Silver Wish

With those words said, the two left the room, and Rio laid her down on the bed.

"Why didn't you come home?" Sumire mumbled.

"The adventure was so much fun-"

Sumire shook her head. "Please give me the real reason."

At those words, Rio sighed deeply. A troubled look formed on his face as he extended his hand out, and a bright glow surrounded his hands. But the moment she saw the light, she immediately understood.

"This-"

"I left to protect Lila. It seemed my powers were incompatible with hers. I have too much light." Rio trailed off. "This was the reason why you sent Kyoko off to study, too, right? I figured I would do the same."

"But Kyo-chan still visited."

"Right, but then I got the news that you disappeared, mother. So I decided I would go look for you."

So this entire time, they must have just missed each other?

"I intended to return home immediately when I heard you returned. But then I discovered something in my journey." He used his free hand to take something out of his bag. He lifted a green-colored shard. "Mother, what do you think this is?"

"A shard-" Sumire paused when she saw the color. She grabbed hold of it and carefully examined it. "I see. I think I get it now. There might be a way to save your sister without your father and me disappearing. Rio, do you have the rest of this?"

"I collected as much as I could. But I am missing a few pieces."

"How many?"

"Seven."

That's not a lot; considering the state of the world now, it may be easier to search for these pieces.

"Tomorrow, we will go search."

Is there hope after all? If they gather all these pieces and bring them to the structure, she can work something out.

"By the way, mother, I was surprised."

"Regarding?"

Rio laughed. "I was surprised how father treats you even now. I thought after everything he would hold some resentment, but it was not like that."

"Your father is a strange one." Sumire trailed off. "Do you resent me for going?"

"There was a time I did at the very start. But it was only me who thought that way. Kyoko, Huan, and Lila never blamed you for going. So I thought it was just me being weird. This is another reason I delayed coming back home despite knowing you were there. I didn't know how to face you. You left for so long and caused everybody so much grief, but nobody blamed you. It didn't make sense to me."

'Judging from his tone, he must have had a hard time.'

Sumire shook her head. "No, Rio, you were correct. Even though I have problems, the situation wasn't the same as back when I was a child. I have a family. I have children. I should have prioritized that over my selfish feelings. The other four understood that too, but they did not want to put any more strain on me; that was why they forgave me quickly."

"So I was being normal?"

At those words, she laughed. "Yes, so I do not want you to blame yourself for this. Thank you for coming back home."

...…

It was early the next morning when she was finishing getting dressed when Lucifer entered the room. No, it looked like he was standing there for a while now. Sumire sighed deeply.

"If you're going to stare anyway, help me put this on." She pointed to the cloak and gloves on the bed.

Lucifer walked over to her and picked up the items with his powers.

"This cloak has small bombs in the pockets," Lucifer said as he draped it across her shoulders.

"Sometimes, a normal human weapon can be a powerful ȧsset." She also carried a small gun and knife just to be on the safe side.

"I don't think you have to worry about those three guys with you."

"Yuhi spoke to you last night; what did he say?"

"He wanted my ȧssistance if your powers go out of control." Lucifer trailed off. "It seems he acknowledges that he is incapable of helping you there."

"My husband isn't frightening like you."

"Sumire, your condition. I shall be frank with you; your life spam has already been cut in half. If you continue this way, you will not last another year, no a few months at most."

"I know."

"I told him that too." Lucifer sighed. "But he said he would find a way to have a better future with you."

Sumire blinked when she heard him say those words. Even though Yuhi resolved himself to die with her, it seems he also predicted that she would change her mind.

"It seems this is Yuhi-san's victory."

"I do not understand," Lucifer muttered.

"About?"

"Why do you do this to yourself?"

Sumire laughed at his question, but Lucifer did not find it amusing; he gently ċȧrėssed her cheek.

"I told you when you first came to me seven years ago. You will be safe here with me. I will provide a good refuge for you. The only reason Terashima could come in here was because I allowed him. If you truly dėsɨrė to escape, then I will help you."

"But you let him in here because?"

"Because even though you decided that, you seemed unsettled."

"Sometimes, I fear that you may have a better understanding of me than my husband."

At those words, Lucifer pulled her into his arms. "What are you doing?"

"You are a huge liar. I overheard your conversation with your son. Even if you piece together the shards, you have to consume a large amount of energy when you use it on the structure. You still intend to die."

"I see."

"If you're just going to throw your life away." Lucifer picked her up and dropped her on the bed as he climbed on top of her. His lips were on hers in a matter of seconds; unlike last night, she could tell he was furious.

Sumire, however, was not in the same state of mind when she first came here. After having that honest conversation with both her husband and her son, she would not tolerate this any longer.

She raised her hand and slapped him.

Lucifer pulled away from her then and stood up. "The reason why your hair is turning white is due to your life force being cut in half; you hid away for seven years because you didn't want him to see you get old. You didn't want him to see you die before him because you knew how much pain it would cause him.. You would rather play the role of the bad wife who ran away from home."