Monogatari Series - Volume 25 - Chapter 6.05

005 

The epilogue, or maybe, the punch line of this story. 

A cute girl commits a horrible suicide on my own shoulders, a traumatic experience that will stay with me until my next life. It would have been only traumatic if that was the end of it, but rather, considering what happened afterward, perhaps if I ended the story there I could have prevented the creation of trauma that will follow me even into my next life. 

As a matter of course, bright red blood gushed out of the gaping wound on Risuka-chan’s thigh. 

It wasn’t a surprise since Risuka-chan had severed her thigh artery, the next largest artery in the body after the carotid artery. 

In fact, the human body is filled with about five liters of blood—and considering the fact that Risuka-chan is still a petite 10-year-old, she should have about two liters of blood in her body...  

Huh? 

That’s not quite two liters. 

The blood continued to gush out of the girl’s right leg endlessly. It felt like an eternity. It continued to soak my entire body, and not only my body, but also the ground of Naoetsu High School. 

It’s soaking—it’s invading.  

There’s blood. There’s blood. There’s blood. There’s blood. There’s blood. There’s blood. There’s blood. 

Risuka-chan’s blood. 

The magical girl’s sticky blood. 

The blood of the Witch Hunter... 

The blood from the Red Witch of Time splattered all over the place. 

Blood, blood, blood, blood, blood, blood, blood, blood, blood, blood. 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD 

BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD BLOOD was spreading. 

The blood filled up the air.  

“N O S T A L G I C !” 

Then, from the bottom of the massive pool of blood that swirled around the submerged ground, a disastrous voice echoed an equally disastrous incantation: 

“NØNKÎRÎ NØNKÎRÎ MÄGÜNÄÄDØ RØÎKÎSÜRØÎKÎSØRØΠ

KÎSHÎGÄÄRÜKÎSHÎGÄÄZÜ NØNKÎRÎ NØNKÎRÎ MÄGÜNÄÄDØ 

RØÎKÎSÜRØÎKÎSØRØÎ KÎSHÎGÄÄRÜKÎSHÎGÄÄZÜ 

MÄRÜSÄKØRÜ MÄRÜSÄKØRÎ KÄÎGÎRÎNÄ RÜ RÎØCHÎ RÎØCHΠ

RÎSØNÄ RØÎTØ RØÎTØ MÄÎTØ KÄNÄGÜÎRÜ KÄGÄKÄKΠ

KÎKÄGÄKÄ NÝÄMÄMÄ NÝÄMØNÄGÎ DØÎKÄÎKÜ DØÎKÄÎKÜ 

MÄÎRÜZÜ MÄÎRÜSÜ NÝÄMØMÜ NÝAMØMÈ…” 

The pool of blood quickly became a pond, the pond of blood a sea, and the sea of blood a flood, all in less time than it took me to finish a single breath. 

And then. 

“NÝÄRÜRÄ!” 

The overflowing blood concentrated at once. 

Into the shape of a person. 

What emerged was not a human, but a witch. A witch who had transcended humanity. 

The 27-year-old Mizukura Risuka was there, wearing that overstuffed triangular hat that now fit her perfectly. 

She stood with a mature appearance that left no trace of infancy. 

Her height far exceeded 150 centimeters, her limbs had become much longer and slender, and her bright red leather outfit was wrapped around her glamorous body that was bursting open. 

“HA—HA… HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHA, 

HAHAHA, HAHAHAHA! HA… HAHA… HAHAHA… 

HAHAHAHA... HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” 

And. 

The witch—like the vampire—laughed loudly. 

She opened her mouth wide and laughed loudly, as if mocking the old world. 

… If, when you reveal the trick, the answer remains magic, then it means there was no trick to begin with. But since finding an explanation even for the unexplainable was the specialist Oshino Meme’s style, I’ll try to be up for the task. 

Let’s follow along. 

Mizukura Risuka—The Red Witch of Time. 

If Chikyuugi Mizore’s magic was focused on physical remodeling, with the attribute pattern Flesh and type in the Multiplication category, then Mizukura Risuka’s magic would have the attribute pattern Water and belong to the Time category. Yes, it was destiny-interfering magic—in other words, magic that manipulates time. 

Hearing that, you might be tempted to think it’s the kind of magic that allows you to time travel or to stop time, but the time that Risuka-chan can control is basically limited to her own. 

