In Echidna's dream, she once again extended an invitation.
"So, will you exchange contracts with me?"
"Two lonely people together won't be lonely, right? If we support each other, the road ahead becomes wider. Your troubles I will share; your plans I will help strategize; the scenery you see, I will record through my eyes again. Haven't you noticed? Your mental state is unstable. From the moment you arrived, it has been so. After the second trial, it's even worse. Your past memories shaped who you are now; chaos and cruelty are eroding you. You need 'sharing.' And who, if not me, could be a better listener?"
Echidna extended her hand. "Come, you know what you want."
"…."
Lillian looked at her hand. At that moment, Carmilla, who had been hiding behind Echidna, stepped forward.
"N-No… you can't…"
"What is it?"
Facing Lillian's question, Carmilla looked at Echidna, who stared back at her, and clutching the scarf around her neck, she mustered courage:
"If you—if you sign a contract with Echidna-chan, it… it will… it will be bad."
"Carmilla, why do you say that?" Echidna asked.
Lillian suddenly said, "Like those 'Ryuzu Meyer'?"
"What happened to them?" Echidna appeared calm. "I created them. They obey me. Isn't that natural? Moreover, I am not an evil spirit capable of forcing others to sign contracts. All who do so are willing. I have no power to coerce."
True—she could not force anyone. But that does not make the contracts inherently fair. It's like a scammer claiming they didn't force anyone but hiding the actual value they offer. That is still illegal.
"I think the price I pay for this contract goes far beyond what you say on the surface," Lillian said, looking at Echidna's outstretched hand. "There must be some hidden, additional condition I don't know about."
"—Indeed!"
A sharp voice rang out, neither Echidna's nor Carmilla's.
Rumble—rumble—rumble…
The ground shook. Cracks extended across the beautiful hills to infinity. The cause: a fist striking the ground.
Lillian steadied himself, looking up. The fist's owner: a blonde, blue-eyed girl, her pupils blazing with near-erupting fury.
"Sister M-Minerva…?"
Carmilla looked at the approaching girl and greeted her cheerfully.
Minerva…?
Lillian stared at her, seeing the fire in her eyes. Then he realized—"the Witch of Wrath," Minerva.
"You're clever for not falling for her!" Minerva said to Lillian. "But even if you want to exchange a contract with Echidna, I will never allow it!"
Echidna withdrew her hand, smiling.
"I didn't expect you to come. But is this the right time? Interrupting a contract exchange… jealous, are you? Do you also want to exchange something with this human, Minerva?"
"I, one who is long dead, have no such desire!" True to the "Witch of Wrath," Minneva's appearance caused a quake, and her furious tone never wavered.
"I just can't stand your behavior! If you want a contract, you must be honest about what you want and what you'll give! You only said what you'll give, not what you want! Such deceit, I cannot tolerate!"
Lillian, surprised, looked at the furious girl. He hadn't understood the relationship between witches—he assumed they were hostile. Echidna and Carmilla seemed on good terms, yet now a previously unknown witch, furious Minerva, was openly exposing Echidna to him.
"Then… what you want, can you say it now?" Lillian asked Echidna. "At this point, you can't think you can still hide it."
"…Sigh."
Echidna exhaled, "Indeed… I do have something I want. That is also the rule of the contract."
"My wisdom, knowledge, and intellect will all be at your disposal. In return, what I want is an equivalent reward. But don't worry—it won't endanger your life. After all, I'm merely a soul without a physical body."
As she spoke, Echidna revealed a shy smile, as if slightly embarrassed.
"Have you ever had a lover? When people are lovers, they want to be together constantly. They want to know each other's feelings and thoughts, don't they? I'm the same. What I desire is just like that of a lover—I want to know what you are thinking, understand your emotions, learn about your past and your future, and grasp the endless possibilities that unfold from you as the center."
"If that's the case…" Lillian struggled to find the words. "Wouldn't we… basically become the same person?"
"Exactly, exactly." Like a girl in love, Echidna's cheeks flushed red. "We would be as one. You would know everything about me, and I would know everything about you. Together we would explore the unknown—wouldn't that be wonderful? Likewise, the future you desire would be realized by me. The people you want to save, I would help with all my strength. There would be no secrets between us—only you and me."
Lillian stared at her, stunned by the anticipation and bashful excitement on her face. After a long moment, he finally spoke in disbelief.
"You're not joking, are you?"
"My feelings are one hundred percent genuine."
"No, I mean… if that happened…"
Lillian found Echidna's proposal utterly insane. If they shared each other's thoughts and feelings completely, what meaning would privacy or personal independence have? Yes, he had never had anyone to share his burdens or confide in—but that did not mean he was willing to expose every thought in his mind to another.
"This is practically… the eradication of the meaning of independent thought…"
"Independent thought?" Echidna said softly. "Can that help you achieve your goals? Can it save the people you wish to save? But I can."
"—Shouldn't you at least add a time limit?"
Another voice suddenly sounded—magnetic and languid. At those words, Echidna frowned, while Carmilla shrank back in fear. Lillian turned to look.
In the distance, a purple figure floated down from the sky.
When she approached, she stopped before them. Her long violet hair, longer than her own body, coiled around her waist and thighs. Her pale, bloodless face showed no expression as she gazed at Lillian. Compared with Echidna, Carmilla, or even Minerva, her aura was less that of a "girl" and more that of a mature woman.
"So even someone as slothful as you would come," Echidna remarked.
"I sensed… the presence of a kindred being," she said, looking at Lillian. "I am Sekhmet… or perhaps the name you know better—the Witch of Sloth."
"…."
Just as she sensed him, Lillian sensed her as well. Was it because they both possessed the Sloth Factor?
"You… are quite good… yes… your body's adaptability…"