Infinite Dendrogram - Volume 5 - Chapter Ep2

Epilogue B: The Sisters 
Imperial capital outskirts, headquarters of the Triangle of Wisdom, High Pilot, Hugo Lesseps 
The Dryfe Imperium’s capital, Vandelheim, had two faces. 
One was that of a city from 19th century Europe. These days, you could only see such townscapes in the simple, black and white photos from that era. Though it was at the technological forefront here in Infinite Dendrogram, it was nothing but retro to Earthlings living in 2045. 
That was one of Vandelheim’s two faces, while the other could be demonstrated by the sight before me. 
“GHAAH!” one person panicked. “The new amphibious model has sunk into the pool! It ain’t going up!” 
“Oh, out of MP, eh?” said another. “It uses magic engines for both oxygen generation and the anti-pressure barrier, so that’s kinda to be expected.” 
“Looks like we’ll have to use conventional chemistry for the oxygen supply and fight the pressure with better design and materials,” a third one joined in. “We can’t just try to solve everything with magic. We’re dealing with robots here.” 
“Be serious, people! Help me get Zerbahl Type M out of there!” 
“Glubglubglub...” the one in the sunken robot mumbled unintelligibly. 
“Oh, it’s not exactly airtight, either.” 
“Looks like there’s water inside. A problem with the gaskets or the frame, I assume?” 
“YOU GUYS!” 
“GLUBGLUB, I’M DYING!” 
The one panicking at the side of the ten-meter-deep experiment pool was Zerbahl, an Engineer. The two observing the results as they gathered data and worked on something were Flosch and Roboroman, both Mechanics. I wasn’t too sure about the one drowning in the water, but it was probably one of our Pilots, Kuromiki. 
“Excuse me,” a girl spoke to two of our members. “The custom Marshal II requested by the military seems to be constructed, but how was it supposed to be painted, again?” 
“Well, they said something about red, so I think that’s the color we should use on the whole thing,” said one of them. “Let’s give it a horn, too.” 
“We don’t need no horn,” said the other. “Our communication devices don’t require any antennas. Also, we’re only painting the shoulders.” 
“...Hey now, a base dark green Marshal II with red shoulders is way too basic.” 
“Well, I could say the same about a purely red Marshal II with a goddamn novelty horn.” 
“It doesn’t matter, you two, just—” 
“IT DOES MATTER!” they both shouted simultaneously. 
“Eek!” 
The girl with the report in her hands was Luphia, a tian working in our general affairs section. The two people pushing their own policies — tastes, more like — in response to the presented demands were the Painters, MS Geomad and Assault Tripper. 
“Oh, yeah. Apparently, our leader went out to do something, lost, and came back,” said one person in another group of three. 
“Got sauce for that?” asked another. 
“MMO Journal Planter.” 
“Oh, yeah. I’ve been so busy with my designs and tests that I forgot to check it.” 
“Same here, aheheheh,” the third person laughed in a strange manner. 
“How many days behind are you?” 
“Five.” 
“I win. I’m at seven.” 
“...Is that really a victory, though?” 
The three were pulling consistent all-nighters both here and in reality, and yet — though they were doing it with mad-looking grins on their faces — they still had the capacity to construct Magingears. They were High Engineers: Boolantan, Draragun, and Black Company. 
They all created what they liked, faced various problems doing so, asserted their ideas, and sometimes went overboard with their work. 
“Well... this place is the same as always,” I said to myself. 
After my death penalty had expired, I’d logged in and found my clan completely unchanged. 
I was standing in the large, 200,000 square meter facility located in Vandelheim’s outskirts. It was the headquarters of the Triangle of Wisdom and the center of the imperium’s cutting-edge technology. 
This scene here... this mix of eccentrics, weirdos, and normal people playing with robots was the other face of the imperial capital. 
Such sights weren’t uncommon in this city, but nothing could match the Triangle of Wisdom in terms of scale. 
This was the clan he had created — a place where people could gather, combine their intellects and create what they wished, as they pleased. 
“Mh...” I silently looked at the scene and pondered. 
Just like the city, people also had multiple faces. If the plot in Gideon was the dark side of his dream, then this was surely the bright side. 
“All right, then...” I murmured. 
I turned away from the everyday scene and walked towards a certain place in the headquarters: the structure’s central part. 
It was the clan leader’s... Mr. Franklin’s... my sister’s room. 
 
“I’m having you leave the clan,” she said right as I entered, without as much as a greeting, enjoying the comfort of her chair. 
