Before bed, Soyo carefully cleaned Chiose up from head to toe.
They lay on the soft, spacious bed, and as always, Chiose tilted her little head to rest it against Soyo's chest.
It was the most comfortable pillow she had ever known.
There was no noise by her ears, and the blanket was warm. On a certain day many years ago, when Chiose had opened her eyes, all she could remember was the freezing cold streets and the deserted night.
It was Soyo who had picked her up.
What was she supposed to say?
This was perhaps what they called fate.
In every Simulation, the protagonist would always meet Chiose through some twist of fate. Whether in reality or in the Simulation, that predetermined destiny, hidden in the unseen, wound everyone together.
Chiose gazed up at the ceiling.
If she could, she wished to stay with Soyo for the rest of her life.
In truth, she... really wanted a mother.
In reality, Chiose had lost her parents very early. Her middle school entrance ceremony, her middle school graduation ceremony, her high school entrance ceremony—at all these most memorable occasions, her parents had never once been present.
In the days when no one held an umbrella over her, Chiose alone was the umbrella that sheltered both herself and her little sister.
And then, later.
Mm. Those wretched days had finally come to an end.
It was just that she herself didn't have much longer to live.
Within the Simulation she relied on to make a living, Chiose had once entertained a single thought: to simply convert all her remaining lifespan into money to leave for her little sister, and then just die and be done with it.
But that simply wouldn't work—she, Yoshiiro Chiose, could not die! She absolutely could not die!
She still had her two friends, Tomori and Taki... she still needed to win her little sister the chance to see the light again... she still had so many things left to do. And if she went on to make new friends in the future—like Soyo in reality—then there would be even more things she couldn't bear to give up.
Reality was reality, and the Simulation was the Simulation.
No matter how sorrowful things became in the Simulation, it was only a fleeting dream. To draw out even one more smile in reality—that was true success.
This was exactly how she meant to struggle on and keep living!
"Mama, tell me—we'll be together forever, won't we?"
No, Mama, we won't be together forever.
Chiose asked Soyo while already cradling the answer in her heart. Rather than asking Nagasaki Soyo, she was really only talking to herself.
"We will. Mama doesn't have any great talents, but Mama will definitely protect Little Chiose for her whole life."
"Little Chiose doesn't want Mama to protect her. When Little Chiose grows up, Little Chiose will protect Mama instead!"
"Pfft, protect me?"
A complex expression flickered in her eyes. Soyo felt she truly didn't deserve this love from her daughter.
She was such a terrible mother, and at the same time an unworthy daughter. The only thing Soyo had ever succeeded at was successfully keeping herself forever alone.
Even a failure like me—would you still like me? Would you still love me?
"Little Chiose likes Mama the most... Before, Mama was too busy to take care of Little Chiose, but now Mama has finally brought Little Chiose home! Little Chiose is really, truly so happy."
Her chest felt warm and wet—Soyo knew those were Nagasaki Chiose's tears.
These tears truly flowed into her heart, making her revived heart beat ever faster.
"Don't cry now. Mama will always stay right by Little Chiose's side from now on."
The dim light, the warm atmosphere—tonight there was a full moon again, though unfortunately the thick curtains kept the moonlight shut outside the room.
"We'll always sleep together and drink ginseng chicken soup together, won't we? Little Chiose loves Mama so much, really loves her... Little Chiose is so afraid that Mama will keep ignoring her..."
"I... before, I was the one who did poorly. And there was that one time I broke my promise."
Nagasaki Soyo regretted it so much she nearly cracked her molars from clenching them.
She resented her past self—the one from before she'd taken Little Chiose in—for not detecting the safety hazards within the company sooner, and she blamed her own still-immature abilities, which were why the current situation had taken more than a week just to barely stabilize.
If only she were as strong as her mother, able to build everything from scratch and carve out her own piece of sky in the vast metropolis of Tokyo... she would surely have far more abundant time to spend with her daughter.
"Little Chiose has never once blamed Mama. Every time Mama blames herself it makes Little Chiose so sad. Little Chiose doesn't want to see Mama looking unhappy..."
Chiose buried her little face against Soyo's chest, then lifted her eyes pitifully to stare up at Soyo.
"I... I..." Soyo was at a loss for words.
She realized the only things she could do were keep swearing oaths and keep making promises—but all of those were too empty and hollow.
Nagasaki Soyo wanted to make her sensible daughter Chiose happy through action! And so Chiose's elementary school entrance ceremony... she absolutely had to attend it!
So that Little Chiose could have a happier childhood!
"This time, can Mama keep Little Chiose by her side? Little Chiose has always wanted to live together with Mama... Will Mama still be that busy this time?"
"No, not anymore, not anymore... I swear this time it really won't be like that..."
So full of regret—why had she treated this little girl this way...?
Soyo didn't dare imagine just how great an impact the absence of parents could have on a child.
A little girl raised by her grandmother, yet whose mother had never once cared about her—and she didn't even have a father.
Given such circumstances, the fact that Chiose hadn't turned out crooked or developed any kind of psychological illness was truly something to thank the heavens for.
Hugging Chiose tightly, Soyo felt she had already cried until she had no tears left.
She hated herself so much. The more sensible and affectionate Chiose became, the more a contradictory self-loathing would steadily mount within Soyo.
And as that resentment deepened, the guilt in her heart would flood over once more—it had almost become a vicious cycle.
"Mama, I want to hear—a lullaby... is that okay?"
Oh, you poor, pitiful little girl—no one in the world could ever refuse a request from you.
Soyo's gentle voice set Chiose's heart at ease. It was "Dango Daikazoku"—it seemed Soyo liked this song too.
Amid the singing, the two of them gradually drifted off toward dreamland.
Soyo began to imagine the beautiful days to come.
She would expand the company, and at last slowly ease into a retired life just like her mother's.
Chiose would grow into an adult, and she would have a happy childhood.
When Chiose reached her rebellious phase, she might even go out and play in a band—after all, bands were still popular in this era.
She would play rock, and maybe even play the bass, and Soyo herself could teach her how to play it.
Then Chiose would take to the stage to perform, and Soyo could bring her own mother along to watch little Chiose's performance.
They would cheer from the audience for their proudest little Chiose, and in the end Chiose would graduate without a hitch, join her company, and inherit the Nagasaki family's ancestral enterprise.
Would her daughter get married someday?
Probably.
Best of all with a girl, because a girl wouldn't bully Little Chiose—Little Chiose would only ever be the one doing the bullying.
And further on still...
Mama and she herself could live out their retirement, and Chiose would become the new "Ms. Nagasaki." Every weekend everyone could gather together to enjoy a grand feast and unwind.
They would drink ginseng chicken soup together.
Paired with vegetable macaroni.
[They'll be happy. They definitely will.]
The corners of Soyo's mouth curved up into a distinct arc.
She felt that she would become the happiest person in the whole world.
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