That is not necessary The Jack of Hearts interrupted as the maid began with a gentle smile and voice We can gain a certain amount of information on our own
The Adam scheduled to be born within these hundred years has finally appeared
Mutsuki Fujita the Serpent’s Eye holder mentioned in our last meeting is Adam
Currently he is under the angels’ control and safely retrieving him would be extremely difficult
We know all of that
The Queen of Clubs King of Diamonds and Jack of Spades spoke one after another and the others showed no sign of attacking them for their rudeness It seemed all twelve were already in agreement
My apologies
Despite their overblown complaints the maid’s gentle smile did not crumble
Then Miss A will provide her thoughts on FeTUS’s future plans
At the maid’s insistence the girl finally set down her cup of tea
For a brief moment she seemed to glance toward Machina across from her Machina remained just as silent and expressionless as at school and that was her response to Miss A
She was letting Miss A say what she would
Let me begin with the conclusion
The girl spoke to the floating monoliths that surrounded her as if to intimidate her
From here on maintaining the status quo will be FeTUS’s top priority Fujita Mutsuki will continue to be observed by Miss E and the others currently monitoring him
The twelve cards each gave muffled expressions of surprise Despite the lack of expression on the playing cards the microphones meant to disguise their voices still let through how shaken they were Miss E has already built a favorable relationship with Fujita Mutsuki As such I believe keeping everything as is would be the safest and most reliable method of achieving our ultimate objective
Even as the stir vanished from beyond the microphones the girl continued speaking
The cards replied after managing to at least calm their voices
You mean we have Adam right before our eyesand we will do nothing
Precisely
I cannot accept that From what I’ve heard the demons are already advancing on him You know perfectly well what will happen if Adam falls into the demons’ grasp To achieve our ultimate objective we should secure Adam as soon as possible and even restrain him if need be The Jack of Diamonds moved forward while shouting in anger
That led to several other cards joining the argument to agree
Miss A you have been far too passive lately It was almost certain that Mutsuki Fujita was Adam yet you had Miss E do nothing allowing the angels to snatch him from our grasp It was also your mistaken decisions that allowed the demons to approach him wasn’t it I know you have not forgotten how much money went into locating Adam We investigated every single infant in the world and monitored the six hundred thousand with a possibility of holding the Serpent’s Eye But of all things the angels and the demons found him ahead of usand now I hear all three factions are on equal footing And then you went on to observe without acting which is not like you at all What happened to the vigorous Miss A who supported the history of mankind for centuries
They all voiced their complaints and showed no sign of stopping
Machina remained expressionless throughout the maid’s smile was erased by her annoyance and Miss A sighed and frowned
Those beyond the playing cards were investors who had made large financial or informational contributions to FeTUS the organization led by Miss A
This was a gathering of influential members of large corporations from around the world but the rich being loud and annoying was a global constant And being unable to speak back to one’s sponsors was another such global constant However a hierarchy had been established
Listen
The girl’s heavy voice rapidly silenced the sponsors
Showing respect to one’s elders was yet another global constant Even if this group of twelve owned a third of all the world’s legal currency they could not treat her rudely
Even if all twelve of their large ages were added together they still could not match hers
I am not saying we should do nothing I am saying we need to actively work to maintain the status quo
She glanced to the side and the maid stepped forward The cards moved back after approaching to complain
First I will report everything we know about Adam The maid’s smile had returned We have succeeded in retrieving Adam’s sex cells We have attempted an experiment with the highest known implantation rate but we have learned artificial insemination is impossible The cells closest to god cannot be manipulated with science added Miss A
The monoliths’ microphones picked up another stir
Miss A picked up her cup and took a sip of tea before saying more
That means restraining Adam would be meaningless In fact doing so would only sow the seeds of conflict between us and the angels protecting him
We do not need to fear the angels The report said our Springloaded fought extremely well against the angel acting as Mutsuki Fujita’s bodyguard
Do not forget that Adam is currently held by the angels No matter how well we can fight the results are what matter We lost to the angels last time
And with a demon on the scene another loss would destroy the three-way balance and put FeTUS’s very existence in jeopardy We must act with utmost care
The elder’s composed words mostly silenced the twelve cards
But they still did not accept it There were a few comments of well and but coming in over the microphones
Sigh
The girl sighed because persuading them was proving difficult And
Now Miss A How about this
One of the few cards that had not taken part in the previous argument spoke up The King of Hearts floated calmly forward
What you say is correct When implementing a plan caution is the greatest virtue But I am sure you understand the fact that simply observing has caused us to lose ground
We are at an impasse So how about we compromise by having Black Cat act
As soon as the name Black Cat was mentioned the girl showed surprise for the first time She had been setting down her teacup but it clacked quietly against the saucer
She was not the only one Machina had remained as motionless as a doll but she turned her head to stare at the King of Hearts Finally the maid’s smile vanished again
The monoliths reacted differently they produced laughter
Now that would do nicely Black Cat is a member of the FeTUS Witches so we and Miss A can trust her
And she is quite close to Mutsuki Fujita She would be perfect for dealing with Adam
More importantly no one is more loyal to our desires than her
Wait Black Cat is Miss C is too dangerous
The girl’s previous composure vanished and she spoke with a low groan in her voice but the twelve cards refused to listen and the King of Hearts continued after finding this weakness in the girl
Not to worry The modifications made to her came from the best military technology that my country has to offer after being reunited from its split between east and west Based on our calculations she can take on an angel or even a demon Dr Strangelove said Miss A I am sure you understand that we are not seeking victory in a trivial battle
If our knowledge proves effective against demons as well as angels we will have taken a large step toward our ultimate objective That seems to be a much more beneficial plan than simply monitoring the situation I simply cannot see why you would oppose it It’s almost as if The mocking laughter was obvious even through the microphone
Miss A it’s almost as if you desire this disappointing situation
That finally silenced the girl
Seeing an opportunity the King of Spades immediately spoke loudly to seize the situation
Very good Then we will have Black Cat secure Adam and eliminate his angel bodyguard
Understood replied a new voice in the darkness