"What a weary time those years were -- to have the desire and the need to live but not the ability."

-Charles Bukowski, Ham on Rye

━━━━━━━━┓ ? ┏━━━━━━━━

"Eh... A girl?"

"Seems to be, Master."

With an unprecedented guest on her way, I then looked at the en masse of three million puppets dancing like fools in front without their vocational consent. Assuredly, I can't let them appear like this... They might be under that unworthy King, but it can be faltered if I were to generalize 'all' of them to incorporate the same traits as their disparaging leader...

They were just under his commands, and if they were to defy, it would be unprofitable for them. I understand... Even for me back on my place of origin, it's how the system works.

"Azazel... You can now stop your remix."

"Affirmative, Master... How would you rate the mp3 file on a scale of 1 to 5?"

"What are you supposed to be? Spotify? Play Music?"

"Fundamentally, I need the data to make an adjustment based on your preference, Master." Says the AI who can be autonomous enough to suggest this 'relevant' music rather than giving me the original one that I asked... Well, let's just get this over with.

"Ahhh... 4 maybe?"

"Data recorded, Thanks for the feedback, Master."

"Ok then... Can't let this laughable masquerade welcome our guest."

"All of you... I'm gonna release you from the chains. Try to escape and I will kill you. Arrange yourselves in your original positions." I declared to the chained three million armored Tarragons.

As the chains came to a cease, and as I regained the darkness of the eclipse from being scattered across the sky, they, without questions, followed my command as if I'm the newly elected Echelon who recently just dethroned their King. The narcissist in deep sleep, however, I left hanging on the air... For display purposes.

And it was not long, that the atmosphere of the battlefield reclaimed its mundanity...which is not that normal-looking actually. It was still tainted by red, of which I guess is from Shiro's presence's aftereffects...And the eclipse also did not relinquish as my Paradigm Shift is still active.

Yet, the vast array of armies and mages followed my instructions without delays and arranged themselves in their former positions in an orderly manner but... it's somewhat unusual... they're too obedient to follow my commands even after what I did, even shaming their glorified King in front of themselves.., and it's somehow weird, now that I think of it, but not that mysterious. I mean, who would not want a leader like that to be dethroned?

"Master... the incoming female is now becoming more adjacent to my sensory radars." Azazel suddenly prompted me in the remainder of the girl-guest that is approaching.

"Hey, don't make it sound like she's some animal in heat, and that I'm its prey..."

"Aren't humans animals as well, master?"

"W-well... You're partially right." I answered, but without giving my full approval to be deemed just like that.

"Shiro, are you done healing the lady inside the cage? " I asked the little girl...

"Hai!, oni-chama..." Shiro answered, sounding really sleepy with her blood wings shrinking and as her cardinal redness also rescinds, signifying that her Paradigm Shift is at her limit...

"Shiro, it's okay to sleep now okay?"

"Hai, oni-chama! I and Kurenai onee-chan are also done healing the humans in the Kingdom." With a tired and smiling facade, she added.

"Heh? At this distance?"

"Yes, oni-chama... That's how powerful... Kurenai... onee-chan is..." With that being said, her elongated death scythe and her wings severed in its own will as I caught her from falling... And together with her trance, the blood moon also ceased and the few ponds of blood also evaporated into thin air...

"Good job, Shiro and Kurenai... Rest for now, okay?" The little girl having two consciousness fell to a deep slumber.

Still... Healing remotely at vast distances... This is how powerful a Synthesized Angel is? I then took some time to take a glimpse at the enchained and sleeping Anima of Music who has just been betrayed by the King's Shenanigans, Amadea, and indeed... Her wounds... It's all gone... Even the blood and dirt stains in her white dress have been completely purified.

Seeing her, I was then reminded as to how I woke up from that iron maiden... I remembered feeling being stabbed with statically-placed knives all over my body, and the next things I then saw were these creeping red droplets and, like it was a magical potion or the likes, all the pang's immediately gone... like I never had any on the first place.

I thought it was weird as if it's just a fragment of my imagination, but now... I'm sure that it was Shiro and the Kurenai's doing...

From its vertical original placement, I then made the third Celtic cross behind me, to rotate horizontally making it serve as a bed floating mid-air that would somehow suffice...but, from others' perspective, it might seem that I'm an ungodly dark mage on his way to offer this girl to Death or something. Well... I still couldn't find myself to care about judgemental herd thinking though...

"Master, The guest has arrived. "

"Uhmm... Where?"

"40 meters Altitude..."

