Chapter 135 : How to Overcome Greed (4)

Vrooom—!!

Where the golden chainsaw passed, numerous black fragments fell off. Fake magical girls disappearing, swept away by the golden trajectory without even leaving a scream amidst the resounding roar.

Girls holding cold darkness under the red sky.

In the orchestra of roars played by the golden girl, there was no room for the screams of ghosts wearing shadows of the past world.

Thousands of surgical tools.

Hundreds of fake magical girls.

And just one chainsaw.

Vrooom—!!

Charuruk

Charuruk

Following the movements of the magical girl of [Nursing] fluttering her white skirt, golden surgical tools swirl and rotate like a whirlpool.

Sometimes quietly. Sometimes fiercely. Sometimes warmly.

The will of the relief corps contained in surgical tools brilliantly dyed golden, like leaves falling under a fully colored ginkgo tree on an autumn day.

Even if they started with different intentions, the will of girls who wore pure white uniforms to help someone was overlaid on thousands of golden surgical tools, sweeping away the delusions of girls who only used magical girl powers to harm others.

“…”

Another familiar face flashed across Himari’s eyes.

Was it the girl whose parents did traditional crafts in Kyoto? She didn’t complain even once while dealing with a patient’s irritability at the first scene she was dispatched to.

Vrooom—!!

Another familiar girl’s face flashed by between the swinging chainsaw.

It must have been the girl who came all the way from India wanting to learn how to heal people with starlight. She was treated like a goddess in her hometown, but she said she wanted to truly face people from the lowest place.

‘Ah, they were people with such kind hearts.’

Eyes filled with killing intent

Bloodshot faces

Mouths spewing vile curses

‘In a world ruined by the goddesses’ curses and trials…’

And so once again,

Once again it flashes by.

‘…You were even deprived of the opportunity to bloom your inner nobility.’

Caught up in the gods’ curses in the destroyed world, without even a shred of the noble appearance they had shown in this world, perhaps the appearance she herself would have shown if there had been no [Beginning].

Himari, as the head of the relief corps where ordinary magical girls first knock on doors to help others, more than Hikari at the pinnacle of all magical girls or Sumire as the head of the council. She had conversed and interacted with more magical girls than any other magical girl.

Himari, who had always taken a step back at the moment the world changed.

But that one step was a step towards the scene where magical girls face people.

She could see the noble mindset and goodwill of magical girls.

Not every magical girl had such a mindset, but at least she could see the sincerity of the many girls who directly knocked on the door of the relief corps.

-Thank you for coming to such a dangerous place…

-Thank you for treating my mother!

-Am I, am I really healthy now?!

Because she had walked in a place closest to the world where ordinary people live more than anyone else in the changed world, she knew better than anyone how warm the tomorrow that the girls she was now cutting down had wanted.

-Thank you, Chief!

-Will you come to the party the original relief corps members are planning this time?

-Hehe, Chief Himari. Thank you.

Thank you.

I’m grateful.

Such small greetings.

Hope

Love

They originate from such small gratitude, and became the light to live tomorrow.

Not everyone was bright, not everyone was righteous.

But there certainly existed precious and non-negotiable values in the hearts of the girls.

Therefore, more firmly and coolly than anyone else here.

“I cannot let this world be taken away. Because I am the chief of the relief corps. Because I have seen more of the good hearts of magical girls existing in this world than anyone else.”

Vrooom—!!

“If their good hearts go against fate, I will reject even the fate set by the gods.”

The golden saw blade rotated, cutting away the delusions of the past once again.

The girl who received the opportunity to bloom nobility in the changed world. She danced like an angel, holding in her heart thousands of golden surgical tools like golden fallen leaves, and the will of girls who wanted to help others.

Because she had most clearly observed human goodwill, the girl who believed in human goodwill more than anyone fought against the curses and greed spewed out by the destroyed world with a heart harder than steel.

* * *

[Everything was taken away by adults, everything…!!]

“Is that so.”

[Kyoko, Noah, Aoi, Mizuki, Momoka, everyone…!!]

“That must have been hard.”

[Don’t act so smug!!!]

“Is that how I look?”

Ichika’s heart was just indifferent.

Although the black starlight endlessly absorbing her own starlight interfered, the attacks unleashed by the girl in front of her were merely violent and posed no threat.

‘The proper growth as a magical girl, it’s scary.’

So this is how much difference it makes.

