Some time later.
The characteristic left behind by [Gluttony] was placed in a compartment in the tower, submerged in Luther's seawater.
Cloudy motes of light kept separating from the characteristic and floating in the seawater.
"Once all these mental imprints have separated out, we can use them as the foundation for a simulated personality," M said. "If you do everything yourself, it'll probably take a week, or longer."
"Fine. Let it soak for now."
Luther would rather spend more time on it than let M touch the characteristic and cause something dangerous. He had thought it through: as long as the Phantom Tide kept it isolated, even any remnants of Adam in [Gluttony]'s mental imprints would be unable to affect him.
After completing the preliminary preparations, he let his consciousness rise and returned to the real world.
Valika walked along the cold, damp street with her head lowered.
She was thirteen that year, a little maid employed by the owner of a tavern on the next street.
Although she was called a maid, she actually handled almost every chore. She boiled water for tea, served dishes, scrubbed floors, cleaned coal ash from the stove, peeled potatoes, and looked after the landlady's newborn baby... Right now, for instance, she was running an errand, bringing back ingredients for her employer.
The two herrings in her basket were heavy and reeked of fish, dragging her arm downward. But Valika's eyelids were even heavier than the herrings. Every few steps, sleepiness assaulted her so fiercely that she nearly fell asleep standing in the street.
No, I can't sleep yet. If she delivered the groceries late, the landlady would grab her by the ear, drag her to the stove, and beat her viciously with the fire tongs... Fear of being beaten woke her up