Arc 2 - Chapter 38: A Single Particle of Light

"If she had listened to me just once, she would be alive now."

"If she'd only paid attention to me for once, she'd be with me now."

Although their room could not see the sun, the light of the rising sun still illuminated the interior. Yurine hadn't even opened her eyes yet, but she felt she was in a familiar place.

The softness of the pillow, the comfort of the bed and the sweet warmth, all those familiar sensations she loved. These sensations were Yurine's most pressing need.

When she opened her eyes, she realized she was not mistaken. She was looking at a ceiling she knew, a ceiling decorated for her with a blue sky, clouds and a huge sun. The whole room was painted like this for Yurine.

During the days she longed for, she would always wake up looking at this ceiling. When she looked at this ceiling, she always felt the warmth of the same woman on it, and she would turn her face to the person she loved the most.

And now, as she was used to, every day for the past month she had woken up in this bed, looking up at this colorful ceiling and feeling the warmth of the person she loved most.

"Mother!"

She thought that her wish had finally come true, she believed that this longing would finally be over, she was excited, countless birds flapped their wings at the same time inside her little chest, making her heart skip a beat. Yurine turned her head to see her mother's beautiful face once more.

But the elegant woman with long white hair was not lying there, sleeping peacefully.

The person lying there was an elegant boy with brown hair who was very proud and sinful, but looked innocent when he slept. His long black eyelashes were as graceful as his mother's and his skin was as white as hers.

The warmth of someone hugging her was provided by Yu's arm, not her mother's.

She couldn't deny that she was disappointed and heartbroken by this, but she was glad that she hadn't woken him up when she was screaming.

Of course she would have been happier to see her mother, but seeing Yu made her happy too. She liked having him by her side, it felt good that he didn't leave her alone, and it saved her from falling into even greater pain. Yu was also very handsome and Yurine couldn't deny that it made her heart flutter.

"He hugs me..."

She smiled. Yu's arm was heavier than her mother's, so it weighed more, but a hug was a hug, it felt warm and Yurine liked that.

If Yurine woke up before her mother and her mother was still asleep, she would hug her tightly and stay like that until she woke up.

Now, when she saw Yu sleeping, she was about to hug him out of the same habit. She was about to throw her leg, then her arm, then her tail on top of him...

"He hugs me..."

"He hugs me..."

"He hugs..."

"He…"

"Hugging?"

She had let him hold her hand, but had she let him hug her?

"Why are you hugging me!"

"Huh? Ah?"

Yurine tried to push Yu off the bed, but there was no strength in her arms. Before, she would have knocked Yu down in one go, but now she couldn't even move him. So she stood up on the bed and straightened her tail into a fighting stance.

"Every time I think good things about you, do you have to get snippy!?"

"Were you thinking good thoughts about me?"

Yurine's face reddened at the truth and she jumped out of bed, trying to hide her flushed cheeks with her white hair.

"S-stupid human!"

Holding someone's hand, hugging someone and being close to someone made Yurine happy. Until she met Yu, the only person she had ever held and hugged was her mother, but she liked to hold Yu's hand and she liked it when he hugged her too. She only reacted the way she did because she didn't want to let Yu's ass fly and make him see her as an easy girl.

But Yurine's cute reaction only served to cheer Yu up more and put a silly smile on his face. Yu giggled, got out of bed and came over to her.

"You're such an idiot," Yurine said.

"You scared me."

Yu ignored Yurine's insult and got down on one knee so that their heads were aligned as he took her hands.

"I'm glad you're okay."

His smile was devoid of arrogance. It was pure, innocent and well-intentioned. It was accompanied by a compassionate look in his eyes, showing happiness free from all other emotions. It was rare to see him smile like that. The first time she saw him smile like that was when they met, when he smiled like that towards Rie.

Now this smile was for Yurine alone and it was the most beautiful smile Yurine had ever seen. Yurine's face turned pink as she felt warm inside, her heartbeat quickening. She wanted to look at Yu's face more, but she was so embarrassed that she had to avert her eyes. Her tail wagged left and right.

Yurine's gaze landed on Yu's hands. They were bigger than her mother's and a little cold, but she kept them there instead of pulling them away.

"Why are we here?"

After holding hands for a while, she took her hands away and sat down on the bed. Yu had moved forward a little on his knee and was facing her again, still smiling.

"We finished the mission last night. Sivina killed the killer, but she was seriously injured and we came here for her treatment. Sony survived thanks to you, but you fainted because you spent all your mana trying to save him. You slept all day yesterday. I was really, really worried about you."

She felt that Yu's story was a little incomplete, but if it was important he would have said so, so she kept silent and kept listening.

"We came here yesterday at noon. I had you examined then, but they said there was nothing wrong. Everyone told me you'd sleep for a while and then wake up, that's how it is."

She had been asleep for more than a day. When Yu said that, she heard his stomach growl and felt her throat go dry.

"Water."

Yu stood up, took the pitcher and glass from the table in the room and filled them with water. He gave Yurine the glass and waited for her to drink, and when she did, he took the glass and put it back.

"Why are we in this room?"

