HEL SCANS
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The first thing that caught my eye was the multitude of high-rise buildings.
Even when craning my neck painfully, their tops were not visible.
Designs that exuded a dizzying aesthetics and fantastic technological prowess, unseen even in the most prosperous districts.
‘This person…’
At the moment, the ‘someone’ I am possessing was looking at the shop window.
The face of a middle-aged stranger reflected on the polished glass…
No, calling it a stranger seemed awkward.
‘Ah.’
The statue erected everywhere in the academy came to mind.
Although there was a significant gap in time, the resemblance was not unnoticed.
…I was looking at the First Era through the eyes of the young Zero Requiem Borningenheim.
“Oh, I apologize.”
Thump.
Someone bumped into me and passed by.
Distracted by staring at the image artifact in my hand, I seemed disoriented.
But that wasn’t all.
Every pedestrian on the street was carrying what looked like expensive magical artifacts.
Carriages moving at high speed with an unknown force.
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A metal object flying through the sky, emitting smoke.
Above the city’s murky airspace, a massive crystal larger than all these skyscrapers combined was slowly rotating.
‘Magic formation?’
The inscribed magic formation on it emitted a fantastic light, releasing magic power throughout the city.
Centuries ago, the past.
But the feeling was like glimpsing into the future centuries ahead.
‘Ha… Yussi and Pia would be stunned if they saw this scene.’
Wouldn’t it be similar to the feelings of the prosecutor who discovered a treasured sword?
At that moment when I was having such thoughts.
‘Uh, huh!?’
A strange sense of buoyancy, unlike anything I had ever felt before, enveloped my body.
It was a different sensation from when I soared through the sky as a polymorphed bird.
An invisible force pushed my body into the void.
Zero Requiem, using flight magic, was heading somewhere at a dizzying speed.
The surprising thing was that the high-level flight magic was executed without any visible wand movements.
Whoosh-!
Strange landscapes blurred and distorted rapidly.
What Zero stopped in front of was an extremely massive tower.
‘…A magic tower?’
While other buildings were tall, the height and scale of this tower were beyond imagination.
It almost seemed to pierce the sky.
Majestic pillars extending endlessly from the ground, forming geometrically perfect shapes, converging towards the top of the central building with dramatic curves.
The unique grandeur of this tower made me think that the city existed for the sake of this magic tower.
There were numerous guards in front, but as soon as Zero appeared, they hastily bowed their heads and cleared the way.
“He, huh! Make way!”
“Why are you standing there so dazed? Hurry up and report it to the top!”
Even in the First Era, his presence seemed formidable.
‘For some reason, it feels like they’re scared.’
Zero headed straight for the towering structure with urgent and forceful steps.
Each time he passed the glass, his face reflected.
Although he seemed expressionless at first glance, I could sense the anger within him.
‘What’s going on?’
Fortunately or unfortunately, it didn’t take long for me to find out the details.
Bang-!
Zero kicked open the firmly closed door.
Magicians were seated around a long table, engaged in a serious discussion, indicating that some kind of meeting was underway.
Despite Zero’s violent entrance, there was no sign of surprise.
They all just looked at him with calm expressions.
The oldest-looking magician among them spoke from the head seat.
“Zero Requiem Borningenheim. Seeing you again.”
Zero seemed uninterested in prolonging the conversation.
He went straight to the point.
“Surely, you’re planning to open the ‘Gate,’ Tower master!”
“You already know and yet you ask again.”
A non-magician turned his wrinkled eyes towards Zero.
“He’s getting more rampant. We don’t have time. It’s time to make a decision now.”
Zero Requiem responded with a growl.
“I cannot agree. Chasing a tiger by bringing in a lion is not the right metaphor.”
“That’s a severely flawed analogy. We’re not just bringing in a lion but a tamed one.”
A tamed lion.
At that word, Zero’s eyebrows raised high.
“Platus Namsov! It seems your arrogance knows no bounds. You think you’ve tamed the power of a world you’ve never properly experienced.”
“See this.”
The non-magician smirked and raised one hand.
Violet sparks burst fiercely above his palm and then vanished.
I stared into the momentarily pierced void.
If I’m not mistaken, that’s…
“It looks stable, doesn’t it? We’ve experimented enough. The power flowing through the rift is not only far more destructive than what we’ve dealt with before, but it’s also superior in other aspects. If we harness this power well, we can confront ‘him.’”
