[26 June 2010, Yakushima Island]
[Flashback…]The stars in the night sky were breathtaking, scattered across the vast ocean of darkness, shining as beacons of light.Look at them—aren't they beautiful? They are proof that even in the deepest night, beauty still exists. They are hope in the darkness.
Mirai…If you ever feel sad and miss your mother, just look at the stars.
"Granny… why did Mother leave me and my little brother?"
Mirai… Your mother is always near you, watching over you from the beauty of the stars. She became one of them, because that is the fate of our family. Our family is special.
"Then… when Granny leaves too, will you become like Mother?"
Granny pulled her grandson into a warm embrace and whispered, "Granny will never leave you. But when my time comes… I will become the brightest star for you."
[Back to the present time]
Raindrops...Falling to the earth...Soaking the ground...Masking the tears that stream down a grieving face...
In the distance, the waves crashed against the cliffs, blending with the whisper of the night wind.But tonight was unlike any other.
Grandmother Mirai gazed at Moei.
So many things she wanted to say, so many questions she wished to ask.Why? How? But now was not the time. She had to focus on the battle. She had to find an opening to strike back.
She thought to herself, "My current condition is unfavorable. The longer this fight drags on, the more certain my defeat becomes. How do I turn the tide?"
"If I stay on the defensive, the chimera will fall. But Moei... she's preparing something in the background. What is that symbol she's drawing? A summoning...? But what kind of creature is she calling forth?"
"I never expected Moei to be this strong, even at her old age. She's still just as formidable as she was in her youth. But I know her—she always evolves, always has her own strategy, always. But what did you sacrifice to retain such a youthful appearance... my dear sister?"
If I attack recklessly now, she might have already set a trap. But if we keep stalling, I'll surely lose... and die.To be honest, the night is drawing closer, and her spirit power holds the advantage.
"Damn it... If only I were as strong and young as before." (crack—the sound of her back stiffening.)"There's only one way."
Moei, seeing Fuyumi beginning to tire, smiled at her.
"Fuyumi... If you were still as young as before, I'd be the one losing this fight."
"Even though I'm old now, my spirit still burns brightly."
Grandmother Mirai released the sigil on her hands, giving Mirai a small smile before vanishing into the raging flames—leaving Mirai alone.
"Where did she go? Hmm... Knowing your habits, you're definitely aiming for me… Not a bad strategy, but how will you get here?"
Just as Moei stayed on high alert, a bell rang. She quickly turned—toward the Manticore.
Her eyes widened in disbelief.
From behind the Chimera, Grandmother Mirai emerged, gripping her spear. She sprinted forward and hurled it straight at the Manticore's head. At the same time, the Chimera lunged, sinking its fangs into the Manticore's throat. Though it suffered attacks in return, it refused to let go.
Grandmother Mirai swiftly retreated back to Mirai's side, locking eyes with Moei.
"Checkmate."
Moei laughed. The scene reminded her of the past—her sister had pulled the exact same trick before.
A sigil on the Chimera's body suddenly began to glow, radiating a blinding white light.
With the Manticore's final roar, the earth trembled. Then—an earth-shattering explosion erupted, obliterating the ground around them.
Blood rained from the sky.
Moei was thrown back, injured—but even so, she never loosened her grip on the sigil she had formed with both hands.
"She made me think I was the target, then vanished into the flames, aided the Chimera… and turned it into a bomb."
Moei burst into laughter.
"Moei, it's over… Your Manticore is gone. You're injured. All you have left are the corpses of the villagers you've cocooned beside you."
"Over? Over? Over? Over? OVER? OVER!!"
Her eyes burned with madness as she glared at Grandmother Mirai and Mirai.
Grandmother Mirai's expression shifted.
She hadn't noticed it before—but now, an ominous, repulsive aura had begun to rise behind Moei.
Everyone who saw it felt an overwhelming sense of dread.
Moei had finished. She let go of her hands.
"KHA KHA HA HA HA!""HA HA HA!"
With a sly, twisted laugh... a wide grin stretched across her face... and the world around them began to shift—
Darkness spread.
A thick fog rolled in.
Every raging flame was snuffed out. The wind howled, growing fierce. And then, Moei released something—her dark aura surged, filling the entire temple.
