Replication is such a cheat authority. Her eyes rolled as she looked at Klein seated next to her. Same pose, on the exact same bench that he had conjured up. She had half forgotten he could wield authorities over three different pathways, of which Door was included.
No wishes needed, just replicate a Dragon Artisan subspecies's skill-set. Her nose flared in frustration while observing his smug smile.
"You just thought of how unfair Replication can be?"
Klein didn't let her retort his words as he leaned back in the bench, his posture relaxed. "I don't even need to use any abilities to guess that. Tsk, you still have long ways to go, potential Darkness."
Her brows twitched, but he continued unbothered. "As insane as it is, Replication isn't perfect. There are many flaws to be exposed with it. In the end, you're fundamentally using single authority." He paused as Amanises started leaning, before the latter straightened, her teeth grinding.
"I can't expect a Magician to reveal all his tricks, right?"
"Bravo," Klein clapped, drawing some attention from the people around. Though most found the duo odd and somewhat familiar, they shrugged and continued ahead. His gaze followed them as he peered back at the budding towers.
"So, this is your doing?"
Amanises scoffed, crossing her arms as she instead watched the river. "You've now graduated from being a mere envoy to the Goddess's equal."
Well, Merlin Hermes remains. Tossing away his dignity, he turned around and climbed his bench, observing the cathedrals in more details. Naturally, nothing that occurred in Tingen went unnoticed simply due to his authority over the Spirit World. Even then, he liked been pleasantly surprised sometimes, so he knew when too look into things, and when not to.
I should get a Sage or Knowledge Emperor artefact. This way, I'll be able to fine tune this Information Filtration of Mine.
In terms of the Twins though, he knew Amanises, through Kotar, had began disseminating information on the Goddess of Misfortune's Companion, the Fool. He who blessed Merlin Hermes, an angel acting as the envoy of both Deities. He who consecrated these lands to humanity. The Cathedrals themselves, made from the original Shrine to the Goddess of Misfortune, were being built with grand expansions in mind. The River Ena by its flank eventually going to be part of this growing monument.
Humanity's ingenuity… In his eyes, the present and the future intertwined – Boundless Majesty and integrity blending together.
Honestly, the development stunned him a bit. He had already made up his mind after telling Grisha to not accommodate the neighbouring Uniquenesses once "He" gets them. That is: to not restrain himself anymore and be open to changes; to hell with all what that might bring.
Though, deep down. He slumped back to his seat, watching the gentle waves ahead. I still hope some people will eventually emerge. The image of the Tarot Club members came to mind as Amanises pointed a thumb over her shoulder.
"The Dog's quarters are in there too."
"The dog has a name," Klein reminded but was ignored.
""His" projection is probably locked in a stare-down with that Saint."
Ouroboros, Klein turned again and could directly see the scene. This forced a chuckle out of him. He heard Amanises continue speaking. "To be honest, I underestimated humanity quite a bit."
She looked down at her hand. The hand was fair, elegant fingers spared from the harshness of hard labour. It was unmistakeably human, until fur srpouted out of its skin. Her arms turned robust and ferocious, nails shaping into fangs, palms thickening into rough paws. Her mythical creature form was still that of an 8-legged Demonic Wolf, one she planned on changing once she became a Sequence 0.
"Maybe it's because I'm not really human if we're being honest. Or because I was way too engrossed with finding a way back."
Under his stare, she returned to her human form, though her ears remained that of a Wolf's. Klein used his clown powers a bit, though his masking attempt failed as she lifted an eyebrow.
"Remember how I told you I'd asked many questions to the Seven Lights?" A smiled accompanied her question as Klein rubbed the corners of his mouth. At his nod, she looked up dreamily at the sky. "'Weak,' is basically The Description for humanity in these times, but there are nuances here. Compared to their fellow man, some stand out, looking mighty. But from the lens of the world as a whole, even the Subsidiary God I was, is but an ant. An ant that has the right to know more than lower life-forms, but an ant nonetheless…"
Her words trailed as she directed her attention to the people streaming through the nearest wooden bridge. "I guess I picked up some of the past Amanises's bias here. Humanity is indeed weak, but it is in this weakness that they can be humble enough to huddle together and fight as a collective. And now that they finally have great existences smiling upon them, they can soar… Eventually, they'll start eyeing each other."
Klein's smile vanished hearing that, promoting Amanises to shoot him a teasing look. "What? You thought I was going to end it positively? Unity makes us stronger, but only under the assumption that at least one common enemy remains. Without that, we'll start looking for another target."
She brushed her hair harshly, clicking her tongue. "It's frustrating you know. You've so much power, but certain realities simply remain out of your control."
Yeah… Klein let out a sigh. We aren't Almighty. No matter what we do, threats exist. Even if it feels like everything is under control, it never truly is.
