Chapter 461: 459
Tessa's thoughts had slowed to a crawl, like a computer running so many programs that its CPU had hit one hundred percent.
At this rate, she felt as though her brain might overheat and turn into tofu pudding.
The reason was the private intimacy she had so boldly demanded after hearing about Kaname's experience.
Tessa had assumed that once she got through the initial embarrassment, everything afterward would become easier.
She had been completely wrong.
Kain wanted her to stop hiding from the situation and take the initiative herself. Worse, she had to remain face-to-face with him instead of avoiding his gaze.
The emotional impact was almost unbearable.
Before, she had been unable to see Kain's expression or exactly what he was doing. She had certainly been aware of what was happening, but not seeing it had made it easier to pretend otherwise.
It was like watching a movie without the picture. Sound alone lacked impact. When sight and sound were combined, however, the experience became far more powerful.
The initial synchronization had allowed Tessa to hide behind that convenient excuse.
As long as she could not see anything, she could pretend she did not understand what was happening. That made the situation slightly less mortifying.
Now she had to face Kain directly while personally completing the exchange of the required biological sample.
When she saw him watching her, the emotional impact increased explosively.
If embarrassment could be measured on a gauge, hers was already past its maximum limit.
She could have turned her head or closed her eyes, but Kain insisted that she face the situation honestly if she wanted to continue.
By the time Tessa finally gathered enough courage to complete the exchange, her thoughts had nearly stopped functioning altogether.
What followed remained strictly between the two of them.
...
Aldnoah was the name of the ancient civilization's technology that Asseylum's grandfather had discovered on Mars.
As its first discoverer, he successfully activated it and became its recognized authority.
The primary reason he later broke with Earth was that, after becoming Aldnoah's chosen user, Earth's governments threatened him and restricted his personal freedom.
He eventually declared Mars independent and established the Vers Empire.
The underlying cause of the war between Mars and Earth was the Martian food shortage.
Mars possessed only an extremely thin atmosphere that bordered on a vacuum, along with small quantities of water trapped underground. The planet was also constantly ravaged by dust storms, making agricultural production extremely limited.
As the population grew, production increasingly failed to keep pace with consumption, gradually plunging the Martian people into poverty.
Even now, the population of Mars had not surpassed one million.
The constant scarcity of resources had left the people frustrated and miserable.
The second emperor, Asseylum's father, had also placed excessive faith in Aldnoah's power.
He poured that power almost exclusively into industrial development while making the royal family's control over Aldnoah absolute.
If things continued along that path, a popular uprising would eventually become inevitable.
The government therefore began using war to redirect the people's resentment.
It incited the Martian population by claiming that Earth was responsible for all their suffering. If Earth had not driven them into such a desperate position, they would never have been forced to live this way.
The government also promoted the belief that the Martians were a superior people, while those living on Earth were inferior.
By that logic, invading Earth and seizing its resources was not merely justified, but righteous.
The resulting war caused catastrophic devastation.
The destruction of half the Moon sent countless fragments crashing into Earth, killing nearly half the planet's population.
Asseylum's father, the man who had started the war, also died during the conflict.
More than a decade had passed since then, but the unrest driving both sides toward another war had once again reached a critical point.
Returning to the subject of Aldnoah, Martian Kataphrakts constructed with the ancient technology could not be operated by just anyone.
They possessed biological authentication systems, preventing ordinary people from Earth from activating them.
The same applied to Aldnoah-powered warships.
As a member of the royal family and the granddaughter of Aldnoah's original discoverer, Asseylum possessed the highest level of genetic authorization.
Even the Martian nobility could not casually activate Kataphrakts belonging to other noble houses.
Asseylum, however, had far fewer restrictions.
The Kataphrakt she had brought with her did not belong to any count's family. It belonged directly to the imperial household.
6O was currently studying the machine and attempting to analyze its technology.
"Miss Asseylum, when the Commander travels to your world to help, he may need to operate equipment powered by Aldnoah," 6O said. "If that happens, we'll probably need your assistance."
"Of course. I'll do everything within my power to help."
"Everything? Even if it requires something very personal?"
"Huh?"
Asseylum looked puzzled as 6O's expression suddenly became rather peculiar.
6O leaned close to the princess's ear and whispered something.
Asseylum's face steadily grew hotter as she listened.
"The Commander is a very special person," 6O explained with complete seriousness. "A direct synchronization with you may be the fastest way for him to copy your genetic authorization. Whether it works will depend on your cooperation."
6O delivered the questionable claim with such confidence that it almost sounded convincing.
She watched the Martian princess's reaction and monitored her accelerating heartbeat.
Asseylum clearly had feelings for the Commander.
Judging by her reaction, she was also inclined to believe 6O's explanation. That meant events might develop exactly as 6O hoped.
Since she was helping the Commander so much, she fully intended to ask him for extra attention and rewards later.
Then again, her claim might not be entirely false.
The Commander might genuinely be capable of obtaining Aldnoah's activation code through such an unconventional transfer of genetic information.
"I... I understand," Asseylum replied. "If it's necessary, I can do it."
Her face grew even redder, and her heart began pounding rapidly.
6O had explained that if an emergency arose while Kain was helping in her world, he might need to operate an Aldnoah-powered machine immediately.
If Aldnoah had not recognized his genetic information, however, the machine would refuse to activate.
Under normal circumstances, Kain would have to undergo a lengthy review process, obtain authorization from the imperial family, and then complete biological authentication through a specialized device.
Those procedures could never be completed in a short time.
According to 6O, there was a much faster method. Kain could supposedly read and copy Asseylum's genetic authorization through a highly personal synchronization.
The suggestion reminded Asseylum of the unusual private broadcast she had once seen from Dr. Yuhko Kouzuki.
6O claimed that a similar procedure could allow Kain to copy the genetic code required to activate Aldnoah.
(End of Chapter)
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