“Allison, James, do you believe this story?”

Dinner came around quickly once school was out for the day. Kye was dreading it but hoped she could avoid a disaster with James being in the loop. Layla had just finished questioning Kye and Alethea and received the full explanation. Layla was not convinced, but just hearing the name of the goddess was enough to get her attention.

“Reincarnations that work for Goddess Eve?” Layla’s frustration was apparent. She sat leaning over the table on her elbows with her fingers crossed. She began mumbling to herself. “It can’t be true, but they know the goddess’s name. It’s unthinkable. My sixteen-year-old daughter knows of Goddess Eve.”

Layla knew Kye was special since the day she was born. Kye’s display of white aether as a baby was evident enough. From their perspective, the girl was a combat genius beyond her years, created dozens of spells, and invented a method of enchanting manasteel with aether that was beyond anything they knew of across any of the ten universes. Layla was the proudest mother around, but now she was being told her daughter is an ancient soul that has reincarnated into different worlds and lived countless lives. Kye’s accomplishments made more sense if that were true, but it was still a fantastical story to the Barrett siblings.

“Layla, calm yourself,” Allison said. “We discussed possible outcomes the moment you told us she mentioned the word ‘aether’. The evidence is in her favor.”

“White mana, immeasurable mana capacity, insane combat abilities, knowledge of spells not even taught in the academy...” James said. “The list goes on. Kye has forced us to rethink our common sense at every juncture of her life, and she’s only sixteen. She even knows of the other five universes. How could a sixteen-year-old girl possibly have that information?”

“There is no way to obtain knowledge of the other universes normally,” Allison said, and she was right. Within the first five universes existed no books, documents, or any evidence at all that any other universes existed. Only a select few people had that information, and it was dedicated to memory. Allison and her siblings were among the few that knew, and that information wasn’t a royals-only secret. “There are less than ten people that know of the other worlds.”

Allison, James, and Layla openly discussed the revelation that Kye had given them. Allison was skeptical but favored belief, James believed it, and Layla was skeptical favoring disbelief.

“We need proof,” Layla said.

“Umm,” Alethea said. “I know of the other universes as well. I can tell you the names of some nations that exist within them.”

“As can I,” Kye said.

“Name at least two and write them down where you cannot see each other’s answers,” Layla said, jumping on the chance to get proof. A few moments later, she read the names. She was shocked at the accuracy. “From Lady Liya’s universe, there exists two planets in parallel. Nations on one planet include Erendell, Ljosalfheim, and Aevaron. From Lady Kyra’s universe, notable places include Seraph Island, the Kingdom of Aurelin, and the Vault of the Void. Lady Katriel, Lord Kadmiel, Lady Eliana, Lord Elais... they’ve even listed Archmage Lanrathor and Elf Lord Calithil.”

“That settles it. It’s impossible to travel to any of those universes right now. It’s unthinkable for anyone in the first five to know they exist, much less know those names.” Allison sipped her tea, undaunted by the revelation. She had already suspected there was something unusual about Kye and was not surprised to discover the reincarnation story.

“And it seems Liliana and Aliana have known for years,” James said.

“Yes,” Kye said. “I explained everything to them when we were eight, shortly after returning from the trip to Arslade.”

“And you also understand what aether is?” Layla asked. “Not divine mana… aether.”

“Yes. I’ve experienced it in many of my past lives.” Kye’s body and eyes glowed white in an instant. “I’m no stranger to manipulating it.”

Layla sat back in her chair, staring at her daughter and taking a moment to gather her thoughts.

“Though I must admit, this white aether is new to me. I can control it similarly, but it feels different.”

“It’s the same for me,” Alethea added. “I’ve never encountered white mana or aether before, and it feels different to me, too. It feels...” she looked at the blonde next to her wondering how to describe it, “pure.” Kye nodded.

“I don’t know if this is good news or bad news,” Allison said. “If you are champions sent by Goddess Eve, then the problems that have been arising lately are likely not random and we can expect more. That gives us an advantage we did not have. We can prepare. The entity you must eliminate is a concern. If it’s something that warranted sending the two most powerful champions, then it may very well be beyond even my own abilities. At the moment, you two aren’t even a drop in the pond compared to me, but you say your mana reserves are greater than mine.”

