Editing Mushi Uta:Volume 14 Chapter 1 (section)

== 1.08 Rina Part 6 ==

Rina thought of three ways to stop C from taking in Oogui.

One: Rina could defeat Oogui on the spot.

Two: Rina could defeat C on the spot.

Three: She didn’t know who it was, but she could find the person whose dreams were getting eaten—and do something about it.

“Who’s even dreaming right now, in this place and time…?!”

Methods one and two—were out of the question. If they were the kinds of opponents she could sacrifice herself to beat, she wouldn’t hesitate. However, Oogui could use Shiika’s powers and the location of C’s real body was unknown, so if she fought them Rina would just die in vain about nine out of ten times.

“There’s also Revived assembling there… if I don’t finish this quickly, this could be bad.”

The four glowing golden lights were apparently a trap in order to capture Oogui. Their middle was right above an interchange, where multiple roads crisscrossed each other.

Weaving her way through the assembling Revived, Rina made the seven-spotted ladybug land inside the interchange with great momentum.

She instantly found the human figure in question at this closed road that was empty from any vehicles.

“…There are two?”

There were two girls next to thick pillars supporting the interchange.

They seemed to be about Rina’s age. One had long, black hair and looked like a lady, while the other was a short-haired, androgynous-looking girl. They both supported each other.

“Which of them—no, I obviously can’t leave both of them here.”

The purple covering the skies turned thicker and thicker. Still controlling her Mushi, Rina rushed toward the pair.

“W-who are you?”

Seeing Rina, the long-haired girl spoke in a prim and proper tone of voice. Seeing as the other looked zoned out and made no response, it appeared like she was the one being targeted by Oogui.

“An ally! But I’ve got no time to explain! Let’s get away, right now!”

Pulling at the two girl’s arms, she made them stand up.

“A-an ally…?”

“I’m aware I suddenly showed up saying strange things. But please trust me. That girl’s in great danger. How do I put it—”

“She’s about to become a Mushitsuki… is that it?”

“…!”

Rina was so surprised she stopped moving.

“How do you—”

“Ena-san… experienced this before—”

“Before…? Ena…?”

A girl who was almost made a Mushitsuki before.

Ena.

These keywords raised sparks and booted up Rina’s memories—

“—”

She felt as though an icicle directly pierced her brain.

Letting go of the two girls, she took a step back.

“Ena—Saionji Ena…? From the night of the meteor shower…?”

As Rina unconsciously mumbled this, this time the long-haired looked shocked.

“Y-you know about it?”

She knew.

Rina obviously knew about that decisive fight.

After all, Rina was supposed to be one of its participants. She also heard the name of the girl who was supposed to be protected by it—Saionji Ena.

However, Rina had refrained from coming at the very last moment.

As a result, all the Mushitsuki who challenged this fight—

“Are you also phantoms…?”

“—Eh?”

Next to the long-haired girl furrowing her brows, she could see countless black arms reaching out.

They were the ghosts of the Mushitsuki Rina hadn’t managed to save. —Among them, there were also those who expired during the fight on that night.

That decisive fight had resulted in an almost complete annihilation and a loss.

During the Perseid Meteor Shower, the number of collapsed Mushitsuki among the falling stars was much more than a dozen or two.

“Were you two really there? O-or… are you two also ghosts that came back to life with me…?”

The line between reality and illusion was getting blurry within Rina.

“A-after all, why would you—appear in front of me now…?”

“W-whatever it is you are speaking about? I do not—”

Saying this, the long-haired girl’s face froze.

At some point, she noticed that many varied people were surrounding them.

They were the Revived.

Furthermore, there was a golden electrical discharge coming from the asphalt.

“…!”

Rina came back to her senses, and faster than she could turn around—

Reaching from the ground to the heavens, golden lightning pierced through the seven-spotted ladybug.

“—!”

A violent tremor and gale. As well as bursting air.

One of the four lights surrounding the interchange was unleashed by C. It was an electrical attack several times thicker than any of C’s lightnings she’d seen so far, and Rina bent backwards, voicelessly.

Not waiting for the aftershock of the lightning to settle down, the air was charging up yet again—

“—!”

The second lightning shot through the seven-spotted ladybug.

She might have judged that were she to strike Rina directly, she could have possibly also hit Ena who served as bait for Oogui. The seven-spotted ladybug hit by C’s powerful attack rose to the air from the impact, crashing against the intersection.

“This—”

Rina’s voiceless scream made her lungs vibrate.

Damage received by the Mushi would strike its host’s spirits.

Feeling an impact as though her heart was gouged, Rina slowly tilted to the side.

However, the moment before she collapsed—Rina fixed her position with all of her might, leaning forward.

“This is—nothing…!”

The scorched black seven-spotted ladybug unfurled its giant wings the moment before crashing down. As if to cover for the three girls, it began to hover above them.

“The other Rank 1s’ attacks—were much worse.”

The seven-spotted ladybug’s eyes were dyed in red. Its outer, scorched skin burst away, it vibrated its large wings in high speeds.

The scene in front of her eyes changed.

The road cracked, the Revived and their Mushi floated in air, and all high-rise buildings surrounding the road had haphazard cracks running through them.

Then—an explosion.

The soundless impact’s shockwave blew back everything that crumbled down.

“—”

The long-haired girl next to Rina opened her mouth wide in astonishment, unladylike.

This giant interchange could be said to be Akamaki City’s most important road.

Just seconds before, the modern cityscape was definitely there—but it became a plain of smooth debris in an instant. Here and there one could also see the Revived with half their body buried in dirt.

“N…Now, let us go! Get on!”

Hiding the fatigue and damage she’d accumulated, Rina brought the girls along with her on the ladybug’s back.

