[516] A New Journey (2)
* * *
Heaven, Third Heaven, Sehahkim.
The shockwave from God's punishment that struck Zion had toppled Paradise—the immortals' dwelling—along its path.
Yet amid the ruins one building still held its shape: the Great Assembly Hall, the judiciary of the immortals' leaders, on the north side of the city square.
Beneath that building, in the place commonly called the Inner Chamber, ten supreme leaders of the immortals had gathered.
This meeting, known among the immortals as the Council of Ten, was made up of figures who, after living through unfathomable ages, had mastered the art of incarnation.
Murca, Deina, and Loun—whom Shirone had faced in the war—were masters of incarnation who had each lived well over a thousand years, but their clinging to life had driven them into ruin.
By contrast, the heads of the Council of Ten had each enjoyed immortality for at least ten thousand years and had become ascetics who had long since shed attachment to life and death.
"Garas was annihilated by the giants," said the bald old man, the only one seated at the head of the rectangular table.
His eyes were nothing but slick black irises, and when he spoke the skin beneath his chin ballooned like a toad's throat.
Beron (age unknown) — Amita Vanya, chairman of the Council of Ten.
The man to Beron's left spoke.
"A failure of selective evolution. The angels all left, in the end."
His face was sculpted into classical beauty, blonde hair swept back, skin deathly pale; when he spoke, sharp fangs flashed in his parted mouth.
Faust (est. 13,000) — Baek-gwi Yacha, third in the Council.
The man opposite Faust spoke.
"Garas doesn't matter. What matters is that Anke Ra was erased. From now on, it's we who should rule the humans."
He was broad-shouldered, a mottled, rounded bump protruding from his head, and his tightly clenched triangular teeth fit together like weapons.
Huama (est. 17,000) — Geumgang Yacha, fourth in the Council.
The woman across from Huama spoke.
"That light from District 73—Shirone, right? Seems he even fought immortals during the war."
Her hair was ink-black as if swallowed by shadow, and her snake-smooth body erased obvious boundaries into nothing but sinuous curves.
The silhouette itself was beautiful, but placed on a human body it left a grotesque impression.
Shura (est. 10,200) — Sado Vanya, seventh in the Council.
"Hah! Even the immortals were still suckling infants. Aside from Miro, there's no threat worth fretting over. Don't tell me you're scared, Shura?"
Shura snapped back at Huama's taunt.
"Who says I'm scared? I'm simply curious about this human called Shirone."
She imagined Shirone and then slid a forked, snake-like tongue into her clothes, licking the curves of her body.
"Tasty—slurp."
Faust, who saw the tongue snap back into her mouth, added, "This isn't something to ignore. He's the one who annihilated the archangel Paiel, and that flash right before Anke Ra's erasure was his doing. And above all—"
Huama slammed the table in frustration.
"So that means—"
"He's the Ultima System."
"Ugh!"
Huama twisted his head in anger.
No immortal could deny that Shirone carried the ancestral mind of a Gaia being.
A woman at the side muttered, "A human who killed gods…"
Her face was wolfish and fierce but oddly delicate. Black hair fell like a wild mare's mane beneath a thick, rumpled turban that sent tufts flying like flames.
Her tattered clothes hung open; the loosened ties revealed the two mounds of her heaving chest. She rested her head on the pommel of a greatsword, one leg propped on her chair, exposing the deep flesh of a sun-darkened thigh.
Baknyeo (est. 11,200) — Sura Yacha, ninth in the Council.
After a silence, Beron spoke.
"We can't say he was killed. Ra erased himself of his own will. Still, that boy was a major variable in this war."
Faust asked, "Do you intend to recruit him into the Council of Ten?"
Shura said, "That'd be rash. Shirone's incarnation is currently inactive; we can't even hear his opinion. I wouldn't stop him if he went to Under Coder, though."
"In the end you just want to consume that brat," Huama scoffed.
"With Ra erased, there's nothing left to fear. If we must single anything out, it's the angels—among humans, only Miro is notable. Ultima or whatever—strength is all that matters."
They possessed the power to govern the world through overwhelming incarnation skill, but until now they had kept their breath held under strict control.
They could not oppose Anke Ra, who could erase information from the Akashic Record itself.
But now humanity had gained freedom, and the immortals' shackles had been completely cast off.
Faust said, "We should decide soon. Is the sole existing Ultima System—the light of District 73, Shirone—our enemy or our ally?"
When silence lengthened, Beron proposed, "Let's settle it by majority. After all, we are human. Now then—those who consider Shirone an enemy, raise your hand."
A moment later the ten in the Inner Chamber expressed their positions with raised hands.
As Beron predicted, the vote was profoundly human.
* * *
A black sphere took form on a snowy peak seven thousand meters above sea level.
Soon Miro led the group down, and one by one the others appeared.
"It's cold."
Plu shivered and looked around.
They were at a mountain summit where the air was thin; all they could see was a horizontal blizzard cutting across the sky.
"If we summoned salamanders we could endure, but that'd trigger an avalanche," Zulu said, summoning a tier-3 monster, Kaidra.
