54 Gratz for Taking First Place in the sHumans Who Canst Use Magics Tournamen (1/2)
The other side of the door is a forest in early morning. The light of the rising sun shines through the cracks between the branches and leaves, and morning dew glitters on the grass.
It is a place that I have no recollection of. I look all around.
”We're inside a memory.”
So says Violet-san.
”Your memory?”
”I do seem to remember it.”
So saying, she proceeds forward. I follow her so as to not be left behind.
After quietly walking through the forest for a period of time, our vision suddenly opens up. There is an open plaza brightly illuminated by the morning sun. And in the middle of the plaza is a small girl sitting on the ground, clutching her knees.
The little girl's hair is black.
”She's crying, isn't she?”
”So it would seem.”
The two of us approach the little girl.
I squat down to peer into her face, and notice tears flowing from her violet-colored eyes.
”She looks exactly like you.”
”She only looks like me.”
”Why do you think she's crying?”
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”Did she perhaps wet herself?”
So says Violet-san. I'm pretty sure that's not it.
The girl is crying without letting her voice spill out. The bruises all over her body are plain to see.
”So anyways, what are we supposed to do?”
”If we want to proceed, we have to end this memory.”
”In other words?”
Violet-san lifts up the face of the crying girl.
”Crying won't solve anything.”
Then she slaps the little girl's face with a loud sound.
”Horrible.”
”It's fine, it's myself.”
”So you do acknowledge it.”
Then the world cracks. Just like a mirror shattering, the morning forest breaks into a thousand pieces, then disappears into a deep darkness.
Then we are in an empty darkness.
But I can still faintly make out Violet-san's figure.
”Let's keep going.”
”Sure thing.”
Inside the empty darkness, we continue towards the direction that our magic is begin sucked towards.
There is no other feeling in this place.
Even while walking, the feeling of my feet on the ground is vague, and I have almost no sense of up and down. As a test, I try to walk upside down, like when doing a handstand.
Oh, it works.
Violet-san looks at me walking upside-down with half-open eyes.
”Don't peek into my skirt, alright?”
”I can't see, so no worries.”
After walking for a while longer, we are enveloped in a madder red light.
”Uwah.”
I almost hit the ground head-first, but manage an ukemi in time.
”That's what you get for fooling around.”
Violet-san looks at me rolling on the ground, and stretches out a hand.
”Thanks.”
I grasp that cold hand and stand back up.
This place is a battlefield lit by a setting sun. The blood-colored sun is shining right above the horizon.
”Uwah, they're all dead.”
Fallen soldiers cover the land dyed black with blood. This continues to the horizon.