The stone tablet we brought back from the ruins now sat on the desk in my room.

Its dark bluish-gray surface bore weathered yet clearly carved patterns—and the figure of a monster strikingly similar to Rabbichu.

Sarius was carefully analyzing it using a set of magical instruments.

“This carving… it’s not just similar. Structurally, it could be called the same type. Which means, this is—”

“…Rabbichu’s ancestor…?”

“Or perhaps his ‘former existence.’”

There was an uncharacteristic fervor in Sarius’s voice.

Then, the deciphering began.

On the side of the tablet, the ancient script read:

“O Starwind of Arnea,
Bear the mark of that light, and stay close to the tears of the innocent.
When the True Name is called, thou shalt open the Gate of Stars.”

“Arnea… is that this monster’s True Name?”

“It’s highly possible, but not yet certain. A ‘True Name’ is said to be the sound of the soul—a word that defines a being at its very core…”

“So… not a name, but… an essence?”

I murmured the thought aloud, then looked at Rabbichu.

“Your essence… something deeper than your name… is it waiting to be called?”

Rabbichu gently touched the stone with his nose.

And in that instant, a Star Fragment floated softly from his back.

—The Star Fragment of Innocence

Radiant white. Within it flowed images, like fragments of past or future.

A wing-eared figure protecting a small child—
Comforting a wounded monster bathed in light within a nighttime forest—

Each vision overlapped with the Rabbichu I knew today.

“This isn’t just a record… it’s memory.”

“…I see. So the tablet isn’t merely a carving. If Star Fragments are traces of the soul, then these tablets must have been devices to preserve them—known as Record Stones…”

Sarius scribbled hastily in his notebook, muttering.

“The bond between you and Rabbichu isn’t just a relationship. It may be a continuous existence—a thread linking past to future.”

“…That’s why the fragments react. As long as we’re the continuation.”

That night.

Holding the Star Fragment of Innocence tightly, I whispered to Rabbichu:

“Are you ‘Arnea’? Or are you ‘Rabbichu’…?”

“…Either way, it doesn’t matter. As long as you’re you.”

Rabbichu nestled against me, burying his face into my chest.

The fragment glowed softly—warm, and gentle.