Haruto nodded, the weight of the decision settling in his chest. "I accept. Let's do this."
Aeterna's eyes flashed with a satisfied crimson glow. "Very well."
She reached out and snatched the Void Reaper from Haruto's hand. As her fingers touched the hilt, she began to whisper a low, rhythmic mantra. Suddenly—BOOM—the sword dissolved into a mist of black static and vanished entirely.
Immediately, the constant pressure Haruto had been feeling in his mind lightened. He felt lighter, as if a physical fever had just broken.
"What did you do?" Haruto asked, blinking.
Aeterna chuckled, her white hair shimmering. "Calm down. The Void Reaper isn't a separate manifestation of your mana anymore. It is me. When you aren't using it, it rests within my essence. No more constant drain on your focus."
She stepped closer, tapping her chin thoughtfully. "Now, since we're officially linked, I need to know what to call you. Rule Number Two: I'm not calling you 'Master' or 'Lord.' So, suggestions?"
Haruto sighed. He had been so focused on the 50% mana drain rule that he'd glossed over the "Disrespect" clause. "Great, I summoned the Mother of Origin and I'm not even the boss," he thought. "Anything but Master is fine by me."
The room suddenly turned into a brainstorming session:
Smoke piped up, trying to be helpful for once. "How about 'Mister'?" Aeterna didn't even look at him; she just flicked her wrist, and Smoke was silenced by an invisible force.
Logos adjusted his glasses. "Logically, 'Haruto' is the most accurate and efficient."
"Too casual," Aeterna dismissed, waving her hand.
Toya grinned. "Partner? Like a duo?"
"A bit too formal," she countered.
Bellona suggested "Sir," but Aeterna shot that down too. "Sounds like he's an old man."
Then, Elysia, Lustra's spirit, whispered shyly, "Brother?" Aeterna wrinkled her nose. "No, that's just weird."
Aeterna crossed her arms, her expression becoming unusually serious.
"I want something that signifies that he is my everything, and I am his. A bond that can't be broken by the System or the Abyss."
Lustra clapped her hands together, a mischievous glint in her eyes. "How about 'Papa'?"
Haruto nearly tripped over his own feet. He stared at Lustra, then at Aeterna, and then hit his hand against his forehead. "There is no way," he thought. "She's the Mother of Origin, a literal Queen. She's going to kill Lustra for even suggesting that."
But Lustra leaned in, her voice soft but convincing. "Think about it! To a daughter, her Papa is her entire world, her protector. And to a Papa, his daughter is the only thing that matters. It's the ultimate bond of 'everything for everything.'"
Aeterna stood perfectly still. The Goddesses held their breath, expecting a blast of Void energy to level the room. Instead, Aeterna's pale face turned a light shade of pink.
She looked at Haruto, then back at Lustra. "Papa..." she tested the word out, her voice losing its sharp edge for a split second. "The one who provides the foundation... the one who carries the weight..."
The room fell into a suffocating silence. Ivory and Elysia both lunged forward at the same time, literally clamping their hands over Lustra's mouth.
"Lustra, shut up?!" Ivory hissed, her eyes darting toward Aeterna, expecting a catastrophic mana explosion.
Haruto stood there, paralyzed, his heart racing. He was internally screaming, "Reject it! Say no! Tell her she's a literal Queen and this is ridiculous!" He kept his eyes locked on Aeterna, waiting for her to restore her dignity.
Instead, Aeterna tilted her head, her finger tapping her chin rhythmically. "Hmm... 'Papa'..."
Haruto's soul nearly left his body. "Wait, wait, wait—"
"Actually," Aeterna interrupted, a slow, blooming smile spreading across her face, "it fits. You provide the mana, you carry the vessel, and I'm the one who gets to cause all the trouble. It has a certain... organic logic to it."
Haruto let out a violent, dry cough, nearly choking on his own breath. He shot a murderous glare at Lustra, who was still being muffled by Ivory. If looks could kill, Lustra would have been erased from the system right then and there. Elysia, sensing the danger, quickly hopped in front of Lustra to shield her from Haruto's "Void-tier" annoyance.
"It's decided then!" Aeterna chirped, her tone shifting from 'Terrifying Empress' to 'Cheerful Chaos' in a split second. She walked up to Haruto and patted his cheek. "From now on... I'm calling you Papa."
"I am 18 years old!" Haruto managed to wheeze out. "This is a massive glitch in the social hierarchy!"
"Rules are rules, Papa," she teased, her red eyes dancing with mischief.
"Rule Number Two: you don't expect to call yourself a master. And I like this one. It makes the contract feel much more... personal."
The silence in the room was so thick you could hear the mana hum in the walls. Haruto took a deep breath, his face hardening into a serious expression. He wasn't about to let his "World-Saving Hero" image get replaced by "Teenage Dad" before the first battle.
