"Time really does pass quickly."
"Yeah. But we've pretty much gone through every attraction now. Are you satisfied with today, Luna?"
"Mm~ Thank you, Human. I've never been as happy as I was today. Really, never!"
HOMU Amusement Park had already reached closing time. Elias held Luna's small hand as they walked back toward the hotel, while the vampire girl carried an enormous HOMU plush in her other hand.
Sometimes, Elias really did admire Welt. A character he'd casually drawn out of boredom had somehow become popular all over the world, to the point that even bubble worlds near Earth had been influenced by it.
But considering that Luna was a bubble-world counterpart of a certain Judah launcher, it was only natural that she would like HOMU too.
At this moment, beneath the glow of the crimson moon hanging in the night sky, the white-haired boy and vampire girl walked hand in hand beneath rows of streetlights. The two of them looked perfectly matched.
The atmosphere could hardly have been better.
Except for the two extra third wheels...
Ai: "Ahem, Captain, we're still here."
Rosemary: "Oh my~ I really didn't expect Rita to fall out of favor this quickly. My Demon King truly is fickle."
Elias: "..."
Ever since he and Luna had gotten off the Ferris wheel, Rosemary and Ai had suddenly popped out from who knew where, and the four of them had naturally continued playing together until HOMU Amusement Park closed.
As for why the witch and the AI girl had suddenly appeared...
Naturally, it was because Luna's skyrocketing progress bar had scared them half to death!
If they didn't come out and act as third wheels to make these two restrain themselves a little, they were probably going to lose outright! Thinking of that, Rosemary and Ai helplessly glanced at Elias.
This person really left them at a loss for words. How did he manage to run into beautiful girls wherever he went? And why was he always so good to them... though Miss Luna really was pitiful.
"Ahem! Captain, Ai thinks there's one extremely important thing she needs to remind you about."
"Hm? What is it, Ai?"
"Miss Luna is only twelve years old this year, you know. Please, whatever you do, don't make things difficult for the police. Thoughts like 'under three years, death penalty, still worth it' are absolutely forbidden~"
Ai wore an extremely serious expression, crossing both arms in front of her chest to form a huge X as she issued her warning... though she also knew that laws and such didn't have much restraining force over her Captain.
However, Elias had always possessed an extremely high moral standard. So even without any external restraint, he would obediently follow the rules.
Thus, although Luna's affection level had risen at an absurd rate, this vampire girl's age was right there. Given Elias' personality, there was absolutely, positively, one-thousand-percent no chance he would do anything beastly.
Just like Griseo during the Previous Era, if Luna wanted to formally enter the race, she would have to wait at least another six years.
So although Rosemary and Ai were somewhat worried, neither of them was truly panicking. After all... could this adorable twelve-year-old little girl suddenly grow up in an instant or something?
Impossible~ Absolutely impossible~
Luna: "I-I'm a vampire, so human laws don't apply to me. So technically, there shouldn't be a problem!"
Elias: "No, no, no. Of course there's a problem. I don't want to get smited by the Sacred Beast of Censorship, so this really is a no-go."
Ai: "Just as planned!!"
Rosemary: "My~ Even if Miss Luna were old enough, she would still have quite a long road ahead of her."
The perceptive witch had already seen through everything.
First of all, Luna already looked as though she had completely fallen for him. Her affection had hit the ceiling, and she regarded Elias as the most important person in her life. But that was largely because of her own past and identity.
Elias was the first person Luna had ever encountered who accepted her, understood her, and helped her. In a world where even Luna's closest sister, and even Luna herself, denied her existence, Elias alone had affirmed it.
For Luna, who had always viewed herself as a monstrous outsider, the warmth Elias brought her was enough to move her very soul.
But what about Elias himself?
In truth, he did not harbor that kind of feeling toward Luna. His kindness, his help, his salvation—in Rosemary's eyes, all of it largely came from the white-haired boy simply being who he was.
After all, when someone like him encountered a vampire girl with such a tragic past who longed for freedom, there was no way a hero like him would stand by and do nothing. Not to mention, Luna was also Theresa's bubble-world counterpart.
So, in conclusion, Luna might have fallen in love with Elias, but Elias had not yet developed those kinds of feelings for her.
(Though with a full six years ahead of them, even if it develops slowly, they'll definitely end up in that sort of relationship eventually. But that's still a long way off. For now, it's still my turn!)
Thinking this, Rosemary immediately relaxed.
However, neither Rosemary nor Ai knew that before much longer, this vampire girl would accomplish a miracle that a certain flat-chested immortal had failed to achieve in fifty thousand years.
"Come to think of it, the moon is red again tonight."
Ai looked up at the sky as she spoke. That blood-red yet magnificently beautiful moon hanging in the night sky was hardly a common sight, and the AI girl still had no idea that Elias was actually responsible for it.
"Yeah. Pretty, isn't it?"
Elias proudly put his hands on his hips.
"It really is beautiful, but there are also legends that the moon can drive people mad, especially during a full moon. In some regions during the Previous Era, they even used [Lunatic/Filled with Madness] to describe it."
Possessing databases from both the Previous Era and Current Era, Ai casually showed off her broad knowledge. But ultimately, she was still a somewhat silly cabbage in certain respects.
Ai continued speaking without thinking.
"According to legend, a red moon is an ominous night. Whenever the moon turns red, vampires go berserk and start attacking humans everywhere to drink their blood... Uh, I-I didn't say anything."
Realizing that she had shown off the wrong piece of knowledge, Ai's entire body stiffened. She hurriedly covered her mouth and looked apologetically toward Luna.
