The black dragon—"Black" Vritra.

Currently appearing in the form of a young girl, she was very aware of her incomplete existence.

—How powerless I am.

This thought occupied her mind the whole time.

Having acquired an authority, thereby proudly evolved into a spiritual lifeform on a higher dimension, she would be an existence akin to G.o.d from the perspective of humans.

However, value systems were often relative.

Vritra frequently compared herself with her "past self."

It was not her but her past self that most closely approached the human concept of "G.o.d."

The power to create life and matter freely, universal love for everything on this world of Gaia, fair and just at all times—Spirituality of such n.o.bility was impossible for Vritra to conceive in her current state.

Indeed, even though her memories had been preserved as information, the continuity of self had been broken.

Hence, there was much that she did not understand.

Her past self had put her own body on the line in order to restore this world that had been destroyed by the seventh calamity.

But why go to such lengths? Was it because she felt an obligation? Right now, she could not comprehend it at all.

Even if it was the sense of mission or instinct as a counterdragon, there was also the matter of wanting to do so. Choosing the approach of restoration meant consuming an amount of dark matter that would jeopardize her continued existence. Her current self would never choose the option of self-sacrifice.

Even though that was the case, why?

No matter how many times she asked herself, she could not find the answer. But this time, she became aware of her own insignificance.

If her past self was a great river, then she was currently a small stream at most.

Her dark matter was neither sufficient for restoring the world nor creating life.

Hence... Taking into account the understanding of her powerlessness, she began to ponder.

Methods to oppose the imminent ninth calamity.

The goal was to prevent her past self's efforts from going to waste. Also, more importantly, her own continued survival—

However, the plan she devised had ended in complete failure.

Although interference from Yggdrasil, who was seeking self-preservation at all costs, played a key role, what had decisively foiled her plan was a single human. This human treated others with unwarranted familiarity, displayed ruthlessness in certain areas despite overwhelming naivete, the kind of person who would promise to solve everything in the end even without you asking—This was the young man named Monon.o.be Yuu.

Initially, she had simply labeled him as the "Irregular," but then discovered the undeniable result that he was the ninth counterdragon.

Furthermore, she had discovered another "fact."

That had taken place on the clock tower's top floor, in Charlotte B. Lord's private room.

Although a great commotion was taking place in the bathroom, Vritra was uninterested. Sitting on the sofa, she was reading manga and a sorted selection of books brought by Firill Crest.

Though the vine around her neck interfered with dark matter conversion, her arms and legs were no longer restrained.

No longer needing to ask others to turn the pages for her, it felt quite liberating. To be teased while looked after by her daughter Kili, that was quite an unwilling situation for her.

"Hmph... How infuriating."

Frowning at the lack of progress in the relations.h.i.+p between the protagonist and the heroine, Vritra murmured.

Manga was a human creation packed with a high density of information. She found manga more attractive than novels or television. The pictures and dialogue produced by human thought were definitely impossible to create through the trans.m.u.tation of matter.

However—Just as she finished one volume of manga and was reaching out for the next, she noticed.

A girl was crouching down in the balcony outside the window.

She was Monon.o.be Mitsuki, the younger sister of Monon.o.be Yuu.

Watching Monon.o.be Mitsuki holding the back of her neck in pain, Vritra felt chilled by the emotions surging from the depths of body.

Vritra recalled how Monon.o.be Yuu had almost killed her. At the time—He had directed genuine killing intent at her, extremely angry at her for harming Monon.o.be Mitsuki. Understanding that his possession of the sc.r.a.pped authority enabled him to kill her in her human form, Vritra had felt fear.

In other words, this was fear originating from a crisis of life and death.

Relaxing her grip and moving away from the back of her neck, Monon.o.be Mitsuki's hand showed a wavering outline—Starting from the fingertips, black "darkness" covered it.

Seeing this situation, Monon.o.be Mitsuki cried out in surprise, but Vritra was far more shaken than she was.

Vritra instantly stood up from the sofa and hastened over to the balcony.

Countless images became linked together in her mind.

"I see—So this is the situation. Now 'tis finally clear to me."

"...Vritra?"

