Nitoh's claims remind Oriko of her own scramble for language to ground Haruto, like trying to slap a bandage over a leaking dam. Even though it will do little good for his suspicion, she avoids directly addressing his question. Magicians become magicians when they overcome despair, Haruto had told her - and Nitoh knows as well as she does what the alternative is.

"Seeing himself fail to overcome this despair would be the ultimate cruelty for Mr. Souma. I only know that in the event it couldn't be subdued -" it can't - "that he would not want that."