The room within the dinner was charged, even though the only one that was being weirdly serious about this was Zoe; Rena, and Rossie didn't seem to mind it that much besides the occasional flirty mood the girls had between them.

  It made Elizabeth kind of jealous, but it also made her happy because it meant that they were getting closer, so that always was a good thing. She wanted both her girlfriends happy after all.

  The space-shadow maid girl was currently enjoying a desert at the back of the restaurant and the old man who was in charge of the place seemed to be thinking about if stoping them or not.

  "So?" Zoe asked as her eyes shone in red light, "What will it be?"

  What it would be...

  "I can see your red eyes, but I doubt they are because of Mana...unless you are always channeling mana into your eyes?" Zoe asked, smirking at her.

  "I..." Elizabeth said raising one of her hands towards her face, she...could probably channel mana in a way that her eyes turned red.

  She knew that the [Taint] as it was, wasn't precisely because Ethan could corrupt mana. She herself had Tainted other people before.

  She hadn't forgotten how she had managed to Taint part of Akira when she was trying to prevent him from running away like the coward that he was, she had managed to corrupt and taint him then.

  And in that moment, her usually azure blue mana and shadows had turned red, just like how Ethan had done.

  So the red that Elizabeth could do wasn't as much as being tainted as it was her tainting other people.

  So perhaps....

  "That will be enough," Then there it was the choice of the owner of this dinner.

  Elizabeth felt an overwhelming presence descend upon them, as if this chunk of the city was suddenly someone else's Domain; there was this feeling of oppression in her.

  Elizabeth felt her shadows slowly slink back into the interdimensional space between being here and in Terra Nexus. She could still call upon her, of course, but she would need to contest the Domain that had descended upon them.

  Or well, not Domain per se. Since it was more like a broken skill. But a skill nonetheless.

  "I respect and care for what you had to do in the before, but this girl is obviously a foreigner that hasn't returned since advent." The man said as he walked to them, Elizabeth got the feeling that if he wanted, he could probably teleport and be here in a second.

  That was what her Instincts told her at least, as if she was seeing someone who could do as much as she could within Terra Nexus.

  "You think?" Zoe said smirking, "Of course this girl hasn't been around, she reeks of pure shadows. No way someone like that is still around."

  Pure shadows?

  "Let me explain..." The old man said turning to Elizabeth.

  "Nope," And Elizabeth quickly denied him, stunning him for a second, "I assume it has to do with how Zoe's eyes are red? And how everyone else has blue eyes?"

  "Yes, that's becau-" The old man seemed intent in wanting to explain it.

  "Nope, not listening to another info dump, I had enough of them." Elizabeth said raising her hand again, "They all probably linked their Shadows or Mana into someone else, and that is how you all share the same stigma?"

  Elizabeth could feel the faintest of shadow treads around this place, moving from shadow to shadow.

  All around except on Zoe and the old man. And herself of course.

  "I assume that they all go to Echidna?" Elizabeth said turning to Zoe who nodded, "And you aren't allowing those threads to connect to you, and instead are intentionally corrupting yourself to make yourself less appealing?"

  Zoe nodded once again.

  "So you have been around here before?" The old man said, turning to Elizabeth; she felt the weight of his skill, attempting to show dominance, to attempt and suppress her control over the shadows.

  Elizabeth instead just restrained her presence within Zaanam, at least till he didn't pursue her more.

  "Not after the [Advent] no," Elizabeth said shaking her head, "But I can infer many things by how they act and behave."

  Really, Elizabeth still remembered how they treated her when she was walking around as Alice and how they behaved against her, so it was easy enough to piece together what would happen if the tainted were tainted no more.

  "Besides, they aren't being very original." Elizabeth said smirking, "Probably another version of what [The Shadow Tide] attempted to do?"

  "We would never hurt our own!" Zoe said back in a slightly too strong tone of voice, her mana flaring and Elizabeth catching the slightest taste of Sin from her.

  One she hadn't tasted before, so it was one of those that she was missing? Or was it another variant of one she had?

  There wasn't any guarantee that all Pride tasted the same, and if Zoe was to have one, Elizabeth was sure it would be either Pride or maybe Wrath? She hadn't interacted that much with Zoe after all.

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  "I am sure he also thought that whatever he was doing was for the best," Elizabeth said, shrugging, "Not that it worked."

  Granted, Elizabeth really did know why [Shadowpact] had done that. And whether it worked or not, it hadn't, of course. But she doubted Zoe and the people outside knew that.

  "Those of us that choose to serve the Shadow Goddess will never harm one of our own." The dinner owner said as he pulled a moon pendant from under his shirt, it radiated azure shadow mana.

  One that Elizabeth felt as if it was waiting for her to call upon.