"Maron gave us your old room, then I came here and put you to bed."

"So that man became a headmaster?"

"I think it will be this morning, maybe it already has been."

Yu had succeeded. Now they could both solve her mother's murder and find a way to rewind time.

"We're going to question Salery, aren't we?"

Yu nodded

"When I spoke to Maron last night, he said he was going to charge him with conspiracy to commit murder and throw him in the dungeon. So yes, we will be able to interrogate him."

"The library?"

"When Maron becomes headmaster, we'll be able to use it whenever we want, as much as we want."

Yurine was satisfied with the answers to her questions. Indeed, the mission was complete and the promised rewards would be given.

"Is she okay?"

She was talking about Sivina. This was not what she really wanted to ask, but to save time and to prepare her heart for the answer, she had slipped a small question in between the main topic.

"They said her condition was better than yesterday."

Yurine didn't want someone who was helping them to get hurt, so she wanted Sivina to be well.

But it was not Sivina she was eager to ask, it was her mother she wanted to ask about.

"Now that we can use the library, we can bring my mother back."

Yu was silent. Whenever Yurine started to talk about their true purpose, Yu avoided giving any definite answers. Even when they saw Sony dead and Yurine hugged Yu's waist and cried.

"Why do you always run away when it comes to this?"

Yu had no answer for that either.

"Promise me," Yurine said. She was looking into Yu's purple eyes. "We will bring her back."

"I..."

Yu bit his lip. Yurine knew. Yu didn't take what she said seriously, just like her mother didn't. Yu didn't believe her, even though she told him it was possible.

"Why don't you answer?"

"If we find a way, I'll do my best..."

"DON'T TRY TO FOOL ME!"

When Yurine raised her voice, Yu's eyes widened and his mouth fell open. He was looking at her in surprise, but at the same time he had a look on his face as if he had known this moment was coming.

"If we don't find a way, how can we bring her back? When we find a way, we will go on that way and bring her back..."

"YOU DECIDE TO WALK NOT IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD, BUT BEFORE YOU SET OUT ON IT!"

Yurine shouted again and the words she had once heard from her mother slammed into Yu's face. No one would have decided to walk when they had reached the middle of the road. There was a road ahead and even if there wasn't, they had to create it. So now they had to make a decision.

And she wanted to see his determination now. What was the point of showing his determination when he was in the middle of the road?

"If there is no road..."

Yurine interjected again without letting him speak.

"Why will you help me if you won't believe me? I'm telling you there is a way, now I want you to believe me..."

"Yurine..."

She had to be strong but she couldn't hold back the tears. When Yu saw this, he reached out his hand to wipe them away, but Yurine pushed his hand away and wiped her own tears away. If Yu wasn't going to believe her, she wasn't going to let him touch her again.

"Why don't you believe me? I want you to believe me, I want you to take my word for it now. Even if you find a way to do it in the library or somewhere else in the world, it won't make any sense for you to come to me and say 'Yurine, you were right.' Because you won't have believed me, you will have believed something else."

He saw Yu's eyes welling up, but she was unaware of the true magnitude of the impact on his heart. His lips trembled.

"BELIEVE ME! PAY ATTENTION TO ME! CARE ME!"

"Please don't cry."

Unable to bear Yurine's crying, he reached out his hand again to wipe away her tears, but this time it was pushed away even harder.

"That's not the point! It doesn't matter! It doesn't matter if you won't trust me!"

Yurine was going to tell Yu to leave if there was no trust between them, but her heart wouldn't let her. She didn't want to leave him. So she kept talking, hoping he would believe her, hoping he would promise.

"If you believe in me, I'm telling you there is a way. Only if you believe in me, I'm telling you it's possible. If you believe in me, promise me now, say me I'll bring your mother back, I'll bring Rie back!"

"Yurine..."

"Please, promise..."

She was begging him now. She begged him to believe in her. She wanted him to be there for her, she wanted his help, she wanted his trust, she wanted his care, she wanted his love.

And Yurine was crying and Yu was crying with her.

And Yu couldn't bear to see her cry any more.

"I promise, I will bring your mother back, you will see Rie again, you will hug her again, you will talk to her again, you will feel her warmth again. Yurine... I... I promise... I'll make it."

"Do you believe me?"

"I believe... I will always believe, I will always pay attention and care. You are my daughter."

At this point Yurine didn't need to hold herself back, she hugged Yu's neck. Until now she had only been shedding tears, but now she started sobbing and screaming.

"Yu!"

It was no longer a problem to say his name.

"Yu!"

She could say as much as she wanted, when she wanted.

"Yu! Yu! Yu! YU! Don't you ever leave me! Always stay by my side!"

She screamed and cried. She cried with Yu until she ran out of tears. She cried as she felt Yu hugging her, stroking her hair. Her heart was warm, for the first time a single emotion ruled her whole body.

And that's all Yurine needed. All she needed was to feel someone's unconditional, pure love. She wanted to feel it with her whole heart, with her whole soul, with her whole being.

So for the first time she cried because of happiness.

"I love..."

Yurine's last words were not heard over her sobs, but she believed she had already conveyed the meaning of those words.