When I opened my eyes, there were two skies. Silver and crimson. Two moons floated side by side in the night sky. Utsuki Asuka stared up at their light for a while, dazed. She felt the soft touch of grass against her back. The sound of insects drifted from somewhere distant. The air smelled strangely sweet—nothing like the musty library smell she knew. (…Where am I right now?) Her head throbbed. When she sat up, the entire landscape was grassland. The outline of mountains was visible in the distance. The grass at her feet glowed with a pale, bluish-white light. It was glowing. The grass was glowing. "…Huh?" The sound escaped reflexively. She reached out and touched the grass. Her fingertips grew faintly warm. Even when she pulled a blade free, the light didn't fade immediately. It was as if something alive was seeping from each individual leaf. Asuka stood and looked at the sky again. Two moons. No matter how she looked at it, there were definitely two. One was silver, the other tinged with crimson. (This is bad. Really bad. Two moons isn't normal. Something's definitely wrong.) She patted her pockets. Pulled out her phone and pressed the power button. The screen lit up, but there was no signal bar. Not even "no service"—the antenna display was completely zero. "[scared]Seriously…" She muttered and closed the screen. She already knew this wasn't Japan. ――― She remembered what happened before. The library after school was always quiet. From outside the window came the voices of classmates heading home. They laughed and chattered, talking to each other, forming groups as they left. Asuka sat on the floor between the shelves, reading a borrowed book. It wasn't that she couldn't join in. If she'd wanted to, she probably could have. But she couldn't find the right moment. By the time everyone had already started moving, she couldn't bring herself to say "Oh, me too." Before she knew it, she was alone. It was always like this. Asuka's appearance was ordinary—the kind of girl you'd see anywhere. Chestnut-colored hair fell loosely past her shoulders in a long style, with a slight curl at the front that wouldn't stay back. Her soft brown eyes often drifted into space when she was thinking. At 150 centimeters tall, today she wore a checkered blouse, a skirt, and sneakers. She didn't like how her dimples showed when she smiled—they made her look too childish. As she read, her gaze drifted to the adjacent shelf. Something strange was wedged in the bottom row. It was shorter than the other books, hidden in a spot she never would have noticed if she hadn't been looking. The book had no title on its cover. No author name. Nothing. Only the spine was decorated in gold, with a star-shaped crest engraved on it. (What a weird book…) She thought this, but her hand reached out anyway. It wasn't so much that she couldn't leave it alone—it was more that she'd noticed something no one else would have. When this happened, Asuka usually couldn't turn back. The moment she opened the cover, rainbow light burst forth. After that, her memory went blank. ――― Back in the grassland. Asuka started walking. Standing still wouldn't solve anything. There might be people somewhere. If she saw a building or a road, she could head toward it. The air was clear. Despite the night, the light from the two moons let her see more than she expected. The grass glowed blue-white here and there, and with each step, the light swayed as if she were walking along the dark bottom of the sea. (It's beautiful… but that's not the point right now.) The distant mountains were only visible as outlines. She couldn't tell how far away they were. There were no city lights anywhere in sight. She used her phone's flashlight to illuminate the ground as she walked. She was worried about the battery, but there was no choice. The grass crunched beneath her feet, and Asuka stopped. She turned toward the sound. Nothing was there. Just grass swaying in the wind. …But she felt like something was watching her. (Probably just my imagination.) She walked a bit further. Suddenly, the air changed. It wasn't that the temperature dropped—something else had mixed into it. Black mist began gathering slowly at one point in the grassland. At first it was too thin to see clearly, but gradually it grew denser, forming an outline that resembled a human shape. (…What is that?) The outline slowly approached her. "[scared]This is bad this is bad this is bad this is bad this is bad!!" She screamed and ran. She shoved her phone into her pocket and sprinted with all her might. Grass tangled around her feet. The ground was uneven. Hard to run. So hard to run, and yet something like a monster was coming from behind. Her foot caught. She tumbled into the grassland, face-first. (Ow…!!) As she tried to get up, her chest glowed. It glowed brilliantly. Asuka looked down at herself in shock. Somehow, a star-shaped pendant now hung around her neck. She'd never seen it before. It definitely wasn't there a moment ago. The jewel part was shining with intense rainbow light. Light enveloped her entire body. A sensation like tickling, like warmth. When she realized what was happening, her checkered blouse and skirt had vanished. Instead, she wore a white and gold costume made of frills and ribbons. The skirt's ruffles swayed in the wind. Her shoes had become heels. Heels. What was she supposed