"Kyubey, what's going on? Why haven't we returned to the real world? The Witch has clearly been eliminated." Mami Tomoe looked at the surroundings and then at Kyubey, asking in confusion. In such unclear situations, asking Kyubey usually yielded the desired answers. But this time, Mami Tomoe was a little disappointed, because Kyubey didn't know what was happening either.
"Although I apologize, I also don't know what's going on. In all my days of helping Magical Girls fight Witches, I've never seen a situation like this. Although the grief seed has been obtained, I can still feel the Witch's energy lingering in this space. Perhaps there's some unexpected situation; Mami, you should check it thoroughly." Kyubey wagged its tail, speaking in a calm tone.
But its gaze was secretly fixed on Yoshino behind it, watching Yoshino thoughtfully observe the surrounding barrier. It felt that the current situation must be somehow related to Yoshino.
'Let me see what you'll do next, Yoshino. Besides your ice control ability, you must have other abilities you haven't used yet. Let me see your hidden abilities. That way, I can properly adjust my plans.' A flicker of light passed through its crimson eyes, and a hint of curiosity, a rare emotion for it, flashed through Kyubey's mind.
Although Kyubey hadn't witnessed what happened last night firsthand, its clone placed beside Oriko Mikami knew the situation with Kikura. The unknown energy affecting the treatment within Kikura had made it notice this suddenly appearing girl with special powers who was not a Magical Girl.
"I understand. I'll search thoroughly." Mami Tomoe nodded after hearing Kyubey's words. Facing this unusual situation made her feel a little scared, but she didn't panic. After becoming a Magical Girl, she had already faced many unusual situations. As long as she checked carefully, she could lead everyone out.
No one noticed that at the moment Mami Tomoe eliminated the Witch, a mass of black energy appeared in the barrier. It was even more intense than the black mist that appeared after Yoshino dealt with the Dark Witch (Suleka) last time. It seemed this Witch was much stronger than the previous one.
'It's the same situation as with the previous Dark Witch (Suleka), Yoshino. The incantation for the Magic of Darkness on your hand has reacted. This should be the Witch's despair.' Just as Mami Tomoe was looking around, the runes on Yoshino's hand reacted. This dark power attracted the black mist towards Yoshino, but then, due to the bright power within Yoshino, it retreated somewhat fearfully. What strange behavior.
'It's understandable that Madoka Kaname and the others, not being Magical Girls, didn't see this energy. But Mami Tomoe not seeing it is a bit hard to explain. It seems this energy, as I thought before, is appearing because of Yoshino's presence.'
'Hmm, I can feel the negative energy within her, Yoshinon. She is hoping, hoping that I can help her, help her eliminate the despair within her, so she can peacefully ascend to Nirvana. Just like the previous Witch, this is why she used her last bit of power to maintain the barrier.' With her hands clasped in front of her, Yoshino's spirit crystal connected with Zadkiel, causing Yoshino's body to begin to change.
'This will let Kyubey see your hidden abilities, Yoshino. Even so, do you still want to help this girl eliminate the despair within her and ascend to Nirvana?' Without stopping Yoshinon's thoughts, Yoshinon merely asked her.
'Yes. Everyone has the right to ascend to Nirvana. I hope they can have a happy life in their next life. This is my blessing as a senior to these juniors, what do you think?' Towards the end, Yoshino's tone became a little playful. Yoshino still remembered when she said she was sixty or seventy years old last time; now, letting it suffer a little wouldn't be bad.
'A senior, huh? You're the least dignified senior I've ever seen. You're not some old woman who turned from sixty to a Little Girl... although you're pretty much an old woman's age now.' It seems Yoshino is still bothered by its teasing about her age. Really, she's lived for half a century, yet her behavior is still so childish. But this also proves she's grown.
Last night, it already knew that Yoshino was no longer the coward who needed it to make decisions. No... that's not right, actually, she was never a coward from the start. It was just that she lacked self-confidence, afraid that her actions might unintentionally harm others, which made her appear so timid in others' eyes.
Yoshino's determined gaze last night was still fresh in Yoshinon's memory. Now, it could at most offer Yoshino some advice or remind her at critical moments; it no longer needed to help Yoshino decide anything. Its main task was to stay by Yoshino's side, and that was enough.
"Yoshino?" The change happening to Yoshino attracted the attention of Madoka Kaname and the others. This pure white light made them feel very warm, like basking in the sun in autumn.
Under their gaze, Yoshino's body slowly floated into the air, her hood falling off to reveal her delicate face. Then, a phantom of an angel appeared behind her, embracing Yoshino. Next, a pair of phantom wings appeared behind Yoshino, and the light from her body illuminated the surrounding space, making everyone uncomfortable enough to shield their eyes with their hands.
This was intentional on Yoshino's part. While some things could be revealed, others needed to be kept secret.
