Chiming Bell Summary (Chp 24-29)

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Part 8: Turn for the Worse [1]
Chapter 24
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Back at Kamihama, Iroha and Yachiyo prepare themselves for the final battle. Before they light the candles, Iroha comments on how they somehow end up where Tart is each time, but she still doesn't understand how they manage to do so. Yachiyo sums up what they do know: first, things go dark. And then before they wake up in France, they see a bright light.
Iroha realizes she has the exact same experience, though she adds that it might just be her imagination. Since it won't do them any good to keep thinking about it, they decide to go back. They light the candles and flash back to France.

Both girls notice that Riz still hasn't returned. Tart confirms this, adding that Riz has been gone for a day. Melissa asks if they have any ideas as to where she might've gone. Iroha tells them that she and Yachiyo were probably the last ones Riz talked to, and Yachiyo tells Tart that Riz went to go do recon.
This makes Tart a bit relieved. Using telepathy, Yachiyo and Iroha talk about how Riz hasn't come back since their conversation. Iroha asks if it's normal for Riz to be gone for this long doing recon. Tart answers that it's not that unusual for her to be gone for that reason, so that's why she's not too worried. Melissa says that the only bad part is that Riz might not make it back in time for the next mission.

Just as Iroha asks when they'll make their next move, La Hire comes to tell Melissa that they'll be leaving soon. Iroha says that she and Yachiyo will do their best to make up for Riz's absence. Tart happily thanks them, but as soon as Yachiyo leaves, she quietly murmurs Riz's name in concern.


The narration explains how Tart and co. crossed the mountains, heading for the next fortress without Riz.


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Chapter 25
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The fortress is finally within their view. Just as Gilles gives the order to begin the siege, Iroha senses the presence of a witch and yells at them to wait.
La Hire barely avoids Corbeau's attack. She laughs since they almost lost their lives and tells them to thank the white one. After Melissa mentions it, Corbeau notices that Riz (the black one) isn't there.
Yachiyo tells her that Riz is taking a break and that she'll serve as Corbeau's opponent instead. Corbeau comments that Yachiyo's not bad, but she'd rather fight Riz to the death. Tart asks why. Corbeau answers that it's because they're alike. They will both kill without hesitation. Just as Tart is about to tell her that Riz and Corbeau are nothing alike, Corbeau interrupts by lashing out at Tart, asking her to explain what's so different about them.
Iroha cries out Tart's name in concern, but Tart's fine. Corbeau's impressed by the determination/strength in Tart's eyes. It reminds her of how Riz's eye colors would change and she'd try to kill Corbeau whenever Corbeau spoke badly of Tart. Yachiyo warns Tart to be careful. Corbeau continues, saying she'll try beating up Tart until Riz arrives.


Yachiyo tells Iroha that they should back Tart up. Tart says she won't lose.


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Chapter 26
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The battle against Corbeau continues. She attacks Iroha, and as Yachiyo's distracted by her concern for Iroha's well-being, Corbeau takes the opportunity to attack Yachiyo too. Seeing this, Tart tells Corbeau that she won't let her cause anymore harm. Yachiyo tells her to stop. If she uses any more of her magical energy...
Regardless, Tart tries to deliver the deciding blow by using La Lumiere. Corbeau dodges it and laughs. She taunts Tart and says she'll torment Tart until her eyes are filled with despair, since it doesn't seem like Riz is coming.

Seeing this, Melissa turns to Cube and asks if she'll be able to save Tart if she becomes a magical girl herself. He replies that it's up to her power, but since Riz isn't here and the situation isn't looking good, they might not have a choice...

>Riz: Could you not decide that I'm absent on your own like that?
>Melissa: ...Riz!

Ignoring her, Riz join Tart.

>Riz: Sorry to keep you waiting, Tart.
>Tart: Riz... thank goodness!
>Iroha: So you were okay!

Riz apologizes and says she had trouble coming back.

Tart and Co. aren't the only ones happy that she came back. Corbeau laughs in delight and says that they should continue their fight to the death.

>Riz: ...Gladly. I'll kill you right away. So that you won't be able to lay a finger on Tart ever again!


