Vol 5 Chapter 2 (1/2)
EPILOGUE 03: The Mirror of Truth
Saibara Mitsuki's death occurred at thirty-two ht
Saibara Mitsuki's ue
A long, long timents, entered Mitsuki's body Due to the properties of the Fragment named Unpleasant Counter-Current, Mitsuki's personality could not accept its existence and coel, the personification of retribution or destruction; neither of which were the true Mitsuki, but they were both indeed somewhat related to Mitsuki
Mitsuki seeirl whom others disliked
Her elder sis hid the diary Mitsuki wrote in back in those days Now that Mitsuki was reading it, she felt as if she was reading so written by soirl However, no one reached out to help her because of that Therefore, she arile girl
Her only coed to live because of her sister
It was understandable that she felt e pity on someone else
Therefore, she wanted to be good friends with someone Even if she failed this ti into contact with other people, she still wanted to be friends with soood friend -
She wanted to save Saibara Mitsuki's soul Even if she was a despicable girl who no one wanted to even look at, it wouldn't be a bad thing to save her
Her 'duty' was to be an angel As she was an angel, maybe then she should save her
” Did I”
Sinking into nu in her sleep
”Beco sis?”
The girl looked strange wearing her hat with round ears, a cute curly tail decoration, and thick gloves Still, no matter how one looked at her, she was a very shy, indecisive, and happy little girl
She looked el – except that Mitsuki was covered with blood
A tragic scene stretched out all around her For soh School had been tragically destroyed - broken chunks of tile and debris were scattered all around Mitsuki
In this dark, late night, the moon shone upon the e shadows onto the ground Mitsuki struggled with difficulty on the icy cold ground, with part of her body crushed by the debris
”Urk”
Mitsuki stared at the slab of stone pressing down on her, her eyes wide Huffing and puffing, she tried her hardest to push it away, but it was too heavy She couldn't feel the right side of her stomach anymore It was probably coht foot
It would be a long time before she would be able to move
Oh no, how terrible Although she was an immortal and couldn't feel pain, it would still be terrible to be i time Her clothes were also all e and frustration did not stay for a long ti before the sun
”Aaaaaaaauuum”
Putting her entire strength behind the hand that was grasping the slab of stone, the girl suddenly erupted with power
”Chirp - ★”
With a deafening noise, the slab flew far away from her – unbelievably far Mitsuki put on a very satisfied expression andwith satisfaction that she had everything sorted
”You're going to panic when you hear th in my little body ★ I am the undefeatable Unpleasant Counter-Current~★”
With a whoosh, Mitsuki propped up her blood-covered body, then sighed and lowered her head
” U on?”
Mitsuki took off her beloved hat and patted away the dust on it, then plunked it back onto her head as she surveyed her surroundings It was a scene of utter devastation, appropriate for a battlefield Had the fight already finished? It was quiet, too quiet, so o that her body was shi+vering, Mitsuki hugged herself and stood up slowly -
”- Whaa?”
Suddenly, she lost her balance and fell down
It was impossible to stand up with a quarter of her body smashed, after all
Considering her current situation, Mitsuki began re that blonde beauty, and that she had been defeated before she could even do anything to defend herself She couldn't really rehtit see in the debris with her body crushed in the aftermath
Either way, she couldn’t move anymore
” I used to be able to move immediately afterwards whenever I fell down!”
Mitsuki frowned and looked unhappy, as her tail fell upon the ground She had discovered her ability when she first coo, as she’d fallen fro to climb to the top
” What is this? It feels like ”
Mitsuki opened her hand, then clenched her hand into a fist again She tilted her head and tried this a few times She then opened her eyes, pouted, and put her pale face in her hands as she looked around
”Right, where is big sis? Did big sis get knocked down from there too~?”
Mitsuki felt very uneasy without big sis next to her, like a lost child There was doubt in all of her movements, and her cheeks paled too She stretched out her hand purposelessly in her confusion, not knohat to do She h Saibara Mina, the elder sister who, and obviously wouldn't be able to hide under the rubble
”Big sis!”
