No, she couldn't let that happen. She would not stand by and witness the inevitable end, she wished to put a stop to it. He would hate her for doing this but if she stepped back, she could only fear the future, she would not be true to her feelings, ordering her to do something about the situation.

Koishi's mind: I can't wait.

The ritual would mark the end of her window of opportunity, she needed to act before it happened. Quickly, her plan was formed, although quite rough on the edges but she could perfect it during her confrontation. When she glanced in the librarian's direction, she saw him kneeling beside the circle, making final adjustements, a perfect chance for her to begin phase one.

'He'll hate you for it.'

Koishi's mind: I have to be strong.

Her courage up, her footsteps lightly echoed around her while the distance between them shortened. Each sound felt like it wasn't coming from her but rather something right behind her, following her every movements and waiting for a weak spot to appear on her. Almost like if she lost focus of her emotions, she would be attacked by something.

Pushing that rather idiotic idea aside, she was now standing right behind the man, watching intently his back with bright eyes of confidence. Tired from every ordeals he went through, he could only sense the pair of eyes observing after a full minute. Turning around, the bags under his eyes seemed to have multiplied, pulling his body to the limit. Nonetheless, he greeted her with a smile.

Y/N: Is something wrong?

His voice felt a lot more feeble than when they first met. Probably since the end was so near, the man decided to drop the act of the lone wolf, revealing that behind the facade of a fighter that never rest was a weak animal with a rotting sanity, speaking to himself when his mind couldn't take it anymore.

Koishi: Are you alright?

She wanted to start the conversation with something light, to not jump straight into the topic. Seeing her worry, he rapidly shook his head and the fatigue accumulating was dissipating, applying yet another layer to pretend that nothing was wrong. Of course, he couldn't truly hide everything and he knew it as well, he just wished to have a better look on his face in his final moments.

Y/N: Nothing much to worry about, just the usual tiredness.

'I should stand strong until the end.'

'You won't make me fall again for such a trick.'

Koishi: It's... I wanted to ask you something.

She felt the pressure of her words weighing her down. Curious by the demand, the man stood up, the sword by his side following. Now that she wished to confront him, she was painfully aware of that weapon by his side, now a threat to her safety.

Koishi: ...

With no words said, she stepped back into the depth of the library and asked the man to follow her, fleeing from the possible ears listening to their conversation. Curious, he followed her and once enough distance from the circle was traveled, she stopped.

Y/N: Go ahead, tell me what's wrong.

Koishi: ...

Her words remained stuck, unable to be uttered, anxiety building up inside her. She knew what she had to do but couldn't gather the energy to pull the trigger and start the next chain of events. She wished to keep that friendship between the both of them but if she did that, it would only be temporary.

Koishi: It's about the ritual.

Raising a single eyebrow, Y/N did not say a word, feeling like she had more to say. That hunch proved to be true in the end.

Koishi: Do we really have to do this? Isn't there another solution?

The words fell upon the both of them and the man's gaze slowly turned cold. Going rigid, his stare was silently questioning her, attempting to understand her objective by proposing what seemed like a foolish idea.

Y/N: If there was a better way to do this, I would have taken it, I haven't spend many years trapped in solitude here for nothing.

Koishi: ...You don't have to do this mister Y/N! We can look for another plan-

Y/N: We don't have any more time, I used it all.

'They're arriving.'

Koishi: Who's here? Tell me, please!

Holding onto her position, she wished to assist him in a way that would bring a better result than witnessing his death. He was against the idea, thinking that his path was the only one he could take to accomplish his goal, she needed to make him realize that it was wrong but how?

Y/N: ...

He did not respond. For the first time ever since she helped him, he gave her the cold shoulder, so shocking that her eyes widened slightly. However, he was not angry, not a moment, he understood her worries and they were justified. Facing her, his frigid look could only bring out the worst of it: his endless enervation.

Y/N: That's why I wished to tell you farewell, to not leave any loose ends.

