Dia made a face as Beth made herself comfortable in Caroline’s lap, much to everyone’s displeasure. Of course, she would come running back after a while, and Beth was just attracted to the new pretty sister that had popped out of nowhere, but Dia still felt a bit sad that her own lap was a bit empty.

She, along with the other Seekers of Life.

“Help?” Caroline uttered, her words slow and deliberate. “I’m not sure how to take care of children!”

“Just pat her head and make sure she doesn’t fall off your lap,” Schwarz replied. “Uh. You’ll get the rest after a while.”

“Still, since the Blue Moon is coming, shouldn’t we hide Beth or something?” Risti asked. “I mean, she is the central figure behind that super-large Distortion. We didn’t tell the Moons or anyone at all, but you know. They might notice it.”

“Wait, this kid is the central cause of that Distortion?” Nightfall asked, looking at the child.

“Yes, and we trust you enough to tell you, so don’t go yapping to the Moons,” Schwarz replied. “Anyhow…what are you two doing here?”

“The Blue Moon is visiting. I hafta be here,” he replied, a hint of helplessness in his words. “Why else do you think I’m not sipping tea back at my palace.”

“Oh.” Dia folded her arms. “So, how long will you need to sip tea here for?”

“Not that long,” Nightfall answered. “The Blue Moon and its entourage should be here soo—”

The world began to glow a faint blue, and a small rift opened in the air. Three shimmering figures appeared out of the rift a moment later, bringing forth a heavy presence that made even breathing hard. Dia found her gaze gravitating to the floor a moment later, and the chair she was on creaked slightly at the mere presence of the person in the middle.

Any thoughts about common courtesy and knocking on the door vanished as Dia struggled against the suffocating atmosphere that came with the Blue Moon’s sudden arrival.

Without warning, the painful pressure vanished, and the being in the middle took a step forward. The power that had forced her to look out popped like a bubble, and Dia looked up to take in the sight of the Blue Moon’s humanoid form.

It was…weird, to say the least. In front of her was a floating hooded robe, with a dull blue globe at where the head was. A body of darkest shadow filled out the rest of the robe, but Dia had a feeling that this shadowy body was probably just created for the express purpose of walking around.

Everyone got to their feet a moment later, inclining their heads.

“We greet the Blue Moon of Wisdom,” Nightfall intoned.

Dia braced herself for the ear-piercing reply.

“Good morning, ladies and gentlemen,” a soft voice replied. Dia, who had been bracing for bleeding ears and agony, touched her ear a moment later, before looking around at the others, who seemed unscathed.

“Beget not fear. This is not my true body,” the Blue Moon continued. “It is in this form that I can converse with mortals on equal standing. Is it better?”

Dia nodded. Compared to the single syllables that were bursting and overloaded with too much information, speech like this was very suitable and comfortable for everyone else. There wouldn’t be a risk of exploding heads or bleeding ears, and this way, everyone could converse more freely…

Freely her ass.

After everyone engaged in a bout of collective flattery, the Blue Moon took its seat at the head of the dining table, where everyone else had returned too. Light refreshments sat on the table, their contents appetitising to anyone who wasn’t aware of their visitors’ identity.

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“To what pleasure do we owe this visit to, O Blue Moon of Wisdom?” Schwarz asked, his voice hiding the faintest trace of fear.

“Questions, answers, requests and rewards,” the Blue Moon replied. “Please, do not stand on courtesy with me. Shining formally has its advantages, but the even light burns the greatest fuel. Also, I have been told by Lady Dia that her resident bartender is most capable at coming up with brews. I am here to experience mortal intoxication for myself.”

“Huh?”

“What?”

Dia abruptly remembered the off-handed topic she’d made when she attended a particular tea party with the Blue Moon some time ago, and then looked away innocently from Schwarz’s distressed gaze. It wasn’t her fault if the Blue Moon had good memories, and besides, it was possible that Plota would fall in love with Schwarz’s drinks. It had a good following in the city, and if she put aside the ones that would knock her out instantly, his drinks were nice to savour…

She focused on her feet as the Blue Moon waxed on and on about drinks, trying to ignore Schwarz’s burning gaze on her. She was conferring him an opportunity to promote his drinks, so why was that stare so painful?

“Drinks aside,” Plota murmured, “the issue with that Distortion is another reason why I am here. The details surrounding the event remain murky, and while an official account of events has been provided, I am given to understand that an anomaly is, in part, responsible for the partial salvation of all in this sovereignty.”

Dia felt her heart twist as the Blue Moon mentioned her brother, whose existence was slowly but surely vanishing from her mind. In fact, within Licencia, most people now believed that the Lustre family only had one child — her. Her brother had completely vanished from living memory, only mourned by her, her father and the few people who knew the entire sequence of events.

Even then, his voice had completely vanished from her memory. She could only barely remember the words he had spoken, but as for the voice used…

“What of it?” Dia found herself asking, her voice hoarse and faded.

Eyes fell on her, each of them filled with their own emotions, but Dia was only interested in fixing her gaze on the Blue Moon.

“…That person is an anomaly,” the Blue Moon replied. “It is hard to say whether he is part of this timeline. What do you remember of your brother, Dia Lyceria de Lustre?”

Dia stared into the blue sphere that was probably gazing at her, and then shook her head bitterly. “Lesser and lesser. I remember very vague things about him now. His appearance, his voice…anything related to him has all but vanished. I cannot remember much, except that I had a brother, and then he vanished a few times.”

She paused. “And that he disinherited himself from succession before I could.”

“You’re still mad about that?” Schwarz asked.

“There’s little left to prove that he once existed,” Dia replied bitterly. “I’m mad about that, and everything else. What more do you want?”

The Blue Moon’s light flickered once. “My apologies for your loss.”

Dia looked at the divinity, and then lowered her head. She felt tired and beleaguered inside, even though it was still morning and a very important guest was sitting with them.

“So, what else did you want to know?” Risti asked, looking at the Blue Moon directly. “How can we help?”

“Given her current state, we will put forth our queries in a letter instead, to be opened when Lady Dia is ready,” Plota replied. “Instead, let us talk about the future. We were very impressed by your achievements in the short length of your service as the Seekers of Life. We are wondering if you will be willing to continue your service to Us in the nights to come.”

“I now see why Nightfall didn’t leave,” Risti quipped.

“Hey, don’t look at me like that. The Emperor also sent me a recruitment order, so I can’t really let his competitors do what they wish without supervision,” Nightfall replied. “I don’t want to be punished either.”

“All is fair in love and war, so goes the old adage,” the Blue Moon replied. “And We do understand your own position thus. Be not alarmed. We are here on a simple recruitment talk. There will always be more opportunities as the phases shift and the light dims. The new world approaches, after all.”

“How long is this approach anyway?” Schwarz asked.

“…Depends. We cannot give an answer just yet. In one of our visions, we saw the Cosmic Egg maturing in two hundred years. In another, we saw it ending in one. The future is constantly in flux, and our goals always shifting.”

Despite herself, Dia looked at the Blue Moon closely. The divinity seemed a bit sad for some reason, an emotion that felt wholly at odds with well, the concept of the Blue Moon.

“A drink,” Plota abruptly requested.

The Moon Emissaries flanking the Blue Moon abruptly straightened up, but they didn’t say anything in protest. Given their status, this was natural, but…

Was it really a good idea to have Schwarz serve his strongest brews to a divinity? Would something break?

Her sorrow winked out as Schwarz produced a bottle unwillingly. At the same time, the Blue Moon generated a letter and placed it on the table, before gesturing at the bottle.