ng her great-grandfather?

"Move aside! I'll go determine the winner, I will stop L?vateinn."

Along with her great-grandfather.

However, the tentacles didn't move aside, and not only this, they even wrapped around Nina, expressing the attitude that no matter what, they wouldn't let her go.

"You didn't compute for the condition of your own body, human flesh has limits."

Nina already knew the secret as to why only L?vateinn's voice reached this place.

The tentacles had the effect of sound transmission, letting her voice reach Nina.

"....What's the meaning of this?'

Nina was filled with anger as she stared at the tentacles.

The tone that L?vateinn spoke with was filled with a bad feeling, she had to rush over to her great-grandfather's side as soon as possible.

However, the one who blocked Nina was her great-grandfather's companion, this city. Thinking of how she could communicate with these tentacles, Nina was even less able to forgive their current response.

But in this situation, Nina's fury didn't have any effect on the developments at all.

"You've lived too long, that is the reason for your defeat."

L?vateinn's murmur crossed the space between the two of them.

Nina's position was very far from the two of them.

She knew this.

Gildred fell to his knees. He fell to the ground, and the iron whips in his hands also dropped to the ground.

"Great-grandfather!"

He had fallen.

"Goodbye."

The dissonance disappeared. The thing that was about to drop from the sky crumbled and disappeared. The sparks disappeared, and the sky once again returned to darkness.

"L?vateinn!"

Nina roared. Her voice reached her ears.

She charged forward.

In front of Nina's might, the net of tentacles surrounding her was easily blown away.

L?vateinn turned her body, not even looking at the fallen Gildred.

"Waittttttttttt!"

Even if she roared, she didn't stop her footsteps.

Nina hadn't reached that place, but her figure had already disappeared without a trace.

All that was left was a tranquil quiet.

All that was left here was her fallen great-grandfather, and excessively quiet city, and Nina who had lost the target of her rage and who could only hold her anger.

"Great-grandfather!"

However, right now wasn't the time to get angry. Nina rushed to the side of the fallen Gildred.

"....That Schneibel, she's unexpectedly nosy. No, maybe not."

After holding Gildred up, he slightly opened his eyelids and murmured. Blood flowed from his lips, and his face had gone pale, becoming worse and worse.

"That person is only correctly completing the fate that it was endowed with."

"Great-grandfather, I'll go find help!"

"It's no use, it's too late."

"How can that be!"

"Do you know how old this old man is? L?vateinn was right. Regardless of the means a non-mechanical body uses, it won't be able to escape the doomsday of death. Before this kind of limit, I have lost to her, that's all it is."

"I don't- I don't want that."

"Don't say that kind of willful thing."

Gildred breathed lightly, and then smiled, saying:

"When you were small, I sent dolls to you. Are you saying that compared to back then, you haven't grown up at all?"

"I haven't, I haven't! I don't want great-grandfather to die!"

"But, that's an impossible thing. I will die. But it's not because of defeat, it's because of my limits."

Her great-grandfather's hand lightly touched Nina's face.

Nina was surprised, her great-grandfather's hand was wet.

It was blood.

"Listen well. The loss this time is all because of this old man. If it were you...."

"Great-grandfather...."

"I have no dolls this time."

After saying this, Gildred's body emitted light.

"Dischale, Tentorium, Falysodam."

He called out three names, and Nina had heard these names before.

Melnisc had said that these Electronic Fairies were the same as the other Electronic Fairy in Nina's body. The same as the nameless Electronic Fairy that had once saved Nina's life.

These Electronic Fairies revealed their figures, their bodies landing brilliantly before Gildred and Nina.

One seemed like an arrogant youngster.

One seemed like a teenager about the same age as Nina.

One seemed like a young beauty with a calm temperament.

And also....

"Armadune."

Gildred called this name.

Vibrations came from below. Just as Nina thought about this, a part of the city began splitting, and became tentacles, and then these tentacles gathered to form a giant plant.

A bud appeared from the stem that the tentacles had formed. This stem quickly enlarged, opening into a red flower.

In the center of the flower was a girl.

The girl wore flower petals as clothing, and tears rolled down her eyes.

