Chapter 148 : Despair (2)

[From the surface of the star… to the chaos of the star.]

[Come back.]

[Not death… but completeness.]

The black lions were speaking in human language.

The horde of lions surging like a black wave was advancing while chanting in unison. It was like a procession of priests spreading divine grace and preaching the gospel. It was like a gathering of devotees serving a god they called chaos.

Endlessly multiplying the priests of chaos, even letting magical girls’ interceptions pass through.

They came crashing in like the massive wave said to have annihilated all humans in mythology.

Time of destruction

Wave of destruction

They finally crashed into a building where people were hiding.

Boooom!!

Beyond the collapsed wall, citizens who had been waiting for this moment to pass were aghast. A man and woman who looked like siblings were frozen in front of the lion entering while destroying the building, trembling.

[Return.]

“Eek?!”

“Uwaaaa!!”

Screams. Screams of the two siblings.

Seeing this, Kohane’s mind turned white with rage.

“I won’t let you do as you please!!”

The enraged Kohane pulled the trigger with all her might with her small finger.

Click! Whirr!

Cold sweat soaking the cold metal handle transmits the signal with vibration.

Signal

Separation

Vibration

Recoil

Following the signal that passed in an instant, all weapon systems activated as the armor’s circuits came to life.

Dudududududu!!

[Return.]

[Return.]

The machine gun created under Li Na’s starlight influence spewed fire, pushing back the lions.

Still, there were too many lions, and eventually a few approached the two siblings.

It seemed like they were about to open their mouths wide and swallow them like in the past trials, but…

[Return.]

[Come back.]

[Return to completeness.]

They only let golden starlight flow while looking at the man and woman.

The starlight of chaos whispered the truth.

The image and reality of chaos was projected into their minds.

Humans are like dust living for a fleeting moment on the surface of a star.

Everything they had dreamed of was hidden under infinite starlight.

Our world is imperfect.

Fate is predetermined, resisting only brings suffering.

Accept it.

“Return…”

“Into the star.”

The man and woman, persuaded by the chaotic starlight, muttered while touching the black lion’s nose.

They melted into golden starlight and disappeared in an instant.

“What?!”

[Everything is over.]

[The white magical girl has left.]

[Return to the complete flow of stars.]

[Here is life and death, time and space, earth and sky, everything.]

“That can’t be!!”

No matter how much Kohane shouted, people who were inwardly troubled by reality were drawn into chaos, led by the lions’ whispers.

Fear, anger, sadness, only endlessly consuming and eroding human energy.

If you just surrender to predetermined fate,

If destruction isn’t so painful.

I will return.

“Return.”

“Come back.”

“Into the star.”

[Notice from Elysion Observatory!! We’ve confirmed that all trial demons have been revived worldwide!! Ci-citizens are returning to the flow of stars following the words of the trial demons!!]

What on earth is happening?

The question that arose in Kohane’s mind.

“N-No!!”

There’s no way the life we’ve lived has been in vain.

There’s no such thing as a life with a predetermined outcome.

My life and my brother’s life weren’t in vain.

Though we went astray and came back, we can move forw…

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

‘…Can we?’

[Return.]

[Return.]

Kohane just blankly pulled the trigger, defeating demons indiscriminately.

The black lions multiplied again, emitting solemn voices like priests.

No matter how many she defeated, they filled the empty spaces and surged in.

“…”

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

Still, Kohane pulled the trigger operating the armor’s weapons.

If she looked closely at the people who were blankly melting away into golden starlight even now, surrendering their bodies to the black demons, she felt she might go mad too. She felt she might be persuaded by their words.

She just defeated the demons she saw before her.

“Return.”

“Come back.”

“Into the star.”

[Here is all the happiness you live for.]

“Return.”

“Come back.”

“Into the star.”

[You no longer need to suffer.]

“Return.”

Kohane looked at the mass of black lions filling the ground and the giant lion passing by in the distance. Watching them made her feel somehow sleepy. Thus, Kohane gradually fell into the massive golden starlight emitted by tens of thousands of lions.

‘So this… was the ending.’

Golden

Chaos

Golden starlight entering between Kohane’s eyelids showed her the scenery in chaos.

The happiest memory.

Seeing it, her struggling self somehow seemed foolish.

‘What, it’s not that terribly painful.’

All that’s left anyway is a mentally ill brother and a skinny girl.

How happy could we be from now on.

Wouldn’t it be better for brother to shed his flesh tainted by dirty adults’ deception, and spend days making plastic models together in memories?

Such thoughts suddenly occurred to her.

“Return…”

-Wow! Kohane! Come here!

-What is it, Assistant?

-It’s a limited edition armor plastic model!

