Sky Striker Ace, But Symphogear

Serena's voice briefly made Maria feel a little relieved, but that relief was soon crushed beneath a heavy emotion.

What... should I do...?

I made up my mind to break away from Raye and become independent, but I'm still as weak as before, still as cowardly as before.

Even equipped with Serena's Symphogear, I still couldn't win in the end. On the contrary, I lost so horribly.

What am I supposed to do...?

All kinds of terrible thoughts churned within Maria's heart.

That utter defeat, that absolute gap in strength, made Maria painfully aware that she was still just as weak and timid as before.

She had even found herself thinking that it might not be so bad to simply carry on like this after seeing Serena awaken again and experiencing these ordinary days together.

Her companions clearly had not given up resisting. Kirika and Shirabe were still working hard, yet she had allowed herself such cowardly thoughts.

All of it tormented Maria beyond measure. She doubted whether she should continue fighting at all. After all, someone who could not compare to Serena had no chance of winning in battle.

"Maria, Maria!"

Just as Maria became immersed in her own world, Serena's call from beside her brought her back to her senses. She then realized that the traffic light ahead had turned red at some point and hurriedly hit the brakes.

"Sorry, I zoned out. I made you worry, Serena."

Apologizing to Serena with some guilt, Maria felt even more dejected inside.

"No, I'm fine. Is something troubling you, Maria?"

Serena shook her head, unconcerned by such a minor matter. What concerned her more was her sister's obviously abnormal state.

"I..."

Faced with Serena's gentle question, Maria did not know how to answer.

She did not know how to tell