“Yes,” Kye said. The look on Allison’s face was one of uncertainty. To Allison, she had no rivals. There was none who could come even close to her, yet she was being told that the two sixteen-year-old girls in front of her possessed more mana than her.

Allison grinned as she thought of the possibilities. “Most importantly, we need to find out how powerful you can become.”

“Yes, that is very important,” James said as he turned his eyes back to Kye. “Can you tell us your upper limit?”

“No, but I can at least give you enough to estimate,” Kye said. “The only real factor holding us back is the strength of our physical bodies. And I should be clear about our power. Our souls hold an enormous amount of mana and aether built up over millions of lives, but we can only draw as much as our bodies can handle. The main advantage is we do not need to train for capacity. I know how to train, as is evident from my score in the exam today and that was the orb drawing it inefficiently.”

“Inefficiently?” James said with a raised eyebrow. “Elaborate.”

“Summon an orb, please.”

James did as Kye asked, and she placed her hand on it. The result showed 95000K. This time, Kye prevented the orb from trying to measure her capacity so that it wouldn’t break.

“I was having trouble believing it, but now that I’ve seen it for myself…” James said.

Kye nodded and touched the orb again, this time controlling the flow of mana precisely like when she fought Elizabeth. The orb read 275M. Again, Kye blocked the orb from measuring her capacity to prevent it from shattering. Layla, James, and Allison were all equally shocked.

“You managed to increase it by three times without using any sort of ability?” James said. “That was solely your own mana control?”

Kye nodded and Allison said, “Your experience is evident.” Layla agreed.

“You’ve completely shattered expectations. I wasn’t expecting even a tenth of what you scored in class, and here you are reading even higher. With light mana no less! We don’t even know what you can do with white mana. Alethea, your score was significantly lower than Kye’s. Did you restrict your mana during the test?”

“I did. I held back a lot to keep from breaking the orb a second time, but it broke anyway.” Alethea wanted to apologize for breaking two orbs, but dinner wasn’t the right time. She didn’t expect to be told it was fine without an apology; James explained that the orbs were always replaced after each class anyway and they had plenty of spares. She measured herself properly like Kye just had and received a result of 270M. She pouted, having come a little short of Kye’s score. Kye smirked at the pink-haired girl.

“Anyway, now that we know this, we can properly discuss some things,” Layla said. She looked at Kye. “Do you mind telling us everything the goddess told you before you came here?”

“I didn’t have a very long conversation with her this time. You already know everything she said. I’m here on a mission to eliminate an entity and I don’t know who or what that entity is. It was implied that certain people are important, such as the Drachenheim group, but I don’t know why.” Kye shrugged, unable to give them any more information. “Aside from what the goddess told me and the names of a few important figures and locations across the ten universes, I don’t have any information to offer. I don’t actually know anything about those people or places beyond their names.”

“Same,” Alethea added with a nod.

Layla sighed and looked at her siblings. Allison was blankly staring at the ceiling and James was blankly staring at a wall, both deep in thought.

“Well, while those two think about this whole thing...” Layla turned back to Kye. “Kye dear, I have a problem with you two staying in the same room. Even though you were married in that one past life, you are students and not married here.” Layla’s eyes had a look about them that sent chills down all four of the girls’ spines.

“Mother, please, I know it-”

“What would your father say? What would your siblings say?”

Liliana and Aliana gave Kye the most sympathetic looks they could give while Alethea just sat there sweating bullets and hoping not to get called on. Something about Layla scared her. Kye broke eye contact and tried to look anywhere else, knowing that she had no hope of convincing her father or finding any way to explain it to her siblings without losing respect.

“Look, I understand that you want to be with each other now that you’ve reunited, but you have to play by the rules, too.” Layla turned the conversation in a completely different direction, earning the eyes of all four girls again. “There are options, but none of them are available to you immediately. Any of them will take time.”

“When can we marry?” Kye asked bluntly.

