Femininity

Neph stared at him for a few seconds, then said calmly, "Yes.

"One of the reasons Emperor Roselle switched pathways was that he didn't want to become a woman."

Naturally, Klein didn't believe a word of her nonsense. She clearly wasn't making a serious attempt to lie; her expression wasn't remotely convincing. He glanced at her and asked distrustfully, "Oh? At what sequence does this pathway turn you into a woman, then?"

"Sequence 0," Neph answered without hesitation.

Klein choked. He realized she had found a brilliant excuse, since no one knew whether Sequence 0 of the Savant pathway actually turned someone female. Still, he had his own way of judging. "-Tell me, how was Emperor Roselle supposed to become a true god right under the God of Steam and Machinery's nose?"

"Luck, obviously," Neph replied matter-of-factly. "Steam became a god through luck too, anyway-"

"Hmm?" Klein pricked up his ears.

But Neph refused to elaborate. She shook her head and turned her gaze toward him, looking relaxed. "Speaking of which, do you still remember Bornova?"

Of course Klein remembered him. He was Emperor Roselle's third child, born at Sequence 5. According to Neph, the God of Steam and Machinery had used special means to make the child an angel in gratitude to Roselle, but Bornova had lost his humanity in the process.

He nodded slightly. Neph chuckled, propping her chin on her hand with a meaningful look. "If you ask me, our God of Steam and Machinery still isn't willing enough to lower Himself. If He had the Mother Tree of Desire's spirit and was willing to have a child with Emperor Roselle-oh, provided He gave birth, rather than making Emperor Roselle do it.

"If He were willing to do that, His relationship with Emperor Roselle would surely still