Kurosawa comes from an ancient clan.
Back in the days when the name “Kurosawa” didn’t exist—no, even when writing itself hadn’t been invented—there was a foundation of that group dating back to when the only beliefs in the world were early shamanism and totemism, but Kagami didn’t quite believe in that fact.
There was a persistent belief that had been passed down under that name. That belief had spread into a sort of religion by the time of Kagami and Kosuzu.
There was also a “shrine.” Technically speaking, Kagami and Kosuzu could also be called priestesses of that religion.
Perhaps it was the last of its kind.
At first, she followed her sister thinking it was for the clan’s sake.
Moving for a belief that could be seen as already fallen, right before it was about to be cut off.
Though, that wasn’t the case.
“Here it is.”
The place Kagami had been guided to was at the very back of the line.
People were slowly dwindling in number, but it seemed like it would take quite some time before it was her turn to pray.
“……”
Kagami looked at the person who had guided her.
An old man with wrinkles on his face. No, he might not actually look that old for his real age.
Ironically, knowing the man’s age was also a legacy from her sister, Kosuzu. For Kagami, it wasn’t much, but there were still bits and pieces she could use.
“I don’t know what prayer you’ve come to make, but that god you believe in doesn’t seem to grant prayers, does he?”
She stared into that old face, trying to gauge whether it was sarcasm or genuine. However, she failed to read his feelings entirely.
So Kagami decided just to think positively about it.
After all, they were people who were always willing to care for those kids, so they probably wouldn’t treat her with outright hostility.
No, rather, they might harbor grievances simply because they were so willing to care.
The old man quietly stared at the silent Kagami for a while before turning his body without a word.
“…… Hah.”
Kagami herself thought that she didn’t really know why she was there.
She still didn’t know how to face the existence of Koto Ne and Koko.
She didn’t think she had been particularly mean to them. Kagami’s “that kind of look” was merely an act to deceive other people.
But even so, she had never thought of them as family.
As she tightened her fist in her pocket, she felt the hard keychain.
A keychain shaped like a black cat.
It likely wasn’t handed over with any particular feelings attached. Koto Ne had simply given it with a nonchalant look as if it was normal to do so.
But conversely, it also meant that Kagami was included as someone she should give such gifts to without thought.
The murmuring crowd slowly moved forward.
Having been guided, she ended up falling behind, so the figures of Koto Ne and Koko she saw in the distance were getting a little closer with every step forward.
On Koto Ne’s face… though it was just a little, she saw herself.
That was only natural.
After all, she had given birth to that existence.
And in the world, such a being was called a ‘daughter’.
“……”
Their eyes met.
Neither of them smiled particularly wide.
It wasn’t because they were gazing at each other intensely imbued with some feeling.
It was simply because neither knew how to respond to what they were seeing.
She didn’t treat that existence as a doctrine to follow, nor as another failure that produced nothing but failures, and she wasn’t viewing her as a potential criminal or terrorist.
It couldn’t be said that it was a warm gaze to see family, but at least, it felt like a gaze that regarded her as just another person.
It was Kagami who moved her eyes first.
As she got closer, she thought of trying to say something, but in the end didn’t know what to say, so Kagami just passed by her side.
Koto Ne’s gaze would probably express ‘question’ accurately.
After all, it was certainly strange for the very existence of Kagami to be coming to pray in a place like this.
…Well, Kagami herself thought the same way.
However, amidst all that questioning, one thing was certain.
No matter what prayer Kagami made, it didn’t seem that the being she believed in would grant it.
*
Yuka never thought of herself as a particularly righteous person.
She wanted to be cold but was extremely emotional, and what she wanted to do versus what she didn’t want to do was quite clear.
And to be precise, Yuka’s job had been for quite some time something she didn’t want to do.
Because of that job, Yuka had never been able to get her life to go well.
She had gone to various schools and had never formed genuine friendships. To be exact, it’s not that she had no friends—there were no kids in the neighborhood she could really call friends, but even among them, there was some barrier. They just couldn’t meet often.
Despite being a Yōkai, no matter how one looked at it, cutting into something living was not good for one’s mental health.
Moreover, didn’t she also lose her mother due to that job?
Thus, it was something she couldn’t really bring herself to like.
She was just doing it forcibly because if not her, nobody else would take the job.
That was how things had been; now, Yuka was slowly starting to like it a bit.
Well, it wasn’t that she had completely come to enjoy it, or anything like that.
She still felt resistance to cutting into things. Getting covered in blood was also something she disliked.
However, thanks to that job, she was able to meet friends. Because of various reasons, there was no need to transfer to another school, and as a result, she was able to have quite a few friends for the first time in her life at the same school.
Could Yuka, from last year, have imagined being invited to a Christmas party? Or imagined meeting up with friends in the New Year?
Up until now, there hadn’t been anyone around her who could empathize with her work.
The majority were people high up or those who shared the same profession. Naturally, these were people much older than Yuka and weren’t really family or friends. They weren’t people she could share her heart with even if they understood her.
Now she had friends who not only empathized with her but also fought alongside her.
“……”
And because of that, Yuka couldn’t just entirely like the person who was her friend’s mother.
