Horizon:Volume 10B Chapter 27

Chapter 27: Answerer at the Questioning

I mean

You know how it is

Sometimes you just

Get hit really hard

Point Allocation (Do You Ever Not?)

●

Masazumi saw words of protest on her sign frame.

Asama: ‘Hold on! Why Toori-kun too!?”

I suppose I should answer that, she thought, but someone else responded before she could.

Tachibana Wife: “I have a theory regarding that.”

That someone was the Tachibana Wife who had been with Tres España back then. She would likely have a clearer answer then Masazumi.

Vice President “The Andamio de la Ejecución system could accomplish it, right?”

Tachibana Wife: “Judge. If the Andamio de la Ejecución’s light were fully established, it would have broken down Horizon-sama. But this does not happen instantaneously. And even after she has been broken down, a defensive wall of light is maintained to keep anyone from entering.”

So…

Tachibana Wife: “If the Chancellor lost the Vicereine before his eyes and touched the wall out of sorrow, he would have been executed in the same way.”

Yeah, that had to be it, thought Masazumi as this logic settled inside her as something other than relief.

Why had Katagiri asked to have the rest of them suspended instead of just Horizon and Aoi?

Vice President: “Even if our attempt to retrieve Horizon at Mikawa failed, the Musashi would have taken off. So even with our ‘failure’, we would have returned to the Musashi and fled.”

Sticky King: “But then how would we have defended against the attack from the Papa Schola’s ship? We sank it with Horizon’s Lype Katathlipse.”

Vice President: “Aoi and Horizon’s death meant victory for K.P.A. Italia. We lost and fled. The Papa Schola would have proven their righteousness and retrieved the extracted Olos Phtonos. With no reason to sink the defeated Musashi, why take the risk?”

But that was where things would have gotten difficult.

Novice: “The Student Council would have had to do something about the pressure from the people and the mood of war weariness.”

Vice President: “Seeking a connection to the Testament Union, we would have gone to England. I imagine it was a challenge without our results at Mikawa or the Logismoi Oplo, so the Armada Battle was probably fought jointly with the English navy instead of by the Musashi alone. …That wouldn’t leave us able to ask many favors of England, but we would have recovered some. And we probably worked to strengthen the Musashi and look to the future.”

If they had a chance, it would have come after that.

Vice President: “If there was anything working in our favor, it would be that ‘Hashiba’s Ten Spears’ in that world were the Sanada Ten Braves. And without any knowledge of the future, Lord Motonobu would have made fewer preparations, allowing us to make some advances from there. If we completed talks with Anne similarly, I imagine we considered ‘what Aoi and Horizon would have done’, which took us along a similar path to where we are now. And…”

At that point, the rest was simple.

Vice President: “At Westphalia, we asked to have the Logismoi Oplo returned as a memento of Horizon. The Genesis Project wouldn’t have been corrected in that world, so the Nobunaga we met wouldn’t be there. It would be up to us. But the old Genesis Project based on the Logismoi Oplo failed and the world was doomed.”

At that point, something else clicked into place.

Why had the Ten Spears been allowed into Avalon?

Vice President: “Carrying out the Genesis Project must have meant a large-scale battle or risk. I bet we asked to shelter inside Avalon as payment or as compensation if it failed.”

●

“Wait.”

Asama saw Horizon raise her right hand.

Asama knew what she wanted to say. Masazumi’s scenario made sense as an altered form of the path they had taken, but it made no sense on the personal side.

Horizey: “We were just told that Toori-sama and I had a child. How could that happen if the two of us were lost at Mikawa?”

Exactly. And that question also applied to more of them.

Asama: “Our cases wouldn’t work without Toori-kun being alive either, right?”

Silver Wolf: “Right, but…someone here claims to be me and my king’s child.”

Bell: “Um…uh…could it be…some kind of misunderstanding?”

…Oh, Suzu-san sounds like she would be disappointed to find it isn’t true!

Suzu had expressed her feelings for him during the Battle of Mikawa. The thought of failing there and losing him had to be a deeply disturbing one for her.

It was for Asama too.

…Do you know how hard it was to bring myself to approve the use of Toori-kun’s supply spell?

She had wanted to support him however she could. But what if that led to him being lost?

“–––––”

That meaningless thought made her gulp just before a sign frame appeared before her.

It was from Naito and Naruze. Light briefly enveloped their shared communication sign frame and then…

Art-Ga: “This isn’t going to be an easy discussion, but we do have an answer there. It’s right here in front of us.”

