Kagiri awakens in a place where the ground resembles a thin mirror reflecting the sky
as if she were walking upon light itself.
Each step she takes makes a faint sound, not an echo...
but the whisper of the place itself, softly calling her name.
The sky is far from ordinary; smoke-like clouds drift through it, and among them float tiny shards of light, like broken stars.
Across the horizon bloom violet flowers that move without wind
when Kagiri walks beside them, they bend gently, as though gazing at her.
In the distance, she sees a city floating slightly above the ground.
It is quiet, yet even from afar, Kagiri can hear a faint melody rising from it.
She feels something calling her, and begins to run toward the city
but before she can reach it, Velina appears before her.
Velina kneels, holds Kagiri tightly, and embraces her.
But all Kagiri can think about is apologizing.
"I'm sorry, Velina... I failed.
I couldn't save her.
I'm just a doll... What should I do?"
Velina smiles softly.
"Don't worry. Everything will be fine."
Kagiri frowns.
"How? I don't understand... Why are you so calm?"
Velina answers:
"Because I believe in you.
Just as you saved me, you'll save my daughter... and bring her back."
Before Kagiri can reply, she suddenly finds herself sitting before the living room door.
It opens and Shinara stands there.
Kagiri blinks in confusion, then smiles.
"I'm back... again."
Startled, Shinara screams and throws Kagiri across the room.
"Even though I'm a doll," Kagiri mutters, "I can still feel pain."
Shinara freezes, staring in disbelief, then slowly approaches.
"I'm not an animal for you to poke at like that," Kagiri says coldly.
"I'm here to help."
Though still in shock, Shinara waits, curious to see how a talking doll could help her.
"Why don't we go outside?" Kagiri suggests. "There's something I must do."
But Shinara refuses. She sits back on the couch, ignoring her.
"I thought you'd understand... like last time," Kagiri murmurs,
"but I was wrong."
Shinara looks at her in confusion
Last time? What does she mean?
"I really don't understand what kind of person reacts like this when they see a doll talking," Kagiri sighs.
She asks Shinara to open the door for her.
Suddenly a gunshot.
Kagiri spins around.
A bullet pierces Shinara's head.
No one else is there.
Shinara's body twists, then fades...
transforming into a wilted flower.
Kagiri, trembling, finds herself suddenly back at the school.
Before her stands the same old man as before.
"Mr. Aldric... what's happening?"
He stays silent for a moment, then says quietly:
"The world cannot accept your existence, Kagiri.
But where is Shinara? Why isn't she with you?"
Kagiri tries to speak but stammers, her words falling apart.
"You abandoned her, didn't you?" Aldric says.
"I wonder what became of her."
Before Kagiri can answer, darkness swallows everything.
"It's time to return," Aldric's fading voice says.
"You have only two chances left... or you'll break your promise to Velina."
Everything fades sight, sound, self.
Then, from the void, Hana, the fairy, appears.
"Hana... I don't know what to do. I'm so lost."
Hana smiles faintly, her face glowing like light itself.
"Being lost isn't the end, Kagiri.
It's the beginning."
Kagiri looks around black smoke surrounds her, laced with white threads.
"Is this... the world between dream and reality?"
Hana nods.
"This is what happens when you lose the bond between hearts.
You hesitated... and your promise broke."
"You mean Shinara?
But wasn't the contract with Velina?"
"Of course not," Hana replies.
"You already saved Velina."
Kagiri looks at her hands
they're cracking like glass, slowly breaking apart.
"I tried... but I've failed miserably."
Hana steps closer, and together they appear in Shinara's room.
"Look, Kagiri," she says softly, "it's not a curse."
A masked man enters, holding a bloodstained knife.
He spins slowly until he hears the front door open.
Hiding behind it, he waits.
When Shinara enters, he grabs her, slams her to the floor, and begins to strangle her.
She struggles, reaching for something unseen
but it's too late.
He holds her limp body close, whispering:
"You're mine now... my dear daughter."
Kagiri trembles.
"So that's what happened... How could I not see it?
Even if I did what could a doll like me do?
Maybe... acceptance is all that's left."
Hana shakes her head sadly.
"Unfortunately... yes.
But I believe in you, Kagiri. You'll succeed."