Natsumi's reaction may have been conflicting at first, but it was soon more one sided dread than anything. Having experienced Yuki's territorial nature first hand, she of course still loved her more than anyone else in the world however, she was very aware of how one should respect her boundaries. Usually, she liked to think Yamato was the problem. But in this case, there was one clear obstacle and that was Yuki. Without the shadow of a doubt. Though, how doomed they were still depended on how deep they planned to enter into the Absolute Citadel.
"Uh… When you say break into… What do you mean by that? Because the lower section is public access for church activities. If it's just that then—"
"—You are well informed! But no, we need to go into the main tower! Possibly even into the sphere at the top, though that is more of an emergency thing because it'd be way harder that way."
"And why?"
"That's where Fred's work comes into play! Take a look at this!"
"T-that's…!"
A blueprint of the Absolute Citadel in all its glory. Leo pinned it on the board next to the drawing, where it displayed the interior of the midsection of the Absolute Citadel. Natsumi had seen Yuki only ever keep these papers in her personal room, or in the Sphere, though they ended up on the floor in these places every now and then, it was without a doubt something impossible to obtain. Yet, here it was. Fred seemed to be anything but ordinary, for him to obtain such a thing, unharmed no less. Natsumi saw this group with new eyes as of now.
"As we can see clearly in this section, the crystal at the top is being repulsed by another crystal at the bottom of the Sphere. But interestingly enough, both crystals have no actual access point. Originally, we thought they may be a weak spot within the structure since the outer material everywhere else seemed impenetrable. But that plan goes right in the trash now. What we have instead, is a teleport circle at the bottom of the middle section of the Citadel, connected to the Sphere, and Cube. Though we found no blueprints for the cube, we know there must be at least one section above the publicly accessible area, since Fred measured the inside and compared it to the outside. Meaning our in is through the Cube, the top floor specifically, where we can enter the middle section through the teleport circle there."
"…You still didn't say what we want there?"
"I was getting there. In the middle of the mid section, there is a specific room right here on the map. It features something like a vault, or trophy room. We need a specific item that we know for a fact to be there, with which we can invalidate the emperor's entire reign."
"…"
"…We are doomed… I know the exact room they are talking about. Their understanding of it is not wrong but… I don't know of a single item in their that could invalidate Yamato or Yuki's authorities… And worse, that teleport circle is on the same floor as Yuki's room. If she even as much as hears one of them breath she will kill all of them on the spot, if not worse… But they speak so confidently of something being there, and I haven't been in there for a while, so maybe something changed… But all that aside… How did Fred get in possession of these plans in the first place? They should be on Yuki's chambers, as I saw them there when I accidentally entered them when I was lost. After I escaped Yuki's attempts to kill me, she made it clear that I shouldn't go in there ever again… But to make sure, she installed a special lock with a key only Yamato and she have. So how would anyone, no matter how sneaky, get past that? Is it okay for me to just ask? That seems rude… But if he got in there once, he might be able to get us into the mid section as well."
"So, what do you think, Natsumi?"
"I… Uh… This is a bit much… But the way you explained it makes it seem somewhat possible. But even if there was such an item there, we still have the problem of having to get from the public section of the Cube into the upper floor."
"Which is where you might come in handy."
"M-me!? What would I know of that kind of stuff?"
"You tracked us down in here. Can you also track down where exactly the passage is between public and upper section?"
"I— Maybe, I'm not sure?"
"Well, it's worth a try, don't you think? Meanwhile, I'm going to check out a lead on something else that might be helpful. Clars sill go with you. We didn't expect you to do this by yourself, don't worry."
"L-like, today?"
"Preferably. Or are you still exhausted? Tomorrow is fine too, if you need the time. Just tell me beforehand, okay?"
"R-right… No, today is fine…"
"What is going on… Am I helping them kill themselves here if I don't stop them? I don't want them to die… But I'm also not 100% sure that it's impossible anymore…"
Though she was still uncertain, going along for now seemed to be the safest bet. She had until the preparations were done to decide whether it would actually have a positive and meaningful impact to further support this small group. Beginning her journey with Clara, Natsumi was of course unable to use the flight with which she had come to this city, and was instead forced to travel via carriage, a first time for her. Despite being invulnerable to anything that could realistically happen during their drive, she was nervous throughout the entire thing. At being questioned about it, she just claimed that she got travel sick. One of her better lies. Arriving at Yukimato, she remembered how the town had looked before the creation of the Absolute Empire, where it was not even called Yukimato yet. The town truly was not recognizable. The entrance gate was further away from the center since the town had grow in circumference, the buildings themselves were modernized, and everything seemed cleaner in general. Even though she knew all this already, it was only now that she entered through the main gate that she truly realized this. Another point that made her doubt criticism of the Absolute Empire to be justified. Clara on the other hand did not seem to care or notice for things like that, which she could not be blamed for, since she never knew how bad this town and its people had it in the past.
