After Princess descended into the darkness, Angelica surveyed the surrounding. She checked the internal circulation system and arranged the place. She started from dusting the ceiling, to washing the walls, and finally sweeping the floor.

"Why are you doing this?" Canaris said, having walked into her tidying the room.

"It'll be pleasing to her."

"You're a strange android, your mistress as well."

"We're special."

"Are you the same as me?"

"What do you mean?" Angelica turned to Canaris.

"You're content with your position. Are you her childhood friend?"

"We've spent times together. What about you?"

Canaris shifted his gaze to the ceiling, his eyes turning unfocused. "She rescued me from the slave market and taught me life. She never looked down on me."

"She's a wonderful person."

"Forget about it. I'm rambling again." He blushed. His tail wiggled.

"It's good to respect your master. Mistress also saved me."

Without Princess, she wouldn't be alive. Her life would fade away before she even knew she had one.

"Can I ask you about her?" Canaris said.

"You may ask, but I'll report it to her."

"Is it normal for a slave to like their master?"

"Like?" Angelica froze. "As in, affection?"

She glanced at Canaris. He avoided her gaze. "Just admiration."

"A good master makes us admire them. We must strive to be worthy."

"Don't you want to be free? If she abandons you, will you defy her?"

"It won't happen," Angelica said. "But if she decided so, there must be a reason."

"You'll be free."

"This body belongs to mistress." Nobody would want her, except Princess. "What about you?"

"I," Canaris paused, "will always be by her side."

His pause was shorter than Angelica expected. "We're in the same boat."

Canaris turned to look at her, his eyes glowing. "The circumstance force you. I choose my path."

"I'll still follow her."

"What would be your place in her heart, if not for her survival?" he stepped closer to her. "What will happen after this?"

Angelica looked at her surrounding. It restricted her. She could live here, but would mistress want to? Was it right, to confine her in this small vessel?

Angelica stared at the exit where everything belonged. Though she could see it, she couldn't experience it.

"Are you all right?" Canaris said.

"Can you tell me about your master?"

"Why do you—"

"Please." Angelica looked at him, her eyes dispirited.

He scratched his head and nodded. "Her name is Cyania Fultis. She is one of the Arbiters born with a Spirit's Blessing—"

Princess's past was unknown. She never talked about it, and Angelica never asked about it.

"—Her family is one of the Elven Kingdom's nobility, Fultis Household."

She called herself Princess, but Angelica never knew her identity.

"How did she find you?" Angelica said.

"When I was a child, I escaped from a slave market and stumbled into her mansion. She brought me in."

Princess also brought her in and viewed her as a friend.

"You devote your life to her," Angelica said.

"My heart and soul, too." Words slipped out of his mouth. His face turned red.

"Is it admiration?"

Canaris closed his eyes before reopening them.

"No," he said, his mouth forming a smile. "Admiration isn't what I feel."

Was admiration what she felt? "Then what is it?"

Her eyes focused at his mouth. Though she feared the answer, she was eager to know it.

"It's love."

"Have you considered the consequence?" Angelica said, asking both herself and Canaris.

"I don't want to think about it."

"It's a taboo for us and our masters."

"You don't understand."

"You didn't answer my question."

"We'll make it happen."

Angelica glared at Canaris, her eyes piercing into his soul. "Do you wish to tarnish her reputation? Your action has consequences."

He clenched his fists. "I won't give up. I love her, and I'll try my best."

"Even if she didn't love you?"

He smiled. His expression was childishly innocent. "Standing beside her is enough."

A thunder struck her mind. Everything suddenly became clear. The questions she asked weren't for Canaris. She was running away from the truth.

"I'm sorry," she said.

"It's nothing. You help me speak my mind." He laughed, but on his face, tears manifested. "Now we're even."

Angelica tilted her head.

"We both cry," Canaris said as he wiped his tears.

Angelica touched her face, a warm droplet tainting her metallic skin. She cried despite the impossibility.

"Your face is red." Canaris stared at her. "Did you not know you were crying?"

"When did I start crying?"

"When you started asking." Angelica chuckled. She rubbed her face, her hands playing with the transparent teardrops. It was warm and slippery.

"Why don't you tell me about your master? I've told mine," Canaris said.

"Don't feel disappointed by how lacklustre it is." Angelica took a deep breath. "I don't know how I got here, who I was, or what I wanted."

"What do you mean?"

"It's complicated. When I woke up, Princess was already by my side."

"She must be kind."

"She taught me how to use guns, how to use Fons, and comforted me." She was everything.

"Show me," Canaris said, his eyes burning.

"I can only use basic illumination spell. I'm still learning."

Angelica waved her hands and created a trail of soft glow behind their motion. It was mystical, like a flashing star in the vast night sky.

"How envious," Canaris said.

"We've gone out of topic," Angelica said, her face determined. "When—"

Darkness descended as the vessel trembled. The interference field collapsed. Angelica suddenly collapsed on the floor, her body shaking.

"What happened?" Canaris shifted to his battle stance.

"Hold me against the floor. Don't let me see anything," Angelica said, her left hand gripping her chest.

"What—"

"Quick!" It hurt. The pain, the suffocation, and the loneliness assaulted her.

"Tell me what is happening." Canaris forced Angelica against the ground, his claws locking her.

"A Fons battery is in my chest. You need to pluck it out then press the button at the back of my neck."

"That's a deactivation process. You'll disappear."

"Doesn't matter—"

"It does."

"He mustn't know this." Princess would be in danger.

"Who is he?"

"I told you to—" Angelica abruptly screamed, her voice changing from feminine to robotic. "Please do it."

"I can't." Canaris shivered, but he remained firm in his conviction.

A painful silence reigned. Angelica was losing her consciousness. Everything was spinning, her memory, her emotions, and her experience were mixing up. Was this death?

It didn't hurt, but it pained her. She didn't want to go. She felt lonely. Mistress, please pull me up again.

"Are you sure?" Canaris said.

A moment of hesitation passed. Angelica closed her eyes. "Hit me. I need to feel pain."

If she didn't want death, she must face the pain. She mustn't lose, for her sake, for Princess's sake.

Canaris struck her back, forming a dent in it. She screamed. It lasted for an eternity. Only after he stopped forcing her down would she stop. He sat beside her, panting.

"Are you back?" he said.

"My system enters a self-perseverance mode. I won't be able to make any movement, or I'll shut down."

"I'll carry you back." He carefully adjusted her gesture before stopping his movement.

Angelica remained still and listened to her surrounding. She didn't want to risk giving out any information about Princess to the mastermind behind her.

"Someone is coming. I'll go check." Canaris said before he walked away. His footstep faded as the distance between him and Angelica widened.

It was unsure how long she waited, but finally, a series of footsteps approached her. He walked in, dragging something along, and stood beside her.

An unknown object dropped upon her chest, its soft surface caressing her skin. Liquid leaked out from it and tainted her.

"What are you doing?" Angelica said, but no answer arrived. She raised her voice. "Answer me."

No one answered, but she could feel his presence. She opened her eyes.

It was a head, severed from its body. Eyes wide-open, Canaris stared past her into the realm of death. With blood oozing out, she found herself submerged under a pond of blood. Above her, a pale figure stood watching.