Her own personal time. 

Risuka-chan herself calls this phenomenon omission—a shortcut through time. 

For example, if she was injured and the injury would take one week to heal, she could theoretically omit that week and heal herself in an instant—or if it would take three hours to get from her hometown to mine, no matter the means of transportation, she could omit the three hours and arrive in less than a second, just like teleportation. 

Of course, it wasn’t only conveniences, there were also various limitations attached (the fact that it can only move time “forward” is one of them), but it’s still an extraordinary and astounding type of magic, even if you were to discount half of its characteristics—but the peak form of the Red Witch of Time comes up further along the line. 

It appears when facing death. 

That is to say, when she is in danger of losing her inherent time completely, her magic enters an emergency evacuation state—when the amount of blood loss reaches a certain level, the magic sigil engraved on each of her red blood cells is activated. 

A total of 17 years’ worth of time is omitted. 

She grew up from the age of 10 to the age of 27. 

An unconditional growth surpassing all reason. 

She grew up from a magical girl to a witch. 

So to speak, the magic’s main function is to raise her to a condition suitable for an emergency situation, for example, when she’s facing death—although it’s a layman’s idea, it wouldn’t be wrong to think that Risuka-chan’s blood was also a magical entity that reacts to phenomena, just like Chikyuugi Mizore’s right leg. 

And I don’t need to talk about its effects. The simple improvement in her physical abilities is a given, as well as the scale-up of her intelligence and ingenuity. The amount and the scale of magic she could now use cannot be compared to when she was 10 years old. 

Indeed, there is a difference between adults and children. 

Just as the teenage-girl form of Kiss-Shot Acerola-Orion Heart-

Under-Blade and adult form of Kiss-Shot Acerola-Orion Heart-UnderBlade were different—the 10-year-old Mizukura Risuka and the 27year-old Mizukura Risuka are different. 

However, if you ask me, the most notable difference was. 

“HA… HAHAHAHA! OH, IT’S BEEN SO LONG I FORGOT 

WHAT     KIND     OF     CHARACTER     I     AM!     IT’S     PERFECT 

RISUKA-CHAN! WOO... HOO! I’M SO EXCITED I’M LOSING MY 

VOICE! COME ON, COME ON, COME ON, COME ON! NOT ONLY DID YOU FUCKING INTERRUPT ME IN MY HUNT EARLIER, 

YOU EVEN DID SOME THINGS TO MY 10-YEAR-OLD SELF, SO I’M GOING TO CRUSH YOU BENEATH MY FEET, YOU LOSER! PROSTRATE YOURSELF TO MAKE IT EASIER TO CRUSH YOUR HEAD... ERR, KOYOMI, WAS IT? HAHAHA! HOW 

DARING OF YOU TO NAME YOURSELF A CALENDAR  IN 

FRONT OF THE RULER OF TIME. I WILL MAKE CERTAIN TO THRUST YOUR REWARD DEEP INSIDE—BUT BEFORE THAT! I MUST COMPLETE THE HUNT—I WILL THOROUGHLY ENJOY DISPOSING OF THE REMAINS OF TSUNAGI’S MEAL, I LOVE 

CUTTING     OFF     THE     LEGS     OF     SMALL     FRIES, 

AHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!” 

“..........” 

… Her character. 

What happened to the meek, charming, innocent, naïve, and timid Risuka-chan in the 17 years that passed? 

She really used the word “loser.” 

She’s belligerent, coercive, contemptuous, and discriminating. 

A textbook witch, if I could say so. 

It could be said that I was witnessing the end of the gullible girl’s metamorphosis, and by looking at the end result, her desire to not become an adult was a lot more understandable—but since the future is variable, it seems that every time she transforms, there is some margin of error in the image of Mizukura Risuka post-metamorphosis. 

For example, this time, the fact that she interacted with me before she transformed had a small effect on her, causing her to become this special 27-year-old version of herself. 

However, it’s within the margin of error. 

It is almost certain that Risuka-chan’s future is awful. 

I tried to do my best, in my own way, the best I could, but it wasn’t enough to change Risuka-chan in the future, was it? 

It’s a pity I couldn’t be of help. 

