Chapter 20: A different view of things

Morgan lay on the bed, gazing up and lost in thought, when someone sat beside her, startling her. She turned to see Serena.

"Oh, you're the youngest. What brings you here?"

"Can I ask you a question, Morgan? Oh, by the way, my name is Serena."

Morgan smiled faintly, patting Serena's head. Looking at her reminded her of her little sister.

"Sure, what is it?"

"Why are you being intentionally cruel to Hibiki and Miku?"

"Why do you think that?"

"Well, if you really hated them, you would have left Hibiki to be attacked by Miku's beam. And you didn't finish Miku in one hit like you did Hibiki. So, I was wondering why?"

"You're rather sharp, even though you look very fluffy, huh?"

Morgan gazed into Serena's eyes, seeing her little sister's figure staring back at her with the same expression, which made her sigh.

"It's to prepare them for the future. Even though they're enjoying a moment of peace now, it's only a matter of time before the invasion from the parallel world comes here."

"Oh, yeah, the Karma-Noise, right? What's the difference compared to normal Noise?"

"You know that once Noise attacks a human, they either disappear or the human disappears alongside them, right?"

Hearing this basic knowledge, Serena nodded, confused about where this was going. Morgan stared at her intently.

"But Karma-Noise is different. They don't disappear when attacking normal humans."

"Wait, Morgan, does that mean—"

"Yes. Their numbers don't decrease unless a Symphogear user kills them. In fact, there are so many of them, and they're even stronger than normal Noise. Regular attacks won't kill them, so you have to be creative or use a big attack against them."

Serena grimaced. She remembered what Morgan had just said to Hibiki and Miku during their training fight, but she also recalled something more sinister.

"Wait, on that world, the only Symphogear users were Morgan and Hibiki, right?"

"Yup. There used to be four of us, but the other two fell when we were betrayed by the country. They decided to side with the attackers instead."

Serena closed her mouth, gasping softly. While it wasn't strange for countries to betray each other for their own interests, betraying their only defenders was something Serena couldn't comprehend.

"Are there any more questions? Because it looks like something important needs my attention now."

Morgan said this as she gazed toward the door, where Fine was standing, watching them.

"Ah, then I'll take my leave. Morgan, oh, and please be kind to others next time."

"So, the talk is done?"

"Yes, and since you're here, have you managed to fix Aegis?"

"While yes, I have managed to fix it, the alchemy girl they brought has an interesting proposal. I wanted to ask for your opinion about it, and maybe borrow the Holy Grail as well."

"That depends on what kind of interesting thing it's going to bring."

"The Ignite Module system."

"Ignite Module?"

"Apparently, that girl's name is Elfnein. Though, upon inspecting her, I found something even more amusing. That girl doesn't even realize she's being controlled. What's more, she's carrying Dvergr Dáinn's legacy. It's been ages since I've heard that name. Still, for him to have that kind of relic hidden, as expected from him."

"An acquaintance?"

"Not really, no, but he's one of those you could call a mad scientist."

"I see. Then, what is this system supposed to do?"

"A power-up. What's more, it gives the relic crystal slightly more resistance to that new enemy Mei called Alca-Noise."

"I see. That sounds like good news, so why ask for mine as well? The Holy Grail, besides giving it more power, would only raise the synchronization level that Mei will have a hard time catching up to."

"Don't worry. The power-up is just a term for allowing the user to use the Ignite Module, and it's being sealed with three seals as well, so it should be okay."

"Well, you're the expert here, so I will trust you. Though, giving you this means I won't be of any use in battle."

"Don't worry. I already made some LINKERs, so those girls can finally have their opportunity to fight."

"Good, then, since they need to learn before they're invaded."

"Well, if what you said is true, it makes me nervous about leaving Mei to go with him."

"Don't worry, I will be staying with him, and who knows? Maybe with this new system, I can finally speak with Mei directly."

"Yeah, I will make sure of it."

