"Time" was a commodity that couldn't be bought with money, yet was dearly desired by all.
Usually, with how the universe's situation had been deteriorating, it was impossible to find "time."
Yet, that's exactly what the forces of Beast Emperor Star were soon to gain.
Rose desperately wanted to check on Zara and Alea, but she needed to lead the clean-up procedures so she could gain access to the "time" they'd earned through their desperate struggle.
Clean-up. It was a nice way of putting it, but it was a grueling process.
To collect the corpses of allies and prepare a proper burial for them, to get rid of the corruption of the Nox that spread as they increased their presence in the world, to bring medical attention to those who needed it…
'There's so much to do it almost makes me want to quit.'
Rest was a luxury Rose didn't have access to. This was the fate of a leader.
Until those under her could rest, she couldn't even dream of it.
Other than the most important tasks, there was still much to be done logistically.
They needed to tally their losses and plan for the future, and they needed to understand their current circumstances.
They had to make contact with Luciel and fill him in on the situation, and they needed to fix as much of the damages as they could.
There was simply too much to do.
But no matter how fast she moved, Rose couldn't get her mind off the two women who saved them all.
Where were they now?
They hadn't come down to the surface yet, which made her extremely worried.
She couldn't feel their presence at all, whether through regular means or extraneous ones.
It dawned on her before anyone else.
The consequences of their actions, that is.
Eliminating tens of millions of beings and reconstructing a World Core, even disregarding the spatial displacement of an entire world, these two tasks could not be accomplished easily.
"It'll be okay."
Rose returned her attention to reality when she felt a hand on her shoulder.
Turning her head, she saw Elena and Ruyue looking at her with expressions of understanding.
"Trust them. I'm sure they wouldn't do anything they weren't confident in."
Consequences.
She'd faced them, as had they all.
Every action was accompanied by them, whether good or bad, and at their level, it was impossible to move without accepting them first.
"So trust them," Elena reiterated.
"No matter what they're going through, they'll come back to us. If they couldn't do that much, they wouldn't be the women we know, right?"
Rose looked at her blankly for a second before nodding.
Even if she didn't believe it, she had to try. She had to trust them.
She smiled slightly. It was strained, but it was still a smile.
"It's rare to see you taking up this job," she joked, easing the mood.
Elena rolled her eyes.
"You can be that person for everyone else, but we'll be those people for you. That's how it's always been and that's how it'll always be. Got a problem?"
Rose shook her head, her smile more genuine this time.
"Not at all."
Everyone had a support system. In this family, nobody would ever be abandoned.
Just like Elena and Ruyue refused to abandon her, the three of them refused to abandon their dear little sisters-in-law.
So, they maintained hope.
Hope that those two would come back arguing as they always did.
***
In a dark space, two bodies floated alone.
This place was not the reality they knew, nor the one they created within the Dimensional Prism. It was somewhere entirely different.
Their egos were nearly shattered. The actions they'd taken were far beyond their capabilities, after all.
The Dimensional Prism was made to be used as a final struggle, and it was not meant to be survived.
If used properly by a group of Demigods like those who created it, it could alter the entire flow of reality at their sacrifice.
But Zara and Alea, at their much weaker power level, utilized it, albeit at a scale small enough to maintain balance.
However, sacrifice was still necessary.
It was a miracle that life still flowed through their bodies.
Calling it "life" might not have been accurate.
Something was keeping them alive in a state of suspended animation, but it was not something as pure as life.
It was a dark energy, abyssal and murky, sticky like ink.
The energy of their Demonic Providences that they'd just learned to contain through the blessings they received from their mothers, this energy was now running rampant with nothing to stop it.
It formed two manifestations above their still bodies.
On Zara's side, it was a massive corrupted wolf. Its black wings, filled with feathers of a Fallen Angel, were dripping as if they were melting, and its body was seemingly made of sludge of the same kind.
Meanwhile, Alea's was somewhat more appealing. It was also a wolf, but its form could be made out more clearly.
They mirrored each other like manifestations of light and darkness.
But this was only trickery. Both were equally vile.
And their current goal was…
The possession of their host bodies!
Zara and Alea couldn't put up a single bit of resistance as their bodies were slowly corrupted.
At least, not consciously.
At that moment when the dark beings tried to take control of their minds, two more manifestations appeared in the void.
One was a black wolf with the wings of a Fallen Angel. It had beautiful silk-like fur, nine powerful tails, and a regal yet menacing appearance that would immediately strike fear into the hearts of those who saw it.
The other was its polar opposite, a silver wolf with an unequivocally angelic appearance. It did not have a multitude of tails nor did it have many especially unique characteristics, but its aura alone was so holy those who witnessed its form would kneel in reverence regardless of their beliefs.
The dark beings they opposed were like reflections of themselves, manifestations created from their visages.
However, mere manifestations could never match their true forms.
The two wolves, formed from the bloodlines of their host bodies, looked at each other and…smiled?
They were like old friends who met again after countless millennia.
They ignored the dark beings that were snarling at them like rabid dogs and approached each other.
They nuzzled each other like family, and then, as if agreed upon beforehand, they stood together with their mana interlaced.
A bright flash overtook the void, splitting it into equal parts light and darkness as if mirroring the formation of the universe.
But their goal was not to eradicate these evil spirits.
No, no matter how much they disliked it, these evil spirits were just as much a part of Zara and Alea as they were.
So their goal was only one.
To reign in these powers and make them a part of the sisters' arsenal.
"The time has finally come…"
"The vision he saw…"
They spoke as one.
"…let us put it into motion."
In this separated reality, far beyond the perception of any being living or dead, a massive event occurred.
For the sake of their survival, and under the guidance of Fate that predicted this event long ago, the two Divine Beasts from whom they inherited their blood conjoined their power.
Whether it was for better or worse…
…could only be found by Zara and Alea, long after the process came to an end.
