"Ash! Do you think it's fun to die alone and make us regret it for the rest of our lives? Come back - come back, I, Marine, will give you a good beating for everyone today!"
"..." Hearing Erika's shameless but sincere cry, Yuri, who lowered his head, did not speak, but just helped the unconscious Hanasaki Kaoruko into the hands of Koppu, who had belatedly arrived.
The futile words she wanted to say and the words full of determination after she became strong had all been said before. Does she want to say them again now? Or is it better to force a smile?
She didn't want to say anything or do anything now.
Yuri doesn't know, she just recalled certain times and wished that such time could be longer.
The falling moonlight is the light of sadness.
"He must have noticed something, maybe it's his own, maybe it's the enemy's." Itsuki, who was usually calm and optimistic, also seemed powerless in front of sadness at this time. His fists were lowered and he would raise his hands to wipe the tears from the corners of his eyes from time to time.
He has been hiding a lot of things from us. Even if he doesn't want us to be hurt by his things, Ash, do you think this is okay?
"That's why he disappeared quietly after spending a happy party with us that day. He didn't want to implicate us, and he would fight even if he never saw us again. He was an awkward guy who only used this roundabout way to express his love and tenderness."
I hate this kind of tenderness!
Obviously if we all work together, no matter how difficult it is, there will be a solution, for sure! As long as there is love, there must be...
Itsuki still couldn't help but smash the remaining wall panels in front of him with a punch. He opened his trembling palms and tried to grab something, but couldn't.
"The men who make girls cry are the worst..."
After venting their emotions that had no place to put, they all looked at Du En who was punched into the ground by Heartbreak Symphony. In their hearts, there was no joy at all for returning victoriously from behind a powerful enemy, but only memories and sadness for the deceased, that's all.
"Really, is it over?"
"Probably - no, everyone, back off!"
The face of Yuri, who was standing at the front, changed drastically, and he quickly pulled everyone back. In their unbelievable eyes, the huge Heartbreak Symphony goddess iron fist was supported by a hand below and raised upwards. After being completely pushed away, the pure white figure completely dissipated.
Looking at the enlarged figure in front of her, Lei opened her mouth wide.
"Everyone - look at his chest!" Everyone immediately looked in the direction pointed by the elves. Du En slowly crawled out of the pit. It was at the place where he was blasted out of the heart-shaped gap by the super-strong sound waves of the girls that he gradually began to crack downwards, revealing deeper hidden wounds.
"That is - could it be said to be the wound caused by Ash?!" If Yuri realized something, no wonder every time he aimed at the chest in the previous battle, he would expose his flaws, that is to say...
The surface of the necklace that sealed Duen's dark power was now covered with cracks, and it was hanging in the heart-shaped gap. Remembering the crisp cracking sound they had heard when it penetrated Duen before, the girls' faces became ugly.
It seems that there is no time to be sad enough to remember the deceased.
"Ahhhhhh-"
The cracked seal was completely shattered by Du En's movements, and what appeared in front of them was the greatest evil in the universe. The dark and destructive red light was continuously injected into Du En's body, which was extremely chaotic due to overlapping injuries. The man's originally handsome face was violently distorted along with the madness all over his body, and his original size of dozens of meters became even larger.
"Don't tell me——Duen!"
The three elves hid behind the girls, trembling as they looked at Duen who was roaring arrogantly and madly.
"Did you go berserk?!"
Chapter 221 Goodbye, Kain
Ash opened his eyes.
Am I still alive? He's not dead yet, are you kidding?
Like a person who is still not quite awake when he wakes up, he glanced around with slightly confused eyes and saw Dark Precure who was covered in blood but still holding himself up, and the blue Dragon Sword King who was standing in front of them to shield him from the heat.
"Little Dark..." The soft call received no response, and only then did he realize that Dark Precure actually stood up and went into shock after holding himself up.
"To actually do it to this extent..."
He instinctively summoned the system panel to say something, but the flames from the edge rushed up, burning the words on the panel in front of him until they were blurry.
"Qi, damn gravity -" Eddie cursed secretly. After sneaking up on Planet Castle and knocking down a few Desertrian on the desert to prevent escape, following his induction of Magical Bullet Key, he finally dug out Ash from the sand with all his strength.
As a result, before he had time to call Pretty Cure above to pick him up, he was pulled along with the land beneath his feet towards the earth below.
"I didn't expect that you would be the one who came to save me in the end. This is indeed something I never expected. Things in the world are unpredictable."
