The End and the Truth · I
"So—where was I?"
What kind of place was this?
This place was nowhere.
It was neither Earth nor the celestial sphere. It was not among the stars, nor was it in any known location.
It was—a place without a location.
Its name was—
the Entrance to the Root.
Outside the enormous white vortex below—or perhaps above—a table and chair floated in the void. A somewhat illusory figure sat in that chair, one leg crossed over the other.
"Mm, dry red from Lawrence's era."
Pinching the base of the crystal glass between three fingers, he muttered to himself before lightly draining the red wine in one gulp.
Impeccably elegant.
"Ah, a habit Lawrence brought with him. These days, I always feel like having some dessert."
Rich, intoxicating dry red wine paired with a little dessert was the most popular way to eat during the Renaissance. As one of Florence's "important figures" for quite some time, Lawrence naturally enjoyed it immensely as well.
"Would you like some? Have a little, then keep listening to my story."
The somewhat illusory figure seemed to try to reveal his appearance as he spoke to those across from him, but several different appearances flickered back and forth over his body, as though he were unstable.
"Tch, it's been like this ever since Annanu separated out. Can't hold on much longer, huh?"
"So? Would you like some?"
He looked across at them again and asked. At last, his appearance stabilized.
He was a very young-looking boy, with a polite smile on his face.
Naturally, he was that strand of the Root which had leaked out of the world. Influenced by the "traveler phenomenon" between worlds, it had acquired the mimetic form of a primate—the Thread of the Root in primate