There were still plenty of days left of the Banquet of Cruxbel, but nothing too important happened before the last day.

Elysium did bring out some stalls of their own to share with the banquet, some of which were so popular, the middle realmers forgot for a second that it was a kingdom ruled by a former human.

The last day of the banquet came and the party at the Cruxbel castle was held as usual. Many new faces joined the frey this time.

For example, Lockman, Re'ût, Bai and others came to visit the party this time.

For Lockman, the moment the Archinsecutor found him in the party, he was hit with the flurry of questions.

Archinsecutor said to Lockman "You, Lockman. I need some of your time."

Lockman responded "I'm only here for appearances for the boss, so if you could leave me alone, that would be greatly appreciated."

Archinsecutor said to Lockman "You… What sort of power do you wield? Is it something that I should worry about?"

Lockman answered "I don't know what you'd classify as 'something to worry about' but my power comes from centuries of technology merging with magic in the land known as Northolth."

Archinsecutor asked further, "Explain."

Lockman sighed and said "Basically, what I can do is read the 'frequency' that person has, which is tied to aether the person has. Since aether is the building block of every being in Lutah, this allows me to read, to put it simply, what a person truly is."

Archinsecutor says "I see. And by reading it, you can restrict it by imposing rules on the being's aether, right?"

Lockman replies "Something along those lines. But reading the person's aether isn't simple in the slightest. I need to focus my attention to fully comprehend the building blocks of the target and simultaneously make sure I remain unscathed by the target or their allies."

Archinsecutor asks "And given the nature of Northolth, you didn't have this power since birth. This could raise some issues with the Holy Church, but I'll let it slide for now."

Lockman says "That is appreciated. But yes, this power was granted to me by multiple operations done to my body. The success rate of the operation is 1/1000, so it is mostly a last ditch effort if the candidate for outer operations isn't quite good enough."

Archinsecutor says "So… you were once deemed 'not good enough'?"

Lockman answers "Yes. I had a fairly weak constitution, so surviving the wilds of Northolth was near impossible for me. While many of the candidates for outer operations are picked by constitution, I volunteered to join the ranks."

Archinsecutor asks "And why did you volunteer even though you were ill fit?"

Lockman stirs the drink he is holding and says "I… I wanted to be like my parents."

Archinsecutor asks "Did they allow you to go through with the operation while knowing the risks?"

Lockman answers "No… They died during an outer operation."

Archinsecutor asks "So you chose to follow your parents' footsteps while risking your life? Are you right in the head?"

Lockman says "No. I have long since accepted the fact that I'm not normal. But I just…"

Archinsecutor waits for Lockman to continue "I wanted to make sure other people didn't have to share the fate of losing a loved one in that sort of way."

Archinsecutor says "So in short… you aim to lessen the burdens of your coworkers so that you can watch on the sidelines as they return to their families. Are you stupid?"

Lockman says "Maybe I am. I can be quite tough of an opponent when fighting, but when it comes to handling the bigger pictures, I am nowhere good enough to lead the way."

Archinsecutor thinks for a moment and then says "I plan to launch an investigation in Northolth as the archinsecutor to make sure no heresy is held in that place. During that time, I'll have plenty of opportunities to monitor you, so you better be prepared."

Lockman says "Do as you wish. I'd rather have someone as strict as you around than risk some abyssal cult members causing trouble in one of the sectors."

Archinsecutor sighs and says "You don't get it at all, do you?"

Lockman questions "Get what?"

Lucious says to Rupalin while holding a glass of wine "I think our Archinsecutor is headed to a battle she is not well versed in."

Rupalin looks at Archinsecutor talking to Lockman and says "So it would seem. To think she had that kind of spirit still in her."

Lucious responds "Even within the highest members of our church, the romantic pull calls for us all."

Rupalin asks "Have you ever been struck by Raks' touch?"

Lucious smiles and says "I have indeed, but that was far before I reached this position."

