After thoroughly extorting Francesca, we looted the Holy Relics she had stashed in her warehouse and then demanded to know the location of a young man named 'Daybit Sem Void.'
Despite how pitifully outmatched she was, it seemed she still held some modicum of influence in Las Vegas. Francesca compiled a list of probable locations for Daybit Sem Void and handed it over.
"He's a guy I've seen a few times. Since our casino uses illusions, there's no age limit... Occasionally, Magi or those with the aptitude to awaken Magic Circuits wander in. In most cases, we just let them keep their winnings and send them on their way."
"Fine. Since you cooperated, I'll at least tell you a route to hide from Touko Aozaki."
"...Phew."
The moment Francesca heard the information regarding Touko Aozaki's whereabouts, she grabbed only the bare essentials and vanished into the night. Godword and I cast a glance at the ruined casino-hotel before beginning our trek toward the north.
"Of all places, Snowfield. It's surprising to learn that Francesca was plotting to steal the Greater Grail if the Fourth Holy Grail War had concluded properly."
"In the first place, the *strange Fake and Apocrypha* worldlines are founded on the ritual resulting from the theft of the Greater Grail after the Third Holy Grail War. For a lunatic like her, it's a perfectly logical endeavor. To be honest, since Makiri Zolgen was just decimated by my hand, I was genuinely worried that Francesca might intervene midway through the war."
I am a Magus who possesses the Rinnegan—a natural counter to illusionists. I have the confidence to see through her phantasms. However, the others are a different story.
Beginning with Kiritsugu, who is weighed down by the leaden gravity of his past trauma, there are at least five Masters who would succumb easily to her mental interference.
"Is that why you removed Ryuunosuke Uryuu beforehand?"
"Precisely. Thinking back, I believe I'll need to pay a visit to Tokyo once this business is concluded."
"Tokyo... you mean, the 'Omnipotent One'?"
"Yeah. Frankly, I need to check if the Demon God King has planted any of his foul seeds within that omnipotence."
It has been confirmed that if the 'Present' passes into the 'Past,' the Demon God King can utilize his Independent Manifestation—a capability to reach into all of human history from the Imaginary Number Space—to awaken the Grand-designated Magus of that era as a Demon God Pillar. In fact, he had already goaded Angra Mainyu into awakening as a Beast, creating a pseudo-Foundation of the Human Order.
Thus, I had acted preemptively by bringing Shiki Ryougi, who possesses an aptitude for a Beast, into Chaldea's protection. I am also keeping a close eye on others with similar potential.
As for the Escardos family's wish, Waver is personally monitoring Flat Escardos, who serves as the key. Regarding 'The Dark Six,' the First of the Twenty-Seven Dead Apostle Ancestors and a singularity that denies human history, Aoko-neesan and Arcueid are likely making periodic checks on the Trafim faction, which is suspected of pursuing the Sixth's wish. Since Nrvnqsr Chaos and Michael Roa Valdamjong were recently put to the sword, it will be difficult for them to focus on that front for a while.
In the case of the Demonic Bodhisattva who metamorphoses into the Third Evil of Humanity, she is currently confirmed to be within the Burial Agency, making her a non-issue. Entering the Agency is effectively the same as renouncing one's metamorphosis. If she ever attempts to evolve into a non-human entity, Narbareck—notorious as a pious zealot—will strike her down before she can complete the transition.
However, unlike those I can monitor through direct or indirect means, the 'Omnipotent One' in Tokyo was an existence I truly wished to avoid.
"You know it too, don't you? That girl's temperament."
"Mmm. She is certainly a... distasteful woman..."
Moreover, meeting her was even more awkward because the 'Materialization' of the Root itself had appeared while wearing her form like a hollow shell. Aside from the existence known as 'Arthur Pendragon,' that girl moves only for her own interest and indifference. She is a Mystery more inscrutable than Francesca herself.
"But honestly, we don't know, do we?"
"That is true."
There was a mention that she would merely become 'harmless' if she never encountered Arthur Pendragon, but that varies greatly from case to case. Making one excuse after another, I had naturally delayed meeting Manaka Sajyou, and I still didn't have much desire to do so.
"For now, let's focus on Daybit's matter."
"Very well."
Snowfield was a gathering of nature's extremes—surrounded by deserts, marshes, forests, and valleys. Within those bounds were towns where people lived, albeit sparsely.
From poachers attempting to fell jungle timber to researchers conducting environmental surveys and even those who looked like simple travelers... And the town where most of these people congregated happened to be one of the predicted destinations for Daybit that Francesca had pinpointed.
* *
Arriving there, Godword and I checked into a modest inn. The innkeeper's face lit up with a bright smile as he accepted the bundle of cash we offered.