Where he was going, she would never be able to follow his footsteps, he would vanish from her life forever. In a world where humans are scared of the youkais, a monster that goes to neither categories would never be allowed to live inside Gensokyo, he would perish and disappear.

Koishi: No! I refuse this, we can try to look for something else! Their lives are not worth more than yours!

Y/N: Don't be ridiculous, a single life compared to many that I betrayed? Do you REALLY think that they weigh the same? It's for the greater good that the weak ones are eliminated or else this happens.

Koishi: ...

Y/N: The weaks can only hide behind others because they cannot defend themselves. Take a look at me, my life so far has been me running away, to not look at those who sacrificed themselves for my protection. How could I EVER hope to be worth as much as all of them combined?

He had no energy in his voice, too tired to raise his tone. To him, everyone wasted their lives to save his miserable ass, he was the cause of their downfall. He needed to punish himself, lacerate himself with remorse until his goal was reached. He did just that and now at the end, someone that helped him was trying to convince him to think otherwise, after so many years of cowardice and guilt.

Koishi: ...

Recovering, she placed her hand on top of her chest and deeply stared into the man's expression, her third eye witnessing the scene like an observer. She wanted to reach a second ending, a deviation of the intended path.

Koishi: Mister Y/N, I beg you!

Gritting her teeth, she could feel her legs trembling slightly. Her emotions were going in so many directions that it was complicated to get her point across, especially when the interlocutor has given up and lost the will to keep looking.

Koishi: Your life has more worth than any of them in my eyes!

He was her precious friend and not only that, her doctor, the one who solved her problem by confronting her problems and uprooting the cause of that trauma. She would never know of that last part but she could feel it in her being, she didn't want him to simply disappear and leave her alone, not after what he did.

Koishi: I don't want to lose my friend again!

For once, her voice rose up, taking over the silence of the library. She was proclaiming her feelings. She didn't know what would happen of her if she was forced to see him end his own life in front of her eyes, she would fall down to an even deeper depth that she didn't want to imagine.

Taken over by sorrow, inside a place that feeds on emotions, she could already see the devil on her shoulder whispering her the words that would be enough for her to break a second time. She wanted to avoid that outcome, to become nothing more than a distorted version of her own emotions, just like in that nightmare.

*Dong* *Dong* *Dong*

Koishi: Huh?

Her body became feeble once the bell rang throughout the prison that they were remaining in. Y/N, on the other hand, loosened his shoulders, knowing what was happening. Just like before an unknown voice spoke up.

???: Intruders detected inside the library. Presence unknown, please proceed with caution.

Koishi: N-No!

They took too long, the executionners now standing at the entrance and waiting for the culprit to show himself. Lowering his head, the final librarian heaved a single sigh and glanced at the girl who took the remaining of his time. Did he hate her for doing that? No, of course he couldn't. Both aware that it was the end, they were silent for a while.

Y/N: I don't plan on giving up but if I fail... it was a pleasure to be your friend Koishi.

He flashed her one final smile and turned around. A snuffed out cry barely reached his ears, coming from the youkai. Following him, she tried her best to contain her tears, to latch onto him and never let go. It was a childish decision but it was her only hope to keep a grasp on the one that she wanted to keep by her side for longer.

Koishi: You don't have to!

Near the entrance, he placed his hands on top of her trembling shoulders and kneeled to her height. Taking the role of a comforting parent, he gave her a long embrace of reassurance, a hug that she held onto for as long as possible. Still fighting back the droplets forming in her eyes, a few sobs were trapped in her throat.

Y/N: Even once I'm gone, I'll never leave your side.

'Because my book shall remain by your side.'

Releasing her, he prepared his sword and made his way to greet the guests waiting for him. The group waiting was formed of a woman with an umbrella, the witch from before who frowned back at him, a woman with many tails and one with a bandaged arm. All staring at him, the dying man blinked once.

Y/N: Welcome back, Marisa Kirisame.

Marisa: I'm here for Reimu.

Raising a single hand, many rapiers appeared out of thin air, waiting for her signal. During that time, the girl with pink hair took a deep breath and raised her fists, ready for a duel. In the back, the remaining women watched him.

