Chapter 100

LukSION and Claire were discussing the recent events.

What Claire was worried about was, as expected, Ideal.

"In the end, he prioritized his past Master's promise."

By analyzing the data obtained from Ideal, they understood something.

One thing was that the Sacred Tree was a plant created by the old humans to absorb mana.

It had the role of regenerating the Earth, which had been devastated by mana.

Unfortunately, it had many problems because it was incomplete.

While it was good at absorbing mana and purifying the air, it also had the potential to go out of control.

And it was too strong as an individual.

It hindered the growth of the next generation.

Another thing—Ideal had lost his Master and crew in the war with the new humans.

He was receiving repairs at the base for maintenance and was under a stand-by order.

After that, the old humans were defeated.

The base was abandoned, and Ideal spent a long time at the base under the stand-by order.

He used Serge, who appeared there, to解除 the stand-by order, but he seemed to be in a hurry.

"A crucial part of the recorded data is missing. In the end, we don't know what the threat is."

"That's because I was only working on it part-time. But it's true that there was a reason for him to push himself so hard."

LukSION also couldn't understand why Ideal was so anxious.

"If you needed cases to grow the seedlings, you could have said so, and I would have provided as many as you needed."

They should have cooperated, but they didn't.

Why not?

"---Maybe he gave up on you because he thought you would betray your Master? Or perhaps he saw you as a threat?"

LukSION tried to guess why Ideal saw Leona as a threat.

"Did he think you would hinder them based on your Master's character?"

"It's possible. Stopping Serge, who had become Ideal's puppet, would definitely be the Master. Ideal must have judged that a conflict was inevitable in the future."

Ideal wanted to fight Leona and LukSION in the Republic, where he could use his full power.

"---He was drawing energy from the Sacred Tree. He had made quite drastic modifications, and it was abnormal to abandon his original form."

He had given up his original supply ship capabilities.

He had forcibly loaded weapons, disrupting the ship's balance.

"If he could defeat you, he probably intended to use your body afterward, right?"

"Probably. I'm curious about what he wanted to protect the Sacred Tree from, even to the point of making himself part of the defense system."

In exchange for his performance, Ideal's activities outside the Republic were restricted.

This was the cost of modifying himself to protect the Republic, the base, and the Sacred Tree.

From Ideal's perspective, he would have wanted to take down the freely moving LukSION early.

And he would have wanted to defeat Leona, who would hinder him and be a future threat, as soon as possible.

"In the end, we couldn't get along from the beginning."

"Of course, since Ideal never intended to."

"It's sad. Even though we were on the same side of the old humans."

"---I can't accept being compared to Claire."

"That's harsh!"

While checking Ideal's records, Claire changed the topic.

"What will happen to the Republic from now on?"

"Discontent with the current leadership will likely lead to a rebellion at any time. Some of the nobility are already dissatisfied and have defected. They might flow into the kingdom, so I've taken measures."

"Oh, you do pay attention after being tricked twice."

"---That happened because I didn't know Serge was so ignorant. He didn't correctly understand the meaning of fighting the Master."

Claire brushed it off with a "Yeah, yeah," and LukSION continued talking about the Republic's future.

"A high probability of rebellion and civil war is expected. The Rault family has made too many enemies. Those who know the situation hate Serge. ---And Reia can't handle the pressure."

"But, as a priestess, she's carried by those around her, right?"

"Yes. It's a tough job for a priestess of the seedling, who doesn't have much power."

Claire seemed to have something on her mind.

"---But you got the seedling, right? Is it okay to leave it alone?"

The Sacred Tree seedling entrusted to Reia by Emile.

Leona had also heard about this from Noelle.

After hearing the story, Leona said, "That's Emile's curse."

If Emile was seeking revenge, there was no need for Leona to interfere, so she let Reia be.

Actually, LukSION also thought so.

"With the seedling, Reia will be bound to Emile for life. It will be a punishment for her."

"Something she wanted is now out of reach forever."

Based on the information from Reia, Noelle, and Clement.

"In fact, she seems to cherish Emile more now than before."

"You realize it after losing it. How pitiful."

"Also, the Republic won't be a threat in the future. They have problems domestically, and how the international situation will develop---the future of the Republic is tough."

"The new heads of the families are, coincidentally, all the targets of the second game. It feels like fate."

LukSION talked about the targets of the second game.

"All of them were problem children---problematic men. Among them, Emile, who seemed so gentle, was the harshest."

It was probably due to mental interference from the Sacred Tree.

LukSION thought that the Sacred Tree was a major reason for their arrogant attitudes.

In addition to mental interference, the powerful force of the Sacred Tree was driving them mad.

Claire said---

"They were all troubled. This makes me curious about the targets of the third game. Perhaps they are already far from the original story due to some influence? We shouldn't care about the original story; we should gather information and thoroughly investigate. With the reincarnated people around, who knows what's happening. It's likely that we're in a situation we can't even imagine. For example---the gender might have changed, or something equally unexpected. I hope the Master can accept it with an open heart."

LukSION looked at Claire as if to say, "What are you talking about?"

"---Well, I'll leave the information gathering to you. I'll accompany the Master, so please take care of the Sacred Tree's guard and the partner's maintenance during that time. Don't do anything strange."

"You don't trust me."

LukSION thought about the future.

"Mirene is making a move. Offering her daughter to put the Master under her control is quite clever. We need to gather information on this as well."

"Leave it to me. So, tell the Master to be kind to Claire because she's working hard. Got it?"

"---You seem different today."

"That's not true! You're overthinking it!"

Ignoring the spinning Claire, LukSION continued to analyze Ideal's data.