Mukuro arrived on the surface as promised.
Unlike the other Spirits, she had completely shut away her inner emotions, so no bonds could cloud her thinking—which was precisely why she showed intense resistance to the plans of Black Amber.
After all, in her own mind, she had nothing left.
If she lost even this power, she truly wouldn't know how to go on living in this world.
Amber, however, had no intention of forcing her.
She simply wondered if there might be a way for Mukuro to gradually open her heart.
So, Amber arranged for her to stay in the "Spirit Nest"—that is, the St. Freya Hotel—hoping that Shiori would succeed in "winning her over."
At any rate, the Selene project wasn't fully ready yet. There was still time for Mukuro to adjust.
Although the goal was to "win her over," the real point now was simply to open her heart.
Matters of romance were something Shiori herself found hard to accept, and Tohka—as a candidate for "girlfriend"—was one hundred percent opposed.
Yes, after Tohka's relentless efforts, combined with a complete lack of rivals, even someone as rigidly straight as Shiori had begun to bend a little through their constant time together.
But thanks to Shiori's long-standing self-perception and habits, Tohka still hadn't fully secured the official girlfriend title.
As for this budding relationship between a human and a Spirit, Yoshino, Kaguya, and the others offered plenty of advice—mostly theoretical, of course.
But since they seemed to be having fun with it, Shiori didn't object, quietly accepting the little "surprises" that kept popping up in daily life.
Though sometimes they were closer to shocks.
Natsumi was utterly terrified of Seele, but whether it was Kotori and the others—now merged into Schicksal but still operating the Fraxinus—or Amber herself, who wanted to ensure Natsumi's safety, no one was going to let her wander around alone outside.
With Schicksal conducting a full-scale search, and Takamiya Mio deliberately ensuring the Neighboring World wouldn't take Natsumi in, it took less than a week for Amber to personally retrieve her.
And so, the Spirit Nest gained two new girls—both young in (mental) age.
Mukuro was relatively well-behaved; she had her own way of thinking and knew she didn't have many choices.
But whether out of stubborn protest or not, while she never refused Amber's arrangements, she also never lifted the seal on her heart.
Natsumi, however, was a whole other story—either sulking or on her way to sulking.
Ever since taking on the official role of "Spirit Nanny," Shiori had hardly known a moment's peace.
After these two problem children arrived, she couldn't help but marvel at how well Schicksal seemed to know how to raise kids.
Compared to them, Yoshino and the Yamai sisters were practically normal teenagers.
Still, water wears away stone.
Though Mukuro had sealed her heart, she hadn't sealed her intellect.
Just as she could see Amber's sincerity toward her, she couldn't miss the kindness shown by the other Spirits and Shiori.
Yet what truly made her undo the seal wasn't their genuine care—it was the provocation from Tokisaki Kurumi.
After two months of living together, eating together, Kurumi said something—no one knows what—that made Mukuro bristle with indignation.
Pulling out her sealed key, she thought, 'I'll show you. I won't waver at all,' and unlocked her heart.
Years of pent-up emotion burst forth in that instant, a flood of loneliness and desolation that nearly crushed her.
But in the next moment, warmth and kindness rushed in, filling her entire being.
Natsumi's situation was far simpler.
When Miku returned from a trip and saw Natsumi, she couldn't help but gush—only to be met with Natsumi's defensive, 'You're definitely lying. I'm not cute at all.'
Miku looked absolutely scandalized and cried out, 'How dare you question the aesthetic judgment of the current best rookie idol!?'
Though Miku's reply was a bit over the top, everyone suddenly understood the root of Natsumi's issues. And once you know the problem, fixing it is easy.
With both problem children finally settled, Itsuka Shiori breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Two months felt long for a young girl like her, but for Black Amber, it was just the blink of an eye.
With the whole world prioritizing materials and manpower, progress on the Selene was remarkably smooth.
Once it was confirmed that none of the Spirits had any lingering attachment to their Sephira Crystals, Black Amber summoned Nia—who'd been lost in her 2D world—back with a wave of her hand.
All the crystals were removed, and Black Abyss White Flower was used for recovery.
Tohka's situation was slightly different, since she was a Spirit born directly from a Sephira Crystal.
But it wasn't a big issue; Black Amber simply used puppetry techniques from the Type-Moon world to craft Tohka a new body.