But now Natsumi realized another issue, she was farily known in this town. Not just known as kind either, but known as one of the three angels. Naturally, she might get approached by people with pure intentions, with it ending in her cover being blown. Luckily, she was no stranger to disguises, and so she quickly altered the color of her hair with magic to brown, to be as inconspicuous as possible. Most people in town had brown hair after all, and white probably stood out most.
"So you know that kind of magic as well? But why change your hair color?"
"It sticks out, doesn't it? And I don't really like wearing hoods… Also, don't expect too much of my magic. I just know some neat tricks like this one."
"Okay, I will keep it mind. Do you need anything for when we get to the Cube?"
"No… I will try my best, but again don't expect too much of me…"
"I'm not sure if I can believably pretend to stumble over the probably heavily reinforced and locked passage… It's behind the speech stage as well, where the audience isn't even close to."
"No pressure. We knew it was a long shot, and we originally didn't plan with you anyway."
"Ah, thank you. But I will still give it my all."
"Of course. Now come, we are here."
As they stepped out of the carriage, they, like everyone and everything else, were of course dwarfed by the Absolute Citadel. Though Natsumi had seen it plenty of times, even usually living, eating and sleeping inside it, it felt completely different right now. Because she felt like a foreign object, that did not belong or was not welcome within its walls. And above all else, it felt dangerous.
"How quickly things can become alien again, in the blink of an eye…"
Of course, Carina would most likely be inside, so crossing paths with her would have to be avoided at all costs. Luckily, it seemed she was already preparing inside, and not greeting people at the entrance as she sometimes did. So as they entered, they quickly went up to one of the higher viewing galleries, the third floor seeming high enough. Just on time for today's noon praying session to start. Natsumi was a bit curious to see how this would unfold, since she never witnessed these events herself. She was however very much aware of how well they worked. Using Yamato's broadcasting tech, they seemed to have added speakers throughout the Cube, making Carina's voice audible from every seat perfectly clear.
"I welcome you all to todays noon session. Everyone who was here at the morning already, and is now again, or all those that just now found the time and missed the earlier one, I thank you for coming. God thanks you as well, of course. However, today I'd like to take a bit of time before we pray to inform you of a wonderful act our God has once again blessed this world with. This session might therefore take a bit longer than usual, I do hope that is alright with you. Do feel free to leave a bit early if you have other responsibilities to attend to. Anyhow, in his infinite compassion and grace, he has once again personally saved a soul while on diplomatic duties, proving once again that finds time for every person in need, and still fulfilling his own duties in the process. During a diplomatic peace meeting with the other nations of the continent, under which the Naru Empire with whom we had disagreements in the recent past, there was a confused soul, wandering into the meeting with disruptive intent… Please give a round of applause for… Aisha!"
From behind the stage, Aisha walked up next to Carina, like a cameo on a reality show, Natsumi thought.
"Hello, everyone. It's true, I was confused and misguided, causing more trouble than our holiest emperor deserves…"
"That does sound serious… But what could trouble our glorious God in the first place, I wonder? Surely, it was something beyond our comprehension, am I right?"
"That's right… Because, you see, I am not human, despite looking the part. I am actually a Djinn."
The crowd seemed uneasy at that, though Natsumi did not feel as though Carina was losing control of the situation. Quite the opposite, in fact.
"Wow, a Djinn… That does sound scary… I'm sure all of you think so as well. They are powerful, there is no doubt about it. But there truly is nothing to worry about. After all, we are blessed. And whoever God chooses to bless, must be one of us, yes? So let us hear this brave souls story to the end."
"Thank you… Yes, I, a Djinn, foolishly attempted to trick and beat the emperor, not knowing he was God, as I was blinded by my own selfish desires… But, as I should have expected, he beat me at my own game, truly besting me where I was my strongest… But instead of punishing me, he was willing to show me mercy. Not even just that, he forgave me, and helped me protect a dear friend of mine as well as myself, after selflessly wishing me free… At my confusion, wondering why he would not wish for infinite power or control, he merely responded that such power was too dangerous to be left unattended, and he had no need for such oppressive force. Furthermore, he decided that all dangerous wishes made to other Djinn's should first be passed through him, effectively ensuring no other corrupt person can ever abuse my races gift ever again… That is when I knew, that I found the one to devote my life to… I'm so glad to see I am not the only one who can see his divine light to guide us all, and have us feel that divine warmth for merely being in his presence!"
As the Cube actually did get warmer, though as Natsumi noticed only through something close to an heating device working on magic and emitting weak heat waves, the crowd had already erupted in applause and awe, with Aisha disappearing behind the stage again.
"Now then, let us pray and thank him for watching over us… If you look up, you may actually see his kindness shining through the ceiling, up there where he resides and ensures our protection…"