Noticing Vritra, who had stopped at the entrance to the balcony, Mitsuki looked up. The change affecting her body had already subsided.

Nevertheless... Beyond a doubt, that "darkness" was what Vritra feared the most.

With this, the probability of Monon.o.be Yuu being the ninth counterdragon had increased infinitely.

"Previously, when I attempted to harm thee, that person expressed unusual rage. That was probably an instinctive act as Neun. As the ninth counterdragon, that person already knew what he should be doing."

The excitement of answered question and the tension of standing before a mortal enemy shook Vritra's heart, causing her to deliver her words in a stiff voice.

"What are you talking about...? Are you speaking of Nii-san?"

Meanwhile, Mitsuki asked in confusion.

Seeing Monon.o.be completely unaware of her own position, Vritra was overcome with intense irritation.

Hence, she voiced her speculation with hostility.

"Indeed—That person is protecting thee in order to obey a counterdragon's instinct. 'Tis because the ninth calamity, which shall bring destruction to the world, is within you."

"Eh......?"

Monon.o.be Mitsuki froze after leaking out a quiet voice of questioning.

Vritra did not know what she was thinking or had understood.

However—the effect Vritra's words had on her was far stronger than even Vritra expected.

Monon.o.be Mitsuki's expression froze, her pupils contracted forcefully while her body started trembling from the extremities.

—Curses, was it too great a shock?

Vritra regretted allowing her own feelings to drive her into cornering Monon.o.be Mitsuki... However, time could not be rewound.

If only I had not allowed myself to be ruled by emotion...

Vritra scolded herself in anguish at the thought of her mistake.

Compared to her former G.o.dlike existence, this was utterly ridiculous.

Vritra concluded she should summon Monon.o.be Yuu who was Neun. However, before she could take action, Monon.o.be Mitsuki's condition changed again.

The trembling in her limbs swifly subsided. The fear and surprise on her face vanished. She s.p.a.ced out, looking to the sky.

"—Hey?"

When Vritra called out in trepidation, Monon.o.be Mitsuki looked at her in puzzlement.

"Umm... Is something the matter?"

It sounded like she was unaware of the situation. Vritra felt confused.

"What happened...? Thou... dost not remember?"

"Remember...? What?"

Mitsuki tilted her head and asked with honest ignorance.

"Nay—I am mistaken. Thou needst not pay it any mind."

Vritra shook her head and returned to the room from the balcony. Monon.o.be Mitsuki watched in surprise to see Vritra off.

"—What happened? Be that as it may... I must not provoke her any further."

Sitting on the sofa, glancing sideways at Mitsuki in the balcony, Vritra sighed.

Everything was so incomprehensible. Furthermore, these matters were impossible for her to handle in her current state.

Memory erasure—Or perhaps, the rejection of change?

It was possible that this was derived from Neun's authority.

Even after using Hraesvelgr's authority, Monon.o.be Yuu could still turn back into human.

Supposing change would not bring about a bad outcome, then she should not take action recklessly. Informing Monon.o.be Yuu of her speculations necessitated proper timing.

There is no problem if "that" can be suppressed given the current state of affairs. The ideal course of action is to observe Monon.o.be Mitsuki's condition for the time being, only making a move when the situation deteriorates. Here on, I must investigate how the current situation came to be.

After deep contemplation, Vritra reached this conclusion.

Information gathering ought to begin with Monon.o.be Mitsuki's brother, Monon.o.be Yuu. It was necessary to get close to him, even if for nothing else but to elucidate Neun's powers thoroughly.

However, this raised an issue.

Vritra looked towards the bathroom where the commotion was still ongoing.

There was never a moment's peace around Monon.o.be Yuu. She had to create a chance for a confidential discussion.

—Furthermore, he probably does not trust me. If I talk to him without explaining the situation clearly, he would probably maintain silence out of wariness.

Arms crossed, stuck in a conundrum, Vritra settled her gaze upon the manga she had just been reading.

It was typical shoujo manga fare. In other words, a manga depicting the process of how a love-stricken girl got to know the boy of her affections, open their hearts to each other, and prevail against romantic rivals.

"Mayhap this could be used for reference..."

Murmuring quietly, Vritra reached for the pile of manga.