The sky in the fog turned to drowsy second by second. Sitting on the edge of the roof, I could see that the shadowy buildings around me were also being swallowed up by darkness little by little.

And at this moment, the two figures on the roof sat and stood, and they both fell into silence slightly.

You can see that the two little legs of Makana hanging from the edge of the roof are gently dangling, and the expression of contemplation on one face is faintly piled up.

He was thinking, thinking so that he would not regret it.

Well...... To say that it is worthy of his titular "daughter"? Not far behind him, Delphi, who was staring at his back, was obviously thinking the same, and perhaps even thinking for the same reason as Maca.

However, even if the reasons for thinking may be the same, the results hoped for by the two can be said to be diametrically opposed.

"I'm not going to give up anyone I want to protect, and I can't give up both."

"The person who can do that is not called Macka McKellen."

These were the last two words that Maca had just said.

As for the "two" people to be protected, one naturally refers to Luna. And the other...... It seems that she is the only one Delphi?

No, and Luna for now, at least she obviously shouldn't be "protected", right?

Yes, to change that desperate future will inevitably lead to the demise of her, a time traveler from the future world.

This is undoubtedly the most obvious time rule, and it has been almost doomed since she came to this era.

It is impossible not to understand this with the wisdom of Maca.

“…… Father. ”

What's more, Maca will definitely not know that this Delphi standing behind him at the moment is not the only Delphi in this world.

If I have to say, she is actually a person who should not have appeared, and her very existence represents the misfortune of the whole of Europe and even the whole world.

"Daddy."

However, Maca ignored the absolutely inviolable rules of time, and even ignored the Blois Castle that really belonged to this era, and still said those two words.

"Daddy!"

Delphi shouted three times in a row before she heard Maca, who was sitting on the edge of the building with her back to her, say casually:

"I've said it, it's better not to use this here-"

As he was talking, he suddenly thought about it, but still showed a slightly helpless smile.

"Forget it, you can call it that if you want to! Even though I'm still young, I don't mind having a beautiful eldest daughter like you! ”

can be heard that Maca's words also have a slight joking flavor, as if she wants to dilute the solemn atmosphere just now.

But Delphi didn't take it easy as he wanted, and still stubbornly said:

"Daddy...... You actually know very well in your heart that the girl who was sent to Fort Blois, France, is the real Delphi of this era. And I am just a symbol of a great catastrophe - an existence that must be erased from this era! ”

"Daddy, don't you know? I want to have an easier and better life, not a life of wandering in a seemingly never-ending war......"

"So, even if you want to worry about me, please put your affection on me when I was still a child in Fort Blois, okay?"

Speaking of this, Delphi hurriedly wiped his somewhat damp eyes, and endured an inexplicable sore nose.

"Seriously," she continued, "Dad, you've always been the goal I've tried so hard to catch up with, but I've always felt out of reach. ”

"In the future, even if you're seriously injured fighting against the rules of time, I've never been able to beat you even once in dueling practice. And even now, even though I'm about the same age as you, I can only chase after you......"

"So for you, if you only need to stop the summoning ceremony, I'm sure you'll be able to succeed!"

Listening to these words coming from behind, Maca couldn't help but close her eyes slightly, and only said after a moment:

"Yes! Maybe you're right...... All of this is very reasonable. ”

"Then you just do it!" Delphi pursed her lips, her eyes full of anxiety.

However, Maca, who had her back to her, waved her hand.

"But there is one thing I cannot agree with—" he said, "do you really think that you who are now standing behind me, and you who have been sent to Fort Blois as a child...... Is it the same person? ”

Delphi couldn't help but be stunned when he heard this.

"Isn't it?" She replied, "As long as the future hasn't changed, she and I are the same person; And what if the future changes...... At that time, I don't exist anymore. ”

But when Maca heard this, she shook her head again and said:

"No, even if the future doesn't change, you and her are no longer the same person."

