Deep underground, inside the belly of the mechanical giant serpent rapidly tunneling through earth and stone.
Binah's humanoid prosthetic body opened its eyes. "Elder Sister... my mission is complete."
"...Mm, you've worked hard."
A cold female voice replied, then paused for a moment. "But your acting at the end was too exaggerated. You should have first..."
"B-but it really hurt!"
Binah could not help but complain. "And that bastard actually dared to mess with me like that earlier! Does he think he's still our..."
"Stop."
The cold female voice interrupted her. "Binah, it seems you're too tired. Go back early and get some proper rest."
"...Yes."
After a long while, Binah cautiously spoke again. "Elder Sister, are you still there?"
There was no response.
So she began muttering to herself again.
"Damn it... kicking there of all places... absolutely unforgivable... absolutely unforgivable...!"
Deep underground, only the sound of excavation remained.
...
"Magnificent! Truly magnificent! Simply peerless!"
After witnessing the heart-shaking battle between the carefully crafted [Hieronymus] and the Forerunner he revered, a battle where every exchange seemed to contain the truth of the world itself, it took an unknown amount of time before the Maestro finally recovered from that intoxicating memory that had nearly brought him enlightenment on the spot.
The very first thing he did was offer praise in a trembling voice.
Immediately afterward, his body began trembling violently as well. Countless inspirations flooded his mind, making him impatient to turn them into reality.
What astonished him even more was the mere tip of the iceberg that person had revealed of his true heights.
"To think that even a crude work such as mine could draw forth such possibilities... ahh, if only my skills were not so immature, perhaps I might have allowed Your Excellency to enjoy yourself a little more..."
The Maestro felt both reverence and shame, yet his resolve to continue his research only became firmer.
Then, unwillingly, he cast one final glance at the screen, where only the image remained of [Hieronymus] unleashing its final strike with everything it had before turning into snow-white ash, and casually switched the display.
Suddenly, the creaking noise that always accompanied the Maestro's movements came to a halt. Even his already stiff puppet-like body seemed to have been frozen completely in place.
Looking at the Trinity General School on the monitor, now dyed in white and yellow, the Maestro let out a puzzled sound.
"...Huh?"
After several moments of blank confusion, he began trembling again, this time from anger.
In a frantic rush, he sent a communication request. The moment the other side uttered a single syllable, the Maestro sharply demanded:
"Madam! You, you... what have you done to my work!?"
"...Huh?"
Beatrice, who had just been woken up and was about to get angry herself, likewise let out a voice filled with endless confusion.
...
Above the ruins of the ancient cathedral.
Countless members of the Sisterhood wandered aimlessly across the land.
"It is as though they have lost their 'central command,'" the white-haired, elf-eared girl seated in a wheelchair said softly as she reviewed the incoming data and gave a slight nod.
"So that's how it is. Binah truly did seem to serve as some sort of data relay point. Mm, then the one truly controlling the converted Sisterhood members and directing them to attack Sensei was the Cross Divinity itself..."
"Hold on."
Another silver-haired girl in military uniform asked irritably, "Who are you supposed to be? Where did you come from? Why are you talking so much?"
Himari blinked in surprise. "Ara, to think there is still someone here who does not recognize me, the ultra-genius pure-type beautiful girl hacker that all of Millennium takes pride in. Could it be... that my disposition has already become so lofty and mysterious...?"
Only halfway through her sentence, Himari gently touched her cheek and began pitying herself in admiration.
That unpleasant feeling was strangely familiar.
"What kind of nonsense are you even saying?"
Makoto frowned and rudely asked the others nearby, "Hey! Who let this weirdo sneak in here!?"
Himari's delicate body trembled as though she had suffered a severe blow. "W-weirdo...!? Hah, h-how rude... though perhaps this is simply the inborn divide between ordinary people and geniuses... fufu. The truly incomprehensible ones are those shallow-minded people who speak so arrogantly, no?"
That powerful ability to regulate her own mentality was honestly enviable.
"W-what!?"
Makoto's body trembled with anger as she shouted, "You dare insult me, Makoto-sama herself!? Guards! Guards! Drag her out of here!"
"To think you would resort to violence against a fragile and lovable girl like me... how barbaric, how vulgar! You are practically like sewage from the gutters... hehe... in that case, perhaps I should retaliate with the weapons of a hacker?"
In any case, perhaps because of some strange shared trait, the two somehow started arguing. Only after Iroha and Eimi, standing behind them respectively, helplessly tried to stop them did they finally quiet down.
But once the noise from those two disappeared, the atmosphere inside the conference room once again became heavy along with the silence.
Tsurugi had already emptied her mind entirely and was staring blankly at the tabletop in a daze.
Rather, this really was not the time anyone could afford to relax.
"Uhee∼"
The lazy pink-haired girl sitting beside me seemed a little uncomfortable and quietly whispered to me, "Sensei, is it really okay for someone like this ojii-san here, just a student from some unknown academy, to be in a place like this?"
"For the vice president of Abydos to say that, you are undervaluing yourself too much."
The white-haired girl seated on my other side spoke indifferently.
"Ah∼ Isn't this Gehenna's Head Prefect-chan? My name is..."
Halfway through speaking, Hoshino suddenly frowned slightly and sniffed the air. Then her brows relaxed, and her smile turned meaningful as her gaze drifted between me and Hina. Her attitude toward Hina immediately became much friendlier.
"I see, I see∼ So you're the Head Prefect's newly 'fellow sister,' huh∼ Please take care of me from now on. If there's a chance, let's all exchange ideas together and improve together, okay?"
...Does she have a dog's nose or something?
Hina also seemed to notice the hidden implication behind those words and merely replied reservedly, "We'll see."
At that moment, as though guided by instinct, Hanako leaned over.
"You all seem to be discussing something interesting. If possible, may I join in too?"
Hoshino sized Hanako up from head to toe, then imitated Hina's reserved tone.
"We'll see."
To be fair, if Hanako really had those kinds of thoughts, she might as well go look for her Makeup Work Club companions instead.
Just as Hanako was about to say something more, the conference room door opened.
Accompanied by Mine, captain of the Remedial Knights, a petite golden-haired fox-eared girl carrying a long-tailed tit bird in her hands walked inside.
"My apologies, everyone from the various academies, for keeping you waiting."
Seia took the final empty seat, then turned her gaze toward me.
I nodded, then cleared my throat.
"The meeting will now officially begin."