"S-Stop! Noooooooooooooo––!"
They flashed by him.
The remaining piece of his puppet turned to ash, and Cyrus let loose a blood-curdling scream as he fell into the depths of the dilapidated building.
Seeing as he was a member of the Starpulse Generation, the fall posed no threat to his life.
"Claudia and the others ought to be waiting below. Let's leave this to them."
"I understand..."
Julis closed her eyes and took a deep breath.
A lot had happened, but it'd finally drawn to an end.
The strong breeze flowing by felt decidedly comfortable.
"How beautiful..."
At Ayato's words, Julis opened her eyes and surveyed the scene.
"...You're right, it's gorgeous."
The gradually setting sun dyed the city a deep rose.
The streets, sky, and lake surface, all a captivating scarlet.
Julis and Ayato spread their wings and, turning to one another, laughed.
"––Guh!"
Suddenly, Ayato's expression twisted in pain.
"W-what's wrong?" Julis prompted.
Even before receiving an answer, she could tell something was off.
All the Mana in their surroundings began to accumulate with Ayato at its center.
This amount was no joke.
"W-what is this...?"
She couldn't feel the presence of any Strega or Dante in the vicinity.
It was likely this was the effect of some mechanism put in place beforehand. To be honest, such abilities weren't all that rare. Both time-delay abilities as well as those that took effect after some pre-existing condition was met were rather common.
(But this much Mana...just what on earth...?)
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaah!"
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As Ayato let out a painful shout, magic circles began to appear all around Ayato. From these magic circles, shackles of light erupted, and bound him hand and foot.
"This is from earlier-!?"
These magic circles were identical to those she had seen earlier when his Prana had surged to untold limits.
(In other words, those magic circles are meant to bind his powers? It takes this much mana just to do that...!?)
"Uuuuh..."
"Hey, hey! Ayato! Hey!"
Ayato seemed to lose consciousness, and his body fell slack.
Thankfully, the wings of flame were under Julis' control, or things could have taken a turn for the worse. Until just a moment ago, it had been Ayato who'd held Julis in his arms. Now, their positions had switched, and she held onto him for dear life.
"Honestly! What a pain."
Julis searched for a convenient spot to land, spreading her wings once more.
✱
"...Forgive me, Ayato."
The maiden's face showed a smile, but her eyes brimmed with tears. She gently placed her hands atop the boy's head.
"Onee-chan...?"
Attired in an old dojo uniform, the boy gazed up at the girl, puzzled.
Moonlight shone through the dojo windows, announcing the room empty for all but the two. The room was near silent but for the sounds of wildlife, and the dark mood of night filled the empty dojo.
On this night, the girl was clearly unsettled.
Her attitude and voice, at once warm and gentle, steady and stern, was as per usual. However, the eyes through which she gazed at the boy were clearly not.
The boy's face proclaimed his confusion. As he opened his mouth to speak, to inquire, the girl closed her eyes as if to cut him off.
"...Forgive me."
While the girl continued to plead for forgiveness, over and over, the world began to spin furiously, engulfing the boy.
"Uwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh!"
The boy screamed wildly.
An intense pain ran through his body, like an electric shock. The boy tried to struggle, but was unable to so much as lift a finger. From out of the thin air, countless shackles appeared and clung to him, binding his entire body. The boy endeavored to look up and over, beyond the hand of the girl, blocking his vision, as countless magic circles appeared.
The boy couldn't comprehend what was happening.
More correctly, the boy understood in his mind; this was his sister's power. This was the power to stem the flow of nature itself, a defensive power with the strength to forcibly suppress all things. A power that belonged only to one who possessed a magician's nature - a Strega.
However, the girl normally despised her power. For her to use this power on the boy was inconceivable.
Or so the boy believed.
"O-Onee-chan...why...?"
The boy whispered in a quiet voice that was fast fading. Strength drained out of his body with each passing moment.
The girl continued to hold her eyes shut, as she mumbled solemnly.
"––By the power of the circular shackles, your might shall be imprisoned."
At that moment, the boy's senses vanished as certainly as if they'd fled into the night sky.
As if he'd been thrown into a bottomless pit, the entire world seemed to flood with darkness.
His consciousness fading, his mind hazy, he faintly heard the voice of the girl, struggling to keep herself together as she answered.
"Didn't I say before? I will protect you, and so––"
As the voice seemed to fade into the distance, the boy fought with all his might to reach out his hand.
"N-no...! I also want to protect Onee-chan...!"
It was for this purpose, it was all for this one purpose, that the boy had worked so tirelessly.
And yet––
"Good-bye, Ayato. I love you."
In all of the boy's memories, that was the last time he ever heard his sister speak.
✱
As Ayato opened his eyes, what entered his vision was the sight of Julis, her frown fraught with concern.
Seeing him come to, however, she brightened considerably.
"Hey, finally awake? For a moment there, I really didn't know what to do."
"Hmm, this is...Ow!"
Still not clear on the situation, Ayato tried to rise, but pain wracked his body.
This searing pain, however, allowed him to remember.
"Ah. I fainted."