Rupalin asks "I assume that it didn't go well."

Lucious answers "He did make advances and knew that I held feelings for him, but I was blind back then and called them 'temptations of the abyss'. Oh how I yearn for those days to return."

Rupalin says "So you are one of those people."

Lucious says "Indeed. Love knows no bounds."

Rupalin asks "Is he still around?"

Lucious answers "He left the church far before I became the pope. I haven't seen him in a very long time."

Rupalin taps Lucious back and says "Tell me his name and how they looked like and I'll dig something up."

Lucious smiles "There is no need. Unless they did heresy, the limits of his race wouldn't allow him to be alive to this day. It's just…"

Rupalin asks "Just?"

Lucious looks at Archinsecutor through the drink he is holding. "I hope that our dear Archinsecutor won't regret it when the time for that man comes."

Rupalin looks at Archinsecutor talking to Lockman and says "I agree. It is love that is a poison bringing sorrow eventually."

Lucious says "As does relationships in general" and sips the wine on his glass.

After he drank that sip, Lucious asks Rupalin "Speaking of love, how are the preparations for Ms. Mercy's and Mr. Faust's wedding going?"

Rupalin answers, "We'll be able to hold the event in two days."

Lucious says "Excelent. See to it that there is room for multiple women to enter the pact with Mr. Faust."

Rupalin says "As you wish, but are you sure about it? Sure, it is legal to marry as many partners as you want according to our church, but it isn't exactly held on high regard with high ranking people."

Lucious says "I get your point, but I find it rather dull. It is true that tying a knot with one person makes the bond feel much stronger than tying it with multiple people, but love is what it is. A confusing theater full of characters. You may follow the story, but the connections may become blurred along the way. As Raks ordained, love is to be shared amongst people. And by ordaining it so, will the love be shared among a house of many characters."

Rupalin says "I have to disagree on the sharing of love part, but I'll follow your command."

Meanwhile Lud says to Tifa "This truly has been an eventful week. I can't believe it is about to end."

Tifa responds "I felt no difference to our normal lives. Granted, that thing you pulled at the tournament did cause a fair bit of trouble."

Lud laughs it off and says "Even I don't know what came over me. I just thought for a moment how I always accept things so easily and I wanted to change it somehow. Then it spiraled to what you saw that day."

Mercy comes to the conversation and says "For what I've come to gather, you might have been influenced by something. As for what that something was…"

Tifa responds "I doubt that it was that piece of shit, but I wouldn't rule it out yet."

Lud then says "What if… it was a memory that influenced me?"

Tifa and Mercy look at Lud with confusion for a moment, until Lud asks them "Am I talking nonsense again? I'm sorry."

Mercy ponders for a moment and Tifa says "That is ridiculous. How would a memory…"

Then Tifa also realized something.

Mercy asks Tifa "Did you figure something out as well?"

Tifa answers "There is a possibility that you being able to somewhat concentrate the power of your other selfs, you were listening to your own self doubts from across time and timelines."

Mercy says "There is some logic in that, but how would they make it possible for him to create the abyss core?"

Tifa says "I don't know, but perhaps…"

Mercy and Lud wait for Tifa to finish what she was saying, until Maumar appears and seemingly says what Tifa was about to say. "If it is across time… then it isn't an impossibility for him to listen to himself influencing him from the future. Or rather, the doubts that will make it possible for him to one day become the host of the abyss creeped in. But due to his inability to reach the abyss core, his body instinctively tried to form a new abyss core from scratch."

Lud says "No way that I would have instincts about something like that."

Mercy says "No… It is a very plausible theory. And for Maumar to come and tell us this…"

Maumar says "Even I don't fully understand what happened in those moments, but if Ludwig Freigner would have reached the abyss core's completion, I would have intervened."

Lud asks "Then… what would have exactly happened if I finished the abyss core's creation?"