"Listen," Haruto said, crossing his arms.
"I never said I was okay with this. You can't call me 'Papa.' It makes no sense."
Aeterna tilted her head, her red eyes curious. "And why not?"
Haruto pointed at her. "Because look at you! You're an Empress. You look older than me—or at least my age. Logically, the one called 'Papa' should be the older one. It's a visual problem."
Haruto let out a long sigh of relief. Finally, he thought, logic wins. He expected her to shrug and pick a cooler name."
"Hmm... you're right. That is a problem," Aeterna muttered.
"The visual data doesn't match the title. Let me fix this."
Snap!
She flicked her fingers, and a burst of white and violet pixels swirled around her. When the light cleared, everyone's jaw hit the floor.
Standing in front of Haruto was no longer the tall, intimidating Queen in black plate armor. She had shrunk down into a small, incredibly cute girl.
The Look: Her dark, heavy armor had transformed into a frilly, elegant dress of white and crimson red.The Hair: Her long, flowing white hair was now tied into two adorable, bouncing twin-tails with black ribbons.The Vibe: She looked like a high-tier doll brought to life, her big red eyes looking up at Haruto with a sparkling, innocent mischief.
"Aww!" The sound escaped from Ivory, Lustra, Toya, Asobi and even Bellona simultaneously. They couldn't help it; the contrast was too much.
"This is not allowed!" Haruto shouted, waving his hands frantically.
"You can't just change your age to win an argument! The System shouldn't let you do this!"
"Actually, it's perfectly legal," the mini-Aeterna chirped, her voice now higher and sweeter but still carrying that smug undertone. "Every weapon spirit has three slots: a Weapon Form, a Combat Form, and a Rest Form. Most spirits choose an object like a book, a hat, or a pen for their Rest Form. But I? I chose a human avatar. And I can adjust the 'Rest' parameters however I want."
She walked up to Haruto, grabbed the hem of his shirt, and looked up with a wide, toothy grin. "Better, Papa?"
Haruto looked at the Goddesses, then at Toya, then back at the tiny Empress. He realized he had just lost the battle. He had summoned a city-leveling nuke that now looked like a younger sister—or a daughter—and she was using the System's own rules to troll him.
The atmosphere in the training hall did a complete 180. The fear that had pinned everyone to the floor just minutes ago evaporated, replaced by a wave of pure, chaotic adoration.
While the Goddesses were still trying to process the "Papa" situation, the other weapon spirits—who usually lived lives of strict discipline and combat—completely lost their composure. They had never seen a Weapon Spirit, let alone the Mother of Origin, look so... huggable.
Kratos: The massive, 8-foot-tall God-Slayer didn't even ask for permission. He walked over with heavy thuds, reached down, and easily scooped the mini-Aeterna up into the air with his giant, scarred arms. He held her like a precious trophy, a rare, gruff smile breaking through his warrior mask.Logos: The scholarly spirit hovered close, his eyes darting back and forth as he adjusted his glasses. He was practically vibrating with academic glee. "Incredible... the molecular density has shifted perfectly to mimic a pre-adolescent human! The mana output is compressed but still infinite. It's a masterpiece of transformation!"Elysia: She was mesmerized by Aeterna's new look. She leaned in close, gently touching the silky white twin-tails. "The ribbons... the lace... She's like a little princess."
In the corner, Smoke watched the scene with a bitter scowl. He was the only one not joining in. Seeing the "Queen" get all the attention—even in this tiny form—just reminded him of his own place at the bottom of the food chain.
"First she crushed my skull with a 'crack' of her neck, and now she's everyone's favorite?" Smoke muttered to himself, his purple mist swirling aggressively. "I'm an SSR-rank assassin spirit, and I'm being ignored for a kid in a frilly dress. This is rigged."
The atmosphere in the room didn't just get heavy—it turned into lead. One second, Kratos was bouncing her like a proud uncle; the next, the temperature dropped twenty degrees, and the air began to hum with the sound of a thousand "Warning" notifications.
The "cute" expression on mini-Aeterna's face didn't change, but her red eyes turned into two glowing pools of ancient, cold fire.
"Hey," she said, her voice small but vibrating with a power that made the windows rattle. "You... with the oversized muscles. What is your name?"
Kratos, usually fearless, froze mid-step. A drop of sweat rolled down his scarred face. "K-Kratos, Your Majesty."
"Kratos," she repeated, her voice dripping with a terrifying sweetness. "Tell me... who gave you permission to lift the Origin off the ground like a common sack of grain? Do you think because I adjusted my height, I adjusted my authority?"
The Goddesses and the other spirits stumbled back. Even in this tiny, "adorable" form, the shadow she cast on the floor was massive, jagged, and dark. It wasn't the shadow of a child; it was the shadow of a cosmic executioner.
