Give children a little self-destruction shock to their worldview.

After all, Ulzana is Mayumi's parent, so she wouldn't stop Mayumi from going with him.

Moreover, Mayumi must miss her family terribly, having been stranded here alone from another world.

The reason I haven't opened up to myself for so long is probably because I miss my family from before.

"If Mayumi, Mayumi wants to go with you, I will absolutely not stop...stop...Waaah...Waaah Mayumi—" As she spoke, the current guardian shed small tears, looking pitiful with snot and tears streaming down her face. "I can still visit her in the future, right—"

Main text: Chapter 100 Sobbing, just sobbing

Sugiyama Rika was genuinely crying.

The thought that Mayumi might go home with Urzana in front of her, while she and Mayumi would be separated into two different worlds and might never see each other again, made her feel sad.

Sugiyama Rika is a very emotional person with a simple and straightforward personality. Although she doesn't seem to have spent much time with Haga Mayumi, they have developed feelings for each other over the years, and she finds it hard to let go of Haga Mayumi.

Unlike her usual friends from another world whom she had only met a few times or perhaps spent a holiday with, Mayumi had become family to her, something different from just friends.

If I never see Mayumi again, or if it's very difficult to see her, and I'm separated from this child for who knows how long... Sugiyama Rikkako feels so sad that she sheds tears just thinking about it.

She didn't want Mayumi to leave.

However, if Mayumi wants to go back, she won't stop her.

I just hope that I can go and see Mayumi someday...

This feeling is like finding the biological parents of a child and becoming a foster mother.

But Sugiyama Rika did not receive an immediate reply from Urzana.

She saw a troubled expression on the other person's face, mixed with a hint of loneliness and a deep sense of melancholy.

"Please rest assured, Miss Sugiyama." The visitor from another world spoke gently, so that Sugiyama Rika's ears wouldn't ring. "We have nowhere to go back to."

There was nowhere to go and nowhere to escape.

Therefore, Urzana actually wanted to plead with Sugiyama Rika to let Haga Mayumi continue to live here.

She would be very grateful if Sugiyama Rika could continue to take in Haga Mayumi, providing a place for these displaced people who have lost their homeland to live.

"...Nowhere to go back, you mean...?" Sugiyama Rika's voice trembled slightly. She seemed to have finally realized something, and tears welled up in her eyes. "Does it mean that we can't go back to the original world?"

That makes sense... Why didn't she react immediately?

The original world has become the embers of a world like the Fire Seed, so there's no way we can go back, right?

That means that Urzana and Mayumi's homeland has been destroyed.

"What a joke... This is too much..." Sugiyama Rika lowered her head.

She wasn't really sure where the original inhabitants of the world would go after the world turned into fire.

She originally didn't understand these sparks or the power of the world's origin. The only time she came into contact with something similar to a spark was when she was eighteen years old, during the long summer vacation before starting her senior year.

A villain from another world stole the man-made fire and came to this world.

When the magical girl from that world came after them, Sugiyama Rika, as the local administrator, stepped in to help after figuring out the whole story.

It was at that time that she finally understood the concept of fire.

A seed of hope containing the primordial power of the world.

In more advanced worlds, alchemists have attempted to steal the world's primordial power, using it to cultivate inferior sparks.

Even though it was only a low-quality spark, it already possessed enough power to give birth to a new world.

The hope contained in the spark is beyond everyone's imagination; once obtained, any wish can be fulfilled.

For people in any world, fire is an invaluable treasure.

However, for Mayumi Haga's world, the existence of the fire meant its demise.

Countless lives have been lost, and countless others have been displaced, scattered across other worlds, becoming alien outsiders.

Sugiyama Rika finally understood why Haga Mayumi always had such a strong sense of distance between them.

The thought that the quiet child might always be longing for the scenery of his hometown, and that no matter how much he missed it, he could never return to Mayumi's hometown, brought tears to her eyes.

Sugiyama Rika was so moved that she immediately burst into tears.

Despite receiving a promise from Urzana that she wouldn't take Mayumi away and that she wouldn't lose Mayumi later, she felt even more heartbroken.

She's 28 years old, yet she's still crying her eyes out in front of others: "Waaaaah—how could this happen? This is too cruel… (sniffles)"

Urzana was startled. She looked at Sugiyama Rika in front of her, who was crying and crumpled up without any regard for her image. She felt a little guilty, but more than that, she felt helpless.