Something even darker, something fused with Moei's own blood, shot into the sky.
"Do you know what that is?" Moei sneered."That is the mass of corpses and blood from the entire village. Sister… you failed to protect them."
"CHECKMATE."
Moei locked eyes with Grandmother and Mirai, flashed them a smile—then turned and walked away.
Mirai saw her enemy leaving. She wanted to chase her. But—
Her body froze.
The entire island felt unbearably heavy… as if something was watching them.
Every animal, every living creature, stood frozen—staring at the sky.
Raindrops fell.
Thunder rumbled.
The ground trembled.
And then—a great crack echoed across the entire island.
The air shifted. It thickened, pressing against them, draining the oxygen from their lungs.
The gaping portal stretched wider, hissing—whispers, countless voices murmuring in unison.
An unfamiliar scent poured out.
It wasn't sulfur.
It wasn't blood.
It was something that should not exist in this world.
Grandmother Mirai swallowed hard. Cold sweat formed on her skin. She knew exactly what Moei had done. And it was dangerous.
"So… it's finally happening." Her voice was barely a whisper.
Mirai gulped. Her heart pounded violently. "W-what… what is that?" Her grandmother didn't answer.
But in her eyes, Mirai saw something she had never seen before. Something between fear… and surrender.
[A shiver ran down her spine.]
From within the portal—
Something crawled out.
The air grew suffocating.
The wind swirled into a violent storm, ripping leaves and branches from the trees.
The once-bright moonlight— Was now swallowed whole by the figure that emerged. Two glowing red eyes pierced through the darkness.
Heavy breaths echoed, followed by a deep, guttural growl that rumbled across the hills. The ground trembled beneath Mirai's feet.
Something was crawling out of that abyss—massive, monstrous. It stretched its limbs, prying apart the fractured sky, unleashing a roar that shook the entire island.
And it wasn't alone.
Other creatures emerged, flying out like humanoid bats, their wings slicing through the night.
Then—
A massive hand.
Enormous.
It clawed its way out of the portal, reaching directly toward the temple where Mirai and her grandmother stood.
They didn't move.
They didn't speak.
The night itself seemed to fall into silence.
...
...
Until—
A deep blue light erupted at the foot of the hill.
"That light… it's coming from near the house."
Mirai and her grandmother froze, eyes locked on the distance, watching as the blue flames burned brighter.
But it wasn't just fire.
It breathed. It pulsed, alive, like something with a will of its own.
And at the heart of it all—
A lone figure stood.
Far, far away, hovering in the sky, so distant that Mirai had to crane her neck just to see.
Leya.
She advanced slowly.
Then—
With a single movement, the wing of blue fire on her back flared, tearing through the cold night air.
When her feet touched the ground, dust and shattered stones erupted in all directions.
Leya didn't hesitate.
She shot forward—too fast for the eye to catch—her flames leaving a blazing trail across the sky, like a comet descending upon the earth.
Every monster in her path was torn apart.
Her sword gleamed, slicing through the darkness.
The air around it trembled, like glass cracking under unbearable heat.
SRRAKK!
Grandmother Mirai inhaled deeply, her gaze shifting toward Mirai, who was holding onto her tightly.
"Mirai, my dear… Protect your sister. And yourself."
"G-Grandma… No, we can still run! The enemy already left! Kelfin must've found Hayato by now… So please, let's go, Grandma…"
Mirai stared at her grandmother.
Those words kept echoing in her head, merging with the pounding of her heart, growing louder, stronger.
Her fists clenched. Her breath came in short, shaky gasps.
But before she could ask more—
A deafening explosion thundered in the distance.
Blue flames erupted into the night sky, stealing her attention back to the battle.
Far away, Leya stood like a war deity, hovering in midair, her sword carving through the night with fire that danced wildly, as if it had a will of its own.
Grandmother remained silent. Then, she smiled.
"Because this is the land of our family—our birthplace. From the beginning until now, it has been our duty to protect this hill. That was our promise to the goddess… and in return, our family was blessed. Special. But… your mother also sacrificed herself to seal away something, just like what's happening above us now."
