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EX CH 3 | Sakura
🕑 Added 2025-06-19 14:50:22 +0000 UTCMu Continent, Fire MOTH branch.
“He wouldn’t…”
Sakura wandered for a long time around the Mu Continent branch, but to no avail. She waited for Aleph’s appearance, for his words that time, yet he did not show up for an entire night.
She was ready to leave the base. Grievances started to pop up inside her mind… yet she could not find herself angry at him.
His explanation during the meeting did not underscale what he faced. Above the starry sky, the Aeons lived. Aleph had to deal with these Gods who can decide life and death in a blink.
Worse, he had to fight against the strongest God of them all. Sakura caught onto a few words such as “Almost affected Earth” and knew it was not easy. Aleph did not elaborate, but she cannot imagine how much he went through to go back to Earth.
As such, it negated most, if not all of her emotions.
If she knew what he had been doing for the past seven days…
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
“I caught up.”
A familiar voice rang from behind. She looked back and it was Aleph. He wore a casual attire that did not fit inside the somewhat tense military base. It is a pair of white t-shirt and shorts with cargo pockets.
No traces could be found on his person.
“I’m sorry for being late.”
“...It is alright. You must have worked on important things.”
“...”
Aleph realized his sins. It weighed heavily on his mind. After all, he is the one who caused it. Neglecting Sakura and spending time in bed with Mei and Mobius…
He realized he must manage his time and priorities well. Every girl around him agreed on sharing him amongst all, but he must maintain that feeling of equality towards all.
Only then will the harem be peaceful.
‘I still have a long way…’
He made sure to take note of this.
Instead of hiding his guilt, he decided to come clean.
“I met up with Mei and Mobius. Spent time with them.”
“...”
Sakura faced his honesty. Her left hand stopped fiddling with her sheathed katana.
After being vague with her for so long, Aleph accepted her feelings. She knowingly accepted the existence of other girls around him.
Still, it came off as somewhat distasteful to personally hear about it.
‘Our first meeting… is just like this.’
Sakura did not get blinded by her emotions. She can still see Aleph’s intention on revealing it. Just like their first ever partnership, he became transparent to gain her trust.
Seeing Sakura pause, Aleph knew he had to do his part.
“Let’s get some breakfast.”
He gently picked up her right hand. The calluses from her sword training were long healed by the MANTIS operation. The perfect integration given by the Evolution Cube only enhanced her good points—appearance.
Sakura snapped out of her daze. She felt his warm touch. Then it struck her.
They are in public.
Public.
Sakura is a known loner who did solo missions. The only time she had acquaintances was during the periodic Flamechaser meetings. She would fight against Kevin and barely defeat him; give Kalpas a beating; and visit Aponia’s orphanage.
Her current sword is something only a few can take on. Aleph left Sasaki’s training card especially for her.
“Are… you okay with it? People will see us.”
“Why not?”
“Hum?”
Sakura thought of the first rumors that appeared. It is publicly known that Aleph and Mei have something between them. Later on, rumors about him and Mobius spread, followed by Vill-V.
Ironically, him being too low-key about Hua saved her from it.
“I mean… won’t your other… women dislike this?”
“I will explain it to them.”
“...If you say so.”
Unknowingly, her grievances turned into bashfulness. Her fox ears could not help but twitch every now and then. Her eyes are in front, but her thoughts centered around the man holding her hand.
“How is Rin?”
Aleph initiated a talk.
“She is getting along with Miss Aponia’s kids. I always bring her over once a week.”
“Oh? That’s good. It’s better for her to have friends at this age…”
Before they knew it, they had already arrived at a certain restaurant. It is one of the best spots within the vicinity of this Fire MOTH branch, therefore it is filled with Fire MOTH employees to the brim.
“Look. It’s…”
“...Sir Aleph? He hadn’t appeared for a while…”
“...dating her too? That makes it three…”
“You’re outdated. It’s already four. Sir Kevin’s vice-captain…”
For a while, Sakura’s fox ears and tails twitched continuously. She kept a straight face without any signs of a blush… save for the human ear hidden beneath her hair.
That’s right. She has two pairs of ears.
It is a side effect of Project Soldier—a somewhat acceptable one.
‘She’s too silent…’
Aleph noticed how she turned silent after entering this place. He took the initiative to break the ice.
“Have you already inherited Sasaki’s Tsubame Gaeshi?”
“Ah? Um. It took a lot of practice.”
When it came to swordsmanship, Sakura regained her focus. It is one of the few topics she took seriously.
“...About the fight you mentioned. How strong was that God?”
Unexpectedly, she steered the discussion to Aleph’s side.
“Strongest of all I met. We are living inside Earth, which is inside the solar system. There is a vast universe outside them all… and that God can affect all universes.”
“Doctor Mei’s theory?”
“Oh? She mentioned it?”
“Um. This world is formed by a huge tree spanning countless eons.”
Hearing Aleph’s answer made her feel helpless. She did not mention anything related to it. Aleph did see through her fake nonchalance, however.
He raised his right hand and showed his pinky finger. In Sakura’s eyes, a red string is tied on his finger. It extended to her own pinky finger.
“Red strings of fate.”
“Looks like you have heard of it.”
“...The legends about love.”
Sakura touched her pinky finger with her other hand. It is akin to a wedding ring… but far more significant.
A warm feeling emerged from her heart.
“I am glad…”
“Hm?”
Aleph listened intently to her.
“...to know you viewed me not as a simple comrade in arms but…”
She did not say the rest of it. All Aleph saw was her smile. Sakura no longer hid her blush.
Before he knew it, he found himself being bashful too. He could no longer look at Sakura without turning red.
“Um. Let’s talk about Earth’s future development. I talked about it with Mei and Mobius.”
His act of moving onto a new topic now seemed cute in Sakura’s eyes.
“What do I need to do?”
“Become Earth’s guardian. There should not be foolish guys out there. I can scare them. But I won’t interfere much with Earth's development. It’s better to let them develop by themselves.”
“Was it the Supers System?”
“Part of it. Oh. I almost forgot…”
Aleph reached out his right pointy finger to her forehead. The sudden contact startled Sakura, manifested by her ears and tails turning straight momentarily.
Moments later, a brand new set of knowledge appeared inside her mind.
“Great Dao… Demigod…”
Sakura sorted out that information as best as she could. It is far more vast than anything she ever knew.
She looked at Aleph in front of her. He is eating a plate of pancakes with relish.
“...Aleph.”
“Hm?”
I will formally introduce you… to Rin. Not as a co-worker…”
To them, the date has just begun.
