03 The King of Terminus III

'Ah. Still, that’s a matter for the distant future. It might happen within the lifetime of that child.'

Sevens speaks to ease Jin and the others.

'A tale of our successors and your children standing together against something… what our relationship will be by then, who knows. Ah. That’s the kind of thing only the gods can foresee.'

Jin hears the slight self-satisfaction in the voice, a hint of a proverb, and thinks again.

Regardless of when that vague crisis might come—should it truly be on a cosmic scale, there will be no way to remain unaffected.

Human population growth remains moderate, deliberately dispersed to avoid extinction risks.

But if habitability becomes possible, increasing the total number becomes feasible.

And above all.

An endless atmosphere and water.

To Jin and those who crossed the vacuum beyond a single wall, that is immensely alluring.

So dazzling it makes the eyes swim.

If the intention was to undermine judgment by proposing this, one could not help but call it a terrifying strategy.

It would involve the administrative body of the Third Fleet as well—likely, they would accept these terms.

A planet without the threat of ASID had long been humanity’s greatest aspiration.

That neighbors were somewhat perilous was undeniable—yet that could be addressed in time.

The attack on the Third Fleet had its reasons.

Now, the ability to communicate through words serves as an appeal.

And cooperation to thwart the Second Fleet’s conspiracy.

If these points were emphasized, public sentiment might settle to some degree.

In any case, this is an opportunity that comes once in a thousand years.

For the past 150 years, habitable planets existed—but they lay within ASID’s sphere of influence, making migration impossible.

The endless journey of emigration could finally end.

Many would desire such an outcome.

"We will consider it, including those aspects."

‘Ah. I’ll leave it to you.’

The request from the other side was, at least, understood.

Now it was their turn to align their positions.

Accept these terms. Or push for more. Not that one should be so greedy, but one hopes not.

‘Is this enough?’

‘Yes?’

‘You had something you wanted to ask me, didn’t you? Brave one.’

It had been seen through.

Fearful of asking.

Yet some things cannot move forward without asking.

‘I heard from Edelweiss just now—’

‘Ah. The formal talk is over. What comes now is simply conversation between parents, yes?’

Sevenths had said it could be less formal.

Jin took the offer without hesitation.

‘Then I’ll be direct. Ten years ago, our ship crash-landed on this planet.’

‘Ah. I remember… It wasn’t large, but I was surprised to see something other than Hagle come from the sky.’

Behind the conversation.

『Young warrior. I heard from Shirley. Is that what it means to shatter words?』

『Eh? Ah… I guess so.』

『Ah. I see… So even formless things can be shattered at will when one reaches such a warrior’s stature. Truly impressive.』

『No, that’s not quite right…?』

Kou and Edelweiss engaged in that sort of theatrical exchange, and Jin felt his focus slightly frayed.

He steadied himself and pressed the question again.

『There were no survivors there, were there?』

A plea in the tone. Seven exhaled—a sound like a sigh.

They did not possess lungs, so they did not actually breathe, but the sound was unmistakable.

『Ah. Regrettably… none remained. Old souls, young souls, pure souls. All had been freed from their bodies.』

『…I see.』

That kind of damage. The chance of survivors had been negligible.

He could not help but ask.

He needed to deny Mio’s words.

“Then… what happened to our companion’s body?”

‘Ah. I’m sorry, but we buried it according to our custom. The body without a soul— I burned it completely.’

He had heard this from Edelweiss.

The queen—the mother of all ASIDs— burns the body so that the soul may return to the cycle she generates.

He knew this much.

That was why what came next was what Jin wanted to hear.

“I heard from that child that the Terminus people base their offspring on another soul when they reproduce.”

‘Ah. That’s roughly correct. We are an imperfect species incapable of generating our own souls. Even Hagure is no different.’

“Then… whose soul did that child’s soul originate from…?”

He wanted to know.

Was Mio right?

