Boer stood on the roof terrace of Ryugu Palace and nodded to Aramaki, then sat cross-legged on the ground.
His short, silvery-white hair drifted slightly in the current. His back was straight, his hands resting naturally on his knees, like a statue deep in meditation.
A rare look of seriousness appeared on Aramaki's face, and he nodded back at Boer. He said nothing, but his fingers had already begun to move.
Countless green vines spread from his fingertips, his wrists, and even beneath his collar. Like nimble snakes, they climbed, interwove, and coiled along the terrace's railings, floor, and walls.
The vines grew so quickly that their rustling could be heard as they stretched. In less than ten seconds, the entire terrace had been wrapped in an enormous, airtight green cocoon.
Aramaki stepped back twice and tilted his head to study his work. His brows furrowed-something about it just felt wrong.
He thought for a moment, then raised his hand and flicked a finger. A slender vine poked out from the top of the cocoon, and an enormous yellow flower with five petals bloomed at its tip.
The thick, vivid petals swayed gently in the deep-sea breeze. Then the flower began to turn like a leisurely windmill, stirring the currents around the terrace with a soft whooshing sound.
Aramaki nodded in satisfaction. The corners of his mouth rose slightly, a small measure of pride appearing on his usually devil-may-care face.
Then his body sank, and his legs became thick roots that burrowed into the terrace floor. Beneath the coral flooring, the roots spread, intertwined, and grew downward, passing through layer after layer of rock until they reached the bedrock at the deepest point of Ryugu Palace.
His upper body remained human in shape, but his skin had turned dark brown,