Evangeline stared at Elizabeth for a long it me before sighing, the first thing she did after doing so was summon something to her hand. The blonde girl was half-minded about preparing for combat, pulling the trigger, and calling Rossie and Rena back.

  She knew that both girls were at the ready after all.

  Only for Evangeline to have summoned a sticky bra. Elizabeth hated those things, she didn't like the weird slimy feeling she got when using them, but Evangeline just put the thing on as if nothing. Then summoned a white blouse and put that on too.

  Elizabeth turned to look to the pieces of clothing that the girl had thrown to the floor and then to Evangeline.

  "They are dirty, don't mind them." Evangeline said, and with a flick of her hand, both pieces of clothing disappeared, "Well….what to do indeed."

  Evangeline seemed…lost, as if all that she had planned was thrown out of the way, and in a sense it had been. Elizabeth had showed her that she didn't need her planning and that what she feared wouldn't come to pass.

  Even if it would, Elizabeth would need to speak with Rossie and Rena, she hadn't felt the imbalance…or well, she had, she merely didn't had memories of the event.

  At least she was happy that she seemed to have more Ligth Mana than Dark Mana, even if it was stupid and weird that it was like that, she was the Mistress of Shadows, The Shadow Empress.

  She was a girl god damnit, why did she had more MALE Mana!

  She was about to become a full-blown and grown Woman!

  "The logical answer is… that we don't have anything to offer… I have access to the [Seven Virtues]..." Evangeline started saying summoning blobs of Mana.

  "I refuse," Elizabeth of course denied that offering. She could barely be normal with the Sin Mana in her system. She didn't want to think what having the Anathema to those would do to her.

  "Then if you don't want our [Mana], our offerings… and….to mate with Asher…." Evangeline said looking down, "....What can I do for you…. [Inheritor]?"

  That was a title that hadn't been used for Elizabeth in quite some time.

  "First I don't need the info dump, tell me where are those that would be a threat to me." Elizabeth said without hesitation.

  That was what was important to Elizabeth above anything else, and mostly why she had come, the fact that it seemed that the Student Council wouldn't be a problem and was set up to become her harem...well, that was beside the point, and she didn't have a need for them anyway.

  "...I assume you want information on why The [Galaxidae] and [The Nine Stars] are going to antagonize?" Evangeline asked with a sigh, "It really isn't that complicated, you probably would have found soon enough when you decided to take in the full set of [Cardinal Sins]."

  The Cardinal Sin? Her Sin Mana? What was the issue with it?

  "Sigh As you have noticed, the [Sin Mana] affect how you behave, usually you either need a strong [Will] or a [Divine Blessing] and even with that you may end up warped the more you indulge on their [Power]," Evangeline said summoning another picture of Akira, "Selen went to check on him for example, but what we got was that either he didn't accept his [Divine Blessing] or was a [Hero] whose [Journey] had already ended."

  ....Yeah, it was probably the second if Elizabeth was to be honest, she had evidence of that after all.

  "And?" Elizabeth asked confused, the power was nice and all, but she didn't think it was enough to cause antagonism from two great powers, actually...Had Mother and Papa hunted down those? "They grant power and whatnot, but if you contact those people and prevent them from using these powers, wouldn't that solve the issue? Why hunt or antagonize them?"

  "Because these powers are easy to get and hard to contain, as evidenced by both Akira and your girlfriend." Evangeline said as a picture of Rossie showed beside Akira, then one of Rena...and finally one of Michael, "Those that are touched by the [Gods] tend to showcase more easily the power of the [Seven Sins], be it because their personalities are more defined or because the get a taste of great power and are allowed to indulge in rewards for their services."

  ...Their services?

  "So, just because they are the workers of some lazy god...they get to play with an innocent girl's body, soul, mind and feelings?!?!?!" Elizabeth lashed out.

  "...They are removed from any life they knew and sent to do work that no one else but them can do," Evangeline answered calmly, "They risk their life, so some....allowances are made, for the greater good."

  "Then those goddamned gods should make it so their [Heroes] aren't tempted by [Sin Mana]!" Elizabeth angrily said back, even if she wasn't one to judge since she herself was one to wield Sin Mana.

  "So the [Gods] should decide what a [Hero] does? What they decide to do with their reward? How they live? What they do?" Evangeline said calmly back. "Just like how you do with your summons? Should all of us only do what those that obviously know more than us tell us? Tell me Elizabeth Starbright...Is that what you really think? Or is it your [Pride]?"

  ....Dang it.

  "Fine, but if that is why they have a thing against me, why didn't they go after Akira? He brandished and hurt way more people in more damaging ways." Elizabeth said raising her finger, pictures of the girls he had...hurt, manifested, she didn't have them all of course, this was but a small amount that she got a glimpse when she was dealing with Akira and getting back Rena's Gem. But it was enough to fill the whole walls on this room.