In strict accordance with the rules of time, every minute, every second, and even every moment of a person is not the same as he was in the previous moment. But compared to this purely theoretical thing, what Maca wants to say is actually emotional.

After a slight pause, he continued:

"For me, it's more like 'you're my friend Delphi' than 'you're my daughter Delphi...... Do you understand? Because at this time, I didn't even think of the girl 'Delphi Fisher' as my daughter. ”

"Therefore, what I want to protect is really just a 'friend' who is willing to sacrifice for me."

With that, Maca suddenly stood up and turned back to Delphi. He looked directly at this surprisingly beautiful girl and said seriously:

"See? Just like the 'Maca McLean' in front of you—there may be many similarities, but now I am not your father. ”

Maca's words made the image of the "father" in Delphi's eyes, who had always overlapped with Maca, separated little by little.

Oh, yes!

No matter how similar it is, no matter how much there is no huge change, more than ten years will definitely produce a gap that cannot be easily ignored.

The thin, hard stubble, the long hair that was tied up at random, and the coughing and wheezing that often accompanied the ears because of the permanent severe injury...... In the case of maca in this day and age, none of them exist.

In the past, the reason why she overlapped Maca more than ten years ago was because she missed her father who disappeared for no reason too much.

But at this moment, the gradual peeling off of the two images made Delphi feel a little dazed, and she didn't feel much loss from it.

Looking back, she, as the "unidentified trench coat wizard", has also been by Maca's side for a long time. Even though she does see Maca as her father many times, there are always cases where she unconsciously treats Maca as her peers.

She has accompanied Maca to many places, done many things, and met many people, and she has casually chatted with her, discussed them on an equal footing, and even helped her in the battle with Helpo more than once.

And this kind of feeling is something that I have never experienced when I was with that father in the future.

As Delphi stood in front of Maca, recalling the days she had spent with Maca since she came to this era, Maca concluded:

"You should understand by now, right? All I want to protect is this you, I don't want you to disappear at all. ”

However, I don't know what Delphi suddenly remembered again, so I saw that she suddenly came back to her senses from the memory. Then, I saw that the tears in her eyes finally couldn't be held back anymore and rolled down in a swoop.

"No," she said, shaking her head vigorously and choking up, "even if you say that, it's impossible...... I don't deserve your protection, I ...... I'm not qualified to be protected by you at all! Father...... No, Mr. McLean, you'd better let me disappear like that! I...... Please......"

This sudden crying made Maca also fall into a wave of doubt.

Even if he had thought about it so much before, he had said so much that he was about to convince the extremely stubborn Delphi in front of him.

But this time, Maca really didn't expect half a point.

Seeing this, he couldn't help frowning slightly, and gently supported the girl who was crying a little unsteadily, and casually dusted away the tears that slowly fell on her pretty face.

"What's wrong?" Maca was puzzled and said, "What qualifications are not qualified?" You didn't hesitate to cross more than ten years to come to this era for me—that reason alone is enough for me to really want to protect you. ”

But Delphi was still shaking his head at this time, and his face was drooping lower and lower.

It can be seen that some words have almost come to her lips, but for some reason she can't say them honestly.

Maca had been aware of this before, but the feeling at this moment was especially obvious.

"Delphi?"

The long, maroon hair that slightly curled her face because she hung her head, and her slightly trembling shoulders showed that she was still sobbing. Maca hadn't yet understood what she was crying for, but he knew that the reason for that was certainly not light.

Unconsciously, Maca's heart was secretly nervous, even if he didn't know what he was nervous about.

And in the next second, when a wisp of unease appeared in his heart, Delphi finally raised his head suddenly as if he could no longer endure some kind of inner torture.

Look at the hair fluttering, a pair of red eyes flashing with tears, which implied indescribable guilt...... and a resolute outcome.

When the strands of hair swept across the face, when the white lips gently opened and closed.

Maca froze.