The Simulated Universe.
Amid rippling strings of characters and code, the universe unfolded in silence like a black sea, while the stars drifted slowly and eternally like islands of light afloat upon dark currents, occasionally brushing against the boundary—the Subspace Crystal Wall.
Caelus crossed the void cloaked in iridescent light, transformed into Akivili.
—Boom!
He smashed through Qlipoth's Subspace Crystal Wall.
"...As long as we keep moving forward, the road will keep stretching onward. So don't stop now!"
Thus spoke Akivili-Caelus.
Suddenly, a chill climbed his spine, and a hazy mist veiled his eyes...
"It's here," Herta's voice said at just the right moment.
The instant she spoke, It drew near—
An enormous pressure swept toward him. The Aeon of Remembrance, Fuli, appeared once more, floating high above and bearing down on Caelus from overhead.
It... was looking at him?
Caelus could not tell which facet of Its form was Its eye. Fuli's very existence resembled some crystal-clear dream.
He warned himself to stay lucid and tried speaking to It:
"Fuli, how are you?"
[...Chaos becomes time your dereliction destined past volume no longer shrinks in proportion footsteps one step two steps three chi away leave stop you be careful Elio train moves forward infant falls to the ground cancer is growing...]
It had clearly heard him. It answered slowly, Its words elusive and unreal, impossible to pin down.
Caelus felt the cold brush his face, the fine hairs on his skin standing on end—
And in the next instant, Fuli withdrew and vanished in a flash.
"..."
"Good progress!"
Herta sounded excited.
Even her usually cold, mechanical voice, as though devoid of all enthusiasm, had turned noticeably lighter.
"...None of the test subjects before you could even see an Aeon, much less get a response!"
"There were other test subjects too?" Caelus said in surprise, then sighed. "Herta, I really didn't expect you to be juggling so many boats at once."
"Hm? What kind of nonsense is that..." Herta said irritably. "I have so many space stations and puppets. If I happen to get a replicable research project, of course I'm going to run it simultaneously."
"Oh..."
"Forget that. Hurry up and tell me what memory fragments you saw this time. Wait... don't tell me you forgot again!"
"I forgot."
"..."
Herta clicked her tongue.
Just from her tone, Caelus could already imagine the adorable expression that must have appeared on her beautiful, delicate face.
"You seem to be thinking something strange," Herta said suddenly.
"Not at all..."
"Hm?"
"I was wondering why I could run into Fuli twice in a row," Caelus said, steering the topic back with a calm tone. "Herta, didn't you say Fuli can be even more mysterious than Mythus sometimes? And the only appearance that's actually on record was the one Louis Fleming witnessed..."
"Hmph..." Herta gave a soft laugh. "Maybe Fuli and Akivili share some secret bond. Like the Fools in the tavern say: that Aha and Akivili once drove the Astral Express all across the universe looking for Qlipoth's wall to crash into..."
"So next I'm not going to run into Aha or Qlipoth, am I?"
—Boom!
His words became prophecy. In the vast and desolate deep void, a mighty echo rang out.
The Amber Lord appeared, His colossal amber body spanning the sea of stars, planets no more than tiny stones composing His divine form.
"Uh... meeting again, Senior Qlipoth?"
[...]
The silent Qlipoth gave no reply, but the immense roar surrounding Him still spread through the vacuum.
Caelus had no time to think about how sound could travel through empty space, because Qlipoth seemed to be staring at the enormous hole he had just smashed into the Subspace Crystal Wall.
"Uh, about that..."
Rumbleeeee—!
Qlipoth's great hammer came down, its impact resounding throughout the cosmos, deafening beyond measure!
Caelus could not move. It was as if he had been nailed to the spot, his eyes splitting wide as he faced that overwhelming blow.
"...!"
"So this is what it feels like to be flattened for the first time in my life..."
[Akivili—Akivili!]
A voice laughed like mad.
It appeared before Caelus's "corpse." It had no head, only a mask cradled in its arms. It waved at him, spun in circles on its own, arms hanging in the air, fingers twitching under muscular control, moving like someone dancing wildly at a funeral.
Then suddenly it became sorrowful, freezing in place like a statue, and began sobbing in pain, tears brushing across the back of Caelus's hand.
[Hey, why did you die again?]
...
Herta's office.
Caelus slowly woke, once again staring up at the familiar ceiling and Herta's jawline. A perfect upward angle—her slender pale neck, her refined chin—she looked like some elven archmage who had lived for over a thousand years...
But.
The floor was freezing cold.
Still lying there, Caelus looked up at Herta and said, "At the very least, could I get a lap pillow?"
"Hm?" Herta looked down at him, her beautiful eyes narrowing slightly. In her proud tone, she said, "Are you awake now...? I see. The Amber Lord's hammer must have rattled your brain."
"..."
"So, how did it feel to get flattened by the Amber Lord? ...It must have been quite a rare experience, no?"
"And you still have the nerve to make sarcastic comments."
Caelus spoke from where he lay.
From his angle, he could look up at Herta's fine jawline, the smooth ends of her brown hair, and the fluttering hem of her Lolita skirt. It revealed her slim, pale legs at a tantalizing angle, but never enough to glimpse what lay deeper beneath...
Was that another one of a genius's little touches?
...A super-short skirt that could never suffer a wardrobe malfunction, Caelus mused to himself.