Yukari: So you are the one responsible for this.

Y/N: Can't deny, nor confirm, I simply followed orders.

Yukari: From who? 

Y/N: ...

Pulling out his sword, all his adversaries were ready as well, not intending to let themselves be defeated by him. After all, defeat meant death in this prison of endless size. The battle began and from a distance, the girl was forced to witness something that she didn't want to see, the end of a friendship.

'Your current self will never be able to save him.'

Koishi's mind: Shut up.

'You'll never be able to save him.'

Koishi's mind: Shut up!

'You failed, like before.'

Koishi's mind: Shut up! I said shut up! I don't want to hear anything!

Grabbing her head, she tried to make the voice in her mind vanish, hoping to never hear it torment her again. Closing her eyes, she could faintly hear the sound of weapons clashing in the distance, trapped in her own battle.

'Just listen to the voices.'

Koishi: ...

She failed to complete her objective, she failed. It was a fact that she was forced to admit, she couldn't stop the outcome and she was now forced to witness her mistake. Around her, many voices were telling her what to do, so many of them whispering devilish words but she couldn't help herself but listen.

Unlike them, she couldn't form a good idea, she should let ones who know what they are doing do what she couldn't perform.

...

...

Y/N: ...

Clutching his sword, many sweats fell down his face. He tried his best to combat his future but the many rapiers impaling his body was enough to get a clear picture: he would never be able to win this fight.

Marisa: I have to be strong, to bring Reimu back.

Y/N: ...

Yet, with so many foreign objects in his body, he was still standing. The flames of persistence still grew, even at the end and especially because it was the end, he refused to let himself perish right at the finish line.

Y/N's mind: I have... to keep going, keep going even if I have to tear my limbs off.

Swinging his weapon, he deflected an incoming projectile before dodging a sword flung at him. His breath becoming rapid, he had no time to rest at all, no time to recover and nobody by his side.

???: Let him go!

From behind him, a loud and powerful voice resonated, shaking the whole place itself. Just as surprised as him, the guests stopped their attacks and aimed their gazes at the origin of the voice. Finally, after many seconds, a shape emerged from the library. Standing on his own, the man was forced to witness the horror facing him.

Looming above them all was a gigantic pair of hands... no, claws at this point, attached to the main body with hundreds of chains and ligaments. The body controlling the hands was covered with vines and scales, a massive symbol ressembling an eye on the front. On top of it, what should have been a head was instead a monstrosity. Indeed, the lower jaw was completely ripped off, hanging from the left side and where the top of the head was, a singular and large eyeball was observing each and every small person standing before it. The only thing that made the librarian realize that it was the small girl that helped him was the hat that she always carried with her, on top of her eye.

Marisa: Woah, what is THAT?

Y/N: ...

Still deeply wounded, he could feel his grip onto his sword becoming weaker, terrified of what the girl had turned into. Yukari, noticing the man's distress, quickly formed a gap below his feet and he landed right next to her.

Y/N: H-Huh?!

Yukari: We need to go.

Koishi: Give Y/N Back!! I won't lose someone dear to me ever again!! 

Raising one of her hands in the air, a cage suddenly appeared. Holding the object tightly, she was looking at the small librarian and he knew what she was planning to do with that. If she ever caught him, he would never be able to escape her side again, just like she said.

Y/N: The exit, go to the exit!

Ordering his previous enemies, they all retreated from the library, ignoring the screams of the monster that was once Koishi Komeiji, now nothing else than a beast following her emotions.

Y/N: *Cough* Damn, those swords hurt.

Standing outside, he leaned against the youkai of boundaries. Even though there was only a single door separating them from what would be best described as an abomination, no sounds could come out of it.

Yukari: We expect you to tell us everything you know.

Y/N: Yea... if I survive.

He mumbled back with a weak smirk, aware that he was in critical condition. Pulled by the others, they all left the scene where the end should have been, abandoning the youkai who opened her third eye after so long. However, it was only a matter of time, she would not allow herself to be trapped, not when the object of her emotions was being dragged away from her.

