(Big brother, finally I can visit your grave.)

The World Alliance had recaptured Japan.

Kaguya decided to head straight to the cemetery.

Isshin was too busy to come today, so she made the trip alone by car.

“I need to make one for Kenya too. Maybe right next to the Kurokami family graves…”

The girl held a single lily, her expression tinged with sorrow.

In a world without flower shops anymore, it pained her a little that this was the best she could offer.

Still, even just one flower… She wanted to let him know they’d taken back Japan.

Nothing was truly over yet.

But even so, she wanted to tell him.

“Huh? Is someone there?”

Ahead of the girl’s gaze.

Two heads of silver hair.

Kaguya tensed, ready for battle.

Silver hair could mean enemies. Of course, there were also half-Japanese people living as Japanese.

In the dim twilight glow, she spotted the silver-haired girl.

And the black-haired Japanese girl beside her.

…

“Let’s head back, Reina… Huh? Someone’s walking──”

Ahead of Kenya and Reina’s gazes.

A girl with short black hair.

A fierce-looking girl with cat-like eyes, staring right at them.

“Kaguya…?”

The sudden encounter left all three at a loss for words.

Kaguya and Reina locked eyes.

Kenya was hidden behind Reina, his face obscured.

But Kaguya spoke up.

“What are you doing in a place like this? Paying respects? That’s the Kurokami family grave. Come for revenge?”

Those words jogged Reina’s memory.

“I see. Now that you mention it, that’s right. It was you.”

Her voice was quieter and lower than any Kenya had ever heard.

“Re-Reina?”

“The reason Papa died.”

Suddenly, Reina vanished from Kenya’s view.

Her step-in was like that of a martial arts master.

Reina’s kick slammed toward Kaguya’s face.

But.

“Yeah, no apologies from me either. We were fighting for our lives too──”

Kaguya ducked, evading the lethal kick.

She countered with a kick of her own toward Reina.

“So I did nothing wrong!”

Reina blocked it with one hand and stepped back.

The two dove into a flurry of blows.

But this was no girlish catfight.

No hair-pulling or ugly brawling.

It was a precise martial exchange, elegant as a dance.

They didn’t look like high school girls scrapping; flowers practically bloomed around them.

It was just like a KOG battle.

KOG was an extension of martial arts, after all.

That’s why top knights were all versed in it.

Like Osiris. Like Zeke.

Elite pilots were often superhuman in hand-to-hand combat even without mechs.

Kaguya and Reina were no exceptions; their fight was that of seasoned soldiers.

“I know! I know Papa didn’t hate you! But even so, even so, I can’t just forgive you easily!”

“Right back at you. I can’t forgive you guys either! My brother, and… You took everything precious from me!”

They traded blows, pouring out their hearts.

At this rate, it could turn deadly.

Blood sprayed; just watching looked painful.

“W-Wait… What do I do…”

One boy watched, utterly perplexed.

He’d never seen girls go at it full-force like this and had no idea how to handle it.

“I didn’t kill your brother!”

“Then again, Byakuren killed your dad!”

They kept fighting, two girls sharing the same pain clashing head-on.

Kenya watched from behind a tombstone.

“Hah… hah… I know. It was war. Papa fought with his life and pride on the line. You did too. He told me not to hate… But my heart won’t listen!!”

“Hah… hah… That’s my line. Do you have any idea how much we’ve lost to you people! To the Earthguard forces! Don’t tell me it’s none of your business because you weren’t there?”

They collided again.

Two girls who’d lost what mattered most.

Kaguya had lost her brother and Kenya.

Reina had lost her father.

Both taken by the enemy nation—and before them stood soldiers from that nation.

“Hah… hah…” “Hah… hah…”

They stared each other down and unleashed their ultimate strikes.

Full-power, decisive blows.

The boy watching knew it was bad and leaped into action in a panic.

“St-Stop──Guh!!”

“Kenya?!”

