Walking through the Gate felt like drinking a cold gss of water. Scale sighed as the comforting feeling washed over her. That comfort was in stark contrast with the world beyond the Gate—a world formed of bckened ndscapes mounted on twisting spires that reached to the heavens like spindling fingers. She walked into a demented fairynd feeling pampered. She ran her hands along the brutalist architecture as she passed by, unconcerned by the occasional sense of familiarity. She felt nostalgia. She had been here before.

  “Did she bring a chunk of the world with her?” She paused for a moment in thought before continuing on.

  The pathways, varied and meandering near the Gate entrance, slowly converged. The paths folded over one another, blending together until their differences became meaningless. In the forest of the elves this design was considered insipid; in the human kingdoms it was thought conceited. The demons just thought of it as the rightful way of the world. Just as all rivers converged to the seas, all roads in the corrupted nds lead to Phaora, the demon capital.

  Scale briefly thought back to her days saving a world that didn’t accept her; next she pondered that world’s corpse. The echoes of life lingered wherever she looked so she looked away, upward towards the sky and its three unbitten moons. Those three moons answered a lingering question that burned in her from earlier. A slight smile pulled on her lips but it soon faded as she stepped past another mass grave. Her heart ached and tears threatened to fall. Mangled bodies crushed beneath the weight of those above, frozen in pce like statues and reaching desperately for the sky. Recognizable bodies. Familiar faces.

  Scale stumbled. She couldn’t reconcile with her own thoughts. She followed the trail of familiar mana and closed off all her senses. She didn’t wish to feel this way anymore. She didn’t want to see the truth. Consequences were paid by those who bore the karma, and she had long made her decision to abandon this world… So why did seeing the results of that decision hurt her so much?

  The old castle had seen better days. The entire eastern side had colpsed into rubble and three of the central spires were twisted in an old conflict, forming pretzel shapes. The main gates opened on their own as Scale approached, allowing her entry. Chains rattled like the ughter of children. Counterweights fell and rumbled the ground like the distant march of an army. The smell of oil permeated the air.

  Scale walked through its halls with practiced familiarity. She admired the surviving artwork, cruel as its depictions may have been, and soon arrived at the throne.

  Dressed in bck and seated upon the highest seat, a slender woman with white hair smirked. The crown on her head tilted to the side and slipped past her right ear. Her slender hands plucked the crown and tossed it aside. Her pale lips trembled.

  [I have avenged you.]

  The words spun by magic lingered in the air like suspended dust.

  [It has been many years since I’ve seen your face. The flows of time are disjointed—]

  “Mother.” Scale interrupted the woman. “This Avatar you’re using…”

  [As expected of my child. It is as you suspect.]

  Scale’s hands trembled. Her heartbeat became a stampede of wild horses. She sat on the bckened floor and crossed her legs. She breathed deeply to calm herself.

  [Is this not what you desired?]

  Her mother’s voice felt detached, as if uninterested in the massacre that happened here. In the massacre they committed. Scale had no excuses to make. She had no pce to hide from her guilt. She knew what would happen if she allowed herself to be banished. She knew what the outcome would be. She knew her mother well enough to know how it would end.

  Scale chose to let this happen. She had consigned a world to damnation over her broken heart and now she felt regret standing over that world’s tomb. She thought about how pathetic that was, and she wondered if she deserved to even feel that way at all.

  A gentle hand pressed on her shoulder. Scale looked up and met her mother’s eyes. She met the eyes of the Saintess whose body had been stolen—they were the eyes of someone she once called friend.

  [Why do you mourn for them? Do you still think this mortal body ever truly cared for you? Their ritual could not have been done without her consent.]

  “Still,” Scale paused. She shook her head. “Even still, my heart burns.”

  Olimaw sighed. The spark of wisdom in her eyes dimmed, repced by something more mundane. The arrogance that filled her frame faded, leaving behind only the concern of a mother watching her troublesome child repeat mistakes again and again.

  [You are not a mortal. Perhaps it was my mistake allowing you to travel among them.]

  There was a pause. The throne room faded away as the echoes of the past burned under white fmes. The reflected world became gss again.

  [Do you mourn every insect you step on? Do you care for the animals that burn under volcanic ash halfway across the world?]

