Mari Hanashiro/History

## History

Mari started getting a terminal illness shortly after elementary school. She wanted to live, wanted to be normal like every other teenagers, but deep inside she knew she could never become healthy once again. While cursing the world for her cause, she slowly awaited for her death on her sickbed. Because of her intense desire of wanting to live, The Third, one of the most mysterious out of "The Original Three" came to her side and turned her into a Mushitsuki. She became Host to a Morpho Butterfly Mushi, which ended up taking her life. A girl who once talked about her dreams in a tone brimming with hope, but because of her fateful destiny, she was unable to realize her dream in the end.
Yet, even after she was turned into a Mushitsuki, her torture did not end. It turned more ironic than ever. Because of The Third, Mari came to know the existence of an "Immortal" Mushitsuki; as its name implies, a Mushitsuki that will *never* die. Dying to obtain that Mushitsuki's ability, Mari began her hunt for it. Every single night, she would go out and search for this immortal Mushitsuki. Because of this, she was unofficially aliased as the "Hunter" by many.
No matter how hard shes tried, no matter how many Mushi she killed, she was unable to find them. Even so she did not give up - if she gave up, she would eventually die. In order to fulfill her dream of keep on living, she could only continue her hunts. It was then that a teenage girl came into her life; Arisu Ichinose, one of those very typical energetic-type girl, suddenly was at her side. Slowly, she became Mari's best friend, and brought her joy, hope, and jealousy.
Mari was attracted by a book called "The Magician’s Medicines". In that picture book, the protagonist was given two choices of medicine by the magician. One being the angel's medicine, whereas the most precious person of the protagonist shall be sacrificed for her to get a healthy body and eternal life - another one being the devil's medicine, whereas the protagonist would die, and her most precious person would always be by her side and remembers her. The protagonist in the book chose the devil's medicine, but Mari did not understand why she chose such an option. Mari told herself, if it had been her, she would have definitely picked the angel's medicine. She wanted to live on so bad, wanting to see Arisu's smile once more and hear her say "See you tomorrow" once more. And thus, she began her last hunt.
However, god seemed to play a prank on her. After her long search, she finally encountered "them", the "Immortal" Mushitsuki. She told him that she wanted the angel's medicine, and then the figure questioned her.
*"In front of you, there might perhaps be two medicines... then let me ask you a question after you taken the angel's medicine..." The figure suddenly changed his tone, and continued with clear and serious voice. "Who will be next you after you obtained a new life?"*
Upon hearing that, Mari's mind was shaken. She was unable to make a decision. Between her dream and her most precious person, she was unable to decide. And without giving a proper answer, she met her end. However, Mari's Mushi, the Morpho Butterfly, lived on and was passed onto Mari's close friend, Arisu. While theoretically speaking, the death of one's Mushi should lead to the death of its owner's heart, the death of the host should lead to the death of their Mushi. However, being the only exception to this system, the Morpho Butterfly lived on as a continuation of Mari's dream.