NOVEL NEXT Chapter 114
In a quiet room, as the window opened, a hot early summer breeze blew in along with dust.
With no one to tend the garden, the flowers began to wither, releasing their final fragrance.
“……”
Creek
At the moment Sumire tried to open the window wider, a sound came from her joints.
The sound from her silver prosthetic arms and legs was unfamiliar.
Originally wounds that could fully recover during the blooming process, she rejected restoration due to the scars left by her younger sibling, which allowed her to become a true guardian.
“It’s quiet.”
The family home, after a long absence due to the funeral, felt desolate.
She never imagined she would see such a quiet home while alive.
Those who used to come and go constantly,
People belonging to Fujimoto Security,
Ninjas from the Mumei Unit,
Had either been killed by Anna or moved elsewhere, no longer existing.
An invincible clan that had controlled all of Japan for hundreds of years, now had only one person left above them.
A power that made millions bow with a single word.
The end of that power was merely the scent of flowers and tranquility blowing from the slightly withered garden.
A voice called out to Sumire, who was looking out the window for a moment.
“Sumire.”
“Grandfather.”
“You’ve been resting, did I interrupt you?”
“No, not at all.”
Sumire tried to support her elderly grandfather entering the room with her silver prosthetic arm, but he declined.
“That’s enough. You don’t look well yourself.”
“……”
“You foolish child… Because of your own karma and greed, our precious granddaughter has become completely scarred.”
“……”
Having defended her uncle, Sumire was chased away by her father, and together with her grandfather, who nominally held the position of Chairman of the Fujimoto Group, they sorted everything out.
Though her grandfather had been confined to the hospital with only his name remaining after losing even his last name to her father.
Now, only Sumire and her grandfather had the right to dismantle Fujimoto.
“… It’s all over now.”
“Yes.”
Her father had strictly divided the shares that collateral and direct lines could hold to create an absolute dictatorship.
To ensure that no one could grasp anything but him, the structure of interconnected businesses was thoroughly concealed like a maze.
The process of completely dismantling the Fujimoto Group, which had already shattered after the ruler disappeared, was not difficult at all. Even if there were someone dreaming of gathering small pieces to establish a new empire within, it would take an incredibly long time.
“……”
“……”
Sumire and the Fujimoto Chairman sat quietly in their chairs, feeling the wind blowing in.
The early summer breeze tickled their noses.
The scent of withered wisteria flowers lightly mixed in.
A nostalgic fragrance.
The Fujimoto Chairman wept as he inhaled the scent carried by the wind.
In this fragrance, he was born, married, had sons, and was abandoned.
Wrinkles etched with guilt and powerlessness from not being able to stop his sons’ fights. Tears flowed over them like a stream and soaked in.
The regret, resentment, disappointment, and self-reproach of an abandoned father in old age…
“You foolish child. Such is the futility of power, scattering so easily.”
“……”
“Flowers, after spring, are supposed to completely fall. Why couldn’t you let that go?”
“……”
No ten-day flower.
The last one of Fujimoto, which seemed destined to shine eternally in Japanese history, was like that.
Sumire reminisced about the scent of wisteria in the house she had been raised in until the moment the evening sun set with her grandfather.
When the attendants who had cared for her grandfather appeared to take him home,
After greeting her grandfather, Sumire slowly stepped outside the house.
Now, she wanted to restore this mansion to society, and it would likely be her last time walking proudly as the heir of Fujimoto. Perhaps she would never visit this place again until her death.
Swish
In the corner of the garden.
The wall where the wisteria flowers once bloomed beautifully.
As Sumire brushed against the wall, which was left with only bare leaves after all the flowers had fallen, she recalled the memories.
Mother, grandmother, gardener, and servants.
The dear faces that used to speak to her when Sumire walked gracefully through the garden alone.
Faces she had sent off one by one.
“Miss! Please try this!”
“Miss! Do you like the state of the garden today?”
“Sumire, come here.”
“Little one, let’s have some snacks with grandma.”
Thud
The sound of the bushes rustling disappeared, replaced by a solid clank.
At the end of Sumire’s hand resting against the wall was the front gate.
The long yet short memories of 18 years had come to an end.
It was time to leave.
Now, she had to go to the place where her friends, the salon members, and Kaede were waiting, no longer feeling shy to call them friends.
There were still duties left to fulfill as a magical girl, the chairperson of the council, the boss of the salon, and a guardian.