If this was Hanekawa, then maybe the situation would have been different, but in any case, things would have reached the same conclusion, that is certain. The 27-year-old Risuka-chan, immediately after awakening, took care of the remaining right leg of Chikyuugi Mizore. 

She swung the blade of her cutter knife and sliced the leg into shreds. Of course, there was a reaction from the right leg, but that didn’t bother her. 

She took in all of its counterattacks, perhaps deliberately, but all of her injuries were instantly healed (or rather “omitted from time”), and she ended the witch hunt, showing off the overwhelming difference in skill. 

At the same time, she dutifully fulfilled her promise of trampling me on the ground (with her stilettos!) 

“Goodbye. Well, this has been mildly entertaining, you loser. If you’ve learned your lesson, don’t even lay a hand on a magical girl again. No, lay a foot, I guess?” With that, she was gone. 

Like melting into space, like a dissolving bloodbath, she disappeared in a huff. 

Or perhaps she omitted time and returned to her field—because this trip was, after all, a business trip that she should have never taken. 

Good grief. 

I stood up, lamenting and dusting my body that was full of holes—I was exhausted, but the ground that should have been ruined by the blood flood and the iron door that should have been destroyed were, mysteriously, all restored to their original states. 

Is this the service of the Red Witch of Time? 

Does the constraint that she can only control the relative time of her body, and the constraint that she can only advance “forward” in time disappear when she becomes 27 years old? Or maybe she used another type of magic? If that’s the case, it would have been nice of her to also heal the wound on my thigh (and the holes she opened with her stilettos), but her sadistic character renders that wish unobtainable. 

But that’s OK. 

I’m not ordinary either, and an injury of this level is really just a scratch—even if “spit on it and it will heal” was an exaggeration, it will heal with my blood. 

Blood. 

Yes, I should add, that this was Risuka-chan’s secret move—she hid such a fearsome ability, and it now seems natural that she’d leave some room to spare even when she was cornered by the right leg. But the impatience she felt when she lost her cutter knife was too overwhelming, making her trigger her ability. 

The condition for activating her instantaneous growth ability was to lose a certain amount of blood—in other words, Risuka-chan needed to shed blood in order to use her final card. 

In that sense, the right leg of Chikyuugi Mizore, whose only attacks were kicking and strangling, might have been close to a natural enemy for Risuka-chan. 

Her trump card wouldn’t activate even when she was close to death, because she’d be hit without bleeding—so even if it was a fragment of it, a knife was necessary. 

A knife that cuts the skin, tears the flesh and rips the arteries. 

… Her cutter knife wouldn’t have had to be a magic stick, so it’s hard to say that my deduction was correct, but in the end, it turned out alright. 

At any rate, it was a relief not to have to clean up afterward—and it also seemed that we were able to get things over with without being seen, so, I guess I should go home and ask Karen to teach me the correct single leg takedown… hmm? 

And then I remembered. 

It is true that the landscape has been restored to its original state and there seemed to be no need to hide and cover up, but that was only for the ground. 

What happened to the cutter knife that was kicked to the other side of the school building? 

Now that I had noticed it, I couldn’t avoid checking it out, so I went around the school building and continued to the courtyard. 

Mizukura Risuka’s red cutter knife was stuck in the middle of a flower bed. 

“A lost article from a magical girl?” 

As I muttered, I started to pull out the blade. And I did the same routine as her, the same grinding noises, Schk schk schk schk… Schk schk schk schk… Schk schk schk schk… 

When I had completely pulled out the blade, I reached a conclusion— no, because it was me, I’d already reached the conclusion at the beginning anyway. 

“Araragi Koyomi is really a man who never learns his lesson, isn’t he?” 

But, yeah. 

I’ve been beaten up and stepped on, and although I’m reluctant to admit it, I’m still far away from feeling sorry.  I’ll have to make a trip to Kyushu next time, to deliver what she had forgotten. 

I feel bad for Risuka-chan, but I might mistake her for someone else once again! 

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11  The kanji for “soaking” (浸) and “invading” (侵) look similar. 
12  The word for “fill” (満ち足りる, michitariru) contains the kanji 足 (“leg”). 
13  Araragi’s first name is 暦 (koyomi, “calendar”). 
14  Just like earlier, "I’m sorry" is 悪しからず (ashikarazu) with the beginning sounding like 足 (ashi, “leg”).