Akira leaned back against the cold wall, his gaze distant. "You know what we did… is messed up, right?"
Selena tilted her head, feigning innocence. "What are you talking about? I didn't do anything. All I did was… not tell you the full effects of the Sacred Gear."
Akira frowned. "You forced Erika to do something she didn't want to do. That's messed up, no matter how you put it."
"Well, that's true," Selena admitted without a hint of guilt. "But it was inevitable, you know. Ever since that day when your heart was destroyed, this was always going to happen one way or another. All I did was speed up the process."
Akira sighed, then asked something that had been in his mind for a while, in fact, ever since that day, "Then at least tell me this, what exactly does this Sacred Gear do? Because after she drank my blood… something changed. It's subtle, but it's definitely different."
Selena hesitated, her usual confidence faltering. "I could explain it to you… But I think it would be better if I explained it to Erika-chan first before I explain it to you."
Akira raised an eyebrow. "Oh, come on, this thing is inside me. Shouldn't I be the first to know what it does? I mean, it's basically my heart now, right?"
"It'll lead into spoiler territory, brother," Selena said, almost teasing. "Believe me, it's better if it's revealed to you in the future; something only works when they are revealed at the right time."
"Of course," Akira muttered under his breath. He could already tell getting any more out of her would be impossible right now. "Fine… so what happens now?"
"Well," Selena said, glancing toward Erika's room, "it's best for Erika-chan to rest here for a while. I'll let you know when she wakes up. As for you… do whatever you want until then."
"Yeah," Akira said with another sigh. "Might be a good time to relax after everything that just happened."
"Oh right," Selena said, her tone brightening, "you like flying through the night sky to relax, don't you? You can do that here. It's always night here, after all."
Akira turned toward the massive window. Beyond it stretched an endless sea of stars and a luminous, beautiful sky. It was tempting, almost irresistible. But he shook his head.
"Nah. I'd rather wait and fly under the night sky of the real world… I mean… the outside world… I mean… You know what I mean."
Selena giggled. "Just call it World Zero. It's easier that way."
"Yeah," Akira nodded. "Then I'll fly there. The sky here is too bright. I like stars, but it's more relaxing when the night is a little darker."
Selena thought for a moment, then extended her hand. "Brother, give me your hand. I want to try something."
Akira looked suspicious. "What are you up to now?"
Still, he offered his hand.
The moment she held it, energy surged through him. Stellar Radiance flared to life, and both the crown and tiara manifested on their heads. Akira felt something shift around him, like Selena was using his body as a medium to operate something vast and complex. Then the energy faded, and she let go.
"You can go back now," she said with a knowing smile.
"What exactly did you do now?" Akira asked, narrowing his eyes.
"You'll find out soon," Selena said, ignoring his question. "Now go outside."
"Can't you just teleport me?" Akira asked.
Selena sighed. "Fine." She snapped her fingers.
In an instant, Akira was back in his room, the one in his house. But something was off. When he looked out the window, his eyes widened in shock.
It was night.
"Wait… what the hell did you do?" he demanded in shock, "It was afternoon when we got back. And it's only been, what, a few minutes? How is it already night?"
Selena's voice echoed in his mind with a playful giggle. "Nothing much. Just manipulated time a little."
"You what?!" Akira's eyes widened even more. "You can fast-forward time?!"
"No," Selena replied. "All I did was slow time down inside the bubble dimension. So those few seconds we spent holding hands? A few hours passed outside."
"So… you can manipulate time…" Akira muttered, thinking how his sister is too OP.
"To some extent," Selena said. "I can fast-forward it, slow it down… I can even stop time once I get stronger. But I can't reverse it."
"Why not?" Akira asked.
"It's complicated," Selena replied. "I'll explain another day."
Akira sighed. "I didn't know you were that strong."
"The power of the Destined One is far greater than you think," Selena said. "But your soul isn't that of an Asterian, so you can't use it the same way I can. That's why I sometimes have to use your body as a conduit, at least for now."
"Great…" Akira muttered. Then, glancing at the window again, he allowed a small smile. "So what am I waiting for, huh?"
Selena chuckled. "Don't you want to fly into the night?"
Akira exhaled, a calmness washing over him. "Yeah… that's probably the best thing to do right now."
He stepped out onto the balcony, the cool night breeze brushing against his face. Then, without another word, he leapt into the air, soaring into the night sky, letting the stars above clear his thoughts.
Selena, now seated upon the purple crystal throne, watched her brother soar into the night sky through a floating screen, a faint smile on her lips.
"Sigh… well, that part went smoothly," she murmured. "But what should I do about the next part?"
Her gaze shifted to another screen, where Erika was sleeping peacefully. Shaking her head softly, Selena whispered with a gentle smile, "The next step will only work if I can get Erika-chan's cooperation. How should I approach this…? Well, I'll just have to apologize to her honestly and tell her the truth. That's probably the best way."
Finally, she turned toward a third screen displaying the words 'STARSOUL SYSTEM'. A small, proud smile crossed her face. "Hmm… I hope my brother will like this. I've been working on it for quite a while, after all."