"Ah, Master, isn't life just wonderful?"
"Did something nice happen?"
"You could very much say so, yes… Hard work paying off just gives a very rewarding feeling!"
"Well, I'm glad that everything worked out for you. But we are still at war, even if it is deceptively quiet right now."
"Yeah, I know… I'm just glad I didn't build this massive thing by hand for nothing. It could have very well been less effective, after all…"
"From what you've told me, I think you outdid yourself tremendously with it."
"Aww, thank you~ This is nice. We should just relax and drink tea more often."
"Though I would love nothing more, this is an exception for now."
"Aw… Well, I appreciate it nonetheless."
Yuki's eyes turned dull as she looked over her shoulder at the wall, and let out a deep exhausted sigh. Putting down her cup and looking at Yamato.
"Master, I regret to inform you that we are about to be interrupted…"
"Is that so? How come?"
"A single presence just appeared where I last confronted Nakahara Hana. It appears they are waiting for something, and I'd assume that to be me…"
"Well, there is nothing we can do then… It was nice while it lasted."
"I'm sure it won't take long…"
"If you say so… You don't have to hold back then. We are openly at war anyway. Soon we will have to go on the offensive as well, and we still need to think about how exactly we will make that happen. But never mind that for now. Go on and stay safe."
"Aww, it feels like we are married already~"
She teased with a smile as she left, not giving Yamato the chance to object. Although, he would not have done so anyway. Flying north again, she wondered who it would be this time. Though it hardly mattered as she was pretty much already set on killing them. Yamato did say there was little reason to hold back any longer. However, the person waiting for her seemed to be the one person she was not expecting.
"Oh? So you noticed me… That's embarrassing… I actually did not mean for us to meet already… But I couldn't stop myself from checking on you."
"Am I not lucky to have such a caring sister~? And here I thought you were waiting for me, but I guess I was mistaken… But hey, you hid yourself good enough for me not to recognize you immediately."
"Well… I try. It's nice to see you."
"You say that even after how our last encounter ended?"
"Of course… You were confused. Still are. I don't blame you for anything. You are my dear beloved sister, and that is who you will always be."
"I can't help but find that contradictory… Saying you love me but disapproving of my actions and relationships… Don't you know those are the things that define us? Saying you don't like either or both is equal to saying you don't like me in general."
"That's not true… But I'm not here to have an argument with you…"
"Well, but since you came down here all the way from heaven again just for this, we might as well, don't you think?"
"No, I do not. Because I don't think I will reach you… I failed you as a sister, and I'm sorry… But I won't let Yamato cloud your mind any longer."
"And you call me confused… Ooh, hey, look down there. That's where I killed a lot of people two days ago. Or is it three already? I honestly forgot. Well, not that it matters."
"Why are you telling me that?"
"I just found it curious… How you chose this place of all to spy on me…"
"Why is that?"
"Add to that the Empire saying they have a deity as well, that happens to be an angel one would call… "Nothing like me", as Hana put it. Quite curious indeed… It would be a shame if that person were to be my own sister. Oh, the betrayal…!"
"Do you find it funny that 5000 people died here by your hands?"
"5000? That's a specific number. I didn't bother to count, but that sounds about right. So that deity really is you… That's a shame, really. It looks like this will end just like last time."
"I won't engage in any more violence with you."
"Hm…"
"What?"
"Nothing, it's just… Maybe it's not that much of a bad thing after all. Because I just realized… If I kill you here and now, I crippled the Empire's entire religious foundation, and their legitimacy crumbles to in comparison to ours. Isn't that wonderful? Would you die for me, Natsumi?"
"…Well, I expected as much. Don't worry. This will soon be over… In fact, it might already be… I do hope so, and hope you will forgive me. I love you, Yuki. I will come back for you."
Just as Yuki struck with her just summoned blade at the spot where Natsumi stood, she disappeared. However Natsumi's last words lingered in her mind and caused her thoughts to race at an abnormal speed.
