This is not the date I wanted.

However, Rokuko's feelings told her that she didn't want to die.

——I will definitely protect you.

But in the end, the fear was dispelled by another wonderful feeling.

The soft pink and white color and soothing sweetness are as warm as hiding in a small kotatsu on a winter day, making people want to close their eyes and take a nap.

——Thump! ——Thump! The steady heartbeat sounded beside Rokuko's ears.

Raising her head slightly, Rokuko looked at the face of the boy whom she called a "hypocrite" who was holding her tightly in his arms, and a warm feeling welled up in her heart.

(Ah——I see.)

At this moment, Rokuko finally understood that what was overflowing in his heart was a feeling called "happiness".

(Liu Er... why would you give up such a beautiful relationship?)

……

The heat wave generated by the explosion spread within a radius of one kilometer, sucking Shidou and Rokuko in.

Although the self-destructing airship was pushed away by Ryougi Yumezuki at the last moment, preventing Shidou and Rokuko from being hit directly by the explosion, the huge impact force generated by the hot wind caused them to fall towards the earth uncontrollably.

Inevitably, Shidou and Rokuko fell into the atmosphere in their physical bodies.

The "Leaves of the World Tree" that were responsible for expanding the random field only lasted for three seconds before turning into powder due to friction with the atmosphere.

"Deploy——Zadkiel (Ice Golem)! Rapheal (Hurricane Knight)!"

Shidou quickly summoned the angel sisters Yoshino and Yamai, driving the hurricane to slow down the falling speed, and using ice to create a shield to resist the friction of the atmosphere.

However, whether it was the accelerated fall caused by gravity or the speed of the melting of ice, it was far beyond Shidao's expectations. At this rate, Shidao and Rokuko might not be able to survive through the more than 1,000 kilometers of atmosphere.

"It's okay... Rokuko... I will definitely protect you."

Holding Rokuko tightly in his arms, Shidou spoke slowly.

Honestly speaking, it is impossible to say that he is not afraid and panicked. After all, judging by common sense, Shidao's situation at this moment can only be described as inevitable death.

But he could feel that at this moment, Hoshimiya Rokuko in his arms was more scared than he was.

Logically speaking, if Shidou hadn't unlocked Rokuko's [Heart Lock] and put her into her current state of confusion, Hoshimiya Rokuko could have summoned the "Master of Seal" to send herself to a safe place.

If Rokuko died because of his kindness, Gokawa Shido would never be able to forgive himself for the rest of his life.

(I will protect Rokuko even if I die...)

—Promise me that your own safety will be your priority.

Meng Yue's words flashed through his mind, and Shidao couldn't help but sigh with a wry smile.

(…No, that’s a wrong idea.)

You must cherish your life more. This is the promise made by Shidao and Mengyue.

His life no longer belongs to him alone. If he has to risk his own life every time to save the elves, it will be a great torture for those who care about him.

and so--

"Both of you must return to Earth safely! There is no other choice!!"

Just like that, Shidou shouted with all his might.

"——Ratizel (Sage of the Dawn)!!!"

[——Received——Atmospheric thickness, environmental conditions——Falling speed, angle calculation——Seal and unlock main (pseudo) limit moving distance——‘Gate’ deployment location——Number of times used——Estimated spiritual power consumption——Calculation completed——]

As if in response to Shidou's strong wish, the dark blue metal wristband on his arm emitted a dazzling light.

"Haniel (the fake witch) - Kaleidoscope!"

Gripping the key-shaped staff transformed from a broom, Shidou thrust it into the void with unerring precision.

Michael (The Master of Seal)——[Open]

PS: In the original work, Shidao fell directly to the earth and did not die. To be honest, I didn’t think it was strange at first, but when I really checked the information about the atmosphere, I felt that Shidao was simply a monster.

PS2: I...burned out... (falls down)

13 Other People's Dreams

==============================

Have you ever had this experience? During one of your sleep, you had a dream.

In a dream, you become a "character" that is completely different from reality. You will not question the rationality and authenticity of your existence. The experiences of the "character" are your own experiences, and the sorrows and joys of the "character" are your own sorrows and joys. It is an incredible and wonderful experience, as if you have become a completely different person. It is not until the moment you open your eyes and wake up that you suddenly realize that "Ah - it turned out to be a dream."

Well, I mentioned it here not to discuss the phenomenon of psychology such as "dreams are the reaction of human subconsciousness", nor to have a philosophical debate on "Did Duke Zhuang dream of being a butterfly or did the butterfly dream of Duke Zhuang". It's just because Gokawa Shidao is in this state now.

The film takes place in a classroom of an orphanage, and the character is a little girl who is less than five years old and is hiding in a corner and stacking blocks alone.

"Ah, this shape of building block is exactly what I want. I'll take it."

A naughty boy came over and took away a piece of the building blocks that the girl had stacked without saying a word.

"..."

The little girl stared blankly at the boy who ran away, then looked at the scattered building blocks in front of her. After being stunned for a while, she picked up the remaining building blocks and stacked them up again.

You may wonder why the little girl feels angry or aggrieved by the boy's behavior? In fact, the reason is very simple. Just now, the little girl began to have her earliest memory and realized the existence of "self" under the coordination of memory.

In the eyes of the little girl, it was just an insignificant pile of building blocks that collapsed because of a boy's sudden theft, that's all.

Maybe there was a little resentment in her heart, but the little girl who had just developed her own "self" obviously did not have the dexterity to distinguish such feelings, and could only woodenly stack the building blocks again.