“So you’re firing me,” I said, not surprised in the least. 
I was already prepared for this. After all, when she’d activated Plan C — the one she’d hidden from me — I’d gone and betrayed her. If I hadn’t deactivated La Porte de l’Enfer’s Freezing, her plan would’ve gone a bit better. 
“Veldorbell said that he’s leaving the clan, too,” she added. “Well, he was a guest, so this isn’t unexpected.” 
Her tone as she fired me and talked about Veldorbell was exactly the same as always — the one she used while roleplaying the mad scientist known as “Mr. Franklin.” 
“He also left us with a nice parting gift of three soundtracks. A highly methodical guy, that one. It’s a shame to lose him, but... well... I can’t really argue with it.” 
“You can’t?” I asked. 
“Yeah,” she nodded. “He only joined this clan to find ‘a true hero’ or whatever, but taking part in my plan made him miss out on quite a lot. I also think that he wasn’t too amused by what I did.” 
She then closed her eyes, as though remembering something. 
“I’m not the most popular person. He wasn’t the first to distance himself from me. Right before the war, AR-I-CA, the Ace, left me and went on to become one of Caldina’s Superiors. People are turning away from me left and right...” 
She formed a wry grin and looked directly at me. 
“Yu,” she said, changing her tone. She was talking to me as herself now. “Why did you come to help me? You were disgusted with me, weren’t you?” 
“That’s not...” 
“You felt betrayed, didn’t you?” she cut my words short, not letting me deny it. 
“That’s...” 
If I tried to answer that question with “That’s not true,” I would definitely be lying. She’d made a promise that she wouldn’t hurt tians, but had gone on to design a plot where that promise was broken. 
“That’s why, before you leave, I want to know,” she continued. “Why did you did you come to help me on the Pandemonium?” 
She wanted an answer. But... 
“I... I don’t know that, either,” I muttered. 
I looked inside me, but couldn’t find the answer, no matter what. After all, I’d acted before thinking it through, so no amount of thought could help me know that. 
“I just don’t know...” 
Before I’d realized it, tears were flowing down my face. 
They were a belated reaction to the fact that I will now be separated from my sister in this world, too. The words “before you leave” reminded me of this. 
I finally understood. 
Even if she’d lied to me, betrayed me, and did things I thought were horrible... I still really loved my sister. 
Since I couldn’t give my own answer and just continued crying, she went and formed her own conclusion. “You couldn’t think of what to do, so you acted without thinking and ended up doing what you did.” 
She stood up from her chair and walked up to me. 

“Next time, take the time to form a conclusion that you can hold with you to the bitter end,” she said as she took out a handkerchief and wiped my tears away. 
“Ah,” I silently gasped as I realized that she was doing it with the exact same precision and care as she used to. 
“Yu.” She looked into my eyes. “Travel and broaden your horizons. That’s what I did back on Earth.” 
“Eh...?” 
“Thankfully, the experiences in this world — especially those related to your disposition — don’t ever go to waste. There’s a lot for you to gain if you leave my side and travel around, so don’t bind yourself to me or the clan. Experience Infinite Dendrogram as you please. And if you wish to return once you’re done, I’ll always be ready to accept you.” 
“Sis...” 
“Oh, also.” She reached into her inventory and took something out. It was a Garage storing a Magingear. “This is both a parting gift... and a birthday present. You’re turning fifteen on Tuesday of next week, right?” 
“You remember...?” I asked, making her form a wry grin. 
“Don’t be silly. I could never forget your birthday.” Then that grin became a smile. 
It was unlike any expressions she’d displayed during the incident in Gideon. If anything, it was like one of the gentle smiles she’d given me long ago... when we still lived together. 
“Francesca...” I spoke her real name as the tears she’d just wiped began flowing again. 
I finally understood. 
That devilish man was right — I’d always avoided looking at her bad side. It surely existed, and it made lots of people suffer, but it wasn’t all that she was. Just like now, she could still be very gentle to me, and that was no delusion. 
“Thank you, Francesca,” I said. “Let’s meet again someday.” 
“Of course, Yu.” She nodded. “Until next time.” 
With that, I left the Triangle of Wisdom. 
Once I walked out of the room, Cyco appeared out of my left hand. 
“That’s a nice expression, Hugo,” she said. 
“Mhm...” 
“Good thing you got to be honest with your sister, right?” 
“Cyco...” 
Apparently, this sharp-tongued partner of mine had been watching me and my sister’s conversation. 
