132 Chapter 131: A Solution

It wasn't my first time seeing a vague ending. It happened multiple times during the time I was on the Singularity. However, it is different this time.

If the ones on the Singularity are merely cut off, this one feels as if I forgot them.

'I planned on inducing a miracle all on my own. Then…'

There was no then.

I shouldn't have forgotten such a crucial scene, yet I did. Though, I am fortunate enough to remember everything up to that point.

The Twilight Syndrome… It is supposed to happen on December 31, more than two months from now. Its current date matches with the one in my prior iterations.

Despite the fact that I only saw less than three months into the future, I learned many things. Forming a Mind Partition is enough to give me huge amounts of information in-between battles. There are also the most crucial learnings such as the final form of [Alice's Wonderland] and [Descent of the Ten Sephira].

I also learned the places on where Sukuna stored his other fingers as well as the hideout of the remaining ones on his side. Moreover, it also confirmed that Kenjaku's contingencies didn't work out due to [Ein Sof]'s power. The culling game didn't happen anymore, and so was the Shinjuku Incident.

I single handedly prevented more than half of the crises that I faced in the past iterations.

"Twilight Syndrome… I should become even stronger."

Nevertheless, I am even more cautious than before. If something bad happened during the memories that I forgot, it could only mean that I made a sacrifice, or something along those lines.

"Falna reached its limit. The Infinite conversion is also the highest-level as a Magister. What else should I do..?"

I thought of the last miracle that I have in hand. Coupled with the Command Seals that are still being converted until now, I might have another miracle and several other chances.

Where should I allocate them, then?

"Sigh…"

I put aside these worries for now. I began to organize the things that I learned from this iteration.

Firstly, Lord Nettesheim is busy delaying the eschatologies of the Twilight Syndrome somewhere. If I am not mistaken, it should be somewhere between the physical and spirit realm.

From there, I learned the highest form of [Dreams]. It is based on the seven days in which God created the world. It is extremely potent against the Twilight syndrome.

After that, I got pulled into the Seventh Singularity and tested the efficacy of my second trump card, [Calling of Ten Sephira]. I didn't have [Ein Sof] at that point due to the lack of Holy Grail, thus I chose to utilize its concepts instead.

If I manage to test it here, it should be far stronger than what it should've been. It wasn't able to inflict considerable damage against Tiamat's immortality. Their concept… or rather, my power at that time is lacking.

Other than that, it is a journey of cleaning up all the troubles of my world as well as preparing for the Twilight Syndrome's coming.

The last thing was the final battle. It lasted for a total of three weeks, starting December 31, 2020. During the last day, we managed to confront the Twilight Syndrome itself—an abstract concept that led all the demons and curses in our world.

"That was the last thing I could remember…"

Recalling its traits of disappearance and certain end, it should've had something to do with it.

In the end, it seems like protecting our world seemed to be a much more difficult task than I had imagined.

One of the most remarkable things I could remember is the possible death of half of our world's population. I chose to do something against the others' suggestions, then…

"I need to grow stronger."

My mind analyzed the probability of achieving such a thing.

The greatest chance where I could find something helpful are other worlds. It is either that or reaching Akasha itself.

The only problem with the former option is that we don't have much time. If I managed to get stuck in another world as the mess happened, I don't know how bad the situation would become.

Thus, choosing the latter seems more beneficial.

"Akasha… The Root..?"

An idea suddenly flew in my head.

"The Singularity..!"

No… rather, the pan-human history of the Singularity world. Zelretch once mentioned that the seat of the Third Magician is empty up until now. There is also a chance of reaching The Root through it, thus accessing Akasha itself. Finally, it might also be able to further enhance the grail or open its complete possibility.

Even now, I have a feeling that the grail is much more than it is as of the moment.

"The key…"

I think I found the key to salvation.

*****

Just like before, I headed straight to Orario after dropping Shiina off to Suiko. I found myself cuddling with a clingy goddess of hunt as a result.

"I missed this."

"Orion?!"

She seemed surprised when I placed my face on her neck. She was sitting between my legs, thus her back seemed a bit…

Let's leave it at that.

"Someone might come…"

"It'll be fine. I believe nothing would change even if your best friend comes over right now."

"Eh..?"

I sensed the presence of a familiar Arcanum within my range. Just as I saw Artemis' blush run over her face, I let her go. When she sat on the chair in front of the desk, I greeted her with a smile, which led to her blush even deepening.

I swear…

She's simply too cute.

I hid the fact that my ears are slightly red due to all of this.

A few seconds later, the door to her office was blasted open. A goddess wearing slightly revealing clothes entered the room. Her height is only second to Lili, but it was compensated with something else.

I chose not to look directly at that as it would be disrespectful. Instead, I took a look at the goddess' baby face.

"Artemis! You… huh—?"

She sent a bewildered look at my direction.

"Is he..?"

"Ahem. That's right." Artemis responded. "He is Orion… or Nobu-kun."

"Sirius?!"

I bowed my head slightly as a form of greeting.

"Greetings, Hestia-san. Artemis told me a lot of stories about you."

