"It's fine."
Lianye shook his head. Even a second explosion could not hurt him. Rather than fleeing, he wanted to stay here and watch over this seemingly insignificant yet impossible-to-ignore life. Even if she was destined to die, Lianye would keep vigil until the very end.
"Before the end, do you have any wishes, Mash...?"
"A wish?... Just once, I'd like to see the blue sky..."
"Not even once?"
"Ever since I became conscious, I've always been in 'Chaldea'..."
"No wonder. This place is buried in blizzards all year round. Then—"
As Lianye sighed for Mash, he raised his head. Surging, pure starfire gathered in his mouth. If only to fulfill the girl's final and only wish before her death—something as insignificant as seeing the blue sky.
820 Ding, system prompt: Lianye (Aurelion Sol) took a deep breath...
That system voice was, of course, fake.
"Announcement: The Central Control Room isolation walls are closing. Spiritron Transfer will begin. Coordinate: Fuyuki City, Japan, January 20th, 2004..."
This system voice was the real one.
Amid the dazzling white radiance, the Spiritron Transfer officially began. Lianye swallowed the charged starfire back down in one gulp.
"Off you go!"
Gudako, her face covered in soot, helped the unconscious Fujimaru Rikka out of the Central Control Room and tossed him over to where the other Qualified Candidates were.
"Okay, all done~~~" She clapped her hands, then turned around, only to find no sign of Lianye. "Eh?! That guy Lianye still hasn't come out?"
Seeing the Central Control Room's isolation walls about to close, Gudako gritted her teeth, turned around, and charged forward. Just as the walls were about to shut, the girl leaped into the Central Control Room with an agile flourish.
Hassan would have fallen silent at the sight. Old Man of the