Clone Girls

Ticia watched the shifting scenery from the window of the shuttle as they arrived near a private spaceport of Borkian Prime. She then looked around her. 

The shuttle she was in was rather small. Not many people were on board, but she knew all of them. All passengers were clones who had taken up leading positions within the ‘mercenary group’. Aside from Emily that is… 

The reason only a few of them arrived in this manner was very reasonable. None of them wanted to cause a stir.

If so many clones arrived at the same time, this would of course gather the attention of many people. The group had decided that they should first send a small group to the surface of Borkian Prime to ‘greet everyone’, then make the rest come down in small groups, either through this airport or the main one used by the military.

“Hmm… This place looks… off?” Ticia heard from the side. It was Chloe who said that as she looked at the scenery through the window. Ticia, Chloe, Emily and Otto were sitting around a table, Emilly was facing her while Chloe had been sitting next to her. 

“What do you mean?” Ticia asked back, but the one who answered was Otto.

“What Chloe is trying to say is that this place looks like ‘our time’, yet it doesn't feel like ‘our time’...” He said, scratching his cheek. The man had become more familiar with Ticia since their first meeting. 

“Well, I don’t really know what to say to you guys.” Ticia said back, not really able to come up with anything. She could not really understand the clones’ feelings. “By the way, Chloe?”

“Hm?”

“How do you deal with this mess?” Ticia pointed towards the anxious mess that was sitting in front of her: Emily.

Ticia’s ‘mother’, Emily, had been mumbling to herself ever since they had entered the shuttle, apparently feeling extreme pressure on her shoulders.

Chloe rolled her eyes.

“...Ignore this failure.”

“Wha-!? How mean of you Chloe!” Emily finally snapped out. “You don’t know how much pressure I’m feeling right now!”

“You’ll be fine.” Chloe said back.

“Then why aren’t you looking me in the eye when you say that, Chloe?”

“...Anyway, Ticia, what do we do once down there?”

“Hey! Don’t ignore me!”

“We meet with Rika first, then we go to the academy.”

Ignoring the pitiful Emily, Chloe asked Ticia what they would do next. They had already discussed it before entering the shuttle, but Chloe probably asked just in case.

“Got it. Anything we should know before arriving?”

“I believe we’ve already discussed everything before, but as a precaution, don’t overreact to the guys who’ll pester us.”

“Hmph, I wouldn’t have done so anyway!” Otto grumbled.

“So long as you show respect to Rika and don’t provoke anyone, it should be fine.” Ticia warned him, to which he nodded.

“Mmhkay, at least this ‘Rika’ seems like a good person, I can do that.” Chloe said from the side, a frown on her face. This made Ticia sigh.

The clones could not help but remain vigilant of Rika. There was nothing she could say that would change their mind right now. Instead of trying to persuade them that Rika would never betray them or stab them in the back, Ticia decided to let them judge Rika’s character for themselves.

The shuttle quickly reached the ground. The space port they had chosen to land on was a private site owned by the navy, not far from the Academy. While this spaceport was open to civilians for business, it had military personnel Ticia's faction could trust. With reinforcement from the police department of Borkian Prime, security would be guaranteed.

Still, expecting the clones to arrive any moment now, some journalists were already on site. Ticia thought it couldn’t be helped. It was better to let a few flies in rather than having many of them.

The shuttle landed without any problem and after the last technical verifications, the passengers were allowed to disembark.

Right there, Rika and two Null CGs and their guard ECGs were waiting for her.

Ticia smiled when she saw them. Rika’s gaze met hers, and she smiled back. Ticia took the lead of the disembarking clones and went straight towards Rika.

“General.” She said saluting but still with a smile on her face.

“Welcome back Ticia. How was the trip back?” Rika said back with a smile, playing along.

“Pretty uneventful, I must say.” Ticia said with a small shrug.

““Welcome back, Mom.”” Ticia’s twin daughters, Miria and Tiria, greeted her. 

