“Hah?”
Shizuku’s small mouth hung slightly open in disbelief as Cklares continued.
“You thought Sisel was just an ordinary, strong girl. But that’s not true.”
A misconception Shizuku held—one that Cklares had to correct.
“She wasn’t as strong as you believed. She suffered from the bullying. She was just forcing herself to act tough around you.”
“W-Wait a second!”
Shizuku raised her voice.
“Sisel… that’s…! Why are you telling me this now!? What’s your point!?”
“It means you’re a heartless, tearless, inhuman monster, Cram.”
Natalia’s voice carried both fierce anger and pity.
And then—
“Even if you called her your best friend… you never truly knew the real Sisel.”
A faint hint of smug superiority lingered in her words.
(Latent States really do love asserting dominance, huh?) Cklares thought to herself, though she kept the observation to herself.
“Sisel Barker was a quiet girl. Ordinary. Unremarkable. Her family wasn’t particularly prestigious, and she was only average in both academics and sports. She never fit in at this school from the start.”
A place where girls fought over lineage and factions, where the bullied became the bullies.
A twisted garden where even the name “Evergrace” sounded like a cruel joke.
Sisel couldn’t adapt. She wasn’t strong enough to crush others—but not weak enough to drag them down either.
“And so, right after enrolling, she lost her place and became a target.”
Then—
“She met you. Tiana Cram. The lone wolf who never cared about others, who never bowed to anyone.”
“…What are you getting at?”
Shizuku faltered.
“…Fufufu.”
Natalia let out a dark laugh upon seeing her reaction.
Cklares didn’t like this.
It felt like she was some kind of detective, cornering Shizuku step by step.
Natalia probably felt the same, which was why she wasn’t stopping her.
“Look, your personality—how do I put it? You’ve got this delinquent streak, right? You radiated this aura of ‘I’ll never bow to those stuck-up rich girls,’ didn’t you? What do you think, Natalia-sensei?”
“Mmm. You were such an unusual presence at this school that your name came up often in faculty meetings. Or do you not remember the incident right after you enrolled, when you punched an upperclassman for mocking you?”
“Hah? That’s because she insulted my family! Something about me being ‘commoner trash.’ I don’t care if they make fun of me, but I won’t let them badmouth my family!”
“Ahaha────That’s exactly what I mean.”
“Anyway. When Sisel met a delinquent like you, she idolized you. But she had no confidence in herself. She thought someone like her could never be liked. So in front of you, she acted like the kind of person who deserved to stand by your side.”
“So… the reason the impressions of Sisel I heard from others were so different from mine…”
“It wasn’t that they were wrong—it was that you were the only one who saw her differently.”
That was Shizuku’s first misconception.
“…………Hah… hah. I see… I thought I didn’t understand people’s hearts, but… I never imagined it was this bad. Heh… I’m actually laughing at myself now.”
Shizuku pressed a hand to her face, laughing quietly.
The smirk tugging at her lips was one of self-mockery.
“Thank you so much for going out of your way to tell me all this, fairy-san. So? Is this the end?”
“No, there’s more.”
This was the part Cklares most needed her to understand.
So she opened her mouth—
“Yes, now it’s your turn. Felicity McPherson.”
●
READ THE ORIGINAL TRANSLATION AT LOCALIZERMEERKAT.GITHUB.IO
The name Natalia uttered struck Shizuku like a physical blow for a moment.
But she quickly reassessed. There was only one person present whose name she didn’t know.
And when she turned to look at them—
“…My part isn’t over yet, you know.”
Felicity—Cklares—was staring quietly at Natalia.
It was the first time Shizuku had heard that name, but it must have been her real one.
“I don’t care about your story. Why would I sit here and listen to your accusations? From what I saw outside the music room earlier, I knew I could handle you, no matter what. Even if you two had special powers like me. McPherson-san.”
“…I’d prefer if you didn’t call me that.”
“Too bad. Because while Tiana is part of my revenge, you’re the main target. Tiana is still… tolerable. She was just carelessly cruel, her violence born from thoughtlessness rather than malice.”
Natalia glared at Cklares.
With all the anger, resentment, and hatred she could muster.
“But you are different, Felicity.”
The Weeping Woman condemned the Fairy.
“After Sisel died, I… lost my mind. I took a month off. During that time, I awakened to this power, but I was too scared to know what to do with it. And then, when I came back… everything had changed.”
Shizuku’s breath caught.
Because she, too, had noticed something strange.
“The students who used to be so cruel, the teachers who turned a blind eye—they all seemed like different people. Everyone was suddenly so considerate, so respectful, like they’d all been reborn into this lukewarm flower garden.”
Yes, Shizuku had felt it too.
After a year and a half away, this school was nothing like the one she remembered.
“And the one who made it that way────was you.”
In response, Cklares merely shrugged.
“It’s a better place now, isn’t it? What’s the problem?”