Of course, this was just an insignificant episode in the little girl's life.

Returning to her bed, the little girl closed her eyes and opened them again - and suddenly, a year had passed.

The speed of time flows so strangely in reality that it is frightening, but in dreams, it is so natural.

In a year, the little girl has grown a little. Although in the eyes of others she is still as dull as ever, in her heart, she has already had a vague understanding of the world around her.

One day, the little girl suddenly had a question.

"What is family?"

——Well, people who can love you and are worthy of your love. I and the children in the orphanage are your best family.

The adult who took care of the little girl answered her like this.

However, the little girl felt a subtle sense of disobedience with this answer.

Every once in a while, a few children around her would leave inexplicably, and then a few more would suddenly appear in the orphanage. Even the adult in front of her came to the orphanage a few days ago after the previous adult suddenly left. The girl felt that in a few months, the adult in front of her would also leave her side.

(Is this what family members are like?)

The little girl had this question in her mind, but she did not choose to continue to seek the answer. For her, who had never had a "family" in the first place, this was not a strong desire, but a little insignificant curiosity.

“Are you lonely alone?”

"don't know."

The little girl answered herself honestly.

I returned to my bed, closed my eyes, and opened them again. This time, it was too long? Three years? No, maybe four years.

The girl's life suddenly changed.

Someone wants to adopt her. Before the girl understood the meaning of this sentence, she left the orphanage under the guidance of the staff and came to a completely unfamiliar house.

Sitting in the living room of the house were a middle-aged couple and a young girl who was slightly older than them.

Perhaps because she was nervous, the girl hid behind the staff uneasily, only sticking her head out and observing the three people timidly.

Then, looking at the girl like this, the couple smiled harmoniously.

"Hello, from today on, we are a family."

"……family?"

The girl couldn't help but fall into a daze.

The impact these words brought to the girl was even beyond her own imagination.

It is like a black and white painting filled with bright colors, or like a snowy field sprinkled with colorful flowers by the spring breeze.

It is no exaggeration to say that the girl's world changed at this moment.

"Yes, I am your sister. Those two are our parents. From today on, we are sisters."

Unlike the dull girl, the girl who treated herself as her elder sister when they met showed her a very cheerful and lively smile.

“…Ah, wow, ahhhhhhh—”

Unable to hold back, tears flowed from my eyes.

The girl then realized that she was not used to being alone, she was just waiting.

To love her people.

Someone she could love.

A family that can accommodate her and belong only to her.

————————————————————I am the dividing line between dreams and reality——————————————

ceiling.

This was naturally the first thing that Gokawa Shido saw after opening his eyes while lying on the hospital bed.

"Ah...it turned out to be a dream."

Shidou couldn't help but sigh.

It makes people miss it, but it is also ambiguous, a little sad, and a little warm. Although the specific content has been forgotten, Shidao still has a strange feeling like an afterglow in his heart.

"Are you finally awake, Shidou?"

Hearing the familiar voice, Shidao subconsciously turned his head. He saw Liangyi Mengyue sitting beside his bed, with her legs crossed, her chin supported by her hand, looking at him with a sleepy face.

"Dream Moon..."

Shidou got up from the bed and looked around.

"Is this... inside Fraxinus?"

"Yeah, do you remember what happened to you?"

Meng Yue asked calmly. In response, Shidou pressed his forehead and replied with a frown.

"I remember that time... Rokuko and I were attacked by DEM... and fell into the atmosphere... Then, I used the 'Seal Master' to open the 'Gate'..."

Shidou's voice was a little hesitant when he spoke. He only remembered that after opening the "door" no less than hundreds of times, he and Rokuko finally passed through the atmosphere safely, and then his memory was interrupted.

"Meng Yue, where is Rokuko now? Is she okay?"

"Well, who knows? She wasn't by your side when you found her. But if she was with Dem, she probably took you with her. She probably woke up before you and left."

"I see, but I'm glad you're okay."

Shidou couldn't help but sigh in relief.

"Shouldn't you be more concerned about your own situation than Rokuko?"

As she spoke, Meng Yue folded her arms across her chest and stared at Shi Dao unhappily.

"Do you know that you almost died this time? Did you think you would be fine if you used the 'Sealing Master' to pass through the atmosphere? To be honest, if you fell from that height, an ordinary person would be declared dead immediately. Fortunately, after you fell into a coma, the 'Hurricane Knight' and the 'Ice Puppet' were still functioning, otherwise you wouldn't have had nine lives. And you were lucky, the landing point was a forest outside the Hokkaido ranch. Fortunately, it was in Japan. If it was in the Pacific Ocean or somewhere like that, you would have drowned directly, and it would have been impossible for us to retrieve your body, you know?"

"But, but... I can't resist it..."

Seeing Mengyue's aggressive look, Shidao wanted to explain something, but after noticing the two dark circles under Mengyue's eyes, he was suddenly speechless.

After she was in danger, Mengyue must have desperately searched for him everywhere, and stayed here without rest until Shidao regained consciousness.

"what do you want to say?"

Meng Yue stared at Shidao and asked.

"I'm so sorry for making you worry."

"...Okay." Hearing Shidou's words, Meng Yue's tone slowed down a bit, "Since you know how to keep your promise, I won't make a fuss about it this time. I'll also thank Tohka and the others later, you know, everyone was very worried when they saw you involved in the explosion, and they stayed up all night looking for you in the forest for a long time."

"Yeah...I will."

Hearing Shidou's answer, Mengyue nodded, then took out a handkerchief from her pocket and wiped the corners of Shidou's eyes.