"Why am I involved in this?"
At the Hidden Management Department garrison's café.
Nia Honjo, who had just returned from Akihabara with a haul of adult merchandise and was about to enjoy some desserts while browsing, couldn't help but complain to Luo Shu sitting opposite her:
"If you can't locate Echidna, find another solution. Do you really need to make me a Demigod?"
Luo Shu, sitting across from Nia Honjo, picked up a spoon, stole a bite of her caramel pudding, and calmly asked:
"Are you resistant to advancing?"
"It's not exactly resistance..."
Nia glanced at Luo Shu's lips, briefly considering the indirect kiss, then quickly averted her gaze with a sigh:
"Truthfully, I don't know how to face that mother of ours."
The Spirit of Origin, the mother of all Spirits, the holder of the Almighty God Class, and the one sealed deep within the Divine Kingdom - Mio Takamiya.
Nia's feelings toward this maternal figure had always been complicated.
On one hand, she genuinely wished for better treatment for that mother.
However, on the other hand, Nia, quite content with her current life, had no desire to die either.
"Though I don't know what schemes that mother has, if my Raziel were to return to her, she might gain the means to break free."
Adopting a distinctly Japanese tone, Nia said to Luo Shu:
"You don't want to fight my mother inside the Divine Kingdom, do you, Luo Shu-kun?"
"Even if Mother isn't at full power now, possibly maintaining her authority with just a few pillars, she could still wield power comparable to a Seraph, at minimum."
"That kind of Divine Power surpassing humanity isn't something mere mortals can withstand."
Facing Nia's warning, Luo Shu fell silent before replying:
"My intuition tells me we can succeed."
"Oh?"
Nia blinked, instinctively summoning Raziel, but when the black tome of Raziel appeared before her, she sighed:
"Being foolish again... I keep calling it out even though I know Raziel can't provide answers for this sort of thing..."
Seeing Nia like this, Luo Shu couldn't help but tease:
"You used to say I relied too much on the Mysticism Encyclopaedia's searches, but aren't you the same?"
"Because I know the consequences of dependency, that's why I'm giving you advice, Luo Shu!"
Nia Honjo stubbornly argued, glancing at Luo Shu before suddenly leaning over to peck the corner of his lips, then calmly sitting back down:
"Grown man getting pudding on his face, honestly..."
'I'm certain I didn't have anything there just now...' Luo Shu's mouth twitched, not bothering to call out this woman clearly lusting after him.
"So, Nia, what are your thoughts?"
"I'm still young and don't want to die yet." Nia Honjo answered bluntly, picking up a notebook - not one bought in Akihabara, but a special internal edition manifested by Raziel.
Its contents depicted a certain Utaha and a certain Luo in hot springs, authored by Eri Kashiwagi.
Yet despite the scandalous material, Nia's expression turned sorrowful:
"Though I regard her as mother, she wouldn't hesitate over my life or death."
"Fundamentally, only you, Luo Shu, still believe she's Mio Takamiya."
A mythical being born as a True God would never possess something as mundane as a name.
The real question was whether Mio Takamiya, born divine, would even care about her supposed daughter.
Though possessing divine intellect, she likely lacked human mercy.
Facing Nia's response, Luo Shu remained silent before sighing:
"...So you're agreeing then?"
Nia rolled her eyes at him:
"Not like I have a choice. Echidna's matter is just a pretext - weakening my dear mother is your true aim, isn't it?"
Luo Shu didn't deny Nia's blunt accusation, for it reflected his genuine thoughts.
A supreme entity with former True God authority comparable to a grand duke of Hell, wielding the power of the Almighty God, currently residing within his consciousness.
How could he possibly allow such a bomb to remain indefinitely?
Previously powerless to weaken it, but now sensing a possible method, naturally, he'd act swiftly.
Otherwise, should Mio Takamiya truly awaken, Luo Shu dreaded to imagine the consequences.
Seeing Luo Shu's lack of rebuttal, Nia felt no mockery, only empathy.
After all, she, too, feared that maternal figure.
As bearer of the second power, Chokmah, a core Authority of the Almighty God Class, Nia perceived their mother's appetite more acutely than other Spirits.
Every visit to the Divine Kingdom, she felt perpetually on the verge of being devoured.
Hence, her rare, near-total avoidance of that terrifying place.
"Uncertain if it'll work, but if you genuinely believe there's hope, let's try."
Regarding Luo Shu's plan to weaken Mio Takamiya, Nia cast her vote in approval.
She truly didn't wish to die.
...
Deep within the Hidden Management Zone, the Divine Kingdom's core.
Amid endless tawny wastelands.
Luo Shu and Nia Honjo gazed upward at the world-spanning inverted tree of light.
The inverted tree symbolising the Kabbalah system glowed with a pure white light tinged with faint blue, emanating an aura of sacredness and sublimity.
Deep within that radiance, Luo Shu could vaguely discern the silhouette of a young girl.
"No matter how many times I see it, it still terrifies me..."
Standing on the desert sands, Nia Honjo gazed at the Kabbalah Tree and let out a sigh laced with complex emotions:
"A mother akin to a deity... and this space that suppresses such a being..."
"Honestly, if you hadn't dragged me here, Luo Shu, I really wouldn't have wanted to come."
After grumbling about Luo Shu's actions, Nia turned her gaze to his silent profile and asked:
"So, Luo Shu, how do you plan to deal with my magnificent mother?"
"With that Apocalypse you obtained?"
"Mhm."
Luo Shu hummed in affirmation and nodded. His dark eyes then fixed upon the majestic tree.
As he stared, his spirit connected to the Divine Kingdom, stirring the Authorities within.
However, this time, what he borrowed was not the Thunder Authority from before, but something even greater—Calamity.
Instinctively, Luo Shu activated the Calamity Authority.
Silently,
A single point appeared before the magnificent Kabbalah Tree.
As that infinitesimal point manifested, gravity began collapsing, and spacetime distorted.
The dusky sky and the Kabbalah Tree's boundless radiance began to collapse towards that singular point.
Before this grand force fully descended, Nia Honjo, clutching Raziel, looked utterly dumbstruck, desperately gripping Luo Shu's hand as she cursed:
"You bastard!!"
"You're creating a black hole here?!!"
"Are you trying to make us die together?!!"
"Wait, the gravitational pull is coming!!!"
As Nia Honjo screamed in panic,
The collapsing black hole made a 'pop' sound and abruptly split apart.
The gloomy sky plunged into complete darkness, while the majestic Kabbalah Tree instantly lost its infinite brilliance, appearing dim and faded.
Even the glowing girl at its deepest core curled up at this moment, seemingly weakened.
And in that instant,
At the former location of the black hole,
Purple hair billowed in the lingering gale.
Clad in armour resembling a princess's gown, wielding a massive dual-bladed sword, the figure floated mid-air like a princess exiled from the world, her murderous gaze locked onto Luo Shu's face.
Realisation dawning, Luo Shu stared at the girl in the sky and murmured:
"So this is the truth then?"
"To hide the power of the Tenth Sephira 'Malkuth' within oneself, waiting for the right moment..."
"Quite the hidden card you kept."
"Mio Takamiya!"