  "Because he only wielded [Envy] and even at that, he never internalized other [Sins], his damage to this world was limited and most of those girls would have recovered as soon as he discarded them, you on the other hand..." Evangeline said, summoning a picture of the Mana Terrorism event, "You permanently damaged this world, and while you had limited yourself to only [Gluttony] at the beginning...you started taking in more and more..."

  The pictures of the four heroes started changing, adding their [Gems] and the words that represented them.

  "You first took [Gluttony], then[Wrath] & [Envy], [Lust] wasn't that far away, and while you didn't took [Sloth], you manifested [Pride]..." Evangeline said the words that represented each of the four heroes finished writing.

  You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

  -Suzuki Akira, Envy. -Watanabe Rena, Wrath. -Rossaline Singh, Lust. -Michael Shepherd, Sloth.

  So Michael was Sloth? He didn't look like it.

  "Then somehow managed to wrestle [Greed] away from one of the most powerful [Shadow Alligned], not only increasing your might but banishing the [Souls] of those that had been afflicted by him..." Evangeline showed an image of when Elizabeth defeated [The Shadow Tide], it was taken from the sky, so while it didn't show her quite well, Elizabeth had to admit that she looked quite dashing wearing her [Thunder Queen] regalia.

  "No one was stopping him, and he was coming after me. Was I supposed to roll over and die?" Elizabeth asked.

  "You were supposed to awaken [Kindness Mana] after finding out the past of [Shadow Pact] and your former friend [Chloe Ashcroft] from [Echidna]." Evangeline answered instead, "This would lead you to start neutralizing the [Sin Mana] that was overflowing within you."

  ...They wanted to make Elizabeth catalyze anathema mana within her? That would...

  "Neutralize both of your [Sin Mana] and [Virtue Mana] in one go, the plan was then for us to go forward and help you stabilize the other within you, leaving you with only what was supposed to awaken naturally within you." Evangeline said, bringing a new series of pictures.

  These standing in front of each of the respective [Sin Mana] holders.

  -Evangeline Galaxidae, Temperance -Lily Hartley, Patience -Asher Sterling, Humility -Selen Dawnstrike, Chastity -Magnus Embersteel, Kindness -Aurelia Vitelius, Charity

  And finally...

  -Alice Ashcroft / Elizabeth Starbright, Diligence.

  "Pfft......." Elizabeth almost choked on her own saliva when she read the last one.

  Don't mind the fact that...No wait, Evangeline had been....abstaining? Kind off? Elizabeth doubted that it was something like that; she had abused her friend's trust...She thought so at least, no wait...but they had wanted?

  That list claimed that Selen was Chastity, and showing yourself nude to your friend for her to play with you wasn't very chaste...

  No, wait! There was a more important matter at hand!

  "I was supposed to be [Diligence]? The polar opposite of everything I ever wanted to be?" Elizabeth said pointing at her own name on the list.

  [Diligence] if Elizabeth understood them well, and going by the placement of the stupid things. Then this was the opposite of her dreams and hopes, that was the opposite of [Sloth].

  The true dream of Elizabeth, sleeping and lazing off all day long.

  And she was supposed to be that?

  "Let's put apart the fact that you don't look like the embodiment of [Temperance], which I assume should be doing things in moderation. Because of this whole thing? It has anything but moderation on it." Elizabeth said extending her hands to the sides, "It was overbearing as much as it could be, and infringed in excess, the student council reeks of the opposite of [Temeprance]."

  Then it was the next on the list, namely, Lily.

  "Lily does seem to be someone with [Patience], she is a better example of both [Patience], [Temperance] and [Humility]." Elizabeth said thinking back at how composed she looked whenever they spoke. Compared to that.... "Selen on the other hand, if I hadn't seen your pictures and how ashamed she was I would never think she was [Chastity], if anything she is closer to [Wrath] with how she spoke to them.

  ...Unless she was angry at them because she was the bearer of [Chastity]? Rossie and Rena weren't...quite chaste, even if Elizabeth was. And Elizabeth was allowing their behavior...to some degree. Besides, her body...wasn't quite...[Pure], not after the whole [Debauchery Dragon] episode.

  Hmm....that needed more investigation.

  "Is Selen angry and mad at us because she bears [Chastity]?" Elizabeth decided to ask straight to the source of information that was available to her.

  "To some degree..." Evangeline answered, pulling the image of Selen forward, "She does conflict with Rossaline quite hardly, since both wear their [Gem]s in their hearts, one of [Lust] and one of [Chastity]. And while your friend Rena should clash more with Lily, she is indulging more on [Lust] than in [Wrath]. Probably because you took her [Sin] and are bearing its effects."

