Chapter 18

CHAPTER THIRTEEN The three of them were back at the edge of the Interstitial Sea. By the spring of Vita-aqua, Morisaki, Shin, and Asuna faced one another. “So, Arch Angel. What do you plan to do now?” Shin asked. Morisaki quietly shook his head. “Don’t call me that anymore. I betrayed the Arch Angels. There’s no place for me on the surface anymore.” “Mr. Morisaki…does that mean…?” Asuna began, and Morisaki nodded. “I’ll stay in Agartha. I haven’t given up yet. Somewhere down here, there may be another way to bring Lisa back to life. And if so, I intend to find it.” Neither Asuna nor Shin could say anything at the firm determination in his words. No matter what price was demanded of Morisaki next time, he probably meant to pay it. —Or maybe he meant to challenge the curse and blessing that humans have been given that Shin had spoken of. “What about you, Shin?” Asuna asked. “I’ll…” Shin hesitated. “I can’t return to the village of Canaan. It would sour our relations with Amaurot.” “Then…,” Asuna started—but she broke off. The atmosphere on the surface was poison to Agarthans; she couldn’t invite Shin to come with her. He nodded. “I think I’ll go with the Arch An— With Morisaki. I don’t know if resurrecting the dead is right or not, but I may find the answer somewhere along the way.” “That’s…true.” Asuna turned to the pool of Vita-aqua. “All right—” Should she say good-bye? Take care? Farewell? Nothing seemed quite right. “Let’s see each other again.” When he heard that, Shin smiled. “Yeah. I’ll see you again, Asuna.” “Let’s go,” Morisaki said, urging Shin along. As she watched them leave, Asuna jumped into the pool of Vita-aqua— …and returned to the world of the surface. After that, half a year went by. “Asunaaa, you’re going to be late for your graduation ceremony.” “Coming!” It was her very last day at Mizonofuchi Elementary. Asuna still wasn’t quite used to her middle school blazer, which she was wearing as she ran to the front door. “Okay! I’m on my way.” “I’ll see you there.” Nodding back at her mother, Asuna started down the hilly road with its stone walls. The time since she’d returned had been rough. After all, Asuna had been in Agartha for more than a month, and naturally, she’d been reported missing. Since Morisaki had unfortunately gone missing at the same time, the rumors that he’d run off with her were inevitable in their small town. When Asuna returned home, her mother hadn’t scolded her. She only cried “Thank goodness!” and broke down in tears. Asuna had been terribly ashamed. The police had asked her about Morisaki, but she’d stubbornly insisted she didn’t know anything. Even if she’d been honest about where she’d been, they wouldn’t have believed her. Afterward, Asuna thought back over what had happened in Agartha from time to time, but—by now, she’d begun to wonder if it was all a dream. Maybe it was simply due to the passing of the days. …Or maybe it was because she’d grown. “Oh, Asuna! Good morning.” “Good morning, Yuu.” When she ran into her friend, Asuna smiled and greeted her. “We’re finally graduating, huh?” she said, just as casually as if she were talking about the weather. “Uh-huh… I’m afraid I might start crying.” “Don’t worry about it; I’m sure I’ll cry, too.” They both laughed. The sky was blue, the wind was cool, and the beautifully clear air held the scent of early spring. They were graduating from elementary school to middle school. For children on the edge of adolescence, it was a big milestone. Mizonofuchi Middle School only had three classes in each year, but there were many more teachers. Up until now, one teacher had taught all their classes, but after this, they’d have different teachers for each subject. Their schoolwork would get harder, too. It was a little bit scary, but they were also looking forward to it. As Asuna and Yuu talked animatedly about little moments and memories from their time in elementary school, they walked down a road under the drifting petals of the cherry blossoms. Asuna was a little sentimental, thinking about how this was the last time they’d take this route to school at Mizonofuchi Elementary—although they’d still walk along this road to get to the middle school, too. They walked down the familiar sloping road, through the poor excuse for a shopping street, and reached the railroad crossing. Since then, a few more trains had started running. Before, the crossing had been open most of the time, but these days, at this hour of the morning, it was fairly often closed. Mizonofuchi had been an isolated town, but that might change. If the trains became frequent enough, people would be able to use them to commute to work or school. By the time Asuna started high school, she might be able to attend one outside Mizonofuchi. The train went by, right in front of them. For no particular reason, Asuna looked in the direction it had come from and glanced up at Mount Obuchi. Come to think of it, I haven’t been to my spot in quite a while, Asuna thought. In the next moment, she gasped. Up on the outcrop, she thought she’d glimpsed a blue light. Could it be…? Maybe, just maybe…, Asuna thought. She made up her mind. When the graduation ceremony was over, for the first time in a long time, she’d go up to Mount Obuchi. Up there, just maybe, she’d find—