"I'm really sorry that I'm not a pretty girl - damn, why did I come to save you?" Ash thought that Ash was mocking himself. Eddie, who was not in the mood to argue but was about to break through the atmosphere with his body, was so anxious that he almost cried. "Madan Warrior does have equipment that can be used for flying, but I don't have it now! Now this is great, I want to die with you Interdimensional Traveler!"
"Then leave us behind. With Dragon Sword King's jumping power, you should be able to jump to a place where they can notice you alone, so you can be saved." Ash said weakly with a broken arm.
"What nonsense are you talking about? I saved you all, how can I leave you behind!"
"Ha." Ash laughed when he heard the answer, and threw the Blizzard Shark Magical Bullet Key in the inventory to him. "If you are also a hero, don't ask me to teach you this kind of thing."
"As I said, my GekiRyu Ken doesn't seem to even have Magibullet Dragon. How can I summon it..."
"Are you talking about me?" At this moment, a strange voice suddenly came from the dragon head in the center of the sword in Eddie's hand. "It seems that I was awakened by your courage in not giving up."
"Magibullet Dragon——Is this the last moment?"
It seemed that Eddie's face was astonished under the helmet, and Ash couldn't help but laugh.
"Isn't it true that a hero can trigger a miracle at the last moment? So, don't let me teach you about this kind of thing."
But——
"Thanks, Eddie."
"You're welcome." Feeling some recognition, Eddie laughed. "Isn't it a hero's duty to help others?"
"Blizzard Shark, summon!"
Stepping on the beast king Blizzard Shark like a skateboard, with water as coolant continuously sprayed from the bottom, the three stepped on the burning flames and returned to the earth's gravitational circle. Under their feet was the familiar Hope Flower City.
"Back, now-"
"Go there now." Eddie let go of Eddie's hand, and Ash, who stood firm on his own, pointed to the island hidden in the clouds in the distance.
After setting foot on familiar land, Ash raised his head and glanced at Gosei Great who flew away quickly after seeing him. He continued to hold Dark Precure on his back with one hand and walked towards the Heart Tree with an unsteady pace that seemed to be about to fall at any time.
"Are you just looking at it like this?" Magibullet Dragon, who turned back into a hanging on his waist, asked curiously to his new partner.
"No, just watch it now." Eddie shook his head. He hadn't noticed it before, but now he realized it when he faced Ash's retreating back.
Dark Precure was able to survive through an inhuman physique. How did Ash survive? The answer is already obvious.
"As a last resort, I want to witness the end of this person."
Ash Walking on this not-so-distant road, it felt more strenuous than the long-distance chases I had experienced.
The broken right hand has lost the pain, the body temperature has also disappeared, and most importantly, the chest has no beating response. The body's slow response is as if the soul is about to leave this body at any time. So, who is the active person now?
I... really, am I still alive?
However, the reason why I am still alive and exercising now is...
"Ash."
When he heard the voice, he turned around and found that a person who looked exactly like himself was walking side by side on the same road as him. However, this "Ash"'s eyes did not have his usual cynical look, but revealed a gentleness that was rare in him.
"Kain."
Ash, who almost admitted his mistake at first, realized that this was not a doppelgänger in urban legends, but another "demon" of himself in the true sense.
"After all, that elf's appearance was borrowed from someone else. I'll give it back when I get here."
"So... it's right. You are my devil."
"Boss, do you remember?" Kain, who was walking at the same slow pace and not in any hurry, started talking to Ash. "Using the power of the devil requires signing a contract with the devil."
"Yes, when I got Timons Driver, I just thought about the contract. It would be anything that could give me strength. So let me see what my devil looks like first, but I didn't expect it to be you——"
Ash suddenly reacted. As a contract, Kain gave himself countless demonic powers. In addition to the health points he had been paying, did he pay a corresponding price...?
"You have already paid, a long time ago." Seeing Ash still looking confused, Kain reacted. "That's right. If the devil dies, the memory between the contractor and the devil will also disappear."
"But, if the devil dies, the price collected by him will also be -" Ash suddenly reacted and looked straight at his other self. "Really? You used this mechanism to return the life that was sucked away at this time, so I can continue."
But why, are you a devil?
"No one stipulates that the devil must be bad, and the villain cannot be the companion of the protagonist?" He took the same steps as Ash, but at this time, one after another feathers began to fall from its missing back. "This is the truth you gave me, boss."