“Hey there sweeties. Have you been well?” Ticia said back, hugging both of them at the same time. She had missed the touch of the Nulls.

“I brought them with me since they were free, the others still have some lessons afterall.” Rika said, explaining why only two Null CGs were present. Ticia nodded. She’d meet her daughters in due time.

Ticia might not have been away for a long time, but during that time, the Nulls had grown up. They looked more like sixteen year old girls right now. Anyone seeing them together with Ticia would probably say Ticia was their older sister, much to the Null CGs’ displeasure…

But just as Ticia was about to ask a few questions to her daughters, Rika called her out.

“Erm… Ticia, something’s happening…” She said, making a gesture with her chin toward the clones that had been accompanying Ticia. Ticia turned, only to find them crisped, staring at Miria and Tiria with strange looks on their faces.

“Mh? What’s wrong with you all? Why are you staring at my daughters like that?”

“S-sorry Ticia…  We… might need a minute to register what’s in front of us…” Chloe simply said, putting a hand over her face as she sighed. The clones lightly  distanced themselves from the Null CGs, much to Ticia’s confusion, but it did not seem to be a bad reaction. 

Besides, someone had caught the attention of the twins now…

“Mother.”

“Who is that?”

They asked Ticia, confused looks on their faces as they glanced towards Emily. Their expressions were similar to the ECGs when they first met Emily.

Ticia smiled. She went behind her daughters and gently pushed them towards Emily as she presented her.

“Miria, Tiria, this is your grandmother, Emily.”

““Grandmother?”” Both girl’s eyes grew wide from surprise.

“Come on, stop staring like an idiot and greet them.” Ticia then said to her mother, Emily, who had been gawking, mouth open at the twin Null CGs.

“A-ah! Y-you’re right. *Ahem* Hey there, sweeties, I’m your grandmother.” Emily said, trying to give the most warm and friendly expression she could. 

““...”” Both twins stared in silence at Emily for a few seconds, before huddling by themselves.

“Miria, Miria. What are we supposed to do?” Tiria whispered, somewhat worried.

“I don’t know, Tiria. Do grandmothers eat grandchildren? I’ve read that in one of Nillia’s books…” Miria said back a scared look on her face.

Emily froze in place while Ticia and Rika nearly bursted out laughing.

“That’s a funny reaction, coming from the twins.” Rika said to Ticia, a tear in her eye.

“I’m their mother, but I did not expect them to be the shy type.” Ticia said back, feeling very happy.

On the other side, Emily was panicking.

“D-did I do something wrong? Ticia, how do I get closer to them!?” She said, a pleading look on her face. But her daughter’s reply was rather cold.

“Find that out on your own. I already gave you all you need to know.”

“Guuuh… My daughter is so mean…”

As the situation was unfolding, more and more onlookers gathered, including rather noisy journalists. Rika looked around, before whispering to Ticia.

“...Let’s move somewhere else before we attract too much attention.”

Ticia nodded and made a gesture for all of them to move forward. On the way, Chloe came near her.

“Ticia, you’re saying you got ten more of them?” She said pointing towards the twins who were still looking towards Emily with both curiosity and light fear.

“Yes?”

“We might be in slight trouble then…”

“What do you mean?”

“Nothing much for you to worry about. It’s just…”

“To put it bluntly, their ‘aura’ is overwhelming.” Otto joined in, his forehead covered in sweat as he said that.

“I see…”

“We’re saying that in a positive way. Their aura is similar to Emily. Heck, it might be stronger.” Chloe added.

“With this, you don’t need to worry about how the other will react to them. I… I honestly have a hard time acting casual.”

“Take it as training, Otto.”

Since both clones at the head of the mercenary group were trying to act as if nothing was happening, the other clones tried to do the same. Ticia looked at them, while she could tell they were feeling some kind of pressure, they seemed fine to any onlookers.

“Still, something bothers me. Normally, each clone has their unique ‘auras’, but these two…”

“They have the same aura, it’s impossible to tell who’s who.”