Or perhaps—

……Ah. So that’s it.

Sevens murmured, as if finally accepting something.

The presence of a fierce warrior—there was familiarity. I thought it was my imagination—but yes. That sensation, when she was born.

The answer stirred within Jin an inevitable foreboding.

“Who? I cannot say. But there is no doubt—the pure soul bears your presence.”

……!

She bit her lip.

At that time, the only person aboard the relay vessel who shared Jin’s proximity was one.

“Then… Mio truly is…?”

The words—whether she was born from Rei’s soul—were cut short by clenched lips.

Yet even so, she still sought to ask again.

“Your Majesty. Your Majesty.”

“Ah. —Yes. You’re out again, wandering without permission.”

Likely the name spoken as a member of the Terminus people.

Jin recalled—Sharon had called her Tikki, wasn’t that right?

Apparently, one can move between Earth and space with surprising ease.

Perhaps precisely because of that, Mio was so easily taken.

‘I found this.’

The object offered with a gesture akin to a child dragging a stuffed toy—

“…Griffin?”

A机体 on the verge of total destruction.

Only Raven would recognize it—but why was a Second Fleet unit here?

Identification signal still confirmed as Second Fleet.

After the Stalrt extermination, one of the attackers was struck down by surprise—possibly caught in the Overlight of Gay Bork.

Jin considered this—then his expression changed upon learning, via the connected data link, that the pilot inside was still alive.

“…! My apologies, Seventh Sovereign. The pilot appears to still be alive. I request permission to prioritize treatment.”

“Ah. No matter. I shall send Edelweiss to your side. If you have need, inform this one. Edelweiss. Dispatch her forth. This time, take the faster route.”

“Understood, Your Majesty. This way.”

He guides them toward the lift.

It was nothing more than an elevator—irrelevant, in any case—but they board it and return to the surface.

Audience with the Queen lasted less than thirty minutes.

Yet Jin felt a sudden wave of exhaustion.

At the same time, he might have been saved because of this intruder.

Had he persisted in questioning without composure, the answer he sought would never have emerged.

Jin and Kou transport the Griffin using their Raven.

“Yet, Instructor. Why would this thing be here?”

“…Indeed.”

Vitals indicated severe injury.

Yet, given the nature of the wounds, death would have been imminent had it been left untreated for even one more day.

That would mean the vessel had drifted here within the past one or two days.

If that’s the case, the next set of calculations no longer aligns.

At that time, the Second Fleet had already detached, and there had been no combat resulting in severe damage to the机体.

“Maybe something happened on the Second Fleet’s side too.”

Jin’s prediction, in a sense, had been correct.

A medical team had been stationed aboard the *Gay Bork*.

A mechanic forcibly pried open the cockpit hatch.

“…Damn.”

The pilot, dragged out from inside, was severely injured.

Wounds so grave that, without cybernetic augmentation, death would have been inevitable.

Yet, barely clinging to life.

What surprised Jin, however, was not that the pilot was alive despite such injuries.

“…Chi?”

The person before him was the one who had, until now, been meant to become his adopted sister.

Questions flooded in, one after another.

Why was she in such a state?

Who had she fought?

The Third Fleet—most likely combatant—was here, as were the Terminans.

Then was she simply caught in a random swarm of ASID units?

Even so, could they have inflicted such damage?

The drill precision of the cybernetic squad was something Jin himself had felt the terror of.

Was there an opponent capable of inflicting such harm?

"Ah. Captain. Just a moment."

He moves toward Shirley, who beckons with a light gesture.

"This damage... it's odd. Almost as if she was tormented from all directions."

"All directions?"

Jin thought that impossible.

Such a state should not occur unless isolated within an enemy force.

"Perhaps... no. I shouldn't speculate."

"...Yes. That's right."

One possibility surfaced.

But the reason remained unclear.

Chi had engaged the Second Fleet Defense Force.

An impossibility that should not exist.