This was so odd Her sister Mina would never leave her behind and disappear on her own Her strong sister always stood by her and protected her If she ever heard Mitsuki calling out 'big sis' like this, she would definitely put on a very annoyed expression, but at the same time, would stretch out her hand to help her little sister
Then, Mitsuki remembered The last time that she called out Mina's nauriko, and suffered a severe wound Mina was probably like this too right now Big sis was probably lying somewhere, barely alive -
A sorrowful feeling welled up within Mitsuki's mind Tears welled out of her eyes and she sobbed, with even her breathing becoely She started to look everywhere around her, and she twisted her hands together
”Big sis big sis”
There was a bu sound behind her
Mitsuki's expression suddenly changed, and she turned around defenselessly
At that moment, Mitsuki's chest suffered a heavy impact
”!?”
It was as if a car had purposely crashed into her Mitsuki’s frail body was tossed away, rolling, rolling, rolling on the ground, until it came to a halt Now, she was co up blood
”Whoa!”
There was no feeling of pain
Her nociceptive nerves had already been broken However, Mitsuki had was already gravely wounded fro Her bones and internal organs, in their current state, could not endure such a strong i for a while
But now there was no time No time to rest No time for Mitsuki to calmly think and make decisions
She coughed continuously, sing saliva mixed with blood She moaned as she wiped away the traces of blood at the corners of her mouth
Mitsuki propped up her upper body using all of her strength, and she saw that approaching alien at the same time
”Monster!?”
As Mitsuki stated, it was indeed a ap between hell and thethat existed in that unperceivable world, one of the natural enehtered nu down Mitsuki, one of those monsters rushed towards her bestially
It was like a beetle, with a shi+ning black carapace and disgusting, segmented feelers, its heavy body supported by sharp feet And worst of all, sprouting from each of its feelers were innuaze focused on the immobile pray before it - Mitsuki
Mitsuki sat on the ground and looked dazedly at the scene before her The vibration that ruround made her frown, and she suddenly realized this was not the tile, but her body was unable to move
A strange iht of the tragedy that was soon to follow
She would be flattened by the monster
She would be flattened into a pulp with a squelch, and she would then be eaten
” How can this be happening?!”
A very sad feeling welled up within her Mitsuki's two hands, wearing the huge gloves, suddenly pushed forward suddenly
”How can this happen? I' sis Don't bother me!”
With a thump, Mitsuki's entire body suffered a powerful i the enorloves that could reflect all intended dae ith and roared Both her hands held onto the creature’s feelers, squashi+ng the countless eyeballs on it
It was very hard to fight these monsters, as they didn’t bear much malevolence They only attacked Mitsuki out of their predatory instincts towards humans
As the personification of retribution, Unpleasant Counter-Current's abilities didn't seem to be very effective
”Urk Gah Gaaaaah”
As she expected, Mitsuki's gloves were pierced by the sharp thorns on the ers and palm were both wounded, and blood seeped out Cold sweat dripped down her face Even though she didn't feel pain, it was still very probleet wounded
Crack crack crack She could hear so out of Mitsuki's body, or the wailing of her enemy? Both the outer appearance and their sounds, not to usted her
Mitsuki's cheeks started to become red, and started to yell excitedly like a kid:
”I, I' sis~ I need to look for her very hard ★ If there are bad kids who dare to stop me -”
Her enemy's enor just her hands, Mitsuki lifted up the screa, dazed monster
The enorled and tried to resist However, it was all useless If Mitsuki wanted to be serious, her arround
”I will kick them and kick them down into hell~★”
Her unwounded left foot launched itself upwards Avoiding the feelers and the back, protected by the carapace, she viciously kicked the creature’s soft, exposed underbelly
Thetorn and broken Yellowish brown liquid erupted from its body and the rest of its torso broke apart The pieces shattered, flying with a thud into the broken school building – and with its body was completely torn apart, and it soon died
The round splattered with its innards Looking at this scene, Mitsuki put down her still-uplifted feet and panted
”Phew It moved on”
Mitsuki put her hands together and hed at her own comedic moments in the middle of the battle
”Mmm, Mitsuki-chan is so awesome I'm definitely the undefeatable Unpleasant Counter-Current~”
Mitsuki nodded and started to think Why were there h they had acted oddly of late, it was usually very rare to run into a monster like this
” Mmm, well, my job isn't to think anyways”
She put her hand on the debris next to her Using that to support her weight, she finally le foot The bones and flesh of her right foot were ether and was completely sh one of Unpleasant Counter-Current's abilities was to absorb the evil intent of others, and use that to accelerate her physical healing, there was no one around her with any malevolence whatsoever
What should she do? She could not even walk in her current state, and could only keep looking around like a lost child
The darkness felt heavy She was feeling more and more anxious in the dark, and she wanted to cry She could only hear her own heartbeat, thundering in the clammy silence It was as if the world had already been co, with the dawn never to show its face again – there was a primordial sense of horror and solitude
Plonk
The sound caly close to her A thick malice started to float over towards her, so thick it could almost be discerned with the naked eye
Mitsuki looked that way out of reflex
“… Big sis?”