Mounting the enormous winged beast that could fly seven thousand kilometers in a day, the party quickly left the mountain range behind.
They arrived at a village about six hundred meters above sea level.
Snow clouds darkened the sky, the stone path was damp, and the villagers' clothing looked unfamiliar.
When the giant Kaidra landed in the small village, everyone stopped what they were doing and stared.
Miro approached a deeply wrinkled old man.
"May I ask—where is this place?"
Sain's mind-magic provided an interpretation. The old man blinked and pointed at the mountains.
"Eskatu."
Miro recognized the name and nodded. "Ah. Eskatu."
The name meant "center of the world," a mountain range in the continent's northeast.
"Well, we've at least reached the continent. What shall we do? Fate's brought us together—how about a modest feast?"
No one answered the joke. Miro licked her lips and returned to business. "For now, let's split up here. Be careful in case we're being followed. Do you all have places to go?"
Kangnan said he would go with Gaold to Zulu's hideout. Siina and Etella planned to return to the Magic Academy. Kuan kept his lodgings to himself, and Armin was free to go anywhere now that he'd left the Ivory Tower.
The problem was Plu.
The magic association she belonged to had already been seized by the new head, Lupist.
"Are you sure? You could come with me," Kangnan suggested.
Plu shook her head. "No. I'll return to the association for now. I'm worried about Lady Isabel."
"What if they interrogate you about what happened in Heaven?"
"If they want something, I'll tell them."
All eyes turned to Plu.
"Cage B Team already went, so I don't know how much they can get from me, but if necessary I'll provide information. I'm a certified mage under the Kingdom of Tormia, after all."
Kangnan nodded. "That's exactly like you."
He hadn't brought her into the project simply because she followed Gaold. He trusted her because she was a professional who made her mission the top priority—someone he could entrust Shirone's affairs to.
"Still, be careful. Lupist won't reinstate you easily."
"I'll accept the risk. Would they dare waste a talent like me?"
Plu's joke made Kangnan laugh.
Believing in what you're convinced is right—when a professional mage thinks that way, no one can stop her.
"Take good care of Gaold. I'll work for the association from now on, but—"
Plu winked one eye. "Once comrades, always comrades."
"Right. Once comrades, always comrades."
Kangnan caught the subtext in Plu's words and looked to Zulu, signaling them to depart.
"Anyone heading to the city can ride. I'll take you."
"Ah, then we'll also—"
Only Siina and Etella decided to accompany them to the city.
The rest had no pressing matters, and none were too weak to handle rough terrain.
Armin looked at Siina. "Siina, you'll make a good teacher."
"Onii-chan."
Siina understood Armin's meaning. She had once been used as bait to lure the eternal contemplator into the project and had felt humiliated then, but now she understood why Gaold had preferred Etella over her.
"Not everyone needs to fight. Not everyone needs to be strong. Go back to school and do what you want. Become a fine teacher."
Siina smiled kindly for the first time. "Yeah. You should be happy too, Onii-chan."
Those words pricked Armin's heart, and yet a laugh escaped him. His beloved little sister had finally overcome her trauma and could begin a new life.
"Then, see you next time."
The giant Kaidra took to the sky. Armin bowed to Kuan, then vanished using Flicker magic.
One by one they set off on their chosen paths. Finally Arius, carrying Shirone on his back, approached Miro.
"Miro-nim, what shall we do?"
Miro surveyed the world unfurling before them as if ready to run. "Well, where shall we start looking?"
After twenty years away, the world was full of unknowns, but to her every unknown was just a playground.
* * *
Woorin finished the history search and snapped her eyes open.
"Found it!"
After a long sweep through history she had discovered another rift, different from the earlier incident.
Kando's voice was tense. "You found it?"
"He was born in the Middle East. Age between fifteen and thirty. Male. His name is Akaje, but if he left his homeland he could have changed it."
When Woorin summoned the Pungjang, the door burst open and thirty figures wearing owl masks flowed in like smoke.
"You called?"
"Use our best intelligence to find him. He was born to a tribe in the Akad Desert. His family was killed in the Oasis War; he's one of the survivors."
That was the only information Woorin passed along.
They would have to scour the world with nothing but an approximate age, a gender, and a few details—but it was worth it.
"Understood."
The Pungjang slipped out silently. Woorin paced the room, biting her nails.
Ra had been born on the surface.
His purpose was singular: to annihilate humanity that birthed chaos.
"Are you truly saying Ra was born on this land?"
"Yes. We must find him before he acts. If we fail—"
Kando could imagine the words Woorin could not bring herself to say.
He was the reincarnation of the Akashic Record itself.
When he finished judging this world, the outcome would strike humanity with an unprecedented shockwave.
"A colossal disaster is coming."
"Doesn't matter. Even a god can't overrun Terraje's stronghold. We must prepare for every contingency."
Woorin stopped and turned to Kando. "A new age has dawned, Kando."
After Geopin's erasure, then Anke Ra's erasure, this was the third reset—and the last.
They called it the Great Purification.