[Mash] had already set out to find Mash and Mozart, who still hadn't made it back to camp with the water.
As she moved through the trees, her mind drifted back to a conversation she and Adam had shared in their very first Singularity.
After traveling through countless Singularities and Lostbelts at Adam's side, [Mash] finally had her answer.
A few minutes earlier.
"We finally found water."
Mash pointed at the spring ahead, excitement lighting up her voice.
"Yeah, about time," Mozart replied, sounding worn out. He glanced back at the forest they had left behind. "We wandered so far looking for this that we actually walked out of the woods."
They stood on a wide plain now. It showed just how hard it had been to locate even a single decent water source.
"Talk about rotten luck," Mozart muttered.
The night was pitch black, the air thick with menace.
A few pairs of glowing red eyes watched them from the shadows, hidden perfectly by the darkness. Neither Mash nor Mozart had noticed.
Mash stole a glance at Mozart. There was something she needed to ask. One offhand remark he had made earlier kept echoing in her head, refusing to let her rest.
"What is it, Miss Mash?"
"Did I say something that's been bothering you?"
Mozart had spotted her unease and brought it up himself.
"Mr. Amadeus… it's about what you said before. That humans can choose what they like. I… I don't really understand it."
Mash lowered her head, still confused.
"Ah, that line."
It had been nothing more than a casual test on Mozart's part. He had almost forgotten saying it himself. He never expected it to stick with her this long.
But the fact that she remembered meant his guess had been right. For some reason, even though Mash looked fully grown, her understanding of the world was still that of a child taking her first hesitant steps. She had the theory down perfectly, but zero real-world experience. She didn't know how to bend the rules yet.
Sure enough, her next words proved him correct.
"I get the literal meaning… but I'm not sure what 'choose' is supposed to refer to."
"Something worth admiring should be morally correct. Something that deserves rejection should be the kind of evil society condemns."
"That's how I was taught, and I've always believed it's right."
Mash's mind kept replaying the lessons Dr. Romani had given her since childhood.
She planned to test her newly learned shield-bash technique on him once they got back, but that was just playful roughhousing. Deep down she still respected the man who had been like a father to her.
Of course, if you really thought about it, Dr. Romani wasn't exactly a "person" in the ordinary sense. His true identity was Solomon, who had lost the "human" part of himself for certain reasons.
Even though Romani had tried hard afterward to become a real person, having someone who was still struggling to become human teach another person how to become human… well, that was a little abstract.
Mozart's earlier words kept swirling in Mash's head. Everything she had learned from Romani told her that good deeds deserved praise and evil deeds deserved scorn.
Yet Mozart's talk of "choice" seemed to reject that idea entirely.
Could evil things be chosen too?
Mozart saw the confusion on her face and smiled gently.
"So tell me—what do you think is right?"
"…Probably saving as many lives as possible and affirming as many lives as possible."
Mash thought for a long time before giving the answer she had been taught all her life.
Mozart shook his head.
"Too vague."
He searched for a clearer example, something that would drive the point home. After a few seconds he thought of the perfect person—Fujimaru Ritsuka—and looked back at Mash.
"Suppose…"
"Let's imagine Ritsuka isn't the kind of person you believe in. What would you do then?"
"…I'm sorry, I don't follow."
"Alright, let me make it clearer."
"Suppose you and your Master finish the final journey together."
"Then you discover that you're actually not standing on the side of the 'majority' you always talked about."
"The things you did, the choices you made—or rather, the things Ritsuka did and the choices he made—ended up causing many deaths for unavoidable reasons."
"At that moment… what would you do?"
That was the question Mozart wanted her to face.
When you reached a crucial crossroads in life, how would you choose?
"I......"
Mash fell into a long silence.
Her first instinct was to stand by her senpai, but that would contradict everything she had always believed was right.
She didn't know how to choose. Did she have to change the principles she had held for so long?
But if she did, what would she become?
Would she have to hurt other lives just to achieve her own goals?
If she turned into that kind of person…
Right now Mash's heart was filled with anxiety and uncertainty. She had no idea what the "correct" choice would even look like.
Mozart saw her turmoil and offered his own thoughts with a warm smile.
"Remember this confusion. Remember this unease."
"You're someone who has only just gained freedom. You're afraid to choose, so you're scared to move forward."
"And you're lost about what kind of existence you should become from now on."
Mash nodded slowly, half-understanding. She thought back over everything she had experienced since the day she was born.
"Maybe that's true. I really don't know much about the outside world."
Then her tone dropped, suddenly heavy.
"No… maybe I don't even have the right to like anything, because I…"
Mozart noticed the sudden shift and looked at her in mild surprise.
He had already guessed part of her background.
"My, my… you really are pure and untouched, like a sheet of music that hasn't been stained by a single drop of ink. Should I call you lucky? Or unfortunate?"
"Either way…"
"Listen, Mash. Even if you were created as a weapon for battle, you still have the duty to like something. You may not have the freedom, but you do have the duty."
Mash blinked at the word "duty."
"Shouldn't it be a right… or a qualification?"
Mozart took a breath and looked up at the sky.
The heavy clouds that had blanketed the night were finally parting. Behind them stretched a breathtaking sea of stars, far more brilliant than anything the light-polluted modern world could offer.
He continued, explaining his view.
"Yes, duty. Or responsibility. People shoulder that responsibility because they have the ability to think and act."
"What to like, what to hate, what is noble, what is evil—you decide those things."
"You don't have to be shaken by what others say, and you don't have to bend to the opinions around you."
