Aleph skipped [Albion's Remains] and headed straight into the [Red Strings of Fate (Upgrade)]. Like the [Seven Swords], it was an 'upgrade' to his existing ability.
[Red Strings of Fate (Upgrade): Grants new abilities to the pre-existing ability Red Strings of Fate. (See More)]
An additional drop-down prompt could be seen from it.
[Red Strings of Fate — Upgrade: Every person tied with the red strings of fate could sense the locations and statuses of each other. In the same battlefield, the bound partners receive an increase of combat power efficiency. The sealed power can be used thrice before disappearing.]
He scanned the description for a while.
'It's befitting of the achievement.'
This was the first time he received a reward that directly strengthened others.
'Partners. So…'
Aleph looked at his pinky finger. Two faint red strings were tied to it. Their ends extended into the fifth institute.
The moment he placed his mind on it, he felt several thoughts enter his mind. It was re-organized by his mind into something more comprehensible.
'Kurumi… and Mei. Their locations as well…'
The newest upgrade included the 'statuses' of the two.
[Kurumi Tokisaki]
[Status: Semi-conceptual, Injured, Suppressed]
'Injured… It should be from the First Spirit. Then…'
The word 'suppressed' made Aleph pause for a while. He recalled what she told him regarding her abilities.
Her Spirit, Zafkiel, possesses the authority to manipulate time. Twelve different abilities were stored inside Kurumi's clock, with each one of them being represented by the sections of time.
Four of these abilities allow her to travel through time. It takes various forms, such as sharing her senses in another time-axis or traveling through the past or the future.
Intuitively, Kurumi felt that she could not use these abilities in this world.
At first, Aleph surmised it was a natural suppression or the likes against foreigners, but he felt that he missed something.
'Aponia's vision, the one she dubbed the 'Great Reset'... Could it be…'
Aleph's thoughts ran deep. A few minutes later, he went out of it. A helpless smile came out of his lips.
'Another thing has to be added to the bucket list.'
For now, his thoughts shifted to the fun times earlier. His smile was destined to never disappear tonight.
*****
Instead of a dorm room, Mei asked for an office in the fifth institute. Numerous paperworks that she brought from the first institute filled the desk.
Mei stayed up past midnight and performed her usual all-nighters.
Whenever she thought of what happened earlier, a smile appeared on her lips.
'It's a partial success. I'll take it.'
Just as she thought of the reason why it was a partial success, Mei saw a black-red shadow appear in the corner of the room.
Soon, Kurumi's figure was revealed. Her eyes were opened, showing her usual golden left eye with an arm of a clock.
"It is time for a proper talk, no~?"
She greeted with a bow while holding the hems of her dress.
"Oh? You were not the type to come off with peace, Kurumi-san."
Although the Previous Era did not have family names, they shared several similarities to the Japan of Kurumi's world, and that included their titles.
Tap.
Mei placed the fountain pen into her desk. She fixed her silver-framed glasses with her middle finger. She gave out a 'domineering' vibe that did not lose out to Kurumi's elegance.
"You know it yourself. The concessions we made earlier."
Hearing Kurumi's words, Mei paused momentarily.
"Since you are aware of it, what are you planning to do?" Mei asked.
"Nothing."
Kurumi replied to her with a smile before she continued:
"Both of us saw Ain's reaction. We were not the only ones who got scared."
"Mn."
The purple-haired girl nodded.
She then asked, "Is this why you came here? To make sure there won't be any troubles?"
"Of course. Saving this world is already a huge burden. It means nothing but a burden should we childishly fight for his affection. Don't you agree~?"
At this moment, Kurumi displayed her nearly forty years of age. She was far older than Mei, thus she was able to see through interpersonal cues more.
In this entire conversation, Mei was being led along by her.
"That is right. I had no such plans to do so. If that is everything, you should take your time to rest, Kurumi-san."
Kurumi heeded her words. The shadow that served as her door to this office reappeared.
"Don't worry. I believe this won't be the last conversation between us, Mei-san."
Before Mei could react, she had already disappeared.
'She was not the end…'
Mei immediately understood the meaning behind Kurumi's last words.
'...but the beginning.'
She recalled every person she knew. A little bit of profiling was all it took to know about the girls around Aleph.
'Doctor Mobius.'
'Vill-V.'
'Hua.'
Three such names already appeared in her mind. The first one, in particular, was one of the closest to Aleph. Mei thought about these things deeply as she closed her eyes.
A while later, she opened her eyes.
'If that was it…'
Mei already made a concession once. She knew that when Aleph's childhood friend returned, it would be a tough battle. Aleph's decision tonight completely shocked her, though it was also the best outcome at that time.
Nobody expected that Aleph would directly ask the two of them to be his girlfriends. It was as if the concept of monogamy in their societies were nothing but a joke.
'...why would I be afraid?'
Her determined gaze was enough to freeze the atmosphere in this room.
*****
Sea of Quanta.
In such a place where countless world bubbles are sinking at the bottom, a girl with a huge scythe walked aimlessly.
On her path, numerous fragments of memories lay akin to glass shards. These were the collapsed possibilities, the ones that were invalidated once the present was decided on.
Every 'turning point' could be seen here.
From them, the girl knew of her greatest adversary.
'A strong man.'
That was Ling's thoughts the more she saw Aleph's achievements. There was no doubt he would have lent her a hand had he known of her predicament.
But now…
'It's too late.'
Too much blood was at her hands. The innocent residents in her neighborhood, the old man who gave her a ride…
They were all killed by her.
She was too far gone to return. Whenever she tried to do so, she was met with an existential crisis. She could not simply bear to forget everything she had experienced since the day she was born.
'Humans are ugly!'
'It's unfair only I got to experience it!'
'Why..?!'
A moment's recollection of Ling's entire life was enough to draw strong resentment. Even if there was a being known as "Aleph" who showed the good side of humanity, it wasn't enough.
'If he was not there..! Then everything would still be the same!'
It was easy to imagine such a scenario. Things would have spiralled downwards faster. Aleph's existence alone wasn't enough to redeem humanity in her eyes.
As such, she chose this path.
The destruction of humanity.
There was nothing else she could do. She could not bear to forgive and forget. Ling did not want to be saved.
As such, to cling to the life she grasped desperately…
She can only go further.
Her long black hair swayed. Ling was startled, not because of it, but to the mirror-like world in front of her.
Unlike other bubble universes, it was extremely solid. It didn't seem like the ones that disappear every now and then—the ones without an anchor.
Just as she touched it, everything changed.
'This place...'
The sixth Herrscher was welcomed to a white space.