Armadune wasn't the only crying Electronic Fairy.

The arrogant youngster, probably Dischale, clenched its fist.

The teenager, Tentorium, clenched its teeth.

The calm maiden, Falysodam, pressed its lips together.

Some were enduring their anger, some were crying.

"....From now onwards, they are yours."

"Great-grandfather, what are you saying?"

"They are individuals but at the same time are not individuals. They are Electronic Fairies born in the Senou City, forms born from Electronic Fairies who have foregone becoming cities. How much power they can create depends on your tolerance. Everything will be decided by you."

"Great-grandfather, it can't, it can't be like that."

"I already have no way to use them well. But, if it's you, if it's your soul.... you should be able to endure their gathered determination and strength...."

"I can't!"

Nina shouted, she wanted to say that that couldn't be.

The meaning of inheriting them, that was....

"Great-grandfather's life...."

Weren't they the Electronic Fairies that extended her great-grandfather's life? Though her great-grandfather had used artificial hibernation, wasn't it because of their strength that he had been able to extend his life to this degree?

"Extending life has no meaning, it's only what you want to do after extending your life that means something."

Gildred stayed unmoving.

"This old man can no longer do it. Therefore, I have no reason to monopolize this strength. The will and life that has been gathered together can't be used for something like that."

The old man's eyes stared through Nina, and the hand stroking her face grabbed her shoulder.

"It's up to you."

"Great-grandfather, I...."

"If you think you're too weak, then become strong. For your heart to become strong you don't need time, you only need the determination."

"I don't want great-grandfather to die."

"That's not possible."

Gildred quickly replied.

"Things that will die will die. It's only this life that was extended with difficulty that has come to an end. I've only been born a little earlier than the other old men, and died a bit later than them."

The hand that held her shoulder relaxed.

"I give them to you."

A smile appeared on her great-grandfather's face, and he looked at Nina, and then looked at the Electronic Fairies.

He looked at Armadune.

Then, he looked at his own hand.

He made a fist....

"I'm sorry."

He murmured.

"I truly didn't want to let you bear the burden in the end, but with these two hands........"

He murmured this.

"....................!"

The thing disappearing from her arms made Nina utter a soundless scream towards the sky.

◇

"It would have been better if you were completely saved."

The words that Karian had left behind stuck inside Leerin's chest like a curse and refused to leave.

To be completely saved? Let herself be saved from where?

She was clearly the one saving.

Saving humankind from the current situation, from the crisis that would definitely come to the world.

"....Right."

Leerin mumbled.

Karian was definitely mistaken. Perhaps he had thought wrongly. What Leerin currently needed wasn't a savior.

But....

Leerin hadn't been slow enough not to understand what Karian had said.

However, Leerin really hadn't been able to retort. Even if he didn't give her a chance to defend herself, Leerin hadn't been able to retort, perhaps wanting to make these words become unimportant fluff. But her heart couldn't do such a thing.

Then, she would cut off everything for him to see.

It was because Leerin thought this that she made a suggestion to the Queen, asking the Queen to grant him that kind of thing.

To grant him a Heaven's Blade.

To grant him Wolfstein.

"Is this alright?"

The one who asked this was Lucia, whom Leerin had requested to adjust the Heaven's Blade into a weapon for Haia before the ceremony.

Leerin had gone to Lucia's workplace to personally request this job of her. She was Leerin's senpai in the orphanage they had grown up in, and was as reliable as an older sister, living on her own as a Dite technician, and currently specially supervised the adjustment of Ruimei's Heaven's Blade.

She had also had a child with Ruimei.

While Leerin was enjoying the feel of the small baby, Lucia said this kind of thing.

"I can't decide how a Heaven's Blade is dealt with!"

"Really?"

Her eyes stared at Leerin without blinking. Though Leerin's body went stiff because of her older sister's gaze, a troublesome feeling twisting back and forth inside her, she smiled naturally.

"You don't have the authority to decide who to give the Heaven's Blades to, but you can probably chip in to which of the two Heaven's Blades to give, right?"

"I can't do that kind of thing."