Stepping on the debris, the seven-spotted ladybug started running.

“Err… are you quite alright?”

While desperately clinging to the ladybug’s head, the long-haired girl spoke.

Rina smiled as she held up Ena.

“I’m perfectly fine. It was a nice refresher.”

That was a lie. The damage she’d received was large, and if they got surrounded again, she wasn’t confident she could burst through.

She needed to solve this situation as quickly as possible, so she needed to run.

“…”

Looking up at the sky, she could see it was dyed in purple as far as the eye could see.

“—I want to… see them… again—”

The girl called Saionji Ena mumbled as though in delirium.

Rina could see figures that seemed like Revived on the road ahead. She changed the seven-spotted ladybug’s course, running away with full speed.

“Why here and now…”

Rina asked Ena. The long-haired girl answered in her stead.

“Ena remained in her home even after the evacuation orders were sent. She said she felt that this tumult relates to Mushitsuki… so if she remained here, she might meet her past friends.”

''Idiot—

Rina groaned in her heart, biting her lips.

“I also lied to my parents and remained in the house with her… but even I felt like we took it too far, so I dragged her away. Once I did, though, some Mushitsuki people appeared here and there—and apparently Ena ended up recalling the past after seeing them.”

Saying that, the girl looked at Ena. She wasn’t shaken even after seeing Mushi, and she was worried for her friend even in this situation. Unlike her appearance, she seemed to have some guts.

“Err, my name is Kujou Takako. May I inquire as to your name?”

“…”

Rina couldn’t answer.

Even she felt unsure who she actually was. On top of that—the name she should introduce herself as belonged to the person who’d abandoned Ena before.

“—I wonder what’s up with this feeling like I can’t escape… there’s probably nothing I can do already… no matter where I go… as long as I don’t settle everything—”

As Rina mumbled to herself, Takako looked at her confused.

“I beg your pardon…?”

“Anyway, let’s escape for now. I won’t let this girl become a Mushitsuki—I’ll definitely get you out of Akamaki City safely.”

“But how…? The previous time, many Mushitsuki saved us. But now…”

Rina looked at the sky turning purple and sighed.

There was no more time. Oogui’s appearance was only a matter of time.

“Hey, listen to me. Saionji Ena-san—”

Rina held up Ena and called into her ears.

“The dream you have is very beautiful. A monster lured by that dream is coming.”

Ena just mumbled something to herself and made no response.

Takako looked worried, furrowing her brows.

“That it no good. Ena doesn’t seem to be able to hear anything… it was like that before as well.”

“Right, she dreamed before as well. Recall that time. Many Mushitsuki have fought to protect you. And among them…”

Rina’s comrades were there.

Many of her comrades went to the fight in place of her—and not a single one returned.

“Among them—there were your friends, right?”

Rina kept whispering.

“Why have they fought? Many people fought to protect you. Not because they wanted you indebted to them. Because they were trying to protect—their own dream.”

Ena showed no response.

“Because they all regretted it. All of them let such a monster find out about their precious dream. So they didn’t want you going through the same thing. And not just you; they wanted to more people like to be created… so they fought.”

“…”

“They didn’t want you to become a Mushitsuki. They wished for it, so they fought. That’s why so many Mushitsuki gathered there. Like your friend—Arisu.”

Ena’s shoulders twitched.

Takako looked shocked.

“You know about Arisu-san?”

“So… please, Ena—fight. It’s your turn, now.”

That fight on the night of the meteor shower no one knew about.

Rina had once even blamed Kakkou for that loss.

However, that distorted mutual hatred—had to end already. She had to stop averting her eyes away from her own sins and settle everything one matter at a time.

“Your dream isn’t something you should tell a monster like that, right?”

Ena’s mouth stopped.

“Fight, Ena! Could you lose to that monster again—and yet face Arisu?”

“…”

“Wake up! If you beat that monster, you could meet Arisu!”

Ena’s clouded pupils retrieved their light.

“Wake up! Ena!”

“Ena-san…”

Takako looked at her back worriedly.

The short-haired girl—raised her face.

Rina felt that her hugged body was regaining its strength.

Ena’s eyes now clearly looked back at Rina. A lone streak of tears ran down the corner of her eye.

“…Who are you…?”

“Ena-san!”

There were also tears in the jubilant Takako’s eyes.

Looking up to the sky, she could feel the purple presence distancing itself. Seeming almost regretful, as if it was being pulled back by its hair, the sky slowly retrieved its previous color.

“I heard… your voice…”

Ena hugged back Rina strongly.

“Welcome back. …You’ve done well.”

Rina stroked Ena’s head.

She had no confidence she could actually cause Ena to wake up just by calling her.

However—she felt like the girl understood her feelings once she heard the name Arisu. She knew that this name was special for her, and that it held that much power.

Anyway, she managed to avoid the worst-case scenario.

“Now we need to find a way to escape. Hold on tight.”

“Thank you very much. Truly…”

Takako grabbed Rina’s armed and thanked her.

Rina couldn’t return her smile. She actually felt her chest constrict.

“Please. Don’t thank me… I actually—”

''I actually abandoned you once before—

She couldn’t get these words out of her mouth. Rina looked back at Ena and Takako’s confused looks.

As if to escape their gazes, Rina turned her eyes to the front.

“It’s not going to be easy for the three of us to escape Akamaki City safely. The bridge connecting to Higano City’s probably sealed… I wish there was some way without any electricity so that C wouldn’t find us, but there’s no way a place like that—”

Ena and Takako who were with Rina were also in danger. Since Oogui had her eyes on Ena once, C might try to use her again.

“A place connected to Higano City without any electricity…”

Takako raised her voice.

“If that’s what we need—I have an idea.”