Mirai felt his soul trembling without end.
The sea of fire was filled with memes. Everything was just as it had been back then. Under the bombardment of General Motors X20A Autonomous Unrestricted Network-Driven Attack Aircraft A, dreams, hopes, lives, and everything else had been swallowed by flames.
The live-ammunition training ground, the Forest in his mind that he had never recognized, even the former "Mirai's" long-cherished wish to walk the path of a wizard... Mirai felt himself fading away. Memories tangled together, his soul slowly began to blur, and the images in his mind started to collapse.
Mirai felt as though he were in a dark place where there was nothing, where nothing existed—not even he himself existed in that darkness.
"Me... who am I?"
"Who is supporting..."
"Who is it..."
"Who..."
The voice echoed through the darkness. Hugh felt terribly tired at that moment. He wanted to close his eyes and have a good sleep.
"Why?"
A voice came from the darkness. "Who?" The surroundings remained endlessly dark, for he could not see anyone.
"Mirai!"
When that voice called out again, a crack appeared in the dark world. White light seeped into the darkness. As the darkness was driven away, Mirai saw a pale face carrying a trace of worry.
"Shermie?" He realized that Shermie was gripping his right arm and shaking him.
"You just looked like... no, are you alright?"
There was a slight change in Shermie's gaze as she looked at Mirai. But as someone who had studied acting, what Mirai saw in Shermie's eyes was sympathy!
Shermie was actually looking at him with sympathy?
Just as Hugh was left speechless, Captain Kassel's voice came from some distance ahead. "Hey! Why have you two stopped? Keep formation and maintain the distance between everyone!"
Since Hugh and