⟨ Part 2 — The Voice Beyond Time ⟩
The seven representatives stood frozen.
Not because of fear.
Not because of exhaustion.
But because the transparent cube before them had done the impossible.
It had spoken.
No.
Not with sound.
Not with mana.
Not with divine will.
And yet…
Every one of them had heard the words.
[SEARCHING FOR THE ANCHOR]
Silence covered the battlefield.
Even the monstrous darkness beyond the World Wall had stopped moving.
As though…
It, too, was waiting.
"What is an Anchor?"
The Beast King broke the silence.
No one answered.
Because no one knew.
Not even the oldest among them.
The Magician gripped his staff.
"Impossible…"
"There are no records of such a thing."
The Elf Queen's golden eyes narrowed.
"Those symbols…"
"They don't belong to any race."
The Gunmaster swallowed.
"Then who made this device?"
The oldest representative slowly shook his head.
"I don't know."
"And that terrifies me."
Suddenly—
The black ring began vibrating violently.
Unlike the six sacred artifacts, the forgotten artifact had never reacted before.
Not in battle.
Not in rituals.
Not in the presence of gods.
Yet now—
It shone with a strange silver light.
The youngest representative stepped back.
"That thing…"
"The ring is resonating with the cube."
The old man widened his eyes.
"No…"
"Not resonating."
"It's responding."
CRACK.
Space itself fractured.
Everyone looked up.
The heavens had split apart.
Beyond the stars—
Beyond the moon—
Beyond reality itself—
Something enormous was moving.
Not a dragon.
Not a god.
Not a demon.
But something so vast that their minds couldn't comprehend its shape.
The representatives instinctively fell to their knees.
The pressure alone nearly crushed them.
Even the darkness attacking the World Wall began retreating.
As though it feared whatever had appeared.
Then—
A voice echoed.
Not from above.
Not from below.
But directly inside their souls.
A voice unlike anything they had ever heard.
Gentle.
Cold.
Mechanical.
Female.
[Searching…] [Timeline Status: Critical] [Realm Stability: 12%] [Anchor Candidate: Missing] [Emergency Restoration Protocol Activated]
The Magician trembled.
"What language is that?"
"What kind of spell is this?"
The Elf Queen whispered,
"Is that…"
"...the Goddess?"
The old man slowly shook his head.
"No."
"This presence…"
"It is far older."
Suddenly—
Visions flooded their minds.
Worlds.
Thousands of worlds.
Countless stars.
Endless civilizations.
And strange beings unlike anything they had ever imagined.
Cities made of metal.
Flying machines.
People without mana.
Towering structures reaching the heavens.
And—
Humans.
Ordinary humans.
Living peaceful lives.
The seven representatives gasped.
"What…"
"What world is this?"
Then they saw him.
A boy.
Black hair.
Brown eyes.
Wearing strange clothing.
He looked no older than eighteen.
He stood in front of ruins.
Holding a brush and notebook.
Completely unaware that countless worlds were collapsing around him.
The cube's voice spoke once more.
[Anchor Candidate Located]
Everyone froze.
The Beast King blinked.
"That boy?"
"He's the Anchor?"
The Sword Saint frowned.
"Impossible."
"He's weak."
"He has no mana."
"He isn't even from our world."
The oldest representative stared at the vision.
For some reason—
Tears rolled down his face.
He didn't understand why.
But the moment he saw the boy—
His soul trembled.
As though…
He had been waiting for him.
For a very…
Very long time.
Then—
The cube spoke one final sentence.
And every representative felt their blood turn cold.
[Estimated Arrival: 562 Years] [Prepare The World]
BOOM!!
The cube exploded with light.
And the war…
Vanished.
As though it had never existed.
Leaving behind only one question.
Who…
was the Anchor?