to do with heels? She couldn't run in these. "[surprised]Huh? What? Why? What am I doing??" She froze, staring at her outfit. But the black mist was closing in from behind, so there was no time to freeze. (Magic…? I think light is coming out! If I point my hand at it, maybe it'll work!?) With zero logic or basis, she pointed her palm at the mass of mist. She concentrated, willing something to come out. Light came out. It came out too much. The light exploded at roughly ten times the size she'd imagined, and the blast sent Asuka flying backward. She crashed headfirst into the grass. Same position as before. "[angry]Why am I face-planting again?!" She lifted her face from the grass. The mist was wavering in the light. It was weakening. It was working. But it was still there. "[excited]Oh, it's working! One more time!" She got up and pointed her hand again. This time she concentrated a bit more carefully. The light that came out was much smaller than before. About the size of a lightbulb. "That's tiny!!" She couldn't help but comment. But the mist was still there. Again. Still small. Again. Still small. Again. Again. Again… Around the fifth shot, the mist vanished without a sound. The transformation ended. The costume faded, and her original clothes returned. At the same time, her knees gave out and she collapsed onto the grass. She felt hollow inside. All her strength had drained away, and her hands were shaking. (What just happened…?) Asuka sat there for a while, catching her breath. (That costume… was that a magical girl? But why… me?) She knew the term "magical girl." She'd seen it in anime. But she'd never thought it was real. Besides, if she remembered correctly, magical girls were supposed to be incredibly rare—something that happened once every fifty years or so. And that was me? Why? What were the criteria? She wrapped her hands around the pendant at her chest. The words "Prism Heart" floated into her mind. Somehow, she just knew. That was the name of this pendant. The rainbow jewel glowed gently now, pulsing with soft light. "[whispers]…Did you protect me?" She asked, but of course there was no answer. The jewel just glimmered. And there was something else bothering her. (My heart breaks and the transformation ends. Just now, I was so scared, so scared… that's probably why it ended.) The power had only worked on the first shot, and then it got weaker and weaker. It felt like her emotions and her power were connected. The more frightened she became, the weaker she grew. That seemed to be the rule of this transformation. She sighed and looked up at the sky. ――― The silver moon and the crimson moon floated side by side as always. She would later learn that the silver moon was called Lunavert and the crimson moon was called Crescea. The people of this world had lived beneath these two moons for all of history. But Asuka didn't know those names yet. She only thought they were beautiful. Beautiful in a way that was almost frightening, as if they were forcing her to confront where she really was. The grass at her feet still glowed softly. When she touched it, it was warm—this pale light was still a mystery. She wanted to go home. It was that simple. She wanted to see her mother. She wanted to eat. She wanted to sleep in her own bed. But she didn't know how to get home. She didn't know where that book had gone. Even if she could get back to the library, without the book it would be pointless. And she didn't even know if there was a way to return to the human world from here. (What can I even do? My power just explodes everywhere, I'm shocked by my own strength, I keep falling on my face, and I don't even understand what this costume is.) She sat on the grass with her face buried in her knees. She felt like she might cry, but she didn't even have the energy for that. But then. She lifted her face just a little. (If I didn't have this pendant… wouldn't that mist thing have killed me? But I got away. I stopped it. I stopped that monster-like thing. I did that.) Her hands were still shaking. Her knees were still weak. But she had definitely stopped it. It was clumsy and desperate, she'd fallen and face-planted in the grass, and it had taken five shots, but she'd still stopped it. It was small, but it was real. She felt her breathing ease a little, and Asuka lifted her head. That's when she saw the figure on the distant hilltop. Just for a moment. "[surprised]…Huh?" She squinted to look. The figure was watching her. It stood in a way that suggested observation. It wasn't moving. The distance was too great to see its face, but someone was definitely there. (Who…?) She strained her eyes, and in the next instant. The figure was gone. Nothing stood on the hilltop. Only wind rustling the grass. Asuka stared at that spot for a while, but the figure didn't return. (That wasn't my imagination. Someone was definitely there.) There was someone else in this world. That realization was both frightening and oddly reassuring. The silver and crimson moons softly illuminated the grassland. The grass at her feet glowed gently. The distant mountains were dark. She still didn't know how to get home. She didn't know who that figure was. She didn't know what the pendant was, or what this world was. She didn't know any of it. But for now, she had survived the night. Asuka planted her feet and slowly stood up.