The next morning, when Bronya came to Seele's room, she once again saw her sitting by the window, staring blankly into the vast distance as if searching for something unseen.
Wait, why did I think "once again"?
A strange sense of déjà vu washed over her.
Bronya shook off the absurd feeling and walked over, gently reminding her, "Seele, it's cold by the window. You've just recovered and you're still weak. It's better not to stay there for too long."
The same concerned words as she remembered...
"Okay."
Seele nodded obediently and got up to walk to the dining table.
Bronya had already neatly arranged breakfast on it, warm steam curling up invitingly, as warm as her sentiment. Perhaps because the mountain was snowed in and supplies needed to be conserved, the breakfast on the plate wasn't particularly lavish.
Seele sat down, picked up a piece of bread, and gently pushed the remaining piece in front of Bronya.
"Bronya Oneechan, let's eat together," she said softly.
She remembered that Bronya's portion of breakfast had been snatched away by the ever-unruly Sin.
"It's okay, Seele. There's still more in the kitchen..."
Bronya was about to refuse, but the next sentence caught in her throat.
"It feels like it's been a very, very long time since Seele has had the chance to eat with Bronya Oneechan..."
Seele's face was bright with a smile, her tone tinged with a distant sense of emotion and nostalgia. "Bronya Oneechan, please don't refuse, okay?"
"Uh, Seele..."
Bronya was taken aback. Although Seele's coma had been worrying, for Seele herself, it should have been just a long dream.
Why would she feel this way? She didn't understand, but as if infected by Seele's liveliness, a bittersweet feeling welled up in her heart, as if she really had been separated from the girl before her for a long time.
She nodded involuntarily.
"Okay!"
Seele beamed and pushed the plate further toward her. The two of them quietly shared the meager breakfast. Though they weren't full, for some reason, they felt more satisfied than ever before.
Looking at those sea-blue eyes, always as clear and bright as polished gourds, Bronya felt both gratified and puzzled. "Seele, I feel... you seem a little different from before?"
The eyes are the window to the soul. The old Seele was as fragile as a porcelain doll covered in thorns. Even Bronya had to be careful when approaching her, afraid of hurting the delicate girl.
But now, she seemed to have truly become a warm ocean, bright and accepting.
Seele paused, her smile turning a little bittersweet. "...Bronya Oneechan, you're still the same Bronya Oneechan..."
Her words didn't quite make sense.
Bronya tilted her head, confused. "Seele, what's wrong? Is something on your mind?"
She thought of the test that had caused Seele's coma. Could it be...
But Seele shouldn't have known about that experiment. Everyone had kept it from her so well. Even the test itself was just a routine procedure from Mother Cocolia. Every child living here had to go through it.
"..."
Seele shook her head, wanting to say something but holding back.
Then she pressed a hand firmly against her chest, as if steeling herself. With a determined and pleading gaze, she looked at Bronya, took a deep breath, and said, "Bronya Oneechan, let's... let's leave this place together? With Sin..."
Screech...
A sharp scraping sound echoed and then abruptly stopped. Bronya pushed her chair back and stood up, her face a mask of astonishment. "Seele, you..."
You knew about the X-10 experiment after all?
"This afternoon, Mother Cocolia will take you and Sin to participate in that terrible experiment..."
The next moment, Seele's words were like a small hammer, driving the answer home in her mind. "It's very dangerous. You could die... No, it's even more terrifying than death... I don't want you to..."
Thinking of the painful experience she had just escaped, Seele shivered violently.
So, Seele did know...
"Leave here? And go where?" Bronya let out a long breath, unsure if it was relief at a hidden secret being revealed or just a pure sigh of resignation. "Besides this orphanage, besides Mother Cocolia, we have no other home..."
"But..."
Seele became anxious, her heart aching. How could she not know this?
"I'm sorry, Seele. I shouldn't have hidden it from you, but I didn't want you to worry."
Bronya seemed completely unconcerned about the impending danger, her voice gentle. "Mother Cocolia promised me that if the experiment is successful, you will be able to gain the power to protect yourself in the future. Even if the experiment fails..."
Bronya paused, her tone dipping slightly. "Even if the experiment fails, the data from my experiment will at least increase your chances of success..."
Her thinking was that simple, which was why she had been so calm. "I'm sorry, Seele. I acted on my own..."
"So... that's how it is? So Bronya Oneechan... had the same idea as Seele..."
Tears welled up in Seele's eyes. She smiled bitterly. "In this matter, Bronya Oneechan, Seele, Sin... it turns out... we all acted on our own..."
To protect Seele, Bronya had silently participated in the X-10 experiment, even hiding it from her. If not for the accident, Seele probably wouldn't have known about the experiment until long after Bronya was gone...
To prevent Bronya from participating in the dangerous experiment, Sin had gone so far as to break her leg, inadvertently terrifying Seele in the process.
As for Seele...
She had simply, unknowingly, repeated what Bronya was going to do. And then, left Bronya alone to face a shattered reality...
Everyone had the best intentions, rushing to face that terrible fate, yet they had left the deepest wounds on their companions.
Could there be anything more darkly humorous?
"Bronya Oneechan... if you really didn't come back, what would Seele do?" Seele cried. "We promised to go see the sea together... How could she face such a sad reality if you did that?"
"..."
Bronya was silent. How could she not know this?
But, as a girl of only twelve or thirteen, she could find no other way to fight back than to take on her loved one's fate for them.
