Faced with that spectacle, Philie-san's question was utterly simple.
"Why is there someone who looks like me?"
To Philie-san, who asked with hollow eyes, Zectromeo merely shook his head quietly and replied with a single sentence.
"She does not look like you."
"You and this are almost completely identical specimens. At the very least, one could say the reproduction of her appearance is perfect."
"Re... production...?"
Philie-san's breathing, which had settled slightly, slowly, steadily began to quicken. A faint sheen of sweat formed on her forehead.
"I told you earlier, didn't I, No. 4?"
"What... is No. 4?"
"It is your model number."
I drew my sword.
Astonishingly smoothly even to myself, I leveled the tip of the Allongé straight at Zectromeo's throat.
"Take that back."
"Oops, my apologies—Filiestra. Allow me to explain once more. Your true identity is that of an artificial lifeform manufactured seventeen years ago outside our borders. A being created based on cultured cells of Grand Duchess Anastasia."
Even with that explanation, Philie-san still seemed completely unable to comprehend.
"...Created? Life... created? What have you been talking about this entire time...?"
Abruptly, Philie-san grabbed my arm.
Like an injured person clutching desperately at anything for support.
Her fingertips were freezing cold, trembling uncontrollably.
"...There's no way that's possible. Even this is just a doll... R-Right, Walker-kun? You think so too, don't you?"
Hearing Philie-san's trembling voice, I couldn't bring myself to tell her she was wrong.
The person inside the tank was quietly, distinctly breathing. Seeing it right before my eyes made it impossible to dismiss the thing in front of me as an inanimate doll. For Philie-san, who was well-versed in human anatomy, it had to be even more undeniable.
If this truly was a living human being, she bore far too exact a resemblance to Philie-san. There was no way something like this should be allowed to exist.
The Embryo "Series"?
Was this the secret art the old man had talked about?
Could it be that I was born like this as well?
No, even so, something didn't add up.
"Naturally, we did not create her from nothing. Manufacturing requires materials and facilities. Filiestra, are you familiar with the term 'dragon vein factor'?"
"The blueprint of the human body that exists deep within cells..."
"Then this will be quick. Using a portion of Anastasia as the basis, we created the human being known as Anastasia from scratch. Would it make sense if I said we reproduced the developmental phenomenon itself?"
"A portion... But that's just a fragment of tissue that had already completed differentiation, isn't it? It lost its early-stage pluripotency a long time ago."
"You truly are exceptional."
Zectromeo chuckled.
He was completely unfazed by the lethal weapon pressed against his throat.
"Then what if the cells could be re-initialized?"
"Huh?"
"It is merely a difference in difficulty. What if all cells, not just reproductive ones, held the potential to become a blank slate?"
Philie-san's expression took on an even deeper shade of bewilderment.
"You have likely heard of that very possibility. From none other than your own mentor."
Little by little, it began to click for me, too.
In other words, this whole process was that thing.
The "Dolly the sheep" I had read about in science books back in my previous life.
"Master Magnolia's dragon vein factor theory is merely a hypothesis. She herself called it a foolish delusion..."
"She did not say it was impossible. She defined it as something that 'must not be done.' To think you didn't even know that despite being her apprentice."
"Even so, it's just an armchair theory! Current technology cannot interfere at the cellular level. Stop talking nonsense!"
"Which is precisely why I showed you the real thing."
Philie-san's breathing grew even more ragged.
Whether she realized it or not, her pulse was racing so violently that I could hear her frantic gasps without even straining my ears.
"...Well, it is only natural you cannot believe it. Even if I were to say all technical obstacles were resolved by an ancient magical mechanism unearthed from ruins, it certainly lacks persuasive power. It sounds preposterous even to me."
In short, was he trying to claim this tank was some kind of fully automated clone factory? It certainly sounded too convenient to be true.
Even if it were, questions remained.
Even if they went to such lengths to clone a historical figure like Anastasia, what was the point?
Using her as a substitute for a surviving royal was far too flimsy an excuse.
The Great Treasure of Fire? The key?
Just what was Anastasia Lutze Dravenia?
"Very well. Then let me explain the concrete manufacturing method."
"No thank you. It isn't worth listening to."
Philie-san gripped her magic sword tightly.
This is bad.
If she slashes him with that, he won't survive.
Keeping my eyes locked on Zectromeo, I reached out a hand to hold back Philie-san, who was so panicked her gaze couldn't even focus.
"Philie-san, I'll handle that kind of thing. Calm down."
"........."
She didn't answer, refusing to even meet my eyes.
Her pure blue eyes were now nothing more than darkened, hollow voids.
Zectromeo continued, paying no mind to our distress.
