Alter (UDG x OC)

Epilogue: Does It Matter?

Komaru and Toko were running down the hallway, Byakuya's cellar door in sight. The entire place suddenly shook violently, throwing Komaru against the wall.

"Ah...!" She held her arms out to brace herself for the impact, then glanced up at the ceiling. "W-Wasn't that...?"

"Whatever it is, there's no point worrying about it now!" Toko hurriedly said. "More importantly... We need to save Byakuya-sama and get out of here!"

Komaru got up from leaning against the wall, then looked forward, standing in place, a slight look of worry spreading across her face.

"Wh-What's wrong?" Toko asked.

"I... I know I can save both the adults and the children..." Komaru said.

"Well, we can chat about it after we get out of this damn town once and for all!" Toko answered, growing more impatient by the second.

Komaru stood there, still transfixed in thought. "Fukawa-san... I..." She walked up to her, a determined gaze in her eyes. "I'm going to stay in this town."

"..." Toko was stunned for a second. "...Huh?!" she suddenly yelled. "Wh-What're you saying?! All this time, you were bawling about how you wanted to go home!"

"Oh come on! I was not bawling! Don't make things up, jeez!"

Toko looked down at the floor, heaving a big sigh. "...Why...? Why are you bringing up something like that? Do you feel responsible for their revenge? But that wasn't your fault! You can't feel bad about that, not even a little!"

Komaru shook her head. "No, that's not it... It doesn't matter whose fault it is. This is my decision."

"Then why are you doing this? Didn't you want to get out of this place and live a normal, peaceful life? But now you want to stay here? That's like... the complete opposite!"

Komaru smiled awkwardly. "Yeah... you're... right..."

"You..." Toko furrowed her brows. "It's not because... you feel despair, right...?"

"No, o-of course not. I don't wanna get slapped again."

Toko clenched her teeth in frustration. "Then, why?"

"Even I'm not... totally sure... But earlier... when I said how I wanted to save both... all the scary feelings and hesitation I felt were gone. Even though the odds were against us, for some reason... I felt courage. I think it's because I was confident in what I needed to do." She had a pensive look on her face. "But... what would happen if I leave this town with you and Togami-san? What would happen if Future Foundation came here to suppress the riot and uncover the secret? And then, what would happen if the Remnants of Despair were to find this place...? It would turn into a war... just like that girl said."

"S-So you're saying you're becoming this town's hostage in place of Byakuya-sama?"

Komaru took a moment to gather her thoughts. "Until now, I kept relying on you and I never really got to make decisions on my own. But I was like that even before I met you. I used to give up all the time... But the decision to save everyone was one I made on my own. Of course, I'm scared and worried, but despite that, I've made up my mind." She smiled energetically. "I won't give up until the very end. I'll make sure I protect both. " She then took out the student handbook that she still had on her. "And... that girl who helped us, Hirata-san. I still don't understand, but it seems like this handbook of hers has information that's useful to Future Foundation. That's even more reason... There's... no way I can just forget about her. If she's somewhere in this town, I want to find her. Even if that part of her is dangerous, if the Future Foundation can take her in, maybe she'll be able to control it, like you, Fukawa-san."