"Down. Now."
Kratos didn't just put her down; he practically scrambled to set her feet on the floor and then immediately backed away, bowing so low his forehead hit the training mat. Logos and Elysia turned pale and sprinted back to Ivory and Lustra's sides, realizing they had just tried to play with a sleeping dragon.
Aeterna smoothed out her white and red dress, her tiny hands dusting off her sleeves with an elegant, sharp motion. She looked at the legendary SSS-rank spirits as if they were disobedient puppies.
"What are you two still looking at?" she snapped at Logos and Elysia. "Do you think this is a nursery? You both look like you've forgotten your purpose. Go. Stand behind your masters and stay silent until I decide you're allowed to speak again."
The room was deathly quiet. The "Aww" moments were officially over.
Aeterna turned back to Haruto, her twin-tails bouncing as she walked over to him, her expression returning to a smug, "innocent" grin as if she hadn't just terrified the strongest spirits in the mansion.
Asobi looked at Smoke, who was still trembling from the residual pressure. "It's a good thing you were too chicken to go over there," she muttered, her voice sharp.
"Get back in the pipe. Now." With a swirl of purple mist, Smoke retreated, transforming back into his Pipe form and tucking himself away.
The other spirits followed suit, their pride wounded:
Logos turned into a Leather-bound Book and vanished into Ivory's hand.
Kratos dissolved into a massive Battle-Axe that Lustra stowed on her back.
Elysia shimmered and shrank into a delicate Ring on Lustra's finger.
The training hall was suddenly empty of spirits, leaving only the tiny, smug Aeterna standing in the center. But the Goddesses weren't bowing anymore—they were fuming.
Ivory stepped forward, her eyes cold. "Listen here, Spirit of Origin. You might be the 'Mother' of their code, but these are our partners. You might have the rank, but you don't have the right to treat them like trash in our own home. Don't push your luck just because you found a host."
Bellona crossed her arms, her warrior instinct flaring. "Exactly. We're here to help Haruto, not to be your subordinates. If you want respect, try giving some."
Lustra was the most upset, her lower lip trembling with indignation. "And I'm the one who gave you the 'Papa' idea! How can you be so mean to my Elysia right after I helped you find a name you liked? You're a big bully!"
Toya stayed frozen in the corner, his eyes darting between the three angry Goddesses and the tiny powerhouse. He didn't have a legendary spirit or a god-tier weapon, so he knew better than to open his mouth. "He is on his own for this one," he thought, sweating.
The air in the room shifted instantly as Haruto stepped forward, his expression stern. He didn't care if she was the "Origin"—he was a gamer, and a team that fights each other is a team that loses.
"Hey! Enough!" Haruto barked, looking down at the mini-Aeterna.
"Is that how you treat people who are trying to help us? You can't just bully everyone because you have a higher rank. Apologize. Now."
Aeterna froze. She looked up at Haruto, her big red eyes blinking in surprise. Normally, a spirit of her level would kill anyone who spoke to her like that, but she felt a strange sensation in her code. "This must be it," she thought. "This is what 'Papa' does—he sets the boundaries."
To everyone's absolute shock, the tiny Empress lowered her head, her white twin-tails drooping. "Sorry, Papa... I didn't mean to break the team's balance."
Haruto's face turned red. "I told you, I haven't agreed to the 'Papa' thing yet! Don't use it to get out of trouble!"
Aeterna didn't snap back. Instead, she looked at the floor, her lip trembling as she made the most heart-wrenching, "puppy-dog" face the System had ever rendered.
"But... we Weapon Spirits don't have parents," she whispered, her voice small and fragile.
"I've spent eons in the dark Abyss, birthing weapons for others, but I never had anyone to look up to. I just... I just wanted to know what it feels like to have a family."
Haruto stopped mid-sentence. The anger drained out of him, replaced by a sharp pang of empathy. He thought about his own father back home—the one who helped him get his phone, the one who supported his studies. He realized that for a "Deleted File" like Aeterna, he really was the only anchor she had.
Toya, who had been awkwardly standing in the corner watching the family drama, finally cleared his throat.
"Uh, guys? Not to interrupt the bonding, but the clock is ticking. And since Haruto just pulled a literal Queen... Can I please get a weapon spirit too? I feel like a Level 1 over here."
He looked at Ivory with pleading eyes. Ivory sighed, rubbing her temples. The drama with Aeterna had exhausted her, but she knew Toya was right—they needed everyone at maximum strength for the 25-hour deadline.
"Fine, Toya," Ivory said, her voice weary but determined.
"You've worked hard enough. If you're ready for the pain, I'll guide you through spirit synchronization too. But don't expect a Queen—you'll be lucky if you get a sharp butter knife after the luck Haruto just used up."
Toya pumped his fist. "I don't care! Just give me something that glows!"