Editing Mushi Uta:Volume 5th Episode 20 (section)

=== Part 4 ===
They had probably manipulated the traffic lights around to make the road empty of cars.

On the large national road pelted by the raging rain was a line of green lights. On the other side, the opposite road was all red, stopping any cars that would want to enter.

Pursuing Mari who ran on top of building rooftops were two jeeps.

One was probably just checking the situation. The red vespa accelerated, following it from a bit behind. She couldn't see the driver well because of the rain, but they appeared to be small.

Who were they?

What was their goal, why were they chasing Mari?

She didn't know anything, but since they went to such lengths to prepare this stage, Mari’s pride wouldn’t allow her to run away from this road.

With the silver flash filling her mind to the brim, she was moving by her fighting instincts, intercepting the grim reaper and the rest.

"Let's gooo!"

On the black jeep, there were two people other than the driver. One of them—the fashionable imp she'd seen at the school gate that morning—swung her fists to the sides while holding her index finger and little finger up.

Her body spouted a thick, green-colored mist. The mist was absorbed into the ground and formed the shape of a centipede with countless legs, charging toward Mari.

The centipede was like a shadow running on the surface of the ground and building—and there were four of them.

“Among Special Types with long-range Mushi, many have mental interference abilities."

As the centipedes assaulted from all sides, Mari kicked the roof of a western confectionary, leapt and evaded.

But the needlessly spinning centipedes changed their orientation. Accelerating again, they pursued Mari as she landed at a convenience store.

"Automatic chasing—meaning that I fulfill the conditions for their ability."

Turning around with a calm face, Mari swung her lance to the sides.

Silver scales blew, swallowing the incoming centipedes one after another.

Yet one of them dodged the silver scales attack, stabbing its giant fangs into Mari's body. Turning into a thick green mist again, the centipede was absorbed into Mari's chest.

"Ugh—"

Her vision blurred.

Welling up in her chest without any reason was fear. The indescribable anxiety and paralysis muddied Mari's consciousness, making her lose her sense of direction.

For a moment, as she ran in incredible speed, Mari’s body tilted.

But—that was all.

"…You shouldn't have tried eating me. What a boring ability."

When Mari opened her eyes again, her body had already retrieved its calmness.

"Trying mental attacks on me is a nice joke."

Accelerating again to overtake the jeep, Mari sneered.

Mari had always been accompanied by the feeling known as fear. No attacks would work on her after she’d lived along with the true despair of not being able to have an easy death.

"I don't feel like going through training again, meow."

Riding along with the centipede girl was a tall woman. She stood with both legs inside the jeep that speeded on the road, her body shaking due to the movements.

"Even if this is punishment for slacking off on my job, it's a bit too much~"

At the same time she heard this flat voice, Mari's body was blown backwards.

"—A rare ability."

Mari instantly guarded with her lance due to her battle experience.

The woman standing in the jeep lowered her body slightly. At her waist she held a long and narrow Mushi full of pulsating, creepy holes.

As if sheathing her sword to cut, the woman slashed with her Mushi.

The pouring rain droplets sliced the air aiming at her.

"An equipment-type Mushi."

It apparently sucked the liquid into the hole and shot it. The ground that Mari stood on before leaping was crushed by the water blade.

"I'd like to go back and sleep, so die for now, meow!"

When Mari leapt to the air, she probably saw her chance. Shouting nonsense, the woman swung her Mushi in a straight line.

“It looked like a short-range ability, but you’re actually quite adaptable, aren’t you?”

Mari swung her silver lance downward.

The woman's attack split an empty building and it crumbled down.

On the other side Mari's attack gouged the ground like a tidal wave toward the jeep.

The victor was Mari’s attack. The scales that managed to slice even the woman’s water blade hurt the black jeep. It soon started spinning and was left behind.

She was curious about the “training” the woman mentioned, but the current Mari didn't question it.

"How about I try to guess the abilities of the rest?"

Running alongside the white jeep, Mari sneered.

“It works within the range of a Special Type, or perhaps some an indiscriminate ability. Since you didn’t attack me while you were with your allies, it was probably meant to protect them. —You probably possess a powerful ability, then."

Mari slashed her lance.

The scales cut off the road the jeep was driving on.

Not making it in time to step on the brakes, the jeep bumped against the hole in the ground and crashed.

"And so it ends. Goodbye, grim reaper."

She saw off the gas-masked person riding the jeep with a smile.

“Now, the only one remaining… is that small child.”

