Endless Path : Infinite Cosmos

In the days following the announcement of Lord Animusphere, several other Magus families were able to verify his claims through a variety of different methods. Though the Aristocratic faction had been striving to maintain control, it was impossible to keep the matter under wraps with students spreading the information around like wildfire. Without shutting down the School and forcing everyone to stay quietly in the dorms, an action they were not authorized to take, they could only watch the chaos unfold while trying to reap as many benefits as possible. Since many students were afraid of what was to come, the number of potentiates seeking to fall under the banner of powerful Aristocratic families had increased. Though they would have normally refused such 'rabble', it never hurt to have more hands, feet, and organs laying around...

Fortunately, as it was already late December, the number of students that left the Clock Tower on holiday leave far outweighed those who chose to stay behind. The normal class schedule was just about to go on a two-week break so, in order to prevent the Aristocratic faction from snatching up too many panicking students, most classes had been let out early after long discussions on what each student could do to prepare for the future.

Lord Animusphere did not outright encourage any students to leave the Clock Tower, as learning more would allow them to tide through future threats, but he did advise them not to make rash decisions. After all, it would take a combined effort from all factions to avoid the coming threat so, if they chose to ally themselves with the Aristocratic faction, the chances of them become disposable pawns would increase exponentially. Since few rational people wanted to spend the last decade of their life slaving away from a group that didn't respect them, he managed to convince many fence-sitters to exercise patience and band together.

Only by remaining united, just as they always had, could they avoid being used to buy time for individuals who could potentially avoid such sacrifices if they were to take proactive action. It was a known fact that the greater the number of Magi in the world, the weaker each individual form of Thaumaturgy became. This was the primary reason why the powers ruling the Magus Community tried to prevent the secrets of Magecraft from proliferating out into the real world as, with the perception of people shifting to make Magecraft 'commonplace', it would lose much of its power.

By ensuring Magecraft was a rare ability that only a chosen few were able to use would it retain the inherent 'Mystery' contained within. As a result, if there was a dangerous threat on the horizon, history had shown time and again that the Aristocrats and Nobles would first sacrifice their 'lessers' before taking any action themselves. Not only did this help to cull the number of Magi in the world but, when things became particularly dire, it was this same 'faith' that allowed already powerful Magi to become even more powerful. The worse the situation got, the stronger the belief that 'only such and such powerful Magus from such and such family' would be able to overcome it. As a result, this became the actual truth, something that the oldest Magus families had exploited for the last 2700 years...

---

With most of the student body shaken by the news of the world's potential end, a phenomenon that quickly spread through their families, a faculty meeting was called by none other than the Director of the Clock Tower himself. The vast majority of staff had never even met the man rumored to be the most powerful Magus within the Clock Tower, one who had lived for more than two-thousand years with his only peer being the Wizard Marshal, Kischur Zelretch Schweinorg. He was such an enigma that, other than simply being referred to as the 'Association Direction' and 'The Strongest Magus', only those within the inner circle of the Mage's Association even knew his identity. If not for the threat of the world's destruction, many believed they would have gone their entire lives without ever seeing him even a single time...

Though there was more than two-hundred prestigious Magi present within a single Auditorium, only a few of the most senior members of the Aristocratic faction dared speak a single word. As if this was a 'privilege' they wanted to flaunt, even some of the younger members of the faction tried to join in on the conversation but, regardless of whether it would cost them face, the more senior members had them immediately silence themselves. This might have earned them the snickering of their so-called peers in normal circ.u.mstances but, as everyone was awaiting the arrival of the Director, most people kept quiet. Some even stayed near the periphery of the room, their bodies tense as they expected something terrible to occur.

One of the most relaxed people present, even though he had several pairs of eyes trying to burn holes through him, was Lord Animusphere. As the Head of one of the ten most influential families associated with the Clock Tower, he had more than enough grounds to speak. Instead of wasting his time with idle conversation, however, he stood near the prepared stage with a stoic expression on his face and a calculating light in his eyes. Even he hadn't expected the Association Director to make an appearance, meaning the latter must have 'seen' something even he had overlooked. As a result, though his expression was entirely unperturbed, Lord Animusphere alone was aware of how cool and clammy his palms felt...

Fortunately, or perhaps not, there had been no other members of the senior Aristocracy who sought him out to cause trouble. Nobody wanted to be the one to cause a scene at the gathering mandated by the Association Director. Even Lord Barthomeloi, a man rumored to be so powerful that his only rival was the practitioner of the First Magic, had never contested the Association Director's rule. This alone was enough to show the inviolable prestige of the Director, especially since he was even able to keep Barthomeloi Lorelei under control. As a result, Lord Animusphere was left on his own little island of emptiness, making him stand out like a sore thumb within the crowd of prestigious Magi...