●

Naito flew high up in the sky.

Too far up for the Azuchi or Musashi’s artillery to reach. The two ships were moving, so it took a fair amount of power to fly along with them, but…

…They guided us up here.

Katou Yoshiaki and Wakisaka Angie of the Ten Spears.

Those two arrived to threaten Naito and Naruze’s air superiority between the two ships, but they didn’t put up much of a fight. Which made sense seeing how their schale besens were missing components and badly worn down.

While Naito and Naruze weren’t arrogant enough to think they could definitely win, they had been curious why that pair had taken an obvious ascent as if to draw their attention.

Then came the family announcement.

Those two had seemed to wait up in a sky of pure altitude and speed, simply keeping their distance.

They hadn’t introduced themselves. As if to say they didn’t need to. That felt very Techno-Hexen-ish and just like something Naito and Naruze would do. And if they ever did have kids, they would probably teach them to only give the bare minimum of a greeting to strangers.

But did they qualify as strangers to those two?

They had exchanged what could be seen as greetings a few times.

So that was good enough.

And Naruze sighed while flying alongside Naito.

“So instead of getting a read on them, it’s like getting a read on ourselves? It feels a little stifling. But…”

They had a clear answer to Horizon and the others’ question.

Art-Ga: “I can say one thing for certain about the two flying alongside us now. Now that I look at them, they do seem to be Margot’s and my children.”

And…

Gold Mar: “You can find children of mixed Non-Angel parentage – like half Descended Angel and half Fallen Angel – around Musashi, but the most commonly inherited traits are the color of the wings and the hair or the shape of the wings. And looking at these two, I’d say Ga-chan is right about them very likely being our children. …Do you get what that means?”

This was their conclusion.

Gold Mar: “There’s no man in this equation. So you could say one of us was the husband and the other the wife. No, with us I feel like it’s just two wives.”

Silver Wolf: “…What? You mean that can happen between two women?”

Gold Mar: “The Protestants have been researching it and were getting all excited about it a while back. So maybe they got it working in the future?”

Asama: “Then, um, uh…”

Art-Ga: “With even a single hair, you can create a child with your loved one. And I expect there would also be technology to do it outside the body, so it would even possible to do it without the woman.”

●

Kimi realized Horizon had lowered her gaze.

…Oh, dear.

“What is it, Horizon?”

Horizon gently angled her body. And she tilted her head as if trying to work something out.

“This is getting a little…complicated.”

“Oh, dear. Horizon? What happened? You look so thoughtful.”

Beyond Horizon, Asama gave Kimi a nod to say “you handle this”.

…Then I need to be a proper older sister here.

While Kimi smiled bitterly on the inside, Horizon spoke, her head still lowered.

“I was only just rejoicing at learning that Toori-sama and I had a child when it turns out we actually died and someone else set up that connection between us.”

“You make such a wonderful recapper, Horizon!”

But she had more to say.

“In that case…how are Toori-sama and I supposed to celebrate that child?”

“Horizon?”

“Hm? What is it, Kimi-sama?”

When Horizon looked Kimi in the eye, Kimi placed her right hand on her cheek.

“Heh heh. If you try to tell me that child wasn’t celebrate, I will slap you, okay? Also, Horizon. I asked you what happened.”

“Well…”

“What happened, Horizon?”

Horizon did not respond. She simply widened her eyes slightly and stared at Kimi.

So Kimi continued.

“Nothing at all has happened has it? After all, you are getting all worked up over it because it hasn’t happened yet. Maybe it did happen in the Ten Spears’ future, but it hasn’t happened yet here and we can still make sure it happens in the happiest possible way.”

And…

“You and my foolish brother were not lost at Mikawa, so none of that will happen and anything and everything can happen.”

She placed her hands on her future sister-in-law’s cheek and gently massaged them as she spoke.

“So again: what happened, Horizon?”

“Judge! Something good happened.”

“And what is that?”

“This version of me can join Toori-sama, you, Asama-sama, Mitotsudaira-sama, and all the rest in celebrating any future children. That has happened.”

“Yes.” Kimi could feel herself smiling as she gently hugged Horizon. “Someone in the future decided to be considerate in a very silly way.”

“I-it wasn’t meeee,” insisted Asama.

“Heh heh. You have your hands full already. But I just know this was thanks to me.”

“What was, Kimi-sama?”

“Because I brush my foolish brother’s hair at home. And while our hair is so similar, I have a brush just for him because his is short. And I only let him brush my hair.”