Until then only following from behind, the Vespa instantly accelerated.

Mari swung her lance.

The silver scales assaulted the Vespa.

"Why must I—"

The Vespa driver started crying. The finger she stuck out toward the scales brought forth a swarm of butterflies with C on their wings.

These pallid butterflies—the comma butterflies shot out.

The storm of electricity blew off the silver scales with a roar.

"Why must I fight Arisu-san like this!"

Mari knew the name of the girl who raised her head.

Horiuchi Erii. Just the other day, Arisu and Daisuke captured this Mushitsuki for the SEPB.

Even controlling this area's traffic lights was probably the work of the electricity-controlling girl.

"I borrowed this analog bike but I can't ride it well…! My ability isn’t suited for the frontlines…!”

The eyes of Erii visible beneath the goggles were welling up with tears. She desperately gripped the handle as to not be blown by the wind, using one hand to hold down her helmet.

"…!"

Mari's eyes caught something approaching her with the speed of a bullet.

A silver string—no, a chain.

The thing attached to the edge of the chain… was it a sickle? Passing above Mari’s head as she lowered her body to evade, the sickle pierced a faraway building.

The moment after the chain closed in, a grey shadow came leaping from behind it.

It was the gasmask grim reaper. She thought his jeep was overturned and he was left behind, but he was approaching Mari using a very unexpected way of moving.

As the grim reaper promptly closed in on her, he launched an attack using a large sickle.

"So you really are a grim reaper. First time I've seen that type of ability."

Mari was about to fight back using her spear, but then stopped to think.

She had a bad premonition.

It happened from time to time even during her life, when she’d been chased as Hunter. At such times the enemy was definitely hiding some sort of unthinkable ability.

"…!"

Following her instincts, she only lowered her head without parrying the grim reaper’s attack.

When they passed near each other, she could hear the grim reaper clicking his tongue.

He leapt over Mari, landing on the distant building top. It was probably a weapon with no physical substance in the first place. Countless small chains and sickles were created around the suit covering his entire body.

The sickles spread in all directions as if being shot. They tied buildings to buildings and power poles to power poles to form paths.

Going on top of the chain, the grim reaper was lying in wait for Mari.

"Ehehe."

She sneered once again.

Although he was a mere worm that came crawling out of somewhere—she was going to enjoy this.

His usage of his idiosyncratic ability was still immature, his fighting style was complex, and he couldn't fight along with his comrades.

Even so, he never stepped back even when facing Hunter—Mari. 

Even so as one person, in front of Mari, she couldn't take a step back. He was apparently even more afraid to run from the battlefield than he was to face this enemy possessing overwhelming strength.

There was nothing to criticize about his potential.

But he was noticeably unused to battle.

"Try again after fighting a hundred Mushitsuki."

The edge of Mari’s spear expanded as she swung it.

The blade of the lance transformed to large Morpho butterfly wings brought forth an overwhelming number of scales.

"Ahaha!"

She laughed derisively and was about to blow away both the grim reaper and the building behind him.

Suddenly, as Mari rushed ahead to close the distance, the grim reaper threw something over her head.

Glowing while mixed with the wind and rain, that object looked like a metallic sphere.

"Sorry, Arisu-san!"

Ellie shouted, producing countless comma butterflies from her fingertips. The electricity-emitting butterflies used the medium of rain and danced toward Mari.

Gasping, Mari looked up the sky.

Between the thick clouds she could see lines of light.

"…!"

The roar shook the national road.

The various lightnings in the sky combines, striking Mari.

The metal sphere was probably a dielectric. It allowed Erii’s Mushi to connect the sky and earth and fulfilled its role to guide the lightning.

"—"

Her vision was filled with golden light.

This violent light was like the sun, the strongest light possible in nature.

The silver light permeating Mari's mind was instantly blown away.

Her thinking was recovered.

The other consciousness controlling it—slightly dulled.

"Kwah…!"

Mari flew out unscathed from within the blowing gale and smoke.

This was only Mari’s reason—but the most important thing in a battle is how to defend against an enemy’s surprise attack. How to definitely protect oneself in situations where the enemy’s ability is unknown or from some unknown situation. She figured that her accumulated battle experience had helped her with this.

"Ugh—"

That experience allowed her body to move on its own. Predicting that lightning would be called, she immediately escaped the line connecting the comma butterflies and the medium. If she moved even a nanosecond later, she would have undoubtedly received heavy damage.

"Eek…"

Being stared by Mari who held her forehead, Erii raised a shriek on the motorcycle.