"Your… never mind. Artemis told you that much?! Are you really her lover?!"

"That's right."

When she heard my words, she looked at Artemis, who then confirmed it with a nod.

"Really… It sounded fake when I heard about it…"

"Hestia..!"

"But it's like that?!" Hestia defended herself. "If those gods who stayed at Tenkai heard about this, they won't believe you either!"

"That…"

Artemis… She could be tomboy-ish at times. That was how she acted even during our first meeting. The ones in Tenkai might dislike her personality. But for me…

I like it.

I like everything about her.

"It doesn't matter if they believe it or not. The most important thing is that… I am thankful for having someone like you."

Despite the fact I was trained with Galahad's stoic face, the embarrassment and fluster slowly crept up to me.

"..!"

"..."

My gaze met with Artemis who looked at me with surprise before it turned into something else.

When I looked back at Hestia, all I saw was her dumbfounded look. It then turned into a complex one.

"If only Bell-kun…"

Hey, hey…

Out of all iterations, would it always be like this..?

To be honest, I am curious as to who caught Bell Cranell's heart. I learned from someone that his unique skill required dedication towards something… or someone. That was the cause behind the Freya Familia incident that occurred while I was gone from Gekai. Freya sought to remove that 'dedication' to have Bell Cranell for herself.

Of course, she failed incredibly. Once the city-wide 'charm' she placed disappeared, everyone realized that the Freya Familia is the culprit behind it.

The power of Hephaestus, Artemis, and Loki Familia was enough to subdue Freya Familia, more so when the former two have access to my world's Modern Magic System.

"Are you facing a problem, Hestia-san?" I asked.

"Ah? No, no. I came here to ask about… Astraea Familia."

"..."

Astraea Familia.

Up until now, I have only used the chance for Alfia and Atrophos-san. With the chance I used up, I only have two chances left. Still, there's no need to worry as I could feel that the progress of converting these command seals is about to finish.

There are about ten Astraea Familia members that died. It wouldn't be cost-effective if I used the chances, hence I deliberated on using the miracle for them.

As to why…

Everyone in Artemis Familia were once their friends. If I could bring them back, it would make them happy.

That's it.

I still have the option of retrieving the Calculus Albus, the third portion of the Philosopher's Stone that could resurrect the dead. I found traces of it within the fifteenth iteration. Unsurprisingly, it is also located in the gap between the spirit and physical realm.

Ah.

What if…

What if I manage to complete the entire Philosopher's Stone?

The Lapis Philosophorum would be in the hands of Hydemary, Suimei's student.

The Lapis Judaicus rests on my hand as well as Reiji's.

The Calculus Albus lies on the gap between the two realms.

'It is possible.'

"...dering if they have a proper resting place."

I was brought back to reality with Hestia-san's words.

"They… They were buried in the eighteenth floor of the dungeon." Artemis replied. "From what Gale Wind had said, she wasn't able to retrieve even their remains…"

"...I see…"

The atmosphere became a bit oppressive with this talk.

"If you would like, I could bring Hestia-san down to the dungeon. You won't be discovered by it if you were worried about that."

"Wait… Bringing a goddess to the dungeon..?" She muttered in confusion.

"Indeed. It is one of the things I could do with my current power."

"Level ten…"

After my status as a Level Ten was announced in Orario, it became a bit chaotic. A bunch of rumors flew left and right. Though, no one questioned it since it came from the Guild itself. The other high-ranking familias did not show any movements, either.

Simply put, Gekai welcomed the very first Level Ten adventurer within their ranks.

"Right, I want to ask Hestia-san something."

"Me? Go ahead…"

I showed enough respect to the loli in front of me. One of the reasons behind that is her former status as Tenkai's Major God. She was once a part of the Twelve Main Gods of Tenkai, but she chose to hand over her seat to Dionysus, who then developed his sick and twisted sense of enjoyment further.

"In your opinion, what lies beyond falna?"

"..."

Clearly, she hadn't expected this question.

"Falna… It is the ichor given by a god to their children. Strictly speaking, it points out a way towards godhood but…"

Hestia remained silent as she thought for a while.

"There hasn't been any record of a mortal ascending to godhood with it. That's why it is unknown even to us gods."

"...I see."

"But you don't have to worry much. With your current strength, I believe you might be… no, you are already considered a god."

'...Ah.'

Magisters already have the same life level (existence) as a god's. The only thing they lacked was authority, or in Tenkai, Arcanum.

Some Magisters didn't need it since they are already complete.

Lord Nettesheim has the power of a guardian, thus bearing the fate of one.

Suimei has the strongest fate that could overcome the end itself.

SImply put, they all have their own specialties in regards to fate. They could rival gods and more than half of the eschatologies alone.

Meanwhile, my specialty should be…

'The Holy Grail.'

Truthfully speaking, the holy grail is a part of me, yet it is not. It only resides within me. If it completely merged with me, I might be able to flexibly use its full potential.

In short, I have to know more about the Holy Grail—far more than my current knowledge of it.

There's only one world suitable for finding more about it.

'I might be paying them a visit sooner than expected…'