  ...What?

  But Elizabeth...

  Oh....

  "You mean that since I took her [Gem of Wrath] now I am the bearer instead of her?" Elizabeth asked placing one of her hands on her heart, of course the Gem wasn't physically there. But on her [Crown] safely tucked away in her Shadow Spire.

  "Yes, the same will probably happen as soon as you take each of them unto yourself, and that is part of the problem. Haven't you noticed? Your [Pride] outbursts are more violent since you took in [Wrath], you would pose as a threat and try to intimidate, but rarely, you would actually summon weapons. Now?" Evangeline summoned photographs, photos of her on the first grade when she merely expanded her shadows, made the dragon eyes and maws.

  Then photos after she took in [Wrath], and how she was lossing Patience more easily. Elizabeth had thought that it was merely [Pride], but if [Wrath] was in the equation...

  Then...

  "Are the other ones affecting me?" Elizabeth said, thinking about the other [Gems].

  Was [Gluttony] the reason she wanted to [Devour] the other [Sins]? Was [Envy] the reason she didn't want to share?

  No, she didn't want to share even before that, but then again she w as also a [Dragon].

  She hadn't taken [Envy] that long ago, and the thing was mostly dry by that point. Thank you Akira, at least you did something right once in all your life.

  "So? That is why you wanted me to take in the opposite ones and remain as only a bearer of one instead of six or seven?" Elizabeth asked, "If that was your plan, why would I pick a [Cardinal Virtue] instead of a [Cardinal Sin]."

  Elizabeth didn't had a metric to gauge if Magnus was truly [Kind] or not, but at least Asher didn't look like someone humble, or like the bearer of [Humility].

  Also, why in the seven hells was Aura there?!?!?!?

  "Unlike the [Cardinal Sins] the [Seven Virtues] don't affect as much their bearer, at best they make it harder for you to access some types of Mana...." Evangeline said summoning a magic circle, the one she attempted to summon was for [Shadow], a normal [Shadow Bolt] the basic spell that anyone can do so long they had Mana.

  Only for the spell to fail to activate.

  "?" Elizabeth was...confused at this sight, if Evangeline the bearer of [Temperance] was Anathema to [Shadows] since they were opposite, then wouldn't that mean that the same was for everyone else? "If that is the case, why is Lily a fire user? Why is Asher a Lightning user? I know for a fact that [Pride] and [Wrath] grants [Lightning] and [Fire]."

  And that was what weirded Elizabeth out, why Evangeline couldn't cast Shadow spells?

  "It isn't quite...as black and white as that," Evangeline said shaking her head, "[Patience]'s native element is [Water], but that is only while channeling [Patience], if you aren't using your [Virtue] you can use any element you wish. After you use your [Virtue], then, you are stuck with the advantages and disadvantages, so usually, the [Virtue] wielders don't brandish their power unless necessary."

  So then Lily wasn't even using her full might?

  How would that even be for Selen...No wait, was that how she managed to secure those [Contracts]? She was using her [Chastity] to tie them down?

  That was a funny way to go about it, and also made her more dangerous to Rossie, since she had been greatly damaged by the [Void] before. Elizabeth would need to take that into mind, and perhaps...if she ever took one of those stupid gems, then it would be Selen's Gem.

  She couldn't let someone like that go free.

  "Fine, that explains how Asher and Lily are capable of using elements opposite to them, then that means that if I had fought Asher and he brought the might of his [Humility]..." Elizabeth said pointing at the two pictures, one of Asher and one of herself.

  "He would have defeated you, you may be able to wield great powers, but [Humility] is sturdy." Evangeline said pointing to Asher, "He fights usually as a glass cannon, but that is because his true power is that of an unbeatable bastion that protects."

  "And Lily while fighting as a long rang damage dealer is in truth a Healer?" Elizabeth said pointing to Lily who wielded the opposite to Rena.

  If Asher was her opposite, instead of a great damage dealer being a tank. Then what was the opposite of a berserker fighter?

  "Exactly," Evangeline nodded.

  This was getting stupidly complex, "So, I understand that the [Virtues] are probably better since they don't affect you. And the [Sins] are usually only accessible to [Heroes]. But is that truly the reason why the [Galaxidae] and [The Nine Stars] will be my enemies?"

  Elizabeth didn't think this was enough to antagonize her, not if they knew who her parents were. Even if they didn't know how much Papa and Mother could interfere with the real world.

  "Of course not." Evangeline said, "The problem is what happens when you gather seven of these."

  ....So the problem was Elizabeth's original plan?