"Bronya Oneechan, let me tell you a secret..." Seele stopped her tears, sniffled, and revealed a misty, bright smile. "In the near future, it's Seele... who participates in this experiment for Bronya Oneechan!"
"That's impossible."
Bronya shook her head. The result of Seele's coma had been a great relief to her. How could Mother Cocolia let the less-suited Seele take her place?
"Of course it's possible, Bronya Oneechan, as long as... I show this to Mother Cocolia..."
Seele straightened her chest and gently pulled open the collar of her clothes. The simple yet intricately designed red pattern was laid bare before Bronya, shimmering with a life-like, crystalline luster.
"Seele... is the most qualified person to participate in this experiment!"
Who could compare to the holder of a complete Stigmata? Who would have a higher success rate than Seele, who possessed a complete Stigmata?
If even someone like her were to fail, what would be the point of continuing this terrible experiment?
"Seele, you..."
Bronya was so shocked she was speechless. Coming to her senses, she lunged forward and frantically pulled Seele's collar closed again. "Hide it!" she said, her voice trembling. "Don't ever let Mother Cocolia see it!"
Though she didn't know the full story, she could vaguely guess the inevitable consequences if the news got out.
"I know, Bronya Oneechan. You don't want to lose Seele, just like Seele is afraid of losing you..."
Tears fell from Seele's eyes once more. "This kind of thing... has already happened once. I don't want the Bronya Oneechan of this world to go through the same thing..."
"Happened once?"
Bronya was confused.
"I'm sorry, Bronya Oneechan. I... am not your original Seele. I'm a Seele from another world..."
Seele gritted her teeth and told the truth that would very likely provoke hostility. "Bronya Oneechan... can Seele tell you a story?"
"..."
Bronya's brain was slightly overloaded. She nodded blankly.
Then, as Seele's gentle voice washed over her, Bronya heard a story that sounded like a fantasy—
On the eve of the X-10 experiment, Sin ambushed her and seriously injured her. This was witnessed by Seele, who, after the initial shock and under the influence of another consciousness within her, used her newly awakened Stigmata power to exact a brutal revenge on Sin.
This was how she learned the truth of the experiment. She showed her Stigmata to Cocolia and took the place of the two injured girls on the experiment platform.
"..."
Seele's account was brief, but it made Bronya's heart clench with worry for a future she had never experienced.
As expected, the experiment was both a success and a failure. Seele had completely unleashed her Stigmata, but her body couldn't withstand such immense power.
She fell into the Sea of Quanta, and after a brief encounter with Bronya, who had forcibly initiated the experiment, she was plunged into an endless, lightless darkness.
Then, by a chance encounter, she fell into a new, yet familiar world. This was Seele's story up until now...
"Bronya Oneechan, I'm afraid of returning to my own world. I want to go back to my Bronya Oneechan, just like you would never want to lose your Seele..."
After telling her story, Seele said sadly, "I'm sorry, Bronya Oneechan. I lied to you, because the one who opened her eyes on the bed was never..."
"No, you are Seele... Seele is Seele, no matter if you're from the future or another world..."
A warm embrace enveloped her. Bronya rested her soft chin on Seele's shoulder. "I'm the one who should be sorry, Seele. I failed to protect you..."
In that moment, she finally understood why Seele had said "a very, very long time" earlier. It really had been a long and painful time...
"Bronya... Oneechan?"
Seele froze, looking at the gray-haired girl in her arms in disbelief. "You... believe me? I... I don't have any proof..."
"I don't need proof."
Bronya slowly straightened up, her eyes meeting Seele's. She shook her head slowly. "I believe Seele, because Seele would never lie to me. Not in the past, and not in the future."
Critical hit. Finishing blow.
Seele stared at her blankly, and before she knew it, tears were streaming down her face again.
"Bronya Oneechan..."
The girl who had been trying to be strong finally broke, throwing herself into the other girl's arms and wailing, as if to release all the long-suppressed sadness and longing at once.
That's right. No matter when, no matter which world, Bronya Oneechan is always so trustworthy...
Her sobs were so genuine, like a clear spring flowing through Bronya's chest, that she couldn't help but shed tears as well.
Will my Seele also be this lonely, sad, and helpless one day?
The mere thought of such a future was unbearable to her.
After an unknown amount of time, perhaps ten minutes, perhaps half an hour, a good cry finally subsided. Seele sat up again and saw that the front of Bronya's shirt was almost completely soaked. She blushed and went to the closet to get her another shirt.
Bronya changed, and after a quick look, she noticed it didn't fit well. The fabric on her chest was loose.
"No wonder you want to leave here with me..."
Subtly pulling the collar down, Bronya, who now understood everything, said with a sigh, "You want to find that person named Lin Wei, have him take you back to your own world, and then run away with the Seele of my world, right?"
"Yes."
Seele said, "Seele doesn't care if we're wandering, if we have no place to call home. The place where Bronya Oneechan is, that's real home..."
Perhaps because everything was out in the open, Seele was no longer holding back. "I think the other Seele, who is sleeping somewhere else in this body right now, must feel the same way!"
"Hey..."
Having been fed a mouthful of dog food for half a day, Veliona pouted in dissatisfaction.
"Hehe, you're right, Seele. The place where Seele is, is home..."
Bronya smiled slightly and brushed away the last tear from her earlobe. "When do we leave?"