Then, Morgan slowly held her hand open in front of her, making a serious face. Sweat started forming on her face, and a crystal started to emerge from her hand, forming the usual relic crystal before Morgan finally fell onto the bed.

"Well, I'll leave the rest to you since I'm tired now."

"Fufufu. Don't worry, leave it to me. I'll make sure I can finish it up fast."

"I will take a rest for now."

Morgan proceeded to sleep as Fine looked at Morgan with a fond smile before her expression turned to anger, but she slowly went out of the room before Morgan noticed it.

"I won't forgive this matter."

Leaving that word behind, she slowly headed toward the research room where Elfnein was repairing the other Symphogear relic.

Morgan, still in bed, gazed slowly at the ceiling. Even though they were inside a submarine, it was larger than normal, reminding her of the project Fine had planned to build in her original world to evade pursuit. In the end, however, they were being chased before it could be completed.

Growing bored, Morgan slowly walked out of her room, though her pace was much slower than usual. She was still tired from having her relic crystal removed. It brought back the feeling of when she was merged with Mei. Still, this was how a normal human felt, and the drawback of being a regular human again was dawning on her.

While walking, she went to the simulation room instead. When she saw the settings, she slowly looked around and saw a nostalgic one: the stage where she began her first idol activity. Then, she stopped, her gaze fixed on one scene: the view of Bali, where she met Mamoru. That place also housed one of Fine's homes, where she would go to upgrade her Symphogear.

Clenching her hand, she slowly walked toward Fine, waiting for the repair to be done.

When I woke up, I noticed I was in the medical room, which struck me as strange. Then I remembered that Alca-Noise had managed to wound the relic in my chest as I was tanking their attacks. Tsubasa's relic was destroyed, but surprisingly, I was alone this time. Neither Tsubasa nor Maria was anywhere to be seen.

This was good news, since they had become too close recently. But then the door opened, and speaking of the devil, Tsubasa, Maria, and Kanade were there. Now that I think about it, after the Alca-Noise first appeared, they temporarily retired from their idol activities, especially Tsubasa, as she was focusing on Noise-related business.

I wondered why Tsubasa didn't immediately jump at me when I woke up from a critical situation, which made me wonder if it was because Kanade was here. If that was the case, then I would be happy, but then Maria opened her mouth.

"You're Mei, right?"

"Yes? Why do you ask, Maria?"

But before I could get an answer, Tsubasa immediately jumped at me and hugged me tight, which confused me even more. So I looked at the other two. Kanade was raising both of her hands, which implied she couldn't be of help. As for Maria, she was letting out a sigh of relief, which confused me even more.

"Morgan?"

"Yes, Mei. Don't you remember? She said she was in the same world as you before she saved you and became one with you."

Wait, I thought I was making up lies about where my power came from, but why was it becoming the truth? And who is Morgan? Finding out I was having a girlfriend was shocking, and finding out that Fine is my mother is even more shocking. Like seriously, what is happening? How long was I out?

"Well, one thing for sure, what you said now explains everything about why I can become a Symphogear even though I am a man. But still, I'm Fine's son, huh..."

"Looks like you indeed don't remember, but the question is, how much do you remember?"

"Well, for now? I don't think of a thing on what I remember or don't anymore, beside to think I was having a girlfriend and it was the paralel world Hibiki is wild but still if what Morgan said is true than my world is already being conquered unless the timeline of the paralel world is the same since every paralel world has different timeline after all."

"Oh yeah, Mei, your relic has already been repaired. It has an Ignite module installed as well, though funnily enough, Fine is the one who did it, as she didn't allow anyone to even watch her do it. She really treats you special, huh..."

"Ignite Module? Then is Elfnein already on this submarine?"

"Yes, in fact, she is now in the middle of a collaboration work with Fine for the rest of the relics. The ones who are now ready for battle are you, Tsubasa, Chris, Hibiki, and Maria. But Hibiki hasn't been upgraded yet, as she was waiting."

