*
"[Perception dances under the sole observer of the universe]." (Himei)
Yumi couldn't hear her words, rather they had directly entered her mind. It sounded distant, there was not a hint of emotion in them as it monotonously dripped onwards. Like an echo, there was a vague rebound of random noise. A large palm smashes into Yumi, then a fist rises from the ground to crush her against the palm. 3 more fists violently collide against her body, and then more began to materialise. A larger fist the size of the planet smashes against everything, causing the other fists to disintegrate.
Each time, Yumi revives once again with [descension auxiliary, Extermination]. After planet sized was star sized, then galaxy sized. Skipping everything else, two palms of the size of the observable universe squishes her into paste, as if she was in a room where the ceiling and floor rushed to meet in the centre, crushing anything in the centre. All of this had happened in the same instant that it took Yumi to speak.
"... A speck in your dream... So that's what you meant... Then... Second skill... [Harmony under the sky]." (Yumi)
Her hazmat suit... Changed into a maid dress. Her gas mask vanished and... Himei reappeared. Under the effects of Himei's final skill, it was as if Yumi only existed inside Himei's dream, an isolated realm that was fully under her control. But with this magic, she replaced that entire universe with her own... One that's more powerful in other perspectives...
The sky was bright and blue, reflecting the beautiful waves of the ocean. Greenery fills the surrounding distance as large plots of grass stretch ever forward, dotted with vibrant flowers and insects. Beautiful butterflies painted a picture of tranquility, in another direction was the part entrance, an arch of bluish grey steel forming a hollow frame as steel poles curve into the air and intersect to intricately form this arch.
They sat next to each other on the bench, the air smelled of the trees and fresh water streams, she was no longer in her shrine maiden esque combat dress. Instead she wore a casual white cardigan over a simply but cozy pair of reddish brown shirt and a desaturated azure skirt. The skirt comfortably wraps around her thighs and covered the tip of her knees. She stared blankly into the air, as if having woken from her dream in a drowsy manner, she ponders how she got into this situation.
The essence is tranquility, the overall theme is eponymous with the skill name. It was a peaceful date under bright and sunny skies. She could feel the magic eating away at her psyche, like sleeping pills whittling away at one's woken conscious. Somehow... This skill had overwritten her final skill, it was ridiculous to think about it... But she at least understood... Her teammates have intentionally isolated each other. They were all roughly fighting 1v1s now, because they have faith in this match up.
"... Now that we have the time... Why do you want to destroy the world?" (Himei)
"Haa~ I guess it's a given the mental corruption wouldn't work on you. Perhaps I could talk to you for a bit, you won't last long.
You should have overwrote my existence before I did to yours." (Yumi)
"... I can observe beyond your world. You can say the mental corruption has permanently paused since I have a tether to reality.
Relax, let's talk before coming at each others... Throats. " (Himei)
Before she noticed, Himei's hand was already wrapped around Yumi's neck. She overwrote reality to so this without Yumi's notice, it sent her heart rate racing as Himei languidly moved her hand away and rested it on the bench's armrest. Her cardigan shifted about, causing a rough rustling sound for a bit. It reminded Yumi of her days in school, in her school uniform. The rustling of fabric was all too familiar as a cacophony of lively youth flooded the classroom. Maybe it was then?
"It's been too long, this shouldn't be much of a surprise. Most of us might have already forgotten what made us agree with Arasovi. Maybe it was fear of her power, or it greed to use her strength against others. It also wasn't rare for us to have a grudge against the world. " (Yumi)
"... You're saying it didn't matter? You're doing this without reason? " (Himei)
Yumi looked at her palms, glistening healthy supple skin bounce under the sun, she had permanently retained her youth during that summer, so of course it would look exactly the same as that time. This skill originally wasn't suppose to create a world where she had a date with the enemy, its essence was tranquility, that was it, the only limit. Tranquility could be many things to a single person, initially, it was a blazing free summer.
"Maybe... At this point I don't know. We detect the existence of other worlds through the time manipulation they conduct.
Passing through worlds is like sailing in the sea of an endless void. Messing with time is the only thing sending visible ripples in that sea for us to latch onto. Even then, we don't usually face resistance. We take turns using our skill and erase it from existence. Maybe that's why... This might be our end. " (Yumi)
"... From how you guys were like, I assumed you have fought the gods of many worlds. " (Himei)
"... They were weak. You could say other than those 2, the rest of us also belonged to weak worlds. This was the most amount of resistance we've ever faced. " (Yumi)
She smiled charmingly at Himei, a hint of ridicule in her gaze mixed in with a bunch of amusement. She was still in a maid outfit, sitting on a bench in a normal park. Thinking about it... When was the last time Himei sat at a park like this? The Great Disaster scrambled the earth's tectonic plate like eggs, then redirected every plot of land into one giant continental mass in the centre of the earth. She didn't need to verify, she was the one who observed it with her own eyes and reported it to every other continental faction.