She wasn't very good at comforting children. Mayumi hardly ever shed a tear when she was with her; she was incredibly sensible and mature.

So he had absolutely no experience with his friend Rika Uesugiyama and was completely at a loss: "Wait, don't cry, what's there to cry about? Your world is still fine..."

The commotion in the living room even drew out Mayumi Haga, who was sulking in her room, and Hitomi Tono, who had gone to Mayumi's room to look for her after seeing that it was the parents talking.

Yuga Mayumi had been seriously pondering for a long time why Ulzana was avoiding her, trying to find another possibility. As a result, she became angrier and angrier, so she went into her room.

Hearing the commotion in the living room, they came out and saw the guardian, who hadn't been heard from for over half a month, nestled in Senior Urzana's arms, crying like a child.

The latter was visibly flustered and looked to Mayumi Haga for help.

Haga Mayumi:...?

What's going on? Does the guardian think of senior Urzana as an elder?

While it's true that Ulzana is very popular with children, and you often see her playing with them and holding them on her arms... the guardian is clearly over the age limit.

Senior Urzana isn't Miss Guardian's mother.

Her expression was one of confusion and dissatisfaction as she looked at the current state of her two guardians and fell into thought.

When Sugiyama Rika saw Haga Mayumi come out, her little pearls fell even more dramatically: "Mayumi, waaaaaah..."

As Mayumi Haga approached, before she could say anything, Rika Sugiyama rushed over and hugged her, sniffling, "Don't worry, this will always be your home... Waaah, Mayumi... I'll be your family, I'll never leave you alone to play again..."

...There's absolutely no need for that.

Mayumi Haga felt that this person was more troublesome when at home.

Perhaps it was because Sugiyama Rika cried so earnestly, but seeing Tono Hitomi's nose tingle and eyes redden, she unconsciously clung to Haga Mayumi: "Yes, yes, you can tell me about Mayumi's problems... Don't be alone anymore, okay..."

Mayumi Haga was confused as to why things had developed to this point.

She was being held tightly by two people, and instinctively looked at Urzana beside her.

...What exactly did the senior say to the guardian?

The latter was also bewildered, spreading his hands to indicate that he didn't know either.

Megragne, perched atop the living room shelf, also fell silent.

Main Text: Chapter 101 I'm Here to Join This Family

Mayumi Haga has only one feeling right now:

There are so many people.

This apartment has never had so many people before; usually it's just her alone, or Hitomi Tono who comes to visit.

Mayumi Haga often returns home alone, then reads books or daydreams, passing the days in utter boredom.

But without realizing it, the number of talking mouths in this room increased.

Urzana-senpai was alright; she wasn't really a noisy person. But Megaranie, along with her guardian and Hitomi, whose voice was just as loud, weren't so quiet.

very noisy.

After finally calming down Sugiyama Rika and Tono Hitomi, Haga Mayumi, who is now more used to the quiet atmosphere, felt like her head was about to split open.

After calming down a bit, Sugiyama Rika expressed her full support for Urzana and Haga Mayumi to continue staying there, even giving them a look that said, "If you want to leave, I'll cry again."

“It’s fate that we met in this world.” Sugiyama Rika frantically blew her nose with a tissue. “Ulzana, look, you are Mayumi’s parent, and now I am Mayumi’s guardian… So we’re family!”

Ulzana: ...Is that how it's calculated?

While being accepted is certainly a good thing, isn't Ms. Sugiyama's statement a bit strange?

This logic doesn't seem to hold up to scrutiny.

As for Mayumi Haga, who serves as the link between this inexplicable, non-blood-related family relationship, she had no words of refusal to refuse.

She was grateful that Sugiyama Rika continued to accept her, as for her senior Urzana, with whom she would soon be living...

...Haga Mayumi avoided any private meetings with Urzana.

With more people in her family, she basically had no chance to be alone with Urzana. Moreover, at first, Sugiyama Rika and Tono Hitomi were a little worried about the subtle atmosphere between Haga Mayumi and Urzana, but after Megarane came out, their attention was completely diverted.

