Luna headed inside her room, slamming the door behind her and pushing her back against the wall before she slowly lowered herself to the ground. Unaware of Lina being present, she raised her eyes to see her little sister frightened, sitting on her bed.

"Oh...Lina. I apologize for my actions. I should not have let my guard down and be unaware of your presence."

Lina got down from her bed and slowly approached Luna, kneeling down at her before starting to whisper.

"Big sis...something...something is wrong, right? I can see it.", Lina locked her eyes on Luna.

Luna sat there and replied with silence as she tried to look away from her little sister, only to then turn her head around and finally reply to her.

"Yes...but you should not be bothered by it. It is a situation that is affecting and requiring me to fix it."

A faint smile came across Lina's face as she hugged Luna tightly.

"I'm...so happy!"

"Hmm?" Luna awkwardly looked at her.

When Lina backed away to look at Luna's face, she got even happier.

"That look on your face! Yay!"

"Excuse me, Lina, but can you please tell me the reason behind your excitement?"

"Ehe, isn't it obvious? You're sad! A-Ah, wait! I didn't mean it like that! Big sis, it's been so long since you've dropped that expression of yours, it's so cool!"

"You don't like my...expression?"

"I mean, I like you, but always being so boring and grey all the time is so...boring! Aha! Before you lose this power, smile, come on! Quickly!"

Luna once again awkwardly looked at Lina, before raising her head and putting up a flat-faced, creepy, fake smile. It was as if the darkness of her cheeks stretched wide overshadowed her clean white teeth, terror seeping through every direction it was exposed into.

Lina looked away, "On second thought...don't."

"Did I...do it wrong?" Luna stopped her fake smile.

"I mean, you're off-practice so, it'll get better...I hope." Lina worryingly said, not wanting to see Luna's fake smile again.

Just then, a knock on the door was heard, prompting Luna to get up off the floor and turn around to face the bedroom door.

"Yo, Luna, you alright? Finished doing my cooldown stretches in my room, cleaning up and came to check on you! Was it really that hard of a fight? The material in that Abnormal String thing was flimsy anyway, sorry if you're pissed for being piledriven through 3 floors!" Tiki said from the other side, "Don't bicker over some random shit!"

"Oh! Miss Tiki! C'mon, let her in!"

"You must really like her.", Luna unlocked the door.

"Yeah! She tries to look cool by saying bad words left and right all the time and has a really cute big tail! She's really funny!" Lina laughed.

Tiki stood at the door. "Heya. Care for some lounging? Man, can't remember the last time we could successfully put our asses down and not have to worry about the world crushing on our heads." she stretched out.

"Yeah! Big sis is side anyways, so being around friends will surely help!" Lina answered.

"Wait, sad? Her?" Tiki pointed at Luna.

"Yep!" Lina happily said again, being oblivious to all the signs her sister was doing to tell her to stop.

"Yeah, now I'll drag you outta here. I'm sure the kid can stay alone in a completely controlled environment for a bit." she pointed at the elevator, "I need some air so, strolling in the city it is. C'mon let's go, I checked out a few notable places online."

"Cool, you'll have a ton of fun! Now go! C'mon, get out!" Lina began pushing Luna, "Oh and, take this! It's for Miss Tiki since she's your fabled rival!" Lina whispered as she secretly handed Luna a white box.

Pushed by Lina and dragged by Tiki, Luna reluctantly agreed to their walk, temporarily forgetting her misfortunes. Out and about in the city, it wasn't long before Tiki pointed the way to a coffee shop nearby, it looked to be booming with work.

"So, how do you like it? Reviews were pretty nice and judging from their workload, they must be correct."

"It looks rather...small?" Luna peeked inside.

"Yeah, it's pretty nice. It's a small business that recently exploded. Given Gardard's "Go, go, go" lifestyle, I think we will be easily able to find a table anyway. Most locals just take everything on the go anyway."

"Ok then. Let's proceed." Luna affirmatively said.

Going into the shop, the two easily found a table and sat down, letting out a long breath and finally relaxing from their long, drawn-out morning. The waiter quickly approached them both as they looked at the menu for their order.

"What will you two gorgeous young ladies be taking today?" the waiter asked with his charm.

"Your strongest possible coffee. I had a...rough morning." Luna didn't even look at the menu.

