Chapter 125 : Atonement (3)

Pwooooo―

“Divine Maiden!! Harder!! More intensely!! Yes!! Ah!! Yes―!!”

A musical screaming next to the Divine Maiden who was blowing the saxophone indifferently without any tune.

Squish squish

“Divine Maiden!! Your hand movement is… skilled? Ah! Th-there!! Yes! Good!!”

An artist bursting into cheers next to the Divine Maiden who was smearing any color messily on the canvas.

Bounce bounce

“Haaaang!! Your posture collapsed!! Your bu-butt!! Your legs!! Ah!! Is this a beginner?!”

A fitness girl rejoicing at the Divine Maiden’s messy squats as she carelessly lifted a barbell and stood up.

Chatter chatter

Hundreds of all kinds of magical girls were continuing their intense reactions while watching the Divine Maiden’s clumsy and erotic movements, who had never experienced any cultural activities. After going through all sorts of hobbies like that, they finally reached games.

“…”

The Divine Maiden who suddenly stopped her actions while playing a game for a while.

“U-um? Why? It was g-good, why did you stop?”

The gaming magical girl who had been unable to hide her excitement while watching the Divine Maiden’s clumsy hand movements felt somehow anxious. The more she remained silent with the pause button pressed on the portable game console she had lent, the greater the gaming magical girl’s anxiety grew.

‘Don’t tell me she doesn’t like games…?’

For the newbie who had been participating actively, albeit expressionlessly, in art, music, and exercise to stop at games.

‘I was wrong to choose such a difficult game…!’

A huge mistake.

If this becomes known in magical girl society, she will be criticized on numerous gaming community sites for not choosing an appropriate game for a newbie and killing her interest.

“Hahaha! It, it wasn’t fun? I’m sorry!”

“…”

The magical girl who had brought the game console hurriedly tried to suggest playing a different game. But the silver-haired girl who was staring intently at the game console screen just spoke bluntly.

“Swordsmanship.”

“Huh?”

“I want to proceed with this boss using only swordsmanship. Is there no way?”

A boss that would normally be defeated with long-range magic obtained early on.

She was trying to challenge that boss with a physical concept play.

“Aaaaaaah!!!”

In the end, even the gaming magical girl let out an intense moan and collapsed.

Amidst the magical girls who kept recommending the next hobby with exaggerated reactions, the Divine Maiden just sighed.

“Whew.”

Inwardly, the Divine Maiden thought it was fun to try various things.

But the Divine Maiden had no idea why the Successor was making her do various activities like this. She was just trying things according to orders for now, but even the order itself was extremely vague.

-Until you find something you like.

What does it mean to like something, and when exactly is it supposed to be found?

It would be clearer to give a time limit like until all the trial demons are defeated.

“…”

With a vague feeling, the Divine Maiden slowly examined the faces of the girls chattering beside her.

Joy, excitement, cheers.

The girls’ faces were shining with their own colors as they discussed what to make the Divine Maiden do next.

“Now that we’ve tried everything, shall we make something delicious?”

“Oh! Good! I’ll teach you authentic French home cooking!”

“Huh? What are you talking about! When it comes to cooking, it’s definitely Italian!”

Different values, fates, and dreams.

In the girls’ hearts, starlight of different colors, big and small, was twinkling.

The brilliant sparkle stretching out towards the future resembled the dream form that the goddess of [Beginning] had shown at the beginning, but the difference was that it branched out in even more directions and moved towards different paths in a changed world after a long time.

“…”

Countless dreams that had bubbled up after endlessly colliding and changing among humans were twinkling in the girls’ eyes.

Future.

They were living in expectation of tomorrow.

Why?

Why does the concept of ‘dreams’ that the Successor had spread have such diverse colors?

Though the Successor was still smaller than the goddess of [Beginning] at her most brilliant period, the nature of the power she possessed wasn’t much different. Rather, her struggle to take responsibility for all the trial demons had an overprotective aspect compared to the goddess of [Beginning].

‘What is the difference between [Beginning] and [Hope]?’

The Divine Maiden had been analyzing various aspects of the goddess of [Beginning] that she had taken for granted at some point, but she still hadn’t realized it herself.

‘The difference between the goddess and the Successor.’

The goddess of [Beginning] was complete in herself, but couldn’t think about tomorrow.

The Successor was incomplete in herself, but was moving while thinking about tomorrow.

