Two days before the group activity, Anathasia, Arianne, Joseph, and I sat in the living room, papers spread across the small table between us.
No one spoke at first.
Anathasia sat beside me, her presence familiar, steady. Across from us, Arianne and Joseph sat close, eyes scanning the materials, fingers occasionally shifting pages.
"This section here…" Arianne said, her finger tracing a specific paragraph on the paper before flipping it on the other side. "Till here."
She lifted her head, gaze meeting mine, expectant.
"Is it fine if I take this part?"
"Sure," I replied, then glanced back at the papers in my hand.
"I guess Anathasia will be taking the introduction part," I said, flipping to another paper. "Arianne will handle the phonetics till here,"
I gently set the paper on the table, then pointed at where Arianne's scope ended.
"Joseph's part comes next, and I'll be working on the conclusion."
I paused, then slowly leaned back before looking at Joseph with a small smile.
"You don't mind, right? It's only three sections. I made sure to summarize everything first so it'll be easier to understand."
Joseph nodded, reaching over to take a copy of our topic from the table. My eyes drifted to my side, glancing at Anathasia.
As always, she just sat there, occasionally shifting pages. All calm and collected while holding her own copy, occasionally tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.
I leaned back on the couch, picking up the pages I'd been holding earlier and scanning through their contents for what had to be the fifth time by now, making sure I didn't leave any discrepancies or ambiguities they might struggle with later.
From the corner of my eye, I could see Arianne completely focused on her part, while Anathasia lazily shifted pages, letting out a soft yawn.
Normally, I wouldn't bother to comment—
Quite the lineup, honestly… two white-haired girls. One's a model, and the other's a god in incognito.
But setting their unusual hair colors aside…
They were unreasonably beautiful.
No wonder Joseph was sweating buckets when he asked to join…
Anathasia gently set her copy aside and stood.
"I'll make some snacks for us," she said, reaching over to ruffle my hair as she smiled.
I lifted my head and nodded.
"Thanks. I'll wash the dishes after."
Her hand slipped away as she turned and sauntered toward the kitchen, softly humming to herself. I watched her disappear before turning back to the papers.
I scanned through the last few sections, then…
Arianne spoke.
"Abe, if you don't mind…"
I paused, glancing at her.
"How long have you and Dunaleff been dating?"
For a moment, I considered the question. From the corner of my eye, I noticed Joseph wore the same look of curiosity.
"Of course, I don't mean to pry," Arianne continued, briefly glancing at Joseph. The two of them exchanged a nod before she looked back at me.
"But if I'm being honest, it feels like you've known each other for quite a long time," she added. "Like a married couple, maybe?"
Married couple?
"Uh… we've only been together for five months," I answered after a short pause.
"We're childhood friends, so…"
Arianne's and Joseph's eyes widened for a brief moment before easing as they nodded.
"I see. I guess that makes sense."
I'm a chronic liar, I swear.
I gave them a small smile, brushing it off.
"Why do you ask?"
Arianne hesitated.
"I guess… it's the quiet understanding between the two of you," she said after a moment.
"You seem to know what the other is thinking without needing to say it out loud."
She gently set her copy down on the table and leaned back against the couch.
"Like you've already known each other for years. But if you're childhood friends… that makes sense."
She smiled.
Joseph, on the other hand, stayed silent.
He watched me with a hint of admiration, as if what I'd said had quietly shifted something in the way he saw me.
About ten minutes later, Anathasia came out of the kitchen, carrying a variety of snacks on a tray. Some were pastries I never actually saw her bake, but then again, it was Anathasia.
She smiled softly while I cleared the papers on the small table. Setting the tray down, she went back to get another tray, this time with the tea set she'd made a while back. "Just incase we needed it," was her reasoning, apparently.
"Please take a small break, everyone," she said softly, then sitting down beside me. "I'm sure studying must've drained you quite a bit."
Seeing her like this… all prim and proper. It was a refreshing side to her,
Fake, though.
[What do you mean fake?]
And she reads my mind again…
[Take that back.]
[...No. I said what I said.]
Her smile remained, but her hand slowly crept behind me before pinching my side.
As Arianne and Joseph dug into the food, I quietly tried prying Anathasia's hand off my side and shooting her a sidelong glance.
"Stop it."
"No, you deserve this."
I silently winced, then forcefully grabbed her wrist before taking it off my side and bringing it near my lips and pressing a kiss against her knuckles, smiling wryly as I did.
Her face twitched momentarily.
[Okay, smooth bastard. Now let go.]
My smile stayed.
[No, and you should've thought of that before picking a fight with me in front of others.]
She quietly clicked her tongue while looking away, pulling her hand back as her smile slipped back.
---
Elsewhere.
Beyond space and time. The Collective Sphere
"Roselia, stop doing things—" I grumbled, pushing Roselia's face off mine as I tried observing a specific Demiurge's Image not too far from the one the First Outer God currently occupied.
I no longer understood how my mentor actually existed. Almost like she was deliberately trying to throw everyone else off.
"Still such a killjoy, aren't we, Ranny~?" Roselia said, her tone still that saccharine sweetness that unsettled me every time I heard it.
My expression immediately flattened as I looked at her instead of the destabilized extraversal continuum.
"I don't remember allowing you to give me a nickname."
"Do I need to ask permission?"
"Yes."
Roselia just smiled, innocent. The kind that would disarm anyone. Coupled with her unnaturally innocent appearance, despite her twisted personality…
"You both seem to enjoy yourselves,"
A deep voice suddenly interrupted. Then, behind Roselia, rose something… incredibly colossal, towering over us both as it manifested completely.
Roselia seemed unbothered and casually turned, looking up at the looming figure as it slowly formed… wings upon wings unfurled in spectral grandeur, each one stretching across the Sphere like the sweep of creation's own brushstroke.
A cosmic leviathan, with three heads.
A cosmic hydra…
No pressure followed. No distortion. Just presence.
Then—
"Oh, Kagariel. Finally woke up from your slumber?" Roselia casually referred to the being, as if they'd already known each other for a long time.
"Dormancy, but yes. I have," it replied. Then, one of its heads turned to me.
"So this is the Third Outer God… the supposed Equilibrium," it murmured, its heads nodding.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Rania Eon Augthorth. The Third Outer God—Equilibrium. I am Kagariel, The Second Outer God, Ruin Guardian, and The Finality." it gently lowered its head, mimicking a human custom.
I hesitated. It was the first time I encountered the Second Outer God, and it, or rather, he… this hydra was supposed to be the Fragment who gained consciousness?
"The pleasure is all mine," I replied, gently placing a hand over my chest.
Kagariel nodded, Roselia strode towards me with a small smile.
"That being said," he trailed off. "Where is she?"
"The Daughter of Absence."
The Daughter of Absence…?
Roselia suddenly spoke up.
"He means Miss Veridielle, Rania," Roselia brushed past me, then hunched over the lattice, gently poking at a few of the Demiurge's Images.
"Anathasia Veridielle Augthoria," she added after a moment, straightening. Her gaze flicked toward me. Then briefly toward Kagariel, who remained looming, silent.
"The Daughter of Absence…" I muttered, carefully. "Is Anathasia?"
Roselia nodded. Kagariel inclined one of his heads.
"She already told you about the Constant," Roselia said quietly. "Then you already know enough."