Before long, night began to fall.
In the room, Luo Zhen checked the magical energy in his body, which had fully recovered. He took the laptop that had been resting on his knees, closed the game, and stretched.
"That's about enough."
Luo Zhen murmured to himself.
Whenever the magical energy in his body was full, it was time for Luo Zhen to hone his magical skills.
Even though something like that had happened today, Luo Zhen had no intention of neglecting this habit.
Just as Roman had said, Luo Zhen was usually lazy, but when it came to magic, he was exceptionally hardworking and serious.
The boy genuinely loved the art of "magic" and could never abandon a hard-won miracle.
"I'll practice a new summoning today. It'd be great if I could complete the summoning of a fourth Mid-Level Familiar."
Luo Zhen looked forward to it as he prepared to get out of bed.
Just then...
"Hiss!"
The automatic door to Luo Zhen's room suddenly opened with a sharp sound.
"Huh?"
Luo Zhen froze slightly and reflexively looked toward the doorway.
A girl hurried in from outside.
"Fou!"
Fou, who was lying on Luo Zhen's bed, immediately cried out as if greeting her.
"Mashu?"
Luo Zhen was likewise a little surprised.
"Senpai!"
Usually polite and well-mannered, Mashu paid no attention to either human or beast's reaction. Panting, she looked toward Luo Zhen.
At that moment, a bad feeling surfaced in Luo Zhen's heart.
That was because Mashu's beautiful eyes carried an emotion he had never seen in them before.
Mashu continued panting as she stared at Luo Zhen.
After a moment, Mashu spoke.
"The Sheba lens has detected an anomaly."
Those words confirmed Luo Zhen's premonition.
Chaldea, on one of the corridors leading to the Central Control Room.
At that moment, Luo Zhen and Mashu were running quickly down the corridor toward the Central Control Room.
"Senpai! Please hurry!"
"I-I am already running as fast as I can!"
Mashu kept urging Luo Zhen onward as he ran unsteadily ahead, swaying as though he were about to die. A wave of sorrow passed through him.
As a man, being urged by a woman to run faster while panting like a dying dog was utterly humiliating.
"It's unavoidable. My Magic Circuits are just too excellent, and that affected my body's functions. That's right, I'm not too weak. This is all because I'm too outstanding..."
Luo Zhen could only keep comforting himself this way. With his steps still unsteady, he staggered onward under Mashu's urging, rushing toward the Central Control Room.
At long last, after passing through an elevator, the two finally arrived at the Central Control Room.
As soon as the automatic doors opened, Luo Zhen, drenched in sweat and supported by Mashu, saw the scene inside.
"The anomaly value is rising!"
"The anomaly value is continuing to rise!"
"Quickly, try to control it!"
"No good! It's already exceeded the limit!"
Inside the Central Control Room, a group of staff operating instruments in the Command Room cried out in panic, their voices gradually turning into faint wails.
Olga Marie, who had been sulking in her room, seemed to have received the news ahead of time and had already arrived. She was engaged in an intense discussion with the solemn-looking Leff, her face filled with unprecedented anxiety.
At the center of the Central Control Room, the Earth Environment Model, floating in midair like a gigantic globe, was undergoing an abnormal change.
"...No way?"
Looking at the state of the Earth Environment Model, Luo Zhen muttered in disbelief.
The Earth Environment Model, which had always shone with beautiful blue light and a flame of civilization like a fluorescent glow, was continuously changing color.
Luo Zhen and Mashu were not the only ones who saw this. The other Adaptable Ones who had received the news and rushed over had seen it as well.
"This..."
"Could it be..."
"Could it finally be..."
The Adaptable Ones who had arrived whispered among themselves while staring intently toward the Earth Environment Model, their expressions extremely grim.
Naturally, Roman had come here as well.
"...I didn't expect it to worsen so quickly."
After arriving at the Central Control Room, Roman gazed toward the Earth Environment Model. After a moment, he made this unusually calm statement.
"Doctor?"
Mashu was suddenly at a loss.
Luo Zhen also turned his head to look at Roman.
After all, Roman's statement had sounded far too much like he knew the details.
In other words, this change had not been unexpected to Roman.
Luo Zhen immediately asked him,
"Do you know something, big brother?"
Luo Zhen questioned him bluntly.
Roman looked back at Luo Zhen. As if he felt there was no need to hide it anymore, he sighed.
Then Roman told Luo Zhen something.
"Actually, several months ago, Chaldea's observers had already discovered that the Earth Environment Model was changing color."
That simple sentence instantly made Luo Zhen understand the situation.
"It started changing color several months ago...?"
No wonder.
No wonder Chaldea, which had always conducted its observation missions in an orderly manner, had suddenly begun constantly gathering the Adaptable Ones in the facility for Simulated Battle during this period.
So it was not merely for experiments and training. It was also because the situation might develop in the worst possible direction?
The Earth Environment Model had begun changing color.
This was not an incident that could be ignored.
One had to understand that this Earth Environment Model was a device that displayed the state of the entire planet.
Once it developed an anomaly, that meant something was wrong with the planet.
"Could it be..."
Luo Zhen could not help imagining the worst possible situation.
And that situation was voiced by Mashu, who had been staring at the Earth Environment Model.
"Senpai...!"
Hearing her, Luo Zhen immediately turned his head toward the Earth Environment Model.
There, after a series of fluctuations like a dying struggle, the Earth Environment Model, which had always shone brightly, finally began to dim.
"----"
The entire Central Control Room fell utterly silent.
Everyone stared blankly at the Earth Environment Model, now plunged into darkness, unable to speak.
"The light... disappeared...?"
Mashu's murmur seemed to come from far away, filled with an unreal quality.
Luo Zhen was silent as well.
As long as the flame of civilization in the Earth Environment Model, which represented the planet, remained lit, it proved that humanity could live in peace throughout the coming century.
But once it lost its light, it could only mean one thing.
----"Human history is about to disappear."
That was all it meant.
Olga Marie stared at the Earth Environment Model after it had lost its light, her face paling somewhat.
However, Olga Marie did not lose her composure.
"Begin gathering the Master Adaptable Ones immediately!"
Olga Marie gritted her teeth and issued an order that concerned the future of humanity.
"I want to see all the world's Master candidates gathered in Chaldea within a month!"
That also meant...
"Is the battle... about to begin?"
Luo Zhen whispered, his heart filled with complicated emotions.
PS: The main story is about to begin, everyone! Friends, please give me a recommendation! Click! Favorite, please!
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