— — — — — —
Itogami Island, Central Airport—
As the mobile stairs locked into place with the private jet, Sayaka, waiting at the bottom, immediately straightened up.
The cabin door swung open. The Second Primogenitor, a girl with twin purple ponytails, stepped out first, followed closely by the Third Primogenitor—a man with long purple hair who somehow looked even more striking than most women.
"So this is the Dawn Empire of the Far East?"
Aswad narrowed his eyes, gazing over the island's skyline.
"Heh. A ritual altar."
At a glance, Aswad saw through Itogami Island's true nature. A Cleansing altar.
Ryo Yagami, who now occupied this place, was one thing. But the people who had originally built Itogami Island clearly were not harmless either.
"Let's go."
Giada patted his shoulder and stepped down the stairs.
"Welcome, Your Majesties."
Sayaka bowed deeply as they approached.
"His Majesty Ryo Yagami instructed me to receive you and escort you to the Keystone Gate. I've also been told to handle all arrangements for your stay."
"When's the meeting?" Giada asked casually. She had already been informed in advance.
"Eight o'clock this evening," Sayaka replied with her head lowered.
"No banquet?" Giada clicked her tongue, clearly stirring trouble. "Did you, little brat, fail to explain things properly for me?"
Sayaka's expression immediately turned miserable. With Ryo not present, she absolutely did not dare argue with this one.
"Oh, stop causing trouble," Aswad said helplessly. "Making a big spectacle would just make the human world uneasy."
He then turned to Sayaka.
"Later, arrange for someone to deliver my gift to him first."
"A gift?" Sayaka froze, then felt a sudden spike in her spiritual senses. She instinctively looked toward the cargo being unloaded by airport staff.
A… coffin?
Sayaka's lips twitched as she glanced back at the two Primogenitors.
Are you seriously gifting something like that? Aren't you afraid Ryo will beat you to death?
Before she could say anything, Aswad calmly added, "The item, or rather the dark god embryo, is sealed inside. The coffin is necessary for the seal. Make sure you explain that clearly to your lord beforehand."
"I understand."
Oh no. Another critically important object.
This was bad. She needed Yukina here to escort it. No, that might not be enough. She should call Shizuri too.
A god embryo, sealed by a Primogenitor. Why were the Primogenitors' gifts always so extreme?
Sayaka's temple twitched violently, but she still maintained perfect courtesy as she addressed the two beauties.
"Please follow me, Your Majesties. Your accommodations have already been prepared."
"Much appreciated," Aswad said with a nod.
Giada, meanwhile, wore a nasty grin. "Hey, kid. Don't drop that present, alright? This thing's basically a bomb. Plenty of people would love to see it go off."
"I won't," Sayaka replied stiffly, alarms blaring in her head.
No, Yukina absolutely could not come alone. She needed to drag her master into this.
Master, please. For the sake of your disciple, you'll just have to take a bullet for Yukina this time.
With her sense of filial piety long since petrified, Sayaka made her decision.
Before long, a stretch limousine escorted by security vehicles drove out of the airport.
---
Keystone Gate, Foreign Affairs Department cafeteria—
La Folia was seated by the window as usual. Unlike before, however, she was no longer alone. Kanon sat across from her.
As for Justina, being a knight, she naturally did not dare sit. She stood beside La Folia, alert and watchful.
"Judging by the look on your face, Kanon, you seem to be in a good mood today," La Folia said with a smile as she held her coffee, eyeing the obvious brightness in Kanon's expression.
She was only two years older than Kanon. Being called "aunt" was a bit much, thankfully Kanon had thoughtfully suggested that they address each other however they liked.
"Aunt Musette told me I can visit her in Aldegyr again during winter break," Kanon said happily, holding her juice.
"Only winter break?" La Folia's expression turned a little complicated.
"Yes. I still plan to attend high school here on Itogami Island. My friends are all here, and Father doesn't want me going too far away."
Kanon explained gently.
La Folia fell silent for a moment, then smiled bitterly. "Hearing that just makes me feel even more guilty."
Kensei Kanase's objections were only part of it, or perhaps just an excuse.
That man, who harbored deep resentment toward Aldegyr, had calmed down significantly once he heard Musette planned to clean house. He had even tacitly allowed Kanon to return to Aldegyr.
The old fox understood things perfectly. If the Fourth Primogenitor truly wanted Kanon, she would have no way to escape. So he made a snap decision and found her a powerful maternal family to shield her from the storm.
Aldegyr itself actually preferred Kanon's return, but they had no way to take her back from the Fourth Primogenitor. Their position was painfully awkward.
In the end, the compromise was that Kanon could return home during holidays.
Just as Ryo had said, Kanon was free to return at any time, without surveillance. Yet Aldegyr did not dare make a single move.
When a Primogenitor says they do not mind, taking that at face value is sheer stupidity.
Hearing La Folia's words, Kanon shook her head. "Grandma Musette apologized to me too, but honestly, I don't really understand how you all think."
She looked genuinely puzzled as she asked, "Ryo-sama hasn't imprisoned me at all. Why does everyone act like I've already been captured?"
"You're still young. You don't understand the twists and turns behind this…"
La Folia started to explain, but hesitated when she saw Kanon's pure expression.
She did not want to taint that innocence. Especially for a shrine maiden, a pure heart meant stronger spiritual power.
By emotion and by reason, she should not dump adult filth into Kanon's mind.
Besides, La Folia could more or less guess a bit of Ryo's thinking.
Compared to Kanon, who had never been deliberately cultivated, perhaps she, a princess, suited the Fourth Primogenitor's tastes better.
With that thought, La Folia smiled again and teased lightly, "Maybe… I have a way to help you, you know."
"There you go again," Kanon said helplessly. "Aunt Musette does it too, and now you. Always saying these adult things I can't understand."
"You really don't get it? Then I suppose I should apologize," La Folia said, resting her cheek on her hand and chuckling softly.
Just then, her spiritual sight suddenly flared.
She instinctively turned her head and looked out the window toward the plaza below.
There, a black car surrounded by heavy security had just come to a stop. The door opened.
Moments later, she saw a purple-haired woman with red eyes step out, followed by a girl with green hair.
La Folia's expression froze.
She recognized the green-haired girl instantly.
The Third Primogenitor.
The ruler of the Chaos Zone, the Chaos Bride.
Giada Kukulcan.
.
.
.