Flamira raised her head. Atop the night sky, stars glittered like flickering campfires in the empty darkness. Cold winds glided along the quiet night, crashed onto the ancient mansion in which Flamira lived, and seeped into her bedroom. Its chill reignited her anticipation. She turned around. On the king-sized bed, Serinda and Artium chatted in secrecy. Their topics ranged from Flamira to the weather and everything in between.

"Sister Flamira, don’t you want to sleep with us?" Serinda said. "Are you feeling shy? But we have already done it back then."

"Speaking about that," Artium said. "Your main body’s promised to be gentle with us. She still hadn't fulfiled that promise yet."

"We aren't alone in the wood anymore. We are in Errenia's mansion,” Iris said. “In fact, our identities are that of Errenia's personal maids. We shouldn't even have this big bedroom."

"But it's comfy. If we have the small bedrooms, how will we nuzzle each other?"

"I'm quite certain she arranged a separate bedroom for each of us." Iris sighed. "Aren't you afraid of the rumours? We aren't Monster Girls anymore. We're maids!"

"Yes, we are maids, not Monster Girls. Who would care about our being together?" Serinda smiled. "We aren't like Monster Girls who move according to their desires. We are all girls. This is just a girl thing."

Flamira was about to argue when a spark of Faith in her body flickered. She turned around and went out to the balcony. Her eyes traced from one star to another until she found a modest yet familiar dot of light in the distance. Though she had never seen it before, it resonated with her soul, stirring her emotions.

"What happened?" Serinda said. "Did the stars do something?"

"Since you are both here, come and stand with me." Flamira placed her hands on her chest. "Didn't you miss Iris? She's coming."

Serinda and Artium perked up. They followed Flamira to the balcony and glanced around. The garden and fountains and pavements swept a vast area before them, giving the quiet night a sense of serenity. Unlike the bustling streets of the commoners, the atmosphere around the mansion remained mellow, soothing, singing to its residents a soft lullaby.

"Where is she?" Artium said. "Are you lying, Sister Flamira? The flowers whispered to me. There is no sign of Sister Iris around here."

"Is she one of the maids?" Serinda looked at Flamira. "Or is she already with Errenia, in a sound-proof bedroom, in a whirling night, in a sensuous moment?"

Flamira glared at Serinda, then sighed. "She is not physically here, but our hearts are connected through the stars."

Flamira closed her eyes. The chosen star brightened. It released a stream of pale light, which weaved through reality and twirled around Flamira. A screen of milky vapour manifested around Flamira. A familiar, charming silhouette emerged from its hazy surface.

"Hear me, my most faithful believer," Iris said. "I, Iris, your beloved Goddess, call for you."

Flamira grinned, knelt, and opened her eyes. Her hands clasped into the prayer gesture as her eyes sparkled with a hint of zeal, playfulness, and thoughtfulness.

"My Goddess, my beloved Goddess, your believer has heard your voice," Flamira said. "Oh, Goddess, can you hear my longing?"

Seeing Flamira's feverish expression, Serinda and Artium giggled. They knelt and prayed to Iris.

"Oh, Goddess of Love, please bless me with your gentle touch," Serinda said. "Please shield me from the cold, embrace my lonely heart, and stay with me until I turn to dust."

"Oh, Goddess, please guide me to happiness," Artium said. "Please teach this little flower everything, from the gentlest touch to the most exciting sensation. My dream is yours."

Iris sighed. She adjusted her posture and sat on the chair beside the bed. Starlight peered through the window and illuminated half her figure with milky colour, while the candlelight illuminated the other half warm orange. She followed the method in her mind, which told her to assume the manner of the Goddess, but she didn't know that her other half would tease her like that.

"Please stop, all of you, especially you, Flamira." Iris pouted. "You're me. You know how I feel. Why did tease yourself?"

"Main Body, you need to relax. If you keep everything to yourself, you might break."

"I know what I'm doing." Iris smiled. "Moreover, I have you as my successor. Even if I break, I trust you to piece me back."

"Yes, my Goddess, I shall follow your divine guidance."

"All right, stop. I'll take better care of myself." Iris faked coughing. "Anyway, where are you? Are Lenmia and others here?"

"We didn't meet up. Your other clone has taken them to the Broken Empire. The situation is too chaotic in the Labyrinth; Serinda, Artium, and I escaped to the Tentoid Empire. We're currently at Errenia's mansion as her personal maids."

"Errenia? She's with you right now?"

"Thanks to you, Main Body. She's one of us now."

"One of us? She . . . has already become a Monster Girl?" Iris blushed. "Is she here? I want to ask her some questions."

"She isn't here, but we're here," Serinda said. "Sister Iris, what is this spell? It's too magical!"

"It's a reward from the Legacy Ground. I can teach it to you, but it isn't something you can use." Iris pointed at her heart. "You need to have a trace of Faith inside you. I can barely use it with Flamira, my other self."

"Is this an imitation of the divine prophecy?"

"You can treat it as such. It involves Faith after all." I can’t tell them it’s a method of a Goddess from another world, right? "Enough talk about the spell. You can ask Flamira about it. We don't have much time. I'm still not familiar with this spell yet."