"It looks like." Ash didn't know what expression to show after being silent for a while. "Am I bothering you again?"
"You should ask how many times it's been troublesome." Seeing Ash's silence again, Kain smiled gently. "But it's okay. I'm very happy this time too. Ash Boss, you just always push yourself too hard."
"Try to rely more on the strength of others. It is not shameful. For example, this time, even though it is the last one." Kain raised his head and looked at the growing figure and red light outside the sky.
"Go and try to be their light."
"That's it this time. Farewell, boss." Kain, whose whole body began to turn into black feathers and gradually disappeared, did not have a trace of gloom on his face. Instead, he smiled and waved goodbye to Ash. "Next time you need me again."
"Call me again."
"..." Ash was silent. When the other self disappeared, it was also the last farewell to an old friend. For a moment, his throat was choked.
"?" Feeling the tears running down his cheeks, Ash felt strange again.
No, why am I crying?
Weird, I didn't decide to give them the last shot, I had already prepared myself to go on the road countless times. Why do I feel so uncomfortable? I'm obviously not afraid of death.
"But..."
As Ash faltered, he finally seemed to be crushed by his own weight, and within his reach was the "Dark Evolver" that had been inserted under Heart Tree a long time ago.
"Be their light?"
That's exactly what I meant!
Chapter 222 Even if it costs my life!
"Be their light?"
Although I don't know who said this... but that's what it means!
"It's okay, Little Dark." Ash half-crouched in front of Heart Tree. The gentle man placed Dark Precure next to the root of the tree, letting the light spots floating down from the tree blend into her body.
Although you were born from the darkness, you are the product of the purest Precure, so you will not be harmed by the light, and you will be cured because you still have Mirai.
"And my Mirai...Dark Echo has long been satisfied. It's almost time to go back and meet old friends." Feeling the same light spot floating on his shoulder, Ash shook his head and swept the light away from his body. "It's useless, I'm already dead, and you can't make the dead come back to life."
I'll probably go and never come back.
"Sasha~~" Heart Tree The dense branches and leaves kept shaking, making a sound like a gust of wind blowing through the treetops, but the overlapping sounds seemed like a light cry coming from the trees.
"There is no need to be sad." Facing the approaching... no, the death he was already facing, Ash endured such horror with a calm expression. He had already realized it.
"This is exactly what I wanted."
He was a little funny. He didn't expect that one day he would be moved by a tree and even comfort her.
It is necessary to keep the seedlings of hope alive.
When Ash pulled out the half of "Dark Evolver" inserted under the tree, he discovered that the empty shell that had originally exhausted its energy and turned into a Bandai DX plastic toy now had the feeling of a transparent crystal, with several brilliant lights flowing in it.
"What is this?" This prop with no dark aura left Ash confused for a moment. It wasn't until he turned his attention to the constantly flowing light that he suddenly opened his cloudy eyes in realization. "Really! That's it!"
In the past, when Ash used Dark Evolver to transform into [Dark Mephisto], one of the tasks assigned to him by his boss "Fried Chicken" was to plunder Ultraman's light. As a very careful subordinate, Ash naturally did not intend to hand over all the light.
Now, when all the darkness has been absorbed and purified by Heart Tree, the light flowing inside is...
"Zhun, Lian, Captain Saijo." Ash reluctantly pulled up his stiff facial muscles. "I didn't expect to trouble you all even though I'm across the set... Thank you."
Holding it tightly, several cracks appeared on the transparent shell. As the fragments scratched the palm of Ash's hand, several more pictures appeared in his mind.
I have witnessed it with my own eyes. The miracle caused by four beautiful silhouettes defeated a huge enemy that was originally invincible. Just like what Lei and the others are doing now, it is... .
"Arisu, Rikka, Kenzaki——Love (Mana)!" Ash's heart really beats again with the flow of light! "It's just a bond... that's it, I understand!"
Even if memories fade over time, the feelings passed down may be erased. but! The stories of the past will never disappear, and the love born of bonds will never be forgotten!
"Uh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh!"
Lift the Dark Evolver in your hand above your head, flip your wrist so that the tip side faces down, and Ash stab it into your chest with force.
"This is-!"
Because Dark Precure was seriously injured, Tsukikage Eimei flew up urgently and stood together with Eddie. They looked at the man kneeling under the tree with shock on his face, and his whole body began to emit Banjou light.
"This is-!"
The most shocking thing was Eddie. With his whole face illuminated by golden light, he looked at everything in front of him in disbelief.