The moment the thought crossed her mind, Pandora instinctively tried to flee.
She didn't know exactly how powerful a Level 8, Stage 9 being truly was, but there was no way she would simply surrender without resistance.
Despite the situation, she still retained an almost irrational confidence in her own Authority—believing she could escape Eriri's grasp.
Yet, just as she invoked her Authority to make her escape a reality—shifting herself far away from the city—she realized, to her shock, that she was still standing in the same room.
Her Authority... had stopped working.
Though her heart trembled in disbelief, Pandora's expression didn't change. Only her gaze grew heavier, filled with quiet tension.
"Come and go as you please—isn't that a bit disrespectful, Pandora?"
Echidna's lightly mocking voice cut through the air, her tone calm yet sharp.
Before Pandora could respond, Minerva looked curiously toward Echidna. "Echidna, do you know this Witch of Vainglory?"
Hearing that, Satella—seated across from her—also turned her curious gaze toward the unruffled Echidna.
Faced with her companions' questions, Echidna nodded without hesitation.
"Of course. I'm quite familiar with everything she's done... and everything she will do in the future."
As she spoke, a faintly amused smile curved her lips.
"Everything I've done and will do? Did that knowledge come from the Book of Wisdom, or did someone tell you? Or perhaps... you've joined the chat group as well?"
Pandora's eyes shimmered with faint intrigue as she glanced at Echidna. Then, without waiting for permission, she calmly pulled out a chair and sat down at the table.
After a few failed attempts to leave, she had already accepted that escape was impossible today. Since resistance was futile, she decided to simply stop trying.
Echidna, for her part, made no move to strike. To her, Pandora was already nothing more than a fish on the chopping block—she could deal with her whenever she pleased.
"Yes," Echidna said frankly. "I'm one of the chat group's members."
There was no need for secrecy. A faint, almost triumphant smile formed on her face.
"Actually, I should thank you. If you hadn't refused Eriri's offer back then and gotten yourself kicked out, I would never have had the chance to join."
"If you had stayed, perhaps our positions today would be reversed."
Pandora fell silent.
She had always believed her ideals were correct—just as she'd told Eriri a year ago in the chat group. It wasn't that she was wrong; it was that no one else could understand her.
Even now, knowing her grand design was doomed to fail, she still didn't see herself as evil. Everything she had done, every tragedy she had caused, had been dictated by fate.
If she had lost, it was simply because fate had chosen someone else.
"Perhaps," she murmured softly. "Then, how do you plan to deal with me?"
Her tone was calm, even serene, as she looked at Echidna. A faint smile graced her flawless face.
Before Echidna could reply, Typhon—who had been listening in confusion—suddenly raised her hand, interrupting the tension.
"Wait a second, Dona! What are you two talking about? Did Pandora do something bad in the future? And what's this chat group you're talking about?"
"Yeah, yeah! Does it have something to do with Eriri?" Minerva added, leaning forward with curious excitement.
Not only the two of them, but Daphne also perked up, her golden eyes sparkling with intrigue.
The three witches looked as if they had just discovered a fascinating new toy.
Meanwhile, the quieter Satella and Carmilla didn't speak, but their eyes gleamed with the same curiosity as they looked back and forth between Echidna and Pandora.
Even the ever-lazy Sekhmet shifted her posture slightly, lifting her head just enough to glance toward Echidna.
"Since you all want to know," Echidna said with a knowing smile, "I'll tell you everything I know."
After all, the Multiverse Chat & Friendship Group had no confidentiality restrictions. Echidna saw no reason to hide its existence—or the truth of the many worlds beyond their own.
Besides, even if she didn't explain it, Eriri would likely tell them sooner or later.
Thus, for the next while, the discussion about the nation's location was set aside, replaced by Echidna's detailed explanation of the multiverse and the chat group.
When she finished her basic introduction, she went on to describe her journeys to other worlds—the things she had seen, the unique power systems, and the vastly different social structures of each world.
As Echidna spoke, every witch except Sekhmet wore an expression of awe and yearning. Their eyes shone with curiosity, each one wishing they could set off immediately to explore those worlds for themselves.
Even Pandora, who had remained calm until now, showed a hint of longing.
When she had first joined the chat group, she hadn't learned much about it. She had only viewed the memory footage related to herself and thus knew very little about the other worlds.
In truth, she knew only slightly more than Satella and the others did now.
"Uuu, Dona, you've been keeping so many secrets from me! I can't believe the multiverse is so amazing!" Typhon pouted dramatically as she pressed herself against Echidna's side, pretending to be upset.
"Really? You've only been part of our group for a single day," Echidna said, rolling her eyes as she reached out to ruffle Typhon's green hair.
But Typhon wasn't embarrassed at all. Instead, she laughed and clung even tighter to Echidna's arm.
"Hehe, Dona~ take me to other worlds next time, okay? I promise I'll be good!"
"Me too! I want to go!" Minerva raised her hand eagerly.
"I want to go as well..." Satella murmured softly, glancing hopefully at Echidna.
One by one, the witches raised their hands with bright, expectant eyes.
During her talk, Echidna had also mentioned the Gate of Worlds, so everyone now knew she could freely travel between realms. Naturally, they wanted to join her adventures.
"Of course I'll take you," Echidna said with a confident smile. "But before we can go anywhere, we need to finish handling everything in our own world first."
