Everest and Aya had expected to see the angel.
They had even prepared themselves for when they see her again.
What they weren't ready for however?
"ahhhhh. People"
Was the fact that she did not remember them.
She shifted her silver gaze towards Everest.
"A pretty boy too, ah.. how ladylike I used to be"
This girl.
Now that Everest has the chance to see her up close, she was truly an angel. Her beauty was out of this world… but also painful to look at at the same time. Her figure was alluring yet distant, and her voice was intrusive yet demeaning.
She was like a paradox of longing.
She seemed to be of his age as well.
Finally, an adult. I'm sick of playing dad.
She wore a lightweight, white tattered gown, while her once flawless skin was muddy in some areas and bruised in others. Her gown revealed a lot of skin, but strangely it only kept him on edge.
And as if all that wasn't enough to believe she was an angel, she had a glowing halo over her head lighting her up, and elaborate weapons cast from gold: an exquisite sword hanging on her waist sash, and a round shield at her back, suspended by a cross belt.
"Hi iam Sophie, let's be friends"
Hmmn. "Let's be friends" seems to be the norm around here. Better file that away.
Why the hell would you do that?!
"Ahem, yeah let's be friends"
He extended his hands towards her.
Sophie returned the gesture, and they shook hands. However, the moment their hands met, it was like they had been stabbed in the heart countless times and didn't even have time to register the feeling. They suddenly went breathless and looked at each other in a mix of confusion and horror.
Okay…. How?!
Not like they let it last. As soon as Everest grasped what was going on, he gripped her hand tighter. Thankfully, she got the message, and they both pulled out in unison.
Sophie's gaze lingered on him, then rolled over to Aya. She smiled measuredly.
"Ni hao!~"
"I'm Japanese,"
Aya said flatly.
Sophie's smile nearly faltered as she scratched the back of her head in embarrassment.
"Oh—ohayō!~"
Aya's face lit up—genuine, unguarded—and she ran to give her a hug.
"Hehe. oha!~"
She dug her face into Sophie's chest before surfacing again and singing.
"A-Y-A N-O-R-I-T-O.
Aya Norito!
Is my name!"
The angel nodded in rhythm with her song, and in the next moment they were dancing in place.
ahhhhh, wait—do I really have to do all that?
Everest stood in place in silent horror as the angel and Aya went through minutes upon minutes of nonsense—completely oblivious to his existence—before a thought surfaced and a shadow ran across his face.
Palming his face, he hesitated.
Then took a measured step back.
On the flip side, this is for her own good. I really am not the best adult for a role model. Besides, she'll have a better friendship this way. Sure, Sophie's a bit suspicious—but she's strong. Much stronger than I am at least.
He shook his head at his own idea—but did it anyway.
Slowly, measuredly, he blended into the shadows and suppressed his presence as much as he could. For some reason, his mind became eerily clear at times like this—times where he was acting just like his father would.
Before he could escape, though—
The angel suddenly lifted her gaze from Aya, who still clung to her, and their eyes met.
Her lips parted, and he heard her voice in his head.
"That's not very gentlemanly of you—"
Even after she said that—and the means through which she said it—he remained unperturbed outwardly and continued his exiting. But his mind was in turmoil.
"C-could you at least tell me your name first?"
Some form of telepathy. The more I see, the more she resembles an actual angel.
His gaze sharpened at the thought for what it implied.
Could she be a Mythborn?
"Stop! Don't go any further!"
He inhaled deeply and answered in a deep, almost rehearsed tone.
"I am whatever you make me to be"
Aya finally spun, and her dead eyes settled on Everest urgently—as if she could sense the wrongness in his presence.
Everest, of course, didn't say that for the fun of it. The last thing he wanted was to sound like some nameless psycho playing savior. However, he was not one to act on emotion… or desire, for that matter.
The words he used were words only an icon would know. They were some of the first words the benevolent HOUSEMATER said.
Sophie, meanwhile, fell into deep thought before shaking her head with a mild giggle. She wore an incredulous expression.
"Seriously—he has wannabes already? Are you really gonna waste like that?"
Her tone became especially harsh towards the end and the word "waste" especially cut deeper than expected.
Everest raised an eyebrow in the darkness.
But he didn't give her an answer.
She is not a Mythborn—but an icon like us. Better file that away.
Sophie seemed to have wanted an answer. She took a deep breath, then sighed heavily before reaching for her neck and cracking it.
Oh—ohh.
Aya, who was getting more than a little confused, cleverly distanced herself from Sophie and stood somewhere between them.
"Ano~ June senpai, who are you talking to?"
Even though she was addressing Everest, her gaze kept flashing between him and Sophie.
Everest did not answer her.
Aya's crimson eyes narrowed—not with anger, but with calculation. She was learning. Watching, The fact that he'd just had an entire conversation she knew nothing of.
Instead, he clutched his chest… and started laughing. A melodic, innocent laugh.
"For the love of madness, why are you girls looking at me like that? Do I look like an activist for a deadpan screen or a featureless face?
I was just joking"
His words were cracky and unclear under the influence of laughter.
Sophie held a neutral expression.
But her stance eased, and her gaze softened.
"You're weird. I like you"
Everest smiled at her, then strolled casually to Aya before leaning in and whispering into her ear.
"Aya, your friend has trust issues, okay?
So don't go saying my name to some stranger I didn't approve of"
Then he paused and added,
"If they ask for it when I am not there, never tell them.
And if I am there, you follow my lead."
His hands patted her shoulders lightly, calming her down as she had frozen in place at his words. Then he turned to look at the angel.
"Sorry, did you wait long?"
The angel looked at him with a strange smile and said softly,
"I—I am not sure I follow you"
Everest shook his head, chuckling dismissively.
Isn't it obvious?
Then he cleared his throat and began singing with a smug smile.
"S-I-L-V-E-R—"
The angel's face twitched involuntarily.
There it is.