"Don't push yourself. We're currently on the roof of that rundown building. I've already spoken to Claudia, she's going to come get us."
"That's great. Thanks."
In Ayato's current condition, even walking would likely prove to be difficult.
Ayato looked around. The sun had long since set, night had fallen, and stars filled the sky.
"Th-there's no need to thank me. Rather, it should be the reverse. I owe you my life."
Speaking, Julis turned aside.
Seeing Julis as straightforward as always, Ayato inwardly rejoiced.
Suddenly, feeling that something was off, Ayato squinted his eyes as he looked at Julis.
Things were far too soft for him to be lying on the ground, as he'd supposed.
Moreover, he caught the slightest scent of a flowery fragrance.
"H-hey, stop that! Don't just move around...!"
Moreover, as he suddenly realized, her face was rather close.
-In other words, he was currently resting on her lap.
"Wah! S-Sorry! I'll get up... Argh!"
Flustered, he tried to rise, only to feel an electric shock run through his body.
"D-Don't worry about it. Calm down, you idiot! You still can't stand, right?"
"B, but––"
"I-I said not to worry, so don't worry! Geez."
Julis, whose face was now so red it seemed steam would come out, turned her head and swatted Ayato on the forehead.
"Alright, fine..."
It seems it was best to avoid rocking the boat.
Ayato, now also blushing to his ears, moved only enough to nod lightly.
"Th-That reminds me."
Julis coughed lightly, and looked at Ayato.
"Mind explaining what just happened?"
"Oh... well, what is it you want me to explain?"
"Let's start with whatever it is that's suppressing your powers. That's the work of a Strega or Dante, correct? Who's the one who did that to you?"
"Ha, that, huh..."
Ayato hesitated for a moment, but seeing Julis lean in close, he decided to stop playing dumb, sighed, and began to answer.
"...My sister. My sister's power allows her to bind all creation."
Julis appeared ill at ease with his answer.
"Is that so... In other words, that just now was your true power?"
"You could say that, although that's not entirely correct."
"Which is it? Such a frustrating man."
Ayato smiled wryly, and then answered the fuming Julis.
"A power you can't control doesn't count as part of your 'true power'."
"From what I saw, you didn't seem to have any problems."
"Within the bounds of a certain time limit, yes. That was my first time going over five minutes. When the time limit's up, I pay the price, and am left unable to move an inch. It's not like it's all bad, but it's not something to write home about either."
The first time he'd tried to break his bonds, he hadn't even lasted ten seconds.
"...Why would your sister do something like that to you?"
"If I had a chance to ask her, I would like to know as well. Five years ago, after she did this to me, she disappeared."
"But––"
"It's alright. I'm sure she had her reasons."
Ayato waved away Julis' concerns.
"Speaking of which, there's something I'd like to ask you myself."
"Go ahead."
"Have you found a partner for the Phoenix yet?"
"Ah...!"
Julis open frown answered his question for him.
Ayato, relieved, continued to speak.
"In that case, um... how about me?"
"What?"
"I wouldn't call myself a saint, but I think I do alright. My mind's about as sharp as the average person. When it comes to an iron will or noble spirit, well... I might have to ask you to turn a blind eye there..."
"...You know you just admitted you don't meet any of the requirements."
Although Julis was thoroughly taken aback, she put on a tactful smile.
"I am grateful that you're thinking about me, but don't push yourself. When it comes to the Festa, your normal abilities aren't enough. Moreover, didn't you say you weren't interested in fighting?"
"Don't worry about any of that," Ayato stated firmly.
"I said this before, right? My calling right now–– it's to be your strength, Julis."
His words made Julis blush.
"B-But, you shouldn't decide this sort of thing so casually..."
"...Are you sure you're not just embarrassed? Your face is pretty red."
"I-Idiot! Who did you say was embarrassed?! And you, stop looking!"
Julis gave Ayato a slap.
It didn't hurt, but she held on to Ayato's face, obstructing his vision.
"..."
"...Julis?"
She didn't reply.
In place of words, Ayato felt the hand on his face shake a little.
"––D. Do you really mean that?"
Her voice was barely louder than a whisper, and it quivered as she spoke.
Utterly unlike the self-confident tone she normally used, this insecure voice spoke of her fear of disappointment. Her voice revealed her fear of extending her hand to another, or of reaching out to take another's hand which had been extended to her.
Such a reaction was very common. No matter who it was, taking a new step entirely on faith was something that brought fear and anxiety; that was common sense.
And perhaps–– this was Julis' true nature.
Neither more nor less than that of a normal girl.
If such a girl were to bravely and staunchly advance for the sake of acting on her convictions, she would be both amazingly courageous and overwhelmingly adorable.
"Do you even need to ask?"
And so, answering, his resolve was no less than her own.
He would not allow himself to feel regret; no, never again.
This time, he wouldn't make the same mistake.
"...Honestly. You are one strange guy."
Julis released her grip.
Under the starry sky, Julis smiled.
Ayato spoke not a word. He simply raised his hand and gently wiped away the tears that had run down her face.