Nearly an hour after the time everyone had been asked to gather, not that anyone complained, a peculiar tension began to spread through the crowd. As if compelled by instinct, everyone present became absolutely silent, allowing the sound of wood lightly tapping against wood to resonate through the Auditorium. This was accompanied by the sound of shuffling footsteps, each increasing the tension in the atmosphere by a palpable amount as two figures walked out onto the stage.

The first to appear was an ancient-looking old man with silvery-white hair that was spiked back like a lion's mane. His face was deeply set with wrinkles while a rather stylish beard ran from his ears to his chin, framing his striking visage that was set with two crimson-red eyes. He was attired in a black cloak that was inlaid with nearly indiscernible golden runes while wearing a vest adorned with jewels beneath. In his right hand, an ornate wooden scepter served the purpose of a walking stick, even though many Magi present had glimmering eyes when they saw the complex rainbow-hued crystal decorating the head of the scepter.

Even if they had ten times the courage, none would ever try to take the incredibly precious jewel as, even though this was the first time many of the Magi present had seen the 185cm tall man, everyone knew his identity. This was none other than the practitioner of the Second Magic, the man known as the Wizard Marshall, Zelretch of the Jewels. His most well-known moniker, however, was the same as the name of the Second Magic itself, Kaleidoscope.

None knew how he had obtained the Second Magic, being that the 'Operation of Parallel Worlds' was something most people couldn't even begin to comprehend. The only thing that was known was that, by becoming the Kaleidoscope, Zelretch had the ability to see into, and draw power from, alternate worlds within similar, tangential, and divergent time axes. There were none more capable of seeing through time as he was, to the point that anything he said pertaining to prophecy could be taken as an inherent, borderline inescapable truth...

With Zelretch being so famous that 'everyone' within the Magus Community knew who he was, that meant the person at his side must be the Association Director. Other than a few of the older faculty members, everyone else in the crowd was completely gobsmacked as, instead of another wrinkly old

man, an androgynous youth with peculiar green hair, extending to the small of their back, and a black visor covering their eyes stood next to Zelretch. They were garbed in a ceremonial white robe that was several sizes too large for their relatively petite body, accented by dozens of powerful artifacts that could serve as the heirloom of a powerful Magus family.

The most notable of these items was the black visor covering their eyes, displaying the 'Eye of Horus' in golden engraving. Other than this, both of their ears were pierced with rather complex golden earrings while each of their fingers had unique rings. This apparently wasn't enough, however, as there were several rings of gold around their wrists while a large necklace hung around their neck. There was a giant golden medallion on the end of the necklace that looked like it could serve as a dinner plate, engraved with the 'Seal of Yggdrasil'.

Overall, this figure everyone assumed to be the Association Director looked like a walking treasury that caused a few lesser disciplined individuals in the crowd to have stray thoughts. The moment they even thought about taking the treasures for themselves, several people in the crowd began bleeding from their seven orifices as they dropped down to their knees, clutching desperately at their heads while the other Magi in the surroundings looked at them with scorn. One of the first things any capable Magus learned was how to sense the intentions of others, as curses were the most common form of Thaumaturgy, it was a given that the Association Director would be able to see through their errant thoughts.

Fortunately, just as it seemed the afflicted Magi would be killed for their indiscretion, Zelretch made a show of clearing his throat. This caused the people clutching their heads to pass out, their pain temporarily relieved as they sprawled about on the ground with none foolish enough to try and help them. The only exception to this was a red-faced man within the Aristocratic faction, supporting a young man that had a similar facial structure and hair color. Though the Association Director had been lenient, the man currently wished to cane his own offspring as he had never suffered such an embarrassing faux pas. When they returned home, he intended to place his son under house arrest before teaching him the fundamentals from scratch once again...

Once things had settled back down, the visored figure stepped forward as if they were about to address the crowd but, instead of moving their mouth, an echoing whisper that sounded like a mixture of different people, each having different age and gender, stated, "Humanity currently faces a crisis unlike anything that has ever appeared in recorded history. Worse yet, even my friend here is unable to clearly see what the future holds..." These words caused many in the crowd to take in a sharp breath as the Second Magic was known to trespass upon the mysteries of Time and Space themselves. It was rumored that Zelretch even obtained nigh-omniscience after obtaining the Second Magic, making him all-knowing so long as he took the initiative to simply 'look' at any particular future...