No, maybe the expression of liking her friend’s parents isn’t quite accurate.
Lately, the atmosphere had changed, though.
Koto Ne said they had “made peace,” and indeed, their relationship no longer seemed one-sidedly abusive as before.
Yuka saw Kurosawa Kagami as a person who was still very much lacking as a mother, but since the person in question, Koto Ne, reacted that way, there was no reason for Yuka to intervene.
Legally, it was hard to tell how it could be judged.
Yuka didn’t want their relationship to fall apart because of the law.
…Thus, Yuka had a selfish side. At least, she thought so herself.
Kagami, Koto Ne’s mother, received Yuka’s gaze and slowly walked, patiently waiting until her turn came.
Why did she come all the way here?
She was someone who had called her own daughter “a failure,” capable of communicating directly with a being called ‘God’.
Would it have been better to simply pray to the god she believed in?
While Yuka thought that way, Kagami was ringing a bell.
She bent at the waist twice and clapped her hands twice.
For a moment, she held her hands together, closed her eyes, and fell into silence for a few seconds before Kagami bent her waist once again.
And then she turned around.
Thinking her prayer was over and she was going back, Kagami walked straight towards Yuka.
She paused about five steps away.
“……”
“……”
The two stared at each other in silence for a while.
At first, it seemed like a somewhat hostile action, but Kurosawa Kagami’s expression wasn’t one of glaring at Yuka.
It was just expressionless, and so it seemed like she wanted to say something.
“…Do you have something to say?”
Yuka asked. She felt that if she didn’t, this person might keep staring like that indefinitely.
It was just a brief moment, but she felt that saying anything might not matter. Kurosawa Kagami had been frozen, seemingly without doing anything.
But soon,
“……”
Kurosawa Kagami slowly leaned her body towards Yuka.
*
In truth, what Kagami did couldn’t really be called a prayer.
Thinking back now, she wondered whether what she practiced could truly be considered an official religion.
The being she believed in was far different from typical religions believed in daily.
It wasn’t a being that people hoped would remove obstacles in their path; it wasn’t believed out of some vague desire for blessings.
It wasn’t something revered simply because it was great.
It wasn’t something to believe in to get favored in advance for entering paradise on the day of the end times in the far future.
Rather, it had a clearer reason.
To break down the boundaries between life and death, making the very concept of death vanish.
Thus, no one would be afraid of death and would enjoy eternal life.
That was the belief that had been continued since long before the name “Kurosawa” was created.
That’s why she had come, to bring forth a mighty being capable of changing the world’s rules into this realm.
While it seemed Kosuzu had her own additional purpose for that.
That’s why Kagami had never prayed. She had merely hoped.
For the sake of that goal, she wished for something, but that wasn’t Kagami’s desire.
“……”
She closed her eyes, hands together, organizing her thoughts.
If she were to wish for something, would it be right to wish it here?
It didn’t take long for her to reach a conclusion.
Having completed her ‘prayer,’ Kagami turned her body.
She saw Yuuki Yuka standing nearby.
Kagami approached her and suddenly bowed.
“…… Huh?”
It seemed Yuka hadn’t expected that at all, as she let out a confused sound.
Kagami spoke.
“Please take good care of my daughter.”
…Daughter.
That word still didn’t sit well on her tongue. In truth, Kagami didn’t know what Koto Ne herself thought about it.
Would she accept it? Would she look up at Kagami as if to say, “What are you talking about?”… probably. Kagami could easily picture that expression in her mind.
After all, that was the expression Koto Ne often wore in front of Kagami.
“Uh, okay? Um.”
After making that request, Kagami felt like an utterly useless person.
Yeah, that was right.
How else could she express herself?
“……”
Yuuki Yuka didn’t say anything for a while.
“…You said that last time too.”
Only after hearing Yuuki Yuka’s voice did Kagami lift her head.
“Should’ve said that back then.”
Yuuki Yuka was smiling.
“I know it’s not my place to say this, but it’s fine. Even if you don’t want to say that, I didn’t plan to think otherwise in the first place.”
What that smile meant, Kagami still didn’t fully understand.
It seemed slightly relieving, yet at the same time a bit infuriating.
“However, thinking back on it now, it feels strange.”
Yuuki Yuka said with a look of disbelief.
“You’re her mother, right?”
“……”
“Then direct that ‘please take care of’ statement to your daughter. It’s New Year’s. What are you saying to someone else’s daughter?”
Kagami stared intently at Yuuki Yuka’s face.
“Shouldn’t you give her some New Year’s money or something?”
“……”
Kagami pondered that statement for a moment.
“Oh, but if you’re going out, make sure to change into everyday clothes. This is white attire, so it’s a hassle to get it dirty.”
That was a peculiar feeling.
Being told something by someone much younger than her—technically, someone who could be called her daughter—was a strange sensation.
“…Why is that? Is it because of what you did before?”
It wasn’t precisely that, but…
Oh, right. Yuuki Yuka still thought Kagami had abused Koto Ne.
To be strictly accurate, she might be right, but at least Kagami thought Koto Ne wouldn’t consider ‘neglect’ to be abuse.
