She drew her legs in slightly.
According to Teacher Roland, although there was a vast gap between them and the Demon King in terms of strength alone, the Demon King was extremely weakened right now and not impossible to defeat.
And Hina should be safe too.
It was not as though there was no hope, but...
It seemed to have been like this when she was little, too.
She and her younger sister had suddenly been caught up in a Monster incident. Her sister had been attacked by a Monster, while she could do nothing but stand by and wait until the Magical Girls arrived. Then, her family had fallen apart.
Her sister had developed a strange illness. She could not walk with her legs, could not attend school normally, and often could only stay in bed.
Her father and mother had fought a great deal as well, eventually divorcing. Hina had lived with their mother, while she had followed their father. Later, she had ended up living alone and going to school by herself.
Back when the Magical Girls of Maple Plain City had not yet become active, Monsters had been terrifying, awful things.
They could effortlessly destroy everything she had.
Back then, she had thought that it would be nice if she were a Magical Girl. Then perhaps things would not have turned out this way. She could save many people too, so that others would not end up like her.
So, after becoming a Magical Girl, she had developed an illusion.
She had thought she could protect the things she wanted to protect from Monsters.
But in reality, it was still just like when she was little. Nothing had changed.
Kirishima Ai lowered her head slightly, burying it deep in her knees. Her bangs partly obscured her