The waiter nodded, "Yeap, happens to all of us. Hopefully we can cheer you up a bit with our specials! And you?" he looked at Tiki.

Tiki quickly browsed through the menu, "Yeah, I'll go for, uh...the..." she nailed her eyes on an item, "I'll be going for a caffeine milkshake, vanilla flavor."

"Alright, any toppings with that?"

"Oh, what are the options?"

"You can go for some whipped cream, syrup, shredded chocolate or cookies and plenty more!"

"Definitely cookies." Tiki didn't even bother looking at the other options.

The waiter finished noting everything up, "Alright, I'll be back with you ladies soon!"

As the waiter went away, the two of them looked at each other, Tiki trying to hold her laughter in, while Luna seemed to be amused with the situation.

"Been awhile since comments like that flew around. Man, men are always the same when it comes to flirting."

"I suppose you have a lot of experience, being involved in the military?"

"Yeap. Though I'll be honest, it's nice to hear, but boring to keep it in your head. Too cookie cutter bullshit for me to care. Also, judging off my body alone, that guy is either into petite girls like Hikari or a lolicon." Tiki shrugged.

"Speaking of cookies. Why did you not choose a rather powerful caffeine drink to boost your stamina for the day, instead of...cookies."

Tiki softly blushed, "Hey! Just that...I like cookies, what of it?!"

"I did not mean to offend you. Should I reconsider my wording?" Luna suggested.

"N-No! Gah-ah! Why is it so difficult to say shit correctly to you all?!" Tiki started to get angry.

"I suggest you take a deep breath. We are alone in a small personal area within a public space. I was not offended, but rather trying to figure out how to better establish a clear communication line between us."

"Affirmative as always..." Tiki sighed, "God dammit...didn't always use to be like this, and I really can't figure out where shit went wrong along the way.", she exhaled.

"Perhaps, you can relax with the harsh wording. I see some dissatisfaction within others, including myself for those. They are more uniquely crafted than conventional words used to offend someone, and are far more...offensive."

"Yeah, I noticed. Every time I try to bust out some of those 'unconventional' swears I always get redacted. I thought we listed it as 18+, like, look at this. Ehm." she cleaned her throat, "I will [REDACTED] every single [REDACTED] out of [REDACTED]. And when I'm done I will [R-E-D-A-C-T-E-D]." she pointed out, "See? That's what I'm talking about, nobody can see what I'm actually saying with all this censorship!"

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website.

Luna blankly stared at Tiki, "I...at least you acknowledged your flaws. It is the first step to reworking past mistakes into future successes."

"Pfft. No, it's just that y'all need to grow a pair and learn to take in some dark humor from time to time. Geez, has civilization gone that far to the point where any form of 'hard' joke offends you all? Strongly believe it's not the joke's fault, over y'all being softer than marshmallows!" Tiki folded her arms.

"Those jokes, with the frequency they're made, can sometimes...slip, onto others. As in, force you to accidentally say things you normally wouldn't."

"Hmm? I don't think I've come across that way to anyone. Hikari is cool, as far as I know, Anya is also super chill and the meatbag seems to be a-ok as far as the leader of this circus goes. Despite the broken arm, that is."

"What about Terna?" Luna brought it to Tiki's attention.

"Eh? What about her?"

"Don't you think your relationship with her is...not ideal?" Luna carefully chose her words.

Tiki rolled her eyes, "She's good. As in, she has potential. The problem with her is that she's by far the most inexperienced of all of us...which scares me. I mean, think about it, Luna. Dante was shown to have combat experience off the start, Hikari took on a titan in front of my face with Enemy at her side, you went toe to toe with me on day one and Anya apparently liked to participate in elite fighting tournaments. Hell, Yuno has been training all his life apparently, without actually seeing the battlefield and your little sister now has a bunch of professional elite soldiers scared their ass off whenever they make contact with her. And what does Terna have? Funny songs and a dream? She's way ahead of herself if she thinks that simply amplifying everyone gives her the right to jump into action like she's done before. She doesn't know the battlefield, she hasn't seen nearly enough and yet, she's basically taking on powerful beings. I mean, think about it! What if she chose to jump into Dante back there, without witnessing me getting my ass kicked? She's not as durable or strong, so she could've...damn it!"