The young lady of Fujimoto, Sumire, who had strolled through the garden hand in hand with her sister, would now remain forever in this house.
As she stepped out, she was the guardian, Sumire, protecting people among them.
Puhuh!
Hehe!
Surprised by the sound of two girls passing by while holding hands in the garden, Sumire turned around.
“… Anna?”
But there was no one there anymore.
Only the massive mansion that had completely lost its light, seeping into the sunset, loomed ominously.
The wisteria garden that had swayed like spring’s lavender waves disappeared somewhere like mist.
“……”
Sumire turned to face forward, leaving behind the mansion that still smelled of wisteria.
She walked into the brilliantly lit city.
Towards the place where countless people wandered, lived, cried, and laughed.
The place where her friends awaited.
The place where magical girls awaited.
The place where people lived.
“Goodbye. Everyone.”
And thus, Fujimoto vanished into history.
—
Flash
Today, too, her eyes snap open as usual.
Chirp chirp
Coo-coo
The sound of birds is suspiciously loud.
The mountain breeze finds its way into her nostrils.
The air in the living quarters is dry and raspy.
The mumblings of her squadmates as they grind their teeth or mumble in their sleep.
“……”
Hong Na-yeon, the magical girl of the White Wing Unit, was in a hazy state while checking her wristwatch on her left hand.
Five minutes before the wake-up horn blows.
“Ah, please.”
Ever since rolling spicy potatoes at the training camp, she always woke up before the damn wake-up horn.
It was only natural since she was placed under the tutelage of Lee Min-seul, the magical girl and squad leader of Shooting, whose training always came with surprises.
Some days, after turning off the lights, two hours later, she would suddenly set off a flash grenade and demand full gear in five minutes.
Other days, after completing shooting training, they would not return to base and instead head straight into the mountains for guerrilla training.
‘Thinking about that still gives me the chills.’
After two months of grueling training, when Lee Min-seul, with an angelic smile, told her to drop the formalities and pinned the rank badge onto her chest, Na-yeon wept tears of joy, but in retrospect, it felt like a betrayal.
–Waa, Min… Min-seul, thank you…
–Thanks for what?
Min-seul whispered while embracing her.
“The real military life begins from now.”
Na-yeon didn’t understand the true meaning of those words then.
Because shortly after that, the day of trial came, and she was ordered to secure Busan with her squad members.
Second Lieutenant Hong Na-yeon! I will secure it at all costs!
Cleaning up the black lions charging into the Busan beach, which the Cyber Brain magical girl had laid out with silver cannons and soldiers, was simple.
After all, her abilities excelled at playing tricks on enemies at the beach.
The problem was the days filled with duties after the day of trial.
The burdensome work across all of South Korea and the time that refuses to pass.
It was truly horrifying.
Thud—Thud—Thud-thud-thud—Thud-thud-thud
“Ugh…”
“Damn.”
“Help me.”
By now, except for the magical girl of Service who went to the kitchen long ago, the rest of the squad members were staggering to their feet.
One of the squad members, mechanically drawing the curtains and arranging bedding, read the situation board and murmured.
“Huh? It’s the squad leader.”
“Why?”
Despite being the youngest in the headquarters squad, Hong Na-yeon had been appointed as the squad leader of the previously leaderless headquarters squad, as Park Saebyeok felt it was a waste to place a born 2-Star magical girl as an ordinary squad member. And the HQ members respected Na-yeon, who had parachuted in.
“The captain is summoning you.”
“Hmm?”
Messages were popping up on the monitor showing real-time updates for the White Wing Unit calling urgently for Na-yeon.
“What’s this? I thought Busan was completely secured.”
“Who knows? It’s probably nothing.”
Na-yeon scratched her butt as she tidied the bedding and trudged past the unit members moving to perform the morning roll call, entering the captain’s office.
Knock knock
“Second Lieutenant Hong Na-yeon, there’s an urgent matter in the captain’s office…”
“Ah, it’s urgent, so please change and get ready to go out immediately.”
“Pardon?”
Park Saebyeok acted according to standard procedures unless it was truly urgent, so Na-yeon was taken aback.
“I was told at the Walpurgis conference that Second Lieutenant Hong would be a key combatant in the next trial. This is something I just received urgently, so we need to hear the details together.”
“Wha-what? The trial?”
“I hear the next trial is in the European sea.”
Na-yeon was left in darkness.