"I'm not wrong. There are almost no people who can personally experience the Amber Lord's hammer. You should feel honored. The last one was Tayzzyronth of Propagation!"
"..."
Herta had a terrible personality, but her face was just too beautiful.
Caelus let out a soft sigh.
Just as he was feeling a bit helpless—
Tap, tap.
The crisp footsteps of a girl.
Asta walked over in a pair of elegant blue-and-white heels, her steps light. When she saw Caelus lying at Herta's feet, she blinked in surprise.
"Caelus, is your Simulated Universe test over...? Why are you lying on the floor?"
"The reason is a little complicated..."
"To put it simply," Herta said flatly, "...Qlipoth hit him with a hammer."
"Huh?"
Asta froze for a moment, a strand of soft pink hair falling beside her cheek.
"But speaking of which..." Herta touched her chin with one finger, her expression still rational, still faintly arrogant. "...You little brat keep triggering these ultra-rare probability events. Asta and the other testers are like mindless NPCs by comparison. So is it that you're compatible with the Simulated Universe, or compatible with Akivili?"
"..."
"Maybe I really am Akivili..."
"If you're Akivili, then I'm Idrila!"
"Lady Herta, that's always how I've pictured you in my heart."
"..."
For some reason, Herta fell silent.
Her thin lips parted slightly. Her porcelain-white cheeks did not flush, but her brows drew together as she shot Caelus an irritated glare.
"Hmph. At least your taste isn't terrible."
"..."
Caelus nearly laughed.
Herta was so tsundere that while saying this, she took two small steps back, her pale puppet legs shifting a little awkwardly. Unexpectedly, she looked rather innocent.
...No, perhaps "innocent" wasn't quite right. Maybe more disgusted than flustered?
Probably the latter.
Caelus found himself even more curious about how her lap pillow would feel—especially compared to the legs of the young lady beside her, who now seemed to be suppressing a laugh...
Hm?
Asta's skirt was rather short...
She was a refined, dignified young lady, so naturally she would not always be wearing the academy-style outfit from her in-game art. Today, paired with those blue-and-white heels, she wore a dark blue high-waisted pleated skirt, no stockings, revealing her gleaming white legs—and a glimpse of alluring blue-and-white fabric—
"Um... Asta, your skirt's riding up."
"Eh... eh!?"
Asta's pupils contracted slightly. She hurriedly pressed her skirt down, a faint blush instantly spreading across her cheeks.
Her reaction was far more innocent than Herta's.
And yet what she said was:
"I-it's only you seeing it, Caelus. That doesn't count for anything!"
"..."
What does that even mean? Do I not count as a man?
Puzzled, Caelus pushed himself up from the floor, only to see Herta frowning as though shooing away a stray cat, waving Asta off from beside him.
"If that's how it is, then stand aside. Shoo, shoo."
"But Lady Herta, you were the one who told me to come participate in the Simulated Universe test..."
"Hm?"
"...I'll take my leave first."
Asta lowered her face and departed Herta's office in a sullen mood.
The air grew still. The Simulated Universe apparatus, now on standby, shed sparse drifting light. Caelus watched Herta lift her chin toward him again, her lovely brows and eyes now looking faintly displeased once more.
"Why are you still standing here?"
"Mmm..."
Caelus had originally intended to leave, but since Herta had brought it up...
"I'm waiting for you to give me a lap pillow."
"A lap pillow? ...There is no lap pillow!"
"In that case, could you at least give me one of your puppets?"
"..."
"Herta?"
"It's been many Amber Eras since anyone dared speak to me like that." One of Herta's brows lifted. "Little brat, don't you understand? Your identity, your food and clothing, the Stellaron inside your body—they all belong to me."
"Oh, right..."
"So what should you call me?"
"Well..."
Caelus hesitated.
Herta lowered her lashes and looked him over again, wearing a sweet but provocative smile.
It was probably only one of the puppet's preset expressions, yet Caelus still found the petite Herta strangely alluring, the curve of her lips especially tempting.
"What do you call me?" Herta repeated, her eyes narrowing as she gave a soft laugh. "...I gave you special permissions on the space station. I allow you to come and go from my office as you please. Let me tell you this: if you were aboard the Astral Express, you could call me Herta and I wouldn't bother picking at you. But if you're staying on this space station, then tell me—what do you call me?"
Caelus looked like he wanted to speak, yet hesitated.
But Herta seemed unexpectedly serious about this.
"Do I really have to say it?"
"Of course."
"All right then..." Caelus nodded, then said with some hesitation, "Mom."
"..." Herta's face instantly darkened. "It's Master!!"
...
Half a system hour later.
When Caelus met Asta again, she looked as though she wanted to speak but couldn't, her face full of disbelief.
"It's actually... um... Lady Herta personally drafted a note just now, arranging a full-time position for you on the space station. Officially, the salary and rank are both extremely high, and it comes with the second-highest level of access, except..."
"Except what?"
"Y-you should see for yourself."
Asta handed him a letter that rose magically from within a book.
A dreadful feeling came over Caelus.
His fingers trembled slightly as he took the paper and looked down—
[Letter of Appointment: Lady Herta's Dog]
"..."
Many years later, when facing the Great Herta, Caelus would recall that distant afternoon when he leaked the space station's access key to Silver Wolf...