Every Night

The clear snap of fingers echoed, creating a reverberation throughout the empty hall.

With a snap, the young man, who was initially invisible to ordinary people, suddenly realized that Kaori's eyes were fixed on him.

Immediately after that, Kaori, who had previously said she had let him go, burst into tears.

"Ka-Kaori."

Kousei looked at her, who had become mature and noble, and his tone was slightly hesitant, but soon turned resolute as he walked toward her step by step.

Haruto averted his gaze, concealing his presence, and quietly left.

The next moment belonged to Kousei and Kaori.

Should he properly say goodbye, or linger, unwilling to leave?

This was Kousei's choice alone.

If there were a parallel world, would the two be happy together?

Haruto shook his head gently.

A parallel world might exist, or perhaps it doesn't at all.

So, there's no point in thinking about it.

But it's true that there's another world beyond this one. For example, oddities.

Another example—could the evil power of oddities that attack also come from another dark and sinister world?

But all this doesn't matter.

What Haruto really wanted to know now was something else.

Before the oddities' destruction, who transferred the creatures from that world to this one?

Who was that person?

That was what Haruto wanted to know the most.

Because someone who could do this couldn't even be called human, but rather a god!

Unfortunately, since regaining his memory, he had been quietly observing but had seen nothing.

As he left the sports center, a bright white moon hung high in the night sky.

Haruto looked up.

When he was young, there were many stars in the night sky.

A sky full of stars, nothing more.

However, as he grew older, it became increasingly difficult to see the beautiful sight of stars filling the night sky.

Haruto once had a dream as a child of becoming an astronomer.

That's why, in his youth, he often ran to the mountains to watch the stars.

Later, he met a girl who also loved astronomy, a super-genius who was very famous at school and known as Sleeping Beauty.

Furuhashi Fumino.

Haruto lowered his head and looked at the red string wrapped several times around his wrist, feeling slightly dazed.

"She said that as long as you believe in miracles, miracles will surely happen."

"Rikka has reincarnated. Renta also left with his childhood friend."

"But... My miracle never came."

Haruto sighed.

Maybe his belief wasn't strong enough, and that's why things turned out this way?

❀❀❀

Half an hour later.

Kousei and Kaori came out.

Kaori was clearly crying, but aside from her red eyes, everything seemed normal.

However, Kousei's condition was slightly worse.

His soul seemed blurred, as if a gust of wind could blow him away. Was it due to overwhelming emotions, or had he fulfilled his wish and was about to depart?

Haruto took out the gourd pendant and stored Kousei inside.

The farewell was over.

Haruto said something to Kaori, then bid her farewell and left.

Oddity.

Usually, oddity refers not only to Earth but to the entire universe.

The universe says nothing, but Earth is not fragile.

Even if Earth experienced global destruction, even if all of humanity was wiped out and all living beings perished, after a certain period, Earth would give birth to new life. But with oddities, this does not happen.

Here, Earth seems to be dying, or perhaps it's already dead.

Therefore, all that remains is cold and silence.

Under the blood moon, the entire world appeared soaked in blood.

*SWOOSH*

The scythe swung through the air.

The fearsome figure instantly disintegrated, then slowly faded away.

The girl holding the scythe casually dropped it to the ground and stared blankly at the sky, unmoving.

Suddenly, the girl slightly turned her head and looked not far away.

The next moment, a figure appeared calmly—it was Haruto.

*WHOOSH*

The doll-like girl appeared in front of Haruto in an instant. Due to her incredible speed, she even stirred up a breeze, causing Haruto to squint his eyes.

Haruto remained silent: "Why are you running so fast?"

"?"

The doll-like girl opened her big blue eyes, tilted her head slightly, and stared at him without blinking.

Seeing the expression on her face, Haruto extended his finger: "What's this?"

The doll-like girl moved her lips and made an emotionless sound.

"One."

"And this?"

"Four."

"What's one plus four?"

"?"

Seeing the girl tilt her head again and stare blankly, Haruto couldn't help but laugh. He raised his hand, gently landing it on her head, and softly ruffled her hair.

He always felt like he was raising a daughter or a pet.

The doll-like girl blinked and then unconsciously rubbed her hand gently.

Haruto praised her: "You did well. Do you want a reward?"

"Reward?"

The doll-like girl blinked, as if pondering the meaning of "reward." Haruto wasn't impatient, but waited quietly.

The doll-like girl had no soul.

But surprisingly, she kept developing, and now she could even begin to think.

So, does she really have no soul?

And what is a soul?

How is it born?

After a long time, the doll-like girl suddenly remembered something. She raised her hand, and a drop of clear water appeared in her pale palm.

She closed her eyes and carefully sensed something.

"Name."

"Hmm?"

The doll-like girl opened her eyes and stared at him without blinking: "I don't have a name, so I want one."

"A name?" Haruto thought for a moment and said, "How about Yoruha?"

"Yoruha?"

"Do you like it?"

The girl tilted her head and thought for a moment, then nodded.

"I like it."

Haruto raised his hand and tidied the doll's messy hair. "Yoruha, stay here. Don't run off, okay?"

"Understood."

The doll-like girl replied simply, then followed Haruto's figure with her eyes until he disappeared, never turning back.

Suddenly, a powerful spatial fluctuation occurred, followed by a surge of evil energy.

The girl instinctively grabbed the scythe beside her. Just as she thought of something, a look of struggle appeared on her face.

But at that moment, the sky suddenly brightened.

In the blinding white light, peace returned to heaven and earth.

After a while, seeing a familiar figure safe and sound, the girl loosened her grip on the scythe, her expression calming once again.

Haruto sat next to the doll-like girl and said, "The Demon Summoning Incident is over."