"How about the others?"

"Miku got ambushed by those fuckers, and her relic got destroyed. Luckily enough, she woke up earlier than you, so she was continuing school. But Kirika and Shirabe weren't doing well, as they were forcing themselves when those Autoscorers ambushed Miku, and they are still in a coma now."

"Well then, I should go on. Since I woke up, I should be able to heal them."

"Please, Mei."

"Don't worry, Tsubasa. I will make sure they wake up."

We slowly approached Kirika and Shirabe, who were nearby.

"Custodire Welt Aegis Zizl."

The transformation began again. I noticed the armor's design was changing, with more gear-like components appearing on my body and hands. Strangely, the weight didn't bother me. I proceeded to heal Kirika and Shirabe, waking them up. They glared at each other before looking away.

"I can guess what happened, but I'll ask anyway: what's going on with you two?"

"It's Shirabe's fault for being too passive; that's how they managed to get Miku."

"No, it's Kirika's fault for being too aggressive, so we couldn't handle it and got hit."

I glanced at Maria, who looked surprised. As expected, she had never seen them fight like this. Though, in the original story, she does see them fight before the second season's finale, but things are already different.

"You know the three roles of a fight, right?"

"Three roles of a fight?"

"Oh, right, this isn't a game. Basically, the three roles of a fight are tanks, support, and attackers. These roles make use of your strong points and help cover for other's weaknesses. While it's important to cover your weaknesses with training, sometimes you don't have the time. So, this was made into the core of any action game."

I raised three fingers.

"The tank's role is basically to be the shield of the group. They will do anything to protect the group from any harm. The attacker is aggressive, attacking the enemies with everything they've got. And finally, support does background jobs to help the tank and attacker do their jobs."

I gazed at the rest of the group. Now that I think about it, I was the only one who played games among all the Symphogear users. Well, it was mainly because of my past life, but it's rare for girls to play computer games in the first place, so it's not a surprise. Though, somehow, I feel like Kanade, Shirabe, and probably Hibiki would like playing games.

"Which of the three do you two think is most important?"

"Attacker."

"Supporter."

Kirika and Shirabe glared at each other again, having different answers, but I let out a sigh.

"The answer is none."

My answer confused them. I gazed at Kanade; she was confused as well. Though, somehow, Maria and Tsubasa were just silently watching me.

"Like I said, right? It's basically to cover your weaknesses, which means when you have fewer weaknesses later on, you know what to do in any situation. For example, look at me and how I used my relic. You probably think Aegis can only be used to protect, but I often use it as an attacker and supporter for you all."

I slowly manipulated my shield, changing its shape.

The more you master each role, the fewer weaknesses you'll have. Understanding each role's function allows for more creative approaches in-game. For example, while Shirabe's saw can be used as a

shield, its effectiveness is limited. The same goes for Kirika's scythe, requiring creative application.

Similarly, with relationships and problems, consider perspectives beyond your own. Think about how Shirabe would react to a situation, or how Kirika would handle a particular problem. Taking the time to understand and empathize with others strengthens bonds and effectively eliminates your weaknesses.

Kirika and Shirabe fell silent, watching me. I felt Kanade grinning, and Maria had already produced a notepad from who-knows-where and started writing. Tsubasa simply nodded slowly, a small smile on her face.

"Basically, forcing your opinion on someone without understanding their situation leads to conflict. Occasional clashes are fine, but persistent misunderstanding can escalate to what happened long ago."

"Which is?"

"War."

My answer silenced them all, which was typical.

"Especially in the past, when differing ideologies clashed, the result was either understanding or war, because neither side would accept or even learn about the other's ideology. So, now that you understand all that, you'd better make up soon. I won't tell you how, because I don't understand the specifics of your problem."

With that, I slowly left. Kanade was grinning at me the whole time, which irritated me slightly, but I let it go. I needed to focus now. I had the Ignite Module, meaning Carol's plan should be moving forward.