"What... What's wrong?"

After a deep and warm kiss, Turing was motionless for a while, then sat up straight again. There seemed to be a trace of sadness between Turing's eyebrows, and his expression revealed a hint of melancholy.

Seeing this, Merka became a little panicked, thinking that she did something wrong and made Turing angry.

"Don't you like it?" Merka asked, leaning closer.

"No, it's not that, not at all," Turing shook his head.

"I was just thinking..." Turing turned his head, reopened the snow-covered magic mask, and looked at the smoke rising in the distance, "Hamlet and Elizabeth have just been buried, and I have been so happy here. Is it really okay?"

"That angel was actually brought by me, right? If it wasn't for me, they wouldn't have died, and the monastery wouldn't have suffered such great damage."

"It's like... It's like..."

"I deliberately sacrificed them to fulfill myself."

Turing nervously finished speaking and glanced at Merka with the corner of his eye, only to find that she was looking at him in a way he had never seen before.

"What does that look in your eyes mean? Do you think I don't look like someone who would say such things?"

"How rude!" Turing pouted, turned his head away, and stopped looking at Merka.

"No, no, don't be angry." Merka chuckled lightly and comforted Turing's shoulder.

"I just feel, ah, I didn't expect that after knowing Turing for three years, there would still be such a surprise."

"It's not so much seeing another side of a girlfriend, as it is feeling the satisfaction of seeing your own daughter finally grow up."

"...Alright, I'll get you for this!"

Turing raised an eyebrow, realizing that she had taken advantage of him, and pretended to hit her with her little fist. But in the end, Merka stopped him in the midst of their playfulness.

"But... though the result was against your will, you did your best." Merka grabbed the arm Turing swung down and her tone turned gentle.

"If it wasn't for you finding me back then, but in a crowded place. There would have been even more dead people."

"You did your best." Merka gently let go of Turing's hand and said softly.

[Did I really do my best...]

[When was it that I could be called doing my best?]

"Merka, I have to go." Turing suddenly said mysteriously.

"What... Cough cough." Merka suddenly paled, almost unable to catch her breath, and coughed several times in a row.

The falling snow and the cold farewell gave Merka a chilling sense of déjà vu.

"Haha, hahahaha!" Turing burst into laughter, as if completely throwing away the previous guilt and depression.

"This serves as a lesson for you, for being close with other girls." Turing's mouth seemed like it couldn't close from smiling. The slightly upturned corners of his mouth gave Turing a touch of lively beauty.

"Although those are already things from a long time ago..." Turing said. Turing stole a glance at Merka's reaction.

【Merka's terrified expression couldn't possibly be fake; it was much stronger than when facing Joan.】

Thinking of this, Turing couldn't help feeling a bit proud.

"But I'm really about to leave, once the competition next week is over. My mom will come pick me up."

"We agreed on this last year," Turing stared straight at the falling snow, looking a bit lonely.

"After the competition next week... it would be nice if we had more time," Merka said, leaning on a log and looking up at the snow with Turing.

"By the way, you're competing too, right? This time it's an art competition... you don't seem nervous at all."

"I participate in many competitions," Turing said. "And I practice every day, so there's nothing to be nervous about."

"And somehow, I feel like this rich inspiration is housed in my mind, like a red crab."

"As long as I have the thought to unleash them, they will pour out like hearing the sound of the tide."

"What is going on... this is the first time in my life I've had such a marvelous experience." The golden glow was embedded in Turing's eyes, flickering with the elegant light tail like a new sprout.

"The rich emotions seem to be completely under my control. As long as I rely on my imagination, I can easily summon them."

"I'm full of confidence for this competition... I've never felt this confident even in magic competitions."

"Oh... so that's how it is," Merka smiled with relief, hugging Turing's shoulder and rubbing the back of his head.

"But after the competition, you'll go back home, right?"

"You won't run away again this time, will you?"

【Of course...】

【I will rely on my own strength to find the path ahead...】

Turing organized his words and was about to speak, but another voice interrupted him.

"Miss Altria! Uh... Joseph seems to have fainted. It's convulsing in the stable!"

【Ruining my good mood again... so annoying.】

【What... Joseph?】

Surprised, Turing looked at the breathless nun who had come running in the snow, her nun's robe soaked with sweat.

-----------------------------------------------------

Four days later, Koshiba Family, in the family church

Diana wore a solemn black mourning dress, the tight-fitting outfit highlighting her still-immature contours with grace.

The children and adults walked in together, while the adults conversed and sighed amongst themselves.

As the solemn funeral music played, the adults in the hall finally quieted down.

Regardless of whether they were sad, crying, despairing, or indifferent before, at this moment they had to return to their assigned seats.

Watching the burial of Elizabeth, the seventh daughter of the Koshiba family, inside the church as guided by the officiant.

However, on the children's side, Scarlett Montecristo was completely disinterested, with one hand stretched out farther than normal and the other hand intertwined with it, lazily stretching her body.

"Don't be too outrageous, Scarlett," Diana, sitting next to Scarlett, glared at her angrily and said, "This is a funeral, after all."