The white bell rings,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS12kjy65pF
Echoing from a distant past.12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxBlXDjEj7I
The crimson bell rings,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡywGLe5YUCP
Calling toward my future.
Crimson waits at the village gate,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt81Xkur9i2
Endlessly whispering12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhNQ5TvxpuU
Snow-white memories,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl1DkPDCVLi
Days untouched by stain.You taught me what love truly was.
Our laughter...12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaDP0PA6kna
Ah, how innocent, how pure.Our promise...12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVRoup7AB5x
Ah, how spotless, how immaculate.Why...12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS30g62Nf13
Why has it all turned gray?The white eight-winged executor,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUXjHZxmzvK
Radiating the light of hope.At the dawn of gray,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEa0BW5HRcm
An unseen veil.The crimson wounded soul,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEnLN0nDwg6
Its heart still beating.The roots and origin we once shared...12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUy4CNohAIK
Still there,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOJOeIJ0Xsv
Yet already gone.I cannot see.12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWYiiyEZpe9
I cannot hear.Where are you?12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFzQndrQbjU
Who am I?A bell unlike the one before begins to ring.
Where...12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiUD0MLfedn
Where is this place?Gray mist.12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeqq6ML02sg
Gray light.White you.12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZLfsIiR5Z5
Crimson me.Beating.12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXs1RN7R9Dc
Hurting.12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjMwwMdiInW
Feeling.12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7aP7c5uLxc
Existing.White dissolves into gray.
Where should this crimson-stained self go now?
The white eight-winged executor,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOFpKYVQXPn
Radiating the light of hope.At the dawn of gray,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7M0gleFaNQ
An unseen veil.The crimson wounded soul,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhVaH5bMJsW
Its heart still beating.Mist shrouds my eyes,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrZrMHLa477
Leading me toward an unknown tomorrow.Yesterday's me12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgdXSxBWEOg
Basked beneath the white light of days gone by.Today's me12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKigSuSNITL
Walks into the gray mist.Tomorrow's me12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ20JFUbfiSR
Will follow crimson footprints onward.Within the gray horizon,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlTCJ6V5lUG
White and crimson bid each other farewell.The white eight-winged executor,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS1usb53oz5
Radiating the light of hope.At the dawn of gray,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqXaUTh7eFY
An unseen veil.The crimson wounded soul,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQy7tu0IOD4
Its heart still beating.Remembering.12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgUHpHazDJb
Letting go.12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmD0duw1GwQ
Embracing everything.With a smile...12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9E1e1WfOVw
I walk toward a brand-new shore.The hollow bell hammer12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM4YotuWc3j
Swings within the mist.Legends of that age12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6D8UAtV7sw
Are recorded by the village's remains.The tale of white,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡL2hWjdIdV7
Gray,12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1BvutWSqfc
And crimson.Umfak Calim12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJfijm66uBr
Zquta Rem12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEqqFPSXaQs
Dosoqa Gakk12Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC3shCnTWJG
Qataqra
As the final note faded away, Kotoha waved goodbye amid the audience's cheers and reluctant farewells.
The concert had officially come to an end.
"So?"
Yinbing asked as she crouched on the floor beside Ethel, sorting through the spoils from the concert.
"It wasn't nearly as terrifying as Lyle made it sound, was it?"
They were staying for three days at Flash Stride City's Visitors' Lodge, accommodations reserved for guests from other cities.
Though Ethel wasn't entirely sure attending a concert really counted as an official visit.
"The first half was exhausting."
"You two honestly didn't treat me like a human being."
"But I have to admit..."
"The concert itself was unforgettable."
"See?"
"Lyle isn't interested in Kotoha."
"So to him, a concert is just being trapped in a loud room for several hours."
She grinned.
"Want to come again next year?"
"If you ever decide you want concert merchandise too, we'll even reimburse you."
Although he had spent the afternoon working like a beast of burden...
getting to experience the concert had made everything worthwhile.
Especially since he hadn't had to spend a single coin.
"Sure."
"It's a promise, then."
"...Although."
Turning around, Ethel saw Yinbing already lying spread-eagled across the bed after taking off her shoes and socks.
She showed absolutely no intention of helping.
"Shouldn't you help clean up a little?"
"That's part of the commission too."
"I'll leave it to you."
She lazily waved one hand without even sitting up.
Ethel could only stare.
Still...
it was part of the agreement.
He sighed and continued tidying.
"Where did Captain Oenone go?"
"She's discussing something with Flash Stride City's combat squad."
