The wind blew across a hill of silver flowers. I was supposed to be meditating near Katja, but when I opened my eyes, I found myself in a different pce. “Endless Silver.” That was my first thought.

  It really made no sense… I was trying to match with my weapon, so how did I end up in the other world? Flowers all around me swayed gently, glowing under the night sky. The sky is almost perfectly bck, except for the many stars creating beautiful patterns. The moon stands clearly visible and much bigger than it should be. It glowed brighter than I’ve ever seen before, and everything is illuminated even though it’s nighttime.

  And that’s the part that felt odd. It’s night here, but the time between our worlds has always more or less been synced… I don’t understand how time zones work in this other world, so that would be one possible expnation. The only problem is that the Endless Silver is more or less aligned with Ebrilyon, so that’s not it. It was morning in our world, so it shouldn’t be that different here. A few hours, sure, but a night-and-day difference? Yeah, that’s not happening.

  Piecing all that together led me to a certain conclusion. This is not the other world… It looks just like it, but it’s not the same. It feels more like a dream than anything else.

  A strong gust of wind lifted numerous silver petals and blew them my way. The glowing petals danced through the air before passing by me. But they didn’t just pass by. I felt my skin grow warm where they touched it, and small cuts appeared there.

  These petals are incredibly sharp… But more importantly, something or someone is here.

  A mysterious figure stood in front of an impossibly tall tower on top of a small hill. The tower’s silhouette split the moon in two, and the figure was illuminated from both sides.

  It was a woman… She looked just like the moon. Her skin was pale, and she had very long, white hair, reaching lower than her waist. Even the color of her eyes was white, and she had a listless look on her face. Like she was in a constant haze, uninterested in focusing on anything. She wore a white kimono while holding a katana in a sheath with both hands. She held it in front of her stiffly and in a very reserved manner. Her clothes and sheath shared a flowery pattern. The pattern was still white, but it used a slightly different shade.

  “Beautiful…” Her voice was simultaneously powerful and soft. It sent a chill down my spine. She sounded otherworldly. “That’s a beautiful sword, mortal.” Sword? Have I been holding it the whole time? “I’ll hear you out of respect for its near perfection. What are you doing here, mortal?”

  There wasn’t a hint of warmth in her voice. She spoke without a hint of emotion. It made me tremble… The Endless Silver is a post-game area… Optional boss? A god? “I- I’m… Ma- Matching Weapon…”

  “That weapon of yours… It’s made to harness power from the soul used to forge it.” Was her question rhetorical? She’s speaking like she perfectly understands everything… “You want to draw power from one of my flowers… Do you seek my power?”

  “Yeah… That’s right!” I’m still scared, but… I have to try… “I want you power—no, I need your power!” Right now, I need the power to protect my happiness. The risks I had to take to protect Ririna are too much. I need something more decisive to prevent anything else from harming my girls…

  “Leave!” She swung her hand, and another gust of wind blew through the air. It was stronger than the previous one and a lot more hostile. The petals viciously created new scratches on my skin and cut through my indestructible clothes like they were nothing. “I’m willing to spare you, mortal. Leave and destroy that sword. My powers are not meant for the likes of you.”

  She’s trying to intimidate me… I gathered my resolve and stood my ground without flinching. She’s the one I need to match with, isn’t she?

  “You refuse? Then you leave me with no choice.” She slowly took a few steps forward, and the flowers rustled out of her way. Her voice became louder, and it sounded like she was issuing a challenge. “As long as I stand, none shall reach the Pilr of Silver!” She raised her hand again, and a storm of petals flew my way again.

  Agility Burst! This storm is different from the others! It’s meant to leave more than just a few scratches… Is this what matching with a weapon is all about? Do I have to win against her to be able to use her power? I ran around her to dodge her attack, then ran straight at her. You’re on!

  “Burst Dash! Heart Piercer!” Using Burst Dash to close the gap resulted in a ridiculous burst of momentum. I moved my sword and unleashed a powerful thrust.

  The woman barely reacted. With stiff movements, she slightly turned her body and blocked my sword with her sheath. The defense piercing effect made it to the other side and caused her kimono to wobble slightly. Simply put, it did nothing. “No way…”

  *Click.* The next moment, I heard the sound of a sword returning to its sheath. She hadn’t taken out the sword yet, so why would she be returning it...? It couldn’t be…

  “Parrying Strike!” I pulled my sword back in a hurry to parry a cut from above. It wasn’t even a ssh with her sword, it was just a cut! An air ssh. “Guh!” And it was still powerful enough to send me flying… I fell onto the ground and rolled for a while before I was able to stop.

  She’s strong… She’s way too strong! Is there any way I can beat her? Most of my power is in fighting multiple enemies! What do I do?

  I started running around her while thinking. Bnd Dance? This is exactly the type of enemy I got it for, isn’t it? I made a turn and ran straight at her again. I got up close and used the Butterfly’s Wings Ssh Flurry combo. Let’s see how you like that… *Click!* Burst Dash!

  Another cut ripped through the air, sending petals flying all over the pce. It was fast and powerful, but I can dodge it if I know it’s coming.

  I continued swinging my sword, building up the Bde Dance stacks, but something was wrong. Every time an attack nded, there was a weak impact sound. Like my sword was hitting something hard. Is she blocking them all? Her movements are subtle, but her sheath is blocking every single attack! How is that possible? Am I really that outmatched?

  “How dull…” Just as she said that, my sword finally hit her. Huh? It worked? This is more than a hit… The sword went straight through without any resistance! Did I do it? “It’s unfortunate, but you’ll pay for your obstinance with your life.” I heard her voice, but if felt like it was coming from farther away. Next thing I knew, the body exploded into thousands of petals. “This is the end.”