Maumar answers "You would have made a second abyss out of the higher realm, and since the formation of Lutah has two other realms between the abyss and the higher realm, two would attract each other and squeeze those realms into them eventually. It wouldn't happen instantly, but essentially the realms would disappear as time would pass.

And once those two abysses converge, the influence of the abyss would essentially dry Lutah off its aether, essentially killing it in the process, all timelines and all that."

Tifa says "There is an intricate balance with the abyss we have now and the timelines connected to it. If the pull of the abyss would increase over a certain threshold, then the Lutah would be dried up eventually as well."

Mercy says "And that is if we assume that the abyss cores wouldn't destroy each other before they manage to merge."

Maumar says "Indeed. We are assuming the likeliest scenario, but the destruction of both abyss cores would be another possibility."

Lud asks "What if only one abyss core was destroyed and not consumed by the core?"

Tifa answers "You have a point in assuming both abyss cores wouldn't necessarily be equal, making it possible for one to overwhelm the other, but we are still talking about two abysses forming and absorbing the other two realms regardless of the strength of that core."

Maumar says "Then we'd have to consider the formation of other timelines."

Lud asks "It would do that too?"

Mercy says "Yes… this would bring out the next possibility of there being too many timelines or their collision."

Maumar says "Yes, while it would start small, new timelines would form within this timeline, but eventually the timelines would collide with the already existing ones. Granted, this timeline being the only singular one would be a blessing in disguise, but it wouldn't stop the eventuality of two abysses colliding."

Ao comes and says to the group "What an interesting conversation you all are having."

Tifa says "We are and we are just about to finish."

Ao says "Why so? It sounded pretty interesting from what I've heard."

Tifa says "Why don't you go and mop your overwhelming defeat in your first match."

Ao gets a little annoyed and says "I simply… underestimated my opponent. That is all. If I had known the trick from the beginning, I would have found the way to defeat that machine eventually."

Tifa says "You are boldly assuming that the kid couldn't end you the moment you were sent to that illusion or whatever."

Ao gets annoyed and says "You…"

Tifa grabs Lud and says "Come. Let's enjoy the banquet while it lasts."

Lud says "I thought you didn't like these kinds of events."

Tifa says "I don't, so move. You should follow us too, Mercy."

Mercy is confused for a moment, until she realizes that they are trying to give Maumar and Ao some room. With that realization, she says "I think we have some tasty tarts being served over there."

With that, Maumar and Ao were left alone. Maumar was about to say "I think I'm no longer needed…"

Ao realized that Maumar was about to leave, so she said "Wait a moment! Why don't we try to enjoy some of the treats ourselves while we talk?"

Maumar says "I've lost my sense of taste long ago, but…"

Maumar looks at Ao's eyes that are pleading him to stay, so he says "Okay then. It wouldn't hurt anyways. I have all the time in the world."

On the other side of the hall, Sahra asks Harlotte, who is enjoying the food that is served there, "I can't help to notice the absence of a certain individual. Don't you agree, Harlotte?"

Harlotte says "What are you talking about? I see no issues here."

Sahra says "That is the thing. There is… no issues at the finishing line of the banquet week. Don't you find it strange?"

Fein says from behind Sahra "Why do you feel like there should be an issue here? Why not just enjoy things?"

Atkoosa leans his arm around Sahra's neck and says "The boy speaks truth! Why not just enjoy the event while it still lasts? While we can now officially attend more things like these, it is not like all of us are welcome in most events in Lutah."

Sahra says "Well… if Atkoosa says so, then I suppose…"

As the clock is about to hit midnight, most of the middle realm's people are being escorted to the portal that leads right back to the middle realm.

Except Lotus Bloom, who is at the angel capital Mahal. With the knife that Perkele gave her by her side, she is ready to serve her justice to the man who had exiled her family. All she needed to do was to wait for midnight to come, and she needed to slice the man and he'd be in hell like no other.

As the time came, she knocked on the door of her target, to which a servant opened the door. She said to the servant "Excuse me, is Mr. Bloombearer home? I have something that belongs to him."