“Eh? But I can?” 

“You work differently from us, so obviously you can.” Chloe said, rolling her eyes as she said so.

“Huh…” Ticia seemed in though for a moment. She understood who was who from the get go, and even Rika now knew how to differentiate the twins. 

“As for their… ‘auras’, don’t worry too much, it’s probably due to their genetic modification. When it comes to their... "aura", Em- I mean mom, said she’d take care of it.” She said. Ticia still felt slightly weird calling Emily her ‘mother’, but not in a bad way. She was simply embarrassed.

“Gotcha.”

“Understood.”

Both clones nodded. They continued their walk. Some reporters tried to reach them but were pushed back by security personnel. One did manage to sneak in, but he got apprehended by one of the ECGs on guard, who mercilessly knocked him out. Nothing would get in the way of their meeting with their mother!

They reached a building and entered a room where they could have a more private discussion.

Just then-

“Ah, screw it, I wanna hug them!”

““Eh? Hya!?””

Emily, unable to hold back, suddenly jumped on the twins hugging them tightly.

“Fuuuuh… This is heaven…” She said as she rubbed her cheeks against less than consenting Null CGs.

“Don’t hug too tightly or you’ll spook them.” Ticia chided from the side, startling Emily. 

“That’d be a problem! Ah-”

“See?”

Using this as their opportunity, Miria and Tiria escaped their grandmother’s hug. Miria took refuge behind Ticia while Tiria hid behind  Rika’s back.

“Mom, mom! Grandma is bad!”

“Hugging without consent is a crime!”

“Indeed.” Ticia agreed instantly. This was the law of the family, learned the hard way after Ticinia scolded everyone for suddenly hugging her whenever .

“Ugh…” Emily looked dejected.

“Looks like you get along well with your mother.” Rika said from the side. She had observed the interaction Ticia had with Emily. It was a relief for her. Ticia finally had a parental figure she could rely on.

“Well, I guess so?” Ticia said back, laughing awkwardly. “She’s a bit clingy though…”

“Can you blame me? I woke up after a long sleep to find out I have a fully grown up daughter and one hundred and twelve granddaughters!”

“Quiet mother.”

“Y-yes…” Emily shut up after Ticia gave her a sharp look. This made Rika chuckle.

The discussion continued in a good mood. The clones presented themselves to Rika and Rika welcomed them. Rika showed them respect, not necessarily treating them like underlings, but rather as conversation partners. The clones were pleasantly surprised and reassured to know that the person they had only met through video calls until now seemed to truly be a good person.

In the meantime, Emily tried to make a move and get closer to the twins, but the twins successfully escaped each time.

Ticia could not help but smile at Emily’s comical expression of doom. Sure, the twins were a bit scared, but they had not rejected Emily. They would not have called Emily ‘grandma’ if that were the case.

After a short discussion about the current state of Borkian Prime, the group moved on. Ticia was pleasantly surprised by the fact that no ‘flyes’ tried to get in their way. It was probably a move done by either the president of the Borkian Confederation, George Rollers, or Field Marshall Barry Twill. It could have been a way for either of them to show their goodwill. In any case, Ticia and her group took a car to the academy. 

When Ticia opened the door to the barrack she and the others stayed at, she was pleasantly surprised.

“Welcome back, mother.” Nicia greeted her with a smile on her face.

“I’m back Nicia, how have you been?” Ticia said, hugging her eighth daughter. Nicia reciprocated the hug.

“I’ve been well, but I should be the one asking you that question mother. Please let me do a health check on you later.” She said with a smile.

“O-oh…” Ticia did not know how to react to her daughter’s words, not that they were bad. It was in many ways a very Nicia-like answer.

“For now I’ll go see the wounded. I want to see their state for myself. Then- mh?” Just as Nicia was about to leave, she noticed Emily.

“...She finally noticed me!” Emily could not help but let out, feeling left out.

