'Robin' considered herself a person of principle.
How could she possibly stir up trouble for the sake of a little fun, just because of some petty instigation from Sparkle?
Besides, other things were one matter, but a public announcement like this—something destined to spread far and wide—was clearly impolite to orchestrate behind someone's back.
Amusing as it might be, 'Robin' wasn't a Masked Fool; she wouldn't just mess around for a cheap laugh.
And so—
'Robin' went to find the person in question to ask for authorization.
"Herta, lend me that virtual idol project of yours so I can post something."
Herta was currently busy updating the firewall for the Simulated Universe while waiting for the Interastral Peace Corporation to deliver the resources needed for a reboot.
Upon hearing those words, she frowned and looked toward 'Robin', a hint of wariness creeping into her voice.
"...What are you planning?"
"What's with that tone?"
'Robin' had expected Herta to act like she usually did—waving her hand dismissively, letting her do whatever she wanted, and maybe nagging her a bit in the process.
Instead, the very first words out of her mouth were laced with suspicion.
The nerve!
Facing 'Robin's' indignant glare, Herta let out a soft huff.
"The tone of suspicion, obviously. It's not the first time you've pulled something nonsensical."
Herta thought back to all the times this girl had cooked up a massive mess without saying a single word.
Now, she was actually coming over to ask permission?
Good grief.
Just what level of trouble was this going to be?
Regardless, Herta was on high alert.
"How can you say that! I don't do 'nonsensical' things. That's pure prejudice. You clearly enjoyed using them yourself."
'Robin' felt Herta was being biased. How could the things she did be called nonsensical?
They were clearly very useful.
That AI Herta had been running for centuries, managing almost every piece of territory under Herta's name.
Was that not useful?!
"Heh, are we even talking about the same thing?"
Herta snorted.
Then she added, "Unless you tell me exactly what you're up to, I'll have to think twice about lending it to you."
Even though she hadn't paid a lick of attention to that virtual idol project—it was a peripheral plan at best—that didn't stop her from remaining vigilant against this girl's knack for causing scenes.
Hearing this, 'Robin' placed her hands on her hips and hummed.
"It's about that business from before. I want to spread different powers of Harmony through music to further shift the state of the Harmony."
"And then?"
"After it's out, I'll have Sparkle help me promote it using the Corporation's resources. But if your name is attached to it, Herta, the effect will definitely be much better."
"..."
Herta still found it hard to believe. Was it really that simple?
"That's it?"
"That's it... I mean, what else? You're guarding against me like I'm a Masked Fool!"
Faced with 'Robin's' righteous condemnation, Herta took a moment to think. While this person loved causing trouble, to be fair, she had never actually lied to her.
Plus, Herta was quite curious herself. Why would that virtual Ena's suicide cause a shift in the existing Harmony?
The Simulated Universe wasn't suited for such deductions in the short term.
In that case, she could only hope to study it through reality.
After weighing her options, Herta finally nodded and agreed to let 'Robin' borrow the account.
"Fine, take it. I want to see what the Harmony becomes, too."
"Mm-hmm! Then I won't stand on ceremony."
'Robin' gave a cheerful hum and reached out to give Herta a generous hug.
Then, before the other could say a word, she slipped away like a gust of wind to meet up with Sparkle and start production on the main feature.
As for Herta...
She clicked her tongue softly.
She stared in the direction 'Robin' had vanished for a while, lost in thought.
Then, she tugged at the brim of her hat, shielding her face.
Unfortunately, she was the only version of herself present, so no one saw the expression she wore.
As for 'Robin', she was running so fast she certainly wouldn't have seen it anyway.
--+--
Once she had the permit, 'Robin' immediately contacted AI Herta.
Then, she and Sparkle dove headfirst into the project.
First was the relatively simple part: the song itself.
After providing the general concept and those abstract lyrics, she left the rest to Sparkle to flesh out.
'Robin', meanwhile, focused on the development of Elation.
The Path of Elation was much like Aha—at first glance, it was full of jarring, chaotic energy.
Its essence was hidden beneath layers of disorganized logic, making it difficult to distinguish.
Take Sparkle's 'Thousand Faces' ability, for example—her power to transform into anyone.
The people created by this ability actually possessed physical forms; they truly existed. The change on a material level was real.
It even included certain mental capabilities.
But could you call that the defining trait of Elation?
Hard to say.
The 'Thousand Faces' was more of Sparkle's personal trait than a universal trait of the Masked Fools.
However, 'Robin' wasn't trying to figure out the essence of Elation.
She simply wanted to imitate Aha, borrowing Elation to pull off a bit of 'making the fake real.' By doing so, she could allow the weakened power of Harmony to expand outward from the screen.
And as it turned out...
'Robin' didn't even have to experiment many times.
She achieved exactly what she set out to do.
In the audio files recorded by the equipment, the power of Harmony nearly dissipated, yet the power of Elation was preserved.
When the audio played, this remnant of Elation would reproduce and expand the lingering Harmony.
Through a music player, the effect of the Harmonic chime was recreated.
Of course, this reproduction was a bit stiff. Compared to 'Robin' singing it herself, it lacked a certain charm and impact.
But for now, this effect was just right.
Too weak and there would be no result, but too strong would be dangerous; a powerful force of Harmony carried the risk of assimilating people.
'Robin' only wanted to rely on the power of the masses to shift the inclination of Harmony.
She didn't intend to let the radiance of the Harmony blanket the entire cosmos.
The current level was perfect.
At the same time, after completing these effects, the power of Elation could even disguise and hide itself, making it hard to detect.
It wasn't as conspicuous as other powers or memes.
And this 'just right' theatrical effect... rather than saying the power of Elation happened to fit her plan, 'Robin' had an odd illusion.
It felt as though Elation was responding to her needs, manifesting these specific capabilities for her.
Well, whatever.
'Robin' didn't plan to delve deeper into these thoughts on destiny.
Otherwise, she feared that if she kept thinking, she might actually end up believing in Elation.
Better to get on with the official recording of our [Hachimi Mambo].
"Sparkle, how about you record a verse?"
Feeling a bit awkward about acting crazy all by herself, 'Robin' turned her gaze toward the grinning Sparkle standing nearby.
--+--
T/N: If you want advance chapters, you can find it at [email protected]/AspenTL