Even if you're a corrupted magical girl, you still have to try to redeem yourself.

Compared to these, it was the two menacing gusts of wind that Nishio Reki could clearly feel approaching him that caught his attention more.

Since those two dependents were able to stay by Yuuki Yukino's side as her last line of defense, they would certainly not be defeated so easily.

Nishio Reki didn't dare to look back at all. Any unnecessary movement of hers could lead to a completely different outcome. All she could do was move forward.

Unfortunately, the family members cannot move within the stillness of time—of course, the one who would feel this regret is not Nishio Reki, but Yuuki Eri.

Restoring time and letting the familiars attack is a perfectly fine operation. If I were in Yuuki Eri's position, I would do the exact same thing.

And this is something that Inuyama Tomoe has already mentioned.

That feeling of stagnation returned once again.

Inuyama Tomoe used M'shisha's ability to stop time again, and the annoying feeling of being locked on from behind disappeared.

All was silent, with only the sound of the wind whistling past his ears as he rapidly approached Yuuki Enishi. This feeling was far more lonely than when Nishio Reki had once walked alone through the streets late at night.

But Nishio Reki was not alone; the rumbling thunder became the main melody in the stillness of time.

Thunder became a booster for Nishio Reki, allowing him to reach even greater speeds.

It was Helica, the Thunder God, pushing him forward with all her might from behind.

Even though Nishio Reki couldn't sense Inuyama Tomoe's presence, the chain wrapped around his waist gave him a sense of security.

At this moment, Inuyama Tomoe pressed her left hand against her right wrist, which was holding the gun blade, and poured all her magic power into this space.

Stopping time felt far more exhausting than Inuyama Tomoe had imagined. It wasn't a matter of magic depletion or the strength of her own abilities; it was simply that it was almost impossible.

If time is a car slowly moving forward, then what Inuyama Tomoe did was no different from using her own hands to hold the tail of the car and keep it as still as possible.

Even though the car's pull wore down the soles of Baqi's shoes and even the soles of her feet, her toenails gripping the car were turned up one by one, and it felt as if the force was pulling apart her entire body, she still tried her best not to let go.

Of course, Inuyama Hideki did not suffer any physical injuries.

But the damage caused to her by the turbulence of time was not limited to the physical body, nor could it be resolved with such a minor injury.

To interfere with the laws of nature, one must pay a corresponding price, and the deeper one delves, the greater the price becomes.

Therefore, the wand of the Three Pillar Gods is the one that stands almost at the pinnacle.

Inuyama Tomoe has given it her all.

This was already her limit.

A gust of wind rushed into Nishio Reki's ears, and the noise descended once again.

The chains binding Nishio Koyomi quietly shattered. The shockwave from the tiny explosion didn't hurt; it felt like a hand giving Nishio Koyomi another push from behind.

It was definitely not by Nishio Reki alone that he was able to get to this point; it was by magical girls, one magical girl after another, who brought Nishio Reki here.

Having come this far, regardless of success or failure, I will have no regrets as long as I have done what I should do.

At that moment, a sense of relief suddenly arose in Nishio Reki's heart.

The distance between Nishio Reki and Yuuki Yuuki has been shortened considerably.

Helica's magic also froze, stopping at the same point as the two magics that had locked onto her familiars.

The reason they were able to severely injure those two familiars in an instant was entirely due to Inuyama Tomoe's precognition, but in a direct confrontation, they might not actually be able to hurt them so easily.

In this situation, Tenrai Helica faced off against the last two alone, and what would happen to her was something Nishio Reki couldn't even imagine.

She didn't have time to imagine, because her goal was already within reach.

Nishio Reki reached out and gripped the ball of light tightly in his palm before throwing a punch at Yuuki Yuuki.

puff.

Nishio Reki heard a sound of something being pierced.

She knew perfectly well that it was her own body.

The wand he knew best, the wand of the Ancestral Dragon, was stuck under his arm.

Yes, Yuuki once took away her right to use that wand, so it's only natural that she's using it now.

He himself had done this countless times, using this magic wand to pierce the bodies of girls who had the same appearance as Lin Jiezi.

Is this considered retribution?

What kind of retribution is this... Why am I thinking about such things?

Magic, vitality, strength—everything within Nishio Reki's body seemed to be draining away along with the penetrating wound on his body, causing his downward-swung fist to be noticeably slowed by half a beat.

Puff puff puff puff.

Several magic wands pierced out from beside Nishio Reki and disappeared into his body.