“...Mother, from what I am feeling, I am guessing she is…”

“Family, yes. Your grandmother to be exact.”

“I see. That’s unexpected. Hello grandmother.” Nicia greeted Emily calmly, a smile on her face. Although surprised, Nicia kept her composure and greeted Emily.

“Hi!” Emily excitedly greeted back.

“Well then, I’ll be going now.”

“Already!?”

“Wounded take priority over the perfectly healthy. I’ll catch up later.”

“...”

And with that, Nicia left, greeting the other clones on the way and leaving a flabbergasted Emily behind…

“Why do you look so sad? She didn’t reject you like you feared.” Ticia said, a sympathetic smile on her face. Nicia simply showed her love in a different manner from others…

“But I wanted to hug her!”

““Dangerous Grandma!””

“Ugh!”

Emily’s sudden outburst had a sudden effect on the twins, who screamed fearfully at her yearn for a hug. Critical damage had been dealt to Emily and she now kneeled on the floor, eyes lifeless.

Ticia sighed. There were still nine Null CGs Emilly had to greet and she was already in this state? 

“Nicia was worried about the ECGs all this time, it’s normal her priority is them. She’s such a worrywart.” Rika said from the side, sighing too as she put a hand on her cheek.

“Right?"

Both Ticia and Rika in agreement, but they did not have the time to discuss further. Two Null CGs came from the hall to greet them.

“Hi mom!”

“Welcome back, mother.”

Licia and Ria came over with smiles on their faces. Ticia’s eldest daughter was energetic and happy to see her while her second daughter kept her composure, but her voice showed how much she missed her mother.

“Licia, Ria, how have you both been?” Ticia went in for a hug.

“We’ve been doing well mother.” Ria said as she hugged back. Meanwhile Licia froze as she spotted Emily.

“Eh? R-Ria…” She said, pulling her sister’s sleeve…

“... No way…” Ria gasped.

Their reactions brought Emily back into her teasing mood.

“Oh? This reaction…  Fufufu… Can you guess who I am?” She said, pointing to herself with a smug look.

““Our grandmother.””

“Eh?”

Their sudden correct guess confused Emily…

“See? I told you that we'd get a new family member!” Licia said with a smug look to her little sister.

“Good grief… You win sis, looks like I’ll have to wear that cat-eared hoodie again for a while…” Ria said back, smiling bitterly.

Apparently both girls had made a bet and Ria lost it.

“Oh my, was it obvious I was hiding something?” Ticia smiled wryly.

“Yes, mother.” Ria confirmed.

“Well, can’t say we expected you to bring us a grandmother though…” Licia added, scratching her cheek as she smiled wryly. Although they had guessed correctly, they were still surprised by Emily’s appearance…

“But… are you alright, mom?” Ria added, changing her look to a worried one. Licia mirrored that expression.

Ticia understood what they meant by that. The clever girls were worried about how she felt about her own mother. Ticia had told Licia about her past as an orphan and she probably mentioned it to Ria. Their serious, worried looks simply meant they wanted to make sure Ticia was not bothered by Emily’s presence.

Ticia felt glad her daughters worried about her well-being. She smiled and hugged them.

“Yes, there’s nothing to worry about.” She said.

Emily also seemed to understand what the conversation was about, she looked at the Nulls with an apologetic look.

“...I can’t say I don’t feel guilty about it. So I can understand if-”

“Hey, I told you before, didn't I? I don’t blame you. You’re not responsible in any way.” Ticia interrupted her mother, putting strength into her words to show how serious she was. She had repeated these words again and again to Emily, it was her heartfelt thoughts about it. Yet it appeared Emily still felt guilty.

Ticia then looked back towards her daughters.

“Girls, we’ll explain to you later, but Emi-, mom is not responsible for anything.” She said. She nearly called her mother by her name once again but caught herself and put strength behind the word ‘mom’ as if to prove Emily’s identity.

Both Licia and Ria looked at each other before smiling.

“...If you say so, mother.” 

