"The world population at the time was 14.2 billion."
"They turned corpses into energy, and they are still being mined in an endless stream to this day."
This was a conversation built on mutual understanding, which always felt especially comfortable. The young lady who had returned aboard the "Ark" was neither overly surprised nor mentally shattered by glimpsing the truth of the world. Instead, she lowered her head and pondered quietly.
"There's a problem."
Hoshino suddenly spoke.
"This only explains the origins of Originium, but Oripathy... there still doesn't seem to be a reasonable explanation for it."
As Hoshino spoke, she suddenly realized it herself.
She had tried using the Abyss Flower to treat someone's Oripathy, and the conclusion she had ultimately reached was astonishing—Oripathy was not a disease, but some other kind of thing.
"You noticed it too."
If stones could have expressions, No. 001 would probably be smiling right now.
"At the time, we invested enormous funds into researching the composition of so-called souls in the field of quantum physics, but we never made any progress. Who would have thought that after all humanity transformed into Originium, we would suddenly prove that souls truly exist?"
Humanity's greatest attachment was its attachment to the land.
The human souls within Originium moaned and cried out, driving the humans of the new era to establish national unions identical to those of ancient times. Even when continental drift turned the land back into a geological "Pangaea," that longing remained.
"So Originium Arts refers to resonating with the souls in the Originium dust floating through the air?"
Hoshino frowned as she spoke.
Who would have thought that Originium Arts really was soul resonance, rather than some clumsy figure of speech?
"Oripathy isn't a disease either."
Now she understood a little. It was not