In the original story, when the Araragi police officer couple took Sodachi in for protection, her parents showed no signs of resistance or attempts to reclaim her.
Usually, no matter how difficult life gets, parents will do everything they can to raise their children.
However, after Sodachi's parents divorced, her mother eventually died of starvation during the early days of separation, leaving Sodachi to live completely on her own.
This made it clear—to them, Sodachi's life held no importance at all.
...
"Eriri-nee, is this going to be our new home?!"
Sodachi beamed with joy as she looked at the luxurious house before her, barely distinguishable from a high-end villa.
It was a stark contrast from the ruined place she had once called home, and it felt like stepping into a dream.
It was now the next day. After officially becoming Sodachi's sister, Eriri had taken Sodachi and Shinobu to purchase a luxury single-family house.
Although it cost a fortune, getting money in this world was a trivial matter for Eriri.
After agreeing to live with Eriri, Sodachi never once thought of returning to that violent household.
Initially, she considered going back to retrieve her clothes and school supplies, but after some persuasion from Eriri, she reluctantly gave up the idea.
After all, everything she needed—from clothing to study materials—could be bought anew. None of the things left behind in that ruined house were of any real value.
Cutting ties with the people who had only hurt her brought no sadness—only relief and gratitude for her newfound freedom.
This was the salvation she had always dreamed of.
Even if her parents didn't care whether she lived or died, Eriri still made sure to sever all contact between Sodachi and those people to prevent any future trouble.
Sodachi also abandoned her old surname. She didn't keep her father's name, nor did she follow her mother's surname as in the original story.
Her name was now Sodachi Sawamura—a member of the Sawamura family and Eriri's little sister.
Holding Sodachi's hand, Eriri chuckled, "You could say that. But this isn't our real home."
"Huh? Then where is our real home?" Sodachi asked with a curious glint in her eyes.
Eriri didn't answer right away. She let go of Sodachi's hand and gently placed her right hand on Sodachi's head.
"Well, I think it's time I told you a few things," she said softly. "Sodachi, the truth is—I'm not from this world."
"Eh?"
...
"That's amazing! So other worlds really do exist, and you two can travel between them freely? Are you goddesses or something?" Sodachi asked, full of admiration as she looked at Eriri and Shinobu.
Just moments ago, Eriri had explained the concept of alternate worlds and shared some basic information about them.
Sodachi now knew about the Saekano world and that Eriri and Shinobu weren't the only members of this peculiar family.
While that made her excited, it also made her nervous. She worried about being rejected or left out by the other members.
At first, Sodachi hadn't believed what Eriri was saying. It all seemed too far-fetched.
But when Eriri used spatial rules right in front of her to conjure an intricate, mystical "gate," her doubts vanished.
Under normal circumstances, Sodachi wouldn't have been able to see the gate, but Eriri deliberately adjusted things so she could.
At that moment, Sodachi realized—everything Eriri said was true.
Later, right before Sodachi's eyes, Eriri merged the newly conjured "gate" with the front door of the house. When she opened the door, an entirely different world appeared before them.
No matter how skeptical she had been before, witnessing such a surreal scene erased any remaining doubts Sodachi might have had.
"Kaka, casually traveling between worlds is still beyond me," Shinobu said with a hearty laugh.
Her words didn't faze Sodachi one bit. With a confident smile, she replied, "But even if you can't do it now, I know one day you definitely will!"
"To think you trust me so much... but you're not wrong. I'll definitely be able to do it in the future. I've always believed that," Shinobu said, crossing her arms with a confident expression.
"It won't just be Shinobu. Someday, you'll be able to do it too," Eriri said, gently patting Sodachi on the head.
"Me too?" Sodachi's face lit up, but then quickly fell. "But I can't do anything..."
"Don't worry. I'll help you enter the extraordinary world," Eriri said with a smile, her hand brushing softly through Sodachi's hair.
The moment she became part of the family, Sodachi was destined to transcend the limits of normalcy.
Eriri had already prepared an energy seed for her. Though her growth would be slower than the chat group members, given enough time, she too would reach that realm.
"Extraordinary? What does that mean?" Sodachi asked. As a sixth grader, she couldn't yet grasp the meaning of the word.
"It means gaining powers beyond those of normal people. Like this..."
Eriri took Sodachi's small hand, and in an instant, they were floating in outer space.
Sodachi gazed at the brilliant blue planet before her, her heart pounding with awe.
After spending more than ten minutes drifting through the stars, Eriri brought her back home in the Monogatari world.
"Alright, now it's time to go to our real home."
Once Sodachi had calmed down, Eriri mentioned they would return to the Saekano world, stirring Sodachi's emotions all over again.
Sensing her nervousness, Eriri pinched her soft cheek with a reassuring smile.
"Relax. Everyone will definitely welcome you with open arms."