“As long as you’re fine with it, it’s fine with us mom!”

“You girls-” Ticia was touched by her daughter’s care. Licia and Ria had grown so much in her eyes.

Another person was also touched. Maybe a bit too much…

“Hug time!” She declared before hugging both nulls, surprising them.

““Fwah!?”” Both were taken by surprise by the hug and the strength put behind it. Although it seemed a bit too tight, Licia and Ria reciprocated, enduring it as it simply was a show of love. Miria and Tiria looked at the scene with curiosity, but immediately hid behind Rika when Emily's gaze met theirs.

Noise then came from the entrance and two new Nulls appeared.

“We’re back! Eh?” Willia said before freezing as she gazed at the scene in the middle of the living room. Nillia, who accompanied her, also froze up.

She was not the only one who raised her voice though…

“Eh? Willia?! What happened?!” Ticia exclaimed as she saw her third daughter's current outfit…

“Hi mom. Erm, nothing special?” Willia said, scratching her cheek with a small smile. Clearly, she said this while being conscious of her own changes herself.

“Nonono! You’re wearing proper girly clothes! You can’t convince me ‘nothing special’ happened!” Ticia exclaimed as she closed on Willia, as if to inspect her closer.

Not only was Willia wearing girly clothes instead of her usual sports wear, she also put on makeup!?

Ticia could only look in one direction for an answer…

 “What the hell happened Rika!?” She said to her former general, who was laughing at the scene.

“Haha… Surprise? Honestly, we were just as surprised when she began wearing make up. If you want to know who’s responsible then it’s Nicia.”

“I need to give Nicia a gift…” Ticia said back seriously. How thankful she was that she could see the day Willia became girly!

“More importantly mom, who’s that?” Willia asked, pointing towards Emily who finally released Licia and Ria to approach the newcomers.

“Oh. Your grandmother. Emily.” Ticia said, surprising Willia.

“Eh? G-grandmother?” Nillia seemed even more surprised. “N-no way… Queen dowager?” She mumbled to herself. Ticia decided to ignore the last part.

“Hello girls.” Emily greeted them rather normally, perhaps because she had her fill with Licia and Ria just before…

“Hi Grandma?” The third Null CG said, somewhat confused, before smiling. “You look very strong, can we spar?”

“Wh-!? Stop it Willia!” Nillia was flabbergasted. “Like hell she would on our first meeting!”

“Sure, anytime!”

“Instant agreement!?”

“See? It’s still Willia.” Rika said to Ticia, smiling wryly.

“Haa… I should have expected that…” Ticia said back, also smiling wryly. “Mh?”

She suddenly felt a familiar presence sneaking in, and she was not the only one…

“Oh? Hup!”

“!?!”

Emily suddenly jumped towards the nearest door and grabbed something, or rather, someone by the arm…

“Gotcha you little ninja!”

“...”

“Oh, grandma spotted Lidia instantly!" Willia exclaimed in surprise as Lidia, caught in a sudden bearhug by Emily, seemed shaken to the ground that she had been spotted.

“Why did you do that Lidia?” Nillia asked the seventh Null CG.

“...I felt a strange presence…” Lidia admitted.

“Well, that would be me, your grandma!”

“...”

“W-why are you making this kind of face!?”

When Emily presented herself with a smug look, Lidia showed a disgusted face, shocking the Eve class clone…

“Anyone would if a suspicious person said they were their ‘grandma’...” Ticia said, sighing. From the side Rika gave her a weird look. She had just presented Emily to her daughters as their grandmother without giving much explanation herself!

“B-but it’s the truth!” Emily defended herself, hugging the poor Lidia even tighter. Lidia seemed to have given up escaping by that point…

“In any case. Don't worry Lidia, she’s telling the truth.”

“...If you say so, mom.” Lidia said back without questioning.

“Hmmm… you’re quite sneaky. I nearly missed you. Still, there are some things that give you away, how about I help you correct some habits?” Emily said to Lidia as she finally released her.