Koishi: DON'T RUN FROM ME!!

She could scream as much as she wanted but nobody would ever hear her on the other side of the door. Hitting it also produced no results and with no librarians remaining, it was also locked, leaving her trapped within it. Unleashing her anger, she began to trash the nearest bookshelves, destroying one after the other with no remorse while screaming loudly, calling the man's name and begging him to return.

She would not give up, she would never give up, fight until her object of desire is reached. They told her how to protect one that she didn't want to lose, even one that would risk his own life on the line. By keeping him by her side, he would never die, she would never lose him out of her sight.

'Let us break from this prison.'

Koishi: Break free... I have to protect my friend.

...

...

In the end, the recovery took longer than expected due to the librarian's exhaustion, plunging him into a coma of 2 week. A long wait for those who were waiting for more information but quick for the man recovering. Patched up and completely healed from his tiredness, he was once more a fighter at the top of his shape.

Y/N: So... you wanted an explanation right?

Residing inside the youkai of boundaries' residence, he took his cup of hot tea and glanced outside, reminiscing of the past. Sitting on the other side, the woman did not react, knowing that he would talk on his own. Instead, she sipped away at her own drink, feeling the fresh air entering and circling them.

Y/N: It all began... Well, I guess it began when we woke up. None of us knew why we woke up inside that library but we were told that no matter what we do, we would die, die defending that place.

Slowly, he told the woman his tale, one of a pathetic coward who could save nobody until the end, only taking away from others. At the end, having heard more than enough, the listener placed down the cup and looked at the survivor, forever scarred.

Yukari: This ritual was never going to work from the start.

Y/N: ...Huh?

Yukari: It would not have worked, even if everything worked in your favor.

Y/N: How can you be so sure?

The woman glanced in his direction, showing him a rather fierce expression on her otherwise calm face. It might not have been much but for him, he understood what it meant. She spoke to him with no hesitation, reinforcing the feeling that he was wrong from the very start. He might have been desperate but even he knew to not disregard things like that.

Y/N: It... wasn't going to work.

'Mister Y/N, I beg you!' 'Your life has more worth than any of them in my eyes!' 'You don't have to!', the words of the youkai who stood by his side, the one who decided to be on his side rather than try to kill him, came back to him along with her expression of desperation. She wished for another ending, did she know that it wasn't going to work?

Y/N: ...

The surface of the liquid placed inside the cup was suddenly disturbed, creating waves when something fell into it. Everything coming back to him, every words that she told him, words that he ignored because of his persistence. He was forced to hear them all at the same time while a trail of water fell down from his eyes into the cup.

Y/N: I'm a failure... I always was, I can never do anything right.

Yukari: ...

She did not say anything, preferring to let the man deal with his emotions by himself. Her attempt to convince him to take another path, he wished that he could go back, go back and take the correct route. He should have believed her words, believe the one who was worried about his safety.

And now? She was gone, becoming a monster controlled by her own emotions and now chasing him until the end of time. She would not give up until he did what she begged him to do, to not risk his life, nor sacrifice it. He pushed her demand aside but now, he could tell that she wasn't going to take 'no' for an answer.

Y/N: Koishi... please tell me that we can do something.

Looking up, it was his turn to beg, beg for the sake of the one who tried to save him. Staring back at him, she lowered her head while closing her eyes. Met with silence, the librarian's face grew hollow, faced with an answer that he didn't want to think about.

Yukari: I'm afraid that I do not know what to do.

Y/N: What about Marisa? That witch came back from that state, I know it! What did she do to come back?

Yukari: Even she doesn't know, we do not have any answer for you.

Y/N: ...

His shoulders dropping, the air became silent. Both of them stood up, done with the conversation and Yukari was pleased by the information given to her. Although that library did take Reimu under its grasp, she had its final occupant by her side, they would figure something out. However, the problem concerning the youkai from the Underworld was another matter, one that she couldn't fix.

Yukari: I suggest you rest and keep your energy.

Y/N: ...Why?

