Infinite Journey: Dark Souls

Alright, alright, Xiaoyuan's catching up. QB, let's not bother them anymore, we'll just follow you obediently~

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

Destiny Fourteen Reunions

On the road to Kazamino City, two lonely figures are still walking.

"I said, is that three-way intersection really that far?"

While carrying her bag, Anzu tossed chocolate chips into her mouth, chewing and mumbling a few words to Homura.

"..."

"I have a feeling that something is wrong with having gone this far."

"..."

"Hey, are you even listening to me?"

But Homura Akemi, who should have been more concerned about this matter than her and was the one who brought this trip to Kazamino into place, was somewhat absent-minded and walked mechanically beside her.

"Huh? Sorry... I was a little distracted. Did Sakura-san say anything just now?"

"...It's nothing, I just feel that if we keep going like this, we probably won't reach Kazamino City."

"Yeah...we can't get there..."

"Hey! What kind of tone is that? Aren't you the one who cares about this the most? How come you're still acting like it doesn't matter? Or are you just bringing me here to try this out, to simply make fun of me?"

The inability to return to her own city made even the usually carefree Xingzi feel a little uneasy. Every additional sense of incongruity during this trip added to her stress, and no one was there to share the burden of this accumulated pressure. On the contrary, the person who had brought all of this to the forefront was acting like this again, which made her inexplicably angry.

"I... I'm sorry, I just felt that something that belongs only to me is about to be taken away in half by someone else, and I suddenly felt a little... palpitations."

"what……"

"Ah, I said some strange things, Sakura-san, please don't mind... As for now, it seems we won't be able to reach that three-way intersection."

For a moment, Yan seemed to clutch her heart in pain, but before Xingzi could react, she returned to normal and began to look around at her surroundings.

They had reached the cross-river bridge they had crossed when they first took the bus, but they hadn't seen the so-called three-way intersection at all along the way.

"What's going on? Is this some kind of illusion created to keep us trapped in Mitakihara...?"

After being reminded by Yan Yi, Xingzi also realized their situation, and at this moment, the accumulation of the sense of incongruity began to make her slowly regain some of what she had lost.

The ring on her hand turned into a crimson crystal in the red light.

She summoned the Soul Gem, preparing to deal with the strange sense of crisis rising in her heart, but was stopped by Flame.

"Perhaps it's not that simple. Maybe there's no outside in this Mitakihara."

The moment Yan became serious, she gave Xingzi a familiar feeling. However, the next moment, the fierce aura disappeared, and the somewhat introverted girl with braided hair put on a smile and made a request in a somewhat timid manner.

"Sakura-san, please don't tell everyone about this for now. I still have some things I want to investigate."

"What nonsense are you talking about? How can we just ignore something so bizarre?"

"It's okay, I think it's safer to pretend I don't know right now."

The smile vanished again, and with an increasingly cold gaze, Yan swept her surroundings.

"The more rashly you act, the more likely you are to find yourself with nowhere to go."

As they talked, a crowd gathered around them, their movements uncoordinated, like lifeless zombies. More importantly, their faces, which were previously indistinct, were now covered with simple line drawings of the two women's portraits.

"That's how these kinds of traps work, isn't it?"

Do you have any clues?

"Yes, so rather than making rash moves and attracting attention, it's better to leave it to me to do alone."

Once they stopped dwelling on the current situation, the crowd returned to normal and slowly dispersed.

"After all, the guy who deceived us hasn't made any further moves yet. As long as we honestly accept the deception, we should be safe... Besides, now is not the time to leisurely investigate the truth."

As Yan finished speaking, she inadvertently looked into the distance, as if she had seen through something, and revealed an urgent expression.

"Okay, I understand."

Kyoko also noticed something. She stared at Yan in thought for a while, then tossed her handbag over her shoulder again, turned her head to look at Yan as the full moon gradually rose.

"My memory might really be quite inaccurate... It's strange, even though this should be the first time I've seen Homura Akemi so determined, I'm not surprised at all. On the contrary, I feel that this is how you should be."

She turned her head back, waved her hand, tossed a lollipop, and left without even looking to see if Yan caught it.

He caught the lollipop in one swift motion, staring intently at the dessert in his hand, completely oblivious to Kyoko's departing figure.

"...It's taken up a lot of time. We should have started by investigating from the other side from the beginning."

Flame took off her glasses and tossed them aside along with the lollipop.

"Anyway, there's no time to think about these things. The most important thing now is to get back to Xiaoyuan's side!"

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

"Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch! Ouch!" ×2

Just as Homura Akemi in this world felt her heart pounding, Homura Akemi in Ashes had just finished reuniting with Madoka Kaname.

Although this reunion should be called an accident rather than an encounter, it will be an unforgettable experience for Homura no matter what.