I then looked up, and there, a familiar figure stood majestically on the air, holding this overtly familiar sword as her hair drifts flawlessly with the direction of the winds... It's the Prima Donna... Celes Stella Reignsworth, on the flesh...

"Yow, Jaiden", She greeted, descending into the ground... but not as graceful as her reappearance.

Like a dashing violet ray of light, she suddenly dives downward for her descent in an enormous Mach 20 speed, making the ground shake and some dry parts to crumble as she lands as if several giants made a jump together at that one epicenter also making the positioned array of Tarragon army, to somehow cower in fear which is very clear on their demeanor... Well, from that entrance alone, and how I made the first impression as a human, I think it's comprehensible.

"Oh, Celes huh... Talk about entrances... Did you gain weight or something? I mean, to create such impact in one landing sure is a handful..." I replied, with the usual unstoppable deadpan expression.

"We've only been apart for a day and a half and you're already assuming that my metabolism made me gain weight? Well, unfortunately, I did not gain any... You can even carry me 'Princess-style' to know yourself just how light I am if you want."

"It would be my pleasure...But Uhm... You do understand that there has to be some point of physical linkage, right? Like, how I will 'naturally' cope the opportunity to... touch your legs."

"Seriously, Mr. Cendrillon... Just how lewd can you be?"

"Sorrymasen, but I am not the one who coined the 'Princess- Carry' thingy, and to answer your question, first, I must say sorry to Sakuta for referencing in his popular phrase, but it's trillion times lewder than what your thinking."

"Oh-ho?"

"Oh-ho indeed."

"By the way... What are you dealing with here? And what happened to Shiro?" Seeing all of the peculiarities evident in the background, she asked with one eyebrow up...

"Shiro's just sleeping...We were just unlucky... but luckier than you though who got to experience such slaughters on the first steps outside that city..."

"Yeah... "

"So why with you with the Mirage Armada? Don't tell me you faked your entrance their to sway our classmate's perspectives on choosing what side of the game would they take on..." I asked.

"Incorrect" she answered while forming an 'x' sign with her two pinky fingers... Who does that?

"There are no such things as changing such philosophies that have long conquered their mentality... I just entered through there to gain the experience as I figured of the monsters that await outside to somehow decrease the contender counts... That's all." She added.

"And you? What's with that new look?" She added looking into me from head to toe...

"If you're gonna stare at me like that you're gonna give me the wrong idea. It's just my Paradigm Shift."

"Paradigm Shift? On the first day? And I believe that this eclipse and the total sky blackout earlier was also your doing, huh..."

"Yes. I'm surprised though, hat you were able to see that from wherever you came from...I've almost died, by the way. Fought a renowned hero, an archpriest and an immortal Gorgon altogether, Paradigm got canceled then got sealed inside an iron maiden, and as you can see, I just dealt with an entire Kingdom here, together with their narcissistic leader. But before half of that could happen, I think I could have had already died, if not of Shiro's help..."

"Well-well, I never imagined that someone as hated by nature as you, really exist... But Shiro, huh... What a good girl." Celes exclaimed while slowly grooming the sleeping girl's hair.

"Indeed she is." Like a proud father or his brother-figure or something, I responded shaking my head in obvious approval.

"So, Jaiden... What are you planning to do now?"

"Ahhh... As of now, I really don't know... but first, I need to get to these demi-humans' kingdom to free ...some of us."

"Some of us?"

"Yes... They lured them there and tortured them."

"Say what?"

"Lured, then Tortured. I think that this so-called third realm would not let us execute the purpose of this divine war on our own terms. "

"Ok... can I come with you? Jaiden why don't we form a party." Out of the blue, she suggested extending her right hand for a handshake...

"Ahahaha, a party eh? And what would we call it...?"

"Hmmm... I never really thought of it."

"Well, you don't have to... Just think of a random name."

"Random huh... Oh, how about 'SinClair'?" She ecstatically suggested.

"Sinclair? But why?"

"As you said it... Totally random..."

"Hmmm... Ok then... SinClair it is."

"Ok then... I'm looking forward to working with you." Celes said, as she, once again extended her hand for a handshake...

"Ahahaha... Same here." Sardonically, I exclaimed, while also slowly extending my hand for the plead of friendly kinship.

But, something's wrong... It's happening too fast.

"Chotto-matte... (English: Wait a bit!) Why would you want to form such a party in the first place?" I asked letting the handshake of partnership, delayed... The witness of my indecisiveness? The three million tarragons in front...