When Ein awoke, he was lying on a soft bed. He had fought the Great Sage, exhausted all of his power, and been thoroughly crushed despite his efforts. Even so, he was entirely unhurt. Though he didn’t understand why, he didn’t have the energy to cause a fuss. He had perfectly understood just how outmatched he had been.
It was quiet. The room had a calm, peaceful atmosphere, which was utterly smashed by someone slamming open the door.
“Hey! You awake?” A woman strode shamelessly into the room.
“You are?”
“Rio.”
“Where—”
“Mitsuki’s house.”
Ein looked around, starting to panic.
“Don’t worry, he’s not here right now,” Rio explained. “You had quite a rough time, didn’t you?”
“Why am I here?” Ein asked.
“Alexia brought you. She said you wanted to take Ariel home with you?”
“Is she... Is she here?” Ein was almost afraid to ask. He had lost. Even so, he was alive and had been brought to the Great Sage’s abode. Things were going so well for him, he had a hard time believing it was real.
“Sure. I was told to let you meet her. So? Think you can manage?”
“Y-Yeah...” He didn’t seem to be injured in any way. He wasn’t even tired. But still, he hesitated. He recalled the Ariel from before the world reset all too well.
“Okay, I’ll take you to her.” Rio stepped out of the room.
Steeling himself, Ein got out of bed and followed her. Things hadn’t gone the way he had planned, but in the end he was still getting to see Ariel. There was no point in being scared of moving forward now.
Stepping out of the room, he found himself in a resplendent garden. Rather than being dominated by a huge mansion, it was dotted with small buildings here and there. They each seemed to be homes for individuals, similar to the one Ein had just emerged from.
Rio wasted no time in getting moving, so Ein had to hurry to follow her. After walking for a time, they stopped in front of a particular house.
“Ariel, you in there?” Rio knocked on the door.
“I’m here!” a nostalgic, unforgettable voice answered from inside.
“Are you free? Your brother wants to see you.”
The door opened, revealing Ariel on the other side.
“Ariel...are you okay?” Ein asked.
“Uh, why wouldn’t I be?” she replied, a bit confused.
“Do you know who I am?”
“You’re my brother, Ein, right? So, why are you here?”
“Let’s go home!”
“Huh? I’d rather not,” she replied with obvious disdain.
“But...you’re only here because they kidnapped you!”
“That’s true, but I chose to stay here of my own accord. I can leave any time I want to.”
“Then why?! What are you still doing here?!”
“Lord Mitsuki is here,” she answered. “Why would I ever leave?”
“Okay, I understand!” Ein said. “He’s put some kind of magic on you! Don’t worry, I’ll find a way to fix this!” He took Ariel’s hand.
“Stop! Let go of me!”
“We’re going home!”
“Oh, by the way,” Rio interrupted their argument, “you can’t force her to leave or anything. You wouldn’t even know how to get out of here, would you?”
As she said, he had no idea how he was going to get out of this place.
“I said let go!” Ariel shook off her brother’s grip. He had been holding back so as not to hurt her, but even so, he was still a Hero. He could hardly believe she had the strength to resist him. An awful memory surfaced in his mind, of the time before the reset. Memories of the kind of fits Ariel would throw after she had been sent home.
“Umm...I’m not going to get involved, so you two settle this,” Rio said before stepping away.
“Just leave! I belong to Lord Mitsuki now! I’m happy here!” Ariel glared at him like he was a sworn enemy.
“Damn...it’s the same as before!”
Nothing he could say would change her mind. He hadn’t thought things through well enough. He had been optimistic that as long as he could find her, things would work out, but clearly, that wasn’t going to happen.
“If you don’t leave...I’ll kill you!”
Ein started to panic at the open hostility coming from his sister. He had no idea what he was supposed to do. But just as he was about to accept that everything was going to be the same, that things would end exactly as they had before the reset, his sister collapsed.
“Ariel!” Ein dashed forward and lifted her up in his arms. She had just passed out. “What is happening?”
“I’m just cleaning up.”
Turning at the new voice, Ein saw the Great Sage’s secretary, Alexia, standing behind him.
“I have erased all memories of Lord Mitsuki from her mind. You should have no issue bringing her home now.”
“But...why?” Ein asked. “Isn’t that against what the Great Sage wants?”
“He no longer has any such will.”
“So...you’re helping me?” It was all still too hard to believe. The Great Sage’s closest ally coming to save him was too convenient to be true.
“I am not here for your sake,” Alexia replied. “I just wish to be the only one remaining who knows of Lord Mitsuki. Driving you out of this place is not for your sake either. You will only be in my way here.”
As she finished speaking, the scenery around Ein changed dramatically. He was suddenly standing in his old home, in the forest outside the city.
“What’s that supposed to mean? I thought you weren’t helping us...”
Despite her words, Ein felt like he had been rescued. Gently he laid his sister down on a bed that hadn’t been touched in ages. He had no idea what she would be like when she woke up, but he could only hope things would go better than they had last time.