"Ugh..."
Delta leaned over the toilet, her face contorting with nausea. She dry-heaved into the bowl, but nothing came out except a few drops of saliva.
She clutched her face, exhausted. Her mind kept flashing back to the moment she signed the voluntary consent form and that little girl in Svatok 51 who had lost her sister. It made her stomach churn as if hundreds of explosives were going off inside.
Click.
The bathroom door was pushed open. A pair of cold eyes looked at the nearly collapsed Delta.
...
"It's normal to feel unsettled the first time you go to a battlefield and see those monsters." Sakura placed a cup of warm salt water in front of Delta, whose head was low enough to nearly hit the table.
"No..." Delta looked at the water. The feeling of nausea surged again. She suppressed the disgust, took the cup, and had a small sip. "It's not because of the monsters."
To be honest, Delta hadn't felt much while fighting the Honkai Beasts. Perhaps thanks to a certain someone, she didn't feel a hint of a rookie's anxiety; she remained calm throughout.
She was restless. Her legs beneath the table shook rapidly, and her tail nervously intertwined with her legs. The agitation that hadn't appeared during the battle surfaced afterward instead.
"Sakura, we became MANTIS and we fight... it's for humanity, right?"
Sakura froze as she looked at the desperate young girl before her.
"Even if our reasons for becoming MANTIS were different, the meaning of our existence—this identity—is to fight for humanity, isn't it?"
Sakura felt as if she were standing before her own sister.
Rin, the nun who had lived her whole life in a lie Sakura had built for her. Rin believed her sister had a legitimate job and that her sister was a gentle, kind, and intellectual person.
But the reality was exactly the opposite.
Sakura was an executioner. The number of people she had killed to date likely exceeded the number of people Rin had known since childhood.
Sakura had wrapped herself in lies.
Now, was she supposed to tell Delta that her primary job was killing, not saving?
This girl—what did she believe in, or rather... what was she forcing herself to believe?
Sakura thought of the thing Gray Serpent wanted to give to Lin. Her eyes filled with a sense of aimlessness.
"Sakura?"
"I... don't know."
A person stood at the door, listening to the conversation inside, and let out a faint sigh.
...
"Um... Sister Ellie..."
Pardo stood not far away, acting timidly. She felt that the Elysia bathed in the twilight before her felt like a stranger. Usually, Elysia was gentle, generous, and a confidante—a playful big sister. But now, Pardo felt a sadness radiating from her that she had never seen before.
"Hmm? What's wrong, Pardo?"
In an instant, when she turned back, that sense of strangeness vanished without a trace, and she returned to the usual Elysia.
"It's nothing, Sister Ellie. It's just that we've been standing here for a long time." Pardo had stayed because Elysia asked her to accompany her for a bit, but after bringing her here, Elysia hadn't said a word, just stared straight at the golden setting sun.
"Do you want to go back? Then let's leave in a bit." Elysia smiled, then turned her head back, a nostalgic smile on her face. "Long ago, this was a great spot to see the sunset. You could enjoy the cool air and watch the brilliant sun set with its lingering warmth. Some children really loved this place. It's just that later, high-rises were built across from here, blocking the sun."
The golden sunset glow spilled over her beautiful hair, creating a faint sense of beauty.
Now, those high-rises had collapsed. The sunset could shine here once again.
But the child who used to stand here had grown up.
...
Silver-white hair and a Pseudo-Herrscher Core in his body. This reminded Lin of someone he wasn't particularly keen to remember.
Perhaps he should have pressed for more answers back then; she likely understood the current situation better than he did. However, her last words were that the next time they met, it would be a fight to the death. Lin hadn't experienced another separation of consciousness and body for a year, so he didn't know how long it would be until their next meeting.
"Lin, you look so honest, but once you start doing things, you're exactly like your dead foster father." Spaciel was on a call with Lin. He pushed his goggles up to his forehead, looking at the helmeted man against a pitch-black background on the screen. "I have to say, this is crazy. And the consequences are severe."
"...Is it possible?"
"Theoretically, yes. But the conditions required to implement it are too harsh. This isn't a project with clinical trials where we have room for error. If any step goes wrong that we didn't anticipate, heh..." Spaciel licked his lips, showing an unsightly smile.
"I will gather the conditions. If something goes wrong, just pin the blame on me."
"I don't need that. When I decided to join, I never thought about getting out. There's no turning back once the arrow is shot."
"...Alright. Thank you, Spaciel."
"No matter how many times I hear it, hearing you say 'thank you' is always a novel experience."
The call ended. Lin took a deep breath and looked down at the nun who sat with closed eyes behind the iron bars.
His conversation with Spaciel hadn't been hidden from Aponia, and she didn't seem to care.
"Aponia, I have something I want to ask you."
"Lin..." Aponia, whom he hadn't seen in a long time, showed no surprise. "I always welcome your arrival... you may ask me any question..."
"Fine. What I want to ask is..."
"However, my consultation requires a certain price."
"..."
A price?
Lin was surprised by these words from Aponia. What did she mean by a price? Was she back to her old job as a nun? But does a nun charge for a consultation?
"What price do you want?" Lin asked tentatively.
"In the Deep End, there are still people who come to ask me nonsensical things. Even I find it irritating at times." Aponia didn't answer directly, instead explaining why she was charging. "So, I charge different prices depending on the person and the question. For those from outside the Deep End, I have them bring some craft materials. For those inside, I have them listen to my 'stories'."
As he listened to Aponia, Lin suddenly realized something.
Aponia said she would answer, but she didn't say she would tell the truth. This meant the consultation was entirely based on her mood, as was the price.
"Then, Lin, for you..."
Aponia opened her beautiful eyes and looked at Lin. Then she curled her thin lips.
"Come inside first."