Mina stood there She stood underneath the foggy light of the cloud-covered , and a soft s sister whom Mitsuki adored She was her family, someone who had always supported Mitsuki’s mind from when they were still huer mortal
Mitsuki finally felt reassured when she saw Mina But as that… What was thatjust now? Mitsuki was soht it over, as if she was considering what she should do next
The beating of her heart indeed slowed It felt unbelievable even to herself
Mitsuki thought the previous feeling was probably an illusion caused by her anxious mindset She deliberately made a comical pose and put her hands on her waist, and propped up her chest as she said:
“Awesome I orried Seriously, I told you not to leave me behind and run away on your own ★”
“…”
Mitsuki looked at Mina, as staying silent for sole:
“What’s wrong? It looks like the fight is over But we still need to find Gu-Gu and Niku-Niku~ And there are also things like that ht have started to multiply We need to check them out in the town Otherwise –”
Mina stretched out her arh Mitsuki’s thin chest
“… Huh?”
She couldn’t comprehend this She couldn’t understand this She didn’t respond to it at all Her mind was a blank
Blood erupted out from her form It was red, crimson liquid, the fountain of life It sprayed onto her clothes and face It was her own blood It was that red, slightly warm, rather metallic liquid Her vision started to be covered by this crimson shade Behind all that red, Mitsuki saw that Mina was still s softly
No So
That was a despicable smile
“Who… are you?”
Mitsuki tightly gripped the hand that had pierced her heart Even so, she knew the struggle was pointless from the bottom of her heart Blood seeped out from the corners of her mouth, and her head drooped
Huh?
Huh?
”Unpleasant Counter-Current”
A cold voice that made her shi+ver, one she had never heard before, floated into her ears
”You are a bit too inexperienced for wanting to live till the final battle!”
The hand was suddenly pulled from her chest, with blood erupted fro force Mitsuki couldn't bear it any in too-late surprise
Huh?
”I will kill you here At least thank me for it”
The other woure of Saibara Mina blurring and shi+fting, until it became someone completely different
This was alteration of the flesh, the power of Ultimate shi+eldThe Weakest
”Why?”
Mitsuki could not understand this Could it be that this person changed into the for sister whoh Mitsuki's chest without hesitation, at the time when Mitsuki finally cal this cruel? It was incomprehensible Mitsuki shouldn't be able to feel pain anymore, but her head hurt so much
Her entire body was shaking as her sight started to dim
Drop by drop, her life was draining aith the blood oozing fro her opponent's soul to the brim, and she moaned:
”Why did you have to do so so cruel?”
The faces of those people most important to her surfaced within her mind Mina, Tatsue, Mitaka, Guriko, Kajiri, the people she’d ed up within her et on ith anyone She still wanted to talk to other people She still wanted to keep living with them
”Why?”
The culprit turned around, and then changed into Mitsuki's appearance She had a hat with round ears and a cute, curly tail decorating her behind Could it be - Mitsuki started to realize the other’s plan – could it be that she wanted to appear as Mitsuki to her companions, and then
Why was she capable of such cruel deeds?
