Katie Aalto: Well, since we’re already squirming, I might as well ask… Do you love Oliver?
Nanao Hibiya: I’ve been pondering exactly that all this while. I feel an urge to hear his voice. To be by his side. To touch and hold him. I have no doubts about any of that. Which is why I’ve stuck to him like a burr since we met. ... At the same time, I have a doubt—and a fundamental one. If you truly love someone, can that emotion coexist with an urge to see them dead?
Katie: Dead? You want— Wh-what does that mean…?
Nanao: What I desire most from Oliver is a duel to the death. Since the first time we crossed blades in class, until this very moment—that desire alone has never once wavered. ... I had hoped that this urge would fade as I spent time with you all. Alas, that was optimistic. The greater my affection for Oliver grows, the more I get to know him, the stronger my desire to cross blades with him. ... ’Tis like a fever taken hold. My body quivers with an insatiable hunger. ... Each time I query what lies within, the answer comes back like the toll of a bell. I wish nothing more than to sink my blade into his body—or feel his blade sink into mine. I replay our brief exchange of blows with the passion of madness. If I could see what lies beyond that exchange, what greater joy would there be…? ... What do you make of it, Katie? Hearing this—would you still say I ‘love’ Oliver?
Nanao Hibiya: I’ve been pondering exactly that all this while. I feel an urge to hear his voice. To be by his side. To touch and hold him. I have no doubts about any of that. Which is why I’ve stuck to him like a burr since we met. ... At the same time, I have a doubt—and a fundamental one. If you truly love someone, can that emotion coexist with an urge to see them dead?
Katie: Dead? You want— Wh-what does that mean…?
Nanao: What I desire most from Oliver is a duel to the death. Since the first time we crossed blades in class, until this very moment—that desire alone has never once wavered. ... I had hoped that this urge would fade as I spent time with you all. Alas, that was optimistic. The greater my affection for Oliver grows, the more I get to know him, the stronger my desire to cross blades with him. ... ’Tis like a fever taken hold. My body quivers with an insatiable hunger. ... Each time I query what lies within, the answer comes back like the toll of a bell. I wish nothing more than to sink my blade into his body—or feel his blade sink into mine. I replay our brief exchange of blows with the passion of madness. If I could see what lies beyond that exchange, what greater joy would there be…? ... What do you make of it, Katie? Hearing this—would you still say I ‘love’ Oliver?
— Reign of the Seven Spellblades volume 4