“That’s like setting a fire in the backyard and being pleased that the house is warm now. What if, once the ‘Gate’ is fully open, something comes through that we can’t handle?”
“Whatever entity comes through, if it’s not ‘him,’ humans should be able to handle it. And I’ll say it again, we don’t have time. ‘He’ is growing stronger with each passing day. Right now, it’s a tiger, but soon it will become a dragon.”
“I’ll try to persuade ‘him.’”
“Trying to persuade ‘him,’ who is filled with hatred for humans? Haha, don’t make arrogant remarks.”
The old man’s voice rose as if filled with emotion.
“He is the disaster that will bring about the destruction of humanity! It’s the foretold end!”
The mention of the common entity known as ‘him’ was particularly annoying.
Although I couldn’t immediately identify who it was, every time it was mentioned, the eyes of these impressive wizards filled with serene fear and discomfort were quite striking.
In the First Era, which was far more advanced than the modern era, the mere mention of this ‘him’ in the leadership of the magicians could unsettle them so profoundly raised questions about who this figure could be.
I couldn’t figure it out, no matter how much I thought about it.
“Towermaster. Opening the ‘Gate’ for the sake of humanity, is that really the right reason? Is it not because of your misguided curiosity and thirst for knowledge!”
“Nonsensical talk! If you continue with disrespectful words, I won’t stand idly by.”
While Zero and the Towermaster, as the non-magician was called, glared at each other, silence fell in the meeting room.
In the meantime, I organized the information I had heard sequentially.
First: In the First Era, there was a tremendous threat known as ‘him.’
Second: To gain the power to stop ‘him,’ the magicians are trying to open the ‘Gate.’
Third: Zero is opposing it, deeming it dangerous.
‘The Gate….’
If I knew where the Gate led, would it be too presumptuous?
The moment Zero opened his mouth, I completed one hypothesis.
“Finally, I’ll give you a warning. If you open that ‘Gate,’ I’ll obliterate this entire tower. If necessary, I can inform the Holy Church.”
“Young wizard, if you can, go ahead and try. We’ll stop you.”
Zero Requiem seemed to age more than ten years since entering the meeting room.
He closed his eyes tightly with a face deeply marked by wrinkles, then opened them with great effort.
Thud. Thud.
HEL SCANS
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Even with the magician’s composure, an unstoppable passion was bursting from his chest.
“…Tower master. ‘Beyond’ there are beings we can’t even imagine. Please refrain from committing an irreversible mistake.”
And so, he left the meeting room, then the magic tower.
After walking a few steps, he staggered and sank to the floor.
“…Like foolish frogs. Are you determined to open the well’s lid willingly?”
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With a deep sigh from Zero as the last, the scene in front of me rapidly faded away.
‘…It’s the end.’
After the darkness passed, the familiar library soon revealed itself.
Rosalyn still gazed in my direction with an unreadable expression.
I repeated opening and closing my mouth, eventually uttering a dreadful hypothesis.
“Humans… have summoned demons into this world. Not anyone else, but humans themselves.”
My head was in turmoil.
.
.
.
▼
Understanding of Zero Requiem Borningenheim deepens.
Understanding Level: 1/100 -> 2/100
*However, this is an entity that cannot be replicated.
▲
* * *
…In the First Era, humans opened the ‘Gate’ to the demon realm to confront an unidentified threat known as ‘him.’
What Zero’s memories were trying to reveal to me was the secret of the world.
Was the record intentionally concealed?
Or is it because everyone who knows the inside story and related records are buried in the Eastern Continent?
No human who knew this fact seemed to exist in my knowledge.
…Both possibilities were highly likely.
‘Ted would surely know, and Euphemia…’
As the enemy commander of the empire established by the first group of survivors, she might also be aware.
“….Sigh.”
My mind was filled with scenes I had witnessed earlier.
If all of these were to be made public, the contents could potentially shake the order of the continent.
The expression of confusion and anger that filled Zero’s face flashed through my mind.
His efforts to assist the ‘Original’ for the ‘salvation of humanity,’ the establishment of Rosenstark, and various other acts of protection…
Was it because of the guilt of not being able to prevent the opening of the ‘Gate’ while knowing it was happening?
‘And the comment, what does it mean?’