  “I would care if I knew them personally!” Scale stood and dusted herself.

  [You still consider your lessers too much. Why do you mind those beneath you?]

  Scale closed her eyes for a moment. She remembered the smell of burning bodies. She remembered the cheers of the armies when she arrived at the battles. She remembered breaking bread with the heroes and dancing around bonfires after each victory. She remembered their names, their lives, and their dreams. Now they only existed in her memories.

  A lifetime of memories flew by like arrows missing their mark, passing her by and disappearing into the distance. Scale remained alone. She turned to face her mother with tear-filled eyes.

  “Why did you care to raise me?”

  [What?]

  “When I was born, was I not beneath you? Was I not your lesser?”

  [You were my daughter.]

  “How is that any different?”

  [It is different. It is different in the same way a human is not a dog.]

  “It’s hard to expin what a broken heart is to someone who has never had one.”

  [Do not speak as if I have not known love.]

  “Then how can you just dismiss them?” Scale raised her voice. “I loved them.”

  [The love for a pet can be strong, yes, but the pain from its loss will fade with time.]

  “They weren’t pets. Just like how I wasn’t your pet.”

  [Perhaps not enough time has passed.]

  “Even now you’re ignoring my feelings.”

  [I am not ignoring them. I am confronting them with facts. Now, let’s move on. Escort me to this world where your soul’s memories linger.]

  “Th-that—”

  [Perhaps if I burn this world too you will finally get over your lingering mortal attat—]

  A hand pressed down on Olimaw’s shoulder. A tremendous mana surged. The dimensional walls cracked.

  “You will not harm this world.” Scale’s voice overpped with itself.

  [Hoh? I had not considered it before, but you have managed to descend with your main body.]

  “It wouldn’t matter if you managed to bring your own.”

  Olimaw’s eyes narrowed as she felt the building mana. Her lips curled.

  [It is a parent’s greatest joy when their child surpasses them. Very well. I will leave this world in your possession.]

  “Huh?” Scale stumbled at the sudden forfeit.

  [In exchange—]

  “Oh no.” Scale could feel a threat down to her bones. A threat that transcended violence.

  [I will be contacting dragons in other worlds. You will meet the ones I bring. I will act as matchmaker.]

  “W-wait. Hold on a minute, mom—”

  [There will be no more waiting. I want grandchildren. Do you prefer a male or female mate?]

  “I-I’m not ready for this yet. A hundred years—no, a thousand. Give me a thousand years and then—”

  [I will bring some of both.]

  The Gate started to fall apart. Olimaw’s avatar turned to ash. Scale could only tremble and watch. In that moment her guilt and despair from earlier had vanished. Only anxiety remained in her small frame.

  The Gate vanished, leaving Scale standing in waist deep waters holding a pile of ash. The first light of dawn broke over the horizon. The morning gray pushed back the darkness of night. Reporters tried to rush forward but were stopped by the Awakeners. The Association President finally started pulling his own weight; he captured Hana himself and held her by the scruff of her neck.

  "Scale, you okay?" Alyssa waded through the water to her sister's side.

  "Lyss..." Scale swallowed. "I might need to leave Earth for a while."

  "What?"

  "How far can I run? If I jump the Veil and... But what if she takes Earth hostage while I'm not here to defend it? Aaaaaaaah!" Scale held her head and screamed at the sky. It was only now that she noticed that there were three moons.

  "Can you just calm down and tell me what's going on?"

  "Ah." Scale turned to face her sister with a jerky, mechanical movement. "Lyss, my mom wants..." She whispered the rest, as if afraid of the words. "She wants grandchildren."

  Alyssa's eyes turned as big as saucers. Her eyebrows narrowed and a teasing smile crossed her face. At some point she had pulled out her phone.

  "Wait what are you looking up!"

  "Let's see, R34 dragon~"

  "NOOOOOOOOO!"

  The film crews managed to capture a strange scene. Several reporters spoke about the close retionship between the returnee Princess Scale and the S-rank Watergss, who seemed to get along well enough to perform professional wrestling techniques on each other. Soon, information released confirmed that the two were siblings, a fact that just about everyone who watched the video had already guessed.