Ichika was just listening to the complaints spewed by the girl in front of her with a calm heart like a quiet lake. Even if the memories that girl had were real, she wasn’t the real self from another world to begin with. In fact, even if the real other self came, she didn’t think she would be very shaken.

‘Because I am me.’

Because it’s oneself that defines oneself.

[Uwaaaaah!!!!]

A shouted scream

Green energy unleashed like a storm

Flash―!

But the fist that advanced drawing a single green line was futilely blocked.

The desperate strike of the girl in a green sailor uniform shouting with a terrible scream was not particularly threatening to Ichika now. She just blocked it indifferently with her outstretched palm.

Thuuung—!!

A huge green palm indifferently peeled off the killing intent contained in the other Ichika’s attack, pushing away the girl filled with resentment towards the world.

[Kugh?!]

If the fist desperately stretched out by the other Ichika was an underdeveloped dandelion, the tremendous force contained in the single strike Ichika indifferently unleashed was a fully bloomed sunflower on a hot summer day.

Their understanding of ‘freedom’ was different, and the depth of experience they had gone through was different.

A beast that had lived blindly expressing anger in killing intent could not withstand the free will that had returned as pure goodwill to protect others after numerous battles.

“…Nyorai Shincho.”

Ichika just listened to her story for a while until she tired out, as a final respect for her own shadow who might have walked the same fate. Even this, if it seemed to take too long, she planned to end it quickly and go help the leader.

[Uwaaah!! You who luckily crawled out of the warehouse!! Are you mocking me!!]

She indifferently deflected the attack of her other self who was frowning like a beast and surging with black energy right in front of her.

‘Ah, I see. So this is what I would have looked like.’

The Fujimoto warehouse that she could barely remember now.

If it hadn’t been for Hikari who took Ichika out of there, she would have become like that.

Like the magical girl of [Sword], not even knowing who to resent properly, just swinging fists while covered in the resentment of others.

Just one year.

It had only been one year since meeting Hikari, but she had changed this much.

Her life, a single flower, an old monk’s fist, an old temple, a cold orphanage, a piece of bread, a shabby apartment, crowded girls, a housewarming party, Tokyo’s night view, fights with thugs, ruined Beijing, a black sword, delusion, grudge, resentment.

Everything flows and changes.

Musō (no-form).

All things are fleeting and just pass by, so only one’s own mindset can liberate one’s own world.

I believe.

I believe I am free.

Because Usō (form) exists, Musō exists.

Because there are constraints, freedom exists.

What distinguishes within that is one’s own belief.

The first question.

“Hey, why do you fight?”

[I’ll kill all the adults who took away my freedom!!]

“Who exactly do you mean by adults? This is messed up.”

[The bastards who locked us up!! Those who obey them!! Just the whole world!!]

“So you’re taking out your anger on anyone because you don’t know well.”

The problem wasn’t being weak, but being evil.

The weak other self was clearly evil.

[I don’t know!! Such things!! I’ll just kill!!]

“Then I’ll have to stop you.”

You don’t know freedom because you’ve forgotten yourself.

You can’t be formless because you don’t know form.

‘Even if not everything is your fault, you’ve clearly chosen evil.’

It must be a life worse than death.

Then I’ll end it once again.

I’ll stop righteous malice with arrogant goodwill.

“Rest in peace. You’ll get hit if you crawl out again.”

Ichika unleashed the strongest strike on the dead who would only spread chaos in this world, just as she had once done in Beijing. As a senior who realized before her other self, a fist unleashed with the meaning of ‘freedom’ that the master had tried to teach.

A green strike.

A blooming lotus

“Hyakuho Shinken. This is what the master tried to teach ‘us’.”

[The old man…?]

“How can you forget even what you like most.”

[What I… like.]

The question and answer between master and disciple once exchanged in an old temple.

-I’m just so happy to get stronger!

Because I can help more people.

Like a chivalrous hero.

[Not… revenge.]

In the space filled with green, the pale girl wrapped in black starlight murmured.

[A chivalrous… hero…]

Baaaang—!!

The magical girl of freedom who had forgotten the meaning of freedom disappeared feebly, leaving black fragments in front of the huge fist. The scattered black fragments were absorbed into Erebos’ embrace, who was climbing the stairs far away.

“Rest in peace… you fool.”

May you meet a suspicious silver-haired fox-eyed girl in your next life.

May you live a life freely roaming the streets and helping people in your next life.

May your life be as bright as a sunflower blooming by the roadside.

May you live happily like me.

“…Another me.”

Ichika prayed sincerely.