"The moment I held the decree blade [Fate], I understood why this blade had no fully compatible wielder for decades."
"Those who touch the forbidden must bear the price."
"Thus far, Izumo has felled six of the eight million gods."
"The holders of the divine-slaying decree blades changed constantly; only the masters of [Thunder] and [Fate] remained unchanged."
"…"
One plot image after another, each packed with information.
Learning that Leon had actually become the holder of a decree blade, Ah Xian instantly hit the plot pause button that had been updated in version 1.1.
She had a strong feeling this segment contained major revelations.
"Very strange. Let's not even mention Leon is an alien—based solely on his setting, the blade he should wield would be a storm blade."
"For the family who doesn't know: Shinatsuhiko is the name of the wind god in Little Days mythology."
"And one of Leon's abilities is precisely wind manipulation."
"The number of swords broken while killing the wind god was the lowest, proving that with his help, the price paid in that battle was the smallest."
"By attribute compatibility, no blade suits him more than the storm blade."
"But the fact before us is that it took over a hundred years for the storm blade to find its perfect wielder."
[It can't be that he never got near the blade's location, so no resonance was triggered, right?]
"No no no, that explanation doesn't hold—there's logical disproof."
Ah Xian opened the stream recording and skipped to a segment from earlier.
"Listen—Leon said here that the storm blade had three incomplete holders."
"Three already, and Leon was active on the front lines of god-slaying. How could he never have come close to the storm blade during battle?"
"This proves the storm blade never resonated with him."
"That's why I say it's very strange."
"Divine Harvest Era 0647… felled Kagutsuchi-no-mikoto…"
"Divine Harvest Era 0740… felled Yagokoro-omokane, forged decree blade [Awakening]…"
"Divine Harvest Era 0814… felled Oyamatsumi…"
"Divine Harvest Era 0953… felled Okuninushi, forged decree blade [Thousand]…"
"Divine Harvest Era 1058… felled Kunado-kami…"
"Divine Harvest Era 1457… felled Yaso-magatsuhi, forged decree blade [Devour]…"
"Thus far, Izumo has broken 70,033 swords, forged twelve decree blades. The divine-slaying decree blades received a new name: World-Protecting Decree Blades."
"However…"
Leon's narration gradually lowered; the screen darkened and a loading bar appeared.
When loading finished, players discovered the perspective had become strange.
First-person.
The scene appeared to be a mountain peak under a light drizzle, with no thunder yet.
Moon-white furisode sleeves entered the field of view, revealing the identity of the first-person protagonist.
Raiden Bosenmori Mei.
Stelle: (…We can control the actions of the memory's original owner now?)
Hearing the protagonist's inner voice, Ah Xian instantly snapped to full attention.
"Leon…?"
Seeing the familiar upright back at the cliff's edge, Stelle subconsciously murmured.
She realized the problem the moment the words left her mouth.
Having experienced so many important memory fragments as an observer, she knew exactly what to do.
She was now Raiden Bosenmori Mei.
Previous experiences entering memories of different eras had taught her that she must perfectly act as Raiden Bosenmori Mei.
Otherwise, severe memory disorder or historical inconsistency would force a restart from the beginning.
But this time she had a feeling—
If anything went wrong, there might not be a chance to restart.
Not only would awakening Leon become an unattainable future, even she herself would be lost forever in past memories.
As if—
Something utterly terrifying was waiting for Leon, waiting for Raiden Bosenmori Mei, waiting for Izumo Country.
And waiting for her.
Hearing the call, Leon did not turn around.
"I'm sorry, Mei…"
Stelle froze. The players froze.
Why was Leon suddenly apologizing?
Options appeared in the lower right corner.
① "…"
② "Why are you saying sorry?"
③ "…Did you lie to me about something?"
"???"
Seeing the three options, Ah Xian instantly broke into a cold sweat.
All red text—how do you even play this?
Ah Xian gritted her teeth and confirmed her choice.
Stelle thought carefully for a moment before speaking cautiously.
"What's wrong? Why are you suddenly saying sorry to me?"
Leon fell silent.
Raindrops pattered on the umbrella surface, playing a chaotic, disordered rhythm.
Not to mention the players—even Stelle, who was experiencing it firsthand, began to feel something was wrong.
She knew the major events Leon experienced in Izumo Country—that was true.
But she only knew the felling of the gods and parts of some early important moments.
What happened in between—she knew nothing.
Just as Stelle couldn't hold back and was about to ask again, Leon finally broke the silence.
"You… really haven't noticed?"
① "…"
② "…"
③ "…"
Only silence remained as an option.
Hearing no answer he wanted, Leon merely sighed and, for the first time, played coy.
"All the gods of Takamagahara will fall in the near future."
"Prepare yourself."
The instant she heard those words, Stelle felt a stabbing pain in her brain.
An unbearable tearing sensation nearly made her pass out.
Indescribable whispers echoed in her ears, as if her sanity itself would collapse.
Fortunately, the anomaly lasted less than two seconds.
When Stelle regained her vision, she found herself collapsed in a hellish battlefield.
Everything in the city had been destroyed; enormous corpses could still be seen among the ruins.
Beneath her feet lay stacked bodies.
Humanoid in shape, roughly ten of them.
Beside these corpses, shattered blades lay scattered everywhere.
Stelle raised a trembling hand.
The decree blade [Thunder] in her hand now had only half remaining.
All the World-Protecting Decree Blades… were broken?
Footsteps approached from afar. Stelle's gaze moved from the broken blade and saw a pair of feet stop before her.
It was Leon, holding [Fate] which now had only a third left.
"The netherworld is swept clean, the gongs sound retreat; all twelve cold radiances are shattered…"
Stelle remained silent, unsure what to say.
Leon's tone was hollow: "…The World-Protecting Decree Blades have become history. Tell me your choice."
"…" Stelle was lost.
Seeing her silence, Leon slowly nodded.
"White-Haired Oni, fulfill your final mission."
Behind him, a man with gray twin horns, wrapped head to toe in impenetrable cloth—even his face unseen—stepped forward slowly.
He collected all the broken World-Protecting Decree Blades.
As he left, only his tragic white long hair could be seen.
The screen went black, and an empty narration rang out.
"Restless drum and clamor; the black sun shines bright; at last, two blades of world-betrayal are forged."
"With the blade of man as the beginning."
"With the blade of Oni… as the end…"
"The race of the fully compatible wielders of the twelve World-Protecting Decree Blades never changed from beginning to end."
Ah Xian began to panic.
"Isn't this supposed to be saving the world? Why does the tone sound like the end of the world?"