Chaos and change all over the world

Note that I have changed the names of the continents. And these are: Elandria, Azkaris, Saruna, Maravalia and Antarian.

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Aurelia District, 12 Pink Silver Street. In the Russell mansion, in a spacious and elegant room.

Rachel Russell was seated before an exquisite antique solid wood dressing table. Golden sunlight filtered through the windows, bathing her body.

With a deadpan expression, Rachel stared at her phone, reading the news of the city and the world:

Breaking news: Chaos and change all over the world!

On the northern boundary of Saruna and to the east with the Yùhǎi Ocean, colossal mountains have appeared, formed by what appear to be the petrified bodies of ancient gods. The region is permeated with residual energy that distorts gravity and time.

The cities Lánchéng, Xīnzhōng, and Guāngzhào are under intense attack by powerful monsters that are rapidly growing stronger.

...

Last minute! On the Azkaris continent, strange plains have emerged in the Erial Desert, a vast wilderness now covered with obsidian shards and razor-sharp black crystals.

...

It was breaking news! In Elandria and Maravalia, in the Great Red Canyon, towering mountain ranges resemble columns of broken and twisted bones, whose walls emit constant wailing and screaming. In addition, a forest with roots that seem to sprout from the darkness has emerged, with black and red leaves that give off a toxic fog.

...

Rachel could see that the news kept coming out, each more or less important than the other, but she was sure the world was undergoing a significant change. She felt it was all due to the strange appearance of the "Historical Void" to which she was summoned.

At that moment, the door to the room opened, and a woman with pale blonde hair and emerald green eyes walked in, a tablet in her hand and a worried expression.

"Miss Rachel, your company's stock has begun to plummet."

Keeping her expression calm and unconcerned, Rachel looked at Lys, who had helped her since the founding of her company, and said calmly:

"Have any of the shareholders pulled out?"

Lys nodded.

"Yes, Miss Rachel. Half of them have withdrawn everything, and half of the board has resigned. We're in the red right now, and the company's stock is plummeting."

"I see, I understand..." muttered Rachel before saying, "Don't worry about those who left; when things calm down, they'll come crawling back. But I have something to commend to you."

"What do you want to entrust me with, Miss Rachel?" Lys asked curiously since her boss rarely asked her for anything.

"Look for a man named Merlin Hermes. He is between 1,80 and 1,88 meters tall, has long black hair with some white streaks, and his eyes are crystal blue."

Lys was silent for a moment. She never imagined her boss, who disliked men, would send for one and give so much detail.

After eight seconds, Lys spoke again.

"Miss, I think it will be difficult to find that person. We're understaffed, and the city is in chaos because of the appearance of monsters we've never seen before. That makes the search even more complicated."

Rachel sighed softly as she began to prepare to leave the mansion.

Lys, watching as her boss got ready, couldn't help but ask curiously:

"Miss Rachel, why are you looking for this person named Merlin Hermes?"

Rachel was silent for a moment before answering:

"Simply because I am interested. He has a scent that is not unpleasant to me, like other men."

Lys' eyes widened in surprise. She would never have imagined her boss showing interest in a man, not even in her wildest dreams.

'Who the hell is this Merlin Hermes that has piqued Miss Rachel's interest?' she thought in surprise as curiosity grew inside her to meet this man.

After calming down, Lys saw that her boss was ready and asked:

"Miss Rachel, are you heading to the company?"

Without turning around, Rachel replied:

"No."

...

In the strange magical forest.

Theo, who was in a bind, realized that the "child" consuming his emotions might have been a blessing in disguise. He might have been in a panic at that crucial moment without it.

'The process of consuming thoughts, emotions, and senses is not gradual, but instantaneous.'

'It has completely eradicated my sense of smell rather than diminished its smell.'

It was obvious that there is an interval in this... If Theo understood it, he would know how long he had left before he was doomed.

But something he overlooked occurred to him now: his sense of hearing was working again!

If not, how did he hear the strange language the "boy" spoke? Theo realized the key to escaping this situation was understanding how he regained his hearing.

'What exactly did I do just before I regained my hearing that could have triggered it? I don't remember...'

 Thoe's thoughts froze. Feeling as if losing his mind, he tried to review what he had done before meeting the boy after about three seconds.

'I don't quite remember... I saw the status window...'

'Huh? What was I thinking?'

Theo stirred a little. A little over 15 seconds had passed when the "boy" consumed his thoughts and emotions.

'That thing was getting faster?'

The boy was getting faster as he consumed it. And from what he could remember of previous consumptions, it was getting exponentially quicker. By now, Theo knew he probably had less than a minute left before the creature consumed everything.

As his emotions had been consumed, he could think clearly. He activated his "Weaver" ability, and in front of his eyes, an imaginary river filled with mercury-colored symbols connected to a web of endless threads appeared.

All these threads represented Thoe's different fates. In one, Thoe was consumed; in another, he tried to flee from the monster, but the tentacles pierced his heart, and he died; in another, he tried to attack the creature but failed miserably.

Theo observed the numerous fates that depended on his actions. At that moment, his vision became blurred, and he felt a great tiredness in his body. Activating this powerful ability had drained his energy. Also, the "boy" was consuming his thoughts and memories at a terrifying speed.

Before running out of mana and stamina, he saw a blurry thread as the countless fates disappeared. He tried to increase the probability of that fate with all his will.