"——No one cares about that. Watch the battle properly."
The tone suddenly shifted, becoming more arrogant and domineering, in stark contrast to Arcueid's natural demeanor.
It was obvious—this was the Crimson Moon's personality.
After a period of negotiation and compromise, Arcueid and the Crimson Moon had finally reached an agreement. Under surveillance, the Crimson Moon could come out occasionally for a breath of fresh air, provided she didn't cause any trouble.
Since then, it wasn't uncommon to witness the strange sight of the Crimson Moon suddenly popping out to converse with Arcueid.
In the course of this, the Crimson Moon's way of speaking had also changed—from an ancient style to a more modern one. Arcueid, on her part, quickly adapted to this form of communication.
"Oh, as for battles, I can fight for ten days and nights too, maybe even longer."
"I've already said—no one cares about that... whatever, just go get something to eat."
"As expected of my original. You even knew I was hungry. So impressive! Fujino, Fujino, bring me a bag of popcorn and some cola—those are a must for action flicks."
The Crimson Moon: "..."
This was the closest replica to her form, a copy made from her very being. How could it have turned into such an airheaded fool? Where did things go wrong?
She glanced sideways at her other "daughter", Altrouge, who looked emotionally numb as if she had grown used to this.
Then she turned to glance at the other theoretical "mother," Gaia, only to find that, at some point, Gaia had quietly opened the backdoor and stepped into the yard.
—Could it be that something went wrong during her creation? No wonder that bratty Magician always said her craftsmanship was subpar, unable to create a proper Ultimate One.
Well, the Crimson Moon was just being misled here. Arcueid's current state was the result of being raised as a weapon by the True Ancestors, and it had nothing to do with Gaia's craftsmanship. The Crimson Moon's replica was perfect, even down to copying the vampiric impulse.
Of course, this also indirectly showed that Gaia's craftsmanship was indeed lacking—she could only create perfect copies, not make improvements.
Loli Gaia's trip to the backyard also had nothing to do with the Crimson Moon. She had sensed something unusual, and it wasn't just her. Loli Alaya followed her outside as well.
Upon opening the door, they found Loli Altera, who was almost ready to graduate into a young girl, standing side by side with Jack, who had already graduated into a full-fledged girl. Both were staring up at the sky in a daze.
"What are you two doing?"
Gaia and Alaya spoke simultaneously. For two individuals who usually didn't get along, this was quite a rare sight.
"Ah, you're here," Jack turned around, smiling warmly at her two younger sisters.
"I saw Altera staring so intently, and I wanted to know what she was looking at. But I couldn't see anything. Do you two want to give it a try?"
"You won't be able to see it like that."
"Yeah, she's not looking at the sky—she's gazing at something much farther away."
The two lolis spoke softly and moved to stand on either side of Altera.
At that moment, Altera withdrew her gaze and let out a gentle breath.
"What did you do?"
Both spoke again in unison.
"You've come, my little sisters," Altera smiled warmly at the two.
"I've been working on a task Father gave me."
"What task?"
"Helping Father prepare a weapon, one made from Mooncell."
"No—"
"If that's the case—"
Gaia and Alaya exchanged a glance, their eyes shimmering faintly.
This was the highest level of power on this planet. If you weren't someone on the level of Arcueid or Altrouge, you wouldn't even be able to sense it.
However, such power was of little use against Altera. She casually delivered a hand chop to each of the lolis, knocking them on the head, making them clutch their heads and yelp.
"Not painful, not painful at all."
Seeing this, Jack quickly ran over to rub Gaia and Alaya's heads, then pouted at Altera.
"Don't bully your little sisters."
"I wasn't bullying them. I just don't want them to interfere with Father," Altera explained softly.
"Oh, is that so? Hmm, well, interfering with Father is not okay."
Jack nodded earnestly.
"The Land of Shadows must not be destroyed."
"Scathach must not be destroyed."
Though Gaia and Alaya had different focuses, they expressed the same sentiment—protecting both the Land of Shadows and its ruler, Scathach. Perhaps this was part of the planetary and human orders.
"Trust Father. He won't let you down," Altera said, switching from hand chops to head pats.
"He even saved me when I became a giant god. He won't truly destroy Lady Scathach."
"This..."
"Well..."
The two lolis hesitated for a moment.
Seeing this, Altera's smile grew broader. She knew this was the beginning of the positive change Shinji had spoken of.
"There's still a long time before the battle ends, so there's no need to rush. If Father does make a mistake, I'll stop him with you. Jack, will you help us bear witness?"
"Of course, of course! I'm the eldest sister, after all. I'll be the witness!"
Jack giggled. Only someone as pure and innocent as her could ignore Altera, Gaia, and Alaya's identities, and simply treat them as her younger sisters.
"Alright."
"We'll trust you this time."
The two lolis exchanged a glance and reached an agreement.
At that moment, two more lolis entered the backyard, peeking curiously around the corridor.
One of them was lively and cheerful.
"There you all are!"
The other one seemed a bit shy.
"Good day, big sisters."
"Ah, it's Mina and Kiara," Jack waved at them.
"Have you finished your homework for today?"
"It's all done. I already had Aunt Sakura check it," Kiara replied meticulously.
"Don't be so tense, Kiara," Mana said, patting her younger apprentice sister on the shoulder like an old soul.
"Master isn't here. No one's going to mind."
"That's no excuse to relax," Kiara shook her head.
"Stubborn, stubborn. Stubborn people age faster. You'll probably look older than me soon enough," Mana teased with a mischievous grin.
"Hmph, no, I won't!"
"Yes, you will."
"I won't!"
"Stop it. Arguing is bad."
"Everyone should get along."
Jack and Altera each grabbed one of the arguing girls—Jack pulled Mana, and Altera grabbed Kiara—gently calming them down.
Watching this scene, Gaia and Alaya exchanged glances, silently communicating.
"What do you think?"
"Besides Jack, they're all potential risks and should be eliminated."
"But they haven't done anything dangerous so far."
"That's why we're hesitating."
"It's because of Father—the Third Magician's influence—that we're experiencing unnecessary emotions."
"That's another possible future."
"Possibilities can be good or bad."
"Nothing could be worse than the outcome Father calls the Land of Steel."
"Agreed. We'll continue to observe."
"Agreed. For the future of the planet."
"For the future of humanity."