“Huh? Who’re you… hah? Kenya?!”

The boy jumped between Reina and Kaguya to halt the fight.

Reina’s kick crushed his gut; Kaguya’s his back.

It wasn’t the kind of pain you could call a “reward” in their line of work. One wrong spot, and his lungs might’ve collapsed.

Lucky hits and their last-second pullback kept him conscious. Against masters like them, he might’ve been pulverized otherwise.

“Kenya!”

“Huh? What did you just say? You said… Kenya… You said Kenya!?”

Kaguya stared at the fallen boy.

Silver hair.

But she knew that voice, that face.

He looked just like Kenya.

No, this close up, no mistaking it.

“No way… No way… Why, why!”

“Goh! Ow ow ow… Uh… How do I even… Anyway, long time no see? Kaguya. Reina, please calm down, I’m begging you.”

Kenya somehow soothed Reina.

Then turned to Kaguya.

He hadn’t thought this far ahead, so “long time no see” was all he could muster.

A awkward grimace, like a bitter smile.

Would she yell? Punch him?

Maybe both.

He’d ghosted her for nearly half a year; he was braced for it.

Ready for any curses or beatings.

But she didn’t.

“No way, no way… Waaahhh──”

Kaguya just sobbed and clung to him.

“Sorry, Kaguya. I was late reaching out. Couldn’t find a way to contact you.”

“I thought maybe Kenya was alive, that Road’s knight seemed like you. And that mech was so strong, but kinda gentle like you… I… Waaahhh──”

Kaguya and Kenya embraced.

She stumbled over her words, spilling her heart in a jumble.

“Let me explain everything, Kaguya.”

“Yeah…”

…

And so Kenya told her everything that had happened that day.

Reina stood by, eyes closed, listening silently.

He spoke.

About taking down those hundred mechs that day. About having no way to reach her.

About fighting and winning the Empire Sword Martial Festival as Road’s knight.

Kaguya wiped her tears, clinging to him as she listened.

“I see… You’re amazing, Kenya. Took them all down.”

“Thanks to Tanaka-san.”

“But still, I’m glad. So glad. These past six months were lonely, painful… I still can’t believe this is really you. So… Kenya… Mm.”

Kaguya gazed at him, begging for a kiss.

“Goh! Goh! Ahem!!”

But Reina cleared her throat, reminding them she was there.

That’s when he noticed Reina, looking angry.

“Right, we weren’t done yet. Wait here, Kenya.”

Reina and Kaguya rose again.

“Wait! Both of you! Please! Just hold on!!”

Kenya desperately held them back.

He knew Zeke’s death had carved an unbridgeable rift between them.

Kenya wasn’t without his own mixed feelings about the World Alliance—he’d loved Zeke too.

But he’d already found his answer.

That day, carrying Zeke’s words as he fought the world.

The answer was clear.

So.

“Please, don’t fight. I can’t stand seeing you two clash. If you do, I’ll stop you with my life. Even if it kills me.”

That, above all, he couldn’t bear.

“Kaguya, Reina. Sit down. Hear me out, please. For Zeke-san’s sake too.”

At his desperate plea, they bowed their heads and sat on either side of him.

“Kaguya, Zeke-san died. In the fight with the World Alliance. To Byakuren’s spear.”

“Zeke… the Military God… Yeah. We killed him. No apologies for that. It’d be rude—we staked our lives to take back Japan. He staked his to defend it. Apologizing would tarnish warriors’ honor…”

She looked straight at Kenya and Reina, declaring firmly.

“I can’t.”

Kaguya wouldn’t apologize.

An apology admits fault.

She wouldn’t admit fighting to reclaim Japan was wrong. She couldn’t.

“I’d do it again, a hundred times over. For my homeland, for everyone still oppressed.”

Her eyes held no doubt.

“Kaguya…”

Then Reina spoke.

“Sorry, Kenya. I’m calm now. And I don’t want an apology. I don’t blame Kaguya entirely. But I still can’t forgive easily. Papa’s gone forever.”