"But in this complicated world, no two sets of values are ever the same."
"We learn about all kinds of things, we witness all kinds of scenery, and through that process our lives gradually become richer."
"Remember this: you don't shape the world. The world shapes you."
"Once your wings are fully grown, one day you will soar beyond it. You must leave proof that you existed, in whatever form that takes…"
"Just like me. I left behind a mountain of sheet music—that's my proof. Though honestly, it's not all that impressive."
"Why not?" Mash asked, puzzled.
She had heard Mozart's music before. In the world of classical composition it was an unsurpassable peak.
How could he call such an achievement "not impressive"?
Mozart gave a self-mocking laugh and answered lightly.
"Because I'm a pathetic man who couldn't even hold on to his first love~"
He looked back up at the dazzling stars and went on.
"Even though the things I left behind are loved by so many people, my own life was nothing special. And that's enough."
"Humans are filthy and ugly. I won't change my conclusion on that."
"There are villains who shine brilliantly and saints who make you sick to your stomach."
"So don't worry about your future. The world shaped you, and you will shape the world in turn."
"That's what it means to grow up and become human."
"First you take all kinds of things from the world. Then you give them back however you please."
"What kind of result your worries produce is a question for much later."
"Mr. Amadeus…"
Mash kept her head down. Mozart's words had given her a great deal to think about.
He took a deep breath.
"Break time's over. Come on, Mash. Grab the water and let's get back to everyone."
Truthfully, Mozart didn't usually deliver long lectures like this.
But facing someone as blank a slate as Mash, the words had simply poured out of him.
Now that he had said his piece, it was time to head back. Whether any of it would actually help her was up to Mash herself.
Looking at how lost she still seemed, it would probably take her a while to process everything.
He just hoped that once she did understand, she wouldn't be trapped by his own values. Those were his. Mash still had to fill in her own with the experiences that lay ahead.
Mozart and Mash picked up the water buckets and turned toward camp.
The moment they stood up, they realized they were surrounded.
Earlier the darkness had hidden it. Now that the clouds had parted and moonlight bathed the plain, they could see clearly.
Hundreds of monsters were slowly closing in, forming a tightening ring.
Mash instantly summoned her shield, but sweat beaded on her forehead as she looked at the horde encircling them.
This was bad.
"How many of these things are in this damn place?!" Mozart's mouth twisted.
They had already cleared out plenty while searching for water. Yet here was another swarm, hemming them in.
It never ended.
Mash swung her shield in one direction, shattering a skeleton soldier, then swept sideways and knocked over three more.
Dozens immediately surged forward to replace them.
As for Mozart…
He was a genius when it came to music, but combat was another story.
Especially against mindless monsters driven only by the urge to kill.
Plus…
"Ugh… these disgusting things. Their voices make me nauseous."
"Sounds like earthworms squirming in a mud pit!"
The low growls were clearly grating on his sanity.
Mash glanced toward the forest—the route they had come from. If they could break through there, they could link up with Adam and the others.
But that was exactly where the monsters were thickest. Breaking out would be tough.
More creatures lunged at her.
Then, in the corner of her eye, a white cross-shaped shield shot out from the forest.
It leaped high into the air. Under the moonlight the pristine cross shield gleamed like a beacon.
"Master!"
The word slipped out before Mash could stop herself.
The newcomer was [Mash].
She dropped from above like a meteor, slamming her shield into the center of the horde and carving out a crater. Dozens of monsters were crushed in an instant, opening a clear path.
"Reinforcements! Perfect timing!"
"Miss Mash, the way back is open—let's hurry and—"
Mozart's words died in his throat.
He had been thinking they were outnumbered and the threat was too great. The smart move was to retreat and regroup with Adam's party.
But now that this newcomer had arrived…
Wait—who exactly was she?
She looked identical to Mash, even had the same name. Was she an earlier prototype?
If she was an older model, wouldn't she be weaker?
Was this "master" just a teacher in the life-guidance sense?
Mozart still didn't know much about this [Mash] who looked exactly like Mash.
He couldn't read her at all.
Figuring her out could wait.
For now, the path was open thanks to her.
All three of them just needed to follow the route back and run—
But [Mash]'s next actions left Mozart frozen.
She spun through the monster swarm, every swing of her shield kicking up howling winds that hurled dozens of creatures aside.
She even hurled the giant cross shield like a boomerang. It spun at blinding speed, smashing through the horde multiple times before returning neatly to her hand.
In Mozart's stunned gaze, [Mash] cleared the entire pack in roughly six-point-six seconds.
When she finished, she looked down at the mountain of corpses at her feet, frowned slightly, and let out a small sigh of dissatisfaction.
"Ugh… I've been sitting still too long. I've gotten rusty."
Taking more than five seconds on trash like this left [Mash] genuinely disappointed in herself.
She rolled her shoulders. These monsters were nothing compared to the ones she usually ran into on casual Singularity vacations with her senpai.
"After coming to this world with Senpai I haven't had a decent fight in ages. Five whole seconds? Has my body gone soft?"
Mash stared at her with sparkling eyes full of pure admiration.
Then something clicked.
"No wonder you're my master!"
That's right—if it was her master, someone who had been through so much in the future, she would definitely have valuable insight on Mozart's question!
Mozart stood there completely dumbfounded, staring at the small mountain of dead monsters piled around [Mash]'s feet.
"Huh…?"
"Wasn't I just about to suggest we run away?"
Then he replayed her last words in his head.
"What did she mean by… 'gone soft'?"
***
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