Rather, back then, if Kagami had tried to help, she would’ve probably run away in terror.
Oh, right.
Koto Ne’s personality had likely started changing after meeting that girl.
A girl who had seemed to live like a living doll, entering her room with no particular attachment to the world, found a reason to live in this world after meeting those friends at school.
“Koto Ne said she forgave you.”
Yuuki Yuka stated.
“If that’s the case, then you should also show some behavior of gratitude for that forgiveness.”
…
Oh, right.
Yuka couldn’t agree with that 100%, but it was certainly true that these days Koto Ne was slowly getting closer to Kagami.
It wasn’t that she was plotting or anything; it was just a natural progression.
“Hey over there?”
Following Yuuki Yuka’s gesture, Kagami turned to see two people far away looking in this direction.
Koto Ne’s face was painted with a clear expression of ‘bewilderment,’ even from this distance.
That was understandable.
Whether she realized it was her mother, seeing someone like Kagami bow to Yuuki Yuka would surely raise lots of questions.
Not that Kagami intended to tell her, though.
“…Go on. Honestly, I don’t fully trust her yet, but.”
Looking at Yuuki Yuka, who spoke as if she would deal with things directly if something really treacherous happened, Kagami simply chose to say nothing.
Kagami bowed her head slightly once more in Yuuki Yuka’s direction before turning towards the two.
What to do was still unclear to her.
*
What on earth was going on?
The Kagami I knew was, um, honestly, I still wasn’t sure who precisely she was, but she didn’t really strike me as someone who would easily bow to others.
Right?
Besides her manner of treating other people, Kagami held a pretty high position within the church itself.
She seemed far more accustomed to being revered than being polite to lift others up.
As I stared blankly at Kagami approaching us, she came closer with an expression not all that different from usual, lightly smiling at us.
“Let’s go.”
“Where to?”
“Well, I’m not sure.”
Kagami tilted her head slightly, seemingly in a better mood than before, responding to my question.
“Are you saying let’s go without knowing where?”
“Well, I was told to take you all along anywhere.”
“……”
I glanced at Yuka.
She waved her hand slightly at me from a distance where our eyes met. I waved back at her and then turned back to Kagami.
“So… why?”
“Hmm… it’s a mystery, right?”
Kagami’s vague reply was sufficient to momentarily cause my spirits to lift.
As I scratched my head, trying to think quickly of a reason, Kagami asked.
“If you’d rather not, I can leave.”
“…No, I mean, that’s not what I mean…”
Indeed. I wasn’t really against it. More than that, it felt like there was just something off about it.
Were we really that close?
Well, we had eaten together a few times. That portion of my brain holding ‘objectivity’ reminded me.
Kagami had come over while I was cooking, and I couldn’t just eat alone, so I fed her. Anyway, we had eaten together.
And… though it wasn’t something Kagami had offered, I had given her a Christmas gift.
Thinking about it, why the heck had I bought that? Just felt that way, I guess. I hadn’t even thought of Sasaki or Hagiwara or Nakahara.
Kagami wasn’t even someone who came to the Christmas party.
“Have you already eaten?”
“Did I?”
I tilted my head as I spoke.
Surely Yuka’s family wouldn’t be the kind to invite us over for food and not provide us with a meal.
“But that doesn’t mean I can’t eat something else. How about a snack?”
“Wow!”
Hearing the word ‘snack,’ Koko reacted.
How unfair to bait someone into eating with that!
Though, I often end up falling for it too.
“What do you want? Ice cream might be a no-go?”
“Ice cream!”
“Seems like that’s a no-go.”
Kagami chuckled a little at Koko’s reaction.
It was a different kind of laugh from what I usually saw from her, strangely unfamiliar.
It felt far more natural.
“However, you have to change your clothes. Because it’s white, it’d be a hassle to get stains out, right? Especially with ice cream.”
“No, I wasn’t planning on wearing these clothes while going for ice cream anyway.”
Even Yuka might feel a bit embarrassed about it, right?
I was curious if wearing this attire was even appropriate. Well, since it was work clothes from my part-time job, it probably wouldn’t be a big issue, but still.
“Well then, let’s go.”
“Uh…”
I turned my gaze away.
Koko was looking at me with an expression full of anticipation.
It was probably because she liked ice cream, not because she liked Kagami.
“…Let’s go.”
I held back a sigh and nodded.
In response to my answer, Kagami seemed pleased. I had no clue why.
“Think of this as a response to that gift last time.”
“……”
Is that so?
When she put it that way, it felt sort of understandable. But still, I didn’t get it.
Well… I wouldn’t refuse free ice cream.
Even if it was winter, the store inside would undoubtedly be very warm.
“Let’s go.”
“That way.”
Kagami, being terribly forward, completely walked in the opposite direction from Yuka’s house. I lightly grabbed Kagami’s sleeve and said.
“……”
Kagami glanced at my hand.
I hastily let go.
“…Let’s go.”
This time, I spoke first as I started walking.
Kagami and Koko followed behind me.
It was strangely fascinating; they both seemed to resemble each other a little more, both smiling.
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