Wiping away her tears, Arisu recounted the tale. The massive black sphere into which Kayla and I plunged had crumbled and dissolved into the air as the Demon Lord was defeated.
Arisu and the others panicked—naturally, as Kayla and I hadn’t returned.
Then, the barrier was lifted. Coeurl received a transmission from Algrafth, informing them of Kayla’s and my safety. Thankfully, this stopped Arisu and the team from doing anything rash, and they decided to withdraw.
They had to withdraw, in fact, because the Flying Jellyfish created by the Demon Lord didn’t disappear immediately. From what Mr. Wan’s organization had observed, these creatures would eventually deplete their magical energy and vanish. However, there was concern that certain nations might intervene and act recklessly…
“This is going to be a headache from now on,” Mr. Wan had said with a laugh. “But from here on, it’s our job. You all should act before the rift closes.”
Before he left, Mr. Wan had handed a scroll to Shiki. It was an old-fashioned scroll, the kind you might see in a period drama, suggesting it could contain secret techniques.
“Please pass this to Keiko, my disciple,” the ninja master had said. “It’s a certificate of completion.”
“Um, for what…?”
“Now that I’ve heard your stories, I see there’s nothing more I can teach her. I’ve also included some hints about secret techniques. If she masters her true strength through actual combat, she might be able to wield them.”
Secret techniques… like something out of a martial arts manga.
Shiki, although she found the whole thing a bit funny, had accepted the scroll. It was now in the possession of Keiko, who’d reportedly cried tears of joy upon receiving it, so it must have been a good thing.
“Then Coeurl led us all to a spot near Haneda Airport, by the water,” Arisu continued.
Although their ability to fly had expired, Rushia managed to get them through with her water magic.
As if aimed precisely, they jumped through the rift… and found themselves in front of our middle school building, along with Arisu, Tamaki, Rushia, Shiki, and Coeurl.
“But Kazu-san and Kayla-chan didn’t return, and even though Coeurl said it was okay, I was so worried… really worried…”
“A lot has happened. But now, it’s okay. Everything is over.”
The Demon Lord was gone, the Ghost King was no more, and Algrafth was taking his subordinates far away.
The remaining monsters were left unchecked, so humanity in this world would continue to fight on the edge, but at least we’d averted the immediate threat of global destruction.
Depending on what we do next, our efforts might open up future prospects. No, we’ll make sure of it.
Because… I clenched my fist tightly, remembering the promise I’d made to her.
“We have to become much stronger. Much, much stronger.”
“Um, Kazu-san, what do you mean?”
“Mia and I made a promise.” I then told Arisu about our conversation.
She didn’t seem to fully grasp the complexities, but she did understand that Mia couldn’t return.
“So, Mia-chan… She gave up everything for us…”
Arisu misunderstood; Mia hadn’t become what she was solely out of self-sacrifice.
Probably about 80% of it was what Mia herself wanted. But pointing that out would probably be pointless. Arisu’s sensibility wouldn’t grasp Mia’s psychology.
This girl… yeah, she understands the world too much through human interactions alone. And that’s okay, I realized, giving Arisu a gentle hug. Having you by my side is what got me here.
Without Arisu, I probably would never have thought to go to the CAC. Even if I had known of its existence, I wouldn’t have imagined helping a stranger.
If it weren’t for the sake of saving Arisu, I wouldn’t have gone to such lengths at that time… In that case, could we have successfully saved the world like we have just now, here in a safe place?
Most likely, it would have been impossible.
It was by acting on Arisu’s wish, for her, that the current me, the current us existed.
“Arisu. You probably did more than anyone to help save this world,” I whispered. She looked puzzled, but she didn’t need to understand.
I silenced Arisu’s lips with my own.
✦ ✦ ✦
Tamaki, Rushia, and Shiki soon arrived through the teleportation gate, so we ended up retelling the same story over a late dinner. Tamaki started bawling when we got to the part about Mia. Kayla patted her on the head, saying, “Good girl, good girl… Mama isn’t lonely. She’s always with everyone.”
“Always… together?”
“Yeah! Because we’ll meet again someday. So, Mama is really looking forward to it.”
“Oh yeah,” Tamaki murmured, then gazed up at the night sky for a while. It was a breathtaking Milky Way, a sight that seemed to fill the whole universe.
“We just need to level up, right, Kazu-san?”
“Yeah. Tomorrow, we’ll start fighting again. Are you ready?”
“Of course! I’ll work much harder than Mia-chan!”
Wiping away her tears with her sleeve, Tamaki nodded with determination.
“Anyway, the monsters still have lots more territory than we do. If anything, the real battle starts now,” Rushia said calmly, composedly… even as she stuffed her face with cake at an incredible pace, her mouth smeared with cream.
“I like the enthusiasm, but please, let’s not push our kids aside to hunt minor monsters,” said Shiki. “Even though we’ve encountered Rank 9 beings, their average level is still below 20.”
Shiki was still fully focused on the CAC group. After all, she had returned from Earth specifically for their sake. Sharing this with everyone led to tears, apologies, and gratitude—a real emotional moment.
“This’ll make sure they stay loyal to me,” she commented, but I could hear the sarcasm in her voice. After all, Shiki had always been quite the cynic.
✦ ✦ ✦
One of Leen’s hawks arrived, requesting our presence at the World Tree for reporting, exchanging opinions, and discussing future plans.
“I know you’re tired, but…”
“I get it,” I interrupted Leen’s voice through the hawk and smiled. “I have things I need to talk about, too.”
“We’ll be waiting for you,” said Leen.
Shiki and Arisu’s group said they wanted to come, too. In the end, we just decided to leave Coeurl behind on the mountain. Considering we’d encountered Doppelgängers not long ago, it seemed unwise to bring him to the World Tree just then.
“Kayla, can you stay and watch over things with Coeurl?”
“Of course! We’ll have lots of fun!” Kayla agreed energetically. With that, the rest of us stepped through the teleportation gate.
✦ ✦ ✦
Consciousness faded, and I found myself in a pitch-black space—where, again, I heard a song. I knew it as Mia’s song. This time, however, it sounded incredibly joyful. It was filled with jubilation and brimming with hope.
“Ah, Mia. You’re happy too, aren’t you? I’m glad.”
No matter how much time passes, no matter how far apart we are, no matter how much we change. You are Mia, and I am Kazu. The paths we’ve taken apart will someday converge again. After all, it’s only been six days since we started this journey. No matter how long the road ahead may be, we know the future will come sooner than we think. So…
“Wait for me. Just wait a little longer,” I implored the singing Mia. I could have sworn her song grew louder.
✦ ✦ ✦
Thus, our sixth day, balancing life and death, the two worlds, on a scale, came to an end. It was an endlessly long six days that we raced through in a moment. The most intense days of our lives had passed by. And now, a new story was beginning. The start of a journey for awakening, and for reunion.
In the end, I rejected the idea of min-maxing, of weighing competing priorities on scales. I was determined to claim everything—both worlds and Mia—within my grasp.