If Accords truly possessed such abilities, then Lacus had even more reason to learn how to control them properly.
On one hand, possessing that kind of power would allow her to better distinguish enemies from allies.
In that case, she would not have to worry as much about spies hiding among the people close to her.
She could even turn it around and use them to send out false information.
On the other hand, if the intelligence Asuna had given Kain was also true on this side, then Lacus was not the only Accord. As someone with psychic abilities, she needed to become more familiar with her own powers so she could guard against others like her.
According to that intelligence, the Kingdom of Foundation, a nation, had a queen and a number of others who possessed abilities like Lacus's.
That country had gained independence from the Eurasian Federation with PLANT's support.
"Foundation? I've never heard of that country."
Recently, Cagalli had not heard of any region in the Eurasian Federation trying to declare independence.
And since the country was called Foundation, its name would usually be connected to the region itself, but she could not tell where it was supposed to be.
"Then it's very likely a country that will become independent in the future."
Murrue, pinching her chin in thought, gave that conclusion.
Did Lacus know anything?
As someone from PLANT, she might have access to certain secrets.
[I'm sorry, I've never heard that name either. However, in some of the materials my father gave me, there was mention of Gilbert Durandal secretly mobilizing resources to support a certain faction within the Eurasian Federation. It's possible he intends to use them to carry out his Destiny Plan.]
"The Destiny Plan?"
"What's that?"
Cagalli and Murrue could sense Lacus's intense aversion to that plan.
[The Destiny Plan is...]
Lacus no longer intended to hide too much from them, so she explained what the Destiny Plan was.
It was a plotline that only appeared in the second season of the "fan-made anime," after Gilbert Durandal became Chairman and began implementing his plan.
Over the past year, her father's investigation had indeed found faint traces of that plan.
Based on her father's many years of understanding Gilbert Durandal, he also believed there was a very real chance that Durandal would do something like this.
The so-called Destiny Plan was a system that assigned people their occupations after analyzing their genes.
For example, if a person's genetic analysis showed that they were most suited to being a teacher, then from the moment they were born, their education would be arranged in that direction. Their life would be set on the path of becoming a teacher, and they would not be allowed to pursue anything else they personally liked.
"What the hell is that? Who does he think he is? God?"
Cagalli could not accept the Destiny Plan at all.
A life decided in that way, with no freedom to pursue anything else, could that still be called a human life?
"You can't pursue anything else? Your whole life is arranged for you? How is that any different from being a puppet or a robot?"
To put it harshly, it was the same as being domesticated livestock. Murrue could not accept that kind of world either.
A world like that might truly be peaceful, with fewer conflicts, but humanity would also lose its vitality. Looked at that way, such a world had no future at all.
There was another point as well. What if the person deciding who was suited to which profession, this so-called god or priest, developed selfish motives? What if they used that authority to arrange lives however they wished, freely manipulating people's fates?
That kind of world would simply be hell.
Right now, however, Murrue was more concerned about a threat they could encounter at any moment.
"Then if there are other Accords like Lacus, how do we guard against them?"
Murrue could not imagine being controlled by someone and then harming the people close to her.
"There are two ways. One is to have Lacus use her ability on you while you try to resist it. Over time, you'll develop resistance. The other is physical defense: developing something like a device that can block psychic perception."
Kain gave them that suggestion.
Between the two, training resistance was better.
After all, no one could wear a device forever. There would always be moments of negligence, and the other side might also find some way to destroy the equipment.
It was just like Neutron Jammers, which sealed away nuclear fission, and the Neutron Jammer Cancellers that still existed to counter them.
Of course, if they wanted to deal with the enemy more effectively, they needed to learn more about them.
Either they could wait for Lacus to finish investigating things on this side, or they could go to Asuna's side to learn more.
For all they knew, the movie might already have been released over there.
After all, Asuna had told them about the upcoming theatrical film one year ago from her perspective. Now she had been trapped inside SAO for a full year, so maybe the film had already been released.
After that, no one said much more. It seemed Lacus was still unfamiliar with this kind of telepathic conversation. It consumed a great deal of energy, leaving her drowsy.
In the blink of an eye, time reached late night.
The sleeping beauty on the hospital bed had already awakened. Her eyes were open, and her lips moved faintly.
Lacus was trying to make a sound, but she found she did not have the strength to do so.
Or perhaps it was not a question of strength. After her body's computer system had finished updating and upgrading, it was now in the process of rebooting. It was just that the boot-up speed was extremely slow.
As a result, the computer's normal functions still could not be used. For example, the function that allowed her to speak had not yet come back online.
Then she would just have to endure it a little longer.
However, less than five minutes passed before Lacus's pressed lips grew tighter and tighter.
It looked like she might not be able to hold out until her body returned to normal function. If that happened, it would be extremely embarrassing.
For now, she could only trouble someone else to help her deal with an "imminent crisis."
And for this particular problem, it would be best if a woman helped her, because she needed to use the bathroom.
The problem was that it was the middle of the night, and everyone was asleep. Disturbing them felt somewhat inappropriate.
No, she had no choice. She had to disturb them.
Through her psychic perception, she once again spoke to Mr. Kain. He immediately opened his eyes, as if he had not been asleep at all.
Lacus asked him to help call Cagalli or Murrue over. There was something she needed their help with.
[Mr. Kain, please come back for a moment.]
Kain had only just left the room and had not gone far when he heard that urgent call and turned back.
When he came to her side, he noticed that she had already awakened. Her expression was extremely unnatural, a little flushed and embarrassed.
"...What is it?"
Silence answered him.
After several seconds of silence, Lacus told him, very simply and directly, that she was facing an extremely dangerous problem.
Kain could not help being stunned.
This problem had already reached the brink of crisis. It was too late for him to go call Cagalli or Murrue over to help.
In other words, he had to help her.
[Um, hurry. There's no time.]
The pink-haired princess's urgent, unbearably embarrassed voice echoed in his mind again.
This was also the first time Kain had ever heard the songstress sound so shy. It was as if even that voice had a bewitching quality, passing through his mind and making something in it tremble faintly.
Still, it was only natural for her to act this delicate. After all, the "crisis" she was facing was indeed extremely dire.
He immediately lifted the blanket, picked her up in a princess carry, and headed toward the small room attached to the bedroom.
The instant he pushed the door open, his next step froze.
They really had been too late.
(End of Chapter)
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