”Oho You keep saying these naive things You really are an angel”
She laughed coldly and amusedly and departed in Mitsuki's forround She still looked at that retreating figure, incredulously, and mumbled in a low voice:
”Devil”
The giant Frag with Mitsuki She bathed in the malice of the entire world every day, and yet Mitsuki still loved this world and the people who populated it Huinal sin since the days of Adam and Eve Perhaps they started to hurt each other back then, and just kept bringing pain to each other ever since
Still, no ive up on loving others If it weren't for this, huo No matter what kind of a person one was, there would be no malice in their heart of hearts That hat Mitsuki had believed in all along
She had believed this But now, Mitsuki had been killed by a fellow creature, as if she was an unneeded thing, a torn book to be throay It was - too strange It was as if the other woman was a monster As if her entire body and soul were completely manipulated by malice -
Ahh
She couldn't move anymore The sounds of her own moans softly swept past her ears, and her consciousness started to fade
Would this be the end? Would she die here? But it was fine To be honest, Mitsuki had already died once in that annoying Institute She only le Room's ability Because of hio everywhere
There were no regrets - she had tried her hardest at living
She was just a little lonely
Death was very very lonely There was so ret, so much anxiety, so much pain
This irl Mitsuki, whom no one loved and was despised by all Even so, she lived her life to the full, and was about to die with all sorts of happy memories This should be happiness But she still felt a little lonely
If possible, if it's only for a little bit, I want to play with them for a while I want to take care of Mina, who never kne to do housework I also want to wait and see Mitaka and Tatsue's wedding And I, I also want to fall in love with so like that
Tears slid down her eyes Ahh, so lonely
Saibara Mitsuki's death
” Why would I be crying?”
The blood that seeped out of her heart mixed with the tears that dripped from her eyes She could immerse herself silently in this - this would be the place where Mitsuki's life ended For this world, this would be the second sacrifice produced after the Fraged out Meanwhile, for some select people - this would be eternal separation with this lovely girl
”It should be - very happy, shouldn’t it?”
And with that, Saibara Mitsuki passed away
Blinding light shone froradually disappeared That pure white light was threatening to couriko frowned She had thought her eyes were seeing a ht
However, in her daze, she thought she saw the light s Rinne's forht
Clouds covered the sky, hiding theand the ruins that remained were still clearly visible
“…”
The ground beneath Guriko’s feet was covered with blood The broken pieces of Melodia NoiseTear Song’s body and the re morsels after Guriko’s meal, were scattered all around her However, ’s body could no longer move, and she could only make intermittent moans as she shi+vered
But of course, that was to be expected The majority of her body had already been chewed off by Guriko
Guriko was i – only the woman’s skeleton, head, and feet remained The flesh and bones scattered around her were freshly torn off a huh Guriko had been the one who had done this, she did not dare to face what she had done The large around e
With a sigh, Guriko reverted to her hus and carapace of heras she returned to herself The blood that coated her body did not, leaving her covered by a red sheen Fresh blood dripped down the corners of her inally so pristine, was stained
Guriko shook her head as if she was a wet dog, shaking off much of the dampness on her The blood instantly dried and turned to a darker shade, and clung to her skin
She spat out Melodia NoiseTear Song’s hair, which was stuck between her teeth, with a spitting sound It was disgusting
“… still alive, Melodia NoiseTear Song?”
The older woman’s body shook when she heard this Was it fortunate or not to still retain consciousness in this state?
Guriko’sthat glowed in the distance Her brain seemed unable to think norht just now She felt as if she was drunk She was e up from her chest, and she felt an ominous chill
“Do you knohy the school is glowing?”
Rinne was over there Guriko tried her hardest to look that way Even though it was too dark to be certain, she knew she hadn’t allop to her side right now and ehtly However, the unnatural state of the school building was very suspicious She should not rush there blindly, even though she still had a sliver of hope in her heart towards the possibility that Rinne was still safe and sound
“…”
Melodia NoiseTear Song didn’t answer her
She couldn’t, after all, as she had no strength left And even if she did, her larynx – all the tendons and muscles of her throat – had already been consumed by Guriko
Yes, she had been eaten by Guriko Guriko had eaten this h she had always lived with this illusion, she could no longer turn back now No one would consider Guriko a huain
She was a monster that ate humans
Yes, a ht to love others – but her desire to help Rinne was genuine Rinne ht be able to embrace her, even if she became a monster
Although she knew this sweet eile to even stand right noithout leaning on this idea
Rinne Rinne I want to see you
I want to hear your soft voice, your kind smile, and feel your warm hands Guriko wanted to feel all this
I am so lonely I don’t knohy, I just feel alone
“Rinne…”
Guriko , who remained silent, and sloalked towards the school She couldn’t leave Rinne like this, in a place that was glowing strangely for some reason
Everything was dark around the The Mushi+, with their red eyes, were looking at the way It was as if this world was a drawing that had been deliberately portrayed in a twisted way It was an uneasy world, one that filled men’s hearts with a chill
“…”
Suddenly, Guriko stopped walking towards the school, and looked towards Melodia NoiseTear Song She didn’t understand those feelings herself It was perhaps not pity – but she still asked with a feeling didn’t quite understand:
“Then shell I send you on your way?”