Unlike the Association Director, Zelretch spoke in a deep and wisened voice immediately following the former's words, "The existence that threatens the world is an entity known as Angra Mainyu, the manifestation of 'All the World's Evils'. However, there is a far more dangerous threat lurking in the shadows. I did not note the exact time it had occurred, but our world has been trapped along a singular time axis since approximately four months ago. My power allows me to freely travel through the time axis yet, the further point I can travel back is the current moment. There is an entity within our world that currently serves as the lynchpin of all realities moving forward. This means, depending on the actions of this singular individual, the fate of the entire world can be changed on a whim..."

As he had never even though such a thing was possible, Zelretch had been caught completely by surprise by the fact he could no longer travel to the past, even through parallel timelines. It was like time itself, which had previously been woven together like a complex network of strings, was now being filtered through a singular point, interwoven into a singular stable thread. This alone wasn't necessarily a bad thing, as tampering with the past was very dangerous, but the problem was there was a second convergence point in ten year's time, the day Angra Mainyu descended into the world. No matter how many parallel and divergent times he passed through, each led to the emergence of Angra Mainyu, an event that preceded the end of humanity on the Surface. Though there were always survivors that retreated to the Reverse Side of the World, it was still a global extinction event as the Surface would become uninhabitable for an indeterminate period of time after the fact...

Adding to what Zelretch had stated, the Association Director explained, "It is our belief that the emergence of Angra Mainyu is directly tied to Will of the Planet, Gaia, and the anomalous entity known as Vahn Aldrnari Mason, the Sage Emperor. Our investigation indicates that Gaia itself has gone into self-preservation mode after the emergence of the Sage Emperor. His capabilities and intentions are currently unknown but, as Zelretch is unable to observe him in any of the parallel timelines, there is a 99.417% chance he is directly involved. The two most important missions of the Mage's Association at present are to prepare for the emergence of Angra Mainyu and discovering the location of the Sage Emperor. His existence itself may be the key to preventing the tragedy so it is imperative that he is found before it is too late. To that end, he has been given the highest Sealing Designation, 001. As the death of the Sage Emperor may mean the extinction of the human race, the highest priority is on capturing and discerning the true nature of the target."

Towards the end of 'his' words, the Association Director tilted their head towards Lord Animusphere before adding, "If not for Zelretch convincing me that you have always acted in the interest of preserving humanity, I would have held you accountable for the chaos you have caused, Lord Animusphere. For the time being, I would have you shelve your dissatisfaction with the Aristocratic faction as we'll need the full cooperation of the entire Mage's Association to prepare for what is to come. That applies to everyone here as well, regardless of their previous affiliation. With the fate of the world on the line, inclusion into the Mage's Association is no longer optional. Those that try to cut ties with the association to preserve their own resources will be treated as traitors of the human race, pawns of Gaia's will. Know that I already know what some of you have in mind for the future and, should you attempt it, do not blame me for the destruction you invite upon yourselves..."

With Zelretch at the Association Director's side, it meant they had the ability to look into every variable and parallel timeline, including those where people had betrayed the Mage's Association. Only the three most powerful families would have any hope of escaping the influence of the Mage Association which, given the circ.u.mstances, would also result in a significant loss of face. As they relied on the 'belief' of others, that they were the most powerful families, they needed to constantly reinforce this idea to prevent their own power from dissipating. The moment people began looking towards them as traitors, their family would begin a rapid decline that could only be prevented if they either aligned themselves with Gaia or used a scapegoat to redirect blame away from the family itself...

---

After a few more cautionary words, the Association Director and Zelretch left the stage, leaving behind a crowd of gobsmacked Magi in their wake. What surprised most people, other than the revelation that the world was moving towards an almost guaranteed end, was the fact that Lord Animusphere hadn't been punished. Those that had seen his stoic smile and mocked him before now looked at him with a slight bit of fear present within their gazes. It was obvious from the Association Director's words that they had looked into the actions he would take in the future before determining whether or not he could be trusted. Since he had been given an extreme amount of leeway, to the point that the Association Director even pointed out that he acted in the interest of humanity's survival, made many of his former enemies reconsider their stance...

The most surprised person in the entire room was none other than Lord Animusphere himself who, from the moment the Association Director 'looked' toward him, hadn't been able to move. Though he now had a lot more confident about his future actions, that momentary glance made it feel as though his soul had almost been ripped from his body. It wasn't until someone rather unexpected came up to him that Lord Animusphere was able to recover. Then, turning his head with a polite smile, Lord Animusphere asked, "My apologies, Mr. Glascheit, could you please repeat what you had just said?"

