Having finished her daytime stint as "Seele," the nighttime return to the lab saw Dark Amber re-emerge in her Mobius form.
Today's events weren't just a simple fight-and-forget affair.
In truth, Dark Amber was looking forward to the ripple effects far more.
Swallowing East Asia was far from enough for her.
While she had no boring ambitions of ruling the world, she genuinely needed to expand Schicksal's sphere of influence. This was all to push the Selene to its maximum output.
To achieve this, she didn't need to control these new regions like she did Europe, with Schicksal seeping into every corner. She just needed those areas to cooperate with her moves.
Sounded simple enough, but Schicksal's modus operandi was already deeply ingrained in people's minds.
Mobius's own image and reputation also leaned heavily toward 'scheming opportunist' and 'evil scientist.' Persuading anyone with just sweet talk was impossible.
That's why she needed them to hang themselves first. Then, a heavy, overwhelming strike would shatter their stubborn will to resist.
Westcott's guess was right.
The reason Dark Amber hadn't made a move yet was simply because acting now wouldn't yield the maximum effect.
So, she'd pushed the matter back for the time being. But that didn't mean she'd stay completely silent.
Waiting quietly without a word would only give those people an excuse to deflect, saying things like, 'So much time has passed, how do we know you're not just framing someone?'
Therefore, Dark Amber issued a statement saying she was 'investigating the mastermind' and 'hoped those involved would step forward voluntarily.' But that was all.
Even though the incident—'A Schicksal Valkyrie, Not Durandal, Easily Defeats Ellen'—had thrust both Schicksal and DEM into the spotlight, giving DEM and non-Schicksal-affiliated forces quite a scare, it still wasn't enough to break their spirit of resistance.
Because… Japan was too small.
In the end, it was just a minor skirmish on an island nation, less than a city's worth of trouble.
So far, it hadn't demonstrated Schicksal's capability to project force that could subdue the entire world.
But the opportunity and the target to showcase that force… were already lined up.
Dark Amber looked at the satellite imagery on the screen before her. It showed a girl with long, golden curly hair and amber eyes.
She wore what seemed like a pinkish-purple qipao adorned with star-like embellishments. Gloves and the hem of her dress bore constellation patterns.
On her feet, incongruous with the rest of her attire, were armored long boots reminiscent of a medieval knight.
Her beauty was undeniable, but what was truly astonishing was the backdrop behind her.
It was the vast, boundless cosmos, far beyond the Earth's atmosphere, in the distant reaches of space.
Hoshimiya Mukuro.
There was no doubt she was the strongest Spirit below Takamiya Mio.
Her raw power might not be overwhelmingly terrifying—roughly on par with a Tohka Inversion—but her abilities were easily capable of scouring the planet's surface.
Her Angel, Michael, possessed four abilities.
Segva: It could seal away a specific thing or concept. Not just memories or one's heart, but even other Spirits' powers. It could even halt the Earth's rotation—a truly bug-tier ability.
Lataib: It could undo the aforementioned seals, or act directly on space to achieve teleportation.
Shifuru: It unleashed her latent potential. Using this ability transformed her Astral Dress and turned her Angel from a staff into a long halberd.
Jerez: It could sever molecular bonds.
Compared to the others, this ability was slightly weaker in practical combat.
After all, the Territories generated by Realizer units allowed users to control physical laws within their area of effect. It was more effective against Valkyries, but even that depended on the opponent.
Against ordinary Wizards, even with a Territory, it was an instant kill. Against Durandal, even going all out might not break her defenses.
Regardless, for humanity, this was a terrifying entity capable of ending the world. A battle against such a Spirit was what would make the world truly understand the might Schicksal wielded.
To put it simply, the previous Spirits were just too weak, hardly requiring any real effort. That's why the world had developed some misconceptions about Durandal's true strength.
However…
Dark Amber narrowed her eyes slightly.
The current problem was calculating the little dummy goose's odds of victory against this Hoshimiya Mukuro.
While it was said earlier that the little dummy goose was stronger than the Bright Knight: Excelsis, that was because the Bright Knight: Excelsis was simply too weak.
Pretty much any Durandal incarnation appearing after Bright Knight: Excelsis was stronger than her—there wasn't much room to go lower.
Compared to Durandal's peak form, the Palatinus Equinox, the little dummy goose's strength wasn't much to look at.
Or rather, the two weren't even comparable; there were just too many version gaps between them.
In terms of pure power, even Bright Knight: Excelsis could tangle with Hoshimiya Mukuro.
But Michael's power was no joke. The little dummy goose might easily resist Miku's abilities, but that didn't guarantee immunity to Mukuro's powers.
Even after two years of intense training and significant strengthening, the little dummy goose's position wasn't stable.
In Dark Amber's eyes, as long as Amber had any possibility of getting injured, the situation wasn't secure enough. And Mukuro genuinely introduced that possibility.
This line of thought made Dark Amber covet Takamiya Mio's power even more.
Not only was the sheer magnitude vast, but the abilities themselves were so broken.
What a waste for someone like Takamiya Mio, who had no idea how to use them properly!
Born with the power to destroy worlds, yet after thirty years, she was still outputting at the same pathetic level.
Galactic-scale capacity, planetary-scale output. Instead of delving into the application of her own power, she chose to be a love-struck fool. It was downright laughable.
If someone like Amber, who understood how to wield the Taixu Sword Qi and manipulated energy as effortlessly as moving her own limbs, had that power, such a situation would never occur.
Whatever the capacity, that would be the output.
Coveting was one thing.
While indulging in the sense of security that would come with obtaining Mio's power, this was merely a means to fuel her own drive.
In less than a moment, Dark Amber shook off the feeling.
Just as she was about to tell Amber, 'Time to do some pulls,' she noticed a flurry of messages popping up on her phone, the latest one from just three seconds ago.
Dark Amber couldn't be bothered to read them.
They were undoubtedly just flattery from subordinate factions or probing attempts from opposing politicians trying to gauge her stance and ease tensions. But her sweeping glance caught the sender's name.
"Westcott?"
She raised an eyebrow, genuinely surprised to receive a message from him.
"...Long live Schicksal?"
What the hell was this guy babbling about?
Though puzzled by Westcott's sudden and baffling flattery, it was unimportant.
Dark Amber swiped his message away and typed to Amber: "A big battle is coming soon. The little dummy goose's strength might not be enough."
"If possible, it's best to use the Palatinus Equinox character card. Dea Anchora would also work."
"Palatinus Equinox? Dea Anchora?"
On the other end, Amber's eyes widened at the message.
The story had just begun! Why would they need those two already? And 'the Dea Anchora would also work'?
The Dea Anchora had planetary surface-level power, didn't it? How could that level of strength only merit an 'also work'?
She glanced at her Recognition Points: 124,000.
With that many points, pulling those two shouldn't be too hard...
"Are we... going to fight Takamiya Mio?"
Amber couldn't help but ask.
"No. It's Hoshimiya Mukuro."
In Dark Amber's plans, Takamiya Mio was never the enemy. Hoshimiya Mukuro wasn't either.
With enough patience to wait it out, she could cover the world with 'Refracting Mirrors' even without fighting Mukuro. But...
Just like today's unexpected incident causing her embarrassment, Dark Amber couldn't guarantee her plans would proceed flawlessly.
So, she intended to complete her layout at the fastest possible speed.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! Webnovel will get 3 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.