Chapter 9

After hearing the story from me, Kaori quickly came over to our place that afternoon. Emma was still shut away in the guest room, and we didn’t want to disturb her. She hadn’t eaten lunch that day, so I placed her portion on a tray in front of her door after knocking.

“Try to eat at some point. It would be good for you.”

After that, we didn’t bother her for a long while. And it wouldn’t have been smart of me to skip school for too long. The next morning, I visited her mother’s grave with her, but in the days that followed, she herself told me to go to school. She promised she would be fine. Later I spent a lot of time thinking about how I could cheer her up. But Kaori came up with the best idea during lunch break.

“There’s going to be a school festival this weekend, right? Why don’t we invite her? She said she also went here in her own timeline. It would be a nice gesture.”

I immediately looked up.

“Kaori, you’re a genius!”

Though she pretended to be modest, she was clearly proud of herself. I didn’t mind it this time, since she really had a good idea. Most of our classmates already knew whether they were participating in any program, and if so, which one. Kaori, however, didn’t want to take part in anything productive — she was mostly interested in the fun and the stands. As for me, I only wanted to take care of order as a member of the disciplinary committee. I also brought up what would happen if the Magistras decided to attack us here. It wouldn’t be the first time. In that case, even on such a peaceful day, we would be forced to transform and fight.

Kaori’s eyes sparkled at the word “transform.”

“That’s it! If we show up transformed, we’d be like professional cosplayers! We could wear cute outfits all day!”

I protested a little, saying it would be cheating, but the stubborn Kaori eventually convinced me. Simply dressing up in cosplay wasn’t enough to count as a real program, so I suggested the idea of a café. Our school was big enough. I was confident we’d get a classroom. The only question was how to persuade Emma to come. After some encouragement, we succeeded, though she didn’t want to walk around the school in her transformed form. Kaori and I completely understood that. But because of that, it would have been good to find one more person to dress up. After repeated begging, Merona from the student council accepted the task. Even though I had only really known her in this timeline, she had proven to be a reliable friend.

Emma, feeling guilty, offered to bake the pastries. After all, she was known to be great in the kitchen. Of course, we told her not to push herself too hard, but she insisted.

The long-awaited weekend soon arrived. We had a lot of things, but instead of renting a taxi, Merona’s father offered to drive us with his car. We gratefully accepted. I already left home as Nightmist with Emma, and we picked up Kaori in her Bubblegirl form at her dorm. When we asked about Merona in the car, her father told us he had dropped her off at the school earlier. Our outfits impressed him, as well as the students and outside visitors when we arrived at the school. All three of us found it strange that people could perceive us normally in these forms. Merona was also delighted by our appearance. Dressed as a cat-eared waitress, she had already begun preparations in our classroom. After joining her, we started working. The coffee maker was set up, we arranged the tables, and we placed Emma’s pastries and the drinks on display.

We didn’t force Emma to serve guests. We knew she already worked a lot in the kitchen at home. And Kaori and I also knew about her current emotional state. We thought a nostalgic walk around the school would do her good. We encouraged her to visit as many stands and programs as she liked and enjoy the festival. Later she would still have time to drop by as a guest.

Suddenly, she clung to my arm.

“Pat my head, big sis.”

Merona raised an eyebrow at the sight, while Bubblegirl covered her mouth in surprise. So I tried to peel Emma off me as quickly as possible.

“Hey! We’re in public! Someone might walk in at any moment and see us like this!”

Merona burst out laughing.

“Well, well. So your relationship is that affectionate?”

My face turned bright red.

“You’re misunderstanding!”

After the cheerful moment, Emma went to look around. I was happy that her mood had improved, even if only a little. Meanwhile, the first visitors arrived, so we had to welcome them to our cosplay café.

We had been on our feet for quite a while by the time it was my break. I decided to go look for Emma. I wanted to make sure she was okay. She hadn’t answered her phone or replied to my messages. I checked every event room. The hallways, the bathroom — she was nowhere. But after searching the more secluded areas, I found her. She was sitting on the stairs leading to the rooftop, crying loudly with her face buried in her knees.

“Emma! What’s wrong??”

I hurried to her side to sit next to her.

“I… I shouldn’t be here. I don’t belong here. No one recognizes me…”

Then it became clear what had happened. I asked who she had met. At first she didn’t want to talk about it, but eventually she opened up. Maria and Nolen had once been very good friends of hers, and she had run into them. She greeted them and said she was happy to see them again. They had no idea what to make of it, but Emma kept insisting she knew them. Even then, they backed away from her. She even overheard them calling her crazy. At that point she completely broke down.

“I never learn anything… First my parents, and now my friends… I have nothing left.”

Her words hurt deeply. I hated seeing her suffer like this. But I didn’t believe what she said.

“You’re wrong! I’m still here for you!”

Sniffling, Emma wiped her tears, then gave a sad little smile.

“You’re right.”

Since I had been gone for a long time, Kaori had sent me countless messages, which I only noticed now. She had tried to call too, but my phone had been on silent. Halfway back, we ran into her.

Seeing Emma’s swollen eyes, she worriedly asked if everything was alright.

Before she could answer, a familiar but unpleasant voice called out to us.