She was slightly numb, but received no damage.

But more importantly, the inside of her mind was in completely disarray.

"I-I'm… why—"

''Why am I running here?''

''Where was I heading?''

''What makes me have so much fun?''

"—"

The silver light illuminated Mari as she attempted to think.

The light source was the lance she was gripping.

Bathed by that silver light, Mari's thinking was again dulled—

"…!"

The grim reaper didn't allow her to retrieve her calm. Leaping from the chain linked between buildings, he swung the large scythe held on his back aiming for Mari's thin neck.

A sharp pain ran through her head.

While grimacing, Mari dodged the blade, leaving the grim reaper behind.

But the grim reaper did not let up. Unleashing his sickles ahead, he reeled in the chains stabbed into the building to pull his own body ahead.

Mari dodged the large scythe swung down at her from behind without even turning around.

Once again, the grim reaper threw the chains ahead, trying to block Mari from jumping over him. He didn’t simply swing his weapon, but at times sent flurries of kicks and punches as well.

Moving along the routes created by his own chains, the grim reaper kept persistently swinging his scythe at Mari.

His movements were superhuman.

Truly a grim reaper.

It wasn't that his body was strengthened like Mari; this was perhaps the first time Mari had met someone who could match her movements.

“—You’re too stubborn, so I have to send you back to hell.”

Mari's mouth moved on its own. She was surprised at how low her voice was.

The silver scales pounded the grim reaper against the wall of a building.

"Yakugami-san!"

Erii’s scream flew from the motorcycle, but it was a needless worry.

Although he'd struck the concrete with high speed, the grim reaper soon unleashed another chain. Pulling on the chain that stuck to the distant building, he ran after Mari again. Since she couldn't see his face, she also couldn’t tell if he received damage or not.

“Will you not give up unless I cut you to shreds?”

The silver light emitted by the lance lit Mari’s cruel face.

''No—''

Somewhere inside Mari’s head, the barely remaining reason whispered against her cold sneer.

''I do not want to do this sort of thing…!''

Then what did she want to do—even if she tried thinking about this, the silver light assaulting her mind made that impossible.

The grim reaper flung another metal ball above Mari.

"How boring. Do you think the same trick will work twice?"

Snorting, Mari took evasive action.

But suddenly her body became sluggish.

The power she used to kick the building roof weakened for a split second.

"Eeeek…!"

The echoing boom shook Mari's eardrums.

Although she avoided direct impact, the lightning grazed her within a hairsbreadth.

"Eh…?"

The attacking Erii raised a surprised voice. She probably hadn’t expected to be successful.

It was natural for her to be surprised.

From what they saw—it probably looked like Mari herself leapt into the lightning.

"—"

The golden light pierced Mari along with an impact.

She gritted her teeth just as she felt about to faint.

The violent electric light pushed away the silver flash controlling her mind.

"Just like—I thought…"

With some of her clothes burned, without letting down her running speed, Mari gazed with anger at the Morpho butterfly lance in her hand.

"So it was you…!"

Shock therapy was too dangerous, but—by intentionally receiving that attack, Mari finally came back to her senses.

As if to resist Mari’s sharp gaze…

The silver lance emitted even stronger light.

"Ugh—"

Mari's consciousness blurred again.

However, by biting her lips, she kept her ego from being controlled.

“The one controlling me—no, in the first place you were behind it all…!”

She now realized.

Mari found out the nature of the impulse moving her until now.

No, never mind that, it was the cause for everything that happened today—

"…!"

The moment she understood everything, tears welled up from frustration.

This definitely was no happiness.

Even so, she felt pure bliss at this miraculous day and acted like an idiot.

There was no way this rod would be the cause. It was nothing more than a switch—yes, she'd noticed it already.

Her time spent today was too fun.

The day she spent as Arisu was full of too much happiness.

And so she forgot—about the enemy that hid the nearest to her.

"Ugh…!"

The Morpho butterfly lance kept shining.

Even if Mari desperately resisted, the inside of her head was gradually dyed in silver.

Her past memories.

The thing overwriting the personality of Hanashiro Mari was none other than—

"Do you want to Mature that badly…?!"

The edge of the lance—the surface of the blade made of wings bore eyes that glowed red.

This blood-like pure red eyes glared at Mari. It was waiting for its host to become nourishment.

The happiness Mari felt at freedom, and the desire that sought release.

Those came not from Mari herself, but from the Mushi possessing her.

"Using this rod, you kept eating my dream—"

A gift?

