One Step at a Time
The [Journey] I once hesitated to continue had already passed a year.
The streets of NOA were overflowing with crowds celebrating the New Year's festival.
And yet...
You don't seem very festive.
I don't like crowded places.
I'd rather run missions on the field than get jostled around by people with easy lives.
You sound so old...
Don't nitpick now.
More importantly, why did you call me out on a day like this?
If you wanted to enjoy the festival, there were plenty of others you could've brought.
Counting your eggs before they've even hatched, I see...
If this were the field, I'd have something to say about that.
...But I'll make an exception for today.
If I go along with your meddling this once, surely you'll settle down and behave.
Come get your New Year's festival fried chicken now!
I'll take two, please!
Thank you! Here you go!
...Well.
How is it?
It's rubbery.
Ugh?!
No mercy at all...
Alright, everyone! Here's your chance to show off your shooting skills!
Hit the prize, knock it down, and it's yours!
I'll give it a try!
Oh! The [Journey Captain] and his [Journey member]!
What an honor! Go right ahead!
Oh dear! You missed!
How unfortunate... Or perhaps not!
...Would it count as a score if I cut it down with my sword?
Eek?!
Stop!
After wandering the streets like that, before we knew it, night had fallen.
This festival is bigger than I expected...
The snacks they sell aren't bad with coffee, either.
I thought you didn't like desserts.
I said I don't like things that look overly sweet at a glance.
You'll understand with time. Simple flavors are easier to take in.
There you go again, sounding so old.
That's not wrong if you tally up how long I've lived.
That said, the people here never seem to get tired.
So much time has passed, yet they're still playing around like that...
Well, you gotta enjoy things when you can.
So until the festival ends, let's give it everything we've got.
...
I see. What I said last time has been bothering you, after all.
Looks like the rookie played it smart.
But trying to persuade me is pointless.
I know.
Mm?
No matter what I say, you won't change easily.
Not until you finish what you called your duty.
Hilde was solid.
No, she had become solid.
Worn down by endless failures, inevitably so.
...I don't like being treated as someone who can't be helped by a greenhorn.
But you've grasped the context well enough.
So? What did you want to do?
Like you said before, I wanted to show you.
Why we're—why I'm—on this [Journey].
Hmm...
That much, I understand.
This world is noisy, excessive...
And peaceful.
It's not strange to want to protect it.
But just because an intention sounds noble doesn't mean it will come true.
You won't know whether you can reach the goal or not until you try it.
I just want to stay true to the process, all the way to the end.
Then even that path toward a distant outcome we may or may not reach...
Wouldn't it still hold meaning?
That's all there is to it.
...You.
That's a bold claim to be making.
I-is it really that much?
No. Forget what I just said.
As Hilde shook her head and looked up...
Countless, colorful fireworks filled the sky.
...I hope so.
Huh...?
What you just said.
I hope that, for you at least... What you just said comes true.
On Hilde's face, lit by the glow of the fireworks...
There was only a quiet loneliness I had never seen before.