One day, a familiar guest visited Mellow Kitchen.
It was the elder, leader of the Doll Star. Before he could even sit down, Maple asked him a question. About Muffin's story, and whether the fate that befell her mother's doll would also be repeated for Muffin.
The elder was silent for a moment. Then he slowly opened his mouth.
Your mother's doll vanishing was the will of the stars. But for you, there may be another possibility.
The elder had been poring over old records all this time.
There was only one condition for Muffin's mission to end. The moment Maple could stand entirely on her own. The hypothesis the elder had found was about overturning that.
If the state of Maple needing Muffin could be sustained forever, then the very condition for vanishing would never be met.
It was a possibility. Not a certainty. But it was different from having nothing at all.
And then the elder shared one more thing.
A crisis was about to fall upon the village, he said. The signal that connected Earth and the Doll Star had broken from overload. With nowhere to go, the happiness energy that had been flowing toward the Doll Star was scattering, and the dolls had begun to lose the very foundation of their being and turn transparent.
It was the same for the people of Earth. Having lost the source of their childlike heart, the villagers were one by one losing their spirit.
While the elder was racking his mind, he found one clue.
The Dream Food that Maple and Muffin made together. Those who ate it remembered the forgotten memories of their dolls and found their spark again.
Solving this problem may also be the way to save Muffin.
Maple listened quietly to the elder's words.
Nothing was certain. But for the first time, the thought that there was nothing she could do had vanished.