"First, the surviving tissue of Anastasia Lutze Dravenia was cleansed, and only the nuclear fragments exhibiting a dragon vein reaction were isolated. From there, it took seventeen days to restore the factor sequence. Nine more days to compensate for missing sections. With that, the extraction of the blueprint was complete."
"Stop."
"Next, the cultured tissue was re-initialized. Normal cells remember their roles, you see. Their predetermined functions were wiped clean. From that stage, the odds of progressing stably to a basal embryo are less than one in a hundred."
"Enough, stop it!"
"From that point onward, we only had to leave it to the primordial mother furnace. Nine days until it was defined as life. Thirteen weeks until the formation of major organs and the confirmation of mana circulation pathway connections. And then, on the morning of the two hundred and seventy-fifth day after manufacturing began, you were delivered—bearing the fourth specimen mark on your left shoulder. In other words, you have no one you can biologically call parents."
"Stop it!!"
The scream, completely unlike anything she had ever uttered before, was unmistakably Philie-san's. Ignoring my attempt to restrain her, she leveled the tip of her white magic sword at Zectromeo.
This is bad.
It was already hard enough having to keep my eyes on Zectromeo, and now Philie-san was spiraling out of control.
"...Right here and now, I shall exercise High-Rank Magical Executive Authority against you. I cannot overlook the suspicion of heinous human experimentation!"
No.
The one delegated executive authority was me.
Philie-san didn't hold that right.
Yet it was painfully obvious she was in no state of mind to be corrected.
"Executive authority? Heh-heh..."
"What is so funny?!"
"Exercising rights or whatnot—am I not fully disclosing everything like this right now? Well, fine. Do with me as you please."
He was right. As long as Zectromeo's movements were suppressed by the anesthetic and he was cooperating with our questioning, we couldn't harm him without cause.
"If it does not sit well with you, feel free to seize that primordial mother furnace over there and analyze it as you wish. I will provide all the documentation as well. For the peace and order of this country, I will spare no effort in cooperating with you. —Ah, yes, let us do this instead. Shall I show you 'this' actually in motion?"
"What... did you say...?"
"If I do that, it will serve as proof that you have merely been playing at being human all this time, will it not?"
At Zectromeo's proposal, Philie-san took a step back.
She could barely draw breath.
"She is still in the adjustment phase, but since you have come, this specimen is no longer needed. Let us release her and set her free."
Zectromeo lightly tapped what looked like a control panel on the pedestal with his finger.
The culture fluid inside the tank drained away slowly, and the moment it emptied, the translucent container slid open.
The girl who had been asleep inside just moments ago stepped onto the pedestal as if nothing had happened, her eyes snapping wide open.
"..................No way."
Philie-san, who had been trembling erratically, froze entirely.
...Even though this woman had been submerged in liquid, her clothes showed no sign of moisture. What kind of technology was this?
"Give your greetings, No. 206."
At Zectromeo's command, the woman responded instantly.
"It is an honor to meet you, Lady Anastasia."
Even her cadence was an exact match for Philie-san's.
Her voice, her intonation, her expression—everything.
This wasn't on the level of mere familial resemblance like Celestia.
Nor was it like looking at a twin.
They were identical.
She was completely, perfectly Philie-san.
The longer I looked, the deeper that chilling certainty grew.
"N-No..."
Philie-san took a step back, and then another.
Before I knew it, her face was contorted in sheer terror.
"No, I'm... I was born normally... I only came to confirm that..."
The magic sword slipped from Philie-san's grasp.
Clang. The blade bounced against the stone floor.
The long-haired girl bent down and picked up the weapon with slow, polite grace.
In that instant, a memory flashed through my mind.
The resemblance was terrifying.
She looked exactly like the girl who had picked up my magic sword at the training grounds after school.
Like Filiestra Adinson.
"You dropped this, Lady Anastasia."
Held in her slender hand, the magic sword hummed with a low vibration.
I knew that reaction all too well.
And Philie-san, its true wielder, knew it just as intimately.
The magic sword was attuning.
The blade that was supposed to attune only to Philie-san was now responding to someone else entirely.
That was... impossible.
Had she managed to bypass even my dragon vein authentication?
"Why...?"
"Pardon?"
"Why... can you... hold that...?"
"Is something the matter, Lady Anastasia?"
Step.
As Philie-san backed up against the wall, the girl closed the distance with a worried expression.
"B-Because... Walker-kun made that for me. For me... and only me..."
One step, and then another.
The girl closed in.
There was nowhere left to run.
"Are you feeling unwell, Lady Anastasia?"
The girl smiled gently down at Philie-san.
The smile was so agonizingly identical to Philie-san's that goosebumps erupted all over my skin.
"Eek—NooooooOOOAAAAHH!!"
Screaming at the top of her lungs, Philie-san shoved the girl aside and bolted headlong for the basement stairs.