Reina responded to Kaguya’s honesty with her own feelings.

Her voice strong at first.

But her next words came soft, self-reproaching.

“But… The one I can’t forgive most is…”

Reina clutched her chest, forcing out the painful words.

“My own weakness.”

If she’d been stronger then, strong enough not to lose to Kaguya.

Zeke wouldn’t have died; the world war might’ve ended there.

“My weakness caused this. So I get it. Don’t hate the enemy. It’s my fault.”

Reina looked down, blaming herself.

But Kenya refuted her.

“No, Reina. That’s not what Zeke-san meant. It’s not that. If you’d been stronger… Kaguya would’ve died instead. It’s not about who was stronger.”

“…That’s”

“What Zeke-san said to the end, what this footage shows… It’s not that. Not ‘winner’s right, loser’s wrong.’ I don’t think so.”

“Then who!”

“Byakuren killed Zeke-san, sure. The World Alliance too, Kaguya included. But they were acting to reclaim Japan. Zeke-san… Hate to say it, but he took and killed plenty precious to them.”

“…Yeah, Papa fought a lot as a soldier.”

Kenya recalled Zeke’s words.

He didn’t want to imagine it, but Zeke had killed many in the EU war too.

Civilians included, under orders, no choice.

“In that spiral of killing, I think Zeke-san realized. We’re young, inexperienced… Can’t grasp it all. But ‘don’t hate those who killed your loved ones, those trying to kill you’—it’s hard to get fully. But I think Zeke-san understood. It’s not the soldiers on the battlefield who are wrong. It’s the world that starts wars.”

Kenya’s conclusion was simple.

The guilty weren’t warriors, knights, soldiers.

They were victims too, fighting because it was the only way to fulfill their wishes.

Sure, exceptions existed.

But most fought for peace.

To reclaim nations, freedom, on emperor’s orders, avenging families.

They didn’t want to fight, really.

So.

“No one’s the villain. Not Kaguya. Not weak Reina. Not even Byakuren who pulled the trigger. That’s what I think Zeke-san meant.”

He recalled Zeke’s final words to him.

That they weren’t evil either.

“Reina, remember? Osiris-san at the Empire Sword Martial Festival.”

“How could I forget? That deathmatch.”

“If I’d lost that fight… Would you have hated Osiris-san?”

“…No. I can’t forgive Odin, his dirty tricks. But Osiris Halberd fought as a knight to the end, staking his life and pride. I couldn’t tarnish that fight. I’d have feelings, but not hatred enough to kill.”

“Yeah, me too. Even if I’d died then, I wouldn’t hate him. And now I get what he said back then.”

“What?”

Kenya remembered first meeting Osiris.

Words from that powerhouse he hadn’t fully grasped then.

“‘No grudges; praise the victor. All that’s left is the fact we staked everything on our justice and fought. That’s battle.’ I think Osiris-san felt like Zeke-san. Battle-hardened vets who’ve clashed blades countless times reached the same thought. Clashing justices—no evil there. Now I kinda get what Zeke-san and Osiris-san meant.”

Saying it aloud clarified his own thoughts.

Why he didn’t resent Kaguya like Reina did.

He’d thought maybe he was just glossing over it because he loved her.

Now it was crystal clear.

The meaning of “don’t hate the enemy.”

“Ah, so that’s it. Zeke-san.”

Something clicked inside him.

Why he didn’t even hate Byakuren, who’d killed his beloved Zeke.

But words alone wouldn’t convey this.

They had to feel it themselves.

“Kenya?”

“Nah. So, what do you think, Reina? I’m bad at explaining…”

“Kenya… Even if I’d died there, you wouldn’t have hated me?”

He’d pondered that.

Answer was set.

“If that happened… I’d swear on my life to bring world peace. Because war killed you.”

Kenya looked straight at Reina.

To show his words rang true.