Luna seemed surprised by Tiki's words, "I...I would have never realized that your actions on the surface, as well as your wording, would be so deeply rooted with a meaning behind it. A noble and commendable effort that I have to sadly say it might have come across as a failure. Your harsh nature, combined with the tragedies I was told that she had recently suffered and the undeniable opposite personality of Terna has severely compromised your task. She has stated the fact that she acknowledged her weakness amongst the rest, but additionally feels deeply wounded by your wordings. She aims to become a 'song' according to her so that she can be remembered, and by doing so, she aims to also gain your undeniable acceptance and compliments."

Tiki scoffed, "Aw, shit...this is...man, I complicated things."

Just then, the waiter came in and happily gave them their drinks, smiling while going away again. Wasting no time, Tiki began to feverously drink her milkshake, almost as if she was angry at the actual drink.

Tiki exhaled after her long sip, "Maybe I should've been a bit more direct. I hope she didn't take it all too personally. Dammit..."

Luna comforted her, "It is not late to expand upon your failure to turn it into success. But my question remains. Why are you so difficult to approach when you clearly do not need to be?"

"Look, we've all got our reasons for the way we are. I guess I went too far but...I shouldn't have.

Luna sipped her coffee as she realized something she forgot, "Oh. My apologies. I forgot to give you something. Here. Lina prepared it, especially for you."

Luna handed over Tiki the small box that Lina had given her. After an odd look at the box, Tiki slowly opened it to reveal a thing she thought she had long. The same amulet Dante held on to from the fight in the destroyed Dirunon was now sitting right in front of her eyes.

"Wait, what? But...Dante took this for himself!" Tiki worryingly said, "Please tell me the kid didn't actually..."

Luna grabbed a small note from within the box and spread it out, giving it back to Tiki and politely respecting the fact that it was her gift. Not wanting to leave Luna out of this, as this might have been a concerning matter for her as well, Tiki instead began to read it out loud.

"Miss Tiki! I got the amulet-looking thingy back! Turns out, Mister Dante isn't bad at all! I saw you with that artifact since the first time we met and I really thought it must've been SUPER important to you. When I talked with mister Dante, in secret while you and big sis were getting ready for your big battle when he was done, he seemed very, very sad. He said all those things about how he worried that you'd hate him forever, be mean to him and how he was so sorry and a whole bunch of other bad things! I guess it was my fault too, in a way, my big sis always told me to stop pressuring others with my curiosity, but I don't like seeing anyone sad! Aww, man, did I say too much again? Hnn, I'm running out of paper too! Anyway, I got the amulet back from him! I painted it a bit and cleaned it so that it looked super pretty when you get it back! I'm really sorry if you got a bit of crayon on you...I hope the grey paint dried by now. Anyway! Don't be sad! Smile and give it your best, because you're my sister's powerful rival! Rivals should always be happy and give it their all to fight each other!

P.S. Please DONT let big sis see this...I don't want her to worry about me anymore. She needs to spend more time with others! Also, I don't want to be yelled at...

P.S.S. Oh, and I hope you like the gift, but don't say a word, or that'll give it away too!

P.S.S.S. I'm so looking forward to the next battle with you and big sis! Please, fight me too someday! That way I too, can become a legendary warrior and defender of big sis!"

"That kid...god damn." Tiki seemed to smile, "Aw...dammit."

"I agree that she can be a little intrusive sometimes, despite that not being her intention. I'll have to apologize for her uncontainable curiosity. It must have spiked since our leave from our original location at the Falana Orphanage since she has not really experienced the world as a whole."

"Don't be." Tiki stopped Luna.

"I can see you are distressed with the contents of the box and the message, however. Is that not a scenario for me to be sorry for?"

Tiki seemed to chuckle while she looked at Luna, "You have no idea, how long it's been since genuine worry from someone, both you and especially Lina was heard from my part...maybe I have grown weak after again."

"I do not think that being emotionally expressive can make you be considered weak. However, my say on that matter is severely limited because of obvious parameters."

As Tiki firmly grasped the amulet, it started to crack on the back, opening in half. From it, a small object dropped and started rolling towards Luna's side. It was a silver bullet. On the bullet, faintly written, was a name. Tiki Dremona. Luna looked at the bullet first before looking back at Tiki, who softly put the amulet down, grabbed the bullet back up, and toyed around with it in her fingers.

"Man...I..." she kept looking at the bullet.

