One-way traffic

After reflecting the other party's voice, Accelerator waved his hand and walked step by step toward the gap.

Itsuka Shido was astonished by this.

"That's too dangerous, First Faction! The outside of the barrier is already in this state; going directly inside will only make things more dangerous for you!"

"Then consider it a free gift, you bastard."

One sentence was enough to leave the other party completely speechless.

Completely ignoring the wind and snow swirling around it, the pure white snow slowly walked into it.

He has only one goal.

Regardless of whether there is a solution or not, he still needs to see it for himself.

———————————————————————————————————

"Four...Ito...Nai..."

That was the sound of someone who had already breathed their last.

The girl straddled the ground... no, it was a smaller ice puppet, and Yoshino sat on its back.

The space is only about the size of a typical living room, but its interior is quite different from the exterior.

The space was very quiet, with only Yoshino's sobbing heard.

But in the outside world, snow was falling heavily, creating a scene resembling the end of the world.

For Yoshino, this was a moment of utter despair.

Not only has Yoshina, her longtime companion, completely disappeared, but more importantly, what kind of emotional state is the girl experiencing right now?

Regardless, those people in green mechs will always attack him.

It's not just that.

I'm afraid I simply wouldn't be able to survive properly in this world.

It's not just them; it's the same when facing other people. You can see this by recalling the various reactions that ordinary people have had to you so far.

It's not that the world is rejecting you.

Simply because I am too weak.

Even with Yoshino by his side, he still seemed unable to do anything. After completely losing Yoshino, what kind of pathetic state did he become?

Really are--

"It's really unbearable to watch."

What…?

From within the pitch-black, empty world came voices that did not belong to Yoshino.

The girl finally stopped crying and looked up at the front of her head.

A remarkably loud footstep echoed through the darkness.

"Just because you lost your doll, you completely gave up on yourself? In the end, is this all you've got?"

"Accelerator...Mr. Accelerator..."

The white shadow curled its lip in displeasure.

Even the howling storm outside couldn't harm him in the slightest; this number one, however, was holding something utterly incongruous with him.

A cute bunny doll.

"Yoshina...!"

The moment Yoshino saw the doll, her face lit up like a flower.

"Is this all there is to getting things done? How boring. Is this all I value...?"

Accelerator's voice seemed to have become somewhat shrill at this moment.

Even so, the white monster still walked up to the girl.

He slowly reached out his hand, and the doll landed in Yoshino's arms.

"Then take it with you, it doesn't matter. Anyway, like I said, this is your life. If you insist on choosing this path, then it's your own decision."

Those words, like icy thorns, pierced Yoshino's heart.

The girl trembled, and her original intention of putting Yoshino directly on her arm stopped abruptly.

He's right.

Without Yoshina, I can't handle anything. Not only that, I must have completely messed everything up. Even if it's not something I can control, the outside world must have turned into a permafrost landscape.

In the end, the problem remained unsolved.

Or rather, someone as weak as myself simply doesn't have the power to solve this kind of thing on my own.

"I…"

Yoshino spoke softly.

Her voice trembled, but it was very clear in the enclosed space.

"I...shouldn't...be saved..."

"..."

"If... it were Accelerator... he would surely... understand, right...?"

The girl looked at the white figure, but the being standing at the top simply watched her in complete silence.

Even Yoshino herself realized this.

"My existence...would cause unimaginable destruction to the entire world."

It has been like this from the beginning, and it remains so now.

Yoshino, as a spirit from another world, is inherently synonymous with destruction to humans.

"I'm so weak... I can't even control my own power... I think it's better if I just disappear..."

This was the girl's final decision.

At the same time, she also thoroughly recalled what the two people had said to her before, and how she had been treated at that time.

One of the people in my memory is the figure standing right in front of me.

“Miss Hatsune…and Mr. Accelerator…you were so kind to Yoshino…but, but…”

"Yoshino... I really can't let this world... continue to be destroyed by my own hands..."

She was extremely weak, unable to even control her own power, and after losing Yoshino, she was unable to do anything at all.

If that's the case, then it would be better if it never existed in this world in the first place.

"Let Yoshino...become...a snowflake...into this world..."

The girl clenched her hands tightly.

She did not put Yoshino back on.

There's no need for that anymore.

Click click click click——

Little by little, the ice shards began to spread upwards from the girl's legs, enveloping her body like vines.

A real tear rolled down Yoshino's cheek.

"In that case... Yoshino... will be somewhat useful... I'm sorry... I'm really sorry..."

The girl's final solution was to sacrifice herself in exchange for world peace.

"Mr. Accelerator... and... Ms. Hatsune Miku... Yoshino is so sorry... Yoshino couldn't do anything... I'm so sorry..."

The girl chose her own final fate, hoping that this would at least prevent her from causing trouble for those around her.

Accelerator looked at Yoshino and fell into quiet contemplation.

It was a memory that lingered deep within my mind.

In childhood, someone who was young probably experienced something similar.

Possessing immense power and facing a threat capable of destroying the world, people chose to use weapons against it, even if the opponent was just a young child.

At that time, however, he chose to isolate himself.

By sealing all their emotions and power within their hearts, they are able to perfectly control all their power and avoid harming anyone.

The same applies to young girls today.

In order to prevent her cowardice and weakness from causing mistakes, the girl decided to completely become a part of this world and no longer cause any destruction to it.

Although their experiences were completely different, at this moment, under Accelerator's gaze, the two young children seemed to gradually merge together.

"…snort."

He gave an extremely cold snort.

"This was your own choice, you understand, right?"

"Yes…"

Even the sound has become muffled and unclear.

Ice completely covered Yoshino's body, and in the end, the only thing that could be seen was that simple smile.

A tearful, most heartbreaking smile.

"Thank you... for taking care of me all this time..."

then.

Bye now.

Even before she could utter her last words, Yoshino closed her eyes, curled up, and sank completely into the abyss of the ice cave.

The elven girl's life force was heading towards zero.

everything is over.

Thump—! ! ! !

A muffled cracking sound tore everything apart.

“…Huh?”

Yoshino stared blankly at herself.

The person in front of him gently waved his right arm.

In that instant, the ice covering his entire body tore apart like paper.

"Why...why...?"

"Why? That's a good question."

The monster stared at her with calm eyes.

"Don't you even look at yourself? Who brought you this doll?"

"what…"

Yoshino trembled as she gazed at Yoshina, whom she was holding tightly in her arms.

He did say that Yoshino's life should be decided by herself.

Ultimately, her choice to sacrifice herself was her own.

but.

"After all that effort to get this thing, this is the result?"

You can save the world by sacrificing yourself.

By sacrificing your cowardice, you can make a small contribution to the world.

"Stop talking nonsense to me."

"Ugh...?!"