Chapter 522

No nation, no person, and no summoned Heroic Spirit can escape it.

"Izanami, the victor of the Tokyo battlefield, became pregnant during the war, which was the common hope of the Japanese Divine System. In other words, that child is the new God-King of Japan, although he does not possess the power befitting his status, he is merely a person with special abilities, but that is the origin of his existence."

These words seemed to have been prepared long ago.

No, that's actually true.

With her eyes closed, Erice thought that as a figure who could decide whether to step onto the path of 'Poimandres,' he undoubtedly held an incredibly high position in both Alchemical Theology and the Christ system. Perhaps he could see into the Future and thus knew about her choice.

"Then, the girl who was born, besides inheriting the hopes of the gods of Japan, also had blood that was accidentally tainted. It was because of this that the man who was holding the final of the Holy Grail War in a faraway country had all his worries disappear at that moment. He must have felt that the god he had always revered had smiled at him, so he chose 'defeat' and waited for the day when everything was ready."

John Dee, the Alchemy who fought Manazuru Chitose in the final Holy Grail War, only had Ouroboros Servant at the time. Cleopatra and Little Garm, who came later, were summoned in the New Era using the power of the Holy Grail. Moreover, in order to Perfection deceive Chitose and Lucius, he actually made Ouroboros die once, using the ability to disrupt language conceptually to parasitize the Primordial Holy Grail in Chitose's heart.

"However, besides him, many other Death God also harbored desires for 'her,' who was also death. Many surviving Death God were deceived by Baal, the most powerful of the same kind, who once killed the Canaan King of Death God, wanting 'her' to join death so that humanity would once again face death, thereby eliminating the Black Mud that deceived all living beings and the distorted 'seat' in the Holy Grail. But Baal only wanted to assimilate all death and become the Eternal Exalted One of Canaan."

"Numerous Death God..."

Erice Muttered blankly.

She had met Hel, the Norse Death God of death; Asto Vidatu, the Persia Death God death; and her two lazy Night Watch, one who called himself Yama, the India Death God of death, and the other who called himself Anubis, the Egypt Death God of death, and Zagreus, who spent his days drinking and selling alcohol and claimed to be the incarnation of the Greece god of wine.

Novia nodded and continued:

"Baal had no connection with Alchemy, but their goals were the same: one wanted to assimilate them to become the Supreme Being, and the other wanted to make them the Supreme Being of Alchemy. Four years later, in 2015, Baal and his allies launched an attack on Tokyo, turning the Abandoned-God Rebirth City into the Underworld Tokyo Tokyo. 'Her' mother died protecting her, and Tokyo's protector Susa-no-O, everyone she knew, and even the entire population of Tokyo perished."

For some reason, Erice felt a sense of familiarity with the way this unknown being spoke; this was the first time she had heard it since the Demon King left and since Novia.

"So, what were 'her' feelings?"

Novia asked a question.

"Despite having two Japan Future —the new God-King of Japan and the Supreme Being God of Alchemy —she was caught up in conspiracies from birth and witnessed so much death even at the age of four. What was she thinking at that time?"

Erice is looking over at that moment.

As a child, I kept moving forward. This was City that was still thriving just an hour ago, the undisputed capital of Japan.

But wherever she went, many people fell to the ground.

Before the contracts of Heroic Spirit were even signed, the cries of newborn Baby mingled with the scorching sounds of a hospital engulfed in flames; schoolchildren went to school, never to return home; working people toiled from morning till night, too exhausted to look away from their outstretched hands with hopeful eyes; restaurant clerks who forgot their change rushed outside and died like ants; everyone died in a joyous celebration.

Located in Tokyo, she was running through a sea of fire towards the ocean, because the train lines had already been cut off.

I'm so sorry.

She repeatedly expressed her apologies to those who saw it, those who couldn't see it, and to everyone in Tokyo.

Because she was the Culprit behind all of this, she felt immense Wrath towards that Culprit. However, she knew that Wrath without power as its foundation was meaningless.

Among those who succumbed to despair due to death, there were also many who, after the collapse of the system, began to direct their Servant to go on a killing spree. One man lurked at the other end of the Cross, holding Pistol, intending to deliver a fatal blow to anyone trying to escape down that road.

"Go to hell!"

That sentence, along with the sentence uttered by the man who suffered a mental breakdown due to death, occurred at the same time as the gunshot in his hand.

She saw a red flower blooming on her chest.

He was shot.

A friend of the same age as her, Miko at Kanda Shrine.

Very good.

It's so good that I'm the one who died; it's so good that you're not the one who died...

Although she didn't say it, she understood the meaning behind her friend's final smile, which led her to kill someone for the first time in her life.

