Story Reader / Affection / Liv: Limpidity / Story
With the little gray raven by her side, the maiden was no longer alone... yet the bird watched, its heart growing heavy, for she was fading before its eyes.
With every creature she folded, tiny specks of light escaped from between her fingers, flowing into the new creation.
Day by day, the luminous wings upon her back dwindled. Her very form began to thin, becoming translucent against the sun...
Are you saying... I should stop piecing together these scraps?
Oh, you misunderstand... These little ones are not just paper scraps. They were once lovely creatures, wounded and lost.
They are in pain. I cannot bear to let them cry.
And so, she continued. She gathered the scattered scraps, folding and mending them. She smiled as they stirred to life, and smiled through her weariness as she bid them farewell...
But then, the winds began to blow, ever stronger than before, tearing across the land. They snatched the paper scraps, hurling them high into the sky and over the mountains far away.
The maiden struggled to her feet, swaying as a frail leaf in the gale, straining to follow them.
Unable to bear the sight of her helplessness, the little gray raven plunged into the fierce wind, flying higher and farther than it ever had, chasing the lost scraps to bring them back to her.
Thank you, little gray raven.
It could do nothing more. And so it remained, a silent companion by her side.
Its heart ached with a single, unanswered question: Why must she be left here to mend this world all alone?
——The Maiden of Eden III——
You usher Liv inside and flip the switch. The old wiring sighs as the table lamp squeezes out a feeble amber glow.
What a strange feeling... When you opened the door for me just now, I almost thought I was back in the Gray Raven lounge.
Well, the lamps and furniture in my house have never once said "welcome home" to me.
Oh? What if there's something else I'd like to hear?
Hanging her straw hat on the rack, she winks playfully at you.
Something I'll eventually say to you one day.
In the dim light, a mysterious smile touches her lips, a soft blush warming her fair face.
But not yet... For now, just "welcome home" is more than enough.
...I know. I started feeling this way after Mom passed away. Dad remarried, and they built a new life here...
Even Calliope, the maid Mom hired to look after me, left too... I just... prefer to spend more time at my secret base instead.
It's this little cabin out back. My dad actually used to play in it when he was a kid, too.
...Back to the place that held no warmth for her childhood?
I... need to find something here. Some of my old childhood books.
No, not this one... Not this one either...
Oh, those are just my father's old books. They're not what I'm looking for...
Huh?! There's no such book!
I-I was going to say, there's no way something that... inappropriate would be on this shelf! Not that it's really inappropriate, it's just—
This bookshelf would just never have that kind of book!
She averts her gaze, feigning indifference as she twists a loose strand of hair between her fingers.
Fairy tales... I was too young to read them myself, so my mother would read them to me.
The strange thing is... all of my mom's things are gone. Everything. From the aircraft parked in the yard down to her comb... even her books. All of it.
Yes... a silver-gray craft, kind of like a glider. It was still there when I left to join the military... How can everything be gone now?
I don't think so... Even though he remarried, he truly loved my mom. He kept all her things carefully preserved for years.
But... I already checked all the storage in the house... Wait. I think I might know where they are!
Unlike the disoriented feeling she had upon returning home, Liv's steps are now light as she leads the way outside, even humming a cheerful tune.
After winding through the streets, the two of you circle back to the forest's edge.
Yes. I used to stash all sorts of things there when I was a kid. Dad probably figured I'd eventually go back for them.
The forest shadows sway carefreely with the girl's steps; a "secret base," it seems, always fills the heart with anticipation, no matter how many times one returns.
But it also seems to hide unexpected surprises.
...
A dark shadow flashes by.
"You're being watched"—your battlefield instincts instantly put you on high alert.
Was that the ghost?
The one those two kids mentioned earlier. Guess we're on the right track after all.