●

Horizey: “Kimi-sama, um…that is quite the merciless counterattack after everything we’ve been discussing.”

Asama: “That explains why Toori-kun uses so few of comb charms among the daily life support spells and charms I periodically give him.”

Silver Wolf: “It also explains why my king is so good at brushing my hair.”

Wise Sister: “Heh heh heh. The lesson here is to just go for it even if you know you’re several steps behind!”

●

Asama had been feeling some light despair when she looked to the sign frame next to her. Naito was speaking there.

Gold Mar: “But what about Horizon’s hair? They’d have to get it from somewhere.”

Maybe the Blue Thunder? Or maybe it could be found by searching the Tama room she had stayed in back then, but…

Art-Ga: “But it would be a lot harder to do if it was dirty.”

Horizey: “Then what about Caretaker-sama?”

Asama gave Horizon a questioning look and Horizon nodded.

She pulled a filled teacup from the space behind her before continuing.

“Caretaker-sama was the name of the Tres España student who was tasked with looking after the tragic and stunningly beautiful automa-geh…with looking after me. Were you not aware of her?”

…That definitely wasn’t her name!

Asama nearly ran a search but stopped herself. But Horizon took a sip of tea and continued.

“She brushed my hair. If some was preserved as a keepsake after my death, then the aforementioned process would likely work. …And it is all thanks to Caretaker-sama.”

●

Tachibana Wife: “Um, I feel like I should mention that any student placed in that position would be a former name inheritor who would have both skill in combat and social status even if she no longer had any political influence.”

Horizey: “My goodness! You mean Caretaker-sama was in fact an important character!? I should have known! Her choice of books was surprisingly aggressive and really helped me pass the time!”

●

“You’re so silly.”

Asama nodded when Kimi turned her way.

“I know. …That me must have kept her lid on and done something stupid. Mito probably did too.”

“Judge. Maybe you thought that would bring him back. You must have volunteered as soon as you learned you could have his child. But aren’t you glad?”

“Glad that isn’t how it has to happen now?” asked Asama.

“No.” Kimi pointed at him and Horizon. “That version of you must have gone, ‘Oh, I bet Toori-kun wouldn’t have wanted this. Oh, no. What have I done?’ and started wiggling around all- what’s this, Asama? That smile is terrifying.”

…But I probably did worry about that afterwards.

However, that wasn’t the point. She knew what Kimi was trying to say.

“The current Toori-kun and Horizon…have both accepted Mito and me. I think our future selves wanted it to be this way and wanted some way to keep Toori-kun and Horizon from being lost.”

If her future self was unsure if she had done the right thing, she wanted to tell her that those two did in fact want this.

“Heh heh. It all worked out in the end, but you really shouldn’t take things in such weird directions. Now that you’ve removed your lid, you need to make sure you don’t do anything like that.”

●

It did work out, didn’t it? thought Masazumi.

…The Ten Spears’ claim had sounded absurd, but they were beginning to work out the details now.

She felt layering speculation atop speculation was dangerous, but she also thought it was important to keep this momentum going.

Vice President: “We have a general grasp of the situation, Hashiba Ten Spears.”

The battlefield was on the move. Take Balfette for example.

Flat Vassal: “Oh! Are you done with your family verification discussion!? Meanwhile, I’m making a curve along Asakusa’s bridge while dodging three beams!”

If a single vassal could distract one of the enemy’s name inheritors, was that a small price to pay? Or was it a waste of a resource as valuable as Balfette? It was hard to say.

But Masazumi know it was her turn even if the battle was still raging.

“It’s time to negotiate. Even if I doubt it will take long to reach a conclusion.”

She then spoke to the enemy.

“Hashiba Ten Spears. I, Musashi Vice President Honda Masazumi, would like to once more inquire about the purpose of this battle. Where does the line between victory and defeat lie for you?”

●

Takenaka wasn’t sure if she should step forward here.

The Musashi and Azuchi were battling as they flew toward Osaka Bay. Most of the fighting aboard the Musashi was over the corridors leading from bow to stern on the third port ship, but the Ten Spears were not participating.

For them this was the Battle of Yamazaki.

But the Ten Spears and the Musashi’s main fighters were engaged in a very different fight.

This was not a fight between Akechi and Hashiba.

It was a fight to determine the path the world would take: Genesis Project or no Genesis Project?

And they had established the foundation needed to justify their fight. They had announced why it was they wanted duels with the Musashi fighters.

“ ‘Azuchi’, how are the other nations reacting?”