"When squad leaders visit another city, even on vacation, they usually end up taking care of a little official business."
"I thought she'd gone to collect your prize."
After the concert, they had headed straight back to the lodge without claiming the poster.
Thinking of it reminded Ethel of something else.
"That poster was huge."
"How are you planning to take it home?"
Yinbing sat upright.
Narrowing her eyes, she flashed him a suspiciously mischievous smile.
An ominous feeling immediately crept over him.
"...You're not expecting me to carry it all the way back, are you?"
"Why would I?"
She smiled sweetly.
"Do I look that cruel?"
Her expression practically begged him to answer yes.
The weight wasn't the problem.
Given his physical abilities, carrying it would be easy.
The size, however...
was another matter entirely.
"Right on time."
A knock sounded at the door.
As though she'd been expecting it, Yinbing hopped off the bed.
The person outside wasn't Oenone.
Instead, it was a purple-haired woman with heavy bags beneath her eyes, carrying a small box.
"Hey, Ora."
"Hey, Yinbing."
"You came again this year?"
"You really do show up every time."
Ora glanced into the room.
Her drooping eyelids lifted ever so slightly.
"...Boyfriend?"
"No."
"Our newest squad member."
"I thought you'd gotten yourself another boyfriend."
"What do you mean, 'another'?"
"The one last year wasn't my boyfriend either!"
"Right, right."
"Anyway, congratulations on winning."
"Make sure you thank your boyfriend properly."
"...Did you come all the way here just to pick a fight?"
Yinbing leaned out the doorway and shouted after Ora's retreating figure.
Then she slammed the door shut.
Rolling her eyes, she walked back inside.
A faint vein pulsed on her forehead.
"...Who was that?"
"Ora."
"My worst friend."
"She's unbelievably annoying."
She folded her arms.
"Do I seriously look like someone who has a boyfriend?"
"Uh..."
"Good luck finding one with this job."
"It's training every day when we're not on missions."
"When exactly am I supposed to meet men?"
"And before you ask..."
She cut Ethel off before he could speak.
"Yes, there are plenty of men around."
"I dated someone once."
"Shortly after I joined."
"He died on the battlefield."
"We don't forbid relationships between squad members."
"There are even one or two couples in the squad right now."
"But love can easily cloud your judgment in combat."
"Especially for Concept Users."
"Our every decision can change the entire course of a battle."
"So..."
"I don't recommend dating your teammates."
"...I'm sorry."
"It's alright."
"It happened a long time ago."
Not a trace of emotion crossed her face.
She simply sat back down on the bed and opened the box.
"Look!"
"What's that?"
"The poster."
"...That?"
Ethel stared skeptically at the tiny box in her hands.
He couldn't imagine how something that enormous could possibly fit inside.
When Yinbing opened it...
the Mist Bell poster was indeed inside.
Only...
it had shrunk.
She gazed at it with sparkling eyes, unable to hide her admiration.
"I'm definitely putting this up in my room."
"I've wanted one for so long."
"There are twenty-four different posters every year..."
"...but one of them is always Mist Bell."
"It's even smaller than the one outside."
Looking at the poster now—
less than half her height—
Ethel would have assumed it was merely a miniature replica if he hadn't known better.
Yinbing didn't answer immediately.
She was still admiring it.
Only after several more seconds did she finally speak.
"It isn't made from ordinary material."
"It can switch between two sizes."
"The dimensions are fixed, though."
"I think it was invented by Flash Stride City's former squad commander."
"Oh?"
"You're all here?"
The door opened once again.
This time, Oenone returned.
Walking over behind Yinbing, she admired the poster together with her.
"You two were incredibly lucky."
"Mist Bell is definitely the rarest one."
"Thanks to Ethel."
"Nice work, El."
Oenone gave him a thumbs-up while Yinbing remained completely absorbed in her poster.
"What were you discussing earlier, Captain?"
"Work."
"You'll find out tomorrow."
She smiled knowingly.
"It's getting late."
"You should head back and get some rest."
"We're going to wash up soon."
"You can finish these tomorrow."
Tomorrow.
Ethel noticed that was exactly what she had said.
Apparently...
neither of them had any intention of cleaning up themselves.
Fortunately, his room was right next door.
He could simply come over a little earlier in the morning.
After tidying the remaining things on the floor, he said goodbye.
"Good night."
"Night, El."
"Mmm..."
Even as Ethel closed the door...
Yinbing's eyes never once left the Mist Bell poster.
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