Kamen Rider Zi-O, Dimensional Descent

Her heart, which had begun to calm down slightly, was thrown into collapse again by the unconscious comments around her.

Next, the man standing in front of her, who had suddenly brought the world to a strange standstill, was staring at her mercilessly.

…Kalachakra Yama.

As a demon king who arbitrarily controls the concept of time and space, he took the initiative to stop time, freezing the scene just before the tragedy was about to unfold.

Then, he began to question the magical girl in front of him.

"Why didn't you stop it just now, magical girl?"

No matter how things turned out, compared to Mami Tomoe who was already crying, Yan Ming's expression remained calm and indifferent.

"Do you know what will happen the next moment if you don't take action?"

"Who exactly are you?"

"In other people's words, I'm just a passerby, I'm nothing special... You're the more important one, right?"

Yan Ming then looked at Mami Tomoe and repeated the important words once again.

"If I hadn't stopped everything at this moment, what do you think would have happened?"

Even breathing stopped.

Mami Tomoe's expression froze completely, as if she were shocked, but more than that, she seemed incoherent and unsure how to answer.

She couldn't say anything.

Because that's reality, and she's well aware of it.

If he hadn't stopped the witch, her enormous arm would have slammed down without mercy, not only hitting the fallen Sakura Kyoko, but the shockwave would have killed the two girls and even more people around them.

"But that doesn't matter, because no matter whether you intervene or not, I will definitely not allow this to happen, and things will be just like they are now."

"..."

"But have you ever thought about what would have happened if... if I had arrived just a second or two later, if I didn't have this power to change the world?"

Everyone will die.

Sakura Kyoko, the two girls, the surrounding citizens... even Tomoe Mami herself will be killed by the witch after that.

"So why did you stop? You clearly have enough power to stop it."

"You clearly...know nothing..."

The girl spoke.

Faced with Yan Mingru's questioning words, she finally spoke, but her response was... like this.

Mami Tomoe's delicate body trembled incessantly.

"No matter how many times I defeat the witches, they will still treat me like a monster. Even if I do nothing wrong and just want to live the life I like in peace, I will still be framed for no reason... Why is that?"

"And also, I should know that if I don't fight, everyone here will die... Why can't I move my hands and feet even though I know this? Why? Why is this happening? Why..."

That must be... on the verge of collapse.

Even her eyes became lifeless. Mami Tomoe didn't even understand why she had done such a thing; she just kept saying everything that came to mind.

Their psychological defenses have completely collapsed.

but.

"But you're a magical girl, aren't you?"

The words came from the man's mouth again.

"Various reasons, problems... but no matter what the reason, no matter what you've been through, aren't you still a magical girl?"

"Magical girls... what... what's the point... of that...?"

Recalling everything that has happened so far... Yes, Yuzuki and others have been secretly tempting innocent girls to become new magical girls. Society has been constantly rife with public opinion for various reasons, and the magical girls have been constantly attacked by society, even losing their daily lives.

"I just wanted more people to understand me... From the very beginning, I firmly believed that magical girls are the embodiment of justice, beings who exist to protect this city and innocent people, but what is this now? What is this?!"

The magical girl trembled as she uttered those words.

"Why do I have to be treated like this jinx! I don't want to! Why?! I barely came to my senses and everyone's already treating me like some kind of monster who's not even human—! I'm not a monster…! Even if other magical girls did bad things, why am I being dragged into it… I clearly… I clearly didn't hurt anyone… How can I possibly understand this?!"

The girl knelt on the ground, crying incessantly.

"I'm sorry... I... I shouldn't have done something as disgusting as watching someone die, but... why... just hearing what those people said makes my stomach churn, it's so disgusting... I feel like I'm going to throw up, and I can't move at all..."

"I don't know... I don't understand what to do anymore... Maybe I really am what everyone says... just a monster..."

Was that the girl's true feelings expressed in a moment of outburst? Or was it just something she rambled on about without thinking after a simple breakdown?

Regardless, this is Mami Tomoe at this moment.

A girl, overwhelmed by the unprovoked malice around her, is completely lost in the ocean called the world, unable to find her way.

So... how should we explain this?

To say that her ideas so far are wrong? That she's too naive? To say she's too stupid for caring about these things, and then to give her a severe dressing-down?

Even if you do that, it won't make any difference.

Because she is still just a child, it's already quite a long time that she's managed to hold on this long.

Yan Ming approached, and Mami remained unconcerned. In fact, for some reason, even though she had never met this person before, she still unconsciously blurted out all her words.

Honestly... I feel so confused right now...

After crying for an unknown amount of time, until her tears had dried up, Mami Tomoe raised her head.

