NOVEL NEXT Chapter 142
September 12th
“Hey Hecate, what are you doing over there?”
“…I’m just playing.”
“No, I mean why are you setting up a parasol in the open space and playing games on a blanket?”
“I mean, even a successor shouldn’t criticize someone’s hobbies… The goddess doesn’t interfere with hobby activities either.”
“Are you using that tone to annoy me?”
“The first language directly conveys emotions, so…”
“…”
After clearing up the awkwardness between Yuki and me, Hecate started behaving ridiculously like this from time to time. Should I say she was overly honest with herself and acted on impulse?
‘What’s even funnier is that she doesn’t think she’s being funny.’
It’s been months since Hecate started interacting with various magical girls to learn things about her own life beyond the command left by the Goddess of [Start].
– I’ll be going to the exchange meeting.
– Where to?
– This time, it’s Korea.
– Be honest. You’re going to an internet cafe, aren’t you?
– W-Well, it’s not a bad thing…
Through many interactions, Hecate established her own humanity and became a superb gaming addict. The various ways she enjoyed games sometimes even made me marvel.
“Based on the movements of the stars, it looks like today is a jackpot day…”
Even now, she was enjoying games on her handheld console under the parasol for over six hours, while a collectible card game was running on her smartphone next to her.
Swipe
Clatter
“Ugh… it’s hard to get a good draw with the annual pass.”
Tap
Tap
Tap
Tap
Tap
Tap
Tap
Tap
Tap
“…Damn game.”
Even while being aware of me, Hecate fiddled with her smartphone whenever she could. She even held both her gaming console and smartphone in her hands, switching between them. Since a cute girl was doing it, it had a somewhat adorable side, but it was still a rather ugly sight.
‘She’s not some dopamine-overloaded elementary school kid.’
If she also had a tablet set up to stream videos, she would become a complete dystopian dopamine addict. Imagining Hecate using internet memes and streaming slang in her head made me a bit dizzy.
‘Dorim, who spends a lot of time online, doesn’t even use internet memes. Hecate seems to be influenced instantly.’
Because of her pure white appearance, Hecate absorbed colors faster than anyone else.
Perhaps it was a sense of reward for having worked for a long time, but Hecate couldn’t pull herself away from the game that provided the most pleasure at that moment.
– Hecate doesn’t even watch the star movements anymore after dealing with the monsters; she just goes straight back to gaming.
– She says it’s pointless to watch since their fates are twisted…
According to testimonies from the golden-haired girls, on her days off, Hecate spent nearly every night playing games until 4 AM, waking up past noon, and then gaming again until 4 AM.
“Why, why?”
“…”
Her red eyes constantly glancing at me, filled with anxiety. Inside, many emotions were slowly rising.
Anxiety
Nervousness
Tension
If the day I first saw her resembled a doll’s glass eyes, now they reflected the ordinary fear of having her gaming console taken away.
With the happiness that emerged, greed and obsession also grew, along with the fear and irritation to protect it.
You could say this was an explosive process of internalizing the knowledge and experiences she had already accumulated through her interactions with other girls.
“You’ve changed a lot.”
“What do you mean?”
“Human-wise.”
“…”
Hecate momentarily put down her gaming console and showed a shy expression upon hearing my words. That expression was a new emotional eruption that arose from realizing her current self had become so laid back.
Not a perfect, noble, serene doll.
But an imperfect, desperate, intense human.
“I never thought Hecate, who always followed orders, would change so dramatically.”
“…I didn’t even know I craved pleasure and had such a shy side.”
“You’ve always been shy, trying to act solemn to keep people away.”
“W-What’s wrong with being introverted?”
“I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with it.”
“It seems like successors only insist they won’t interfere as long as the basics are followed.”
“Hehe.”
A warm wind blew into the open space of Elysion where we stood. But the scent of summer mixed in the wind was fading compared to yesterday.
As time passed, humanity was enduring trials.
The outside world only praised me, who had foretold all of this, and cheered for the sparkling magical girls saving the world from monsters.
‘Even that has become more familiar than excitement after the magical girls appeared for over a year.’