Reina stared back for a while.

“Papa must’ve said the same…”

Then she turned to Kaguya.

“Losing Papa… Even imagining it rips my heart, brings tears. But understanding that pain taught me.”

Her eyes met Kaguya’s.

“You felt the same, huh. Kaguya. Who’d you lose?”

The single lily in Kaguya’s hand, meant for someone dear.

Kaguya gripped it tight, voice strained.

“My big brother was killed… I loved him so much, never forgot him. But Earthguard took him. And I thought they took Kenya too… That’s why I hated Earthguard. But.”

Kaguya looked at Reina.

“You’re… not someone I hate. I don’t hate you. You always looked at me properly. For that short time… Is this what friends are like?”

Kaguya spoke from the heart.

Voice thick with unshed tears, straining to hold back.

“Before I met you, I thought all Earthguard were enemies. All evil, all foes to defeat. But… wrong. The world’s vast; my world was so small.”

Kaguya’s youth wrecked by war too.

No friends; no school even.

Seeing that, Reina replied.

“Kaguya… I have no friends. Lost memories played a part, but I shut everyone out. But those training days with you, school days as students… I thought, if friends exist.”

Tears welled in her eyes.

“Maybe this is it.”

Reina and Kaguya gazed at each other.

Complex emotions laid bare.

“And…”

Reina stood, approaching her mother’s grave.

Beside the one inscribed “Kurokami Sakiko.”

“You’re my last blood relative, my cousin.”

“Huh? Cousin?”

Kaguya looked at the grave.

The Kurokami family stones beside her beloved brother Takashi’s.

The name “Kurokami Sakiko.”

“My mother was Kurokami Sakiko, Uncle Isshin’s sister.”

“No way… Hold on. …Yeah, I vaguely remember Sakiko-san… From when I was little. And Dad mentioning a sister.”

“We grew apart before I was born… But you’re my cousin, Kaguya. Uncle Isshin and you are my last family by blood.”

“I see… Then let me introduce myself.”

“Yes.”

Kaguya rose, standing beside Reina.

They clasped hands toward the grave.

“I’m Kurokami Kaguya, your brother’s daughter. Nice to meet you.”

Kenya and Reina joined in prayer.

“Mama… I remember everything now. How you protected me till the end… All of it. I couldn’t be with Papa, but…”

For a moment, the three prayed at the grave.

Of course, Kenya and Reina also paid respects at Takashi Kurokami’s grave, Kaguya’s brother.

Thoughts of the dead quietly soothed their anger; calmed, the two faced each other.

“Kaguya, can we go back to those days? Be friends again?”

“No idea. Your father to you, my brother to me—irreplaceable losses. But someday, if our hearts align…”

Kaguya looked at Reina.

“Friends… maybe.”

Reina met her eyes.

She recalled her father’s face, this hand once aimed at him.

Forgiveness wouldn’t come instantly.

But his words echoed.

“So even if not now… Someday, when your heart allows, break the chain of hatred, Reina. That’s Papa’s final wish.”

So.

“Not right away… My heart can’t catch up yet. But slowly, surely, someday. When I find resolution… Then, once more.”

She stared at her hand, then gripped it slowly.

Tears flowed naturally; her voice trembled.

“Be… my… friend, Kaguya.”

“Why’re… you… crying, you? You, who… made me… cry.”

“I… don’t… know. Because… it was my first time too… you.”

The moment their hands linked, emotions swirled; the two girls wept openly.

Recalling KOG training days together, like after-school club.

Their quiet sobs faded into the twilight.

The rift remained; maybe forever.

But watching them, Kenya thought.

“It’ll be okay.”

(Surely those two can be friends again. Because)

“They’re so alike, personality, looks—even genetically.”

Kenya gently embraced the crying pair.

They’d overcome it; Zeke-san would want that.

Seeing their tears, Kenya believed.

If a warless, peaceful world came.

It’d be when these two forgave from the heart.