Shouko had once mentioned they might be connected to the Divine Machine.
Shinku perceived everything with sharp clarity.
The fate of the Rozen Maiden—Alice—might just be the Divine Machine itself.
If that were the case, then Alice would surely be able to help Alice.
"Go help her, Suigintou."
Holding her Rosa Mystica, Shinku spoke.
"..."
Suigintou silently watched her sister, her usually proud wings drooping softly.
Drip, drip.
The sound of falling tears echoed nearby. Tears traced slowly down Hinaichigo's cheeks. She glanced toward Alice in the distance, the light of her own Rosa Mystica shimmering in her palm as well.
"If Shinku is doing this, then it must help Alice," she said haltingly, voice thick with tears. "Little Hina will help Alice too."
Clueless as to how she could help, she would simply follow her sister's lead.
She offered her most precious possession to Suigintou. "Suigintou saved Little Hina before. Suigintou is a good sister too."
"Here." Souseiseki smiled, presenting her own Rosa Mystica.
"Souseiseki!"
Tears immediately welled in Suiseiseki's eyes. She stared fixedly at Souseiseki's Rosa Mystica. "Doing this... we'll... we'll..."
The Rosa Mystica had given them life. To give this treasure away...
They... would die.
"I want to help Alice. I believe Suigintou can do it."
The smile never left Souseiseki's face. She gazed at Suiseiseki's features, committing her sister's face firmly to memory.
Who knew if she'd ever have the chance... to see that face again.
"Wah..." A crystal tear rolled down her cheek. With a soft pat-pat, Suiseiseki walked up to Suigintou, her Rosa Mystica appearing in her hand.
"You have to help Alice, okay?" she whispered.
"Punch that guy for me!" Kanaria swung her fist in a boxing motion.
Another Rosa Mystica appeared before Suigintou.
Kirakishou watched quietly from the side, hands pressed to her cheeks, lips pressed together.
"How envious. How jealous."
She had just awoken from her dream. She had just gained a body. She... had just learned what love felt like.
Tears soaked her palms. A single petal drifted down from the rose in her right eyesocket, as if weeping with its owner.
"Then... you do it."
Suigintou's words made her snap her head up. Resting in Suigintou's palm was a gem—her own Rosa Mystica.
"You must win."
Suigintou's expression was earnest and solemn, her tone calm and dignified.
Her hand gently extended, offering the Rosa Mystica forward.
"Big Sister..."
Kirakishou stared at her in a daze, Suigintou's face reflected in her eyes.
Tears once again filled her amber pupils, and the girl, pale as a white rose, broke into a smile.
"You're... such a cunning sister."
Then... she would use her life to help the master who had given her love.
A small, pale hand pressed against her chest. A gem appeared in her palm and was gently offered forth.
BOOM—
The clash of light and mana once again stirred a storm.
The fierce wind whipped the girls' hair, slapping against their cheeks. The Rosa Mysticas gently rose from the girls' hands, intertwining in the air as if dancing.
"Suigintou." Shinku called softly.
"...Having regrets?"
"No."
Shinku walked forward slowly, placing a hand gently on Suigintou's shoulder.
Then, she hugged her.
Suigintou's eyes widened in shock. Before she could say anything, Shinku's voice sounded again.
"I haven't stuck any crow feathers on your back yet."
A single black feather was gently tucked into Suigintou's back, blending perfectly with her dark wings.
But it wasn't a crow's feather. It was one Shinku had secretly made herself. She would never use something dirty for a prank.
The golden-haired doll released her sister, smiling lightly. "You've changed quite a bit, Suigintou."
Suigintou turned her face away, looking at the feather on her back. "...The thread connecting a doll and its master... is called a bond, isn't it?"
She turned back, her usual haughty smile returning to her face. "How ridiculous that I'm bound by such a thing."
"But, it's not bad, is it?" her sister asked.
"...No, it's not bad at all," the elder sister replied.
The dragon's claw blocked Charlotte, who was trying to step forward. She looked back, confused. "Sigmund... What are Suigintou and the others doing..."
Sigmund simply shook his head gently, pulling the girl further away.
The conversation between the sisters continued.
"Help me beat that guy up good," said the sister with dark green spiral curls.
"You have to win," said the sister with deep maroon long curls.
"Do your best," said the sister with chestnut-brown, reddish-tinted short hair.
"Komurasaki told me her hometown has something soft, black, and red that's really yummy. You have to go try it, Suigintou," said the sister with golden short curls.
"Love our master... for me," said the sister with pale yellow long hair.
Finally, the sister with golden spiral twin tails spoke.
"Go, Suigintou."
The seven irregular gems slowly drew together, their dazzling light spreading beneath the night sky.
The Rosa Mysticas were ultimately destined to become one.
The dream born from a maiden's dream would converge within the same maiden.
Everything would return to the one.
That was—Alice (The Perfect Maiden).
The Divine Machine seemed to sense something, its gaze snapping toward them, the smile instantly vanishing from its face.
But the light of the Holy Lance forced its attention back to the battlefield.
Pat, pat.
The dolls gently closed their eyes, collapsing powerless to the ground.
The unified Rosa Mystica drifted gently before Suigintou, its brilliant light enveloping the silver-haired doll.
Sorrow welled up in her heart. The maidens' destiny had arrived.
Would Shinku and the others dream?
She didn't know. Suigintou's thoughts gradually scattered, as if entering a dream.
