“...It's not that I didn't choose you.”
Mingyue's fingers loosened and then tightened again on the handle of her scythe. “Then why did you—”
“Because there are things in the Wings of Freedom that only I can do,” Lightweaver interrupted her. “It's not because you aren't good enough, or because the Association is bad, or because I don't want to stand by your side. It's because there are some things—things only I can do—that can only be accomplished within the Wings of Freedom.”
Lightweaver had said “only I,” not “only us.” Her sense of belonging to the Wings of Freedom was no greater than her sense of belonging to herself.
“...What kind of things?” Mingyue's voice had gradually calmed down.
“I can't tell you yet.” Lightweaver looked away, then looked back.
She had looked away because she felt guilty, but she looked back because she felt Lightweaver shouldn't feel guilty. Lightweaver's persona had held up, but her own had wavered.
Whatever. In any case, the one Mingyue was looking at was Lightweaver.
“I'm not trying to keep secrets from you. It's just that if I speak of it, it won't succeed anymore. Once it's done, if you still want to know, I'll tell you.”
Snowrealm took a step forward, about to say something, but Mingyue raised a hand to stop her. She took a deep breath, pulled her scythe out of the ground, and cast a glance at Lightweaver, then at the members of the Wings of Freedom standing behind her.
“You said you didn't plan on becoming someone I knew.”
“...I lied.”
Lightweaver turned back and looked at Kohinata and Amamiya. The two of them were standing near the pile of debris in awkward postures that practically screamed, “Should we excuse ourselves?”
“Wait.” Mingyue lightly tapped Lightweaver's shoulder with the shaft of her scythe. The force was very gentle. “Once the Wings of Freedom officially goes public, we will be Magical Girls of different factions. The next time we meet on the battlefield, I can't guarantee I'll only talk to you like this.”
She turned and walked toward Snowrealm. After a few steps, she looked back at Lightweaver. “If the Association and the Wings of Freedom ever fight in the future, you are not allowed to participate. You are my prey. The prey I chased from the amusement park, to the alleyway, and all the way here.”
Lightweaver stopped and turned her head to look at Mingyue. Mingyue stood amidst the shredded remains of the Erosion Bodies scattered across the ground, her scythe planted by her feet. Her face still bore a faint scratch from a tree branch during her rush here. Nuomi squatted on her shoulder, its tail wrapped around the end of her braid as if trying to cheer her on.
Then next time we meet, let's be rivals fair and square, she said to Mingyue in her heart. Star-trail can stand on your side and unlock new forms for you. But I myself will stand opposite you. Mingyue will probably only be more thrilled by that outcome.
A person like Mingyue was never afraid of a strong opponent; she only feared an opponent who refused to take the fight seriously.
“...What are you smiling at?” Mingyue suddenly asked.
Only then did Lightweaver realize the corner of her mouth had twitched upward. Suppressing the smile, she spoke in her usual cool tone. “Nothing. I just think our next meeting will be very interesting.”
“Nuomi, you'll be paired with Snowrealm for now.” Mingyue's voice had returned to its usual solemn tone.
Nuomi squatted on Snowrealm's shoulder, its two tails curling uneasily, but it didn't speak. It knew better than to chime in at a time like this.
“Mingyue,” Snowrealm spoke up, “there is no rule in the Association's regulations that prohibits members from speaking with members of unregistered organizations.” She lifted Nuomi down from her shoulder and cradled it in her arms. Nuomi buried its face in the crook of her elbow, leaving only its slightly trembling long ears visible.
Mingyue didn't reply to her. She stared into Lightweaver's eyes, her expression no longer bearing the fragile, aggrieved look from moments ago.
“Members of the Wings of Freedom,” she said, her voice quiet. “According to Association regulations, when an unregistered Magical Girl organization conducts combat activities within our jurisdiction, they are required to submit an after-action report to the Association's Observation Department. If you refuse to submit it, the Association has the right to classify your organization as uncooperative and restrict your range of activities within our jurisdiction.”
“Hey, hey,” Kohinata took a step forward, her hammer still gripped in her hand. “We just helped you clear the area, and you're already turning around to bust us?”
“Regulations are regulations, and gratitude is gratitude,” Mingyue said, refusing to back down. “I admit your efficiency in clearing this mid-tier Erosion Body today was very high. But the Wings of Freedom is not registered with the Association. Your very existence is a gray area to the Association's regulatory system. If you plan to conduct official public activities, the Association will send someone to negotiate with you sooner or later. If it's not me, it will be someone else. And others might not be as easy to talk to as I am today.”
Amamiya pushed her twin kodachi completely back into their sheaths with a crisp click. She raised her eyes, which always looked half-asleep, and turned to Qiluo. “Lightweaver, this friend of yours is quite interesting. She was acting all aggrieved just a moment ago, and now she's already trying to help us figure out how to deal with the Association.”
“...Who was acting aggrieved?” Mingyue's ears twitched slightly, but she didn't look back.
You were. But Qiluo didn't say it aloud. Lightweaver's persona had already developed too many cracks today; one more, and it would shatter completely into Qiluo Tian Gong.
Mingyue nodded, turning back to look at Lightweaver. “I won't write this incident into the report. We'll treat it as a chance encounter.” She shifted her scythe to her other shoulder. “The next time we meet on the battlefield, it will be an official negotiation. By then, your Wings of Freedom had better have an official public statement ready.”
With that, Mingyue took Snowrealm by the hand and flew away.
The wind on the back mountain gradually died down. Night Sakura stepped out from the woods, a trace of a lingering smile still visible beneath her mask.
“They're leaving just like that?” Night Sakura walked up to Lightweaver's side and lowered her voice. “The way she looked at you just now... it was like she was looking at a heartbreaker.”
“...Shut up.” Lightweaver fully retracted her threads of light into her palm. Her warm white short hair was blown by the wind, covering half of her face, leaving her visible eye unreadable.
“Let's go back.” Lightweaver turned and walked toward the woods. After a few steps, she paused, not looking back. “Night Sakura, today's debut counts as our official public unveiling. How should we write the subsequent statement?”
“Write that the Wings of Freedom conducted its first public operation and successfully subjugated one mid-tier Erosion Body.”
“And then we'll hire some internet trolls to praise how amazing the Wings of Freedom is, while subtly dissing the Association's response time. Then we'll edit your combat footage into the promotional video—”
Night Sakura pulled out her phone and tapped rapidly in her notes app.
“You are not allowed to use my footage.”
“I know, I know. We'll cut all of your footage. We'll only keep the parts of Kohinata swinging her hammer and Amamiya drawing her blades. Those are cool enough.” Night Sakura stuffed her phone back into her pocket and caught up with Lightweaver's pace. “But seriously, that Mingyue toward you—”
“Night Sakura.” Lightweaver's tone didn't change, but Night Sakura immediately raised both hands in surrender.
Qiluo deactivated her transformation on her way back to school. She gently pulled the back door shut and walked back along the old corridor.
When she pushed open the door to the nurse's office, the school nurse was standing with her back to her, organizing medicine in front of the cabinet. Hearing the door open, she turned around and saw Qiluo's pale face.
This time, she wasn't faking it; her mana consumption had indeed been too high. The nurse took her temperature and wrote her a rest slip, letting her lie on the bed until class was dismissed.
She lay on the pristine white sheets of the nurse's office, staring at the ceiling fan spinning slowly overhead.
After class, Rei ran over to see her, bringing a sports drink and some pudding bought from the school store next to the nurse's office. She sat by the bed, chattering away about what Qiluo had missed.
Qiluo nodded along as she listened. The pudding was caramel-flavored and very sweet.
Rate on N.U.