"Huh? Little Flame?"

The accident occurred on an escalator in a department store. The Ash Girl, who fell from the sky, successfully landed on the person she had been longing for. At this moment, after the accident, she, who had knocked down Madoka, was lying on top of the pink-haired girl, burying her head in her chest, and avoiding looking directly at the person in front of her.

There should have been a few more third wheels, but the familiar girls who were fighting Homura didn't dare to approach Madoka when they saw her. After muttering to themselves for a while, they disappeared.

The blond fellow, after landing with his master, cleverly hid back in his master's shadow, leaving the space entirely to the two reunited.

Sayaka, meanwhile, was dealing with the last unruly bystander, a strange creature that resembled both a cat and a rabbit. She had wrapped it in her white cloak and let it struggle incessantly while she found a spot where it wouldn't disturb the two of them and secretly watched from the sidelines.

In short, the embarrassing accident, with the help of various kind people, turned into a rare moment of solitude.

"Xiaoyan, is that you?... Even though your hair is down, I shouldn't mistake you."

Xiaoyuan called out, but received no response. She looked at the girl in her arms again, somewhat puzzled, and, certain that she wouldn't mistake her most important friend, called out again.

The girl in his arms trembled slightly. She raised her head a little, her dark eyes flashing briefly in Xiaoyuan's vision, before she buried her head back down.

"Hey? Homura, what happened? Did you get hurt in a fight just now?"

Xiaoyuan recalled the tremors that had occurred in the department store earlier and, feeling somewhat worried, tried to get up to check on Xiaoyan's injuries. However, Xiaoyan hugged her and pushed her down again, then shook her head against her chest.

"Phew... I'm glad you're not hurt... So, could you get off me first... This position is a little awkward."

"Xiaoyuan...can I hold you a little longer...just a little while..."

The unusually familiar, cool voice held a hint of vulnerability that was hard to bear touching. Xiaoyuan paused for a moment, then put on her usual warm smile and gently hugged Xiaoyan's head.

"I don't know what's going on, but if it's Homura's request, then it's fine~"

Xiaoyan stiffened for a moment in his arms, then her tense body gradually relaxed, only her hands, which were still holding Xiaoyuan's back, remained tight.

Xiaoyuan gently stroked Xiaoyan's long black hair. For a moment, neither of them spoke, but quietly enjoyed this moment of tenderness.

"Hey, Madoka..."

"uh-huh?"

“I recently had a dream… I dreamt that I went to a very, very far place, so far that we almost never met again.”

"It was a world ablaze with flames, and we were constantly fighting on the battlefield."

"Either kill the enemy or be killed by the enemy. Death is so cheap there. But what makes me more desperate than death is... no matter how hard I try, you are not in that world."

"I have killed and died repeatedly, going back and forth between killing and dying so many times, and finally, I have found a way to meet you."

"But after I finally completed that method, I discovered that there was another Homura Akemi already by your side."

"After that, I was always so scared, scared that you no longer needed me, scared that... you had been taken away by another me..."

Finally, Xiaoyan broke the silence. Holding onto her wish, she slowly poured out all the sorrow that had been suppressed in her heart since she turned to ashes.

"Yes, that was a really unpleasant dream."

Xiao Yuan listened quietly as she finished speaking, and then gradually reached out and hugged her.

"But don't worry, we've reunited, haven't we? Look, like this, I can still hold you, can't I?"

Gently resting her head on Homura's black hair, Madoka closed her eyes, a tender smile on her face, soothing Ash's wounds.

"Hmm...it's okay, I can still hold you now."

The two fell silent again. However, Madoka, who had closed her eyes, did not notice that a deep purple flame ignited on the person in her arms, slowly burning away Mitakihara's school uniform and revealing the tattered combat suit underneath.

"Hey, Madoka, can I see your Soul Gem?"

"Hmm? Why do you suddenly want to watch that?"

"Because I want to truly touch your soul."

"That's a strange way of putting it~ But if it's Homura, then there's no problem~"

With her left hand adorned with the ring, she held Xiaoyan's right hand. In a burst of pink light, the ring transformed into a gemstone, lying in their palms.

"Hey, Xiaoyuan, you're willing to stay with me forever, right?"

"Mmm, no matter where Xiaoyan goes, I'll always be with you~"

"……So."

Xiao Yan slowly got up, and the hand holding the Soul Gem slid out of Xiao Yuan's palm. Xiao Yuan opened her eyes in surprise and saw the ravaged appearance of Ash Flame.

"Little Flame?!"

"Don't worry... I'll take you with me!"

Suddenly, an unsightly military knife flew over from a distance.

PS: Yunxi: 744486102 This is a PS

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Destiny Fifteen Success