Episode 110: Future Dreamer
The Divided Death, the greatest masterpiece created by the Doctor, surpasses all others in both scalability and base specs.
Especially in terms of autonomous weaponry, it has reached a definitive conclusion.
And yet, such a Divided Death meets a pitiful end.
No matter how many gather together, they can’t even hold it back.
Witnessing the scene where the Divided Death is utterly ineffective, Kanon shakes her head.
(“It’s impossible…! Everything is wrong!”)
Above all, the girl standing before her who makes all this possible is abnormal.
“…Do you even realize what you’re doing? Because your weapons aren’t mere copies. They are, they are…!”
“The recreation of abilities. The power to analyze and create the mysteries hidden deep within souls.”
Kanon’s instincts scream that this shouldn’t be possible.
Her mind denies that this should exist.
This isn’t something that should fit into any logical framework.
It transcends the observable world, reaching the sole solution at the origin of everything.
“—The True Magical Eye, that’s what we call it.”
Miuye said this while watching the white flames.
Right now, anything she desires will surely become reality.
“Lies…”
Doctor Kanon possesses the strength to defeat even S Ranks at times.
With full preparation, she could fight on equal footing with anyone.
Yes, if only there was preparation.
“No, I didn’t hear about this!”
Even if an unexpected S Rank suddenly appeared right before her eyes, or something equivalent to it emerged…
—Would Doctor Kanon be able to win?
The answer was already there.
“Divided Death!”
“It’s futile!”
The Divided Death fired from all directions gets burned away.
Already, Kanon and Miuye were no longer on equal footing.
“Act 2”
Miuye announces this as if reciting a spell.
Instantly, several heavy cannons appear in mid-air.
All their barrels are aimed at Kanon.
“Converging Artillery Attack!? Divided Death, protect me!”
In front of the Divided Death creating walls, Miuye intensifies the flames even more.
“Don’t think this is just a regular Converging Artillery Attack.”
The burning flames fill the heavy cannons.
The magic-derived flames clear the convergence process of the artillery attack several times more efficiently than usual.
Something that normally wouldn’t be possible.
A rule-breaking technique only Miuye could pull off.
“FIRE!”
With a thunderous roar, over ten Converging Artillery Attacks are simultaneously unleashed.
Their power could rival even Solciera’s.
Carving through all sides, melting everything in its path, the white cannon shots continue advancing relentlessly.
Seeing this, Kanon realizes her defeat before she even has time to think about it.
But, however…
“Divided Death, Divided Death, Divided Death!”
As soon as an individual reaches its absorption limit and breaks, a new one is summoned immediately after.
Thus, an almost infinite defense wall is constructed.
“I won’t lose, I won’t lose, I won’t lose, I won’t lose, I won’t lose, I WON’T LOSE! Because I’m the Doctor, I’m a genius! There’s no way I’d lose to you!”
While watching the walls collapse despite the summoning not keeping up, Kanon still screams as if denying reality.
Facing the approaching artillery, she wails like a child throwing a tantrum.
“All I wanted was to be happy! To live together with Yume-chan! I don’t want this! I don’t want it to end here!”
“—Yeah, I don’t want it to end here either.”
“Wha..?”
That voice came not from beyond the wall but from behind her.
Kanon turns around as if startled.
There, Miuye had emerged from a familiar transfer magic circle.
“Act 3!”
A pure white dagger is born in her hand.
Its effects are unknown to Kanon.
However, she quickly realizes it’s something she shouldn’t touch.
“To think you’d willingly give up your advantageous position!”
Divided Death is generated.
An overwhelming number of butterfly bullets, produced at the last moment, are fired towards Miuye.
Still, Miuye doesn’t stop.
She steps forward with the dagger raised and shouts.
“Act 4!”
The transformation began from Miuye’s back.
Two pairs of light wings burst forth, sweeping away the obstructing Divided Death.
The pure white wings forcefully spray magical power, pushing Miuye further forward.
(A dense mass of magical power!? Whose… is this?)
The abnormal phenomenon of ability replication repeats multiple times.
It’s enough to completely halt Kanon’s thoughts.
Losing all resistance and thought, Kanon just stares blankly.
That instant decided her fate.
“…Finally, I’ve reached you.”
The dagger pierces into Kanon’s arm.
At the same time, a numbness akin to half-magical paralysis overwhelms her body.
“Aah…”
The dagger is pulled out.
Kanon collapses onto her knees, staring at the scene as if it were someone else’s affair.
The butterflies floating around disappear one after another.
“Older Sister!”
Miuye gently lifts up the fallen Kanon, looking worriedly into her face.
Despite winning, her expression is on the verge of tears.
“…That’s enough.”