Taking a deep breath, Sodachi looked up at Eriri and Shinobu and said with determination, "Okay. Eriri-nee, Shinobu-nee, let's go."
Eriri smiled and took both of their hands, leading them through the interdimensional gate back to the Saekano world.
Sodachi was welcomed warmly by Arifureta and the others. That night, Eriri and the household held a grand welcome party for her at the villa.
Having never experienced such warmth before, Sodachi was a little overwhelmed, but the group's enthusiasm made her feel truly at home.
She couldn't stop smiling the entire time. All the fears she'd had before stepping into the Saekano world had completely vanished.
...
Just like that, three days passed.
In that time, Sodachi gained a basic understanding of the Saekano world and even explored bustling Tokyo with the others.
The Saekano world's timeline was over ten years ahead of the Monogatari world, so Sodachi felt like she had leapt into the future.
On the second day after her arrival, Eriri implanted an energy seed into Sodachi, officially beginning her journey into the extraordinary.
She also healed all the scars left on Sodachi's body from years of abuse, making her skin soft and flawless—as if reborn.
Her overall appearance improved dramatically, elevating her charm by several levels.
Sodachi decided not to attend school in the Saekano world and would continue studying in the Monogatari world instead. Thanks to the interdimensional gate, it didn't matter where she went to school.
Her school was currently on summer vacation, so she had plenty of time to enjoy herself.
After settling Sodachi into her new home, Eriri and Shinobu returned to the Monogatari world.
Eriri's house was located near Namishiro Park, and after a short walk, she and Shinobu arrived at the familiar park.
The population of this small town was quite sparse—even compared to other small towns. Streets were often empty, and more remote areas sometimes looked completely deserted.
As they passed by Namishiro Park, Eriri and Shinobu spotted a familiar figure.
A girl stood in the park, wearing a black sleeveless T-shirt and a black pleated skirt. Her youthful and stylish look highlighted her graceful figure.
It was none other than Mayoi Hachikuji, now a high school student.
Just like "a few days ago," she was once again standing in front of the park map, though this time she seemed more distracted—lost in thought rather than actually studying the layout.
...
Lately, Mayoi had been feeling down. Her mother was about to remarry.
She knew this was a good thing for her mother, but with her forming a new family, Mayoi felt like she would no longer have a place in it.
Ever since Eriri and Shinobu helped her meet her mother five years ago, Mayoi had visited her once a month.
The conflicting emotions tangled inside her, making her restless.
And another source of her gloom was the fact that she hadn't seen Eriri in five years.
They had promised to meet again, but as time passed—from hopeful waiting to eventual disappointment—five years slipped by with no sign of Eriri.
Today, she had come to Namishiro Park, the place where she first met Eriri, hoping for a miracle.
But deep down, she knew it was a vain hope. After all, she'd done this countless times in the past five years.
Just as she sighed and prepared to leave, a sweet and familiar voice called out behind her.
"Hey there, little miss, are you lost?"
Mayoi froze.
An indescribable sense of familiarity surged through her. She turned quickly toward the source of the voice.
And there they were.
Eriri and Shinobu, the two people she had missed dearly, stood before her.
Even after five years, Eriri's face was still perfectly engraved in her memory.
As for Shinobu, her image had faded somewhat over the years, but the moment Mayoi saw her again, those memories returned clearly.
"Eriri-nee, is it really you?" she asked, eyes wide with disbelief.
She wondered if it was just her imagination—especially since Eriri looked exactly the same as she had five years ago.
"Of course it is. Long time no see, Mayoi-chan."
Eriri stepped forward and gently patted Mayoi's head.
Now sixteen years old, Mayoi was over 160 cm tall—a few centimeters taller than Eriri.
Even so, Eriri didn't hesitate for a second, and Mayoi didn't find the gesture awkward at all.
Snapping out of her daze, Mayoi took a step back, a blush spreading across her cheeks as she pulled her head away from Eriri's hand.
Clearly, Eriri's affectionate gesture had made her a little embarrassed.
But she quickly composed herself, her tone shifting to a mock-complaint.
"Eriri-nee, why didn't you come see me all these years? Did you forget our promise?"
"Of course I didn't forget. There were just some special reasons that caused a delay," Eriri replied with a smile. "But don't worry—that won't happen again."
"Hmph, I'll hold you to that. But for now, I want compensation for these five years of waiting!"
"Oh?" Eriri asked with interest. "And how exactly should I make it up to you?"
"Well..."
Mayoi paused and stretched out the final word, wearing a playful, mysterious smile.
She had hoped to see a flustered or surprised expression on Eriri's face, but Eriri merely kept smiling knowingly, completely unshaken.
Seeing this, Mayoi dropped the act and got to the point.
"I want you to spend the whole day with me in town today."
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