"Experiment with all possibilities, and only then can we come closer to the truth, right?"

Turing had a splitting headache; she pressed her temples with a grim expression on her face.

She realized she couldn't think any further.

"Closer to what truth?"

"Aren't you just using angels as tools to maintain power?"

"Nice way to put it."

"If it weren't for your insatiable greed, would you have faced Mother's revenge?"

Gabriel furrowed his brow deeply.

"You think this is revenge?"

"Are you kidding me?"

"Revenge should have ended in the laboratory that day."

"You're the one seeking revenge..."

Gabriel glanced at Turing and retrieved the parchment from his pocket.

"Here's some advice for you."

"When you have the chance, check your brain."

"Your narrow mind is almost depleted by your mother's influence."

Gabriel picked up his pipe from his waist, lit it, and took a deep puff.

"Once you've recovered, leave quickly."

"The fireworks festival is about to start."

"The McNewdeau family can't afford a deity like you."

With those words, Gabriel turned and left, without giving Turing another chance to ask questions.

"Wait!"

"McNewdeau..."

Turing hesitated, calling out to Gabriel, wanting to say something, but not knowing if she should.

"What else?"

Gabriel stopped in his tracks, giving Turing face, and turned to look at her.

Turing trembled slightly and asked.

"I have one more question."

"What is the Forbidden Orchestra?"

"I've seen it mentioned several times on the computers at the institute."

"They also seem to be connected to the destruction of the institute."

"Am I right?"

Turing looked at Gabriel, her eyes shining with doubt.

——————————————————————————

"Mammon sis!"

"Mammon sis! Where are you?"

Merka returned to Erisburg, searching the whole castle for Mammon.

But she found nothing.

"Stop calling."

"Mammon is missing."

Samael leaned against the couch next to Merka, hands resting on his belly, his eyes hiding countless fatigue.

"I messaged her, but she didn't reply."

"She's probably dead."

Merka stared at Samael in disbelief, struggling to find the right words.

"How could that be...she said we still had some time left together?"

"If she's dead, she's dead."

"No need for so many 'whys'."

"We angels are like that, here one moment, gone the next."

"We're not some superior race...angels are just slaves to the Acadia people."

Samael glanced at Merka out of the corner of his eye, tousled her messy hair, and walked towards the window.

"I'm not in a good mood, so just stay in the castle for a while. I'll go out to clear my mind."

"In a few days, you can go to the fireworks festival by yourself. I won't accompany you."

After saying that, Samael jumped out of the window and disappeared.

"Feeling lonely?"

"...No."

"I'm just thinking about why Mammon disappeared."

A shadow emerged from the darkness next to them, eagerly watching Merka's distressed face.

"Just deceive yourself."

The shadow sat down by the desk, playing with the pen that Mammon had left behind.

"By the way, you said your name is Aside, right?"

Merka asked.

The shadow nodded, neither confirming nor denying.

"Where exactly did you come from?"

"Where did Theresa get this little stone?"

The shadow spun the pen around, pondering for a moment.

"...I can tell you that."

"Oedipus planted an undercover agent in Maria's place, did you know?"

"But Maria retaliated against Oedipus in the same way."

"You probably noticed that this person is Theresa."

"She used to be a member of the Forbidden Orchestra and had a grudge against Maria."

"And she has no background, no parents."

"One could say she is the person here with the least suspicion of rebellion against Oedipus."

"And conveniently, she also needed money."

"Where did such a perfect candidate come from?"

"Theresa was just a thorn arranged by Maria in the first place."

The shadow leaned in close to Merka's face and whispered softly.

"Do you understand?"

"Maria found the mechanical descendents under the stone slab in the Tianqi Mountain Cave."

"A total of twelve pieces."

"She translated the writing on the stone slab."

"Learned the secret and usage of the mechanical descendents."

"The twelve ultimate weapons left by their ancestors to restrain the angels, all fell into Maria's hands."

"And Theresa became the vanguard of her rebellion in Maria's hands."

"Through the newspaper, Maria sent two mechanical descendents."

"One was taken by Theresa."

"And the other, due to her carelessness, ended up in your hands."

The shadow looked at the astonished Merka and nodded with great interest.

"And as for me, I have a special ability to navigate through all the mechanical devices left by the ancestors in Acadia."

"Of course, that includes the mechanical descendents."

"That's why I can appear in front of you now."

"..."

Merka sensed that something was not quite right.

But the answer was on the tip of her tongue, and she couldn't say it no matter how hard she tried.

"Miss!"

"Are you inside the room?"

The crisp knock on the door interrupted Merka's thoughts, followed by Yanling's sweet voice from outside.

"You see, here comes the evidence," she said.

A shadow loomed over Merka's slender shoulder, emitting a seductive whisper.

"Yanling is actually a pseudo human brought out of the laboratory by Oedipus."

"A celestial being implanted with human memories."

"Wanna try if what I'm saying is true..."

"Just implant the divine mechanism on her."

"See how she reacts."

Merka widened her eyes, staring at the sinister shadow, shocked and angry, her trembling lips uncertain of what to say.

"What... what exactly are you saying?"

Knock, knock, knock.

"Miss?"

"You must be tired from the competition, so I brought you some fruits."

The knocking on the door grew stronger, as if urging Merka to make a choice.

Behind the door, Merka's body trembled slightly, unsure if it was from being frightened or excited.

"Surely you don't actually believe Yanling was sent by someone to buy flowers, right?"

"Turing's letter, you believe in it too?"

"In the prosperous Acadia, which parents would sell their children to serve others?"

"Not even to the Altria family."

"Yanling is nothing more than an angel Oedipus placed by Turing's side to monitor her."

"Angels and humans have different physical structures, their brains as clear as computers."

"Extracting their memories is as simple as moving files."

"Oedipus relies on this unlimited power to read her memories with no side effects."

"You think her gestures of goodwill towards Turing are genuine affection."

"In reality, they are just Lucifer's programmed design."