"Love" and "War" (Please Vote with Monthly Tickets)

On the beach of the isolated island, wave after wave rolled in, stirring up surging swells that washed over the sand, over the island, and even over the super-sized strategic bomber parked on the shore.

Holding Shirayuki in his arms, Fang Li slowly descended from the sky and landed on the beach. He raised his eyes toward the top of the bomber.

"You're here."

"Much faster than I expected."

As though speaking with one voice, Sun and Bami, carrying a Crescent Blade and a massive axe respectively, stood one to the left and one to the right, one before and one behind, looking down at Fang Li and Shirayuki.

Behind the two of them, at the highest point of the bomber, stood another petite figure, her back to them as she faced the wind.

From her body surged a sense of presence and power more than twice that of Sun and Bami, rising like the tide.

"Whoosh—!"

The sea breeze carried a chill, sending the girl's skirt fluttering wildly.

Along with it fluttered a pair of twin tails.

Twin tails formed from pink hair, beautiful as cherry blossoms and soft as silk cotton.

"Aria..."

Shirayuki stared at that figure whose presence was unnaturally intense, a trace of sorrow entering her voice.

That was only natural.

The petite girl standing high atop the wing with her back to them was no longer the Aria Shirayuki knew.

"It has been about three years, hasn't it?"

An extremely crisp and pleasant doll-like voice began to ring out from her.

The difference was that it had lost some of its childishness and gained a measure of wild arrogance.

"Since I crossed over through the Chronicle Mirror three years ago and entered this child's body, I have continuously tried to replace the consciousness within it,