One morning, Gash Bell wakes up to find he has become a girl. He runs around screaming. But it's not just him. Kiyomaro is also a girl, Tio and Umagon have become boys, and Folgore has transformed into a woman of breathtaking beauty.
Due to the battle to decide the king of the demon world, an ancient curse has been triggered. To break the curse, they must find the 'Heart of Truth' within one week. But what is the 'Heart of Truth'? Nobody knows.
Panic erupts. Yet Gash, who can't ignore people i
Zatch Bell!! ~The Cursed Great Reversal!?~ - Awakening Kiss! The Italian Decoy Operation for a Great Reversal
It was an hour when even the morning sun still seemed to be asleep.
The Takamine family's living room, thick with the cold night air, lay hushed in silence.
Gash had not slept a wink.
From the moment Kiyomaro collapsed, they had kept their eyes fixed on those tightly closed eyelids. Their slightly overgrown blond hair was disheveled, and their large brown eyes were red and bloodshot from crying too much.
"Meru…"
Rubbing their fluffy, platinum-white fur against Gash's leg, Umagon whimpered with worry. The ribbon on their head trembled faintly.
"Umagon… Kiyomaro still won't wake up…"
Gash's voice was parched and dry, like sand soaked in tears.
Just then.
Kiyomaro's pale fingertips twitched, ever so slightly.
"…!"
Gash held their breath. Before their wide eyes, long eyelashes fluttered, and those narrow, sharp eyes slowly opened. They weren't the cynical, genius eyes Gash knew. A softer, more maidenly light, brimming with curiosity, resided there.
"…Were you the one watching over me all this time?"
A sweet, melting voice. Resting their head—black hair tied in twintails—against the pillow, Kiyomaro smiled at Gash. It was the smile of a girl who had fallen in love for the very first time.
"K-Kiyomaro! You're awake! I'm so glad!"
Overjoyed, Gash leaped forward to embrace Kiyomaro.
But.
"Ah… I think I'm in love with you."
At Kiyomaro's words, Gash's movement stopped dead.
"My heart is pounding so fast. Hey, won't you tell me your name?"
It was an unbelievably cruel reunion.
They didn't remember Gash's name. The battles they'd fought together, the days they'd laughed together—all of it, gone.
"No… that's not right…"
Gash crumpled to the floor.
"Kiyomaro doesn't talk like some girly girl! They're my partner, they call me 'Gash,' and they're always getting mad and saying 'Unbelievable'!"
Tears spilled over, unstoppable.
"It's like they're not even Kiyomaro anymore… The Kiyomaro I know is nowhere to be found…!"
Despair shook their small shoulders.
"Meru…"
Umagon gently licked Gash's tears away.
"…What should I do?"
Gash's voice reached no one.
That was when it happened.
"It seems the day has finally come when my beauty can be of use to someone."
A dignified voice rang out through the despair-filled room.
Brushing back waist-length, wavy platinum blonde hair, deep, clear sapphire blue eyes looked straight down at the sobbing Gash. A peerless beauty, Folgore. She tucked the hand mirror she'd been holding into her pocket and laughed proudly.
"Folgore…?"
"My beautiful self is a prime target for the demons. While I act as a decoy and draw the enemy's attention, you two protect Gash and Kiyomaro."
"You've finally decided to make yourself useful! But that's reckless! Drawing the enemy's attention all by yourself?!"
Her short-cropped purple hair bristling, Tio shouted. Her strong-willed amethyst eyes stared at Folgore in disbelief.
"Of course. To scatter beautifully in a crisis for one's comrades—that, too, is the romance of an Italian man!"
"You're a woman right now, dammit!"
Tio's retort didn't reach Folgore.
"The operation is called 'The Italian Decoy Strategy'! I'll start a beauty show at the fountain plaza in Mochinoki Central Park. That place draws a crowd, and the enemy will spot me easily. One hour. That should be enough time, right?"
"But, Folgore… you intend to fight alone?!"
"Gash."
Folgore knelt before Gash.
"The tears you shed for Kiyomaro. I believe those very tears are the true 'Heart of Truth.' Let's show them our Italian spirit."
At those words, Gash gasped. This man—a narcissist, a joker, always staring into a mirror—was seriously trying to put his life on the line.
"Folgore… you really mean it."
"I love you, everyone! And most of all, my beautiful self! I'm off!"
Leaving a single wink behind, Folgore dashed out into the morning mist.
---
Mochinoki Central Park, the fountain plaza.
A crowd had already gathered, despite the early hour.
"Invincible Folgore! Invincible Folgore! Yay yay!"