In her daze, a voice sounded by her ear.
"At last I meet you, my most beloved daughter..."
"Ahh, Father." Suigintou murmured.
The moment she had always yearned for had finally come.
But...
Tears unconsciously spilled from the corners of her eyes.
"Why do you weep?"
"Because I feel lonely... My sisters are now all united within my heart."
"But,"
"How is this different from being alone?"
Alice said.
"Is that so?"
Alice heard a soft, harmonious laughter.
The doll named Suigintou slowly faded away, a dazzling gold replacing that proud silver. The perfect maiden was born from the light.
Amidst the laughter from the void, Alice's consciousness returned to reality.
"I leave them in your care."
She smiled at Charlotte and vanished from the spot.
The dragon's wings shielded them from the oncoming storm. Charlotte held Shinku and the others tightly together.
Alice raised the Holy Lance high once more. The next instant, a warm sensation spread across the back of her hand.
A small, pale hand joined hers in gripping the Holy Lance. Alice looked back. The other dolls were sleeping peacefully under the dragon's wing.
Is this... Alice?
She closed her eyes for a moment, then looked again at the girl beside her.
"...Suigintou?"
"I am Alice."
"No." Alice denied softly. "You are Suigintou."
Alice started, then a smile appeared on her face.
"...Yes, I am Suigintou."
Boundless mana connected to Alice's magic circuits. The Holy Lance began to change.
The pillar of light grew increasingly brilliant. The Holy Lance slowly transformed into the true Rhongomyniad.
The ultimate mystery manifested in her hand. Pure light surged forward.
The torrent of light swallowed everything. The mysterious radiance illuminated the world.
The flawless jade was torn asunder by the Holy Lance. The Divine Machine's arms fell limply. A terrifying hollow appeared in its chest.
This time, its body did not immediately begin to repair itself.
Suigintou abruptly appeared behind it, thrusting her hand forcefully into the Divine Machine's body.
As if to destroy, yet also to assimilate.
The First Magic clashed with the Third Magic. Suigintou gradually absorbed the Divine Machine into herself.
The Divine Machine's body slowly stiffened. Alice walked slowly to its front, her gaze focused as she searched within it for something.
"I suppose I should thank you, Akabane Tenzen."
Alice, who had experience seeking souls, smiled. She reached out a hand toward her target and pulled something out from within the Divine Machine.
Alice would always awaken from her dream. The lost girl would eventually return to her family's side.
The world of fairy tales was making the impossible reality. The pulled-out soul gradually gained a body.
Alice stroked the hair of the girl in her arms, patting her gently.
"...I'm sorry, Alice, I..." The dignified girl wept as she spoke. "Shinku and the others..."
She had witnessed everything that happened outside.
"It's not your fault. The problem was mine." Alice wiped Irori's tears and looked toward the other Alice beside them.
The Holy Lance dissolved into points of light, slowly fading.
The girls gradually descended to the ground, their feet touching solid earth. Alice let out a soft sigh.
Irori gently left Alice's embrace, head bowed, not daring to look at Suigintou beside them.
The bright moonlight spread over the emerald lawn. The sound of shoes on soft earth echoed as Alice walked slowly toward the perfect maiden.
Suigintou closed her eyes again, her thoughts returning to that dream.
"Father."
"Hmm?"
"I am not the daughter you desired... I am not Alice."
"Heh heh..."
The voice from the void was not one of disappointment, but of satisfied laughter.
"Is that so, my beloved daughter, and my beloved daughters."
It was as if a pair of warm hands enveloped her, warmth spreading through Suigintou's heart.
"Then let your father help you one last time."
He said.
"Come, my Alice... no... Suigintou. What is it that you truly wish?"
"I..."
Her eyelashes fluttered slightly. Suigintou slowly opened her eyes. "I don't want anyone to be lonely."
Could the dolls reunite in the world of the dead?
She didn't know.
But she knew, in this reality, they definitely could.
This was Suigintou's—Alice Game.
Crack—
A fissure suddenly appeared in the unified Rosa Mystica.
Crack, crack—
The cracks grew larger. The unified Rosa Mystica split into seven pieces.
Six of them danced joyfully in the air for a moment before drifting leisurely toward the dragon, leaving only one piece hovering in place.
The golden hair gradually faded, silver returning to the strands.
The Rosa Mystica slowly drifted toward Suigintou's chest. Just before it entered—
Crack—
A clear, crisp sound rang out. Suigintou's Rosa Mystica cracked once more.
The redistribution of life demanded a corresponding price. But the next instant, a pair of soft lips touched its surface.
Alice bent at the waist, eyes slightly closed, quietly kissing the irregular gem.
Moonlight showered her, illuminating the girl's serene expression.
Under the fairy tale night sky, her dark eyes opened once more. The cracks in the Rosa Mystica had already vanished.
"Fairy tale endings do not allow for regrets."
Alice suddenly raised her hand. The Holy Lance glowed once more as she swung it at something in the air.
A dull thud echoed in the void. The air grew still. A gentle laughter seemed to drift from the emptiness.
"Consider it punishment for a certain neglectful father."
The girl picked up the doll from the ground and walked toward home.
Suigintou's steady breath brushed against Alice's chest. A faint smile appeared on her face.
Tonight's fairy tale had reached its end.
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T/N: Why is this so peak?
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T/N: While I am an inexperienced Translator, I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.