[92] Parallel Worlds
In the inner sea of the planet, Avalon...
Merlin opened his eyes at this moment.
"Really, it seems like there's something on the moon of any world. The Moon of that world... the Mooncell Automaton of this world. But that's not the point. Although dealing with that thing is challenging, it lacks self-awareness. Proper guidance at the right time might lead to something interesting. The crucial part lies ahead."
The Wandering Star of Predation, comets appearing in the galaxy every 14,000 years, appearing on this planet.
The last time, 14,000 years ago, The Wandering Star of Predation, The Giant Sefar, defeated the gods but was defeated by a Holy Sword Wielder.
However, that was just one of the countless possibilities.
In other worlds, The Wandering Star of Predation might not exist at all, not for any other reason, but simply because its orbit deviated slightly, and it didn't pass by Earth.
"There are still several decades left... The mysteries that have been receding since 1970 should have completely disappeared by 2000. But now, well, it might be advanced to 1999, or it could still be 2000."
Perhaps that's why the words of the Jewel Magician were effective. Otherwise, even if the Jewel Magician said that, the magus wouldn't willingly accept it.
But now, the Leylines is vanishing entirely, and the top echelons of the Mage's Association have probably already sensed it.
Compared to the spread of mysteries, the most critical issue is the disappearance of magical power from the Leylines...
Although he couldn't see the future, he could see everything in the present.
Combining this speculation with a little deduction, he could guess the outcome with a high degree of certainty.
This Holy Grail War... the Mage's Association might not truly perish, but this might be their last chance.
After witnessing the conclusion of this upcoming Holy Grail War, those people will surely want to obtain the Holy Grail to prolong the magical power of the Leylines.
And...
That person who originally didn't belong to this world, with a power that can rival the Second Magic, or perhaps even surpass it, have arrived in this world. A power system that originally didn't belong to this world might bring about a different future for this world.
As for that thing on the moon, although it's dangerous, it's also protecting this world.
If it were to malfunction... the coordinates that have been shielded in this solar system would be exposed, and that would be the time when another The Wandering Star of Predation arrives.
However, even so, The Wandering Star of Predation will arrive someday...
And before that, The Wandering Star of Predation... the first one was Safar, the white giant who destroyed most of the surface civilization 14,000 years ago.
Its true form is still sleeping on the moon, and its name is Velber 02, Sefar.
Then there's the second one, which hasn't arrived yet, but it's coming soon. It won't be long, just a few decades, before it reaches this planet, this civilization.
"The accumulated Goetia of three thousand years, The Wandering Star of Predation that appears every 14,000 years... this planet is truly plagued by disasters. A slight mistake, and it will be the end of the world."
Merlin sighed, but he didn't pay too much attention to it.
The reason was simple... disasters like these occurred on this planet almost every thousand or hundred years, and he had witnessed them countless times in Avalon. Each time, it disappeared before the disaster even occurred. Of course, there were exceptions... the disaster 14,000 years ago was one such exception.
So when would the next exception occur?
When would the true crisis that would reveal the destruction of the world finally manifest itself?
...
"Kurokawa-san, I've been waiting for a long time..." Akitaka Suzurigi said, leading the way in front of Kazuya.
Finally... he arrived here once again, at the Ryougi family.
Kazuya's heart was beating faster and faster, even though it wasn't his first time here. However, the feeling was completely different from before. He couldn't even remember what it felt like the first time he came.
Now, it was the beginning of everything, right?
...
"Ugh..." Kazumi dry heaved twice, but nothing came out. After a while, she looked at the stern-looking old man beside her and asked, "Where is this?"
"In a certain time, in the year 2010, on Earth," The Magician of the Second Magic Zelretch replied, looking at Kazumi.
"Huh? 2010?" Kazumi was stunned. She had suddenly traveled more than twenty years into the future?
Zelretch didn't say anything more. Someone who had truly experienced traveling between parallel worlds like this was more suitable to be his successor. However, the probability had only gone from zero percent to zero point zero one percent. After all, she was just a child, and her body was too weak. Even though he had done his best to protect her, dry heaving like this was still within his expectations. But if she didn't have his protection... even with the authority in this regard, even as a Heroic Spirit, she might die when traveling between parallel worlds like this.
This was entirely different from the Mooncell Automaton on the moon in the previous parallel world. However, in this world, there was no Mooncell Automaton, and even The Wandering Star of Predation didn't exist.
It was different from where Kazumi was before. Although this world also had a Holy Grail War, it had only been held once, and there was a clear winner who had achieved their wish.
And it was achieved together with the Master and their Servant.
All of this was within Zelretch's sight.
Which world was dangerous and which was safe, he himself didn't know...
In every world, there were various crises that could destroy the world. However, very few of these crises actually developed.
Well... he was referring to the main parallel worlds as the core.
Of course, being the main core of a world didn't mean it would always be the core.
A world could give rise to countless parallel worlds. In them, there could be countless crises that could destroy the world. Among them, there were many that had been completely avoided, and among all the disasters, the surviving worlds were considered the core.
In every core timeline and even in the characters of the world, there could be significant differences.
For example, some worlds still had gods, while others were already on the path to destruction.
Only Counter Force capable of focusing on these countless parallel worlds and deciding which ones to abandon and which ones to preserve were two.
However, those worlds that had been more than half destroyed were very convenient to travel between... going back and forth between these parallel worlds was quite simple, and there were often cases of ordinary people suddenly falling into one of these worlds.
However, such people generally died after passing through, right? Only a few of them would survive. After all, those were worlds on the verge of destruction, and even the Counter Force had given up on them, so it was generally impossible to save the world just by relying on oneself.
As for the reason why the Counter Force had given up, it was quite simple. It wasn't because they couldn't be saved, but because the number of parallel worlds was limited, they couldn't continue splitting indefinitely. However, new possibilities were constantly emerging, so some had to be destroyed.
Perhaps many of these destroyed worlds may have been brought to destruction by certain beings summoned by the Counter Force itself...
Of course, this was just a guess. There were no definite means to verify the specific situation.
"Alright, next, familiarize yourself with this era, and tomorrow I'll introduce you to your new teacher," Zelretch said to Kazumi.
Although it was possible for her to be his disciple, he didn't believe in himself when he consulted with Merlin from that world. So, he entrusted her to "El-Melloi II," a Lord who was renowned in the Clock Tower of this world.
---
If you're interested in reading more, feel free to visit my patreon which already contains 20 chapters:
https://www.patreon.com/XElenea