Having gotten more and more used to being the Slug of Time, Klein was aware of one key fact: It was often the most stable systems that crumbled with the loudest impact.
The Glorious Epoch is ahead of us, but even I can't predict for sure just how Glorious it'll be.
Amanises's lips curled, observing his thoughtful face. "It isn't so bad though," she got up and spread her arms. "Grisha… And I know you're watching us, you dirty shipper. Anyways. "He," and "His" kingdoms can have the titles as humanity's finest abodes. But we—" she spun around to face Klein. "We will build true neutral grounds. A place were humans round globe can call home, irrespective of their backgrounds."
As if to punctuate her words, she looked around before pointing at a rugged looking man some steps away. "Right? Random passer-by!?"
The man in question froze in bewilderment for a hot second, but he stopped glancing at his sides when other bystanders simply hung their heads low and walked away. "Ehh…" he looked at Amanises who nudged him with a smile.
"Under the Goddess of Misfortune… and the Fool's grace, of course."
Wait, do I know you? He tried to say but stopped as she applauded.
"Perfect. Now get out of here before I shoo you away." She had already returned to Klein as she said this, hands on her hips. "Gosh, the people are still too timid. I told you we had to make up a new festival to better accommodate the growing populace – my birthday can't be carrying all the time."
You say anything! He simply shook his head and leaned forward. "I'm guessing the: 'having people from all backgrounds call Tingen home' has some Terms and Conditions?"
She coughed. "Why of course! We don't want any rascals spoiling our peace now." Her dark eyes eyed his dark-brown's. "You get what I mean~ Oh you: 'I have the Seven Lights under my thumb,' 'I keep peering into spoilers by looking through future possibilities', or, Oh! …I forgot what I wanted to say!"
She shot him a venomous glare though Klein disregarded it as he retracted his outstretched hand. "Hmm, I get what you mean. Neutral grounds, with enough backing and weight that even future upstaters will know not to mess with us." He rubbed his chin, lost in his mutterings. "Still needs lots of refinement, but the idea is solid."
She nodded, humming in approval. "And it all starts with the backing in question being in sync," she extended a hand and Klein grasped it, holding onto it as he got to his feet. "The Fool and…"
"The Evernight Goddess." Klein completed her sentence, causing her to blink before nodding vigorously.
"You know, that's actually the perfect title for future me." She said half-hardheartedly, though Klein had to force down a smirk. You've no idea… He looked into her pool of darkness acting as her eyes, a beautiful expression gracing her features.
"Do you even know what working in sync here means for us?" Her arms suddenly wrapped around his waist, and he returned the gesture, bringing her closer.
"Mhmm maybe a thing or two?"
Amanises paused. She felt several gazes—a certain wolf, a Veiled Sun, Seven Lights, and even if she didn't sense it, she could feel the ex-Moon's attentive eyes deep in her bones. A huff escaped her as she grinned, nearing Klein's face.
"Let them watch." No extra steps or tip-toes were needed—Amanises pushed her lips against his.
The world had seemingly fell silent. The bustling chatter of town mattered naught at this moment. Nothing did, really. Only her soft lips and her wet tongue that played at the edges of his mouth. Klein's mind had fallen into a deep comfortable lull.
But a crackle and then a laugh broke the contact as they leaned back just a bit.
"Yeah, its a smooth transition," Klein smiled widely, licking his lips as he awkwardly brushed the strand of her own hair stuck to her brightening face.
"The movies lied. That romantic atmosphere is literally non-existent right now," she leaned into his hand, though her eyes moved about. "I guess the mundane atmosphere might be at play here."
Klein blinked as the environment shifted. Shrouded in intrigue, stars shinning over them. The background punctuated by crashing waves. Initially Amanises's full concealed world, having being worked on through his aid; thus both settled with calling it their own, shared concealed abode
The salty breeze brushed their hair as both felt stars shining in each other's eyes.
"Better?" A rhetoric question that was answered anyways as Amanises burst out laughing. Klein didn't hold back either, sealing away all observations on them, leaving only the two to laugh at their own absurdness. Amanises leaned her head at his shoulder, her ears flicking at his sides, taking in his scent and widely grinning.
Her head tilt slightly, questioning enough as she peered at Klein's complex expression. His mouth opened, then closed as he leaned into her embrace, an exasperated sigh leaving him.
She didn't press. After all, she knew him well enough—he simply needed sometime to collect his words. A few waves crashes followed before he once more fixed her eyes.
"Your spirituality wasn't off then… The future…"
She froze, understanding flashing as her mind involuntarily narrowed down various instances. Klein knowing so much while having only appeared a few years ago. How unnaturally sure he was about certain things and events. And then there was the Genie's comment.
"…No…way…" An amazed expression slowly shaped her features as she rubbed her chin. In contrast, Klein could only look down at his feet.