"There are many things I want to talk to you about, but now isn't the time." I gesture out of the window, but he doesn't turn his head as if already understanding what this is about. "What does your master plan to do against this?"

Flann told me that Mithra has to serve the most powerful Crawling Chaos in the universe, which happens to be Mataku - whenever the cosmic-scale one doesn't peek in on us. So the Primordial Terror isn't his actual master but rather the bratty kid he needs to obey by default. In other words, his true agenda in all this is still unknown to me.

"He thinks of temporarily stopping the moon and dealing with the one responsible for it." The magician in blue replies without hesitation.

"How does he want to achieve that?" Some ideas buzz around in my mind, but I'd rather hear what the other side has planned.

"By gathering enough mass to do it physically." And once again, Mithra answers with no doubt in his voice.

"Hold up." I rub the bridge of my nose. For having lived that long, that's what Mataku came up with? Could there ever be enough biomass on this entire planet for him to ingest that he could grow to a size that would allow him to hold up the moon? "Is he serious?"

"He is still working on it." For the first time, I hear a hint of wryness in Mithra's voice. It seems that he's not very happy with the Crawling Chaos he has to follow.

"I could do it." Tokomaha suddenly comments. She has been silent during the whole meeting, and only now speaks up. I stare at her, wondering what she means.

"Do what exactly?" I seriously doubt that she can grow a tree capable of stopping the moon. There's a massive difference between a diameter of ten kilometers and one of over three thousand kilometers. And she only managed to stop the one over Zohigal because Aurelia was able to hold it still for a moment.

"Grow to the size that allows me to stop the moon." She replies with an expression that suggests her answer is obvious. Everybody stares at her, unsure what to think of her words that brim with nonchalant confidence.

"Are you sure about that? We only have one shot." If she misjudges things, everything will end. After all, this plan involves letting the moon come close enough that something standing on the surface of this planet can contact it. Usually, the moon is nearly four hundred thousand kilometers away, but that plan would require it to come within a few thousand kilometers.

"I can only tell for sure when the time comes." Tokomaha shrugs in a total lack of responsibility. If she can't do it, then the planet is going to be destroyed.

"How will you do it?" Leaning over toward her, I inquire with a skeptical expression. I don't know how her personal imagination works, but it doesn't seem to obey any laws of physics. The clones she creates only require a little matter to be fully flesh and blood humans. They have all of her physical characteristics but return to the dirt and leaves they're made of when taking too much damage.

It wouldn't be funny if she does catch the moon, but her body comes undone because of the impact.

"I could show you." The little goddess stands up from her seat and points outside the window toward the grassy Fields of Huwinn. Exla didn't have much time here, so all she managed to do was make grass sprout where the land used to be completely arid.

"The moon is far beyond the scope of this immediate area." I know from maps that the Fields of Huwinn are a few dozen kilometers across, with the entire Herelier desert being about ten times that size. That's only a small area on the surface of the moon.

"I can imagine that much." Tokomaha remarks with a click of her tongue, which I would have almost flared up at. Then I realize her wording and chuckle to myself. "Huh, what is it?"

Maybe she didn't notice it herself, or she thinks I'm making fun of her, but I extend a hand and pet her leaf hair. She doesn't push me away but still looks at me with an inquisitive gaze, not letting me off the hook.

"It's alright. I trust you." Putting all my confidence into it, I give the little goddess a warm smile. Then I turn to the others. "Alright, we need to figure out where the moon is going to land. Senka, go to the astronomy lab and help them figure it out. Keep in contact."

The doll girl nods wordlessly, knowing that this isn't the time for one of her quips. Without waiting for anything more from me, she jumps up from her seat and rushes out of the room to fulfill her role.

"Maid Corps." I turn to Rewera and address the maids in general. They nod in affirmation, but I pause for a moment to think about my words carefully. I can't go back on my trust in Tokomaha moments after agreeing to place everything on her little shoulders, but preparing for the worst isn't a sign of weakness. "Deploy the shield array around Arkaim."

Everybody's faces turn aghast, as they realize the implication in my words. But not a single one complains. They know that twelve hours - or half a day as I explained it to them - is too little time for much else. There's no way we can warn all of the Dominion, let alone the rest of the world. My order is for at least the capital and its inhabitants to be protected in case our countermeasures fail.

"As You command, Your Majesty." Rewera declares with a bow, not a hint of worry on her face. The members of the Maid Corps are inspired by her attitude and follow her example.

Over the past half a year, the maids have learned to use the light magic barrier, as ironic as that is. They each can shield enough space to cover the entire castle, and with seventy-three of them, the whole city can be covered under a dome. They've been practicing it in case Alverost comes here with a new Death S*ar and tries to hit me where I can actually be hurt.

This way, at least this city can be protected from the wave of death that will roll across the planet no matter where the moon impacts. Who knows what else will happen after, but at least Arkaim should survive the initial shockwave.

To my surprise, Tokomaha doesn't complain. She believes me when I said that I trust her. Even then, her stopping the moon could still cause a shockwave or any other sort of aftereffect on the surface of the planet.

"I'm going to tell Exla." I stand up from my seat and ready myself to leave through the window, but Kamii's crab arm grabs my wrist.

"What about me?" She asks with upturned eyes. Hestia is looking at me as well, wondering what her role in all this should be. It's sad to say, but neither of the two can contribute to this. The angel girl does understand that this is a scale far beyond what she can handle. Aurelia's closed eyes imply that she has come to the same conclusion about herself.

But then I realize that Kamii isn't asking about how she can help stop the moon or protect the city. She simply wants to be by my side during all this, no matter how it turns out. I glance at Hestia and Aurelia, and then Tokomaha. One could say that their individual power levels are a reflection of the leaps and bounds that my opposition took during my life in this world so far.

Only the little goddess is capable of lending a definite hand in this particular matter.

"All of you should come with me." I declare with a warm smile. It pains me to deceive them like this. When I meet Exla, I'm going to leave those who won't be able to survive if things go wrong to be protected by her. I'm sure she can keep them safe even when the planet is destroyed. "We'll do this together."