Standing just to Lord Animusphere's left were two men, one standing at a commendable 182cm with somewhat wild golden-blond hair and sharp blue eyes. He had a handsome face and an extremely athletic figure that could even be seen through his formal attire. As for the other man, he was rather short, standing only 162cm, possessing sleek black hair that had been neatly combed over to frame his almost sickly looking visage. His eyes were an unnatural black that made it almost impossible to discern his pupils from his irises as he stared blankly at Lord Animusphere from the handsome man's side. These were two relatively famous up and coming members of the Mage's Association as the first was none other than Svin Glascheit, a man on the very cusp of becoming a Brand, while the other was his protege, a boy he had encountered on a mission named Bradley Sylvester. Though not as prodigious as Svin, he was another Pride that was famed for his Mystic Eyes, aptly named the Mystic Eyes of Black Jade.

In response to Lord Animusphere's words, Svin gave a polite bow before repeating, "I had intended to congratulate you on your exoneration, Lord Animusphere. I am certain Madam Bathomeloi will show you more leniency in the future after this incident. Some of us within the younger generation had been very worried about the Animusphere family, especially after your daughter became captive to the Edelfelt family. I pray she is able to return to your side soon so we can all begin cooperating together in order to overcome the threat of this Angra Mainyu..." With his words finished, Svin raised his head and gave an amicable smile before excusing himself to go converse with other members of the Aristocracy. As for Bradley, he gave a polite bow of his own but, with the 'dead' look in his eyes, Lord Animusphere felt a chill run along his spine, even though his smile was entirely unaffected.

While watching the two young men walk away, Lord Animusphere felt there was something amiss as, other than the cold look in the latter's eyes, Svin wasn't able to hide his own animosity. It almost felt like he was trying to walk up behind a dog that was eating, only to have it stare at him from the side as a low growl escaped its throat. As he was very accustomed to hostility being directed to him, even if it was well concealed, Lord Animusphere could only shake his head at the naivete of Svin. Now that he was aware that the latter held animosity towards him, Lord Animusphere would obviously key in on the things he had mentioned during their short exchange.

Fortunately, even if Svin had intentions towards his daughter, it was already too late for him to get his hands on her. He had entrusted her care to Luvia. Though it baffled him that the Association Director and Zelretch hadn't immediately given the order to seize Rin, Gray, and Lord El-Melloi II, Lord Animusphere credited this to the fact that the man named Vahn obscured their perception. He hadn't met the man in question but it was pretty obvious to the astute that Vahn had something to do with the three individuals in question. It was likely that Zelretch had looked into the future of all three girls to see what action they would take but, as Vahn seemed to fundamentally change the timeline based on his present actions, it was borderline impossible to associate anyone with him...

---

Around the same time that Lord Animusphere was harboring such suspicions, the Association Director looked towards Zelretch with a frown visible on their face, this time speaking in a low yet feminine voice using their actual lips, "Your suspicion that Lord Animusphere knew something was correct. That girl, Rin Tohsaka, is undoubtedly still linked with the Sage Emperor." This didn't seem to surprise Zelretch at all as, contrary to his companion's frown, he had a slight smile on his face as he ruminatingly stroked his beard before saying, "This was something we both knew. Do not let such things upset you, Solon, it is unbefitting of your age. What matters is that we were able to confirm that the Sage Emperor is indeed the singularity point. However, without meeting him in the present, it is simply impossible for me to locate his position within the time axis. I would advise we continue to observe for the time being...my intuition tells me that something very troublesome is protecting those girls..."

Hearing Zelretch's words, the Association Director, Solon, had an even deeper frown as they reached up to remove the visor from their face. Even with the visor removed, it was almost impossible to determine their gender based solely on their facial structure as, other than describing it as 'young', there were no distinctly male or female characteristics. What did stand out, however, were the pair of icy blue eyes which, even with the light from the surroundings lamps, glowed with vibrant magical light. Within the very center, surrounding a pair of pitch-black pupils that seemed like they could devour anything, were two pink rings of light that caused even someone as powerful as Zelretch to feel the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. Then, without even a single fluctuation in their voice, Solon stated in a completely serious tone, "If I determine they are a threat, there is nothing in this world that can prevent their death at my hands..."

(A/N: Alternate Titles: 'The rich making the poor suffer so they can appear as messiahs just by giving a pittance xD...','Old Man Gemstone has appeared (O o O)...!','Solon is a bit of an edge lord...')

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