"For what? I don't want to be special! I… I just want to live a normal life… I want us to be normal again… to laugh together at the breakfast table. I know Mother sacrificed herself… but you're all we have left!"
"My dear… I believe your future will be bright. So stand tall, face your fate… and know that you will never be alone."
She gently stroked Mirai's head—before forming a protective seal.
A force pushed Mirai away.
Everything slowed down.
Mirai staggered back, struggling to stop her grandmother.
Then—
The ground beneath the temple began to tremble.
The air was filled with the roars from above, and the deep rumbling of the portal that continued to widen.
Mirai felt a pressure building in her chest, not just from the overwhelming energy radiating from the sky, but from a growing, suffocating sense of dread.
She turned to her grandmother, hoping for reassurance—
But all she saw was the old woman standing still, her eyes locked onto the heavens.
Mirai's breath hitched.
Her grandmother wasn't watching Leya fight.
She was staring at something else.
Something far bigger.
Something far more terrifying.
"G-Grandma…"
Her voice trembled.
But her body wouldn't move.
Then, the wind howled.
As if the world itself was reacting to what was about to happen.
Her grandmother's robes billowed as golden light began to seep from her body.
Mirai wanted to run. To reach her. To stop her.
But her legs felt heavy—pulled down by an unseen force.
"It's time," her grandmother whispered, more to herself than to Mirai.
She raised her hand.
The light grew even brighter.
"Grandma! No—!"
Her voice broke.
But her steps felt impossibly slow.
Grandmother Mirai only smiled—a painful, peaceful smile.
"That's enough, Mirai. You must live…"
The light grew brighter, blinding, as if fighting back against the darkness that threatened to consume the world.
Her voice, chanting an ancient incantation, echoed like a farewell song that seeped into the bones.
She raised both hands toward the sky.
With closed eyes, she wept—yet still, she smiled, one last time, at Mirai.
Then, a golden light burst into the heavens.
Mirai wanted to run to her, to reach out and pull her back—
But her body refused to move.
Hot tears streamed down her cheeks.
At the same time—
Leya.
Standing before the massive rupture in the sky, she faced the monstrous hand reaching for her.
With a single, precise slash—She severed it.
In that instant, the darkened night was swallowed by a towering pillar of blue flames, stretching high into the heavens.
The thick clouds above, once suffocating and endless, split apart—As if bowing to the relentless blaze that tore through the sky. A thick, black liquid gushed from the severed hand.
A monstrous scream of agony erupted, shaking the very earth beneath them. In the distance, birds scattered in terror. The ground trembled violently beneath Mirai's feet, nearly knocking her over.
But Leya was far from finished. She didn't give the creature a chance to recover. With unwavering precision, she struck again—this time, straight downward.
Her blade descended, leaving behind a trail of blue fire that didn't dim—It grew. Like the blazing tail of a comet, it followed the arc of her strike. And still, she didn't stop.
She dove, her sword carving through the darkness, her flames devouring everything in their path.
The monster's thick, venomous blood never even reached the ground—It evaporated the moment it met her searing fire.
CRAAAKKK!
Through the roaring flames—
The darkness wailed in pain.
Between the severed fingers of the giant hand, a golden light shot into the sky.
Leya caught a glimpse of it.
The flesh and bone of the monstrous hand split all the way to its fingertips. The severed limb plummeted down the side of the mountain, crashing into the trees with a terrifying noise— A deafening, earth-shaking impact.
BOOM!
The ground trembled violently. The echo of destruction filled the air, followed by the splintering of trees and the rumbling of landslides. And then—In an instant, the golden light exploded upward. It pierced through the portal. And the world—Fell silent.
The golden radiance struck the monster and the fracture in the sky. And the moment it did, the light shattered, bursting into a brilliance that illuminated the heavens—Like witnessing a star from up close. The fracture— Was gone. The storm, the rain—Gone.
All that remained was the golden glow, falling gently from the sky like remnants of a celestial battle.
Leya, her body still wreathed in blazing blue flames, slowly descended.
The fire that once roared so fiercely now dimmed—
And when her feet touched the temple ground, She said nothing.
She simply walked forward, drawn toward the sound of a woman's sorrowful cries—
A voice she knew.
