Five days passed by in a fsh. The research repained from the three cilors’ bases did not help them as much as they thought. The best it did was to point out some solutions behind the failures in their surgeries.
heless, it was useful as it came from another perspective—one gained from uniteral sacrifice of human lives.
trary to Aleph’s expectations, he didn’t enter any troubles within these five days.
“You must have heard what happeo the higher-ups. They are utilizing Fire MOTH’s resources to find the person behind those murders.” Mobius patiently expined. “You have to be more careful. If I knew you would do such a thing with that girl…”
“It’s partly my is. I gained a lot from it, too.”
Vill-V targeted all the hidden funds gathered by the three cilors. She left the majority of their wealth untouched. Still, these gathered funds are enough for Aleph and Vill-V to use for decades. A lifetime, even.
As for the rest, they left them alohese traces couldn’t be removed easily.
“Speaking of which… I am pnning to give some of that moo you.”
“...”
Mobius eechless. She didn’t expect him to offer it out of the blue.
“I know normal excuses won’t work on you. Think of it as my iment to humanity.”
“...Fine.”
Aleph smiled upon hearing her response. He could see that Mobius was worthy of his trust. It was not just him.
‘My feelings aren’t wrong.’
There was a certain ‘feeling’ in his head who told him he could trust her. That was the same with Mei, Kevin, Sakura, aein.
As to why it occurred, Aleph pushed it to his “foreknowledge”.
“Remember to eat well and have enough rest.”
Seeing his reg back, Mobius’ mouth curved a little.
“Huh. He sounds like an old man…”
She interrupted her words as she thought of something:
“My age…”
Her self-awareness was struck by an ued blow.
*****
Aleph’s return trip wehis time.
At least, everything remained as it was on the surface. There was still more than two hours before they returo the third institute. They took minimal breaks throughout the erip.
“It’s been quite some time.”
“Fifty days, to be exact.”
Looking at the pink-haired woman beside him, Aleph couldn’t help but feel that something was missing.
‘Strange.’
He pushed this thought aside.
“I am sorry for the wait. Things are more messed up than I thought.”
“If it was the trouble you are talking about, they are pnning to send our people to your side.”
Uhe others whom he met regurly, it was their first time meeting in person after the Sapphire City i. He only versed with Sakura on one of the satellite phones he gave her. Their tact was much less, to boot.
“It’s a good thing your friends are in MOTH. There are talks about capturing them to lure you out.” She said. “There isn’t any proof except that those three threatened your life once.”
Sakura told him about their internal affairs ier detail.
The main gist was that there are cilors beginning to utilize her anization, Co, to deal with him.
“There aren't any defiions for now. I heard it was their fear of you.”
“That one’s part of the pn.”
“...”
As usual, Sakura was taciturn. She recise in her words and acted professionally.
“What do you think about these troubles?”
“...”
She fell silent upon hearing his question. It took a while before she spoke up.
“Before you reach yoal… it would be either you or the higher-ups who will fall first.”
It h’s turn to fall silent.
“That will be the worst-case sario.”
He directly admitted his goals. With his foreknowledge, he started feeling the threat of “honkai” better. Back then, he only khat humanity would fall in nine years. His dreams are steadily increasing. He knew more things pared to before.
The most ing thing was the fact that there are fourteen Herscherrs in total. The fourteenth one, based on his worried voice, will end humanity. That entity has enough strength to destroy the entire world alone.
This pushed Aleph to further his goals, so as to ge this ending.
“I will only say that it is rgely reted to humanity. Honkai o be taken more seriously.”
“Humanity…”
Sakura felt a ge in his to this moment.
*****
Inside Fire MOTH’s Mu ti Headquarters was where numerous delegations happened. Aside from the ander-in-chief, the cilors attend these meetings through virtual holograms.
“A new risk assessment has to be done.”
“Agreed. Three of us were silently killed three days ago. Some dangers must be detected.”
“Are you implying something?”
“No. We all know only we have the capabilities to do it.”
“If so…”
The delegations turned into a fortunately calm debate. On the surface, this delegation was done in order to make the ret assassinations of three cilors resurface. It was giving Fire MOTH an irrefusable job—to make a guarantee regarding the cilors’ safety.
Some of them are even cm for Elysia to join into the case.
Fortunately, the ander-in-chief as well as the majority of the cilors refused. Who knows how much dirt she would find if she personally iigated the case.
“What about Ainsworth?”
Someone brought up a rather ued name.
It was the ander-in-chief who answered this time.
“Before any allegations are made, I will make several things public.”
He opened a set of dots a its digital versions to the cilors. It was a meticulous reparding Aleph’s whereabouts during the cilors’ deaths.
“It be seen that his stay ihird institute was not fed. Any cims about his involvement must be put down.”
The cilors were rather surprised to see his adamant statement. Then, they realized it was all about the future head of the five institutes. It was something they could not prevent, more so when Mei showcased her capabilities during these two months.
Surprisingly some cilors took this time to ‘support’ him.
“Doctor Aleph is busy w. The allegations on him are too snderous.”
“It is nothing short of libel.”
With that, the delegations steered clear from Aleph. It remained so until it ended.
Beep-!
The only remaining person within the feren was the ander-in-chief.
‘It was Doei at first, and then Doctor Aleph.’ He thought. ‘This is a ce.’
For a long time, he was dissatisfied with the higher-up’s way of doing things. He personally experiehe devastating damage the honkai brought. Just the casualties from the “front lines” (i.e., honkai-rich pces) exceeded a huhousand st year. The deaths when they frohe third Herscherr was also added into that mix.
The fleets and fighter phey sent to her were a huge part of it.
While they viewed these lives as cold numbers, the old ander-in-chief saw them as living beings.
‘A huge ge…’