A joyous day?

They were nothing but a sham.

This highest-grade weapon in the form of a silver rod was simply a suitable tool for the Morpho butterfly that wanted eating her dreams. It became the switch to bring Mari’s sleeping personality—her dream—to the surface.

And then once she appeared it tried eating her consciousness.

It was an underhanded and a cruel Mushi.

"Uugh…!"

‘An unthinkable event’—

‘Have no idea what would happen’—

These words didn't refer to this rod, which was a mere tool.

The being these words referred to was always at her side.

Mari's Mushi.

The silver Morpho butterfly.

A being irregular in everything.

Her having awakened instead of Arisu this morning was nothing more than the Morpho butterfly’s trap.

"…!"

The grim reaper leaping above Mari's head once again assumed a chasing position.

Mari dodged the scythe attacking her from all directions while giddy.

"Kh…!"

The Morpho butterfly’s glow grew stronger and stronger, eroding Mari’s consciousness.

But Mari had to use the power of her Mushi. If she separated herself from the Morpho butterfly while moving at such speeds Arisu’s body would be smashed against the ground.

While feeling her sense of self diluting, Mari thought desperately.

How could she escape this situation?

How could she fight against the Morpho butterfly's Maturation?

"…!"

When she dodged the grim reaper's attack, Mari opened her eyes wide with surprise.

The thing that received the attack of the scythe instead of Mari was the board of a family restaurant.

The board had a non-physical scythe stabbing through it, but didn't seem to be damaged. However, the board's surface became rusted, and the neon light vanished from it with creaking sounds.

As she turned around and glared behind, the same phenomenon happened in another spot.

The places cut by the grim reaper's scythe, or perhaps the places stabbed and connected by the unleashed chains—all of them were assaulted by abnormalities.

The electric board installed on the power pole emitted sparks, a tall tree withered, a bird touched by the chain couldn't fly and leapt on the ground.

They were hurt.

Or perhaps dulled.

Whenever the grim reaper’s ability touched anything, its activities—were weakened.

A certain thought came to Mari's mind.

But to accomplish it she needed a great determination.

"Uh—"

As the Morpho butterfly was about to control her any second now, she had no other choice.

She knew that.

However—

"AAAAAHHH!"

It really was fun.

Even if it was just a trap, this day had given Mari unthinkable happiness.

Everything she felt was a bliss.

Just the joy of simply living.

That time was precious to her.

Right, she even wanted to become her supposed friend Arisu for that—

"…!"

She understood that the gasmask grim reaper was surprised due to his presence.

Mari—stopped the scythe with her silver lance.

The grim reaper's scythe clashed with the Morpho butterfly lance.

The next moment, the ashen chains floating to the scythe infected the silver lance. The Morpho butterfly fused with it rampaged with pain, separating its wings.

"…!"

Before the fusion was fully absolved, Mari swung her lance vertically.

The sharp tip slashed the gasmask to two.

Revealed then was a boy’s face that seemed too kind to be called a grim reaper.

"Oh… you've been 'touched'."

When she thought she saw the boy wore a thin smile, he soon grimaced.

"Uh—"

Being flung to the sky, he pressed on his exposed face and groaned.

"Waaaah!"

Countless sickles flew from the boy’s body to all directions. They reached walls and poles, stabbing into anywhere and everywhere to form a long chain prison.

Mari immediately leapt away from the boy.

He couldn't control his ability.

As he’d shown such a fearsome way of fighting, she thought that he was fully trained. 

But in actuality it was different. Just like his friends, he was just another immature Mushitsuki.

"I-If I don't pass because of that I'll be depressed, really…"

Apparently he wasn’t rampaging. The boy with the anguished face flung his large scythe toward Erii’s Vespa before crashing into the ground.

"Eh—w-why…!"

When the blade stabbed the red vehicle, the engine sounds grew quieter. The doubtful Erii was left behind.

It was a decisive measure. —Erii was too immature to be fighting against Mari. If she continued fighting like this, the young girl would get seriously injured.

Whatever the case, he didn’t wish to fight Mari any longer.

She crushed the unknown assassin.

Mari further grimaced.

While running along the national road, she looked at the lance infected with rust.

The Morpho butterfly's wings already didn't take the form of blades. The body emitting a silver light was anguished with the rust that wouldn’t let go.

An unthinkable injury—it was not.

Mari had gotten hit by the grim reaper’s ability on purpose.

"…"

Mari bit her lips, focusing.

The essence of scales surrounding her instantly changed.

