Vya's consciousness slowly surfaced from the murky depths. She tried hard to remember what had happened before—after visiting Griseo with Sister Klein, she had obediently headed back.
But for some reason, a lingering unease she couldn't quite name clung to her heart.
Because… it felt like her sister had run into some kind of trouble…
The thought rose up abruptly, and even she couldn't explain why she had such a premonition. Before she could ponder it further, her body had already moved on its own. By the time she came to her senses, she was already by Elysia's side.
Everything after that grew hazy, as if her body was no longer under her control...
…
"…"
"Mmm…"
Vya tried to open her eyes. The pure white space greeted her once again.
"Is anyone here?" she called out softly.
"You finally made it."
The voice was familiar and carried a distinct note of amusement.
Vya turned her head. It was the big brother with blue hair. He was leaning against a white bench that hadn't been there before, waving at her.
"Oh, it's you, Big Brother Blue Hair!"
Vya waved back happily.
"And this black-haired big sister… hello."
That's when she noticed a black-haired girl sitting at the other end of the bench, looking down at her own palm.
Wasn't that the same person from just now?
With another newcomer joining them, the blue-haired young man, as the first to arrive here—though he himself didn't understand the mechanics of this place—felt it was his duty to offer some explanation to the new arrival.
He had just begun explaining when Vya showed up.
"Yes, hello," the black-haired girl spoke slowly.
Predictably, her reply was rather flat.
"Hi there!"
Vya looked around again. "Where's the big sister with purple hair?"
"Hmm, not sure…"
The blue-haired young man shrugged helplessly. The workings of a girl's mind were beyond him.
"I see. Guess I'll have to ask next time. Oh, oh! Brother, Vya has been studying hard! I've learned lots of things, many characters, and I can do arithmetic now!"
"And what Sister Mobius taught…!"
"Very impressive," the young man praised.
"Thank you~"
Vya swayed her head proudly.
"Hey, maybe you two should chat?" the young man suggested with a smile, noticing the black-haired girl seemed to have something on her mind.
"…Thank you," the girl whispered.
"Sure! Bye, brother!"
After the blue-haired young man walked away, the black-haired girl took a deep breath. "Your name is Vya, right?"
"Yes, sister," Vya replied with a smile. How strange, she didn't even ask for my name this time.
"…I still want to thank you," the girl said after a long silence.
In the quiet moment, Vya studied her closely.
Out there, this sister had been surrounded by an unsettling void. But in here, Vya could see a faint, white glow around her.
"Sister, what exactly happened? Why did you become like that?"
"This… I'm not too sure either. But still, thank you."
"It's no trouble at all!"
Vya's smile instantly bloomed. "Sister Elysia says we should help others more. Helping others is helping ourselves."
"That pink-haired one… is she your sister?" the girl asked.
"Yes, yes! That's Sister Elysia! Sister Elysia is the best!"
"Hmm…"
"She's a good sister, protecting her little sister like that."
"But I'm still sorry."
"Sister, you shouldn't be like that~"
Vya moved a bit closer and gently took her hand. "Sister says girls should smile more and not always apologize."
"This…" The girl was taken aback, then actually let out a soft laugh. "Heh…"
Yeah, it was all over now. Whatever she had done, whether she wanted it or not…
"Sister looks really pretty when she smiles too~" Vya said sincerely.
"Mhm, thank you, Vya." The girl's voice warmed considerably.
…
"Is there anything sister wants to say to me?" Vya suddenly asked.
"What do you mean?"
"The big brother with blue hair told me to study hard. The big sister with purple hair told me to take a good look at this world…"
The girl thought for a long while before finally speaking slowly.
"…If I had to say, if you have the ability, learn to protect others."
"Oh!" Vya clapped her hands as if having a revelation. "Vya knows about that! Sister says we should protect good people and punish the bad ones!"
"Haha, I really envy you for having such a good sister…"
The girl was amused once more.
"Don't worry, sister! Vya will remember!"
…
The little girl didn't yet understand the weight of the word "protect," but she would do what she wanted to do, protect the people she wanted to protect.
That was enough.
…
Nagazora City.
A girl with gray hair was lugging a heavy suitcase when suddenly, her pupils contracted sharply—a streak of purple light shot across the sky, plummeting down like a meteor.
"What… is that?"
Then, the girl ran.
The instinct for survival screamed at her: Run. You must live.
…
Not far away, another girl was also fleeing in panic. She had just bid farewell to a friend when, in the blink of an eye, the streets filled with hordes of monsters.
She had silver-white short hair, wheat-colored skin, and golden pupils. The continuous sprinting had left her slightly disheveled.
"Dammit…"
She gasped for breath as she ran, her throat burning.
Thankfully, her mother worked for the military and had put her through physical training since childhood—it was paying off now, though all it did was let her last a bit longer than an ordinary person.
"Ah… what on earth is going on? Could it really be like in those games? A zombie virus outbreak? Alien invasion?"
The girl ran while her thoughts raced. She was starting to run out of steam.
And, unfortunately, a monster had already spotted her. Heavy footsteps thudded behind her…
"No way…"
The girl was on the verge of breaking down.
Was this how it ended?
No way, she hadn't lived enough yet!
Now she began to regret—regretting not listening to her mother about exercising more, regretting not seriously learning martial arts from that good friend of hers.
But… in the end, she was just an ordinary girl. What could she possibly do in a situation like this?
A tall monster slowly closed in on her… she was backed into a corner.
"Mom…"
They say when faced with despair, people think of their parents…
Trembling, the girl closed her eyes, waiting for death to come.
A long moment passed.
The expected pain never arrived.
Huh?
It seemed nothing had happened at all.
The girl opened her eyes. Standing before her was a little girl with hair fading from white to pink.
Seeing her open her eyes, the little girl quickly covered her mouth, as if afraid some secret might be discovered.
[Let's just call her Carol, for easier understanding.]
…
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