Silvachief

I always thought that she died in the end. And yes, the kikai are the spirits of the 41 children who died on the accident, and all mutants are "real" [they're not illusions] The rest is very well explained. Ruaha for me should have a better closure in her story, but I feel that she followed Kerkan just for the sake of [sex] betraying her usual functioning as a programmed robot. There's a series of short stories related to Sekien no Inganock that are translated on Ixrec's blog that might have more information about Ati. I haven't read them myself. I could be wrong here, but I was under the impression that everything in the city that was changed by Grimm Grimm was "real" only as long as people didn't realize that they were illusions (I mean, as soon as Gii realized that everything reverted, including the creatures). Maybe illusion is the wrong word for it. I found Sekien to have some fantastic world-building and an interesting setting but a lot of the events and character motivations aren't explained well. Part of Ruaha's story was to show that she was starting to take back her humanity, allowing her to do what she truly wanted to do rather than following a her programming like a robot, but in the end I felt like neither she nor Kerkan contributed much to the plot.

I'll post my own small history of what I believe happened. Hopefully it answers some of your questions but if not feel free to ask some more. Timeline Inganock is a city which was made to be self-sufficient. This was made possible by the intellect of Grand Prince Astrea. Inganock is a city of many layers, with living conditions deteriorating as you descend. On the highest “Lower Tier” a hospital is built for the lower tier residents. Gii works there. One day (ten years ago) there is an accident in which a staircase leading to the upper tiers collapses, killing 41 expectant mothers among others. The hospitals had prepared 41 toys for these children to receive. One such mother already has two children, Kerkan the older brother and Kia the younger sister. Their new child, a boy, is to be named Lemure. Kia is injured in the accident and Gii desperately attempts to save her. It is suggested that he fails in his task. Also killed in the accident is the estranged daughter of Grand Prince Astrea. The prince attempts to find a way to bring her back to life (or some similar effect) and begins working on the Phenomenon Equation Experiment. In doing so he creates The Original Being, Grimm Grimm. Grimm Grimm is able to grant wishes via the use of illusion. Whatever Astrea’s wish is, it causes Inganock to be locked away from the rest of the world. Its citizens begin to mutate into a variety of different forms. At the same time, presumably because of their relation to his daughter, the 41 children killed in the accident become Kikai, beings of great power that attach themselves to individuals that use the Phenomenon Equation or those that use the drug amnerol(?). The toys that were to be given to the children turn into Creatures, beings of great power that attempt to kill any people they come across. The Phenomenon Equation itself is also produced, allowing those that master it to overcome the laws of physics and the universe itself, but only in specialized ways (ie. one can specialize in healing or destruction, not both). Gii becomes a Cracking Doctor, a doctor that heals by using the Phenomenon Equation. The entire city forgets about the accident. Amnerol is a drug that has multiple adverse effects on the human body. It also attracts Kikai (that are different from the 41 children?). Grand Prince Astrea attempts to use the drug in new experiments to find someone who can overcome Grimm Grimm and reverse his mistakes (maybe, not clear on his motivation). Kerkan hates the world for some reason that isn’t explored well. Ruaha is a human-cum-automaton that consistently wonders why she wants to follow Kerkan rather than the people she actually likes. I wonder that too. When Gii defeats Grimm Grimm (by uncovering the existence of his illusory power (and what a shit way to defeat him, huh?)) the illusory world is shattered. While the various mysterious changes brought about by Grand Prince Astrea have disappeared, their effects remain all too real. The illusions included people who should have died during the experiment, such as Grand Prince Astrea himself. ______________ So to answer your questions directly: 1. Yes, to both. It is the real Kia that is brought back to life by Grimm Grimm's illusion. Because the effects of the illusions are permanent even once the illusion has been broken, Kia survives after Grimm Grimm is "defeated". 2. Hopefully that's answered above. 3. Kerkan is explained, Ruaha is a random character that never does much at all. 4. That's to do with Grimm Grimm's illusion. It may be that his power is one that corrupts wishes, resulting in negative side-effects. It is literal. 5. It's not backed up very well in the context of the story, but Gii's Kikai Porshion has the ability to reverse the effects of Grimm Grimm's illusion, effectively returning Ati to the state she was in ten years ago. She probably died as the city was collapsing because she no longer had any powers (not said anywhere, just my own thoughts) and Gii effectively abandoned her.