“…”
Blood Flesh Organs Even her life force was all but drained She was in a state where even madness would not be unexpected However, she only tilted her head, and shook slightly as if she was a wriggling infant – as if she was co back Guriko nodded as if she understood her and said
“Yes I don’t want to die either”
Only endless sorrow surfaced in those insect-like, red eyes
“… Why, Melodia NoiseTear Song?”
Guriko walked forward to look for Mitsuki and Mina She called out Melodia NoiseTear Song’s name as she went further and further, with Melodia NoiseTear Song’s body gradually disappearing from Guriko’s view
It was so scary So scary so scary So scary scary scary Death is so scary It iselse I would completely disappear I would cease to exist on earth
It ay too scary Everything she sa, everything she was feeling, everything she was thinking – everything would disappear completely
Just thinking of this would drive her mad with fear
Melodia NoiseTear Song – Sakaki Joker was simply scared of the end of her life Indeed, the time for her to disappear approached little by little Why was she so scared? Guriko also asked her this However, even Joker didn’t understand
It was such a joyless life A life spent escaping from this fear This aimless, empty, mundane and ordinary life
“…”
All sorts of scenes began to surface in her mind
Like aits conclusion, her life was about to reach its end That hat Joker thought
She could see it now That dirty alley in the ghetto Herform That ehborhood who kept talking about her worries The Bible Joker standing over the empty ruins of the church – and Sakaki Ganhō, who had been standing by her side before she realized it That very annoying man who visited Joker’s church in order to ask those incredulous questions
Just as that? She could not understand it at all now Why had she done that back then? Did she give up on herself? Joker had grasped that htly She detested her heartless ames with men every day Therefore, she kept her distance from all men
It was her first tier sex
Ganhō That man with hands warm as flames
For Joker, who had always lived in calmness, he was a man whom she completely could not understand For her, his passion was a mystery She didn’t have any emotions such as love – she couldn’t
She didn’t understand anything about emotions such as love
She hated Ganhō very ht was co froant, and he didn’t have clear thoughts, but he had soe levels of acuity in so other people’s old wounds
She had decided nuain and say farewell At that tiht it would be fine if she never saw hiain
However, unbelievably, he was beside her when she came to her senses Joker ran far away froance, he used his incredible fortune and power and sent out his underlings to find her They brought her back, and he hugged her tightly in his arms – he was a sly and completely unpredictable man Why was he so obsessed with soured this out He never said anything like ‘I love you’ to Joker No matter how many times they whispered tender words to each other, how led together, Joker had never thought he would love her
He was simply someone similar to her, someone who needed other people – perhaps that hy
He had so much more luck than everyone else in the world However, he still had the same fears as she did He was in fact someone who felt loneliness more easily than anyone else He only said those foolish words to attract others’ attention He was a naïve child like that He feared that this world ht not have a God in his naiveté, and he craved warmth from others all the time He was the same as Joker
Did he not kno to love others? Did he feel lonely, but had no idea how to remove that loneliness?
They were the same She was the same Ganhō was the saht now, it was too late
Did Ganhō ever regretthis wo about the power noithin her? That man accelerated his own death because he became involved with a woht have lived a happier life
She recalled the scene when they met for the first time in the church
She had continued to pray every day even when she came to the realization that God did not exist That foolish man said to her: ‘I will becoh that man never became God, for a very brief reatly moved
It was as if they were children snuggling up to each other for warmth when they were lonely That kind of warmth was particularly hot She remembered his body heat then She had closed his eyes, and they shared the shaking of their bodies together
For some reason, Ganhō never touched any woman except Joker Had he wanted, he could have had any beautiful woman he desired, but he probably hated that Other people are scary I know I know, Ganhō