"Goodbye, Homura… Please take care of yourself."
With those final words, Madoka Kaname threw herself at Walpurgisnacht, like a moth rushing into the flame.
In the end, Homura clutched Madoka's lifeless body and cried bitterly.
"I wanted you to live more than I wanted to be saved…!"
What kind of story is this!?
Fans sitting at their computers were filled with stunned silence. They couldn't fully understand what was happening, but emotionally, they were completely swept away.
Just then, Kyubey appeared, perfectly timed as always.
"Is this truly your wish? Are you willing to sacrifice your soul for it?"
Once again, the MLM (multi-level marketing) mascot of despair showed up to seduce an innocent girl into a contract.
When that snow-white creature appeared on screen, everyone watching, including Saya, Ryuko, and countless others, shared the same thought: Get lost.
But within the animation, Homura still hadn't learned the truth. Tempted by Kyubey's offer, she made a contract and became a magical girl.
Her wish?
"I want to meet Madoka Kaname again… not as someone protected by her, but as someone who protects her."
This… this kind of wish, was it even possible?
Homura's secret… was this it all along?
That single line sparked a massive emotional wave across the fandom.
No one had expected a wish like this. Simple, poignant, and utterly selfless.
Suddenly, all of the strange inconsistencies from earlier episodes clicked into place.
Now everyone was desperate to see what would happen next.
In the next part of the episode, they saw Homura transported a month back in time. Driven by the desire to save Madoka, she transferred into Madoka's class again, met her once more, and gradually became close friends with her all over again.
This time, her magical ability was to stop time. During these frozen moments, only Homura could move.
If you're an anime fan, you know how broken time stop ability is. Yet despite this immense power, she was still weak in her second timeline, barely capable of confronting Walpurgisnacht.
She tried, oh, she tried. At first, she used a golf club during time stop. When that failed, she got smarter. She crafted explosives, dozens of homemade grenades, and dropped them in the witch's path.
A thunderstorm of firepower, but it still wasn't enough.
Madoka and Mami still died.
At the end of that second loop, Homura, her soul gem tainted, turned into a witch right in front of Madoka. That moment opened her eyes to the awful truth: magical girls were doomed from the start.
This storyline was a masterpiece.
Fans sat frozen, breathless. Even professional screenwriters were dumbfounded. This wasn't just a story; it was insight, inspiration, genius.
Who knew that Mizushiro, believed by some to be a master of despair, was also capable of crafting such mind-bending narrative depth?
In the third timeline, Homura tried again. This time, she told everyone the truth about magical girls turning into witches.
Most didn't believe her.
Sayaka, in particular, distrusted her and saw her as someone selfish like Kyoko. She refused to listen.
So Homura doubled down, stealing from military armories, packing her gear with bombs, guns, missiles, anything she could get.
But Sayaka still fell. Again.
And then… everything unraveled.
Mami, overwhelmed by despair, snapped. She killed Kyoko and attempted to kill Homura too, trying to stop the cycle of magical girls turning into monsters.
Madoka, desperate to save Homura, made an impossible choice. She shattered Mami's soul gem, killing her senpai.
Fans were horrified. And they knew then:
The dark and heart-wrenching Madoka Magica was back again.
Once again, Homura's timeline had failed.
This time, both she and Madoka had exhausted their magic. Their soul gems were on the verge of corruption.
At the last moment, they used the final grief seed, one left by Sayaka, to purify Homura's gem.
"Can you go back again… and save the me who was fooled by Kyubey?"
Madoka's voice trembled with a blend of hope and sorrow.
The voice acting captured the emotion so perfectly, many viewers paused their streams, taking deep breaths before continuing.
"I promise you," Homura replied. "No matter how many times it takes… I'll protect you."
Then, tearfully, she raised her gun and shattered Madoka's soul gem, preventing her transformation into a witch.
The shot rang out, and Homura's anguished scream echoed through the screen, searing into every viewer's heart.
Was it the script or the voice acting that hurt more? It was impossible to say.
But it hurt.
Saya stared blankly at the screen, her face pale.
Does that guy Mizushiro have a grudge against girls or something? How can he make viewers cry like this again and again?
Ryuko's roommates whispered among themselves, wondering if Haruki was some kind of emotional sadist. Otherwise, how could he turn down Ryuko after everything she had done to push for him?
The screen shifted again. Homura was back at the beginning. A month before it all began.
She let down her braids. Resolved to fight alone. To be Madoka's shield.
So that's how it started.
The Homura we saw in the first episodes (elegant, stoic, beautiful) was forged through countless loops, all to protect the one person she cherished most.
Every fan watching finally realized: How many times has Homura gone through this cycle?
How many timelines had she endured, trying to save Madoka?
In every loop, she grew colder, more ruthless. Because she had to. Because it was the only way to stop Madoka from becoming a magical girl and dooming herself.
She fought. She died. She rewound time.
Again. And again. And again.
And every time… she failed.
Madoka always ended up becoming a magical girl, and always fell into despair.
In the most recent loop, she transformed, defeated Walpurgisnacht in one blow, and then became the most powerful witch ever.
"The strongest magical girl gives birth to the most destructive witch."
"If Madoka becomes a witch, this planet won't last ten days."
"But that's your problem now, humans."
Satisfied, Kyubey completed his mission and prepared to leave Earth.
Homura rewound time again.
She returned to the timeline of the main story, the one we, the viewers, have been watching.
Episode 10 ends there.
But no one moved.
The ending theme played. The screen faded. But viewers sat frozen, hearts aching, minds racing.
If Episode 9 was about Kyoko's sacrifice, then Episode 10 was about Homura's unyielding love.
Ten years. Hundreds of time loops. Endless heartbreak, just to save her friend once.
No one even cared anymore about the technical details, why Madoka had become so powerful or how the timelines worked.
They were simply awestruck.
On Saya's side, she leaned back in her chair, exhausted. She had a sinking feeling she had lost.
Though into the Abyss still had a shot, she knew in her heart that Madoka had pulled ahead.
In just one episode.
The conclusion of Into the Abyss was beautiful, but nothing could compare to this.
Still, she couldn't help but feel bitter.
Her chest ached with frustration. She called Ryuko, hoping for some comfort.
But ten minutes later, she hung up. Her expression was even darker.
Because Ryuko had spent the entire call gushing about Episode 10, laughing, crying, completely captivated.
And in the last two minutes, she awkwardly said she still supported Into the Abyss and told Saya to "keep up the good work."
That was it.
(TL:- if you want even more content, check out p-a-t-r-e-o-n.com/Alioth23 for 60+ advanced chapters)
[Note: I forgot to press publish earlier.]