After Sugiyama Rika revealed that she, Haga Mayumi, and Urzana were from different families, Megaran, who had been pretending to be a decoration and remained silent, finally couldn't help but peek halfway out from the shelf: "Huh? Can I join this family too?"

A blue crystal head suddenly appeared in front of Sugiyama Rika, startling her: "Whoa?!"

What is this?

A flying head from another world?

Those kinds of monsters whose heads and bodies are separated?

"Calling it a flying head barbarian or something... seems a bit fitting." Megaran was about to retort, but then realized that the other party's description was actually quite accurate.

The only difference is that her body has now disappeared, and she can't reattach her head like a real monster.

"In this world's parlance, it should be more like someone whose amputation surgery failed?" Megrané didn't know what strange thing he saw on TV, but when he said this, it tickled his own funny bone, and he laughed quite carefree.

Urzana then noticed the presence of Mograne, and seeing his overly familiar aquatic skeletal features and sharp teeth, she was also puzzled: "An aquatic head... retains consciousness?"

Is it a witchcraft artifact made by an unknown wizard?

In ancient times, wizards could indeed craft all sorts of magical artifacts from living beings. She had heard her father say that many wizards liked to take materials from the bodies of various races to create artifacts or weapons imbued with evil power and tormented souls. These artifacts were incredibly powerful, but they often devoured the life of their users.

Such props have always been taboo within the tribe, and Urzana had never seen them before.

Could it be that Rania gave it to Mayumi...? Did such items still exist in that later era?

Mayumi Haga, who created this sorcery item, said: "...This is my friend, Megaran."

It was really strange to introduce the origins of Megrana to Sugiyama Rika and Urzana in this setting.

Sugiyama Rika recovered from her initial shock. She was incredibly brave; once she realized the blue crystal head was speaking, she immediately took it down from the high shelf and even made eye contact with Mograine.

"Wow," Sugiyama Rika sincerely praised, "You are so beautiful, Miss Mograine."

Instead of the expected terror, Mograine felt that Sugiyama Rika was braver than Tono Hitomi: "...Thank you, Mayumi's guardian. Can you put me down?"

This was the first time someone had praised him so openly, holding his head in their hands. Megrané barely managed to refrain from biting Sugiyama Rika's hand.

Because the other party was Mayumi Haga's guardian, he did not attack Sugiyama Rikka, who dared to touch her. What Mograne did not expect was that, given Sugiyama Rikka's physical condition, it was unknown whether his teeth broke or the other party's skin broke first.

After all, Sugiyama Rika can only be considered half-human in the strict sense now, and she can use magic as usual without having to form a contract with a Jewel Beast to transform.

Through past battles, Sugiyama Rika has developed an instinct to create magical shields.

If Megrana really intended to bite off her arm, then the first thing to break would definitely not be the seemingly defenseless arm.

After Megrana protested, Sugiyama Rika solemnly placed the other party on the coffee table in the living room.

Megragna brought an excessively joyful atmosphere to the house.

After all, a chattering aquarium head can offer a wide variety of topics, and they are incredibly engaging.

“How amazing… Miss Megaran, your form of existence is quite peculiar.” Sugiyama Rika immediately noticed the other’s condition. “Your soul is fixed in this unprecedented medium. How is that possible?”

Megrana's gaze drifted slightly: "It's like... I thought I was going to die, and when I opened my eyes again, I was like this..."

Actually, she wasn't lying. She genuinely believed that she was going to be killed by Mayumi Haga. After the other party cut off her head, how could she not die?

But the magic in this world is truly amazing, transforming her originally bloody head into this form.

Otherwise, in her original world, even if it could still speak as a head, it would bleed and gradually rot away.

Sugiyama Rika suddenly realized, judging from her knowledge: "So that's how it is! It must be that after your soul came from another world, it attached itself to the gem, and the gem took shape because of the soul's attachment."

The guardian's guess was completely wrong.

Mayumi Haga, who had personally created the head, looked away.

Main text: Chapter 102 How can you forgive me?

After closing the door, Sugiyama Rika pulled her coat tighter and came out of the house.

Outside the door stood Ms. Kirino, whom I hadn't seen for several years. Her hair was much whiter, and the wrinkles on her face were deeper than I remembered.

But Sugiyama Rika sensed a chilling familiarity from the disapproving look in the other person's eyes.