Why?!

The young lady was a beauty beyond words. Even the likes of Claire and Valerie fell several levels short.

Her head of hair was a glossy copper, radiating a sheen that looked almost blinding. Her eyes were the finest of amber, bordering on gold, and wafted an aura of incomparable warmth.

However, if Damian had been here, or anyone at that, who knew the true nature of the Octavius, they would know this was just a facade. A facade she put on to catch her prey off guard.

There was a reason the House of Octavius' Physiology was called the Battle Sovereign Physiology. Even the most delicate of females of this House becomes crazy battle addicts when they stepped on battlefields.

And this lady was no exception.

That said, the lady's presence beside Damian's mother wasn't just for show. She had been called here for a reason, a reason she most definitely knew nothing about.

Damian's mother stopped laughing, her palace returning to its usual silence before it was broken however, by her voice once again.

"Emery dear. I see you have broken through to the Fifth Sphere, hm? Good! This is excellent enough to begin your task. However, your consent is still needed here. So, what do you say? Are you in for the job?" Her voice dripped like the finest of honey, making anybody who hear it feel as though their bodies were being overloaded with a sweetness never before seen.

To this though, Emery was unbothered, not because she was unaffected but because her mind was already focused on the lady's words.

"What would you have me do?" She asked.

Although, she was a bit skeptical regarding the task this woman wanted to give her. After all, with the power she commanded, what in this world was beyond her capabilities? She couldn't find any.

Nonetheless, she accepted. She doubted the woman would send her to her death, and if she really thought her current strength was enough to carry out the task, then yes, it was enough.

"Straight to the point, huh? In that case, I won't dilly-dally as well. My little critter down there needs a helper, or more appropriately, someone who can accompany him on his journey. Although, I can already see him eyeing a little brat, and I wouldn't lie to you, she is more than worthy to be by his side, there is no way I would forget a little lover over here, right?"

Emery appeared confused as the contents of the lady's statements settled in her brain. She looked at the lady with a raised eyebrow before her brain then exploded.

Little lover? Her cheeks immediately went red.

"Hahahahaha! See that? The strong and fierce Emery is actually blushing! Hahahaha!" Her laughter had a cadence akin to that of philomels, invoking a sense of peace in one.

Emery's situation only worsened. Her blush went from her cheeks to her swan-like neck, before traveling all the way to the tip of her ear. She was really embarrassed.

In truth, this side of her was one that few people knew of. Her parents aside, only this woman and Damian, when he was still within the grounds of the House, had seen such a side.

Anyone else would be hard-pressed to even see her smile, let alone her bashful side.

That said, the words of the lady were more important. If she could hear her correctly, didn't that mean she would get to see Damian? Although, the lady had only said that to joke with her, the truth was, she and her knew she really wasn't playing. She really was in love with Damian, even if that idiot was a little dense!

"Is that it?"

"That's it. So, are you willing?" asked Damian's mother.

"Totally willing." Her melodious voice sounded not a second later. It almost felt as though she couldn't even wait to begin said task.

"Is that so? Good! Then, go prepare yourself."

"Yes, ma'am."

Emery vanished as though she had never been there. However, this wasn't due to her power in any stretch. With her current strength as a Fifth Sphere existence, how could she ever hope of breaching through the laws of a planet as strong as the one their House of Octavius called home?

Damian's mother had been the one that sent her away.

The moment Emery disappeared, the lady's expression went frigidly cold, although that was debatable considering her face was obscured by a golden aura. However, the air around her seems to go several levels colder, and if one looked carefully, it would be possible to see the tiny flakes of ice floating in the atmosphere.

The very space was actually freezing over just from a change in her emotion! And yet, her aura bore no resemblance to ice.

"Such impudence. A mere Sixth Sphere fledgling dares to harbor the thought of leeching off Earth?" The playful tone of her voice had vanished, replaced by a biting coldness that threatened to bury the planet in sheets of ice.

The truth was, let alone one Sixth Sphere Power, she wouldn't even bat an eye if hundreds of them tried to sink their fangs in Earth. However, they actually dared to drag her son in their muddiness? That alone was enough to invoke her ire.

That said, she wasn't about to teach them a lesson or two. That would be for her son to do. In the next moment, her coldness disappeared without a trace, replaced by her usual playfulness.

"My beloved, your little lover is coming over to your side. Oh? The fight is over already?"

*

Damian took deep breaths as he stood over the wrecked remains of Claude's aircraft. Smoke arose in columns into the air, tainting the air in their black color. He stood upright, before turning to examine the other two individuals with him.

To his right, Claire stood, panting as she rested her whole weight on the longsword in her hand. As for Valerie, she was on a knee, heaving shallow breaths before she began to stabilize herself.

At that moment, a sound snapped all three's attention towards the other individual that was their common enemy.

Claude knelt on his two knees, his breath rough and haggard. His whole frame was missing a leg and an arm, and even the remaining limbs were just useless prosthetics. From these, it finally dawned on Valerie how her father had survived. It appeared he had switched his arms for prosthetics.

"Why? Why? Why?! Why the fuck did it end this way?! My Colossus A4 was made to be undefeatable, isn't it?! They said that! They promised me that! I should be burying the Draconians under ruins by now! But why?! Why did it have to end this way?!"

Claude roared, appearing to have lost his mind.