Standing on the edge of the fountain, Folgore sang passionately. The spray of water scattered the sunlight in all directions, as if scattering diamond dust. Her waist-length platinum blonde hair swayed gracefully, and every gesture drew sighs from the onlookers.
"Who's that beauty?!"
"Amazing… is this a movie shoot?"
As the onlookers buzzed, a handsome young man pushed through the crowd and stepped forward.
He was tall, with silver hair casually swept back. His features were terrifyingly well-formed, but his eyes were those of a beast hunting its prey.
"Hmph… How dare you put on such a monkey show before my beauty."
The enemy demon, Patie. The curse had transformed them into the form of a beautiful young man, but their personality had only grown more ferocious. Beside them, their partner, Urara, wore an eerie smile.
"Oh my, aren't you quite beautiful yourself? But you're no match for me, you know?"
"Silence! You think that filthy blonde hair can surpass me? I'll freeze you solid, fountain and all!"
As Patie raised a hand, the fountain's water roared violently, transforming into countless arrows of ice.
"Fine, bring it on! In the face of beauty, all violence is powerless!"
Folgore fought back. But the enemy's attacks were relentless. Bullets of ice tore through the air, shattering the fountain's edge to pieces. The screams of fleeing onlookers echoed throughout the park.
"Ngh, is this as far as I go…?!"
She fell to her knees, her platinum blonde hair plastered wetly to her skin. Even so, a smile remained on her lips.
(This is fine. I've bought them enough time…!)
---
A short distance from the park, in the shade of a large camphor tree.
"Gash, are you okay?!"
Tio came running, out of breath, pulling the amnesiac Kiyomaro by the hand.
"It's safe here. Stay hidden."
Unable to grasp the situation, Kiyomaro just looked bewildered.
"Thank you, Tio… But what should I do? Kiyomaro doesn't remember me, and Zakeru won't come out…"
In Gash's hands, the red spellbook was silent, like any ordinary book.
"Meru!"
Suddenly, Umagon circled around behind Kiyomaro. Then, they forcefully shoved their snout into the pocket of Kiyomaro's school uniform.
"Eek! What?!"
Umagon pulled out a crumpled piece of paper, holding it in their mouth, and dropped it onto Gash's lap.
"What… is this?"
With trembling hands, Gash unfolded the paper.
Scribbled, rough handwriting.
*'Every time I see Gash's smile, the one who's always protected me, my chest tightens painfully.
I don't know this feeling. But I'm sure it must be love.
I—'*
It was a letter Kiyomaro had written and thrown away before, panicking after realizing their own feelings of love.
Kiyomaro's true heart.
"U… Uwaaaaaahhh!!"
Clutching the letter to their chest, Gash cried out at the top of their lungs.
"Kiyomaro… Kiyomaro felt this way about me…! Me too! I can't go on without Kiyomaro either! They're my most important partner—!!"
Gash, who was cosmically dense when it came to romantic feelings, had finally become aware of their feelings for Kiyomaro. It was a desperate love, far surpassing the word "partner."
"Gash…"
Hearing that cry, Tio understood everything.
To Gash, Kiyomaro was an irreplaceable person. Those tears were proof of a genuine love for Kiyomaro.
There had never been any room for her to slip in from the start.
"…I finally understand your true feelings."
Tio gritted her back teeth hard, and locked her own feelings of love deep, deep inside her heart. And in their place, a fierce determination to protect the two of them filled her amethyst eyes.
"Let's go, Gash! We're going to save Folgore! I'll protect you both!"
At that moment.
In Gash's hands, the red spellbook blazed back to life with a brilliant light.
The "Heart of Truth" poured into Kiyomaro's letter, and Gash's tears answering it, had wrought a miracle.
"The light…!"
"This is your bond! Now, stand up!"
"…Yeah!"
Still crying, Gash rose powerfully to their feet.
"I'm definitely going to get Kiyomaro back to normal! I'll never give up—!!"
As if in answer to that cry, a dazzling light burst forth from the spellbook.
"Saifogeo!"
As Tio shouted, a powerful defensive shield unfolded, enveloping Gash and the amnesiac Kiyomaro.
"You fight, Gash! Leave the defense to me!"
"Thank you, Tio! Let's go!"
Particles of light carrying the three of them flew in a straight line toward the fountain plaza.
Above the desperate, cornered Folgore, a rainbow-colored flash rained down.
"Sorry to keep you waiting, Folgore! The miracle of love is right here!"
"You're late! Honestly, making a beautiful girl wait—what sinful children you are!"
Though covered in wounds, Folgore elegantly brushed back her hair.
Gash ran through the roaring sound and flashing light. In their heart, Kiyomaro's letter and their own feelings overflowed.
The battle had now begun.
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