Itadaki no Hecate Second

The Difficulty of Adjusting

"So, will you not be using the name then?"

The girl blinked, and gave it some more thought. "No, I might as well use it; since it really would be more convenient," she said. "And I mean, even Wilhelmina has a name right? So did the previous Flaming-Haired Blazing-Eyed Hunter. I guess it might not be so bad to have a little identity among the other Flame Hazes, right?"

"Very well," said Alastor, not noticing that they had both missed the whole point of the Mystes' speech. "But I sense you are still a little reluctant."

She sighed. "The name feels natural; and it kind of rolls off the tongue, but did it really have to be our enemy giving it to us?"

"That actually had me thinking, but perhaps I was indeed too hasty in my judgement the last time we were here," said Alastor. "Until now, or perhaps even now, we had never considered any of the Bal Masque as anything but our enemy. But after seeing the balance well maintained here and the change in the Supreme Throne, I am starting to have my doubts."

"It's not often you'd admit that Alastor," the girl said, looking down at the pendant.

"Even I am finite," said the Flame of Heaven. "And it is not the first time I have made a mistake."

He was silent after that, as if reminiscing something from the deep past. In the meantime, Shana couldn't help but feel the presence of a Crimson Denizen come nearer, but also sensed no intent to approach her. She peered towards the street below her.

There were two figures, both wearing the tracksuit-like jersey of the school she also attended. One of them, the male with dark brown hair, panted for breath like a dog while jogging. Beside him, a girl with greenish shoulder-length hair hovered a little ahead of him. It was only by coincidence that they passed by her residence.

Episode 5: The Difficulty of Adjusting

"Hecate... huff... huff... Can't you slow down a little?"

"You aren't showing any signs of collapsing anytime soon Yuji, you'll be fine. The fatigue right now is only psychological."

"Hecateeeee..."

As she floated backwards while observing the Mystes, her gaze strayed towards the Flame Haze, and for a moment, their eyes made contact. There was still a message of hostility sent between the two, but not as strongly as before. The Priestess beckoned the boy to keep going as she faced forward again.

"So they're doing that kind of training," Shana noted, her eyes tracking them from above. "He seems to have worthless stamina though."

"Which is probably why they are taking up this practice," said Alastor. "I don't recall you ever having that much difficulty however, even before we made our contract."

They continued to keep an eye on the Supreme Throne and the Mystes until they were out of sight and the former's presence began to fade.

"So, Alastor, now what?" Shana asked, still gazing out of her window.

"For now, we can assume that Bal Masque has no wish to harm the humans; we have seen the evidence of that in the Supreme Throne alone. However, the people of Bal Masque and their intentions are still two different things. Even the most righteous person can enact a plan too dangerous to those around them, regardless of if their motives are for the benefit of others or even for all."

"You mean like the day the Snake of the Festival was sealed away?"

Alastor hesitated for a moment, but answered her honestly. "Your successor and I chose to be absent in that last battle because we were fully convinced we should not fight. We knew the plan of the Snake of the Festival, and we knew that he intended to create a paradise for the Denizens, which would also free the humans from being hunted by them. Even then, he also ruled an empire with the ideal of coexistence between Denizen and human, as unsuccessful as it was. But we were naïve and too deliberate; when we discovered the full details of his plan, it was already too late, and the Coffin Weaver had already begun using the same principles to his own ends long after he had defeated the Snake of the Festival. On both occasions, it would have risked destroying the fabric of reality as we know it, and so they had to be stopped." He paused, feeling a little regretful of past events, but it was brief. "This time may or may not be so different. For now, we will continue to watch them until signs of a threat, or a lack thereof, begins to show."