Hand in hand, Kei walked down the sunlit corridor.

Even a place she was used to seeing every day now seemed like an exciting adventure playground to her.

“What’s that?”

“Oh, that’s the training grounds.”

Following Kei’s gaze, Clam answered gently.

Kei peeked out the window and, upon seeing the training area, her face lit up.

“It’s like a park! There’s so much cool stuff!”

“Yeah, I think Mizuhi made it all by hand. She used scrap materials and brought a bunch of stuff together to build it.”

“Mizuhi?”

“…Yeah, that’s right.”

Watching Kei tilt her head in confusion made Clam want to cry for some reason.

(You’re… one of the kids she tried to protect. This place meant so much to you.)

Even if she said that aloud, it wouldn’t mean anything to Kei right now.

So Clam simply gave a vague smile.

She knew Kei would eventually return to normal.

Still, the fact that Kei had forgotten about the others, even for a moment, was painful.

It felt like the ultimate insult to her.

“I wanna meet Mizuhi too!”

“Mm—she’s working right now. So, maybe next time.”

“…Mmm, okay.”

Kei nodded, a little dejected.

Rinka chuckled as she patted Kei’s head.

“Then we’ll just have to play with you lots to make up for it!”

With that, Rinka scooped Kei up and spun her around high in the air.

Kei immediately brightened again and laughed.

“Kyahaha! Rinka onee-chan, faster, faster!”

“All right! I’m gonna spin you so fast!”

Rinka glanced at Clam.

There was a complicated smile on her face.

(You’re surprisingly sensitive. Maybe even more messed up than Kei herself.)

To Rinka, Clam’s mental state already seemed worn down.

With an inward sigh, she decided to make a suggestion to the two of them.

“Then how about we actually go to the training grounds?”

“Really!?”

“Yup. …Come on, you’re coming too.”

“A-Ah, yeah. Let’s go.”

“Okay!”

Kei grabbed Clam’s hand again.

Her face was still just as innocent as ever.

—

Beneath the clear blue sky, the training grounds looked just like an obstacle course.

At least, that’s how it appeared to Kei.

“Yaaaay!”

As soon as they arrived, Kei let go of their hands and darted off at full speed.

“Careful now—”

Rinka shrugged and followed her, clearly amused despite herself.

Clam, in contrast, could only stand and watch.

(If that’s the real Kei… if she’s actually scared of fighting, then what am I…)

The more Clam got to know Kei, the more she understood.

Just how powerless she really was.

(I have to make her smile… even if just for a little while. And then… send her back to the battlefield?)

She understood logically that there was no other choice.

But still, she couldn’t help but think—

(I want her to keep smiling. Always.)

It was a pure wish.

An innocent wish that could never be granted in this world.

(How can I save her…)

Ever since seeing that notebook, Clam had been asking herself that.

A normal girl who fears fighting, who fears death—that’s who Narou Kei is supposed to be.

But the world won’t allow that version of her to exist.

It keeps forcing the role of Sorciera onto her.

(Why does it have to be her… why…!)

A surge of anger welled up, with no target to aim at.

The more she watched Kei smile so innocently, the stronger it became.

“—Oh? Clam, what are you doing here?”

A familiar voice snapped Clam out of her rage.

She turned to see her childhood friend standing there.

“Hikari?”

“You’ve got a scary look on your face. Oh wait, that’s normal for you, haha—ouch!?”

Annoyed by the grinning fool, Clam responded with a sharp chop.

Hikari clutched her forehead dramatically, pouting.

“What was that for!? Violence is the tool of the intellectually bankrupt, that’s what Professor always says!”

“Don’t go quoting the least reliable adult we know.”

Clam sighed and retorted.

It eased her mood a little.

Then she noticed something unfamiliar in Hikari’s hands.

“What’s that… a crossbow?”

“Yes! Look at this, isn’t it cool!? Bang bang—like that!”

Hikari struck a pose with the crossbow repeatedly.

The weapon, a purple frame with silver parts, didn’t suit her at all.

In fact, it looked like it had been made for a specific girl.

“What is it?”

“Who knows? I don’t! Miyume-chan just asked me to test it! Ah, Clam, do you wanna hold it? It might match your color scheme better!”

“No thanks… hey, stop pushing it on me. Wait, is Miyume here too?”

If she was, Clam wanted her to remove the cursed choker around her neck. She glanced around, but Miyume was nowhere to be found.

When she looked back at Hikari, she shook her head furiously.

“Miyume-chan went to Zilnius! Said she was going to talk to Senpai!”

“I see. Sounds busy… unlike me.”

“Ah—are you in Naïve Mode? Are you okay!? Want me to pat your head like always!?”

“…Don’t say that out loud in public!”

Hikari shouted in her usual obnoxious volume.

She looked genuinely concerned, but what she was saying was basically outing Clam as “the weirdo who needs head pats from her childhood friend,” so Clam desperately tried to shut her up.

But it was too late.

“Pat me too!”

“Wh—what!? Kei!?”

Hearing the noise, Kei ran over, curious.

Children are naturally drawn to chaos.

“Who’s this onee-chan?”

“…Clam, what’s going on?”

Hikari pulled Clam aside for a whisper session.

Too exhausted to give a detailed explanation, Clam decided to summarize bluntly.

“Kei had a fever, so we turned her into a little girl to fix it.”

“That makes no sense at all…!”

“Today’s Kei doesn’t remember anything. That’s all you need to know.”

“Got it!!!”

Hikari spun around enthusiastically and introduced herself.

