Negotiation

(Miluno)

There were parts I didn't understand, but I did understand some things.

The so-called "Supreme Council" is actually the decision-making body of these Monsters. It's probably just a council of elders composed of a group of SSR-level Monster were originally quite powerful. However, after the witch appeared, they were outmatched in terms of strength. In order to maintain their status, they could only use their power to suppress the witch...

Hey, these guys are really corrupt.

They even used weapons of mass destruction against Betelgeuse's base. To the Supreme Council, witches are untrustworthy and unusable tools.

Now, my traitorous father-in-law is trying to turn all those SSR-level Monster into witches using Artificial Crystal. This would not only increase their overall strength but also make them reconsider accepting the witch group.

But I have a vague feeling that this is a trap.

After a moment of silence in the laboratory, Aldebaran spoke again:

"Aurora, after Spica, will you be in charge of raising her?"

Tsk, is it going to be too late if we drag this out for too long?

Upon hearing this, Fomalhaut reluctantly asked in return:

"Ha, why me?"

"As the saying goes, actions speak louder than words. A newborn witch is better cared for by someone like you. Letting me raise the child would have a bad influence on her."

"Hmph, you're quite self-aware."

Do they see newly born witches as children?

That makes sense. After all, it's a newly born personality. Even if it has the memories of a magical girl, they won't be absorbed immediately. It's truly a child like a blank sheet of paper.

But since it's a blank sheet of paper, I need to find a way to bring it back.

The laboratory doors were tightly shut, and the two seemed to have no intention of leaving before the little witch SpiCa was born.

Tsk, are they going to rob us outright again?

I came here specifically to carry out stealth missions, so why do I always have to use a special attack to get through the final stage?

Although I didn't really want to take this risk, I had no choice but to gamble at the last minute.

But when I took out the battery, I discovered that the exterior walls of the laboratory had actually been turned into ceramic...

Damn, last time I was here it was still metal panels. It's only been a short time since I used Anti-Metal Bomb on Betelgeuse, and this targeted repair is already happening way too fast! Speaking of which, isn't the construction efficiency of this world a bit exaggerated? I haven't even seen any construction in progress, and they've already adjusted so many places?

Since things have come to this point, we have no choice but to use Plan B!

Knock knock--

I knocked on the laboratory door.

Without waiting for a response, I pushed open the door and went inside under the watchful eyes of Fomalhaut and Aldebaran, and sat down opposite them.

Okay, I turned off the invisibility feature on the bodysuit.

"Good afternoon, Miss Sword Fiend. If your world even has the concept of afternoon."

Fomalhaut's pretty Russian face immediately fell, as if I owed her two hundred dollars... It was also a little flushed, probably because she was thinking about swimming in the Tentacle Hell.

Aldebaran, however, was very accommodating and greeted me with a smile.

"Hey, Miluno- chan~ Can you tell me what makes you so bold as to sit down in front of us like this?"

I took a dish of melon seeds out of the Star Crystal and put it on the coffee table.

"Even if you can't catch me, I can open a teleportation portal and run away in 0.1 seconds right now."

Of course, this statement is a bit of an exaggeration.

But I did secretly learn the secret skills passed down through generations of the Jo Family next door.

Fomalhaut stared at me and asked:

"You've merged with Sirius too?"

"Hmm, don't be so fierce. I didn't come here to fight you this time."

Aldebaran asked, "So what do you want to do?"

I stated it frankly and directly:

"Betelgeuse, Viktorika, and that sleeping witch are all still alive. I dragged them back before the missile exploded; I saved their lives."

Aldebaran grabbed a handful of melon seeds, cracking them open as he spoke:

"Hmm, you want me to thank you for saving one of them, and then use her as Spica?"

I forced a businesslike smile.

"As expected of you, you guessed perfectly. One for three, that should be a good deal, right?"

But Aldebaran shook his head.

"You can't say that. They were in that dangerous situation because of you, you know? Besides, the value of Betelgeuse and the others isn't even comparable to Spica. Your deal isn't fair."

"You clearly had the ability to save them, but you left a note and ran away. To you, the lives of three witch colleagues were indeed less important than SpiCa."

Aldebaran, however, remained grinning.

"Oh dear, Miluno, saying that makes me sound so heartless!"

Fomalhaut glanced at Aldebaran with a hint of disdain; it seemed that Sword Fiend cared quite a bit about the other witches.

"I am sitting here with sincere and friendly intentions to offer my advice. I hope you won't be ungrateful; with your slow pace, you really won't have enough time to stop my prison break."

"Hmph, if you could really shake us off and take them away, you wouldn't be pretending to come out and negotiate with us."

A slender sword materialized in Fomalhaut's hand.

"If you really can do it, then try it and see if you can run faster than my sword!"

"Well, don't get excited, Aurora."

Aldebaran, however, advised, "I do have an idea. If you agree, I'll give you Spica instead."

"Golden Consort!?"

Aldebaran pressed down on Fomalhaut's shoulder, making her sit down on the sofa.

"Don't get excited, let me finish. The 'Supreme Council' needs Spica because she understands the Association's strategic deployment better than A-Ji; and I need her because her magic can help me develop more obedient soldiers."

"Um."

Fomalhaut nodded obediently.

"But if there are stronger fighters than you, then there's no need to consider tactics, nor is there any need for mediocre soldiers."

Aldebaran pointed at me.

"Miluno, if you become the witch, I'll give SpiCa back to you!"

"I refuse."

My answer was straightforward, leaving no room for discussion.

"Well, I knew you'd say that."

She stood up from the sofa and casually tossed the sunflower seed shells on the floor, an action that caused the distance between Fomalhaut's eyebrows to shrink further.

"So I'm changing my terms..."

She went into the lab's storage area and then pushed out a sealed cabinet.

"One, two, three... ten, eleven, twelve... twelve in total~ Miluno, as long as you absorb all these Will Crystal, I'll allow you to take SpiCa away... How about it, aren't you supposed to be able to purify the darkness?"

Aldebaran makes no attempt to hide it.

She had this "malicious" note stuck to her face.

An ominous Black Light emanated from each of the cabinet's compartments, each a pure darkness, each capable of forming a Witch Domain...

If I only had the Morning Star Crystal inside me, I might give it a try, but now I also have the Sirius Crystal, which doesn't have the ability to purify darkness.

"What are you still hesitating for? This deal is a great deal!"

"Okay, I accept."

Fomalhaut seemed to want to say something to dissuade him, but refrained from speaking due to his position.

I looked at Aldebaran and continued:

But I also have conditions.