He ran. He simply ran. He couldn’t bring himself to look back.
Shiori’s face wouldn’t leave his mind. Her last smile. Her last words.
“Goodbye, Koyoi.”
Tears blurred his vision. His feet tangled, and he nearly tripped again and again. Still, he couldn’t stop.
Behind him, the light of the Observer flickered. It was chasing him. It was still chasing him.
“...Run.”
The voice of the Shrine God.
“...Faster.”
The voice of the Vacant Lot God.
He ran. Even as night fell, he kept running. The moon was out, but he didn’t have the luxury to look up.
◇
He didn’t know how long he ran for. He had lost all sense of time.
When he finally came to his senses, he was in a deep forest, dense with trees. The Observer’s light was nowhere to be seen.
His legs finally gave out. He couldn’t move another inch.
He collapsed at the base of a massive tree. His body refused to listen to him. His breath came in ragged, shallow gasps.
The ground was cold. His face pressed into the damp leaves, rich with soil, mulch, and night dew. His whole body was drenched in sweat, and every time a cold breeze blew, a violent shiver raced through him.
“...”
Silence. The only sound was the faint, distant chirping of insects.
Koyoi stayed there, unable to move. He curled his body into a ball and leaned against the tree’s roots.
◇
He cried.
He stifled his voice and wept. Sobs escaped him, impossible to hold back.
“...Shiori-san.”
Even when he called her name, there was no answer. There would never be an answer again.
“...I’m sorry.”
His voice trembled.
“...I’m so sorry...”
It’s my fault. Because I couldn’t move. Shiori shielded me. And in my place, she was Fixed.
“...Because of me...”
The tears wouldn’t stop. They traced paths down his cheeks and soaked into his clothes. His body shook. He didn’t know if it was from the cold or the sorrow.
Shiori’s face floated before his eyes. The way she looked by the campfire, speaking so calmly. Her slender fingers as she stroked her ledger. Her face when she laughed. Her face when she told him, “You’re doing great.”
And the last face he saw. The face of someone being Fixed.
“Goodbye, Koyoi.”
Those words kept echoing in his ears.
◇
He didn’t know how long he cried. His tears eventually ran dry, but the sadness remained.
The drawstring pouch grew slightly warm. It should have been cold by now.
“...It’s okay to cry.”
He heard the Shrine God’s voice. It was small and gentle.
“...It’s sad, isn’t it?”
The Vacant Lot God’s voice joined in.
Koyoi clutched the pouch tightly. The gods were there. The gods who had come all this way with him.
“...Shiori-san,” Koyoi said, his voice hoarse. “...She protected me...”
“...Yes.”
The Shrine God’s voice.
“...We know.”
“...Shiori,” the Vacant Lot God continued. “...She wanted to protect you.”
She wanted to protect me. Those words pierced his chest.
“...Why?” Koyoi asked. “...Why me...?”
“...She wanted you to live.”
The Shrine God’s voice.
“...She wanted you to deliver them.”
“...The gods.”
Delivering the gods. That was Koyoi’s duty. Shiori had known that. That was why she had protected him.
“...But,” Koyoi’s voice shook. “...Because I ran away... Shiori-san is...”
“...Shiori told you to run.”
The Vacant Lot God’s voice was firm.
“...You didn’t run away. Shiori set you free.”
Shiori set him free. He hadn’t just run; Shiori had risked her life to make sure he escaped.
◇
Tears welled up again, but they felt different from before.
“...What should I do?” Koyoi asked the pouch. “...What can I do for Shiori-san?”
Silence. Then, the Shrine God spoke.
“...You must walk.”
Walk.
“...If you stop,” the Vacant Lot God continued, “...Shiori’s sacrifice...”
“...will be for nothing.”
For nothing. Shiori’s sacrifice will be wasted.
Koyoi closed his eyes. Shiori’s words came flooding back.
“You’re the one who has to deliver them, right? The gods.”
That was right. Koyoi had a mission. He had to deliver the Shrine God and the Vacant Lot God. Using this life that Shiori had risked everything to protect.
“...I won’t stop,” Koyoi whispered. “...If I stop, Shiori’s sacrifice will...”
It would be for nothing. That was the one thing he couldn’t allow.
◇
The sky was beginning to turn pale. Dawn was near.
Koyoi slowly forced his body up. His legs ached. His entire body hurt. But he could move.
He gripped the pouch. It was warm. The gods were right there with him.
“...Let’s go,” Koyoi said. “...To the Second Boundary.”
“...Yes.”
The Shrine God’s voice.
“...Together.”
The Vacant Lot God’s voice.
He stood up. His legs were shaking, but he stood.
He took a single step forward. The traces of tears still lingered on his cheeks, but he looked straight ahead.
“...Shiori-san,” Koyoi murmured softly. “...I’ll deliver them. I promise.”
The light of dawn began to filter through the trees. A white light. It wasn’t cold; it felt warm.
Koyoi began to walk. The sadness wouldn’t vanish, but he wouldn’t stop.
If I stop, Shiori’s sacrifice will be for nothing.
With those words engraved in his heart, Koyoi walked on.