-Wooow!!

“Come… back.”

[Kohane!! What are you doing?!! A giant demon has come right in front!!]

[This is the observatory!! The Magical Girl of [Armor] needs to evacuate quickly!!]

[Kohane!! Can you hear me?!]

[Kohane!!!]

The urgent radio transmissions seemed foolish.

Somehow, fighting now also seemed foolish.

Come here everyone, it’s incredibly comfortable if you just accept it.

You were suffering too, weren’t you?

[Kohaaaane!!!! Noooooo!!!]

Noisy.

I was tired.

“Hmm… hmm… hmm, hmm bam…”

Kohane could no longer resist her heavy eyelids and fell asleep humming the opening of the armor anime she had enjoyed watching the most. Beyond the golden dream, there was nothing but happy memories from her life so far.

Her mentally sound brother was leisurely making plastic models while scratching his plump belly. She was watching anime while eating the delicious meal her brother had made.

What was visible on the screen was the final episode of the mecha anime she had enjoyed watching the most.

What

I was worried because they said it was destruction.

But it’s nothing much.

‘It’s just dying in heaven.’

I should have given up sooner.

Kohane, who had started to surrender her body to the golden starlight, couldn’t recall.

That despair is not writhing in pain.

But quietly resigning to the inevitable outcome.

Beyond her vision that had started to be completely dyed in darkness, the current image of her brother flashed by.

-Ko, Kohane… hang in there.

“Brother?”

Emaciated body

Ceaselessly rolling eyes

Scarred body

Her brother, who had become somewhat stable after receiving intensive treatment at the psychiatric hospital, started to recognize her little by little even in his delusions.

Very occasionally.

-Oh, Daichi-san, you look healthy today.

Even after confirming that her father had died fighting in a foreign bar, Li Na still came to the psychiatric hospital with her composedly.

-Well, it’s natural since it’s healing ability I directly received with ‘jealousy’ all the way in Europe.

Even without the boss’s orders, Kaede often helped them with gruff but warm words.

-Kohane-chan, let’s hang in there together.

Even though she still couldn’t find her mother, Nanami said she would take care of the shipping when Kohane ran a plastic model shop.

In Kohane’s ‘present’ life, there existed the help and hope of numerous people.

It wasn’t something she could carelessly throw away by her will alone.

-Ko, Kohane… to, today too… Ma, Mars… Em, Empire… mu, much…

-Nyuhuhuhut, as expected of Assistant, no, Ace Pilot! Well done!

That’s how we move forward little by little!

Kohane too

Daichi too

We were full of mistakes, but we were getting a little better than now.

To make the ending of our lives better.

There was no predetermined ending anywhere.

We were just moving forward wanting a better ending.

Kohane finally felt her mind clearing.

-System reboot, switching to combat mode-

“Nyuhuhu, while my friends and the Ace Pilot are fighting the Mars Empire, I was about to sell that out.”

-Entering final sequence, requesting pilot’s permission-

I really am unqualified as a pilot.

Kohane muttered that while looking at the giant black lion staring at her right in front.

The vanguard of the Mars Empire that throws us into a swamp of sorrow.

Kohane turned on all the armor’s speakers and shouted composedly towards the evil horde.

All the people who were fleeing or despairing from the black lions focused on the armor’s speakers ringing out loudly.

[There is no predetermined ending in the world!! That only exists in anime!!]

[Don’t give up!! The heart contained in the process of taking one more step forward than yesterday!!]

[That is what life is!!]

-Entering final battle mode-

Bwaaaaaaaa―!!

Behind the giant armor, ivory, khaki, fluorescent scarlet, and deep green starlight shone brilliantly, and the boosters emitted dazzlingly brilliant light.

Faaaash!

All the armor’s weapon depots opened, rifles in both hands and missiles on the shoulders activated, and small missiles and drones poured out from the giant container on the back.

-All rounds firing drive-

“Fire!!!”

From thousands of weapons spewing from the armor larger than buildings, she poured out starlight along with the emotions of a girl who had made mistakes thousands of times, been sad thousands of times, and been angry thousands of times.

Indescribable emotions

Massive explosion

The armor’s exterior was made of cold alloy plates, but the core shone brilliantly in ivory and had hot heat.

As much as Kohane’s life

As much as Kohane’s heart

As much as the heart of a girl who expected tomorrow despite being full of mistakes.

It was hot.

[Armor is completed with a hot heart!!!]

At this moment, Kohane’s armor was completed in its most awesome form.

As armor named hope that sweeps away the despair of watching people.

The giant ivory armor, to create tomorrow.

With her friends’ starlight spewing from its back.

Charged towards the giant black lion tempting humanity.