“Eh?”
“Kill me. Or take me to the Board of Directors. Anything is fine, since you’ve won.”
Weakly, Kanon announces this.
Looking at her, Miuye shakes her head.
“No… That’s wrong, Older Sister.”
“I’m not your older sister…–”
“That’s why! …Let’s start from here. Let’s truly become real sisters from this very moment.”
“…Huh?”
She couldn’t understand what Miuye meant.
If taken literally, Miuye’s words suggested that the purpose of this battle for her was entirely….
“Did you come here to become my younger sister?”
“That’s right. So that you wouldn’t wander alone anymore, so that you could openly accept someone’s kindness, I want to be by your side… Though saying it straight feels a bit embarrassing.”
Miuye says this with a shy smile to hide her embarrassment.
“Until the end, I couldn’t hate anyone. Therefore, I aimed for a happy ending where no one dies.”
The tragedy that began with the Deep Dream Project would not meet a happy conclusion.
Kanon is a criminal, and there’s probably no going back.
That much was well-known to her.
“…There’s no way I’d get such a convenient ending at this late stage.”
This story is a tragedy.
That much has been concluded.
But, that wasn’t a reason for Miuye to not aim for a happy ending.
“Therefore, I’ll create it. With my own hands, I’ll construct the future I desire, the happy ending.”
Miuye said this while making a peace sign.
That was the ultimate answer.
“Who do you think I am as your younger sister? The super-duper strongest and flawless genius, Miyu of the Empty Void!”
“…What’s that?”
“Your younger sister is talented, that’s the fact.”
With a purely innocent smile devoid of malice, Miuye speaks.
Somehow, her idealistic stance felt strangely nostalgic.
(Hmm, this feeling… somewhere…)
There was definitely a similar scene buried deep in her memories, something she had discarded as unnecessary.
I recall aiming for a happy ending where no one got hurt with someone else once.
Now, I can’t even remember that person’s face anymore.
No, what was the Happy Ending for the Doctor Kanon anyway?
“…Hmm, I can’t remember the important parts.”
The memory had already faded.
It probably wouldn’t return ever again.
Yet, she remembers that it was undeniably wonderful.
Just remembering that brings a sense of relief.
But the sadness of forgetting everything else makes Kanon cry without realizing it.
Miuye wipes away Kanon’s tears gently and smiles.
“Older Sister, let’s start anew from here.”
“…Ah, Miyu, you’re stubborn too, huh.”
“Of course. Because I’m your younger sister.”
Miuye says this and extends her hand.
“What’s this?”
“A handshake. A reconciliation handshake. You taught me that shaking hands is how we make up.”
“…Ahaha, maybe I did.”
Kanon chuckles.
Caught up in the laughter, Miuye laughs even more.
“Okay, then let’s start again from here—”
Kanon stretches out her hand.
As she tries to grab Miuye’s hand…
“…”
Everything comes to an abrupt end.
“…Older Sister?”
The hand she was trying to grab hangs limply.
Kanon’s body goes limp and falls towards the floor.
Miuye quickly embraces her in panic.
“Older Sister, what’s wrong?! Older Sister!”
Kanon doesn’t respond.
Her eyes have lost their light and no longer perceive this world.
(The heart is still beating. The pulse is normal… But…)
The soul is collapsing.
Because Miuye has the eyes that see the essence of the world, she understands better than anyone else that this is death.
(Construction… isn’t possible. It’s not about interfering with the soul…!)
Even if there existed an entity capable of interfering with everything.
Even if there were Demon’s Gear that negates death.
Even if there were a force that burns the concept of death.
This was a soul collapse that could never be reversed.
Still, Miuye desperately continues to burn Kanon’s death with flames.
But it’s as futile as trying to scoop up all the water of the sea with a small cup.
“Why…! After coming this far…!”
“—Because she lost the brilliance of exploration.”
When she realized, someone was standing in front of the monitor.
She seemed familiar, yet also like someone she’s meeting for the first time.
The girl with a generic appearance turned to Miuye and bowed politely.
“Nice to meet you, successful subject of the Deep Dream Project. I am Doctor Zero Two, the successor to Doctor Kanon.”
“Doctor…! No, right now, it’s about Older Sister!”
“She’s already dead. She went against the mark of exploration and chose to be satisfied.”
Zero Two said this and started extracting data from the console.
With a sleepy expression, she continued while looking at the monitor.
“Doctor Kanon stopped her own exploration. That means it’s the end. We are made that way.”
“What are you talking about? Such nonsense…!”
“It’s the truth. As a doctor, one must not stop exploring. As a professor, one must not give up saving the world. That’s how we are. …Well,”
Zero Two looks at Miuye again.