“Shaja. The national, state, union, and federation level European academies have requested we relay this conversation to them and to attach a log. Some of them have gone through the Testament Union, but quite a few are reaching out independently. Shaja.”

This was going well.

…From a purely Hashiba viewpoint, they only had the Battle of Komaki Nagakute left.

Politically, Hashiba would win that battle, but it was actually a defeat.

There was also the showdown at Sekigahara, but Hashiba’s Western Army would lose there too.

So as things were, Hashiba was facing a future of continual losses.

But not so with the Ten Spears. Their clear rejection of Musashi made them into a political card that transcended Hashiba’s history recreation.

With them around, conquest of the Far East need not be handed to Musashi as the descendants of the Matsudaira clan. And when Musashi attempted to accomplish anything, the Ten Spears could ask “won’t they just fail?” to drag Musashi down.

That was the political card the Ten Spears possessed from knowing about Musashi’s failure.

They had set things up for that and now they had revealed the truth. Which probably explained what was happening now.

Kuro-Take: “Here it comes. …Musashi Vice President, can you hear my voice?”

Vice President: “Yes, it seems like I’m not a part of all this…and I take it the same is true for you.”

Kuro-Take: “Testament. Mitsunari-kun and I are outsiders. You can think of us like infrastructure managers. Although our role right now is a little different.”

“But,” she began.

Kuro-Take: “Are you willing to speak with me?”

Vice President: “Will you put on Katagiri Katsumoto instead?”

That seemed like the right thing to do. After all, for the Ten Spears and Musashi, this conflict was not the Battle of Yamazaki – it was the first step toward deciding how to think of themselves as parents and children.

While Takenaka was one of the Ten Spears, she was unrelated to all that, so why should she speak here? And the Musashi Vice President understood she was in a similar position.

Vice President: “Then put on Katagiri. I will get someone else to speak on our behalf.”

“Testament,” replied Takenaka, opening a lernen figur.

“Katagiri-kun, it’s negotiation time. I doubt this will last long, but we’re counting on you.”

●

Katagiri knew the time had finally come.

He had been actively explaining things for them before, but once they all began determining the truth of the matter individually, that role was no longer needed.

That was a problem.

…But only I can break free of this stalemate!

The rest of the Ten Spears were seeing the people they had wanted to see and explaining the truths they held so dear.

If Musashi could be convinced to accept and obey the Genesis Project here, the conflict against them didn’t have to happen.

It made sense.

They had come from the future and joined the Genesis Project. The Double Border Crest had appeared whenever they revealed the truth, but they had managed to convey a few fragmentary pieces. Of course, those fragments hadn’t escaped the Double Border Crest, but they had strengthened the Genesis Project.

They had now distanced themselves from destiny using the vessel named Nobunaga. Now for the first time since they were extracted into this era, they need not fear destiny or the Double Border Crest.

Only the Genesis Project could stop the Apocalypse.

The Logismoi Oplo would not work. So…

…Yes.

The Ten Spears had the advantage.

Musashi had no plan for the Apocalypse, but they did.

So now they only had to settle things here.

The conflict between them had yet to begin. If they could settle this now, that conflict could be avoided and they could work with the people who were essentially their parents.

“Testament.”

…I need to do this right.

A lernen figur appeared before him.

From his negotiation partner. Who would Musashi’s Vice President choose to speak on her behalf? Maybe the Representative Committee Head?

Katagiri had seen the records from the Keichou Campaign, so he knew Musashi’s Representative Committee Head was quite skilled. He told himself to be careful just before the text appeared on the lernen figur.

Bell: “Um…y-you really want me…to negotiate…Masazumi?”

She chose my mother of all people!?

●

Suzu honestly didn’t understand.

She had taken a seat at the negotiating table at Masazumi’s insistence, but…

…Will the bridge…be all right?

When she turned to face that direction, “Musashi” and the others raised a hand. That meant they could handle it, but that would only be because they were flying a straight shot toward Osaka Bay.

Trusting Masazumi’s assurance that this wouldn’t take long, she opened her mouth.

…Wh-what should I say?

Masazumi had told her to just voice her thoughts, so in an attempt to form a mental image of her negotiating partner…

Bell: “Katagiri…-kun?”

●

AnG: “Huh? Hate for Kacky just skyrocketed on the Azuchi’s local divine net for some reason. What’s up with that?”

Kimee: “I seem to recall his mother having a lot of fans in our era too.”

The Boy: “Wait, what? All I’m doing is talking with my mother!”

●

Suzu realized he wasn’t responding.

…Huh?