Most of the suffering people were healed by magical girls, and the terrifying monsters were defeated by them. They spoke of the time after overcoming trials as if it were natural, supporting those who worked hard to protect people.
This world was already headed for tomorrow.
In this world, there was already hope.
Then, after overcoming all the trials, wouldn’t it be only natural for the Magical Girl of [Hope] to quietly step aside?
“Hecate.”
Hecate responded to my serious voice, quietly turned off her game console, and looked at me earnestly.
Mechanical and strange, but she had held on to me since the first day I arrived in this world, so I felt uneasy about putting another heavy burden on a girl who had already fulfilled her mission sufficiently.
“I have a request.”
“I’ll listen.”
“If humanity manages to overcome the three goddesses and the stars after overcoming all trials…”
“…”
“…Please help Yuki, who will lead the magical girls.”
“Yuki?”
“I’m just ruling over the powers bestowed upon me by the Goddess of [Start] and overflowing with infinite strength; I can’t show the magical girls anything beyond heading towards tomorrow.”
“…”
“Please help Yuki lead Elysion and the magical girls well even after I’ve left.”
“Why Yuki?”
“Because she was the only one who taught the spirit of the magical girls during the era of despair when there was nothing.”
“I see.”
Hecate closed her eyes for a moment and then nodded her head with difficulty.
Not an act of obedience, but permission.
The few seconds it took to respond hinted that Hecate and I’s relationship had already changed. She hadn’t obeyed; she had contemplated and permitted it as my comrade.
Hecate’s attitude had changed,
My role had changed,
Our relationship had changed.
Changing means moving forward.
We were moving forward like that.
“Got it.”
“Thank you.”
“What are you planning to do after the trials end?”
“The original world.”
“Are you thinking of going back?”
“Yes.”
I am an outsider who flowed here from death through the Goddess of [Start]. Even if this place has become my second home, my journey will end when I find my mother again.
As long as the soul of a man named Hyeonwoo lives within Hikari Shirogane, if I turn my back on that, I won’t be able to be myself anymore. That’s why I have to leave if they overcome that unreasonable fate.
“Even if the successor’s heart changes and stays, I will always respect the successor.”
“Why? I’m not omnipotent like a god, and I wasn’t destined to be a magical girl from the start.”
“Because I believe in Hikari, who is neither a god nor a magical girl.”
“…”
“Not because of the goddess’s command, but because I believe in everything I’ve seen.”
“…”
Hecate wasn’t just a god or a messenger; she believed in me as a comrade.
While the faith we send is the same, the basis of that faith has changed.
As Hecate finished speaking, the silver-white glass star placed under the white blanket glimmered softly.
The fate of humans, detached from this huge flow of stars.
It wasn’t as beautiful as the moment of blooming.
It wasn’t as sublime as ten thousand moments.
Just a gentle change.
Not a girl who only heeds the voice of the gods, but a girl who keeps watch over everything, including the gods, and believes.
[Magical Girl of Faith].
“Fate has changed.”
“It seems so. Hecate’s fate…”
“No.”
Hecate quietly lifted her head and looked up at the sky beyond the parasol. I followed her gaze and looked at the blue sky.
“…”
In the sky at noon, the sunlight obscured the starlight, but I could feel the positions of the stars slowly changing when viewed through the divine.
The sky, which always pointed only to a fate of destruction.
The fate of this world had changed.
Not a fixed destruction, but transforming towards uncertain possibilities.
“…”
As a branch that stretches out, not a sprouting seedling.
This world was changing on its own, leaving my hand.
In the changing fate, the magical girls were running toward broader and infinite possibilities.
＊
October 6th
[Notification from Elysion Observatory!! The fifth trial has been overcome!!]
[The red atmosphere is… is it…?!]
[Huh?! It’s not changing!! Emergency situation!!]
It hasn’t changed.
Even though we expelled the birds scattering the plague with ominous wings.
The sky didn’t turn blue again, and monsters kept emerging from the endlessly opening rifts.
[Monsters keep appearing!! Please proceed to all expected areas!!]
[It’s an emergency situation where the rifts will not close!!]
We fought on until the coldest winter came.
Something was going wrong.