Harmony

Translated by LyraDhani

Edited by LyraDhani

When he cut off the last flower, a slight feeling of discomfort passed through his chest.

–Is this really the end?

It was bad luck that he didn’t hit the main body until the very last one–it was almost impossible. From an ordinary statistical point of view, it would be an extraordinary probability that the winner would remain until the end of the game.

In that case, the flowers so far might not have been dummies but it was the type that transformed the last flower into the main body. That would be more reasonable. But even so, the question remained.

The last remaining flower was supposed to be the real one, but it didn’t respond at all. The way it disappeared was almost the same as the dummy flower, and it didn’t even drop a piece of a magic nucleus. …Its rank might be so low that its magic nucleus didn’t exist, but something still didn’t feel right.

As he pondered this with a difficult look, the terminal beeped.

–Is there a problem? Thinking about this, Tsugumi presses the call button.

“Yes, this is Hagakure.”

[This is Inaba of the Demonic Beast Countermeasures Headquarters. What’s the situation?]

The caller was Inaba. On second thought, he probably hadn’t included a report on the extermination of the flowers. Tsugumi opened his mouth as he reflected on the situation.

“I’ve successfully exterminated the flowers. There are a few things I’m a little concerned about, but I think they’re completely gone.”

“I see! The hospital also reported the disappearance of the seeds and roots, and it seems that this will somehow be taken care of. Is it okay if you come back here at once? I have a lot of questions I want to ask you.”

Inaba asked him that, but Tsugumi put his hand over his mouth thoughtfully, and lowered his eyebrows, feeling troubled.

More than that, he was concerned about the condition of Yumeji who was injured. He had asked Hitsugi to contact him on the terminal if anything happened, but his anxiety still persisted. That’s why, despite what Tsugumi felt about this, he said no to Inaba.

“…I’m sorry I know I have to report to you in person, but is it okay if I stop by the hospital where my acquaintance is? I’m really worried about her…”

When Tsugumi apologetically told her this, Inaba said, “Oh, you’re certainly worried about her, aren’t you?” and graciously allowed him to go to the hospital. …That kindness was a bit distressing.

For Tsugumi, as long as the seeds were taken care of, the case was over, but for the staff of the Headquarters, it was just the beginning. In such a situation, it hurt his heart a little to trouble them for personal reasons.

The Headquarters and Tsugumi had done the best they could, but the fact remained that there were a lot of casualties. He didn’t know how they would announce this incident in the future, but it was inevitable that they would face a lot of pressure from the public and from the higher-ups. Just thinking about it made him feel heavy.

Tsugumi thanked them deeply in his heart and said, “I’ll be back as soon as I check the situation. I’m really sorry…” and hung up.

“At any rate, the seeds are gone… I hope Yumeji-san is okay.”

–It had already been two hours since Yumeji was shot. The fact that he hadn’t heard from Hitsugi meant that the worst hadn’t happened, but he kept having a bad feeling.

With this uneasy feeling in his heart, he flew to the hospital where Yumeji had been taken.

◆ ◆ ◆

Scuttling along the floor, Tsugumi made his way to the treatment room he’d heard about at the hospital’s reception desk. Calmly avoiding patients and visitors who shook his hand or asked for his autograph, he hurried to his destination.

When he reached a corridor in a secluded area, he found someone sitting on a couch in the waiting room.

“Hitsugi-san?”

She looked up slowly and muttered, “Hagakure-san…” with an exhausted look. Then she turned her head down with a sad expression and said in a trembling voice, “I’m sorry. I am sorry. While I was following you…”

“…Did something happen to Yumeji-san?”

When Tsugumi asked that question, Hitsugi nodded slightly and hesitantly opened her lips.

“Actually–“

◆ ◆ ◆

The time went back to 30 minutes before Tsugumi arrived at the hospital.

–I’m not sure if I’m going to make it.

Feeling pain that tore through her small body, Yumeji thought so with hazy vision.

She was rushed to the hospital, where doctors performed all kinds of procedures, including stopping the bleeding and administering anesthesia, but that didn’t alleviate this desperate pain.

The discomfort of the writhing roots and the pain that felt like her nerves being scraped with a file. The pain was so great that she couldn’t even faint. That must be the characteristic of this root. It prolonged the time she felt pain, feed on her negative emotions, and build up its strength. It really was a nasty Demonic Beast.

Moreover, Yumeji had two seeds in her body. In other words, the pain she was suffering was twice as great. She did a good job enduring the pain for more than an hour, which would normally make anyone go insane.

A respected Magical Girl, Hagakure Sakura, said she would definitely help her, but she wasn’t sure if she would make it in time. Hagakure was a wonderful hero for Yumeji, but she wasn’t invincible. No matter how hard she tried, something simply wouldn’t come true. It was sad, but that was the reality.

Hitsugi was not in this room because she was going to a place where the phone was working to report to the government. She said she would come back soon, but Yumeji wondered if she really would.

–I want to give up. I want this to end. She knew it would be easier that way. But the reason she persevered to this point was because she had a precious friend next to her.

“Please, hang in there, Nadekoshiko-chan. I’m sure that Hagakure-san will help you…!”

