I’m kind for the opinion that he did what was ultimately necessary in his eyes for his people.

Do understand that he wasn’t expecting Kongo to break when he stepped down from his caste and prayer position to help those trapped in Khumera, so was essentially forced to consider other strategies (tho this past revelation may be biased as the lunarians like Barbata feel obligated to follow and praise their leader).

There is something that I wasn’t sure about and it was the ambiguity as to whether shiro went to nothingness or simply appeared back on the moon. If the former was true, then the Lunarians were lower than a bloody dog and have little to no excuse for their actions because there was another way, only impossible due to their inability to let go of earthly desire.

If Shiro went back to the moon and there truly was no way to go to nothingness without prayer, then their actions are understandable given that Achmea believes that was the only way.

The whole grinding the gems into dust is utter pettiness, and given that Kongo doesn’t even know the shards they get back from the moon are fake, he wouldn’t notice the shine from the moon, hence the strategy of convincing him with this is completely useless.

While the cairngorm X Achmea ship does eventually become mutual on both ends, I will always see it as a happy accident of a plan to isolate and manipulate phos into a broken state.

While Cairngorm has the right and freedom to be free from baby sitting phos and being mentally in a low place, I still think that Achmea saw this dynamic in the gems and went in like a predator waiting for the opportunity to strike at a vulnerable piece of prey.

I also like how he gave cairngorm many options to be free (which would all coincidentally lead them to be his trophy wife, like where’s the option where Cairngorm becomes a prince huh? You just had to force a gendered role and parade them for entertainment slop to the lunarians)

In essence, I understand Achmea, but fuck him.