If the vampire girl ended up getting hurt because of that, Ai would probably slap herself twice after getting into bed tonight.
"I-I won't drink anyone else's blood anymore."
The sensitive Luna hurriedly spoke. Never mind the fact that a red moon didn't actually drive vampires mad. Now that Elias regularly let her drink his blood, she would no longer lose control and attack people.
Elias raised a hand and flicked Ai on the forehead, then gently patted Luna on the head.
"Mm. I know Luna is a good girl. And as for you, Little Ai, your allowance this month is getting cut by ten percent."
"Wuuu, Ai understands~"
"That's more like it. But to tell the truth, I don't think there's anything wrong with going a little crazy sometimes~"
As Elias spoke, he reached a hand toward the night sky as though trying to pluck the crimson moon from above. The red moon reflected in his blue-and-gold mismatched eyes, making him look strangely bewitching and wicked.
"Sometimes it's good for people to go a little crazy. After all, in an ordinary mental state, you can only produce ordinary results. But when someone's mind approaches the abyss of madness, they start coming up with insane ideas—just like MEI, Mobius, and Vill-V."
"Oh~ Those three really were always pretty crazy."
Thinking of the three Flame-Chasers famous for being labeled "mad scientists," Ai had no choice but to nod in agreement. Genius and madness had always been separated by only a single line.
Elias: "Vill-V's 'Occultist' personality once said something like this: Whenever I see the moon, all sorts of ideas appear in my mind because I have gazed into the abyss of madness."
"..."
Ai fell silent for a moment, then raised her head and began staring at the moon, hoping that perhaps she could find some crazy—or genius—idea of her own.
Three seconds later... BANG!!
"Ow!"
The AI girl's cabbage head slammed directly into a utility pole. From how loud the impact was, anyone could tell it was one sturdy head. Tears immediately welled up in Ai's eyes as she dropped into a crouch and clutched her head defensively.
Elias didn't know whether to laugh or cry as he raised a hand and rubbed her head.
"Watch where you're going. Besides, there's nothing worth staring at about this fake moon. If you want to look at one, wait until we return to the Proper World..."
"O-Okay... Hm? Captain, what did you just say? This moon is fake? For real?!"
Ai, Rosemary, and Luna all widened their eyes in shock. They felt as though they had just heard something extremely significant.
Elias nodded without trying to hide anything.
"For real, for real. Though I only discovered this obvious truth not long ago. Ah~ When I think about it now, we still don't understand the Sea of Quanta and bubble worlds nearly well enough."
"Actually, it's not just the moon. The entire starry sky of this bubble world is fake. In fact, that's true for every bubble world."
"But that's only natural. How large can a single bubble world possibly be? A bubble world the size of even one continent in the Proper World would already count as fairly large, so stars and moons are obviously out of the question."
This was the truth Elias had discovered yesterday when he used his authority over the azure winds to manipulate the bubble world's atmosphere and create the crimson moon. The stars and moon didn't actually exist. They were nothing more than illusions.
At that moment, the worldview of all three girls took a direct hit.
"T-Then what exactly are we seeing?"
Luna asked in astonishment. This world really was far more mysterious and unbelievable than she had ever imagined.
Elias: "This is only my guess, but what we're seeing should be a projection of the day and night of the Proper World. If someone in this bubble world got aboard a rocket and kept flying straight upward, they wouldn't eventually reach the moon. Instead, they'd fly out through the bubble world's membrane and enter the Sea of Quanta."
Ai: "S-So that's how it works..."
Rosemary: "Bubble worlds really are fascinating."
Luna: "Um... I still don't understand."
The vampire girl scratched her head somewhat awkwardly. She had only recently begun learning about the world, yet now she was already hearing the world's truths and fundamental principles straight from the white-haired boy.
Luna felt her head spinning. Then, as though seeking a sense of reassurance, she subconsciously tightened her grip on Elias' hand.
"Don't worry too much about it, Luna. It actually isn't that big a deal. Oh, right. Just now, I slightly altered the rules of this bubble world using the Ether Anchor."
"Eh? What's an Ether Anchor?"
"I'll explain that to you later. What's important is that I've decided to make nighttime in this bubble world last a little longer. At least until I leave, this world will remain dark."
"What?!" x2
The moment those words left his mouth, Rosemary and Ai were both stunned. Their first thought was that their Captain/Demon King had once again pulled off something absurd. Had he seriously just canceled daytime entirely?!
"It's only temporary~ Luna can't tolerate sunlight, after all. Once we've had our fill of fun here and leave this bubble world in a few days, I'll restore the day-night cycle to normal."
"Wah, Captain, you're practically a god."
Just because Luna couldn't tolerate sunlight, he had directly canceled daytime itself. Did he really have to spoil her this much?!
"Ah~ I've also been thinking about how to deal with Luna's weaknesses as a vampire. Her bloodthirst is no longer a problem with me around, but sunlight... Once we return to the Proper World, I plan to ask Snake for help. She'll definitely have a solution."
Elias spoke with complete confidence. Mobius was the greatest biologist he knew. As long as she could come up with a solution, Elias could use the authority of the Herrscher of Rebirth to handle the rest.
But he also needed to ask Luna for her consent.
And so...
"Luna, would you be willing to come aboard my ship and visit my world someday?"
"I would!"
Luna answered instantly, without even 0.01 seconds of hesitation.
The vampire girl temporarily handed the HOMU plush in her left hand to Rosemary, then wrapped both arms around Elias and pressed her delicate face against his abdomen as she spoke earnestly.
"Human, from now on, wherever you go, take me with you, okay? I... don't want to leave you anymore."