His name was Katagiri Katsumoto, wasn’t it? Did she have it wrong?

Bell: “Katagiri-kun?”

Was that wrong?

Bell: “Katagiri-san?”

No, that didn’t work either.

Bell: “Katsumoto-kun?”

Still nothing.

●

Asama realized he was poking at her right arm.

Past him, Kimi was trying with all her might to suppress her laughter and Asama knew she would learn why that was later. For now…

“What is it, Toori-kun?”

“Well, uh, I wanted to give Bell-san a warning, but it would be awkward coming from me.”

“Oh,” she said in understanding. This likely applied to Horizon, Mitotsudaira, and her as well. Simply put…

“Do you see how being the father can be difficult, Toori-kun?”

●

Suzu converted Asama’s sign frame to speech and then blushed.

…Thank you, Asama-san!

She was glad this came from Asama. Because Asama wouldn’t tease her about it. But now she knew she hadn’t properly understood.

Bell: “Sorry…about that.”

The Boy: “Huh? About what?”

Bell: “For not…understanding you.”

She had been wrong.

He wasn’t Katagiri. Nor was he Katsumoto.

The Ten Spears’ names came from the Hashiba Seven Spears. And they had taken those names after driving away the original name inheritors – the Sanada Ten Braves.

…That means they had different names…in their future at Avalon.

Realizing that, she considered what it would have been like “back then”.

…Toori-kun and Horizon…weren’t there.

The Main Blue Thunder hadn’t been in its current state. In that case, this boy wouldn’t have been “Katagiri”. Instead…

Bell: “Your family name…is Mukai, isn’t it?”

The Boy: “Oh, testament. It is.”

…Wow.

I’m so stupid, she thought. The me “back then” was so stupid. I didn’t have the courage to go to the Main Blue Thunder and tried to act like it didn’t bother me, but then that me takes such a weird step.

I know Asama-san, Kimi-chan, and the rest accepted it, but even after going that far, I still couldn’t bring myself to take that final step.

His name.

The Ten Spears are mostly girls. In fact, they all are except for my child.

As the only boy, I must have wanted to choose a name related to “him”. Directly naming him Toori would have been an option.

But that wouldn’t be fair to Asama-san or Mitotsudaira-san.

We each had our own feelings for those we had lost, but you can’t measure those feelings against each other or act like only you feel that way.

And because I couldn’t fully commit, I kept my distance.

I love him. I especially love Toori-kun when he and Horizon are together. So…

Bell: “…Does it include the kanji from the word ‘together’?”

The Boy: “Eh?”’

Correct. Then, she thought. Instead of forcing it, she just let the words form in her mind.

…I wanted him to live, didn’t I?

So she would have gone with that. She had wanted this child to live and for them to be together forever, so a name that meant “live together”.

Bell: “Ikuo.”

No. I know how I would refer to my own child.

Bell: “Ikuo-chan.”

●

AnG: “Wowwwwww! She actually guessed it!?”

Kimee: “How the hell did she work that out?”

Tsurugi: “I do remember my mother having a lot of respect for Katagiri-kun’s mother, but was it for things like this?”

●

Katagiri realized he had collapsed onto the wall.

More specifically, he was on the wall that had become a floor. He must have taken such severe damage he had briefly passed out.

…Wow.

That was incredible. He wanted to make a joke out of it and say “Musashi’s Acting Captain” was incredible, but it had been too incredible for him to even do that. It was so incredible his vocabulary had dried up.

…Oh.

A day like this and a situation like this must have been what they had truly wanted.

Which meant they really couldn’t afford to lose those people. However…

“…”

…I can’t!

He didn’t see how he could possibly defeat this opponent.

Kuro-Take: “U-um, Katagiri-kun?”

“Sorry,” he said, collapsed on the wall anew.

The Boy: “I admit…defeat.”

●

Vice President: “Hmm, Mukai really is incredible at times like this. Her win rate must be 100%.”

Kuro-Take: “Hold iiiiit! Just a second, Musashi Vice President! That was a cheap trick choosing her!”

Vice President: “Cheap? You did the same thing with the duels you set up.”

Kuro-Take: “Those are combat! This is negotiation! Bringing a family relationship into that is unfair, don’t you think?”

Vice President: “C’mon, quit complaining just cause you lost.”

●

Naruze watched as the gold and white and black and black pair flew parallel to them and exchanged words via Magie Figur.

“Kime-chan, Take sure is good friends with Musashi’s Vice President, huh?”

“It’s unusual to see her so lively.”

