"True-Self Perfect One!"
Aiou looked at the man before him, his face filled with surprise and astonishment.
Then the warm, welcoming True-Self Perfect One ushered him inside. The little cottage was very cozy, with only a small bed beside the window, a strange stove, a dining table, and a bookshelf against the wall. The shelves were filled with all sorts of books and little curios Aiou had never seen before.
They sat at the little dining table. The True-Self Perfect One looked at Aiou and smiled. "Don't let Mother take over your body. Leave Hawkins out of it, too. This personality is fine. Let's eat while we talk."
Aiou thought for a moment, then picked up his chopsticks and took a bite of food. After tasting it, he found it quite ordinary.
"I rarely cook, so ordinary is only natural," the True-Self Perfect One said with a smile.
Aiou looked at the True-Self Perfect One, but before he could speak, the man smiled and said, "Although I can, I don't use mind-reading or similar methods unless necessary. Your expression was simply too obvious. It was easy to guess!"
"Since you're living in seclusion in the Central Court, why didn't you...?" Aiou couldn't help asking.
The True-Self Perfect One smiled. "Why didn't I save the Central Court? The same answer as before: although I can, there's no need. This was the Central Court's fate to begin with. But as it happens, I'm planning to visit someone interesting, and the Central Court would make a nice gift. Interested in coming along?"
"The Central Court, as a gift?" Aiou looked puzzled.
The Central Court had already turned into this hellish mess. If he offered it as a gift, wasn't he afraid the recipient would turn on him on the spot?
"Hahahaha! That fellow