Sobbing, her friend Itadori Kanae held Yumeji’s right hand and kept calling out to her. If it were not for this voice, she would have given up everything a long time ago.

–But Yumeji wondered if she had done something wrong.

At that moment, when she saw the flower that gave off a bad feeling, her body moved in an instant. Strangely enough, she didn’t feel scared. For the first time in her life, she was able to protect a friend that she truly cherished, so she didn’t regret a single thing. But she didn’t want to make her cry like this.

How would this kind friend feel if someone died for protecting her? She would surely blame herself and suffer. And as if to atone for her sin, she would choose the bad path of a Magical Girl. Such a future was easy to predict.

But I don’t want that, Yumeji thought. She didn’t protect Itadori to make her lead that kind of life. –She just wanted her to be happy. From now on, Itadori was going to work hard as a candidate, be chosen as a Magical Girl, and engage in brilliant activities, such a dark shadow wouldn’t suit her.

But no matter how much she grieved, she would die soon. No matter how hard she tried to muster up the energy, her physical strength wouldn’t be able to keep up any longer. –Then I must act so that I won’t regret it anymore.

Thinking of this in a daze, Yumeji turned her face toward Itadori, ignoring the creaking of her body. Then, loosely clasping back the right hand she was holding, she removed the device on her mouth.

“Hey, Nadekoshiko-chan! What are you doing!?”

Itadori and the doctor, startled by Yumeji’s sudden action, tried to put the device back, but she gently restrained them with her left hand. Yumeji said in a hushed voice, trying to squeeze the words out.

“Um, you know. I want you to do something for me.”

“Don’t overdo it, you have to rest…!”

“Listen to me, please. –Maybe this is the last time.”

Seeing Itadori desperately try to soothe her, Yumeji quietly told her so. Then, a large tear slipped from Itadori’s bewildered eye.

“Oh no, don’t say that like it’s your last will…”

As she looked at Itadori, who continued to cry pleadingly, Yumeji smiled wryly. It looked as though she was being cruel to her. –Well, that wouldn’t be wrong either.

Then Yumeji slowly opened her mouth with the last of her strength.

“I curse you, Kanae.”

“-Eh?”

“I will never forgive you if you don’t become happy for me in the future. You’re not allowed to blame yourself, be worried, or be in a hurry to die. –I will not forgive you unless you live long enough to become a grandmother.”

–Yes, these words were a curse. The lowest and the worst kind of curse that forced her to do what she couldn’t do.

Yumeji knew that it was a naive idea to think that she would be forgiven if Itadori lived long. But if Itadori kept living, something would surely change. Because there were many people in this world who were willing to lend a helping hand to a child in distress.

Even if she were gone, Hitsugi, Hagakure, and that good-natured brother would take care of Itadori. So she wasn’t that worried. All that was left was for Itadori to pull herself together. –Because Itadori was more important to Yumeji than her family.

Itadori shook her head as if she didn’t understand her words.

“No, no, no, don’t leave me, please…”

“I’m sorry,–I love you, Kanae.”

She put her left hand on Itadori’s cheek and said how she truly felt. She’d been too stubborn to say her honest feelings, but she finally got to say it. Her friend who she loved more than anyone else. –If possible, I want us to grow up together.

The sensation of pain disappeared from her body, and her consciousness faded. She couldn’t even raise her eyelids anymore. But she felt somewhat calm.

She took a deep breath and relaxed. Just as she was about to accept everything, a voice echoed in her head.

“–Are you sure you’re okay with that?”

◆ ◆ ◆

While staring blankly at Yumeji’s hand, which had slipped down as if losing its strength, Itadori stared at her with a dumbfounded face.

“Nadeshiko-chan?”

Even when she shook her and asked her questions, her beautiful face didn’t move a twitch. Normally, she would have angrily told her not to shake her violently.

The doctors around her were yelling things that Itadori didn’t understand, like “Get the AED ready,” and “What about her vitals?”

“I don’t want it.”

–She already knew. Yumeji was pushing herself too hard. Even though it was painful, she had endured it desperately until now. So she felt sorry for not letting her rest until now.

“I don’t want it.”

Yumeji said her last words were curses. But it must have come from her kindness. Yumeji was always worried about Itadori. –She was always more concerned about Itadori than about herself.

“I don’t want it.”

Then she should answer. She would try her best to live so that Yumeji wouldn’t worry about her. She would be happy, and live long enough to make up for her – and she would do so.

“I don’t want it. This kind of thing.”

She spat out, clasping the hands that had lost their strength.

–I don’t care what happens in the future. I just want you to live in the present with me. I just didn’t want you to give up. That’s all I wanted.

“Please, God, save Nadekoshiko-chan. Please, please, please–I don’t care what happens to me.”

She spun her words with trembling lips as she wrapped both hands around Yumeji’s right hand in prayer. –If I really have power, why is it useless? Aptitude and talent meant nothing before fate. But still–she wished this voice would reach someone, someone (God).

As if in response to such an earnest wish, the lights on the ceiling flickered. Then, a loud bang echoed, and the room was enveloped in darkness.

–My dear child… I think it’s pathetic and stupid.

Somewhere in the distance, she thought she heard a voice like that of an old woman.