As Noah said this, he could not help but carry a hint of anticipation that could even be called ill-intentioned.
Ampera's Mythical Creature form was purely an outward influence; he could not see it himself.
Moreover, although the Witch and Red Priest pathways respectively held authority over men and women, the two balanced each other out after being combined. Rather than cross-dressing, that form was simply alluring.
But the Mother Nest was different. Its authority over birthing life meant that every one of its subsidiary pathways would eventually turn female, sooner or later.
Every pathway would turn men into women. Surely that would not somehow cancel out after they were combined, right?
Even if Spheria himself was not greatly affected, there was no reason for his Mythical Creature form not to change sex!
Croak! This was exactly what I wanted to see!
"..."
Each of those six dots, including the spaces between them, conveyed Spheria's speechlessness:
"I've been acting in advance all along, so you don't need to worry about it. Besides, who says what I'm doing now isn't another form of acting in advance?"
"Oh, oh, then that's good. As long as it doesn't delay the progress of the fe—cough, cough, the ritual."
Spheria's eyelid twitched, and he could not help but stab at Noah's heart:
"Don't forget that in nature, females aren't the only ones capable of taking on reproductive duties. As long as that possibility exists, I can..."
"Ahhh—I can't hear you! I can't hear you!"
"But females taking on reproductive duties is the common phenomenon, the common understanding. The main body of this authority will naturally lean in that direction."
Hikari smiled and helped Noah salvage a little of his hope.
Spheria shook his head and returned to the serious subject from before he had interrupted,