She looked at the man in front of her whose identity was unknown.

Have you completely given up on thinking?

Standing in front of Mami Tomoe, Yan Ming continued to ask.

"Human destiny, everything, will come to a complete end when you give up."

"The end... Will I die?"

"No, but you will completely lose your current life and become a creature that doesn't care about its own existence, no different from a doll."

That was practically worse than death... What difference is there between being alive and being dead?

"My life now... what kind of life do I have now? Even the school has been closed because of me. In the future, these rumors will only increase, and then I might... not even have a place to live."

"...Perhaps that is indeed the case."

If things continue as they are now, the outcome is undoubtedly obvious.

"In that case, just let others know that you are not like that."

—Huh?

These words left Mami Tomoe stunned in an instant.

"What... what does this mean?"

"Do what you truly want to do, and then no one will doubt you."

Mami Tomoe couldn't understand these words.

But it's actually just a very simple thing.

"What kind of image of a magical girl have you always had in mind?"

"...I already said that."

Fighting for peace, fighting to protect the innocent... that's the magical girl she envisioned.

"Then you can continue to develop in this direction."

"Eh...?"

"The reason why all sorts of opinions about you are emerging in society is actually because the overall social trend of magical girls is not good. So the reason why your reputation has been ruined for no reason is simply due to people's stereotypes about the current reputation of magical girls."

Seeing that Mami Tomoe still didn't understand, Yan Ming continued to explain calmly.

“You may not have actually done anything wrong, but people don’t care about that. All they know is that magical girls have a bad reputation now. Plus, some people might be stirring things up behind the scenes, so it’s easy to get the public opinion going.”

"How...how could this happen...just because of something like this?!"

"It's probably that simple. Magical girls aren't exactly popular in society right now, so this kind of thing can easily escalate if you just stir things up a little."

So, everything I've experienced so far... is really just due to this one reason...?

"If you truly want to get back on your feet, then do what you really want to do."

Therefore, Yan Ming revealed the simplest approach in the truest sense.

"You firmly believe that magical girls are the embodiment of justice who protect others... then just continue doing that, keep fighting the witches, protect people, and no matter what happens, don't change what you're doing, and don't be misled by the unfounded trends of the masses."

"In this way, you will be able to change your current reputation to some extent... Perhaps it won't be able to change it immediately, but at least a considerable number of people will see what you are doing, and since you haven't really done anything irreparable, there's even less to worry about."

"As long as you can withstand all the slander during this period, you will definitely be able to do this."

That's all.

However, when these seemingly normal and obvious words were spoken, Mami Tomoe's expression was one of shock.

Perhaps it was the sudden malicious public opinion that caused her to temporarily lose her ability to think, or perhaps... it was just because she was still a child.

and so…

"You don't need to feel guilty at all. Since you don't intend to use this power to do evil, just focus on the path you believe in, and you will definitely achieve your goal."

"Moreover, as long as you show your true thoughts... there will definitely be people who are willing to treat you sincerely."

What was originally a terrifying future for Mami Tomoe... suddenly became so simple in the other person's words.

The shock and disbelief left Mami Tomoe stunned for a good while before she finally looked up again.

just.

Those eyes were no longer as dim as before.

"Really...can I really pull through?"

"This is not the choice I should make."

To the final question, Yan Ming remained remarkably calm in his response.

"Because, at this very moment, the person who chooses how to shape this future is yourself."

Volume Nine: The Demon King Appears: Chapter 420 The Magician's Opening and Finale Performance

Everything was unbelievable to her.

"you…"

She opened her eyes wide again, looking straight at the man in front of her with an expression of utter bewilderment.

"Who exactly are you?"

The things I think about, and... the things I haven't thought about.

The man in front of me was absolutely right.

Even things that Mami herself couldn't figure out were revealed by him in a single sentence. Despite not knowing this person at all, he seemed to know her very well and could blurt out so much important information.

"I've already said, I'm just a simple... passerby."

Looking at Mami Tomoe again, Yan Ming's tone returned to its previous nonchalant calm, as if nothing could shake him.

"So what do you plan to do? Let me make this clear beforehand: even if you don't intervene, I won't just sit idly by. I will save all these people who are about to face danger."

"The future you choose is also yours."

at this point.

After hearing so much from the other person and thinking about so many things, Mami Tomoe stood up again.

However, she no longer seemed as lost and helpless as before.

That's right... Even now, the girl still can't understand many things. Even though she understands a lot, she is still very afraid of the world now.

Contrary to the beautiful world I imagined, it's not just that... it's quite cruel and irrational in reality.

Even so—

"I... want to continue being a magical girl."