“I’m not denying that. Even if it’s lukewarm, it’s still better than before. I’ll give you that much credit. Even Rebecca and the others who bullied Sisel started the Social Contribution Club and actually produced commendable results. The headmaster didn’t oppose you either.”
And yet—Natalia’s voice trembled.
Clutching, desperate, on the verge of tears.
“If you could do this… then why couldn’t you save Sisel…?”
“…………”
Cklares merely frowned, smiling bitterly as if pained.
“That’s… a difficult question to answer.”
Shizuku couldn’t tell what emotions lay beneath those words.
Perhaps only she and Norman could truly understand.
“───Ah.”
Even so, from the side, Cklares’ expression looked like she was on the verge of tears.
Like a withered flower, its petals about to scatter at any moment.
“It’s just… well, I suppose everything was just… too late.”
“Yes. I know. I don’t think Sisel would have wanted revenge like this.”
Natalia’s voice, too, had lost its strength.
Her downcast eyes seemed to be reminiscing about Sisel as she spoke.
“But even if this is just me lashing out… I can’t just do nothing.”
Then, Natalia opened her eyes again and let out a hollow laugh.
“I couldn’t save her either. I did nothing for a year and a half.”
Hearing that, something occurred to Shizuku, and she interjected.
“…Why now? Why did you wait until now to seek revenge for Sisel?”
“Simple, Tiana.”
Natalia smiled self-deprecatingly.
“I knew Felicity wasn’t normal. It was only recently that I learned to consciously project illusions with this [Voice]. Until then, I knew I couldn’t win against that fairy. So I waited. Prepared. Made sure no one would notice.”
In other words, Natalia had been training her ability, raising her Category Tier.
(Smart,) Shizuku thought.
Yes, if anyone wanted to do something in this school, Cklares’ presence was far too overwhelming.
“But you see, Felicity has been leaving the academy more often since last month, hasn’t she? That’s why I started moving. There’s much more I can do with [Voice] now. Well, to be honest, the reason I attacked tonight was partly because I was caught off guard by Tiana’s sudden appearance and got carried away.”
“…………I see. Recently, I’ve been spending more time at the office, so…”
Clares lowered her gaze and let out a sigh.
“It’s my fault again…”
“That’s……!”
Shizuku instinctively raised her voice at that, but
“Yes, that’s right. You’re at fault.”
Natalia interrupted.
“You’re at fault. Tiana is at fault. Rebecca and the others are at fault. This academy is at fault. I was at fault too. The only one who wasn’t at fault was Sisel.”
That’s why, Natalia placed her right hand on her throat.
“I can’t forgive anything.”
And then,
“───── [Unforgettable Voice Zion]”
A voiceless song echoed throughout the courtyard.
“……! [Lingering Echoes]!”
Against the piercing ultrasonic sound that stabbed through her head, Shizuku immediately activated her ability,
“─────!?”
[Something] burst.
The world spun around and switched.
●
It was very similar to the world seen through [Vision], yet slightly different.
[Vision] was an ability that listened to past sounds related to things she touched and constructed them as images.
Therefore, she would always see the past from a bird’s-eye view.
But now it was different.
Shizuku was seeing the past from someone’s perspective.
Somewhere in the academy, in a classroom.
Her mouth moved on its own. No, it wasn’t Shizuku’s mouth, but
“Hey, Sisel”
from the voice, she understood it was Natalia’s.
“……I’m fine, sensei”
And now, Shizuku was seeing Sisel through Natalia’s eyes.
In the classroom, the two sat facing each other on chairs.
Shizuku was astounded.
Sisel, as seen through Natalia, was completely different from the girl she knew.
Her expression was dark, her shoulders drooped, and even the air around her seemed somehow unreliable.
“You’re not fine, are you? You mustn’t push yourself. What’s being done to you, I’ll consult with other teachers about it again. About Cram-san……there’s still much I don’t understand, but sensei will do her best to help that child too.”
The words were filled with desperation.
It wasn’t about what she was saying, but Shizuku could feel what she was thinking at that moment. Natalia was genuinely concerned about Sisel and trying to help her.
But,
“I’m fine, sensei”
It didn’t reach Sisel.
With a powerless smile──a smile Shizuku didn’t know──clearly forcing herself──the girl Shizuku knew──the precious student to Natalia──Shizuku’s best friend──.
“That child is having a hard time right now, so I have to help her. I’ve always been saved by Tiana. Even though she said we’re not friends, I won’t give up.”
Above all, Sisel left from in front of Natalia/Shizuku.
“I am that child’s best friend, after all.”
That was the last image Natalia saw of Sisel.
Natalia didn’t chase after her. If she was going to work hard, then she would work hard too.
She thought that the next time they met, they would have a better conversation.
That day, she died.
And that moment of abandoning someone precious replayed infinitely.
●
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