Riz and Corbeau fight, with Riz clearly having the upper hand. This time, Riz taunts Corbeau, asking where her initial power/spirit went. Corbeau cackles in delight at Riz's intent to kill and Riz shuts her up with another attack.

>Riz: Looks like the battle's been decided. I am Tart's "shadow". I won't hesitate to stain these hands with blood if it's to protect the light of hope.
>Corbeau: .......
>Riz: Die.
>Corbeau: Fufuu...!
>Riz: ....! You're still breathing!?
>Corbeau: As if things'll really end like this!!
>Yachiyo: This is bad!
>Iroha: It's headed towards Tart...!
>Tart: -----!?
>Riz: I WON'T LET YOU!

Riz takes the blow meant for Tart, which absolutely devastates her.

>Riz: Tart...
>Tart: Riz...!
>Riz: I'm so glad...you're okay...
>Tart: Riz... don't die...!
>Riz: Looks like I've...reached my limit already.

>Yachiyo: She...disappeared into the shadows...
>Iroha: No...
>Tart: Riz...RIZ-------!

Suddenly the world turns dark. Corbeau cackles and Iroha asks if she still plans to fight them. She said she doesn't feel like it. She did want to fight them head-on until the end, but she was told to capture France's holy maiden.
Iroha screams at Tart to run, but Tart, still in shock/depressed from losing Riz, doesn't resist and is quickly led away by Corbeau. The chapter ends with Iroha left in shock at what just happened: Riz's disappearance and Tart getting kidnapped.


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Chapter 27
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Yachiyo says that they managed to somehow take back the fortress, though in part because Corbeau left the battlefield. But they lost Tart and Riz, and the world lost its dawn(light) in the process.


Back at camp, Gilles is worked up because they lost their Saint to the enemy, and La Hire tries to calm him down by telling him it's their job to maintain the (war)front until the maiden returns. Melissa adds that she'll do her best. Gilles has seemingly calmed down, but he says there's one thing that bothers him, and that's Charles. Because of what happened to Tart, Charles has suddenly become fainthearted and timid.
Seeing this, Yachiyo and Cube agree that the situation isn't a good one. According to Yachiyo, their main problem is the endless night. All of France has been affected, not just the fortress. It reminds her of what Riz told them: that this world might be someone else's dream. After hearing this, Cube gives it some thought and then comes to the conclusion that this world is all Tart's dream.

Cube explains: Upon losing her best friend (Riz), Tart's heart was overcome with despair and the world itself was covered with dark clouds. Iroha and Yachiyo were able to enter the world via dreams, and luckily they appeared at the place Tart wished for them to show up at. On top of that, the language barrier was removed.

Yachiyo tries to sum it up herself: that everything that's happened so far is linked to Tart's heart.
Cube affirms this. He says that this world is basically a reflection of Tart's heart, a world of her dreams. And everyone has been sucked into that dream.


Cube repeats his conclusion.

>Yachiyo: ...Cube.
>Cube: What is it?
>Yachiyo: If what you say is true, why are the unusual phenomena occurring in Tart's dream changing even our own futures?
>Cube: I'll explain why now. Before that, first I need to retract the theory that this world is the "past of your reality", don't I!
>Iroha: Since this is a "dream"...right?
>Cube: Right.  On the other hand, the place where Tart's "real body" is located, the one that is seeing this dream... In other words, I think that the France where we were at before we got sucked into this dream is the "past of your reality".
>Yachiyo: Oh... The real Tart herself is sleeping in 15th century France.
>Iroha: And we're inside of the "dream" Tart-san is seeing right now...?
>Cube: That's right!
>Yachiyo: So for us, this place is... a dream that someone from the past is seeing?
>Cube: Do you understand now? If Tart was a normal girl then no matter what happens in her dreams, it probably wouldn't even be able to destabilize the future. The problem is that Tart is the ultimate magical girl, even out of all the ones I've seen so far!


>>Cube: "Although it may just be in a dream, a soul gem will be tainted if the heart is damaged. Hypothetically speaking, if Tart's heart was filled with despair and she became a witch, then it would probably be the start of a disaster, one that could cause this world and even the real world to be overwhelmed with darkness..."