Then, she points at Kanon and says,
“I’ll retrieve that. The brain is still usable.”
Those words that treated Kanon as merely an object angered Miuye.
“…!? Don’t joke around! Act 2!”
Heavy cannons manifest and point towards Zero Two.
The doctor sighs as if annoyed and looks up at the ceiling and says,
“Well then, it’s your first job — Nameless.”
“Alright, I’ll do my best!”
A black-cloaked girl appears in front of the heavy cannons and Zero Two.
The girl takes out a large scythe and aims its gun barrel at Miuye.
“FIRE!”
“BANG!”
Both converging artillery attacks collide.
The violent impact scatters objects around and cracks run along the ceiling.
The fierce swirl of magical power, like being thrown into the center of a raging sea, explodes and cancels each other out at their center.
“Hmm, impressive Miuye. You’re still strong as expected. But, using those eyes must be exhausting, right?”
“…Loron, Ruruika, please take care of Older Sister.”
The crocodile and dolphin carry Kanon, whose body is barely alive, and move to the back.
The converging artillery attack ends in a perfect draw.
However, the shooters are not equal.
One seems relaxed, while the other is breathing heavily.
“Act 1!”
Faced with the approaching white flames, Nameless draws a sword from a magic circle spread horizontally.
“Act 1!”
The black and white flames clash, swallowing each other and disappearing.
The power that burns concepts is undergoing annihilation.
Seeing this scene, Nameless comments.
“Stop it, you’re just exhausting yourself. Just hand over Kanon and it’s done. Then the villain dies, her brain gets utilized, and you become a hero. Three birds with one stone, right?”
“Don’t joke around! I finally thought I caught up…”
“That’s fine even if she dies. It’s okay.”
With a casual tone as if talking to a friend, Nameless informs her.
Meanwhile, Miuye’s thoughts haven’t stopped.
(I won’t give up yet. Probably, the one with the same power as mine isn’t that person but that sword.)
Miuye’s True Magical Eye captures the mechanical straight sword.
The moment she attempts to analyze the material, sparks scatter in her brain.
“!?”
“Oops, did you try to identify this sword? Stop that. You can’t see it with your current level. My True Magical Eye is stronger. You can’t even create Demon’s Gear with your newly awakened abilities, right?”
Nameless raises the sword in one hand and readies another blade.
The sound of something being cut echoes through the room at the same moment when Nameless appears beside Miuye.
“Sorry, but I can’t lose to you in this state.”
“Act 4!”
The blade and the light wings collide.
At the moment their forces balance, Miuye uses her magical eye again.
“Divided Death!”
The simplified summoning power of the True Magical Eye generates countless Divided Deaths behind Nameless.
“All of yours are magic-based, right? This might work then! That’s why you came at this timing. You couldn’t defeat Older Sister alone!”
Even as anger burns her heart, her mind remains calm.
Upon hearing Miuye’s words, Nameless sighs as if annoyed and cuts through the world again.
“Not exactly. If I killed Doctor Kanon, Miuye wouldn’t awaken…”
Nameless, who was closing in, is once again at a distance.
In her hand, the large scythe is ready.
“Then, let’s try another Converging Artillery Attack.”
Nameless places her finger on the trigger of the scythe.
“Act 2…?”
The heavy cannons she created vanish before firing.
Her strength drained, Miuye instinctively kneels down on one knee.
(The limit of the magical eye…!?)
As Miuye’s complexion worsens, Nameless opens her mouth lightly with a “Oh dear”.
“Using the True Magical Eye twice in succession is tough, isn’t it? I get it. If I were fighting Solciera and some unexpected person suddenly jumped in—”
Her words are light-hearted.
However, magic is gathering at the gun’s muzzle.
Nameless won’t let Miuye escape.
As long as she doesn’t hand over her sister, she will keep fighting indefinitely.
(…There must be another way, some other strategy!)
Thinking calmly, considering thoroughly, and then Miuye realizes her defeat.
But raising her head to glare, her face shows that she hasn’t given up yet.
“Still… I’m not finished yet!”
“BANG!”
The artillery fires.
Miuye glares directly at it and eventually…
“—No, it’s not over yet.”
Suddenly, a magic circle appears in front of her. From it, a girl emerges.
“You’re having fun without me?”
Is this a miracle brought about by Miuye’s will?
Or is it a calamity summoned by Nameless?
A magic barrier deployed with one hand easily defends against Nameless’ artillery attack.
Seeing her figure, Nameless frowns in contrast to her previous demeanor.
“Solciera… Why you here?”
“What a delightful dance party. It’d be such a waste to end it here.”
The third decisive battle between Nameless and Solciera is about to begin.
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