Though Leerin said this, Lucia kept staring at her. Leerin couldn't bear that gaze, and involuntarily lowered her head to look at the baby.

"Honestly, for things like Heaven's Blades, it doesn't matter who gets which one. For that kind of thing...."

After saying this, Lucia touched the box in front of her with her finger. What was inside was the unrestored form of the Heaven's Blade Wolfstein.

"Even if I secretly used Rui's Garrand, no one would probably notice, right?"

"How could that...."

"No, I'm not joking, I really think so."

"....Really?"

Leerin asked this, and Lucia nodded her head.

"Think about it. Heaven's Blades are Dites passed down generation to generation. They don't need replacement materials, they only need the settings to be adjusted like this, to be able to give them to the suitable Military Artist to use. Normal Dites are made of Sapphire, Ruby, and other kinds of things."

"Nn."

"Heaven's Blades only need their settings to be adjusted to be able to let anyone use an incredibly satisfactory weapon. Before Delbone-sama, there were no Psychokinesists who became Heaven's Blade successors, but the Heaven's Blades were also suitable to be used with Psychokinesis, and even the current Heaven's Blade Elsmau can use them without difficulty. In other words, these things don't have differences. Perhaps Heaven's Blades are just a convenient prop, just twelve names."

"Names."

"Then, in that case, don't you think that that person giving that thing out is meaningless?"

"Of course."

Leerin answered quickly. If she hadn't answered quickly, Lucia might say more. If she could, she didn't want to hear.

"....Ah, I've also said a lot of incredible things to that person. So I also don't want to force you."

Of course, 'that person' meant Layfon. Leerin wanted to hear what Lucia had said to Layfon, but it would only be for herself, and she might think of more unnecessary things, so Leerin could only maintain her silence.

"You'll know after you grow up, Leerin."

"Know what?"

"Adults can also make mistakes."

"........"

"Regardless of the person, everyone uses their own accumulated knowledge and experience to look at the world. We can only see the world in that way. With that kind of method we can only obtain the answer pertaining to ourselves, and there are few opportunities in which applying that sort of answer to others is correct."

"Then, you mean that we can't give out our views to others?"

"Ah, other people have completely different knowledge and experience, and it's not that easy to to succeed, unless almost all of your experiences are the same."

"Then...."

"Though we're not completely different, we can't be completely similar. Ah, it's your decision anyway, so I have no way to keep opposing it. I only want to say.... do you really not regret?"

"I don't regret it."

"....Then I won't say any more. Haia Wolfstein Laia will arrive in the afternoon, will you be coming too?"

"There's no need."

The orders Leerin had received were only to give the Heaven's Blade to Lucia.

Even Lucia worried about these kinds of things.

Knowing Leerin and Layfon and knowing the status between the two of them, everyone invariably though of the same problem, and would bring it up to Leerin once given the chance.

Having her true feeling seen through was meaningless.

However....

She still wanted to say something.

It was, that everyone was wrong.

Deception coated her feelings, even letting Leerin fool herself.

Leerin had noticed this after Terios attacked her on that summer night.

She had noticed it after she watched him being sent to the hospital.

It wasn't the same, she thought to herself.

Though it was similar, it wasn't the same.

If it were something ordinary, perhaps it wouldn't have produced such a mistake. However, Leerin and Layfon were different. The relationship between the two of them wasn't ordinary.

Because of this, there had been a misunderstanding. Because of this, there had been a mistake.

In this kind of situation, a peculiar condition had emerged. It couldn't be the truth between the two of them.

Perhaps it was because she knew about this that she wanted to replace the misunderstanding with the truth.

Leerin thought that Layfon might also have had this kind of misunderstanding. And that misunderstanding had been created in many people who had seen the two of them, and then the misunderstanding had spread.

"But, this is enough."

Leerin believed.

Were there people who needed to know the truth? No. The only reason for it was that the condition Leerin expected would continue on.

"The enemies will be here soon."

Leerin's aspirations were only this.

The Heaven's Blade successor Haia Wolfstein Laia had been born. The empty Heaven's Blades had been filled again, and this was truly important.

"There's only one more."

There was only one more Heaven's Blade whose owner hadn't been decided.

