....

　Wake up. I wake up naturally. I look at the clock and see that the time is 5am. It's a habit to get up at this time, no matter what the circumstances are.

　Even if someone you care about has passed away, there is no change in the habit.


...Okay.


　Sherry quickly gets up out of bed and starts to get ready as it is. First, she does some light stretching to loosen up. After that, she puts on her dark blue, silver-trimmed military uniform, then puts on her military shoes and heads straight for it, making a clattering noise.

　Beyond that was the training ground.

　It was already winter.

　When she exhaled, she turned white, so white that it was visible in the air. In this cold weather, and in the early morning, the temperature is well below 10 degrees.

　But that doesn't stop Shelly from training herself.


'Sir. Good luck today.


　A bow. In that empty place, Shelly reverently bows. This place was originally exclusive to Belle. There is no rule as such, but it's how it came about that Belle used this place so often that other antimagicians naturally gave it away and made it their own.

　Belle and Shelly often trained here.

　They had many sword fights and fights to improve each other's skills.

　In the midst of it all, Shelly had a certain response. I'm not sure if I'll ever be able to surpass my master, Belle.


　But that won't happen forever. Because Belle is no longer........in this world.


　The funeral is over and now it's a day off in preparation for the parade in a few days, but that doesn't stop Shelly.


　She will get her revenge. That is Shelly's will, which she swore to Belle. It burns, and it will never go away.

　That's why she trains. It does its daily routine. Don't expect your abilities to awaken conveniently or anything like that. Everything is an accumulation of yourself every day. It is true that Sherry has demon blood, and in terms of talent, it can be said that she is the best in the world.


　But ability is not limited to combat, but is determined by the proper intertwining of talent, effort and environment.

　That's why she's not proud of it. She will not be negligent.


　It's all for Belle and for humanity.


　Shelly will build on that solid day by day.


'....haha, haha, haha.


　Rough breathing escapes her mouth.

　The demon sword, Oboro Tsukiyo. It was also a relic she received from Belle. Its performance was not understood by the current Shelly. It was just a sword with a good cutting ability. That is my current impression of it.


　But Sherry had sensed it. There was something about this magic sword. And it must be something that Belle left behind..... Believing that, Sherry finished her early morning training today.


''Thank you.''


　Again, a bow.

　She does the gesture reverently, and then Sherry leaves without further ado. There will surely come a day when that will become a given, even without Belle.

　But for now........the loneliness of not having Belle still lingered inside Sherry.



　◇


'What?　Is that you, Miss Shelley?
'Dear Liane. It's been a long time.


　Shelly bows her head with a smile. They happen to bump into each other in the base.

　Currently, Riane is not living in the royal castle, but in the quarters of the first ward city.

　According to her, she doesn't want to take advantage of her circumstances just because she's royalty.

　Of course, the rest of the royal family live in the castle and look at Liane with cold eyes. That was something she herself knew, but that was fine.

　Because Liane had made that choice herself, in order to continue to scorch the path Belle had taken, and to continue to scorch her footsteps in the future.


'Are you going to lunch, by any chance?'
'Yes. Yes, but....
Then you're welcome to join us.
"...what?　With me, sir?
Yes. Sherry and I are fine.
Okay.


　They were good friends with Belle. No, that's not the right word.

　On the one hand, they were more than flesh and blood; on the other hand, they were mentors and students.

　The common denominator is that Belle was very important to both of them.

　On the other hand, Liane and Shelley are still not very close to each other. They have mutual acquaintances such as Julia and Eira, but they have never had a chance to talk to each other properly.

　Of course, Shelly agreed, but she was somewhat uneasy about it. That's because Belle is inevitably too much on the brain. It was the same for Liane, but she tried to walk up to Shelly. Then she wouldn't refuse to do so.


　And so the two of them walked to the city for lunch instead of the base's cafeteria.


'Where are you going for lunch, Rhiane-sama?'
'There's a good curry place. It's a little place in a back alley, but I'm sure Sherry will love it.
''.......Curry? That's the kind of place Julia would like.
'Do you like curry, Miss Julia?'
Yes. He always eats only curry in the cafeteria. He says he's on a perfect diet or something.
Haha, Yulia-san, you're kind of an odd one, aren't you?
'I agree with you on that. He's not aware of it, though.


　We sit down at the counter, which has only eight seats, and place our orders. As we were chatting again, a group of two women arrived.


　It's Eira and a cross-dressing Yulia, and from there, the four of them have a lot to talk about... but then they part ways again. Eira and Sherry ate their curry, while Sherry and Liane, who had finished their meal earlier, left the place.


'Sherry. I'd like to stop by, do you have a minute?
I don't have anything to offer you today, so I'm good.
Shall we go then?
Where are you going?
The observation deck.
Oh, there it is.


　They walked on again. From there, they were talking about Yulia's cross-dressing earlier. As Riane talked excitedly about how she would like to produce like Eira herself one day.......they arrived.

　They came to that spot overlooking this city.


''.........''
....


　A moment of silence. It's not an awkward one, it's a pause where Riane looks like she wants to say something but is still lost....

　Sherry waits for it, and then Riane opens her mouth, ready to speak.


'About Belle....'
Yes, sir.
'Miss Shelley. You're going to take over from Belle, aren't you?
'Yes. I am your official successor.
'Well I have to admit, I'm jealous of you. Maybe it's not the same as jealousy, but Sherry, you are able to stand in the same place and from the same perspective as Belle. Everything Belle felt and everything Belle knew, I am sure you will know from now on. In this way, you will become a beautiful swordswoman, just like Belle.
Lady Liane.
'Liane, that's fine. We're the same age, and we're royalty, but you don't have to treat us special. Do you mind if I call you Sherry too?
'Yes ... no, yes. If Riane says so.
'Hey, Shelly. Are you going to avenge Belle?
Of course I will. I'll kill the demon myself.
I want to kill the demon who killed Belle with my own hands. But I know it's impossible. I'm not strong enough to fight a demon. So here........
What's this?
The pendant I gave to Belle. Can you take it?
Okay, okay.


　Then Liane walks behind Shelly and stands a little taller to put that pendant around her neck. That's exactly what she did to Belle before.


　Then Liane smiles at her as well, showing her that it's around her own neck.


'We are both human beings who loved the same person. We know the same sorrow, the same anger, the same hatred. So I leave it to you. You must avenge Belle. For my sake and for Belle's sake.
''I'm going to make it happen. For Leanne's sake, and for the teacher's sake as well.
Yeah. It's nice to meet you, Shelly.
I'll take care of it, Liane.


　They held out their hands almost simultaneously. Then a spontaneous handshake is exchanged.

　Belle is no more. But what she left behind has certainly been passed on.

　In the two girls, forever--.