Watching Sora struggle under Kevin's assault on the screen, Gwen raised a question Vita did not want to face, yet had no choice but to confront:
"The time is almost up. What kind of ending do you want for her?"
"...
Hah..."
Vita fell silent for a moment, then let out a soft sigh. She tilted her head slightly and looked at Gwen beside her.
A sorrowful smile rested on her lovely face, and her eyes were filled with helplessness. Looking at the calm-faced Gwen, Vita said softly:
"Her ending...
Wasn't it already destined?
...Ha."
As she spoke, Vita gave another soft laugh, putting away the sorrow and helplessness on her face. She moved a little closer to Gwen, placing one hand on his shoulder and lightly resting her chin against the back of her own hand, almost leaning against him.
"Or do you have a way to change it?"
As Sora's proxy, Vita considered herself the one who understood Sora best.
Accordingly, she was also the one who knew most clearly that Sora had nowhere left to retreat.
What she said to Gwen was merely an outlet for the grief that had built up in her heart to its limit—
Even if that release resembled flirting more than venting.
"Why wouldn't I?"
He casually took Vita's other hand and gently played with the slender, flawless fingers.
"I could destroy her completely, leaving not even a trace behind;
erase the last remnants of her consciousness, or restrict it into an auxiliary system and turn her power into a tonic for you;
or return those things she separated from herself, giving her a chance to return to what she originally was. All of those are possible paths.
It only depends... on which one you want to choose."
There was a hint