The servant said "He is resting at the moment, but you can hand the item to me and I'll deliver it to him by the morning."

Lotus says "But it is urgent. I need to…"

The servant says "Okay, I'll get Mr. Bloombearer to come down in just a second. Please wait a moment."

Lotus does as she is told and waits, until the door opens and out comes guards glad in armour.

One of the guards said "Okay lady, we need you to come with us."

Lotus realizes she is in trouble, so she decides to run. The guards go after her in pursuit.

Lotus, being a former adventurer herself, manages to parkour and fly to the roof of a building not too far from the main residence of Mr. Bloombearer. She flies and gracious through the window where she sensed her target. The guards are in hot pursuit and Lotus doesn't have long until they catch up to her.

Mr. Bloombearer rises up from his bed and shouts "Who the hell?! Guards! Guards!"

Lotus attacks, but Mr. Bloombearer is quick on his feet and dodges the knife.

Lotus tries to attack once more, but as she pulls the knife that was now embedded on the wooden frame of the bed, she janks it so hard that it scratches her own finger by accident.

And with that scratch, the effect of the knife takes hold and it turns into smoke. Lotus panics for a moment, until the life in her eyes sweeps away and dies.

After a moment, Lotus finds herself in a place that she didn't expect. It looked like some sort of afterlife.

Well, up until she heard a familiar voice say "So it DID end up as it showed. Lucky me, now we have another poor soul to torment for the rest of eternity."

Lotus looks behind her and sees that it is Perkele with piles and piles of corpses that look like Lotus herself. The groans of those corpses are never ceasing and Perkele says "So, you did use the knife that the Bloodstained One and I gave you and ended up scratching yourself with it. Well done, madam. Now you are in, what is most likely to be called, the hell of Lutah."

Lotus asks "What? But how about the death of that man? Did I succeed?"

Perkele laughed and said "You failed miserably. Now you are in that hell that you so wanted to send that man. How does it feel? Infuriating… isn't it?"

Lotus says "But… you've promised…"

Perkele says "Did I now? Think carefully of what I said."

Lotus thinks and recalls the conversation. All that Perkele was talking about… was an opportunity. And now Lotus had squandered it.

One of the Lotus' in the pile said "Why? Why?"

Lotus asks "What are those? Why do they look like me?"

Perkele giggles and says "Because they are in a sense. You see, since there was an… issue with my brother in arms during the tournament, the world ended in some sense, but since there is a safety net like this place, those possibilities ended up here. And I… hehe… I simply gathered these yous here to show that you don't matter here. You won't be able to die, but you can be put into teeny tiny pieces and live. Personally, I'd try to hold onto your form as much as you can here, since once one chip is removed from you, it is quite hard to put it back on you."

Lotus says "I… I don't understand… why would you trick me? Why?"

Perkele says "Look who you are talking to. It is ME. Perkele. The DDD of savagery. Do you think that I care about who I hurt along the way? Do you?"

Lotus says "But… you aren't known for your lies. But even so, you still… Why me?"

Perkele says "Because it is fun for me. To see people try to achieve something so hard and fail at the end is so exhilarating. But hey, it isn't like I'm the only one here who is like that, right?"

Lotus says "What do you mean?"

Perkele says "Oh come on. Don't be like that. We both… or rather, we all know that Lotus Bloom enjoys seeing people fall from grace. That is just how it is. Or are you going to deny this fact? If so, you are rather boring. But in any case…"

Perkele taps Lotus by the shoulder and says "Enjoy your stay."

Then Perkele disappears and Lotus is left to look at the pile of herselves bloodied and bruised.

At the party at the banquet, Lud asks Tifa "Where is Toki? I thought she'd be here?"

Tifa says "I haven't seen her either. But knowing her, I doubt it is anything serious."

Lud says "Yeah, you are right. There aren't many things in this world that could hurt her."

Little did they know…

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