Elliot froze, not quite understanding what she meant.
How could [Primordial Blood] get smaller? Could it have run away?
He quickly dismissed that thought. [Primordial Blood] definitely could not run away.
The Sea of the Moon existed independently of the Present World and Dreams. If leaving were that easy, the Expedition Army would have found a way out long ago. Why would they have gone to so much trouble?
Besides, if it really tried to run, Elsa could drag it back with a single [Honey Moon].
Then-
"Was it eaten by [Worms]?"
"No, another being is eating [Primordial Blood]-that golden-haired dog Victoria kept."
In front of the Difference Engine, Elliot's eyes widened.
Was this a joke?
That thing was still alive? And it was eating [Primordial Blood]?
Elliot was utterly bewildered.
Rather than rushing to ask questions, he began searching through the Difference Engine for that dog.
Yes, Victoria's big dog had a Card, and a rather special one at that. Elliot soon picked one out.
[Retainer Xixi]
This was the only one with the prefix [Retainer]. Everyone else either had none or was a [Believer], with Vanessa being the sole exception as the [Esoteric Cult Leader].
He checked the history associated with the Card and really did find a few inconspicuous records:
[Retainer Xixi] attacked [Believer Lillian Rose].
[Retainer Xixi] attacked [Primordial Blood].
It was actually true!
It was hard to describe how Elliot felt at that moment. It was as absurd as a friend's dog biting a Great Being.
Had the dog gone mad like Victoria?
"I only discovered this recently myself," Maeve said haltingly. "As you know, [Primordial Blood] is too big. I've never been able to sense much of it."
[Primordial Blood] covered almost half the moon. Its mere existence had stained the moon into a