"…"
"It might already be? And what are you apologizing for… Obviously, you should, but you don't know that. You think you are in the right. That's weird. I don't like this… Forgive you… Forgive you for something that might have already happened but might have not… Something you realize to be wrong… Something…—"
Feeling as if something was off, she rushed back to the castle as fast as she could. Arriving there in the fraction of a second later, crashing through the ceiling, her wings immediately enveloping Yamato and herself into a cocoon of absolute safety. The complete isolation and the darkness that came with it was only interrupted by the light of her halo shining like a dim light which barely made them able to see each other. And sure enough, not even a second later, a massive burst of energy coming from the far south hit them directly, whipping the entire section of the castle out in an instant. The basic protective barrier Yuki had preemptively cast around this room was shattered in an instant, unlike her wings which were able to withstand the impact with no damage to them. As Yuki clung Yamato against herself inside their cocoon, he genuinely seemed taken aback by the situation. Though his behavior could still be considered calm, the same thing could not be said about Yuki, whose hand pressed Yamato's head into her neck and soothingly petted it, though she was the one it soothed most. Another part of it was that she wanted to hide the expression she made right now, because she knew it was not a nice one. If she had to guess, based on her thoughts and feelings, she looked full of hatred and anger, though she would surely calm down once the relief of his safety kicked in.
"You… You… Lied to me… Me?! You were never there to just watch… And you chose that place because you knew from the previous squad that I'd be able to sense your presence at that position that position… You wanted to distract me… And that creature curses itself my sister… I should forgive you for this? For this?! You worthless—"
As her mind filled with countless insults and threats, the outside seemed to be safe again. So she slowly opened her wings but did not let go of him yet. The burned and uneven, so even if she was ready to let go, she would drop him off somewhere else. But right now it felt like she would never even think of letting go, as her heart raced against his chest in both relief and rage. Yamato on the other hand, found himself in a situation that he struggled to navigate through. He too, liked the sensation that Yuki's embrace gave him. However, surprisingly, he did not feel afraid at all, even though he almost died for real this time. He assumed whoever Yuki met served as distraction to lure her to the opposite side of from where the attack originated. But he did not want to focus on that right now, even though he should and subconsciously already did. Instead, he wanted to focus on Yuki. Her emotions, her well being, somehow concerned him much more than anything else. However, he lacked the ability to communicate that complex feeling he held towards her properly, as he had no idea what to say to her after this. The only thing that he felt was natural to do right now, was to embrace her back just as tightly as she did, and press his lips onto hers. Her reaction was uncertain at first, but quickly became replying with equal emotions. Though, she could not stop herself from crying while she was at it, which made her momentarily put the disdain she held towards her sister aside. After a shared moment of levitating around, a rather annoying person pulled herself up the edge of the castle, with burned fingers and face, but surprisingly intact clothes, Petrisha tumbled around.
"Mistress Yuki…? Your Majesty…? Anyone?"
Still disoriented from apparently being hit directly, her vision became clearer as her body regenerated from its injuries.
"Oh, right, you were here too…"
"Ah, there you are! I'm so glad you are unharmed!"
"You are?"
"O-of course! I wouldn't know what to do without you!"
"…Actually, I like that. Good girl."
"Thank you, Mistress!"
"Right. Now get lost and bring your brother to the church and wait there with him."
"My brother…? Do you perhaps mean Marneras? He and I are not related!"
"Whatever, demon and demon are all the same to me."
"Mistress, that's racist…"
"Didn't you hear me… I said get lost."
"Y-yes, Mistress! I'm sorry!"
Petrisha hurriedly said as she was already jumping off to get Marneras, not being permitted to fly as her identity as a demon was obvious kept secret to keep the divine image up. Once she was gone, she froze the ground to cool it down before landing with Yamato.
"Master, we cannot stay in here any longer. It's dangerous!"
"Well, that much is clear… I was planning on leaving the castle behind anyway, but we will have to speed up that process now I guess…"
"We will also have to tell the people what just occurred and make sure they don't break out into panic."
"Right… This was my fault. I treated it like another competitive exam, when it's just not. I'm sorry. I will take this serious from now on, I promise. I have to, if I want to accomplish my goal."
"Taking it seriously… In that case, I may have an idea on how to improve our chances, Master. But it's a little risky…"
"Tell me about it on the way. But I promise you, I will win this war no matter what."
"As expected, Master! And I promise that I will support you no matter what!"