“...Really?”

“Hey! Not fair! Me first!” Willia protested for some reason. Ticia and Rika chucked at that reaction.

““...”” From the side, the accompanying clones watched the scene unfold with strange expressions. They felt pressure from the Null CG’s auras and while they showed signs of adapting to it, they maintained a bit of distance. 

Ria was the first one to get closer to them, followed by Licia. They began discussing the clones’ origins and what they went through to their roles now.  Rika joined them with the twins still glued to her for some reason. Both of them were still glancing from time to time towards Emily with curious looks. The clones were still a bit overwhelmed by the Nulls, but they persevered.

Some time passed. While Willia tried to drag Emily, Lidia and a still mumbling Nillia to the training ground, the next duo of Null CGs arrived.

“Hi mom! Did you miss… me?” Nia entered the room energetically, her teasing expression freezing mid sentence as she immediately spotted Emily. Her hair antenna also froze in place.

Mia followed soon after.

“...Mom? Who’s that?” She said, greeting Ticia with a hug. She was extremely curious about Emily and kept looking her way.

Meanwhile, Nia, who went into deep thought after seeing Emily, suddenly sprung up.

“I see, I see… So mom was so lonely without us she adopted a mom for herself!”

“A-adopted!?”

“Oh, that actually makes sense. Clones can’t make clones after all.” Mia nodded in agreement.

“Buh!?”

Both dealt critical damage to Emily, making Ticia laugh.

“I did feel lonely, but bringing back my genetic mother was never part of my plans, you know?”

“Eh!? You mean I’m half right!?” Nia seemed surprised her teasing words were actually correct. When her mother nodded seriously, she laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of her neck.

“Aww, geez, I meant that as a joke mom, sorry.” Nia said, going straight for a warm hug with her mother.

“Aww, this is heartwarming. I wanna join.” Emily said from the side.

“This is a mom-daughter moment, not a ‘hug your grandma event’.” 

“Ugh!”

“Pffft!”

“Sorry sorry, I was joking.” Nia’s words, which had said the previous words to her grandmother with a serious face, had broken Emily's heart and made Ticia laugh. Nia lightly apologized right after.

“You’re quite the jokester aren’t you?” Emily said, a twitching smile on her face.

“That’s me! Your beautiful prankster and moodmaker CG!” Nia declared smugly, striking a ‘sexy pose’

““...””

The judging looks coming from all around her forced her to stop pretty quickly though…

“Prankster huh… I was quite the prankster at some point too. I feel like we’ll get along well…”

“Really!? You need to share your pranks with me!”

““Mweheheh…””

“...Just so you know, I’ll punish you if you go too far. That includes you, mom.”

““I-I wouldn’t go THAT far…””

Sensing that there was a risk of a ‘prankfest’ happening in her own house, Ticia gave a harsh warning. Funnily enough both grandmother and granddaughter had the same reaction. Even their ahoges trembled in fear. This made Ticia smile wryly.

“If she truly is our grandmother… I have so many questions. Mom, would it be okay if I study clones for a bit?” Mia said from the side. Her expression showed hunger for knowledge which sent shivers down Ticia’s spine.

“...Sure, you can do anything with her for all I care.” Ticia gave her mother rather quickly. 

“Atchoum! Huh? Why do I have chills in my back all of a sudden?!”

***

After finishing her talks with the Nulls, Emily went over to Ticia.

“That makes ten of them.” She said while looking at the Nulls. 

The Null CGs had begun talking with the clones about various subjects. They were curious about them and so were the clones. Ticia did not understand everything, but it seemed like Emily had given a rather quick lesson to the Nulls on how to keep their ‘aura’ in control. This was only a temporary measure though and the Eve class clone had already told the Nulls they would be taking lessons from her. 

Surprised by the sudden seriousness their newfound grandmother showed, the Nulls had no choice but to nod along…

“Now only two remains…”

“Yes, Ticinia and Vinia.” Ticia replied to her mother’s thoughtful mumble.

