69: Touching the Soul

“So… Dan showed up where the adult version of you was, huh?
But according to my memory, you were the one who pulled the Golden Axe from the pond and ran off with it.
Maybe things shifted into a different parallel?”

Tom spoke calmly, piecing together the story from what Rena had told him.
But she still looked unconvinced as she replied, eyes fixed on his face.

“The golden axe I threw at that man… it sank into the pond again.
I guess I need to return it to the Mirror World, right?”

She still had doubts about Dan.
It had felt too deliberate—how he’d created a tense situation and lured her into throwing the axe,
forcing the “Golden Axe” to return to the water.
His eerie approach toward her still made her skin crawl.
But shaking off those thoughts, she turned her focus to something else that had been nagging at her.

“Anyway, let’s set that aside for now…
Tom, about the wedding talk earlier…
Does that mean… that’s the kind of future we end up having?”

“Hm? Ah, yeah.
You and I do end up together.
Like I said before, you severed the curse tied to that pond.
Everything—us drowning, Dan attacking you—has been overwritten.
Rewritten into a new page—the one I’d been wishing for.”

“Wh-What’s with you!?
Why do you sound so grown-up all of a sudden!?
Like you’ve seen it all or something!
You’re so unfair, going off and jumping through all these worlds by yourself…”

“Well…
I wasn’t really doing it for myself.
I was looking for a world where you could be saved, Rena.
But I was wrong.
Self-sacrifice alone wasn’t the answer…
You’re the one who taught me that, remember?”

“Huh? Did I say something like that?”

“You did—in the mirror archives.
You said, ‘I’ve also been searching for a version of reality where you can be saved.
And now, I’ve finally arrived here.’
Then you kissed me, right?”

“Wha—! T-That wasn’t me!
I mean, probably?
Maybe it was like, a different personality?
Ever since I came to the Mirror World, I’ve been feeling… off.
Like I’m not fully myself. Like someone else is taking over?”

“Oooh?
So how much do you remember, huh?
Selective memory loss isn’t very convenient for me, you know.”

“S-Shut up, stupid Tom!
If you keep teasing me, I’ll knock your shoes off again!
Oh wait, I can’t use that power anymore in this world, can I?”

“Haha, just kidding, just kidding.
Anyway… maybe it’s time to head back.
To the real world.”

Tom stepped down from the swing gently.
To Rena, his figure looked almost… fleeting.
She reached out, playfully trying to pat him on the back—
But her hand passed right through him.
As though touching the surface of water, his form slipped away.

“Huh?
What… is this…?”

“Ah, right…
Guess I can’t go back just yet, not like this.
Well, what should we do?
Mind helping me figure it out?”

“W-Why can’t I touch you!?
Is this another one of your weird powers?
You’re like a ghost!”

“No…
When I took that axe to the back during the fight with Dan…
It felt like something split.
Like my body and soul came apart.
I don’t know how else to explain it.”

“‘Like’!?
You say that so casually!
Ugh… yup, that’s Tom alright. Some things never change.”

—But I can still touch you—
Tom gently reached out and placed his hand on Rena’s cheek.

A faint warmth brushed against Rena’s cheek.
Tom, now nearly transparent, looked at her with gentle eyes.

“No way…
Tom, stop joking around.
What’s with your body? You’re fading…”

“Yeah…
My consciousness… it’s starting to slip away.
I think this might be bad.”

He leaned in, his blurry features just inches from hers.

“W-What do you mean bad?
Hey…?”

Tom pressed a soft, flickering kiss to her lips.
Rena closed her eyes, letting the moment speak for itself.

“…And then, the girl returned to the real world, hand in hand with the boy she loved.
The end. Pfft.”

“Huh?
Wait, Tom…
I can touch you now?”

“Wha—oh, hey, you’re right!
I’m solid again!
Guess that was the magic of a kiss, huh!?”

“You’re unbelievable…
Let me guess—this was part of your ‘surprise,’ too?”

“I—I’m sorry!
Too far this time?”

“Barefoot Tom!
Time to slip on a banana peel and take a nap!”

“Wait, what!?
No—my shoes! Not again—!”

Tom tumbled forward with a thud.

“…Huh?
I thought I’d lost that power from the picture book world.
But I guess it’s still here?”

“Ugh…
That delivery was so stiff…
You’re not getting any acting offers with that performance.”

Laughter bubbled up between them—pure, honest laughter.
The kind that only comes after a long, exhausting journey.
Tears mixed with their smiles, and their hearts filled with something warm and real.

“Alright, jokes aside…
I guess we really should get ready to go back now,” Tom said as he stood.

“Go back…?
To where?
Isn’t this your world?”

“Huh?
Are you pulling a weird joke now, too—?”

Tom blinked.

Standing in place of uniform-clad Rena was now a different figure—
a version of her dressed in black, cloaked in mystery.

“Rena…?
No, wait…
That form…”

“Some of your memories still sleep in the depths of your mind.
But I am not Rena.”

“…What?
What are you saying…?”

“I am Luna.
That’s the name you gave me—
said I reminded you of a goddess of the moon.”

“Luna… goddess of the moon…”

The name sparked something deep in Tom’s memory.
A distant echo, buried far beneath the surface.

Believe without doubt…

That single phrase rang through his mind.

Luna gently took his hand.

Together, they slowly sank into the light of the Eternal Mirror that shimmered beneath their feet.