"Welcome to our inn!"
With a pug nose and hair so shaggy his beard and head-hair were indistinguishable, he welcomed us readily. After washing away the fatigue of our travels, we began investigating the town.
Fortunately, Francesca's intelligence was not flawed. We quickly found traces of Daybit. Through cross-verification, Godword and I confirmed his current location and activities.
"They say a company came for the marsh development project. An oil tycoon named Rubin Arstar."
"...It seems Daybit drifted in there to work a part-time job. I hope he joins us easily."
"...Is there really a need to go through such tedious steps?"
Godword gestured toward a sack in the corner of the inn with a smirk. I looked at it, then gave him a high-five.
That night, two shadows infiltrated the hotel chartered by the Rubin Arstar Corporation. A minor commotion occurred when a local guide disappeared, but soon, no one remembered the incident had happened at all.
* *
Daybit Sem Void only managed to wake up after his abduction, transport to the airport, and boarding were already completed without a hitch. He looked around briefly, deduced he had been kidnapped, and then questioned who we were.
"I see. You don't have 'memories' of us yet?"
"Even if he's a Magus of the Grand Rank and one Connected to the Origin, he likely thought that for a resident of America, we weren't particularly important to remember."
"That sounds plausible, Godword Mayday."
"...Who the hell are you people?"
Having finished the self-introduction that was fast becoming our trademark, I looked at the boy who was coolly trying to decipher our intentions and spoke.
"First, let's keep it simple. We are well aware of the 'symptom' you suffer from."
"...What? No, symptoms? What are you talking about?"
"...This is serious. Karma-kun, what's your plan?"
"Right... I didn't consider this. To think he lacks even the self-awareness that he's suffering from such a condition..."
Well, a normal person would have gone insane long ago if every memory of their day was deleted, leaving only 'five minutes' of recollection.
Perhaps his lack of awareness is a defense mechanism unique to the boy named Daybit Sem Void. Or perhaps the act of remembering that he only remembers five minutes a day is itself a waste of time, so he deliberately chose not to retain it.
"In this case... Godword, the only way is to let him experience it firsthand."
"...Suppose it can't be helped."
Immediately, following Godword's Unified Language, an overwhelming density of information and magical energy began to burrow into Daybit's mind. As the past 'days' he had lost over the years rushed back to him... he soon rolled his eyes back and collapsed onto the plane's carpeted aisle.
Godword hauled him back into his business-class seat and applied a hypnotic suggestion to ensure his psyche wouldn't fracture.
"I've forced him to recall all his past memories. He'll be confused for a while, of course... but since these memories will be deleted again once a day passes, we must take measures before then."
"...Is it possible with that method?"
"Of course. It would have been impossible for the 'me' of before... but now that I can perfectly distinguish between 'memories' of the past and present, it's quite simple."
The method Godword and I chose to 'treat' Daybit wasn't to subject him to a daily flashback of his entire life.
Injecting years' worth of memories all at once, as we did today, would be too much for him. It might even cause an overclocking phenomenon similar to Shiki Tohno's Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, burning out his brain.
Instead, we chose a different path: just as the old Godword did, we would save all his 'forgotten' memories into his subconscious like a backup server, allowing him to replay the 'forgotten' as a hobby whenever he wishes.
"If you think about it, it's actually illogical for all memories to be deleted. How to breathe, how to eat, how to walk, how to speak... such 'obvious' things exceed a five-minute window. Why is he able to maintain a normal life while keeping those skills but losing other five-minute intervals?"
"The answer was simple. Instinctive memories that the subconscious never forgets are different from knowledge gained through living—rote memory. Simply put, there are rote memories lost through symptoms akin to Alzheimer's... and memories that are like the body's instincts, which are never forgotten."
By leaving today's memory within his five-minute allotment, Godword will record his 'oblivion' and embed a command via Unified Language so Daybit's subconscious can replay them using simple keywords.
The hard drive will reset every day, but his memories will be backed up on an external drive and a USB, ready to be replayed whenever he wants. He might live a slightly inconvenient life, like a patient with a pacemaker... but he will be able to live nonetheless.
"The only problem... is if he betrays us after receiving the Unified Language treatment. Can you guarantee he won't?"
"Of course. My experience... and my memories. Both point to the fact that he won't betray us."
According to my memories, Daybit acted for the sake of humanity until the very end.
True, his methods were extreme—awakening ORT to smash Chaldeas into bits... but even so, he resisted the Bleaching of the Human Order and was the one who killed Marisbury.
"This is from my own experience: a person who has lost their 'memories' once and regained them will never want to forget again."
This is a conviction held by the one who once lost 'information' regarding the future.
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