Soon after, panting, she finally swam across the sea to another City, feeling the rain dripping from the gray sky. Following her mother's advice, she drank the Waters of Forgetfulness, which could prevent those people from noticing her. The side effect was that she lost all her memories of the past years.

Who knows what kind of suffering awaits me next?

But he managed to do it, and he even saved his friend.

She thought to herself that she could survive, she was sure of it.

This is precisely what Novia reveals about Tokyo ten years ago and her past.

"... I saw death."

With her eyes closed, Erice whispered, "The sky, the ground, the shops, the streets are all filled with dead people and exploding organs and blood. Countless deaths have numbed me. I feel like they are constantly grabbing my feet, preventing me from moving. So many people, so many people. I have been... terrified, so Sorrow. I worry, is it because I am unworthy to be the Great Lord of the East that this disaster has occurred?"

"521,471 people. Excluding the more than ten million who died in the war, Tokyo was so crowded at the time that the entire Yomi Hirasaka was extremely congested. It's perfectly normal that so many Heroic Spirit couldn't return to their seats and became Wicked Spirit."

Throughout history, many people have chosen to kill precisely because they yearn for Perfection.

The Eternal Exalted One of Canaan, the Lord's Mind of Alchemical Theology, are all 'Perfection' beings within their respective systems.

It is an existence that everyone desires and idolizes, even if the cost is the shattering of countless insignificant hopes.

"Oh right, I finally remembered a feeling from before."

The girl's expression was very clear.

"At that time, I was very troubled. Am I really Izanami's child? Am I really the Future God-King with unlimited potential? A God-King who doesn't even have Command Spell, doesn't even have a good friend, doesn't even have power that is incomparable, that's too pathetic."

"But--"

"While my mother was fighting that guy for me, she wrote a few words on my back with her finger: Listen, run, I don't care... I guess she didn't have time to write the last word."

Erice touched her bangs gently, as if reminiscing, and then touched her forehead.

"Until just now, I doubted myself, doubted whether I was worthy of the Great Lord of the East, doubted whether I was worthy of Poimandres. But then I thought, so many people died because of me. I am the Lord of Utsu, the Supreme Being Alchemy, the daughter of Izanami, and I must face their deaths. Even if I can't do anything, I must take responsibility, stand above others, and gain power. That must be how it is. That's why I want to move forward as a weakling."

Novia spoke.

"Continue to imagine the Universe, Erice, imagine the darkness that is like a bottomless abyss, where you stand, where you witnessed the massacre at the age of four. The Universe gave birth to all things, the Universe made everything come into being, the Universe born from infinite imagination is infinitely vast. Come, let me see the Universe you possess."

The surroundings seemed to transform into a solemn Sanctuary, where the young girl, shrouded in boundless darkness, gazed upon all the death on the Ocean Planet.

I cannot judge your choice; it's the path you chose yourself.

At this moment, Novia was like Teacher Erice knew all too well. "Your choice has nothing to do with other people's opinions. Only you can judge your Future. I cannot deny that if you became Poimandres, you would have the power to rewrite the world, nor can I deny that if you became the Great Lord of the East, you could instantly break Baal's blockade against humanity. However, it is precisely because things did not develop in this way that I have to accept this fact."

"... I really have to think this way?"

Erice frowned, guided by her intuition. "I feel like you're a lot like someone I know. Even though we always argue, that person's heart isn't a barren wasteland. That bright corner will always be filled with warmth for the world's helpless and weak."

"The weak are actually very strong; this is inseparable from the word 'strong.'"

Novia smiled gently.

She smiled gently, as if to reassure Erice.

Although Erice couldn't see his face clearly, she could only infer this from his tone of voice.

"To live means to be tenacious in life. When the weak strive to overcome helplessness and stand taller, the light they emit is faint but not weak. For every inch the light advances, the darkness retreats. I know this principle is simple and clear, yet incredibly difficult. Therefore, I leave my eternal respect to them."

What a tender declaration that was.

Then, Novia asked again:

"Can you accept it? Even if you haven't made any mistakes, haven't committed any wrongdoing, can you accept that the deaths of 521,471 people are all your responsibility?"

"..."

Erice didn't answer immediately.

"Can you accept it? As you walk the path of weakness, can you accept that the deaths of your mother ten years ago, your friend, and even your own 'death' are all your responsibility?"

"I accept."

"Since that's the case,"

Novia nodded. "Your choice is correct. Because your choice is correct, you are right whether you are Poimandres or the Great Lord of the East. Both suit you well. To ascend from human to god, humanity, as the weaker party, needs to possess a strong will."

Becoming a god by one's own will ultimately depend on one's own personality, which lies precisely in one's strong will.