Because of that one difference, the form of dreams that magical girls had became incomparably more diverse and contained many more colors. They were sparkling even more as they encountered various emotions and thoughts in a world the Divine Maiden couldn’t even imagine.

Those dreams were so brilliant that she unknowingly came to like them.

Tomorrow.

What is tomorrow for humans?

“Divine Maiden!”

“Hm?”

“Now let’s make food together!”

“Let’s try everything we can do today!”

“…Alright.”

“Yay!”

Magical girls pulling the Divine Maiden, who had been lost in thought with her arms folded, leading her out for the next cultural experience. Though she had been dragged around since morning when the sun started to rise, the things she had enjoyed until now, with the sun high in the sky, could still be counted on two fingers.

‘Were dreams of hoping for tomorrow this diverse?’

Things to enjoy that don’t end even if you do them all day.

Foods that don’t end even if you eat them all day.

The stories contained in them.

Tens of thousands of dreams that didn’t exist in the primordial era or Elysion that were thought to be complete.

Countless cultures that numerous people existing on this star liked and created.

The distant history of countless people who lived crying and laughing while enjoying these cultures.

All of these were contained in that single word ‘humanity’.

‘Ah.’

Destruction.

It wasn’t just a concept that existed in text.

All the precious things that had continued endlessly from the first era and finally came down to those living ‘now’ disappear. All the worlds that these people who shine so diversely and wait for ‘tomorrow’ live in and cherish disappear.

Nothingness.

It wasn’t something that could be made up for later, but meant a more fundamental deprivation.

To disappear from this world. To die in this world.

It was such a futile thing.

“I see.”

Avoiding the curse of the three goddesses, confirming that the Successor rises with the power of [Resurrection].

Handing over what I had if the Successor from another universe had the will to save humanity.

Except for those things, I had ignored everything else.

“So that’s why they were angry.”

A girl with a red ribbon.

A giant boar running.

The third trial.

The day the Divine Maiden ran away pretending not to see people.

“So that’s why the Successor was angry too.”

For the first time, the Divine Maiden felt something about what she had done.

* * *

“I’m back.”

“You look terrible.”

“It was unavoidable if I wanted to try everything once.”

“You did well.”

In the completely darkened night.

The Divine Maiden who came back to me had all sorts of sauces and crumbs on her mouth, and her sophisticated fashion had become wrinkled and dirty while enjoying all kinds of cultural activities.

The appearance of the girl who had left in front of the lighthouse in the morning now evoked a protective instinct in a different sense.

“Did you find anything new?”

“First.”

The Divine Maiden shook her disheveled hair and tidied her clothes. But they were so dirty and wrinkled that they didn’t really become neat.

“I’m sorry.”

“What?”

“I fundamentally lacked understanding of humanity.”

Still expressionless but.

Somehow seeming embarrassed, somehow seeming regretful.

“Humanity was a broader, more numerous, and more diverse concept than I thought.”

“And?”

“It wasn’t a concept that could be restored just by keeping them in Elysion.”

“I see.”

“If I had thought more myself, I could have proceeded with the goddess of [Beginning]’s intentions in a different way. But I didn’t think. So I ignored them.”

The Divine Maiden sincerely said once again.

“I’m sorry. My thinking was insufficient.”

“…”

I felt indescribable joy at that answer and said. The person who should receive this apology is not me.

“What do you think about that, Yuki?”

“…Yeah.”

A girl with a red ribbon carefully coming out from behind a tree.

The Divine Maiden and Yuki.

They finally faced each other, discarding certain thoughts they had in the previous world.

“I’m sorry.”

“Yeah.”

“From now on, I’ll keep thinking. About the things I need to protect.”

“Yeah, I will too.”

“I can’t make up for it, but I won’t do it again from now on.”

“Yeah, I’ll keep carrying it too.”

“Can you help me?”

“Yeah, I’ll help you.”

Handshake

The girl who had abandoned people and ran away.

The girl who had abandoned the past and ran away.

Shook hands in reconciliation to move forward.

Sharing a resolution that only they could make.

Swoosh―Bang!!

Fireworks were launched from Elysion’s square where the evening banquet was still continuing, desperately searching for the birthday girl.

“Divine Maiden!! Where are you!! Let’s make Japanese food together too!!”

“Let’s eat cake together!!”

I could hear those voices.

“Then, shall we go back now?”

“Thank you, Successor.”

“It’s nothing. You always work hard.”

I gave one more gift to the Divine Maiden.

“Happy birthday. Hecate.”

“…Thank you.”