Cube continues to explain that the darkness that overwhelms the world continues into the future, the time period Yachiyo and Iroha are from. If Tart became a real witch, then their world would probably look like the one in this dream.
Furthermore, Corbeau is probably the one who created this trap, and thus trapped Tart in a dream and got everyone (except Yachiyo and Iroha) involved too. She took Tart without killing her because the enemy plans on driving Tart into despair within her dreams and thus creating a great witch in France.
Yachiyo concludes that their dark Kamihama is the result of Tart becoming a witch. Iroha wonders if there's a way to prevent that from happening.

>Cube: First, you need to save Tart from despair in this dream. And then you need to wake Tart up in the real world. That will save your own future.

As the dream comes to an end, Yachiyo asks Cube if he's going to help them. He says he will, since their interests and his happen to align. Stopping Corbeau is their number one priority.

Iroha and Yachiyo wake up in Kamihama. Yachiyo asks if Iroha remembers what Cube said. She does. If they don't save Tart from despair, their world will remain this way. Yachiyo wonders what they should do next.
Then Iroha points out to Yachiyo that it's strangely quiet. She asks where Felicia and Sana went. Yachiyo thinks they went back to their rooms, but after checking, they realize that the two girls are missing. Iroha suggests that they might've gone out somewhere. But after going outside and looking around, they realize that...

>>"The only ones left in this world are"
>>"Just the two of us...!"

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Part 9: A World Without Dawn
Chapter 28
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Panicking, Iroha asks Yachiyo what they should do. Should they head back to dream France right away?
Yachiyo tells her to calm down. As the leader, she needs to show her calm side. Iroha does so. She says that they should first think about what they can do at the moment.
Yachiyo thinks that since they came back to Kamihama, they should take care of things they can only do while they're in Kamihama. Iroha agrees and tries to think of something that's in this world that isn't in Tart's. She realizes it's the candles. Yachiyo agrees. They should first look into what those candles actually are. Although Cube and the others (Melissa, La Hire, etc) were drawn into the dream, Yachiyo and Iroha are entering the dream out of their own free will. She thinks that's because of the candles. Iroha agrees and points out that Riz seemed to know something about the candles. There's a flashback to that moment.

>Iroha: Mitama-san apparently got them from an antique shop, but do you think they have some kind of connection to Tart and the others?
>Yachiyo: It's possible. I feel bad for Mitama, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

She suggests going to the Adjuster's Shop to do some investigating there.


At the Adjuster's Shop, Iroha finds the same candles they have at their place. Yachiyo asks if there's something next to them. There might be some more antiques purchased from the same antique store. Iroha searches through and finds a book about as old as the candles themselves. It appears to be in Latin. Yachiyo thinks there's something fishy/suspicious about it. They decide to bring it back with them, and Yachiyo hopes that she can read it while relying on a dictionary to translate, but...

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Chapter 29
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>Yachiyo: Uu... I've had enough.
>Iroha: Y, Yachiyo-san, hang in there!
>Yachiyo: I never would have thought that I'd have to read an ancient book in Latin. I've used 10 times the amount of brainpower than I would have on a test...
>Iroha: I'm sorry that I can't help...
>Yachiyo: Don't worry about it. After all, we did get something out of it.
>Iroha: Did you figure out what kind of book it is?
>Yachiyo: Yes. This is... a black magic grimoire!
>Iroha: Eeehh!?
>Yachiyo: Furthermore, it mentions how to use magic to trap people inside a "witch's" barrier and make them see a nightmare they can't wake up from.
>Iroha: You mentioned witches. Are those the same witches we know about?
>Yachiyo: Yes, those witches. The person who wrote this knows of witches and magical girls and it seems like magic that uses witches' curses was called black magic. Hence, they actually had an effect.
>Iroha: Um...in other words...? Corbeau-san... used the magic written in this grimoire to trap Tart-san in a barrier and make her see this nightmare, is that right?
>Yachiyo: Yes, that's exactly right! And...there were things about the red and blue candles written in here as well. These are candles that contain the hair of the person you cast the spell on...in other words, these are candles that have Tart's hair mixed in them! The result is just as you're thinking. By using these candles, you can go in and out of their dreams.