Leya's gaze settled on Mirai, who was clutching her grandmother's lifeless body.
Mirai wanted to scream.
But the sound—
Would not come.
The golden glow pulsed brighter—
And in an instant,
Her grandmother's form began to fade within the luminous shimmer. The air around her felt hollow.
Mirai reached out—
But grasped only emptiness.
As if her grandmother had truly vanished—
With the wind.
…
...
...
...
Somewhere near the island, the rain still poured heavily.
A lone figure stood still, their long coat soaked, clinging to his body. He gazed at the sky, where golden embers drifted down like the dying remnants of a star.
He took a deep breath.
Raising a hand, he let the golden fragments fall onto his palm.
Warm.
Then, slowly—
They faded, leaving only a faint trace against his skin. His eyes narrowed, watching the last remnants of light with quiet contemplation. And then, he looked up at the sky.
"There's no other choice."
Not far from him, something exploded. When he turned to his left, beyond the trees, along the road, a bright red light blazed.
Seeing it, he smiled.
"Keep moving, Kelfin."
...…
Meanwhile, elsewhere…
The people who had kidnapped Hayato had already set sail, leaving the island behind. They chatted among themselves, discussing how they would spend the money they were about to receive, their eyes occasionally glancing at the sky, where the chaos had finally settled.
But then, one of them noticed something and pointed toward the dock.
They froze.
The kidnappers stood in shock, unable to believe what they were seeing.
The figure that should have been dead was still standing there on the dock—body covered in wounds, an arrow still lodged in him.
"Shit… That's impossible," one of them muttered, hands trembling.
Kelfin raised a hand.
From his palm, a crimson glow pulsed, forming a dark spear drenched in blood.
The air around them suddenly grew heavy, and the sky seemed to tremble.
"Hurry! Get out of here now!!" the captain shouted in panic.
For a moment, they thought this was their end…
But in the next instant, Kelfin's body wavered.
The space behind him distorted, cracks forming in the air. Darkness enveloped him, pulling him into nothingness.
In mere seconds—
He was gone.
Without a sound. Without a trace.
...…
Back to Leya.
She simply stared at the sky while Mirai remained on the ground, weeping over her grandmother's passing.
Leya walked over to a fallen villager, reaching into his pocket and pulling out a phone.
She dialed a number.
A voice on the other end responded, "Okay, boss. Help is on the way."
Leya ended the call, gazing at the sky once more.
………
One week later, Tokyo.
[The large screens in central Tokyo broadcast the news.]
"Today, the police released an official investigation report regarding the strange disaster on Yakushima Island. The island, home to around 7,000 residents and three villages, was struck by an unusual thunderstorm. According to the villagers' accounts, as they took shelter inside their homes, they heard eerie roars echoing across the island. Some even claimed to have seen a giant monster in the night sky. However, since they were on the other side of the island, they could not see it clearly. Furthermore, several villages disappeared due to earthquakes that destroyed houses and infrastructure. Yet, when authorities inspected the affected areas, no traces of bodies were found—as if the people had vanished into thin air. The police are still…"
Leya walked through the crowded streets, a cup of warm coffee in her hand.
But suddenly—Her steps halted. Her breath caught in her throat. Across the street, amidst the sea of people—she saw him. Someone who shouldn't be here. Her eyes widened. Her heart pounded.
"Wait…!"
She pushed through the crowd, shoving past strangers, sprinting toward the intersection. But when she arrived—
He was gone.
Still catching her breath, she frantically glanced around, scanning every direction.
Then, near her, a homeless old woman giggled softly—clutching something in her arms.
Leya's breath hitched. It was something she had lost a long time ago. Now, it was in the old woman's hands.
…
Somewhere far… Green trees surrounded a vast open field, stretching like a golden savanna. A young man emerged from the shadow of the forest. His red-and-white striped shirt fluttered in the wind. He stopped, gazing at the horizon.
Then, slowly—
He turned back.
"Someone was looking for me, huh?"
He resumed walking, passing by trees with old carvings on their trunks.
A name was etched into the bark. Valerie Village.
["Sometimes, we don't know when our last tears will fall. That's why—cherish today as if it were your last. Hug and appreciate your parents. Right now."]