It seems that when people are confronted with a number of shocking facts, they become saturated with surprise.
I took a deep breath and looked back at the story of [Full Assist] with a calm mind.
In short, it seems that instinct and will are not unified within Zogral and that they have become divided.
The instinct as the incarnation of destruction and the will that abhors such an identity.
In the current situation, the instinct is overwhelmingly stronger, and there is nothing it can do about it with one's will.
As a move to change this situation, I escaped to this world in the preliminary stage of mental manipulation…
My role is to guide Kou Kousaka and make him grow into a being capable of defeating Zogral.
I was not aware of this before, but now I understand it clearly.
"I see. I will be provided full assistance so that I can defeat Zogral──. That was the mission of [Full Assist], was it not?"
There is one more thing I would like to tell you.
With the release of the memory area, we have acquired a new recipe for [Creation].
By creating this item, it is possible to increase Kou Kousaka's [Spatial Manipulation] to a level equivalent to Zogral's ability to control space-time.
I appreciate that. If we can obtain the space-time domination ability, we can fight on the same playing field as Zogral. At the very least, we should be able to avoid a situation where we can't compete.
As I thought about this, a recipe popped into my mind.
Fenrir Coat x 1 + Crystal of Emptiness x 1 → Fenrir Coat Void x 1
Crystal of Emptiness?
I've never seen that item before.
…No, wait.
I have a skill called [Material Alchemy].
It's a way to create a higher-level material by multiplying the same material…
I heard that there are several pieces of emptiness at Relic's place, and if I use [Material Alchemy] on them, I may be able to create a crystal of emptiness.
That is all I have to say.
May I finish the ritual and return to the real world?
"I'm fine. How about you?"
"I'm fine too. …There was a bit too much shocking information at the end, and I haven't quite got my head around it yet."
"Me too."
Leticia nodded at Iris's words.
"At any rate, I understand now that Zogral wants to see itself destroyed."
"It doesn't want to destroy the world, but it can't stop because of its instincts. …I think it's a sad story."
Lily muttered as she turned her head down.
"Isn't there any way to stop Zogral other than defeating it?"
"Kou-san. This is when [Creation] comes into play. Can you make a potion or something to suppress Zogral's instincts?"
"I wish I had a recipe for something like that."
Milia's suggestion is appealing, but unfortunately, no applicable recipe exists at the moment.
However, if there is a way to stop Zogral other than defeating it, it would be worth considering.
Our goal is to prevent the destruction of the world. Defeating Zogral is only a means to that end. We should keep that in mind.
Now then…
It seems that no one has any objections, so it's time to return to the real world.
As if sensing my inner thoughts, the voice of [Full Assist] echoed.
Then I will execute the process of returning to the real world.
Thank you all for your hard work.
With those words, my vision was enveloped in a bright white flash.
Before I knew it, I had fallen asleep.
* * *
When I woke up, I was in bed.
"This is…"
As I sat up, I looked around.
The room was large, with several beds lined up in a row.
It looked as if the school infirmary had been made many times larger.
Iris was sleeping peacefully on the bed next to me on the left.
There were three more beds on the other side, each with Lily, Leticia, and Milia sleeping in them.
Including me, five people, all of whom ventured into the virtual space, seemed to be gathered here.
"Ah! Master-san! You're awake!"
I heard a voice from the right.
I turned my head to see Surara coming toward me with a happy expression on his face.
"Master-san, are you alright? Does your head hurt?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. …What's going on?"
When I asked this, Surara explained the situation to me.
It seems that in the real world, we fell asleep as soon as the ritual started.
So Surara and the other Helper Slimes split up and brought us to the infirmary in Blaznir.
"The king was very worried! You'll have to talk to him later!"
"You mean King Octo? I understand. …What time is it?"
"About two o'clock in the afternoon, I think. Everyone slept well!"
Apparently, less time has passed than I thought.
While I was thinking about that, Surara called out to me.
"Hey, hey, Master-san."
"What's up?"
"What were the contents of your sealed memories?"
Well, of course, he was curious, right?
I decided to give a quick explanation to Surara as well since it wasn't something I needed to hide.
"Sob, sob, sob, sob. It was scary, wasn't it, Master-san? I was so surprised. Pieeeeeeee!"
When I explained my sealed memory, that is, the fact that I had already been taken in by Zogral once, Surara started to cry.
Uh.
What should I do?
I picked him up and patted him on the head.
"I'm okay. Well, it's all in the past."
"You're very strong, Master-san."
Surara wiped his eyes with a handkerchief that he had taken out of nowhere.
"If it were me, I'd be so shocked I'd be in bed for three days."
"The world is on the brink of extinction right now, so maybe that's why I'm not too surprised."
Just after I replied like that, I heard a yawn behind me.
I turned around to see Iris just waking up.
"Fuwahh… Good morning, Kou. Looks like we're back in the real world."
"Everyone else seems to be still sleeping."
I replied with a wry smile.
Not long after that, Lily, Leticia, and Milia also woke up.
"Good morning, Kou-san."
"Fuwahh… I feel like I've been sleeping well."
"This bed is very comfortable. Can we install it in the Adventurer's Guild's quarters?"
I'll have to think about that.
If the beds can be individually created with [Creation], I would be willing to deliver them depending on the price.
While I was thinking about this, King Octo arrived, accompanied by the Helper Slimes on board.
"Oh, Kou-dono! You finally woke up! We were worried about you!"
"I and everyone else are safe. Rest assured. For the time being, we have a clue as to how to defeat Zogral."
"That's good to hear. …By the way, Kou-dono, I'm sorry to say this just after the ritual, but can you go outside? Something terrible is happening."