▼
Understanding of Zero Requiem Borningenheim deepens.
Understanding Level: 1/100 -> 2/100
*However, this is an entity that cannot be replicated.
▲
I’ve never actually met him.
If that’s the case, the understanding level couldn’t have increased either.
But the comment seemed to convey a message as if I had met him in person.
Numerous unanswered questions.
First, I decided to prioritize sorting out the urgent ones.
I opened my mouth.
“…He mentioned ‘him.’”
“Yes?”
“In your memories, the existence referred to as ‘him’ was mentioned quite frequently. Who is ‘he’? No… what is it?”
“I’m sorry, but I am merely an entity containing my owner’s memories, and I cannot directly access them. Therefore, I am unaware of the content you mentioned.”
“…The comments, though. It’s sending a message as if I’ve met him in person.”
Difficulty turning the conversation, it seemed to be saying, ‘Hurry up and read the second part to raise your progress.’
Was limiting and providing information like this also part of Zero’s intention?
“Yes. That’s correct. Everything flows according to the owner’s arrangements.”
It seemed that Rosalyn had no intention of mentioning anything further about the ‘First Era.’
She blinked with an emotionless expression.
…Blink.
Her pupils, moving up and down in a steady rhythm, turned towards me again.
And then, an entirely unexpected statement followed.
“Shall I share the schedule for the future?”
Considering her passive demeanor until now, I couldn’t help but be quite surprised.
“…Why are you asking that?”
“Under the authority granted to me, I want to provide as much help and advice as possible.”
“Help and advice…”
“If I may add, thanks to the partial integration with ‘Iris of Laplace,’ I have a more detailed understanding of you than you might think. Sharing my opinions on how to improve the ‘progress’ in the future might be helpful.”
I stared at her for a moment as she spoke with clear articulation.
…Help.
In a way, Rosalyn was a ‘magical creature’ created by Zero from the beginning to assist the successor who took on the role of humanity’s savior.
There might be a possibility of offering unexpected insights.
I spoke up.
“Previously, Iris of Laplace told me to ‘find the hidden warehouse keeper.’ Are you aware of that?”
“Yes. I am aware.”
“Then I brought Noubelmag to the academy. But after that, no other comments appeared. It was different from before when completing a task would immediately prompt the next step.”
“That is correct.”
“It means that the mission related to Noubelmag is not yet finished.”
Of course, bringing Noubelmag back provided significant assistance.
I regained the ‘warehouse,’ obtained the key to Valber, and made progress on issues like the wolf statue.
“But in my opinion, what Iris of Laplace wants is still… ”
“Still?”
A furnace, logs, flames.
One of these three aspects must be making progress.
And when I thought about it, the area where Noubelmag could be of help was with logs.
“If Noubelmag, being the best blacksmith, could create custom equipment for the children or improve their existing gear, it would be a tremendous help.”
“So, I plan to show Noubelmag to the children in the class tomorrow. Then, the next task should appear as a comment. That’s my plan… Is there any advice you can give?”
I looked at Rosalyn with a slight sense of anticipation.
The answer did not come immediately.
‘What’s going on?’
Her expression was almost the same as before, but her eyebrows subtly trembled.
Rosalyn then opened her mouth.
Her expression is almost the same as before, but her eyebrows are subtly trembling.
Rosalyn soon spoke.
“Very appropriate.”
“….?”
“….”
“I didn’t expect you to just go along with it.”
“….”
Rosalyn calmly spoke.
But for some reason, her words seemed to come faster than before.
“It was just a momentary surprise because what I intended to advise perfectly aligns with your plan.”
“So?”
“…I find it difficult to provide separate advice.”
“….”
This time, it was my turn to be silent.
One thing was certain; there was a sense of disappointment.
“But, based on the analysis of the internal data of Iris of Laplace, I can roughly infer the reward for the progress this time. It should make it easier to plan the next steps. It will be more helpful than advice.”
“Are you sure it will be helpful?”
“….”
Rosalyn looked at me with an expressionless face.
Subtle, but her eyebrows seemed to rise a bit more than before.
…She seems annoyed.
I stopped teasing her.
“So, what reward am I getting this time?”
Rosalyn’s gaze shifted to the ‘Black Hope’ on my back in the next moment.
“Your sword will awaken again.”
HEL SCANS
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