Would the twelve Heaven's Blades be cobbled together first, or would the other side take action first?

Originally Leerin had thought that the enemies were on the other side of the sky, and she had never thought that they had already come close to them. After learning this, Leerin's feelings became impatient.

Because she knew a fact, that the opponent was in Zuellni.

Hurry up and come.

Since the moment she learned that, she had these thoughts.

Hurry up and leave that city, she had always thought.

So Leerin had long since been waiting for this feeling.

"Your Majesty!"

After she felt it in her room, Leerin quickly rushed into the palace.

"Aah, I know."

Alsheyra had also felt it. Saya quietly stood by her side.

"....In the end, we haven't even gotten twelve together once, have we?"

The Queen held the Heaven's Blade whose owner hadn't been decided.

"Should I just use it myself?"

"That idea might not be bad. Since if we can't get through this battle smoothly, there won't be another chance."

It wasn't Alsheyra who answered her monologue, nor was it Saya, but rather the voice of a third person.

"It's okay to use it so much that it breaks too."

"Who?"

Though the voice came, a figure couldn't be seen.

Meow....

At some time, a black cat had appeared in the hall.

"Rigzario...."

Facing Alsheyra's surprised expression, Leerin murmured.

"Rigzario? Aah...."

Alsheyra seemed to have some impression of this name, so she almost unconcernedly accepted the talking cat.

"Well, what are you planning?"

"Honestly, I still want to help, so I'll bring in the reserve candidate."

"Reserve candidate?"

"Correct."

The black cat nodded its head.

Afterwards, the scenery behind the black cat became skewed, and something popped out from there.

"Iyah!"

Someone screamed, and tumbled onto the floor of the hall.

"Ouchhhh.... where is this place?"

There was a girl wearing the uniform of Zuellni there.

"Clara?"

"Huh? Ah, Your Majesty....?"

The two of them looked at each other with similar expressions. After hearing Alsheyra, Leerin could guess that this girl was the girl who had run away from the Ronsmier house, Claribel.

"Eh~ ....Oh well, it's alright."

Alsheyra sighed deeply, and gave her the thing in her hand. Claribel reflexively accepted the object, a distracted expression still on her face.

"Ah, use it well. If you lose then it's a dead end."

"Huh? Huh?"

At that moment, she became the Heaven's Blade Successor - Claribel Noiran Ronsmier. But, she still had a confused expression on her face as if she didn't know that her identity had changed like this.

Though this was an understandable thing.

But, Leerin didn't care about this. Alsheyra hadn't embellished it, focusing on resolving the issue.

"Well, we have to carry out adjustments immediately."

"That has already been resolved. We only need to change the Heaven's Blade settings to the same as the Dite that the girl has, right?"

The black cat opened its mouth.

"Ah, then, we'll do that. Then, next is just to attack."

After murmuring this, Alsheyra strode out of the hall alone.

From the other side of the door came the sound of her yelling 'Emergency meeting'.

"Didn't you say that you didn't care?"

Leerin who was left behind in the hall asked this of the black cat.

The cat purred, but in contrast, the jewel on its forehead shone with light.

"You said that before, you said that this has nothing to do with you."

"Correct. Your lives have no relation with mine. Regardless of what happens, it doesn't concern me. It's not like I don't have emotions like revenge or hatred, but the object of my hatred isn't those mechanical dolls...."

"Then...."

"Ah, perhaps I want to find an answer for myself."

"Answer?"

"Regardless of how it's imitated, the same thing can't be obtained a second time, and it can't be reproduced."

"........"

"I only prepared things to this degree in order to show that."

The black cat murmured this, and Claribel who was by its side showed a surprised expression.

"Really?"

Leerin couldn't understand the black cat's words. Even if she thought about what kind of meaning the black cat's words expressed, it wasn't any use.

"Because everything has already come this far."

Who really was she? Why was she lost? Those things were insignificant. Leerin gave up on herself who had asked those questions even though she understood the reason.

"I can only completely spin the wheel of fate."

Leerin stroked the aching eye under her eyepatch.

That day, catastrophe came to Grendan.