Yukari: Once we have everyone, we plan on going back, to stop this possible incident from escalating any further.

Y/N: I'm going to.

Yukari: We weren't planning to leave you, ready yourself.

He was a pathetic coward that would let others sacrifice themselves for him and after so long, it never changed. First, it was his friends, the other librairans and now... the girl with a third eye, who wanted to make him realize that his life was also important, was gone. With no way to bring her back, the sad reality hit him.

As his friend, he would have to put her down.

...

...

I should have known from the beginning, I should have known your intentions. I can only blame myself for blindly believing those sweet words of yours, pretending that it was truly a goal that would solve everything. You were so confident in your choice... I wanted to see for myself that it was true, I was curious. I shouldn't have involved myself.

I want to hate myself for letting myself fall for something like this, I really do but I cannot hide my feelings. From the start, I felt sympathy for you, seeing you all alone made me feel like I was staring at myself, to have nobody by your side when you need it. I wanted to ignore it but it was too strong, I wanted to fix this horrible sentiment in my chest and not feel like abandoning someone in my same situation.

I tried my best, I helped you, I worried about you and you soon began to acknowledge me as one that would not betray you. I don't know why but, seeing you accept me made my body ache to the point of being unbearable, I was having a hard time believing your words. At the same time, they made me happy, something that I haven't felt in so long, it was almost nostalgic.

In the end, I defied you, I begged you to not proceed with your plan that brought us in this partnership. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I won't do that again so I beg you, come back to me Y/N. Come back, I'll promise to be by your side as long you are by mine, that you do not leave me.

*Dong* *Dong* *Dong*

???: Intruders detected inside the library! Last Librarian and unknown presences detected, proceed with caution.

This time, I will not fail, I won't let you sacrifice yourself anymore and I will make sure you never leave me like everyone else. You are my precious friend and I wish to never lose you, not now, nor ever.

I promise that I'll do my best to help you, I will make sure that nobody ever takes your life. You always told me that you were a coward and it's fine, it's fine mister Y/N. I'll make sure that you don't have to fight ever again, you won't feel like a coward if I take out those who dare to attack you before you even know it.

...

...

Y/N: ...Koishi.

Greeting them on the other side of the entrance, the being that was once the girl was floating in the air, lacking the legs to stand on the ground. The claws attached to the main body were resting on the floor and the single eyeball was staring back at them. Behind her, a single cage was waiting for them too, a cage waiting for his return.

Koishi: I'll make sure that you don't have to fight ever again...

Yukari: ...

Taking a hold of his weapon, the fully-rested librarian, free from every shackles that were weakening him before, longly stared at the distorted manifestation of Koishi's feelings, a monster that cannot control itself.

Behind him, the same group from before was ready to face the monstrosity in front of their eyes. It would be a tough battle and they all knew that, yet none retreated, even the coward taking the lead. He would push that feeling aside, only for a single time. The fight would soon begin, where a powerful librarian accompanied by many others would face something born out of the library.

Whether they won or not though was another story, a story that would not be told here but perhaps, maybe in the future. Yes, once the future becomes certain, maybe that tale would be told to all who could not witness it with their own eyes but until then... I'm afraid that this is where that story end.

Simply wait for the survivors to tell their tale observers. You do not belong here, it is time for you to take your leave.

Bad ending

Achievement unlocked: Eternal Happiness

Resume of the ending:

>Y/N accepted Koishi's assitance

>Proposition to be removed from the curse accepted

>Did not defeat Fujiwara no Mokou

>Marisa Kirisame was chosen to be the last survivor

>Y/N did not tell Koishi about the truth

>All materials collects

>Koishi's feelings were confronted

>Y/N's feelings were not confronted

>Ritual not completed

Yet another bad end? Are you doing this on purpose or are you really that terrible at it, I wonder.

If you wish to confront that librarian's feeling, you should do more than convincing. Don't you know that there is no point talking to one who has given up on listening to others? It's the same here, Y/N decided that it was his only path.

To truly make him confront his feelings, destroy the thing that he worked so hard for.