"Let's go, Bell. They're here."
Ixion and Bell were in Rudel's room, which was located in the Bismarck Duchy.
Just as they flew out, the girls arrived.
The reason was because Rudel had gotten engaged to them today.
Both artificial intelligences watched them from a window.
At the same time, Ixion interrogated Bell.
"Give me your report on the last thing you remember."
Ixion wanted to know about Bell's past; he hadn't had any free time until today.
"Well... I don't really remember anything. I only have a fragmented conversation of the scientists from the day I was shut down."
"That works for me."
"Okay..."
◇◇◇
"What do you mean the results are negative?"
I was cleaning as usual when suddenly, the supervisor and his assistant were arguing.
Since I'm a cleaning automaton, they don't worry about what I might hear.
I kept sweeping with the broom, and their conversation got weird.
"The subjects have been exposed to tests with the sent sample... all subjects were massacred from the inside."
"You're not joking, are you?"
"I wish I were, but believe me, boss. That thing over there has no DNA that can be analyzed. Not only that, we can't burn it or destroy it. We used a super-sonic wave communicator, and it seems to be alive."
"Seems?"
"Yes. You see, at a low frequency that only an insect would make, it seems to murmur a name."
"A name?"
"Yes, but I don't know what it's saying; it seems to speak in plural. As if there's more than one."
"...Are you saying it's not a bacteria or a virus?"
"I wish it were."
I watched the supervisor sweating.
He used his hand to wipe the sweat.
"W-we have to tell the higher-ups we shouldn't use this. It doesn't seem like we can control it."
"What if we use Project E—"
"Don't you dare mention it!"
The supervisor slammed the table hard.
His sweat became more intense.
"That... is not something to play with; it's still imperfect."
"But, boss! I heard the guys from the northeast lab say 'Adam' is a success."
"Just because it's successful doesn't mean it's functional!"
"The higher-ups are producing more 'Black Swords' for the coming war!"
"On top of that, they're already using those new robots."
"Seriously... it's amazing they were approved, since after all, they were created—"
"That doesn't matter. We need to find a way to destroy that damn thing in case everything goes wrong."
"That's true, but I don't think it'll be a problem for Eden."
"With that in our hands, we'll never lose."
The supervisor and the assistant smiled. Both left, taking a briefcase that contained a strange black liquid.
I was left alone there, watching over everything, until suddenly, there was a tremor.
I shook a lot, and a message appeared on the computer.
"To all squads, this is an emergency! An unidentified enemy destroyed the imperial capital! Orders have been given that the highest priority is to secure Eden!"
"Furthermore!"
*static*
"Lilith has betrayed us and stolen the Adam project! You are ordered to destroy them both."
After that message, I heard something strange. It was as if someone was singing a beautiful melody, and then...
◇◇◇
"That's all."
Ixion listened to what Bell said while watching Rudel cry.
"...So I wasn't the only one who received that message."
Bell looked very curiously at Ixion.
"Senpai, was what we fought recently the cause of—?"
"No."
Her words were cut off by Ixion.
"That thing has many similarities with what the scientists I remember were investigating. But what destroyed the old humanity wasn't that thing."
"Do you know what it was?"
"No. But I'll never forget what happened before I was shut down. On that day, I—we were defeated."
Bell listened attentively to Ixion.
"We had to return to a nearby military base that was hidden on an island. Right after landing... the earth shook and..."
Ixion looked at Bell instead of Rudel.
"Enormous pillars of light came from below, lifting the earth into the sky. Immediately after, I heard a strange voice. That voice didn't affect me, but the crew and the captain started bleeding for some reason, and then..."
Ixion's red eye glowed intensely.
"It was there, ascending into the sky, a strange shape never seen before, and I was shut down until the Master found me."
Both now watched Rudel holding the girls.
"The information is scarce but useful."
"Oh, I remembered something else!"
"What is it?"
"It's not about the old humanity but about the ship that sank."
"Did you decipher what caused that strange phenomenon?"
"No. But Airi and that thing seemed to synchronize."
"...That ship has parts from the old humanity along with very ancient parts."
"There are three things I found out before it was destroyed."
"Tell me."
"The first is this: it was built by human hands."
"Oh? That's interesting."
"There's more. Its builder left it in that place because it required parts to repair it. Where do you think those parts are?"
Ixion indicated to Bell with his eye that he doesn't like jokes.
"In the most mysterious place. Aster."
Ixion turned to look at Bell.
"Aster? That's where the Master and I are going."
"Yes. The second is even weirder. What do you think 'Liebe' means?"
"Something stupid?"
"Correct! You'll be surprised by this; it means..."
Bell approached Ixion and made a strange symbol on her fluorescent eye.
"Love. And it ran on that."
"...Are you mocking me?"
"Not at all. I tried to analyze the mechanism when Airi manifested those shields. For some reason, only her positive feelings activated it."
"And, the last important and weirdest thing."
"Will it be weirder?"
Bell seemed to smile, even though she had no teeth.
"The aircraft was a gift. That gift was from a man to a woman. The name of the man and builder was engraved on the side of the ship."
"And the name?"
Bell was serious when she told him.
"His name was Rugel. And it seems he was in a hurry to search for something more than parts in Aster. Since he left a message..."
"Wait for me, please. I promise I'll save you like you saved the world."
"That's what it said."
Ixion looked at Rudel, who was lying on the bed hugging the girls.
"Rugel..."
"Yes. Interesting, isn't it?"
"The guy's name is Rugel; the Master's name is Rudel. The Master must go to Aster to look for a weapon, and curiously, that Rugel went to look for something important there."
"Senpai..."
Ixion turned to look at Bell.
"If what the Master said about finding a light when he died, and upon entering that light, he woke up in a body that wasn't his... do you think it was really a coincidence?"
"The same coincidence that Erselica reincarnated? And that those things attacked us."
"I don't know, Bell. What I do know is that the Master is the reason I don't want destroy humanity. For some reason, only he emits two strange auras according to my heat tracker."
"Oh, incredible. I thought you'd say it's because the Master loves those girls. I love them too; I don't want to destroy them even though they are the losers' descendants."
"Oh, too bad. The Master lost his chance to become one with them. I wanted to film their first time and have them watch it in their intimacy."
Bell headed inside to tease the three a bit.
Meanwhile, Ixion...
"Aster... Rugel... love... this world is very strange, but stranger still is that you have been the central axis of many important things."
Ixion also headed inside, but not before saying some final words.
"...Was it really... a coincidence that he reincarnated?"