  "Bah," Zoe spat, "We got shoved under their boots while we were tainted, something we could do nothing against. Then, when we no longer are, they still fear us.Why should we bend the knee? Better to raise against injustice and ask for what we are due!"

  ….that was so cliche too.

  And now Zoe would pull out another medallion with a red moon, right? Surely it wouldn't…

  Oh god she did!

  "See! The Red Moon is better! You can feel her embrace that soothes our very Souls! And the call to arms, to bring this cursed world under our heel!" Zoe said as the red moon amulet started shining as much as the azure one.

  And if that wasn't cliche enough, Elizabeth could feel the mana within the red amulet also resonate with her, what the hell was the deal with that?

  She could half understand why she resonated with the blue one, since she had seen that blue Moon hanging on the night sky of the Shadow Haven, but the red one too?

  Wasn't that one because of the Taint?

  "Let me ask just to confirm," Elizabeth said raising her hand and standing between those two, "You aren't praying to [The Stygian Bane] right?"

  She wanted to make sure it would make her feel sick if the mana she was feeling awaiting her call was dedicated to Ethan.

  "Of course not," Zoe said shaking her head, "I would never, he made us Shadow User suffer for ages."

  Zoe then took the medallion closer to her chest and closed her eyes, "No. Who I pray is for the Goddess who descended during [Advent], the one who showed up briefly in the night sky as the world was plunged into this new world. The one who helped purify us from [The Taint]."

  …. Wasn't that Ethan tho?

  "There is some debate there," The old man said from the side, "Some people think the Azure Goddess is the one who did that; she took upon her the [Taint] and brought that Azure moon to show her presence, making us welcomed into the new world."

  "While others know the truth, that the Red Moon took the Taint upon herself and sank it into [The World], purifying it and refining it, turning something hideous into a new power for us to wield." Zoe said turning to Elizabeth.

  "All of this is very interesting," Elizabeth said nodding her head at that, they both were wrong of course.

  The one who took [The Taint] wasn't an Azure Goddess or a Red Moon. It was Ethan, taking back his mana and the interestest it earned, all in an attempt to go for Apotheosis.

  The Azure Moon was probably either her Inheritance triggering when she managed to return, or Mother doing something silly.

  The Red Moon however…that was oodly familiar, hadn't the Moon within the Shadow Haven been a red one for a few moments? It was probably another facet of her powers as the Inheritor manifesting through her Shadows.

  "But it doesn't matter to me," Elizabeth said, shaking her head, "I will not pledge myself to a cult, no matter how nice or righteous they are."

  Not after what she had gone through, she had no trust in any God or Goddess. And she wasn't nearly narcissist enough to pray to herself; she wasn't even sure if that could even work. If anything she could try and pray to Nyx? Maybe?

  The small shadow dragon hadn't been around as much as before; perhaps it was the fact that her Shadow Haven had been changing? Or had it do with how she was changing how she saw herself and her Soul?

  Nonetheless, she wouldn't be praying either.

  "....So you are a nonbeliever? Even though we know for a fact that there are [Gods] and [Goddess]?" Zoe asked, looking surprised at Elizabeth.

  "There are gods and goddesses, but that doesn't mean I'll suddenly start worshiping a blue moon or a red one." Elizabeth said, shaking her head, "If anything, that sounds more like a plot by Echidna."

  Perhaps Elizabeth was speaking a little out of nowhere since she didn't have evidence to prove that.

  "She did have something for being overly dramatic, didn't she?" Elizabeth said turning to Zoe.

  "....Even so, she would never try to pass as a [Goddess]," Zoe said measuredly, "Even if she was the first to throw everyone under the bus and embrace the Azure Moon."

  "And by doing so, she made it so the people would either pick the Azure Moon, or like you. Those that got something against her, would go for the Red Moon." The owner of the dinner said, then turning to Elizabeth he added, "So be aware, I don't know how it is outside in the broader world, but here in the capital of Shadows, you will be asked this, most will assume you are a follower of the red moon because of your eyes."

  Yeah... Elizabeth would try to not think too much about that, she could probably channel her mana to turn her eyes blue, or alter her shift to have them blue like everyone else...

  But she didn't feel like doing so.

  "No matter," Elizabeth said, "I won't pretend to be something I am not."

  "Hah!" Zoe barked a laugh, "At least she has guts."

  Was it that important? Elizabeth at least didn't think so, she had enough power to enforce her stance and stay true to it after all.

  "So will you help me then?" Elizabeth said turning to Zoe, "I at least need to know where to go."

  "Hmm....I wouldn't mind it, but we really don't know where Echidna is," Zoe answered with a yawn, "She hasn't been answering our calls, and most of those who worked for her directly ended up retiring or grumbling in dinners like me."

  Elizabeth didn't know that much about the other Lieutenants who worked for Echidna; the only other one that she knew was dead, at the very least. And that one...well, she wouldn't seek him for help under any circumstance.