"Then, I'll ask the most important question," Artium said. "Sister Iris, between Serin and me, whom do you love the most?"

"I love both of you equally the most, but that isn't an important question. Be serious!"

"It is important for our hearts!" Artium giggled. "Where are you now? Can you come back to us?"

"Eastern Continent, Garcient Kingdom, Donhalgen. We're a continent apart, separated by seas and oceans."

"How did you even get there?" Serinda said. "And how did this spell connect us despite such a vast distance?"

"It's a complicated story. I'll try to explain as much as I can."

Iris talked about her experience after she parted with them. Of course, all information regarding the Lord and the Foreign Existences were concealed, fabricated, and mystified. In the end, Serinda and Artium understood that Iris survived the ordeal because of the black card and the Puppeteer Token but got forced to escape through an emergency formation by a powerful Monster Girl.

"I didn't know you go through such a dangerous crisis and survive unscratched!" Serinda said. "If I were you, I wouldn’t be able to replicate your feats."

"That's why I need to stay behind. Only I can do it." Iris raised her head and her chest, but she could only stay smug for a few seconds before she realised Serinda and Artium were admiring her bosoms. "Because of me, you get to have a peaceful journey. You should treat Flamira well. She's also me."

"Our journey isn't any less interesting than yours, Sister Iris."

Serinda then narrated her experience after coming out of the Puppeteer Legacy Ground. Iris finally learnt about the Dwellers, the Crusade, the Condensation Phase Monster Girls, and the scene of the legend. She immediately understood that the explosion which threw her off her course was one from that moment.

So it is the Divine and Gulia who swipe their hands and fling me to wherever they desire. The gap between us is so vast that it's almost hopeless.

"Compared to your description, what I've been through is child play. Even a hundred of me wouldn't survive it." Iris shook her head. "One last question: how's the situation over there?"

"No need to worry," Flamira said. "The Tentoid Empire is getting chaotic. The Broken Empire launched an invasion while the Crusade was in operation. The Evil Cults and the Secret Organisations saw the opportunity and stirred up things. The Three Warrior Families and the Holy Royalty have their hands full."

Iris still remembered that the Three Warrior Families and the Holy Royalty constituted the upper echelon of the Tentoid Empire.

"Then, Errenia must be busy. She provided you with a shelter, so help her as much as you can." Iris averted her gaze. Her cheeks vaguely flushed. "Also, give her my thank. Tell her I also think of her sometimes."

"She'll go crazy once she knows that." Serinda laughed. "We heard from her her feeling towards you. You sure are blessed with love and affection, Sister Iris."

Iris ignored Serinda and turned to Flamira, who bit her lips and nodded lightly. Because she was also Iris, Errenia had spent some quality time with her. It was a time of bliss and obscenity. It was unforgettable. Just thinking about it made Flamira feel shy.

"Please endure it a little more." Iris wryly smiled. "I'm glad you all are fine. Let's do our best. The day we can be together once more will come, sooner or later."

"Time's up?" Serinda looked dejected. "See you later, Sister Iris. Though I can't see your expressions clearly, you must be reluctant to part. I am too."

"Take good care of yourself, Sister Iris," Artium said. "Once I get stronger, I'll visit your dream every night. Hold on until then!"

"Please don't. I want to have a good night sleep, not a lewd dream."

Everyone giggled. The hazy vapour distorted and collapsed, dispersing as particles of soft light. Iris vanished into nothingness, leaving Flamira, Serinda, and Artium in the balcony, accompanied by the cold winds of silence.

"I didn't lie, did I?" Flamira said.

"You didn't, Sister Flamira." Serinda grasped Flamira's hand. "Now, I shall reward you. A kiss on the lips sounds reasonable. Don't you think so?"

Flamira tried to grab Serinda's hand, but Artium restrained her other hand. Flamira turned to Artium, who coyly leant onto her, rubbing their chilly skins together.

The air heated up.

"People might see us." Flamira stepped backwards. Serinda and Artium stuck close to her. Their burning breaths stroked on Flamira's ears, turning them pink.

"Let's head to bed," Serinda said. Her alluring voice intoxicated the atmosphere with a strange yet soothing fragrance. "As Sister Flamira said, others might see us here, but inside our bedroom, there exists only us."

"They might hear us."

"Then, please keep your voice down," Artium said. "If you can't, we will have to seal your lips, both up here and down there."

Flamira tensed, but she didn't refuse. The flames in her chest numbed her mind. She was Iris but also not Iris. She was an aspect of Iris, one that knew her desires better than her main body. Serinda's and Artium's breathes, bodies, touches, voices, hands, abdomens, saliva, breasts, lips, crevice, everything, she wanted them all.

She wanted to feel that bliss, which her main body yearned for but pretended not to. She was no Main Body; she would gladly embrace her desires.

Basking in the moonlight, Flamira licked her lips. She shivered, her eyes turning red, her skin tingling. She walked into the bedroom and reached out to Serinda and Artium, undressing them with her hands, keeping that lewd smile on her face.

The curtains fell. Candlelight and moonlight illuminated only the three silhouettes, which merged into one, uniting, separating, fusing, moaning.