“Hi there, Kei-chan! I’m Yatsuka Hikari! I like justice and singing! I hate evil! I love white rice, steamed rice, and plain rice! Nice to meet you!”

“I like rice too!”

“Do you now! Oh! Wanna see something cool!?”

From Hikari’s back, two pairs of radiant wings spread out.

They shone like pieces of the sun itself. Kei clapped her hands, eyes sparkling.

“Amazing!”

“And I can fly too! Hyahhh!!!”

Hikari took off, soaring into the air.

Watching her, Clam looked down at the crossbow she had been handed.

(Didn’t she come here to test this thing…?)

Clam didn’t know how to use it, so she was stuck holding it, unsure.

Just then, Rinka returned with Kei and called out.

“What’s that, a crossbow?”

“Yeah, apparently Miyume gave it to Hikari for testing. …Which was clearly a mistake.”

Hikari wasn’t suited for weapon testing.

Her weapon was her light wings.

Concentrated magical energy—deadly both offensively and defensively.

She’d always fought with her wings.

Why give her a ranged weapon to test?

“Huh, it’s pretty well made. …Wait, doesn’t it look like it can transform?”

“Ah—don’t mess with it. It’s made by the same person who created the Lover’s Sweet Spot Finder—Echi Tankchi.”

Hearing that, Rinka froze and immediately handed the crossbow back to Clam, stepping back with Kei in her arms.

Kei, still mesmerized by Hikari in flight, waved with sparkling eyes.

“Amazing!”

“—Superhero landing!!! …Heh, what do you think, Kei-chan? This is the power of a hero…”

“Cool! I wanna fly too!”

Laughing, Kei slipped from Rinka’s arms and ran toward Hikari.

“Hikari onee-chan, let’s play!”

“Of course! What do you want to play? Tag? Hide and seek? Anything you like!”

“Let’s play flower shop!”

“Got it!!!!”

(How does she sync so well with someone so much younger…?)

Clam was half-impressed, half-exasperated watching Hikari and Kei hit it off within minutes.

Maybe children are drawn to straightforward emotions and words.

Kei’s smile was the brightest it had ever been.

“Not overthinking things and just playing like that—maybe that’s the right way.”

Rinka said beside her.

Clam tried to argue but couldn’t find the words and just nodded.

No matter how much she worried, it wouldn’t save Kei.

Right now, what Clam needed to do was play with the young Kei. That was all.

“…Something’s up, right?”

“Not really.”

“Haha, you’re such a bad liar. You’re clearly off.”

Clam scowled. “Huh? How?”

Rinka tapped her own neck.

“That choker. It stopped making noise halfway through. It was super reactive around Kei before. Anyone would notice.”

“…Shut up.”

That was all Clam said before going quiet.

Rinka shrugged.

“You don’t have to talk to me, but talk to someone, okay? Charging ahead with all your worries never ends well.”

“Whatever.”

Clam’s cold response made Rinka fall silent.

Instead, she took a step forward.

“Hey, let us join too! I wanna be a customer! Oh, and Clam’s gonna be the shopkeeper!”

“Wait, I didn’t say that—”

“Clam onee-chan’s the flower shop lady too!? Yay! Let’s play together!”

Kei jumped up, delighted by Rinka’s suggestion.

Seeing her so happy, Clam couldn’t bring herself to refuse.

“Yeah… let’s have fun, Kei-chan.”

“Yeah!”

Her smile was like warm sunshine.

(…Right. I’ll just focus on playing with her right now.)

Believing that was the best choice she could make, Clam made up her mind.

And then she summoned a whole bunch of man-eating frogs, determined to have fun.

Right then—

“…Yawn, I’m getting sleepy.”

““Eh?””

“Oh, I feel kinda sleepy too.”

““Huh?””

Kei and Hikari, hand-in-hand, had been walking to the planned flower shop site, but now they rubbed their eyes in near unison.

“Sorry, Clam… I’ll wake up before dinner…”

“Hey, don’t fall asleep! Come on, this is way too much freedom!”

Clam shook Hikari’s shoulders, but her head just bobbled with no response.

She was already leaning heavily on Clam.

Next to her, Rinka was casually giving Kei a piggyback ride.

“…Yawn.”

“Feeling sleepy? Kei-chan’s sleepy? Let’s go to bed together, okay?”

“…Yeah.”

Kei rubbed her eyes and answered in a small voice—but the next moment, she went limp, clearly passing out.

“So this is the mana exhaustion Nameless mentioned. Comes on fast, huh?”

“Then what’s her excuse!?”

Clam laid Hikari down on a man-eating frog.

“Maybe she got too excited and tired herself out?”

“My childhood friend is such a child…”

Hikari looked peaceful as she slept on the frog bed.

She even seemed a bit satisfied.

“Okay, I’ll take Kei to her dorm.”

“Sure.”

Rinka walked off, Kei in her arms.

Clam followed behind, carrying Hikari on a man-eating frog.

Rinka stopped and looked back, tilting her head.

“Why are you following me? Let that one sleep already.”

“No way I’m leaving you and Kei alone. If you kiss her in her sleep or something, that’s the worst.”

“I wouldn’t go that far… I mean, I really wouldn’t.”

Apparently, Clam had every intention of following them, even with a sleeping childhood friend in tow.

“…Sigh. Fine, whatever. Come on, to our room—mine and Kei’s.”

“Excuse me? It’s mine and Kei’s room. That extra space is reserved for me.”

It was a weak provocation, but Clam took the bait instantly.

A vein popped on her forehead.

(Yeah… that’s more like it. I need a rival to keep me sharp.)

Watching the angry Clam, Rinka nodded to herself, pleased.