“Well,” interjected Naruze. “Our Vice President seems to be well-liked by older politicians.”

“Oh,” they looked up.

The two exchanged a glance before…

“Do you more or less get what our deal is?”

Now it was Naruze and Margot’s turn to exchange a glance.

“If you’ve inherited my dislike of unnecessary effort, is there any reason to go into it further?”

“Testament,” acknowledged the yellow one.

Then, without warning, Margot asked a question. Her golden feathers illuminated by the artillery fire below.

“Which of you is my child?”

…Getting right to it, huh, Margot!

But Margot was the thoughtful type. After considering a number of things, she must have decided this mattered. The gold and black pair exchanged another glance.

It was the gold one who responded.

“We were never told. Although it seems likely that I’m yours.”

Hearing that, Margot turned toward Naruze and with a straight face…

“Ga-chan, when we get married, I think we should do it like 30 times.”

“Agreed, Margot.” Naruze nodded. “Because this means our children will be our children and we won’t view one over the other.”

She more or less understood what their agreement had to be.

“At the very least, we can’t let each other go until our children grow up. …So more than 30, we should get married once a month, once a week, or even once a day to make sure we’re always together, Margot.”

“To be honest, I thought you were going to suggest we get married again at each new event.”

“You mean put out a book to commemorate our new marriage at each ImMoral Manga!? That’s a great idea!”

Naruze forgot she was even riding her schale besen and leaned too far toward Margot, so she had to quickly regain her balance. After a corrective flap of her main wings, she took a breath. Then she looked to the other pair.

“Did you hear that, Kime-chan?”

“Yes, they really were like this before they got married.”

Naruze felt bad letting them hear that.

●

Yes, thought Yoshiaki. We need to protect them.

Until now, they hadn’t been able to be open about this and those two had been a formidable enemy, so she hadn’t been able to think about it like this.

But it was about protection.

She would do whatever it took to stop them and ensure they weren’t lost.

That was what she wanted to do.

This relationship would be erased by the Genesis Project and not even her own relationship with Angie would remain.

What kinds of relationships would they end up with after restarting from nothing?

But even that possibility would be lost if Musashi was left in charge.

So she would stop them. But…

…Will it really be that easy?

She knew the Ten Spears had built up their strength, but she and Angie were lacking gear.

Their mothers’ schale besens were vastly outdated compared to their own. But their mothers’ were complete and well-maintained.

Based on the records from Honnouji, those two had been held in reserve, although it might have simply worked out that way.

Was that part of an intuition for combat they had developed over their many battles?

If it did come to a fight, defeating those two would not be easy.

How could they go about it?

While Yoshiaki pondered that, Musashi’s Vice President spoke to Takenaka on the divine net.

Vice President: “You have said a lot so far, but I have a suggestion for you.”

To start with…

Vice President: “You say you will stop us, but why? All we’ve done is wonder what to do now that we’ve learned the Logismoi Oplo can’t directly stop the Apocalypse.”

●

Takenaka nodded at the Musashi Vice President’s words.

…That’s probably true.

They weren’t going to agree just because Hashiba told them to understand and obey. Plus, Musashi hadn’t actually done anything yet.

“We won’t know until we try it,” was probably enough of a stance for Musashi at the moment. But…

Kuro-Take: “I’m sorry, but we know you will fail.”

Vice President: “How?”

Kuro-Take: “Then let me put it this way: why do you still want to be involved? You can’t use the Logismoi Oplo, so shouldn’t you let the Genesis Project take charge?”

Vice President: “Because there is a diversity of possibilities.”

The Musashi Vice President’s words shot out at them.

Vice President: “This world contains countless opinions demonstrating so much diversity. There’s nothing wrong with coming together as a group to face a large problem like the Apocalypse, but what really matters is to actually ‘face it’ first. And in my opinion, when we do face that problem, we should search for as many diverse options as we can as long as there isn’t one definite best option.”

Kuro-Take: “And what if the Genesis Project already is the definite best option?”

Vice President: “How can you be so sure?”

Kuro-Take: “Because you will lose.”

Vice President: “And I’m saying…”

They didn’t understand.

And the Ten Spears understood that they didn’t understand.

…Should I really be the one to tell them this?

But glancing over at the divine transmission showed Katagiri was still lying on the wall, occasionally rolling to the side and then rolling back.

The mommy shock must have hit him hard. She figured he would get used to it, but it would take time for someone like him.

She was the only one free to talk. So she did so.

Kuro-Take: “Because your opponent is destiny.”

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