“As soon as you are of age,” Layla answered. “While most things are dictated by your legal age, your actual age must be considered for a few things, marriage included. So, after your birthday this December and before you begin your second year would be the earliest you would be allowed to marry. You cannot marry during a school term. While you are still in school, you cannot marry without approval from all guardians involved. Our society is very restrictive on many things. Royals and nobles absolutely cannot elope. If two royals or nobles from different planets are engaged, they must decide which planet to call home. Royal and noble heirs cannot marry out of that nation until another heir is named.”

“So, in my case, Alethea would have to come live in New Tokyo.”

“Given how dead set your father is on giving you the throne, you would have to wait until your heir takes the throne after you.”

Kye slumped back in her chair, dreading the thought of ruling a planet. She had done it before and did not like it. Layla suddenly had a sour look on her face that prompted Kye to question it.

“Hatsumi just messaged me asking about you two. I don’t know how that woman finds out about everything, but she already knows you stayed in Alethea’s room last night.”

“H-H-H-Hatsumi k-knows?”

“You are stuttering?” Alethea said. “I only know her by name, what is she like?”

“She is the spawn of evil,” Kye said with a glum look. Even Liliana and Aliana looked dead in their chairs. “She is...” Kye felt a chill go up her spine while remembering a bit of training she had with Hatsumi when she was younger. “She... she took me into the wilds of Daemonheim and left me to fend for myself for a month!”

“Let’s not speak of that,” Allison said abruptly. She and James had finally come out of their thoughts when Hatsumi was mentioned.

“That bad?” Alethea asked.

“Let’s put it this way,” James said. “The three of us searched that entire month for Kye and we didn’t find her because Hatsumi is such a devious plotter that she left traces on every other planet under our scope. You four have only been to Terra, Alcanus, Drachenheim, Nippon Sekai, and Daemonheim, but that’s just the five capital planets of the thousands out there. Most of them are quite large, and it takes a while to search that many planets. I still don’t know how she pulled it off.”

“Let’s not try to understand the inner workings of the mind of Hatsumi Akari,” Allison said. “There is no understanding that woman. Anyway, what else did she say about Kye?”

Layla began typing in midair to send a response. Once she sent the response, she drew a cross pattern over her chest. “She’s coming to the academy to speak to Kye and Alethea directly as soon as she’s done with whatever she’s doing. There’s no telling how long we have. She’s on the far side of the galaxy. She could be here tomorrow or in five years.”

“That’s quite the range,” Alethea said.

“That’s just how she is,” Kye explained.

“If we’re lucky, you’ll be married before she comes, but I wouldn’t hold out hope for things to go that well.”

Kye nodded and Alethea hugged Kye. “I don’t wanna die!” Kye patted Alethea’s head and embraced her. The three sitting across the table could tell that the love they had was real. Despite now knowing that Kye was an old soul and reincarnated, Layla’s perception was the same. Kye was her daughter, and nothing would change that. She wanted Kye to be happy no differently than her other two children.

Though she was against it, Layla offered a suggestion, “As a compromise, I am willing to allow the two of you to put a door between your suites. We do not allow any monitoring inside private areas, which includes student suites, so you could go between your suites in secret. Before you can do this, I must speak with Atalante. Do nothing before that.” Layla paused for a moment, not wanting to put the rest of her thoughts into words, but she felt it was necessary. “Liliana, Aliana, I have an order for you.” The two perked up after hearing their names. “You will keep these two in check. I understand that you are very close, so I must stress that if these two break my condition… all four of you will be expelled if they are caught. Alethea’s attendants will be told of these conditions as well.”

Layla shifted her eyes between the four teenage girls. James raised his eyebrows, wondering what his sister was doing. Allison sighed with her eyes closed.

“I will allow you two to share a bed under a single condition; only if Atalante agrees to this and your engagement. I am aware of the details of Alethea’s transition. You will not under any circumstances become sexually active. Your relationship will be strictly platonic. This applies until you graduate this academy, even if you marry before then. This is the bare minimum and is not negotiable. I would not doubt that Atalante will have her own conditions if she agrees to any of this. Understood?”

“Yes, ma’am,” the four said together.