“S-somehow I feel even more pressure…”

"You'll be fine." Ticia rolled her eyes. Everything went well with all the others, so why would it go wrong with Ticinia and Vinia? Both girls were even more sensible to the subject of family than the other nulls. Ticia expected both of her daughters to accept Emily as their grandmother with open hearts.

“Speaking of the devils…” Ticia said, looking towards the entrance as the two last Nulls appeared.

““Mom!”” Both said happily and rushed to hug Ticia. 

Ticia reciprocated the hug warmly. 

“Girls, I have someone to-?”

Just as she was about to present Emily to Ticinia and Vinia, she noticed Emily standing frozen in place with an unreadable expression. She then heard some kind of ruckus behind her. When she turned her head, she saw the clones, their faces pale as they focused on Ticinia and Vinia. Some had even lost their footing and fell on their butt.

Something abnormal was clearly happening…

“Mom, who’s that? What’s going on?” Vinia asked innocently as she noticed the clones’ state and Emily. Ticinia on the other hand remained quiet. She looked confused as to why the clones looked at her this way…

Ticia debated for a few seconds whether to concentrate on the clones or her daughters first and in that meantime, Emily rebooted.

“Hello little darlings. I’m Emily, your mother’s mother and your grandmother.” She said warmly and in complete difference to how she acted before.

“What…?” Vinia looked confused, but even more surprised was Ticinia. She looked at Emily with big round eyes as if in disbelief at the sudden change of attitude.

Both ended up looking towards Ticia for confirmation.

Ticia gave them a serious nod of affirmation.

“No way…” Vinia mumbled, seemingly overwhelmed by emotions.

“You’re Vinia, right? Nice to meet you. You’re so cute! How about a hug?” Emily said smugly.

“B-but… I already have a grandmother?”

“...Eh?”

““Eh?””

Vinia's words confused everyone. What did the last Null CG mean by that? Emily slowly turned her head towards Ticia for answers, like a broken machine, but Ticia shook her head. She did not know either!

Only Ticinia ended up laughing.

“Fufu… Mom, grandma, Vinia is talking about Miss Meiko.”

“Ah.” Ticia nodded in sudden understandment, while Emily still looked confused.

“Who’s that?”

“Rika’s mother.” Ticia said shortly.

“...” Emily ended up staring at Rika, who was standing nearby.

“I-I mean… Vinia gets along well with mother…” Rika said, scratching her cheek.

“M-my place… stolen…” Emily was distraught.

But then, a hand was put on her shoulder.

“Don’t worry grandma! I got you!” Ticinia said, a big smile on her face that blinded Emily by its brilliance.

Ticinia turned towards her sister.

“Vinia, you might not know, but it’s normal for human families to have many grandparents!”

“E-eh!? Really!?”

“Yes, four of them, or so I’ve read.”

Ticia understood her twelfth daughter’s reaction now. Vinia simply did not completely understand the concept of a normal family and thought she only needed one grandparent figure. Ticinia was clarifying this to Vinia just now.

“So it’s okay Vinia, you can get as many grandparents as you want!” Ticinia declared, although Ticia was not very keen on bringing a grandparent figure every time she came back from her adventures…

“O-oh! That sounds very nice!” Vinia now seemed extremely delighted. She went over to Emily and greeted her with a smile. “Good meeting you, grandma!”

“O-oooh… kusu…”

“E-eh!? Why is she crying now!? Did I do something wrong!?”

“No, you didn't, Vinia.” Ticia said, half exasperated, half relieved at her own mother’s character. 

Emily was now crying of joy, feeling touched by Ticinia and Vinia’s cuteness and warmth. Although there was a little bump on the way, both last Null CGs had instantly welcomed their grandmother warmly as Ticia had expected.

“I-it’s okay grandma! I don’t know why you’re crying, but I’m here!” Vinia said, trying to sound reassuring.

“I’m also here grandma. I’m happy to know you love us so much.” Ticinia added, closing in for a hug. That was the best thing Emily could ask for.