Kurumi had been somewhat reluctant at first—after all, this wasn't what she'd originally been promised.
But just as Mukuro and Natsumi had changed, so had Kurumi. Now, if asked to stain her hands with blood again, she herself would fall silent, unsure how to choose.
What's more, after learning the truth about the First Spirit, even Kurumi couldn't bring herself to say "kill the original Spirit" anymore.
However you looked at it, it was humanity's one-sided doing—they created her, they took everything from her, and only then did all the ensuing tragedy unfold.
Plus, Black Amber's stance was firm; she made the choice for Kurumi.
In the end, Kurumi simply pushed that burden of guilt onto Black Amber's shoulders.
Pain and regret? Even healed, such wounds leave scars.
Kurumi never expected redemption, nor did she believe she could ever atone.
All she could do was spend the rest of her life making amends—saving as many lives as she had once taken, until the day she died.
Takamiya Mio had been eagerly awaiting this day.
All it would take was her full power to revive her beloved. Could there be a better deal in the world?
Besides, neither Black Amber nor Amber were the type to burn bridges.
Black Amber taught Mio the Type-Moon puppetry techniques outright. With Mio's heaven-sent intellect, she picked them up even faster than Black Amber had.
After learning this art, Mio trusted Black Amber all the more. Every time they met, her eyes held a restrained look that seemed to ask, 'When exactly does the plan begin?'
As mentioned earlier, reviving Takamiya Shin was simple for Black Amber.
Souls might be unfamiliar in most worlds, but for someone who'd experienced both Jujutsu Kaisen and Fate, they were nothing new.
Searching aimlessly for Shin's soul would have been difficult, but Black Amber had prepared in advance—Shin's soul was already in her hands.
"The goods for the person."
"Deal."
With everything ready and her trust in Durandal's integrity, Mio accepted Black Amber's condition without hesitation—first the "goods."
Floating honestly above the plains where she'd first appeared, Mio spread her arms.
Through dozens of polarizing lenses, the Selene reached its peak output.
Spiritual energy sufficient to envelop an entire planet began pouring from Mio's body the very first instant. Amber, standing ready, drew it all into herself without a second thought.
The power of Equinox sounded mysterious and complex, but in truth it was quite simple—a harmonized fusion of human, Stigmata, and Honkai beast, retaining the benefits while discarding the flaws.
Free from any defects of a MANTIS, it offered unparalleled efficiency in utilizing Honkai energy.
In Xianxia terms, it was a "Heavenly Dao Body."
In the anime world, there was a similar representative: Kurosaki Ichigo.
Put more simply, it meant near-limitless potential and capacity for growth within that world's framework.
And in Amber's hands, this power underwent a subtle change.
Thanks to her system's trait of adapting to any worldview, combined with the Equinox's near-perfect harmonization, Amber would no longer fear any "version updates."
In any world, she would retain this growth potential and possibility.
If Black Amber were to give a data-based example: originally, she estimated that Durandal could absorb one-fourth of Mio's power directly.
But now, Amber could take in as much as there was, with no side effects.
Even so, mental exhaustion was unavoidable.
Both Mio, bathed in the Selene's light, and Amber, constantly absorbing energy, were straining.
The massive outflow and intake of spiritual power pushed their mental endurance to the limit.
Even at maximum output, absorbing enough energy to envelop a solar system wasn't something that could be done in a short while.
By the third hour, Mio's eyes had shut and she fainted—understandable, considering she was the one being drained.
Amber, trained in the Taixu Sword Qi, was no stranger to mental discipline. Still, it was far from easy.
Fortunately, the Equinox granted nearly inexhaustible stamina, and the body's condition directly affects the mind.
Plus, seeing her struggle, Fu Hua couldn't bear it and used Fenghuang Down to help soothe Amber's mental strain, finally bringing her to a state of equilibrium.
This transfer of magnitude and essence continued nonstop for two full weeks. It wasn't until the third week that Mio finally opened her eyes.
In her slightly blurred vision stood a single figure—blue hair, a familiar face, and an expression of worry and guilt.
Even though she looked exactly like the sister of her dear friend Itsuka Kotori, Mio knew exactly who this was.
They looked exactly the same, and yet...
"Shin-chan…"
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T/N: I kept the name of Takamiya Shin the same, cause Shin is sorta gender neutral(i think).
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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.