It was right after The Great Disaster where rescue efforts were still the highest priority. Magical girls were sent all over the world by the Haradell Union because they had a prophet who knew contemporary civilisation would end. Though the situation now was vastly different, the people consistently hold onto hope. Kaori defeating the Demon King had essentially wiped out all the demons and monsters, bringing in unprecedented peace.
Without these pressures, the other continents also softened up and began to make efforts towards becoming mutual partners with each other. Inter faction conflict plummeted, everyone had assumed it would lead to a new era of global peace. It was strange. The citizens knew they were gods, yet they did not once demand them to change the world back to how it was before. Maybe it was out of fear... Or respect. Whatever it was, it puzzled Himei a little when she first started being a ruler. No one barged into her throne and demanded her to change everything back... No one came to cry at her feet to bring back a loved one.
Everyone around her... Simply tried their best to live. She too did the same. At some point someone has to ask, with how humanity had been set back a few centuries of technological progress, was it really worth it to continue anymore? Their ancestors were born in and molded by their less modern environments, modern people would undoubtedly face unprecedented difficulty in carrying on with their lives.
What about their friends? Family? What if they could no longer contact them ever again? What about their dreams? Their ambitions? The careers they fervently worked so hard towards, the expectations piled onto them by everyone else...? In other words, there are some things that couldn't be help. That has always been the case, there were too many things that people could do little about. Living an honest life, for the sake of her faction... It was hard but also enough for Himei.
"... Will you continue to fight?" (Himei)
"... Yeah. It is all I have left. Not my world, nor my friends, nor my dreams. This void in my heart where my memories and most precious feelings use to reside... It is all that matters now." (Yumi)
"... I can observe your life for you, but... If you don't want it then there's no point for you. " (Himei)
" Heheh... Digging for weaknesses? " (Yumi)
" Hmph! I don't need such a thing to beat you. My final skill still works. Ari isn't here to disable my skills. " (Himei)
It was during that summer where she lost it all. She can't help but accidentally glimpse into her past. Blurry flashes of a time long gone, a scenery obscured in tears. Everyone has their own story. Yumi long knew that hers would never see any approval, she knew that her reasons were shallow, but she accepted herself all the same and rejected others instead. So she abandoned her memories without a care, losing it to the numbing tides of time.
"Want to test it? Ari might break a hole in here at any time... She loves doing that." (Yumi)
She spoke with a childish smile, her eyes animated and sparkled under the blazing sun. Her eyelashes and eyebrows drooped towards the end, like the affectionate gaze of a maiden in love. Her smile blossomed beautifully, her brown hair swayed gracefully under the gentle park breeze, carrying the scent of blood with it. Whose blood was it...? Ah, it was mine. Himei looked down, a large gash in her neck and torso had rapidly released her blood into the surroundings. The bench was heavily drenched with the viscous dark crimson liquid.
The tang of iron wafted into the cloud, her white cardigan had been almost completely died in red, her shirt and skirt shared large red spots that clung to her cold skin. Her wounds felt burning hot, and she was rapidly losing feeling in her lower extremities. She felt like her abs were feeling an extreme cramp that was threatening to bisect her body horizontally. But... Throughout all of this, she remained composed.
She maintained her gentle smile and looked firmly into Yumi's eyes, blood dripping from one end of her lips and dripped down her chin, slithering down her neck and into her shirt. A big invisible hand crushes Yumi.
"[Perception dances under the sole observer of the universe]. Goodbye. " (Himei)
She overwrites her existence into nothing. This time, there was no Long Yi here to stop her or Huo Li's final skill. It was nice getting to know Yumi and attempting to understand her. But this emptiness in Yumi's heart is what makes her herself. Forcefully filling it isn't an option if the person herself wants to preserve herself as she is. In other words, she either dies fighting or wins, either way she will perpetuate this state of hers.
In a way it reminds her of Kaori and her futility in trying to live a regretless life. No matter what, a person is bound to change throughout their life. What they may not regret now, they may come to regret later due to a change in perspective. It's how most regrets work and why it is such an unavoidable inherent trait of human life. Kaori vowing not to regret any of her actions is just her putting a facade for herself, pretending her regrets aren't there at all.
It was amusingly pathetic, yet it brought about a grand adventure that Himei couldn't tear her eyes from. Eventually it brought her onto the same level as Himei and Zedicia. It was strange, how could someone like her be allowed to succeed. Sometimes it pisses her off, sometimes it amazes her. But in the end, all she did was gain another bargaining chip for the potential intercontinental politics. Waving Kaori around as a warning sign also worked to reinforce public peace in her own faction... That's why she was so concerned with Kaori's wellbeing.
To think that she would kill herself in the end, just to save the person she was endangering herself. But Himei couldn't think of any other end that was more 'Kaori like' than that. That was the person she was, that is the sort of person Yumi is similar to. Someone who would hide from their problems and base their entire existence on this flawed version of them with their problems hidden.
"Final skill, [I'll gladly take your hand]..." (Yumi)
Why are her skill names so romantic? Another glimpse into her past... Before the tears appeared to block her clear view... Himei saw what seemed to be another person on the bench with her. Another girl... Her bag had a key chain of a little maid.