From scales that would slice whatever touched them, they became a warm and soft glow.

When the gently glowing scales wrapped the rod, finally the Morpho butterfly's movement calmed down. The progress of the rust on the rod's surface stopped and vanished a bit from the surface.

She couldn’t cancel the ability that could rust anything—the grim reaper’s curse.

She simply made the ability's effect sleep.

"Hahhh… Hahh…!"

Using this ability harshly consumed her energy.

But she had no other way.

Slowly.

Little by little, she would purify the rust eating the rod using the Morpho butterfly's power.

Although this rod had high specs and compatibility with the Mushi, until the day this rust would be perfectly purified it would be unable to use its original ability.

Meaning—the rod lost its role as the switch to let Mari appear on the surface like this.

She just returned it to how it was before this rod.

To the relationship of Mari and Arisu from before, when she’d been called only in battle.

Even so her heart ached so bad it nearly burst—perhaps because she came to experience this overly happy day.

"…"

The road's end.

On the rooftop of the very last building, Mari finally stopped.

More precisely, the road wasn't cut off here. It still continued and split off to connect to other cities.

This was the final stop of Akamaki City.

If she continued just a bit further, Mari would be able to leap into a new world—

"…"

But Mari didn't think of heading there.

Her bangs that were wet by the rain clung to her forehead.

The owner perhaps pouring their efforts to the greening of their rooftop, there was pretty grass on top of stone slabs. These flowerpots surrounded by water channels had the scent of spring. Born in a florist’s house, Mari felt pity at them being exposed to the rain and wind like this.

With droplets dripping from her forehead, Mari walked to the fence.

"…"

Putting her head on the fence, she stifled her voice and cried.

Even she didn't know why she was crying.

This day had been so much fun.

Everything around her was fresh and filled with happiness.

Her heart nearly danced with the excitement.

"Sorry, Arisu…"

While shedding endless tears, she apologized to her friend.

It didn't mean that her memories from when she was alive fully returned.

But she wanted to apologize for stealing today from her.

All of the happiness Mari felt belonged to Arisu.

Even so Mari stole that from her—and wanted to keep doing so.

"Sorry…"

If she stole Arisu’s body going on, she would be assaulted by the impulse to run away to where nobody knew her.

At the same time, though, she knew.

Mari had nowhere to go to—she had no way to escape from the Morpho butterfly she had left behind in this world.

"Why did I… leave the Morpho butterfly to you…"

She thought it was strange.

Did she want to steal her friend's body and keep on leaving?

If so—did she know that hell would wait her past there?

The sense of loneliness in a world where no one knew who she was.

The human called Hanashiro Mari was no longer anywhere in the truest sense of the world.

Even so, this overly sweet happiness had been prepared for her.

A dreamlike—living hell.

"Why… on earth…"

The Morpho butterfly detached from Mari's body and the rod.

Having controlled Mari until now, the Morpho butterfly landed on the fence and turned its red eyes to Mari.

Just a little longer and it would have stolen her body—

It wasn’t just Mari.

The Morpho butterfly also tried stealing Arisu’s body through Mari.

That was the Mushi's Maturation.

It wanted to control its host’s heart and then steal their body.

"Why…"

Would the one who could answer Mari’s self-question be where she was looking at?

It wasn't.

There was a strong person in town enough to save her.

He would come soon.

Following Mari.

Since she had no other person to leave matters to—Mari decided to wait there.

While gazing at the world she'd never known.

While dreaming about the world outside her hometown, she waited for him.

"—Took you long."

When her tears dried, the person she'd been waiting for appeared.

With his black wing-like coat flapping, the boy landed down near Mari.

He was another Fusion Type Mushitsuki, Kakkou.

The pitch-black demon slowly approached Mari.

"Don’t worry; I will soon return this body to Arisu."

The boy's legs stopped. He slowly raised his hand holding the handgun.

"Also, I'll vanish soon… back to waiting for Arisu to call me."

Having been reborn today, Mari would vanish just like droplets after the rain—

Mari looked at Daisuke, giggling.

“When that happens… perhaps it could be fun fighting against a fellow Fusion-Type.”

The boy's readied gun stopped right as it aimed at her forehead.

"Or actually—are you going to kill this Maturing Mushi now?"

Still holding his gun prepared, the demon opened his mouth.

"Which will you choose?"

Mari and Daisuke.

High up in the city, where the wind and rain blew, two Mushitsuki faced each other—

"Ehehe."

Mari opened her wet mouth, naming her wish.