Infinite Journey: Dark Souls

"...So all those previous experiences weren't just a dream after all?"

"If it really is just a dream, I will be very sad."

A cheerful voice drifted over, and the light blue curtains, lifted by the wind, slowly fell, revealing an equally cheerful smile.

Zhi leaned against the window, winked at Xiaoyan on the hospital bed, and as the curtains fell completely, her Mitakihara Middle School uniform came into Xiaoyan's view.

"Weave?"

"Hi, Your Highness! Weaving is ready at any time!"

As soon as she finished speaking, she placed her palm on her brow and gave a funny military salute.

The off-white top, the black and gray plaid skirt, and the red ribbon tied into a bow at the neckline—this middle school uniform, worn by Zhi, who is clearly a high school student but whose body shape is not much different, doesn't look out of place at all.

"This school uniform..."

"Oh, I don't know why either. Anyway, as soon as I entered this world, my clothes became like this. But speaking of which, bows and such are really not suitable for me."

Zhi stopped her playful actions and tugged at the bow at her collar with some hesitation.

"That's it! We can change the knot."

As she spoke, she untied the bow, seemingly trying to reshape it.

But Xiaoyan's question just now wasn't about her outfit. While she was adjusting the bow, Xiaoyan was searching by the bedside, and then, with a nostalgic look, she held up her school uniform in front of her.

"Like this, like this, OK! The tie knot is complete! Xiaoyan, look, now..."

Zhi and the ribbon stood facing off for a long time before finally tying a tie on her collar according to her memory. Just as she was about to show off her masterpiece to Xiaoyan, she turned around and found that Xiaoyan had also changed into the same school uniform.

The off-white top, the black and gray checkered skirt, and the red ribbon tied into a bow at the neckline—no changes were needed this time. After Xiaoyan pulled up the black stockings, the whole outfit instantly brought out her charm as a middle school girl.

"So cute! Homura in her school uniform is completely different from her fierce and imposing appearance in battle; she has a rare hint of fragility!"

"Huh? Is that so? It'll be good if it fits."

I don’t know if it’s just my imagination, but Xiaoyan’s temperament seemed to soften when she put on her school uniform, and even her usually rare smile was always on her lips.

Surprisingly, she didn't respond to Zhi Na's increasingly flirtatious words. Instead, she put on her shoes and went to the mirror to carefully observe her current appearance. After confirming that the ancient and old-fashioned yet chilling style of the World of Fire was completely gone, she nodded in satisfaction.

But she paused for a moment when she saw a pair of dark red half-rimmed glasses on the bedside table.

These were the glasses she had taken off to bid farewell to her weak self, but now, for some reason, seeing them made her suddenly want to add some commemorative accessories to mark her reunion with Xiaoyuan.

Perhaps it's because this is the first time that Homura, as the Ash, meets Madoka. Wouldn't it be meaningful for Homura to be in her original form and meet Madoka for the first time?

"Right, weaving."

"Ready to serve at any time!"

Do you know how to braid pigtails?

"what?"

"Never mind, I'll do it myself."

She sat down in front of the dressing mirror, carefully braided her long hair into two braids, and finally put on her half-rimmed glasses.

Zhi was completely stunned. Xiao Yan's somewhat rustic appearance had completely covered up her previous calm and indifferent temperament, and even made people feel a little timid. But the smile that melted her usually cold face also carried a kind of innocence that Zhi had never seen before.

"Yosh! That's all the preparations done. Now it's time to go to school."

She put the school admission file on the table into her handbag, casually drew a big red circle on the calendar next to it, marking the 25th as the school entry date, and excitedly opened the door to the ward. Without waiting for Zhi, she strode out.

"Well, although the old Homura was cold and her thinking was frighteningly calm, I still prefer the old Homura..."

Zhi, who had been left behind, scratched her head with a wry smile and quickly caught up with Xiaoyan.

A gentle breeze blew again, and the pale blue curtains by the window, which had been forgotten to be closed, were once again lifted.

The door was pushed open again, and a head with long brown hair tied with a black ribbon and adorned with white flower hair ornaments poked its head in.

Prepare the box; I want to lock that radiance away forever.

Although her face beneath the brown hair was not clearly visible, she was probably a nurse.

She secretly observed for a moment, and after finding no one inside, she barged in, but instead of wearing a nurse's uniform, she was wearing a black dress.

White lace peeked out from under her skirt. Curious, she tried to take the calendar from the bedside table, but the moment she touched it, the calendar suddenly burst into flames, boiling with purple fire.

————————————————————————————————————————

Long, long ago, from the other side of the future.

The girls made a deal with animals that came from the stars.

[Gambling everything in exchange for one last wish]

While gaining magical powers, they must fight against terrifying monsters.

[All the girls in the world have had their wishes fulfilled]

Countless girls fought against the monsters, until finally everyone was exhausted.

Among the girls who use magic, there is a secret legend.

When they disappear from this world, the God of Magic will descend.

All girls who use magic will be guided to a beautiful land.

A beautiful country where there is neither sorrow nor hatred.

————————————————————————————————————————

"Dear students, do you think you can get too cocky just because you survived the Mayan apocalypse?"

The classrooms at Mitakihara Private Junior High School are quite unique. Instead of the walls of a typical classroom, they have floor-to-ceiling windows. The desks and chairs are not simply piled up in the classroom; they are integrated into the floor and can be raised by pressing a switch.