And in the eyes of Yuuki Yuki, who was within her reach, which were clearly much more flustered, there was something that Nishio Reki was most familiar with.

sly.

But it's okay.

The person who was originally supposed to deliver the final blow to Yuuki Yukino wasn't herself.

Nishio Reki released his grip and tossed the sphere of soul light, which symbolized primordial power, out.

In an instant, all the space around Yuuki Yukino collapsed.

They were all Lin Jiezi, not as many as those nun-like monsters, but still quite a few.

They were all beings that Lin Jiezi or the original girl once wanted to send to Yuuki Yukino's side, and they were all beings that Nishio Reki personally tried his best to stop and destroy.

Now, they finally have the opportunity to realize their long-cherished wish.

When Lin Jiezi threw out that ball of light, she maintained a tiny, imperceptible, yet undeniably present connection with it, like flying a kite. This connection between her and the ball of light never broke.

With that ball of light, the Lin Jiezi, centered around Yuki Eri, reached out their hands and rushed towards Yuki Eri.

Regardless of which one touches Yuuki Yuuki, the quest is halfway complete.

Now, victory is assured.

However, it wasn't just Lin Jiezi, who was pulling the kite string, who believed she had the upper hand; Yuki Yukino also did.

"I knew it."

Yuuki Yukino seemed to breathe a sigh of relief.

Then, the tower came to life.

To be precise, it was the corpses that made up the tower that came to life.

The mangled corpses, whose race and shape were impossible to discern, swarmed towards the forest mustard seedlings surrounding Yuki Ebisu, like a swarm of bees leaving their hive.

What followed was nothing short of horrific.

In just a few breaths, the area around Yuuki Yuki became so crowded that it could only be described in four words.

No grass grows.

Ah... is this really the result?

His vision gradually blurred, his body grew heavier, and Nishio Reki watched as Yuuki Eri, who was high above him, grew smaller and smaller, and he sighed inwardly.

Ah, so this is how it turned out?

I was just thinking that as long as I did my best, I wouldn't regret it no matter what the result was.

But surely there will still be some resentment.

As Nishio Reki fell, he heard a strange sound of wind beside him. He felt darkness engulfing his entire vision.

A voice rang out in the darkness, deafeningly loud.

"Nishio-senpai! Don't give up!"

In that instant, Nishio Reki suddenly opened his eyes.

A verdant light enveloped his body, and everything he had lost seemed to be slowly returning to him.

Sakura Hanako, who was lying on the Moon Bow where Mizuno Yu was, was holding an enormous syringe in one hand. Her magical armor was completely ruined. Apart from the magic wand, almost no part of Sakura Hanako's magical armor was intact.

Nishio Reki, who was about to rush forward, did not expect that Mizuno Yu, who was with her, did not expect that, and even all the magical girls, including Yuuki Yuki, did not expect that Sakura Hanako would have the power to transform again.

In fact, even Sakura Hanako herself didn't expect it.

But she did it.

"Take it! Nishio-senpai! This is my last bit of strength!"

Nishio Reki slowly curled up his body, and behind the forces that were pushing him forward, an even gentler force was added.

Something was shining beside her.

It is a dreamlike water curtain that symbolizes a fantasy world.

It is a sphere of light that symbolizes primordial power.

The hand that gently held the ball of light reached out to Nishio Reki's side and gently intertwined with her fingers.

“Nishio-kun, I failed to do what you entrusted to me, but we haven’t failed yet. You will definitely be able to complete this last step.”

From that moment on, the kite string was handed over to Nishio Reki, who had once carried that same power.

Then, Lin Jiezi's body plummeted rapidly, her long brown hair flying wildly in the air, and her eyes behind the shattered glasses were as clear as the blue sky above, without a trace of fear.

Nishio Reki took the ball of light back into his hand.

Nishio Reki was finally able to embark on his journey once again, thanks to all the paths his companions had cleared in those few hundred seconds.

"Nishio Reki".

A voice rang in Nishio Reki's ear, gentle and light.

"The rest of the journey is in your hands."

The illusory water curtain did not disappear, but instead enveloped Nishio Reki within it.

Nishio Reki's vision blurred for a moment, as if he had just experienced a fleeting dream, and he found himself directly above Yuuki Yukino's head.

The final step on the road was being pushed forward by someone.

At that moment, Nishio Ryū felt that he had lost something, yet gained something else entirely.

Something was missing from Nishio Reki's hand. As she passed through the water curtain, the trident she was holding tightly disappeared, and the magic power belonging to Yumehara Sumireko was also drawn out of her body.