  The explosion of petals engulfed me, and they started attacking from every side. “Arrgh!!” This is bad… Miyuki’s prophecy is coming true… I have to find a way out of here! Katja! Get me out of here! Hasn’t she noticed I’m in danger? Wasn’t supposed to get me out of here?!

  Burst Dash! I tried to quickly get away from the petals, but they rapidly closed in. The mysterious woman watched from far away with an unchanging expression. Burst Dash! Burst Dash! Agility Burst! Get me out of here, Katja! Dammit!

  I was covered in cuts, and some of them were deeper than I’d like… It was getting hard to run. Stay away from me! I gave it everything I had. I used the combo from before with Parrying Strikes added and managed to cut the petals closest to me.

  It doesn’t matter… This is hopeless… There are just too many of them… I should have listened to her… I should have left when she gave me the chance… Burst Dash! I ran while whittling down their numbers, hoping to buy some time. If I can just hold on, maybe Katja will save me… That’s the only hope I have left.

  I ran, I attacked, then more petals rose from the ground and pursued me… Over and over again… When is this gonna end? I’ve swung my sword so much that I can’t even feel my arm anymore… It’s like I’m swinging around a feather at this point…

  “A feather?” Yeah… It’s like the sword’s getting lighter… Why? Shouldn’t it be getting heavier? The petals are getting easier to cut too… Why is that? Have I finished matching with my sword? Am I receiving its strength now? But that girl is still out to get me… The petals haven’t stopped… What’s going on here?

  It wasn’t enough to turn things around on its own, but bit by bit, I got some room to breathe. The petals were struggling to catch up to me, and I started regaining some confidence. I ran all over the never-ending field of flowers, slowly getting stronger… Is this the true potential of a Matching Weapon?

  I’ll do it… I want her power… I’m not backing down… I’ll show her I’m worthy!

  I continued running while fending off her petals, but this time, I ran towards the mysterious woman. A little closer, and… now! Heart Piercer!

  *Thud!*

  She blocked it… Burst Dash! I put some distance between us, cut down some more petals, and there! I nded another ssh on her sheath. I don’t think she can retaliate now… The power of these strikes is completely different from before… How about this? Burst Dash! Instead of running away, I dashed to the other side, and another meaty impact resounded through the air.

  The petals can’t keep up. I dashed and dashed while nding attack after attack. My sword hit her sheath, and she said something. “This glowing red… Violence?” She then leaped back, instantly putting a lot of distance between us. I was surrounded by her petals, but I was still ready to go! Don’t think you can get away from me now.

  “Looks like I’ve made a mistake.” I was ready to fend off the petals’ onsught when they suddenly stopped and gently fell to the ground.

  “A mistake? What are you talking about?” Is she trying to make me lower my guard? I’m not falling for it…

  “It’s impossible for me to win against the Violence Witch. I didn’t know you had that power. It was a mistake for me to fight you in the first pce, therefore, this is my loss.” The girl remained still at a distance.

  “Your loss? A- are you being serious? I don’t get it…” She’s admitting defeat because I have Violence Impulse? It doesn’t make any sense. “Are you telling me the fight’s over? Why?” How come she even knows about it?

  “My flowers contain part of my soul. Attacking you with my petals will only fuel your Violence. You’re not an opponent I’m meant to win against. I won’t oppose you anymore.” The flowers contain part of her soul? All the flowers of the Endless Silver? The Endless Silver is huge on the in-game map… There are probably more flowers than people in my world… Just who is she? She’s got to be someone important, right? Why didn’t I see her in the game?

  I’m also now realizing that she’s different from the monster on Reia’s tablet. Matching Weapons draw power from the monster used as their material. We saw an image of the monster the flower had been taken from, but it wasn’t her. I guess the flower was actually connected to her and not the monster…

  “You won’t oppose me anymore… Does that mean you’ll lend me your power? Are you gonna help me?”

  She shook her head. “You’re still far from being whole. I won’t help, you, and I won’t lend you my power. Your sword, however, may draw as much power as it is capable of.” She spoke with an uncaring look, but that’s not a terrible response, is it? As long as I can get some of her power, I don’t care if I get it directly or through my sword.

  Is she being shy? Pying hard to get? Maybe she’s too embarrassed to help me directly, so she can only help through my sword. That’s quite cute, actually… Then again, she’s the least human human I’ve met so far… Least human… person? Humanoid creat- being? Well… Whatever she is.

  “Follow me.” She turned around and headed for the giant tower behind her. She called it the Pilr of Silver, didn’t she? She’s moving as if it’s a given that I’ll follow her… I mean, I will…

  “Wait!” I quickened my pace to catch up to her. I still don’t know what she’s thinking, so I don’t wanna get too close. “Are we going in there? Why do you want me to follow you?” The pilr was shaped like an obelisk, except I’m not sure it ever ended. Its color was white with a small yellow tint to it, slightly darker than both the white of the moon and the mysterious woman. As we got closer, there was no door in sight. It was too thin, and it didn’t look like the sort of pce people were supposed to enter. What?

  “No one’s allowed to enter the Pilr of Silver, but this is an exception. I have determined through our fight that your pursuit may lead you to something sublime.” She continued walking without looking back. “You’re someone from the original world, so I can give you some guidance.”

  Wow… She can tell I’m from a different world? Wait… “Original world…?” Like… The world that created the game? To refer to it in that way… Does she know about it? Does she know her world is based on a game? I haven’t been able to find any traces that it even exists… I thought I was going crazy for a second… “Do you know? About how your world came to be?”

  “We’re here.” Instead of answering, she stopped before we reached the pilr and turned around.

  “Wait… I still have something I have to a-”

  She held her sword between her elbow and waist, freeing her hands. “Here we go.” She held them up front. Then cpped.

  Bam100