“This little kiddie party sure is entertaining. I’m having a great time.”

We saw Olivia munching on a donut.

“Olivia!”

After I snapped at her, all three of us glared and took cautious positions. Even though we knew we shouldn’t cause a scene at school.

“Oh, don’t worry about the bystanders. I’ll deal with them right away!”

The young woman pulled out a detonation switch and pressed the button. Loud bangs came from the direction of the school courtyard. Most of the students rushed out curiously, then shouted in amazement.

“Come quickly! They’re launching fireworks from the sports field!”

The school building emptied completely, and Olivia ran off grinning in a totally different direction. We chased her. We followed her all the way to the huge auditorium, where she stopped running once inside. Then the outside noise fell completely silent. The students had frozen in time.

“Now that the troublesome factors are out of the way, it’ll be easier to deal with you!”

The woman used the clock for summoning.

“In this upturned time, I carve a chaotic space! Come, Clockster!”

After the ticking and the formation of the clock-like magic circle, the gathering purple elemental particles formed a Clockster holding a bow.

Kaori and I were already in our Seraph forms, so only Emma needed to transform.

The girl’s heart glowed, and she began her chant.

“Creation of Time Link! Transfiguration!”

Her glowing white figure was struck by a snowy gust of wind, turning her transforming hair pure white and her eyes fiery red. Crystal-like frost carved her Seraph outfit onto her body and limbs, along with her white boots and beautiful gloves. At the end of her transformation, the icy breeze conjured her cute bunny ears and decorative crown.

She then struck a noble pose and bowed like an elegant young lady.

“I am the princess of ice, who brings justice. The Seraph of Windy Frost — Snowincess!”

The three of us launched into battle. Bubblegirl fired small pink bubbles like a machine gun, but the creature sidestepped them quickly. Pink explosions damaged the auditorium walls. I chose my boomerangs, but even though I sent them forward, the creature shot purple energy lines from its weapon, knocking both of them down. After that, Snowincess threw ice daggers, which were also destroyed with the same precision.

Snowincess glared challengingly at the creature.

“Let’s see what you say to something bigger!”

A huge ice spike formed in the white Seraph’s hand, so the Clockster pulled its bowstring tighter.

The icy spike and the purple beam clashed, creating cold, white smoke. Moments later, three purple lines sliced through it. Bubblegirl and I quickly jumped aside; they only damaged the floor. But to our shock, Snowincess reacted the slowest. She moved too late, and the exploding arrow that hit her flung her several meters before she hit the ground.

Bubblegirl and I shouted at the same time:

“Snowincess!”

Olivia grinned curiously and wickedly.

“Hm? When I first saw you, you were much stronger. Now your power keeps diminishing. At least you won’t cause any serious trouble like this!”

I understood what was happening.

“Snowincess! I know you’re suffering terribly. You can’t change the rewritten past right now, but that doesn’t mean all is lost! The future is still ahead of you! You can shape it! You can rebuild your bonds with your friends and family! Don’t give up!”

The pupils of the girl in white widened — my words must have reached her.

Olivia couldn’t stand our emotional moment, so she ordered the Clockster to attack. The creature fired at Snowincess, but I jumped in front of the Seraph and blocked the arrow with my crescent shield. I didn't have to do anything more. It seemed she had pulled herself together.

“Thanks, Nightmist. From now on, I’ll give it my all!”

She summoned an ice sword and charged forward, neutralizing the arrows with rapid, precise strikes.

“I could use a little boost upward!”

Bubblegirl nodded.

“On it!”

She summoned large, flexible orbs that glowed pink. Using them like steps, Snowincess leapt higher and higher, then launched herself downward with an acrobatic motion. Upon landing, she sliced the creature’s weapon in half with a powerful swing, then struck it several more times.

Snowincess stepped back from the slashed creature to begin her chant.

“Mystical ray of freezing winters, restrain all corruption!”

Blue-glowing ice crystals formed before her outstretched palms.

“Break forth, Frostbeam!”

A light-blue beam burst from the crystals, freezing the Clockster’s body, which then faded and was consumed.

The destroyed auditorium regained its original condition, and Olivia fled in anger.

Snowincess returned to her human form, and the people outside were no longer affected by time-freeze. They sadly asked what had happened to the fireworks.

Emma thanked us for our help and for supporting her with kind words. I promised her that one day we would find a way to fix everything and that she would get her family back. Her eyes sparkled with gratitude as she nodded. She understood that she couldn’t keep chasing the shadows of the past forever. Instead, she needed to live a present she could be proud of in the future.

“Let’s enjoy the day!”

Emma’s optimistic attitude stayed with her throughout the festival. She visited many stands where she tried delicious foods and fun activities. She even came to our café as a guest. She offered to help, but we wanted her to relax. During our breaks, we walked around with her here and there, though we didn’t want to leave Merona alone for too long. Even so, there was enough time for plenty of programs. The festival was nearing its end when we served the last guest. But the fireworks were still ahead of us — the real fireworks, not Olivia’s trick. It was an experience to watch them outside among the gathered crowd. The celestial display reflected in Emma’s eyes, symbolizing the life returning to her.