“Thanks, Cyc—” 
“Still, I know you’re girls on the inside and all, but you both look like adult men. And a scene where two adult men talk like women and have a teary farewell is a bit... you know...” 
...Cyco, those words completely ruin it, I thought sourly. 
 
Giga Professor, Mr. Franklin 
Still in my own room, I looked at the monitors and watched Yu leave. 
She was surrounded by a large number of my clan members. I’d just announced that she was going on a journey, so they were there to see her off. 
Though sad about her leaving, they all encouraged her and wished her the best. 
Yu had only been in the clan for about a month of real life time, but she was already quite popular among our members. She was gentle to a fault, and as far as I knew, she’d spent a lot of her time helping people out. She even remembered the names of a few hundred clan members, which might’ve been part of why she was liked. 
And speaking of being liked... a group of girls was bawling. They were the clan’s Yu fan club. 
Which was fine and all, but... she was a girl on the inside. I was a woman, too, but strangely enough, people rarely noticed. 
Were they anything like fans of the Takarazuka Revue? 
It wasn’t something I could relate to, to be honest. 
“It’s gonna get pretty lonely here,” said one of the clan members surrounding her. 
“Yeah... We’re losing a skilled test pilot.” 
“I really wanted him to test the Supersonic Death Revolver Catapult.” 
Okay, what is that wonderfully-named device, and why don’t I know about it? 
“Oh no! We’re losing a Master who’s handsome both inside and out.” 
“They’re much rarer than those who are only handsome on the outside.” 
“Only the beautiful die young...” 
Yu’s not dying, though. 
“There goes the pilot with a Maiden...” 
“They were so picturesque, too... especially for lewds...” 
“Oh, speaking of which, I’ll send you the new leader x Hugo thing when we’re done.” 
All right, the fanfiction department is next in line to be eaten by my new monsters. 
“The leader should’ve come and seen him off, too.” 
“Dude, do you even know who you’re talking about? Guy’s probably watching this through those cameras over there.” 
“Should we hack and kill the camera network?” 
“...We’re the ones who’ll have to fix it, you know?” 
I would very much prefer it if they didn’t damage their own surveillance system. Still, they were completely right about me watching. 
The goodbyes continued for a long while. During her month — three months in Dendro time — in the Triangle of Wisdom, Yu had become a true clan member. 
“Hm...” I quietly pondered. 
I was the one who’d invited her to the clan, or rather, Infinite Dendrogram as a whole. Honestly, I could’ve invited her much earlier, and it was somewhat strange that I hadn’t. 
After the imperium had gained superiority over the kingdom, after I’d killed the one who’d given me the death penalty, and after my Triangle of Wisdom had become more prosperous than ever, I’d suddenly had the idea to invite her over. 
I didn’t know whether I’d just had an urge to show her what I’d created, or whether I just hadn’t had anything better to do, but that was when I’d become determined to meet her again, after several years of separation. 
And soon enough, she and I had met in this world. 
In all honesty, I truly hadn’t expected her to be like me and use an avatar of the opposite gender. That had made our rendezvous far more troublesome than expected. 
Anyway, though a few years had passed since we’d seen each other, she was still a very good girl. Though she was roleplaying a pompous, theatrical knight/prince-like character, she was still as gentle as ever. 
Her Embryo being a Maiden made it clear that she was also considerate of the tians calling this world their home, which was very much like her. 
Yu was gentle, indeed. 
However, it seemed like she’d misunderstood something. 
“Well, it’s more like that I made her misunderstand,” I said. 
She probably believed that I’d made her leave the clan and go on a journey purely for her sake. That was part of the reason, yes, but I’d also done it for myself. 
Why? It was very simple. 
“With her at my side... I’d be unable to do anything truly gruesome.” 
Plans C and D had failed. That meant that the next time I designed a plot or worked to extinguish those who’d defeated me, I’d have to do something far more fiendish. 
If Yu was at my side, she’d put a mental brake on me. 
In hindsight, I could’ve been far more relentless with my plot in Gideon. Though her presence had given me peace of mind, she’d been in the way of my march to victory. 
And now, she was going away. 
My dear sister — the person I wanted to appear gentle to, and the embodiment of my conscience — was no longer at my side. 
I was now free to act without restraint. 
I wouldn’t have to cherry-pick my methods, and I’d be able to fight the ones who’d defeated me with all I had. 
“Keep your head clean for me... Ray Starling,” I said, as pure vitriol bubbled up my throat.