“I love the both of you!”

““Gugya!?””

Both Nulls' faces ended up deep within Emily’s chest.

“So cute, so cute! Hey Ticia! I can keep them for myself, right, right!?”

“Only three minutes.” Ticia said harshly.

“That's more than enough for now!” Emily declared as the two Null CGs struggled in her strong embrace.

“C-can’t breathe…”

“Geeeeh…”

““T-Ticinia!?””

The other Nulls cried in alarm when they heard the weak gemish. For a moment, it appeared as if Ticinia’s soul was leaving her body.

Ticinia was never against hugs, but this one hug seemed to be more deadly than any other ones…

Even Vinia was in trouble…

“H-hey! Release Ticinia and Vinia at once!” Nillia declared, pointing at her grandmother.

“Eh? You want to take her place?” Emily said with an enamored smile.

“N-nooooo! I’m sorry little sisters, she’s too strong for me!”

Nillia fled the scene in a hurry…

“Everyone! Emergency meeting!” Ria yelled and the panicked Nulls gathered around her. They whispered to one another something, glancing from time to time towards Emily, before nodding to one another.

“She’s too strong.”

“We can’t do anything against her.”

““She’s a hug demon…””

“That means there’s only one option, right?”

““Tactical retreat!””

“Vinia, Ticinia, this eldest sister is really sorry, but you’ll have to be our sacrifices for the greater good of us all! We promise to save you as soon as possible!” Licia declared tearfully before running away after the others. 

“Ah! Where are you all going!? Come back, I haven’t hugged you enough!” Emily shouted. She ran after the Nulls while still hugging Ticinia and Vinia.

“Good grief…” Ticia sighed.

“Shouldn’t you be stopping her?” Rika asked.

“No way. I can’t stop her.” Ticia admitted. She had been the recipient of the ‘hug demon’ by herself for about twelve days, so she was quite relieved to know she was not the only target anymore, even if that meant sacrificing her daughters…

Quite frankly, she judged the other Null’s retreat to be justified. Nothing could save anyone from a sentimental Emily.  Ticia simply prayed Emily would regain her senses before things took a wrong turn…

In the end, the only winner right now was Nicia, who was still checking up on the wounded ECGs…

“T-Ticia…” Chloe approached Ticia and Rika. She looked in pain, sweating buckets.

“Is it their aura?” Ticia guessed, to which Chloe nodded.

“These two, we can’t deal with them for a long time if they don't keep their auras in check…” 

“Is it that bad?” Rika asked.

“You can’t even imagine.” Chloe replied. “If the other Null’s auras are as strong as Emily’s, these two…”

Chloe swallowed, as if weighting her words. 

“The one with twintails has a very weird, twisted aura that I cannot understand. It would have been fine on its own, but the other one, the one with low twintails. What the hell is she?”

“That’s rude.” Ticia said back lightly, she understood that Chloe did not mean anything bad towards the girls. “I told you about her before, that’s Vinia.”

“If I remember correctly, it’s the one that is supposed to have many gene modifications and enhancements…” Chloe mumbled, to which Ticia nodded. “Then that might explain it. Ticia, this Vinia is an anti-clone weapon by her presence alone.”

“Eh? What do you mean?” Ticia was surprised by this judgement, what exactly was up with Vinia’s aura? She and her other daughters were completely fine with her! 

“Strenght-wise, her aura has at least triple the effect of Sis.”

“What?! That strong?” Ticia was shocked by Chloe’s serious assessment. “But why was mom fine then?”

“Beats me. That’s beyond my understanding.” Chloe said back. “Anyway, if you want us to be able to do anything with the nulls right now, you need to make them control their auras as soon as possible!”

“I’m sure mom is already on it… probably…” Ticia said, though she could not help but doubt her mother when the image of her hugging the null CGs came to her mind…

“In the meantime, let’s settle all of you down. We still have a lot to discuss afterwards…”