"No, no, this is just the beginning—there were six solar and lunar eclipses during a religious festival. Isn't that terrifying!"

Meanwhile, in the class Xiaoyan is about to enter, her future homeroom teacher is giving a shocking science lecture in front of the blackboard.

"That's terrible! And what exactly will happen before 2050?"

The homeroom teacher's glasses gleamed white, and he wore a chilling smile as he spoke, twisting his body and adopting a sullen posture with his back at a 90-degree angle.

"In that country, 41% of the people believe that the Son of God will descend in less than 40 years, and the horn of revelation may be about to sound!"

She became increasingly agitated as she spoke, her body swaying repeatedly with her words, even the pointer in her hand circling in response. Finally, when making her doomsday prophecy, she braced herself on one leg, facing the blackboard, leaning back and looking up at her students.

"However, the teacher doesn't think the end of the world is such a bad thing..."

She maintained this strange posture, her hands clenched into claws, as if she were accusing something in this way, swaying and circling, reflecting light through the lenses into every corner of the classroom.

"I've had enough of relationships... dating... If people are going to round up to 40 years old from now on..."

Her voice grew softer and softer until the very last sentence, when her murmured words exuded an aura of despair.

"...It would be better to just finish everything."

Despair spread, and the resentment of the older single female teacher, like ink dripping into clear water, instantly stained the entire classroom. The students trembled in fear amidst this atmosphere of despair. Just as they were trying to find a way to comfort this older single young woman, she suddenly straightened up.

"Oh, right, speaking of which—today I should introduce a transfer student!"

Her glasses stopped reflecting light, her face returned to calm, and the cursing tone was thrown aside. She smiled, narrowed her eyes slightly, and announced something important in a gentle voice.

The students seemed to have gotten used to this sudden change; they were relieved that the teacher had returned to normal, and then immediately turned their curiosity to the transfer student.

"Well then, Xiaomei, please come in~"

The classroom door opened, and amidst the sound of footsteps, Yan stepped into the classroom, meeting the curious gazes of the entire class.

At that moment, as if sensing something, the girl with short blue hair, the girl with long red ponytail, and... the girl with short pink twin ponytails all curiously peeked out and stared at the girl with two braids and dark red half-rimmed glasses.

"My name is Homura Akemi, nice to meet you."

Yan walked to the center of the podium, stopped, turned around, and bowed slightly to the whole class with a faint smile on her face.

"Xiaomei has been hospitalized due to heart disease, and it's rare for her to be able to come to school. She's bound to feel a little lost, so please help her out!"

After introducing herself, while her homeroom teacher tirelessly explained the reasons for her transfer, her gaze quickly swept over the other three unusual girls.

Their eyes met, and she was certain that all the girls were looking in her direction.

She slightly closed her eyes, her left hand brushing against her bangs, and as she raised her head, strands of hair were swept out from her forehead.

The ring on his middle finger, engraved with exquisite runes, was revealed.

PS: Yunxi: The content in 【】 is research on Madoka Magica, and all information comes from the Madoka Magica Baidu Tieba forum.

A reunion of two intertwined destinies

【Veni, Vidi, MITAKIHARA】

"Homura's world seems so much more advanced than mine!"

After leaving the hospital, Homura and Ori boarded a bus in Mitakihara City. The novel bus with open-air seating and beautiful electronic signs made Ori, who was seeing it for the first time, exclaim excitedly.

"Hmph~ I remember weaving you in the world of 1995, right? After all, more than ten years have passed, so it's normal for things to have changed~"

Xiao Yan lay on her seat, enjoying the breeze and savoring the long-lost street scenery.

"Maybe it can't be measured in time~ After all, in my world, there's no such thing as a magical girl~"

"Really? Then your world must be a very peaceful one, right?"

"No, no, no, how should I put it? Although we don't have witches or other powerful figures born out of despair, our place is full of magicians, those crazy people who will do anything to pursue the origin."

"It seems that people in every world have their own contradictions. You once said that you are an exorcist. What kind of profession is that?"

"As the name suggests, in my world, mystery hasn't disappeared; mystery represents power. And the oldest thing associated with mystery is mythology. Since mystery exists, mythology certainly exists too, so the creatures that appear in mythology must also exist. And whether they are monsters or demons, as long as they pose a threat to humanity, someone has to deal with them, right?"

Perhaps it was because they were in one of their hometowns, far from the world of flames, that they began to understand each other's worlds for the first time, and even wanted to learn about each other's stories.

"Exorcists are there to eliminate such threats. But in the end, exorcists are also magicians. Magicians are all complete egoists, crazy people who will do anything to pursue the root. And on the way to explore the root, it is common for them to create monsters that are contrary to their own functions."

"So, exorcists create monsters, and then they kill the monsters, and so on, until the exorcist himself becomes a monster—or perhaps this is the fate of all magicians, to embark on the path of origin, which is to go against the definition of being 'human,' and ultimately become one of the 'non-humans.'"

"Even so, isn't the transformation from 'human' to 'non-human' determined by one's own will?... So, Zhi, before you turn to ashes, were you 'human' or 'non-human'?"

"I... wasn't 'human' from the very beginning~"

It was still that cheerful smile, and only then did Xiao Yan realize that the smile before her was so natural, while when she first met her, that cheerfulness seemed more like a mask.

"you……"