Iroha's surprised at the amount of history behind the candles. Yachiyo finishes off the conversation by saying that Mitama probably obtained both the grimoire and candles together by coincidence, but they were originally used by Corbeau herself in the 15th century.

There's a flashback to when Corbeau mentioned that she could go on a rampage in this world as much as she wants.

Iroha realizes that Corbeau also used the candles to enter Tart's dreams. Yachiyo nods and adds that compared to them, Corbeau isn't exactly a welcome guest so she can't approach Tart as easily as they can. Iroha asks Yachiyo about the charm Mitama taught them and whether that has anything to do with the grimoire too. Yachiyo replies that they have nothing to do with each other. All you have to do is light the candles. They don't need to be placed in any particular position.
In other words, the charm was unrelated and they used the wrong candles to try it.
Iroha's glad they figured that much out, and thinks there should be a solution in there too. Yachiyo says there is more information in the grimoire, but she can't read it and there's no one else around who can read it. Iroha thinks there might be someone in dream France that can.

There's another flashback to when Riz told them to head to the church that has a connection to Tart's sister Catherine if they need help.

Iroha thinks that the person Riz mentioned might be able to help them out. Yachiyo reminds her that Riz also said that there's no guarantee that'll work, but first, they should talk to Cube. She wonders if they'll be able to bring the grimoire with them into the dream. Iroha thinks that since they're able to bring their clothes into the dream, they should be able to bring the grimoire too, as long as they hold onto it while they light the candles. The two girls give it a try.


Iroha wakes up and finds herself in the dark.
>Iroha: ...... Huh...? This isn't dream France, is it? And... where's Yachiyo-san? What should I do? It's pitch black and I don't even know which way is which. Am I lost in a place like this?
>Yachiyo's voice: Iroha...can you hear me?
>Iroha: Yachiyo-san! Yachiyo-san, where are you?
>Yachiyo's voice: It seems like we're in a space before we enter a dream.
>Iroha: I'd like to regroup with you somehow, but...

Yachiyo tells her not to move. She'll use Iroha's telepathic voice to locate her. As she gets closer, so will Iroha's telepathic voice. Thus, she asks Iroha to continue the conversation.

Eventually, the two girls manage to find each other.
>Iroha: Yachiyo-san!
>Yachiyo: Looks like we managed to find each other.
>Iroha: How do we get out of here?

Even Yachiyo doesn't know. Iroha suggests using telepathy to call out for someone. They give it a try.

>Iroha: Can someone hear us!? If you can, please answer!
>Melissa's voice: Um... who might you be?
>Iroha: Oh, someone answered...!
>Melissa's voice: This voice... Iroha-san!?
>Iroha: Melissa-san! My voice managed to reach you! We're lost! We'll use the voices of our minds as a guide, so please answer me when I call out to you!
>Melissa's voice: ...O, Okay!? I don't fully understand what you just said, but I'll try my best!

>Yachiyo: Seems like Melissa really does have the potential to become a magical girl.

Using the telepathy technique, Yachiyo manages to see the light, meaning they're getting closer to dream France. Iroha thanks Melissa for her help. Melissa replies by hoping that they'll be okay.

The two girls manage to finally reappear at camp.

>Iroha: We finally made it!
>Yachiyo: Yes. Thank you, Melissa.
>Melissa: I'm so glad you're both safe!
>Iroha: Why did we get lost just this time...?
>Yachiyo: I don't know either.
>Melissa: Iroha-san... what is that old looking book?
>Iroha: Ah, this is...!
>Yachiyo: Looks like we managed to safely bring it in with us.
>Iroha: Yes! Melissa-san, this book contains writing that describes the magical trap the enemy used.
>Melissa: ...Really!?
>Iroha: Yes, that's why we thought we should have Cube read it for us...!
>Cube: ...Did you call?


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[1] = The section title, 暗転 can either be translated as a "change for the worse" or "darkening".