"No problem! Then let's get back to work and finalize our nation's location!" Minerva exclaimed energetically, slapping her palm on the large map spread across the table.
The map detailed the entire world's geography with incredible precision, covering every major landmass and region. It had been personally created by Eriri to aid in choosing the nation's founding site.
When they first saw it, Satella and the others were stunned—it was the most detailed map they had ever laid eyes on.
For Echidna, however, who had already been exposed to modern knowledge, such maps were nothing new.
Minerva's proposal was immediately met with unanimous enthusiasm. Even Typhon and Daphne—who had been half-hearted earlier—were now brimming with motivation.
And so, after a two-hour break, the site selection meeting resumed in full swing. The room quickly filled with the lively chatter of witches debating and exchanging ideas.
Pandora, meanwhile, sat quietly among them, looking rather confused. She couldn't understand why Echidna had not yet dealt with her.
Still, she was wise enough not to question her luck. If Echidna wasn't in a hurry to strike her down, then perhaps there was still hope.
So Pandora simply stayed silent, observing as the others talked passionately about their nation's future.
...
Once motivated, the witches' efficiency was remarkable. What had previously taken over an hour without resolution now took less than thirty minutes to finalize. The founding site was decided.
At that same time, Eriri, Beatrice, and Puck—who had spent the day exploring the city—returned to the room where the others were gathered.
Naturally, Eriri immediately noticed Pandora sitting with them. However, she didn't address it. Instead, she smiled at Echidna and the others.
"It looks like you've already chosen the location for your new nation."
"Ah! Eriri-nee, you're back!"
At the sound of her voice, Daphne and Typhon instantly jumped up, running over with bright smiles. They shoved Beatrice and Puck aside and each clung to one of Eriri's arms.
Their sudden closeness made Beatrice puff out her cheeks in protest, glaring at them with clear displeasure.
"Hey! Stupid Daphne! What do you think you're doing? Get away from Betty's Mother at once!"
Beatrice grabbed Daphne's shoulder, trying to pull her away from Eriri.
Although Puck was also annoyed by Typhon pushing her aside, she didn't say anything—nor did she resort to physical action like Beatrice.
Fortunately, Beatrice still had some sense and didn't use her overwhelming power to pull Daphne away. Otherwise, with her small frame, Daphne wouldn't have been able to withstand even a single tug, Witch of Gluttony or not.
"Stupid Betty! Don't pull me away! You've been out playing with Sister Eriri all day already! Let me hug her for a bit!"
Except for Sekhmet, the witches in the room were all quite young—especially Daphne and Typhon, the youngest among them—so their behavior matched their childish personalities perfectly.
"No way! Mother belongs to Betty and Betty alone!"
Seeing the two of them bicker, Eriri gently freed her arm from Daphne's grasp and reached out to pat both girls on the head.
"Alright, that's enough, you two."
At Eriri's soft reprimand, both Beatrice and Daphne instantly quieted down, though they continued to glare at each other secretly.
Eriri withdrew her hand from Beatrice's head and walked forward, sitting down in Typhon's vacant seat. Since she hadn't pulled her other arm away, Typhon followed closely, still clinging to it as she stood beside Eriri.
Not to be outdone, Beatrice and Daphne quickly moved to stand next to Eriri as well, one on each side.
Meanwhile, Puck transformed into her pink cat form and leapt onto Eriri's lap, curling up comfortably.
As Eriri settled in, Minerva leaned over eagerly, her blue eyes shining with excitement.
"Eriri, you're incredible! You can destroy an entire universe just like that! How did you even do it?"
Even after learning of Eriri's unfathomable power, Minerva's attitude toward her hadn't changed in the slightest. There was no fear in her tone—only admiration and curiosity.
"Well," Eriri began, smiling faintly, "it's all thanks to my own hard work and endless training—"
"Mm-hm!" Minerva nodded seriously.
"...Just kidding! The truth is, it's all because of my innate constitution. You guys could never replicate it~"
Eriri chuckled as she playfully pinched Minerva's soft, fair cheek, a mischievous smile lighting her face.
"Aw... fine," Minerva muttered, slightly sulking.
As their conversation came to a close, Echidna—who had been silently watching Eriri since her return—finally spoke.
"Welcome back, Eriri. We've decided to build our capital here. What do you think?" she asked, pointing toward the center of the map.
"That works. It's in a good position to spread influence across the region, and the environment there is ideal for constructing a major city. I'm sure it'll become the heart of this world in the future."
"Good. I'm glad you agree."
At Eriri's approval, the witches collectively exhaled in relief. Though they had chosen the location together, if Eriri had disapproved, they wouldn't have hesitated to start over.
Meanwhile, Pandora—who had been sitting quietly throughout—stared fixedly at Eriri.
Eriri hadn't spoken to her, but the moment Pandora laid eyes on her, her body had tensed instinctively.
After listening to the meeting, Pandora had fully grasped the others' intentions.
With Eriri's participation and Echidna's current strength, there was no doubt that their plan would succeed. Pandora could already envision the world's future under their rule.
But that future no longer concerned her. What mattered now was what would happen to her.
As these thoughts passed through her mind, Pandora suddenly felt Echidna's gaze upon her.
Then, Echidna's calm voice broke the silence once more.
"Eriri, I've kept Pandora here. As for how she should be dealt with... I'll leave that decision to you."
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