"I will accept your despair. I am someone you can trust." The black mist, enveloped in pure white light, gradually took on the form of a girl. Yoshino said gently, "I hope you can have a happy life in your next life. Don't wish to become a Magical Girl; live happily."
Then, the black energy on the girl's body was absorbed by the runes on Yoshino's hand, and a short, pink-haired girl gradually appeared before Yoshino. She looked at her hands, which had returned to normal, and smiled happily. "...Thank you, unknown senior. Although I don't know who you are, I can finally ascend to Nirvana in peace."
"She can actually speak! It seems you're much more powerful than the Dark Witch (Kuleka). You must have been an amazing Magical Girl when you turned into a Witch." Yoshinon said, somewhat surprised. The previous Dark Witch (Kuleka) had only given a greeting before leaving to ascend to Nirvana, but she could speak to Yoshino.
"Amazing or not, what does it matter? In the end, I still fell into Kyubey's trap and became a Witch. I originally thought my final fate would be to die when my grief seed was shattered, but I never expected to have a chance to ascend to Nirvana. I truly have to thank Senior for your help." The girl smiled at Yoshino, but Yoshino could feel the bitterness in her. She hadn't come to terms with her fate.
"It must have been very painful, right? That feeling of despair before becoming a Magical Girl must have been very difficult, right?" Yoshino gently stroked the girl's head, saying softly.
"...Yes, it was very hard." Feeling the warmth from Yoshino, the girl's expression froze, and two clear tears flowed from her eyes, but she didn't wail. She just felt that some things in her heart were gradually being relieved by Yoshino's comfort.
"Knowing that Magical Girls would eventually become Witches, the shock was simply too great for me. I never expected that Kyubey, whom I always thought was helping me, was actually using me. It just felt so awful." The girl's expression was somewhat dim, likely recalling the painful memories of when she was alive.
"That girl with the great figure who fought me just now is also a Magical Girl, right? I also saw Kyubey. I can tell that girl is actually very fragile. I hope, Senior, you can stay by her side when she despairs. That way, she probably won't turn into a Witch, right?" Thinking of Mami Tomoe, who had fought her, the girl clasped Yoshino's hand, pleadingly.
"This is my selfish request. You saved me, Senior, yet I haven't given you anything and am telling you all this, but I truly hope no more girls feel despair because of Kyubey."
"I don't want, I don't want anyone else to feel my despair anymore." At this point, the girl's tears, which had just stopped, flowed again.
"...I understand." Looking at the girl's sincere request, Yoshino knew her whimsical plan had another reason to proceed. In this world, it wasn't just Madoka Kaname who hoped Magical Girls could find hope; many more people were waiting, waiting for this miracle of being a Magical Girl.
"In that case, I can leave now." Seeing Yoshino agree to her request, the girl wiped away her tears, then slowly disappeared into this pure white world.
"Thank you, Senior."
After the girl slowly disappeared, the light also gradually faded. When the light completely vanished, Mami Tomoe and the others opened their eyes again to see Yoshino back to her original appearance. The surrounding space also returned to the abandoned building. Yoshino, meanwhile, was staring blankly out the window, lost in thought.
"Yoshi—" Sayaka Miki, being more direct, wanted to step forward and ask about the wings she had just seen, but Mami Tomoe and Madoka Kaname held her back. They shook their heads. Everyone had a secret they couldn't tell others. Forcibly asking someone wouldn't yield the desired answer; it was better to wait until Yoshino voluntarily told them one day.
"Alright, since we're back, I'll continue explaining to you." Mami Tomoe held up an object emitting a black glow, showing it to them. "This is a grief seed, a Witch's egg."
"Egg... egg?" Sayaka Miki pointed at the grief seed, saying uncertainly.
"Yes, if you're lucky, it sometimes appears on the Witches you defeat."
"It's okay, you don't need to be afraid. A Witch's seed is still very safe in this state. In fact, it's an extremely useful final item for Magical Girls."
Kyubey on her shoulder explained this to the two. Madoka Kaname and the other girl gently touched it with their fingers. It did feel hard, and it looked like nothing more than a hard, pretty gem.
"Yoshino, thank you for your help just now. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't know how to handle that situation." Mami Tomoe came up to Yoshino, burying her in her completely unfair breasts, stroking Yoshino's head and praising her.
Because of the tight embrace, Yoshino felt the'smothering breasts attack' launched by Mami Tomoe. Gradually, due to difficulty breathing, Yoshino's body began to twitch.
"Um... Senior Mami? Yoshino looks like she's having a hard time right now." The observant Madoka Kaname said hesitantly after seeing Yoshino's condition. If the impressive Yoshino wasn't helped soon, she might just sacrifice herself on Mami Tomoe's breasts.
"What a great benefit! Well done, Mami Tomoe!" Yoshinon gave Mami Tomoe's smothering breasts attack full marks!
"You, you're definitely a terrible person." Sayaka Miki looked at Yoshinon and retorted.
She felt that this Yoshinon was definitely a very eccentric person.
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