"But I've already refused..."

"Certainly."

Novia's voice rose, "Listen up. I'll argue with anyone who disagrees. If anyone thinks you're not suitable, even if that person is that guy himself, I'll fight him!"

In other words, if the Japanese Divine System doesn't recognize it, they'll attack it entirely; if Yahweh doesn't recognize it, they'll attack Him too.

"Why..."

Would someone be that good to themselves?

"However, the main issue is that guy outside. It's best if you fight her. Her rank is equal to, or even a level higher than, that of Poimandres. As for why I don't want to help, just consider it as we haven't seen each other for so long. I want to see how you perform. I'll take it back later. After all, I do have some vanity, haha."

"... What's the meaning?"

"The chapters about navigators in your class end like this:"

New World Beyond the Sea, the distant horizon, and the boundless Universe. In the past, humanity explored unknown spaces time and time again. But ever since sending those cheerful rascals to the surface of the moon, humanity has never had the opportunity to go to places more distant than the moon.

Back when the Apollo spacecraft was launched, people envisioned a grand dream: to explore the Universe. But today, that dream remains just a dream.

Mars, Venus, or even the Outer Universe far from our Solar System are all places yet to be reached by humankind.

Has humanity lost something precious? Will there be anyone in the Future qualified to be a hero on the frontier, leading people to sail once again into a new world?

So sail boldly, as a human being, and the Universe within you will overlap with you. Everyone has Universe within them—one Universe, two Universe, three Universe. All Universe Aspect and eventually overlap. This power comes from you, from each and every one of you.

Humans cannot imagine a life without ideals and hope, just as no one can imagine a life without sunshine. It is because of the life-giving power of sunshine that the earth has not turned to stone.

As Shakespeare said, "The grass and trees grow by the rain and dew of heaven, yet they also dare to look up at the sky." And above the sky, "The same Sun shines on his palace, and does not spare our Hut."

Just as no winter is insurmountable.

Facing the unknown Universe, strangers will walk together, because hope never abandons the weak, hope empowers the powerless, and helps the pessimistic move forward.

I'm watching you all, cheering you on, because I'm a part of you.

Before Erice could react, Novia gently placed her hand on her head.

Then, her hair color changed, and long, silver hair flowed down the back of the girl's head.

Who exactly are you?

Erice opened her eyes, which had been tightly closed.

A burst of light swept up, obscuring her face.

"I am hope, and you are hope, and hope is humanity itself."

"You really are--"

Erice couldn't utter the words she wanted to say, and they ultimately vanished, returning to the Kanda Shrine in Underworld Tokyo.

"Alright, go ahead, Erice."

The Disguise User Cleopatra approaching outside the Shrine possesses power equivalent to that of the Chief God.

The reason is simple.

Because Hermes Trismegistus, condensed Alchemy into Thirteen Sayings that have been passed down to posterity, known as the "Emerald Tablet".

It mentions:

The Sun is the father, the moon is the mother; they are conceived by the wind and nurtured by the earth.

The source of all Perfection in the world is here; its power is most complete on earth.

This is how the world was created, and in this way miracles can be achieved.

I am called the Hermes Trismegistus, because I possess the Wisdom of the three parts of the world.

This is what I mean by great work.

In other words, the Alchemy Cleopatra, whose mother was named 'Selene' (the moon) and whose father was named 'Helios' (the Sun),' was the one who was talking about the great work.

Moreover, Zosimus, as the progenitor of Alchemy who disseminated systematic Book throughout the world, had already achieved the power in Alchemy that transcended the limitations of time.

This may also be why he sent his newborn Cleopatra to Alexandria.

After all, that was, to some extent, where Novia rose to prominence.

There's also the Disguise User Class, which has examples of imposters impersonating other Servant and authors impersonating their characters. Could there also be instances of characters impersonating authors? Or does Cleopatra, who inherited Zosimus's Alchemy, possess the same time-transcending powers of Alchemy as her father?

The Hermes Trismegistus is essentially a legendary figure. Everyone knows that in the Age of Gods, it was impossible for three gods and three humans to merge into one. After all, how could the grandson of Adam be both the Greek God Hermes and the ancient Egypt god Thoth? That's just too...

Aren't legends supposed to change over time?

However, according to Novia's perception, Cleopatra was approaching Kanda Shrine, manifested as the Hermes Trismegistus. This was also the reason why he wanted Erice so. After all, although the Lord's Mind Poimandres, and the Hermes Trismegistus were both Supreme Being in Alchemical Theology, he was ultimately described in the "Hermes Books," which is an example of the author and his characters.

But seeing Erice's strong will, Novia still believed in her.