. But, that way of thinking... I don't hate it.



"I am the insane mad scientist, Hououin Kyouma! Deceiving the world is no trouble at all! Changing the world is something I myself must do, after all! Fuhahahaha!"

"Wah, he's been serious these past few days, and yet Okarin's back to his normal self again."

"But you know, Mayushii likes this Okarin better♪"

"Well, that's true. If Okarin’s not a weirdo, it throws me off."

"Hououin Kyouma saved Mayushii in the past, too. So I know that this time, he's sure to save Makise Kurisu, too."

"But what exactly did that movie mail mean in the end? 'Deceive the world' is too ambiguous a trap."

"Well that's, umm, well, Mayushii doesn’t have a clue, either..."

"Heheheh, you two, you can't even understand that?"



"All I saw was Kurisu collapsed in a puddle of blood. Whether Kurisu was alive or dead was not part of my observation."

Is that right, me 15 years from now?

"???"

Mayuri tilts her head to the explanation.

"So basically, just think of the scene that time like this."



"Ehhh, is that how it happened?"

Mayuri stares in admiration. I give up.

"Wait, wait, hold it. The news reports on Makise Kurisus inciden't were fairly clear."

"'Now' doesn't matter. The problem is what uncle Okarin saw on that day, July 28th."

"Oh, really?"

Yeah, really. And that's because the me standing here right now didn't just live in the β World Line from July 28th to today. It's the me who traveled to the α World Line and back. The result that happened in the β World Line during that time doesn’t matter.

"So what I'm going to do is reproduce just the scene I saw on that day, in a way that Kurisu doesn't die."

"...And also, you should consign the Nakabachi Thesis to oblivion. Can you do it?"

"Just who do you think you're talking to, Working Warrior?"

"...Working Warrior?"

"I'll say it once more. I myself am the insane mad scientist, Hououin Kyouma!"

Without minding my comrades blank stares, I comb my hair back with a flair.

"I can already see Operation Skuld inside of me, but I need to prepare. Give me 30 minutes."

Suzuha's expression tightens, and she strongly nods.









"Okariiin! I got the stuff!"

I open my eyes upon hearing Mayuri's voice.

"...Alright."



I had Mayuri fetch some things since she's faster on her feet than both Daru and me. Mayuri's breathing normally, even though she went all the way back to the lab and back in this heat. She rushes up to me with a triumphant smile. Almost like a playful puppy shaking its tail.

"Here. Is this okay?"

In her hand is a plastic stick about 30cm long. I take it and nod, satisfied.

"Good work, Mayuri."

"Ehehe. Mayushii's happy to be useful for Okarin♪ Ah, and while we're at it, take this, too."



Looks like she's telling me to eat before I go.

"What's that?"

"It's a banana."

"No, I mean that stick thing.

"This isn't a stick, but a sword."



"Cyalume Saber?"

"A red glow stick. They're essential for idol or voice actress concerts."

"But it's not just a glow stick. It's saber-shaped, just like its name implies, so you can re-enact Spark Wars."

"Waah, cool."

"Furthermore, it can also create fake blood. If you detach the cap at the tip, thick blood starts flowing out."

"I-I just don't understand what you were trying to accomplish at all..."

"You can make more realistic sword fights."

"Meaning that everything was inevitable."

"I get what you're going to do. You're going to use that fake blood as a stand in for Makise Kurisu's blood, right?"

"Indeed."

Entranced by my own genius, I stuff my cheeks with banana.



I put the Cyalume Saber in my pocket. Since it's about 30cm long, it sticks out a little, but I don't mind. I also put the stun gun Daru just bought into my pocket.

With this, all preparations are complete. I give Suzuha a glance.



"To July 28th. There's only enough fuel left in the time machine for one more round trip, meaning this is our last chance... shall we go?"

"Leave it to me. I will change the world."



By the way, about what will happen if I meet the me that already returned once - in other words, the me that stabbed Kurisu to death - I already asked Suzuha beforehand. The conclusion is that we won't meet. The world line where I already killed Kurisu is minutely different from where we're time traveling to, meaning time travel slightly changes the world line divergence ratio. Though of course, that value is still within the error range of the attractor field, so it can't make any concrete changes.

But it's not like a parallel world. In the end, attractor field convergence causes it to become the same world line. Deceiving the world and the first me by time traveling isn't meaningless.

"Okarin."

Mayuri bends herself towards the hatch and gently strokes my cheek.

"Come back, okay?"



Returning a smile, I thrust my thumb upwards. Daru and Mayuri see me off with words of encouragement as I close the hatch.

Suzuha has already started to operate the time machine.

"The fate of the future also hangs on this mission."

Suzuha speaks while operating the buttons.

"We're counting on you, uncle."



Strangely, my heart is very calm. No haste, nor tension. None of the anxiety from the first leap.

How many times have I failed so far? Feeding my ego, I've sacrificed many memories, and hurt many people, though I did undo each of those failures. They are firmly engraved into my memories.



"You mustn't undo them."

Everything has a meaning. Not a single thing was meaningless. I'm no longer afraid. I can't be afraid. To repay all of those memories I sacrificed. I'm self-confident to be standing here at this moment.

I will surely reach my goal. The unknown world line, Steins Gate. The future is unknown, but that's how it should be, so there's no point in thinking about the future now. There's no point in wavering, either. There's just one thing I should focus on.

Saving Kurisu.



Rainbow sparkles start drifting around my field of vision.

Let's begin.

This is the final crusade.

(Anime episode 23 clear.)