"I suppose it is an item of emotional meaning to you?"

"Damn right...that is...his. Never mind I don't really wanna get too deep about it. Good memories on bad times are like salt for the wounds."

"The amulet seems to have sustained a lot of damage. Would you like me to discard it?" Luna spread her hand.

"No. I know exactly what to do with that. Leave it to me.", Tiki held onto the amulet.

"I have to ask, however. Why was I chosen to be the one to obtain the image of another side you possess?"

"What do you mean?"

"Clearly, this is not how you tend to act with others' presence."

"I guess because you are always a stone wall, so that'll keep my mind at ease knowing you won't overthink or say it to anyone else."

"Thank you for the...compliment?" Luna got confused, "In any case...I would like to know more about your combat experiences if you will. My battle with you shook me to realize that my innate powers had little to no effect, being cancelled by yours as equals. Skill and tactical precession are what ultimately held you the victor, so I need to kindly ask you to share some information with me."

Tiki stuttered, "Uh...yeah. About that...I'd rather not get into details too much on the battle either. Look, I know people are going to be wowed by things like "Oh my god, a 500-year-old demon warrior!" and stuff but...Corosta was built differently. I'm 524...in demon years. I kind of...uh...how should I put this. I don't...I'm not really...I'm 24. Being a 'Demon', doesn't really mean shit if we account for all the different species that go around with all sorts of different demi-humans. We were named 'Demons' because for one, our tails and sometimes horns and two, we are substantially stronger than even Obsulyte users, since why we were battle 'demons'. Now, like how those feral Obsulyte users that were hunted today and in older times, demons, around 500 years ago when this all started, were initially hunted down too. Again, Luna, being an Obsulyte user is more probable when you're a demi, but my people, when others realized exactly what they were dealing with, did not get hunted out of the sheer fear others had for challenging them."

"The extensive specialization attempted surely bolstered the demon class demi-humans reputation."

"Hence why around 50 years ago, to retain that battle prowess, despite the end of those ancient brutal years, military service became mandatory from the age of 8. Now, I don't mean deployment at 8. That was prohibited until the age of 18. We were thrown in a place similar to what you'd see the Abnormal String be like, hence my comfortability when moving around it during battle. So we go through an instant 500 years of training on our minds, basically covering all of what previous generations have experienced and gaining the muscle memory of all their combat movements and abilities. It was a technological miracle, never shared with anyone else. That's why, demons for the past half a century, started 500 years old. It's a stupid power trip thing, just to make the enemy piss scared when they hear the number 500 thrown at them. After that, we simply move on with our lives and live them like everyone else. Really doesn't affect how 8-year-olds acted mentally, but retained their muscle memory so it was literally a free win for us. The school does move a little fast, because I graduated from school at 12 and a personal degree I researched for myself was given to me by 13, allowing me to get a job, in of course, the military. Our pride and joy. My total on-field deployment time has been around 6 years in the service of 10 years so...yeah. It is...complicated. But that's the reason why we were so feared amongst others. Innate advantages...granted, I was deployed during years of war for ourselves. The first few years were constant deployment because of the state of afterwar the world was in, right after the massacre that was Dirunon."

"So there was indeed collateral after what Dante had experienced. It must have been hard on you to witness such atrocities."

"At around 14 I...witnessed the worst of the worst. My friend, he...let's just say, he never made it back. Not that I'd want him to make it back. Neither would he. His mission was to kill Dante but was unsuccessful. Had he actually succeeded...he would surely not be the same person that I remember now. He was Neker, the son of Izuko and he was a total loner, and I think I really was his only friend. He gave me this, right before his mission. The amulet, I mean. At the time I...I gave it back to him. I told him that I wanted to receive this when he came back...never did, up until I saw Dante that day. As far as the rest of it goes, immediately after Cecilia found out what exactly happened, it wasn't long before she cause complete carnage in Corosta. Lots of damage were done that day, but nobody was really killed. I was with Izuko when she threatened him but...I saw another side of my enemy, that day. I respected her ever since, as something more than just the warrior stuff of legend. Now for the bullet...that's a whole other can of beans I don't want to open, for now. When I got the amulet back from Dante, I snuck that in there. I wanted Neker to hold on to something important for me then, as he did now. I got that off a very special someone, whom I don't really think I'll see again, but hey, it's a small world, right?"