  She would probably end up outright killing him if she was given the option, it had been the one that put her in the road for [Sin Mana], but even so. It was also the one that made her suffer so much.

  "All I ask is for directions if I don't find anything," Elizabeth said, shaking her head, "I don't care for the other lieutenants."

  "The government building is an option," The owner of the dinner said, shrugging, "Outside of that, you could attempt to follow the shadows; she did claim the title of [Mother of Shadows]."

  The shadows?

  "You think all the shadows lead to her?" Zoe narrowed her eyes, "She isn't the progenitor of Shadows, she may be powerful, but she ain't that powerful."

  Elizabeth extended her senses outside the dinner, and sure enough, the shadows seemed to be flowing in a certain direction.

  "If they aren't going to Echidna, where are they going?" Elizabeth asked turning to Zoe.

  "...To the Red Moon?" Zoe asked instead of answering, "We don't know, those that are more sensible to Shadows do know they move around, but no one has been able to find where, no one is that sensible to notice the flow. And those with enough sensibility fear being punished by the [Shadow Goddess] for attempting to fly close to her."

  ....Well, Elizabeth would follow that if she didn't find Echidna.

  She didn't fear no [Shadow Goddess] after all.

  But for now, "Thank you," Elizabeth said to Zoe and the dinner owner, "Let's go then girls."

  And turning to Rossie, Rena, Jenna and Lily, Elizabeth motioned for them to leave.

  "Before you go," Only to be stopped by the dinner owner, "Here, if they bring you trouble just show them this."

  And so he gave Elizabeth one amulet like the one he was wearing, "I don't know if you follow our faith or not, but you will need to at least wear one to pass up some places, unlike the Red Moon we will not find trouble with you because of your belief."

  Elizabeth did take the amulet and felt as if the thing wanted to feed her mana...

  She did, however, not allow the connection.

  "Thank you," She...was not quite ready to accept the influx of faith that would be directed her way from taking in that kind of mana.

  Was it Prana? She wasn't sure what to think about it, she… didn't remember either Mother or Papa reeking of this energy, even if they seemed to have access to it. For now she would trust in that, if she was ever to accept some version of it, it would be from people she trusted and cared for. That is to say, she would only ever accept that type of energy from either Rossie or Rena.

  Maybe from some selected minions? Not from Tiffany that much is for sure. Maybe from Reginald and Mordred…well, perhaps not all of what Mordred sent her way.

  That girl…while not a cultist, she was a little too much sometimes, she was a good worker and a loyal follower though, so that was that.

  "Do I…need to show it or something?" Elizabeth said putting on the emblem around her neck. "A hidden greeting?"

  "Don't be ridiculous," The old owner of the dinner said shaking his head, "Just keep it visible if you want to ward off people like before."

  "And if you want to come to our side, or admit you are one of ours, just tilt it upwards and just either paint it red like me, or damage it," Zoe said from the side showing her amulet, looking it closer…it was indeed painted red and there was a rough line going across it in the middle of it.

  Was…was that supposed to look like an eye?

  The reminder of how her own Dragon Eyes looked while peeking from the shadows was obvious, so Elizabeth was really the one that was supposed to benefit from the Prana coming out of the red moon cult?

  What the hell have you done Echidna? Or what was she planning to do?

  Take upon herself Elizabeth's legacy as the one who should have ascended as [The Shadow Goddess]?

  Not that Elizabeth wanted that title, but it was hers!

  Granted, if Echidna got on her knees and begged her, she wouldn't mind sharing it…Perhaps she could take that chance to get some revenge for what she had done to Chloe when she was growing up.

  Echidna was a shit Mother, to Chloe and to Alice. And that was coming from Elizabeth, who had the most childish Mother ever to exist.

  "Okay," Even so, Elizabeth answered as such turning to Rossie and Rena who now held each an emblem like Elizabeth, when did they got one… "Any reason why you each have one like that?"

  "I like how the Red matches my pink," Rossie answered putting her Red Moon emblem inside her blouse, Elizabeth could feel the mana within that one ressonate with her, and could also kind of project her senses into the medallion.

  The thing was nesting itself between Rossie's breasts….Lucky thing…

  "...I like how soothing the Blue Moon is…" Rena however only said that as she hugged hers close to her (VERY BOUNTIFULL) chest, only to put it with great care inside her own blouse. What Elizabeth saw and felt through that medallion was for hers only.

  And maybe Rossie in a couple of months….

  "Let's go then," Elizabeth said turning to the door, "Unless you two also have an urge to join a pseudo cult of shadows?"

  "I'm good thanks." Jenna said shaking her head.

  “....Hate…..cults….” Lily only said that and walked out.

  Right…..cults…. don't really have a good connotation do they?