Chapter 273: Beyond The Gates

What was the world like before? It had already forgotten. There were some memories that occasionally flashed across it, but it was unable to deduce what they were.

Where did these memories come from?

It did not know. And at some point, it had only found itself in a space where it was the only one who existed. Occasionally a woman, but more often, a man.

He only looked at the laptop, or so his memories said. He had grown to become afraid of the bizarre laptop that he could not damage, whatever he did.

It was a curse. He was sure of it.

And so he hated him...

That person who refused to stop changing things. That person who... refuse to free him.

Why?

He did not know.

As the darkness slowly descended within him, the memories began to invade him once more.

Ah, these were not just memories. They were ’records.’ Because... ’he’ was not human. Then, why could he think? Why... he wanted to be like him?

In his earliest ’memory,’ he only found such a human fascinating. That human was not alone; there was another interesting person. However, it was not human, but a noble.

He also did not know why this world had such a different hierarchy. What was the reason for nobles invading worlds and humanity awakening powers?

Yet, in his instincts, it was the trend of this world. So, he wondered. Were there other worlds besides their own? Was there a trend or element there that was unlike theirs?

Most of ’its’ time was spent slumbering. The system of the world was perfect, and it did not need to take action. However, when it noticed the two interesting beings, it gradually began to focus on them.

It was the start of its change, that it failed to notice.

’Why do they know each other?’

It wondered. The human esper who, for some reason, could guide, and that noble who was undercover as an esper. They were always together.

They were unlike the other humans or nobles. They seemed to not be subjected to the rules or concepts of this world. Although they were restricted by the trend and roles, they did not need to strictly adhere to them either.

For the first time, it became curious and checked the ’records’ of this world. It found out something once more. ’Unrecorded’... The two were unrecorded, and this world was unable to fetch any data from them.

So it was right. The two interesting beings... were not from this world. So, there were other worlds. Its curiosity awakened, and as a result, a budding awareness began to sprout from within it.

It began to pay attention more and more... and each time it observed the two of them, a so-called desire also emerged. It was something unprecedented, something a world consciousness could never have.

A taboo existence was born.

Its curiosity shifted to desire and transformed into greed.

It wanted to be like them... It wanted freedom and to see the vast universe. Suddenly, a kind of ambition grew until it never stopped.

Rise watched everything unfold before him, unable to stop it. At some point, he could not even see how time resets or how the destructions they caused were being rewritten.

Did they fail? Rise let himself be powerlessly guided by the time stream. The light in his eyes almost faded, and the pain from his injuries, despite disappearing from his body, ached terribly.

More so... his heart had almost gone cold. His mind was unable to comprehend how their plan failed. Or how... Kamille failed. Probably this was the most incomprehensible for him.

How could... Kamille fail?

As his body almost lay powerlessly in the time stream, being dragged through time stamps and probably towards the beginning once more, he suddenly noticed something amiss.

Wait... His body was intact. And even more so, he was not seeing the familiar place, like the capital. Instead, his distance from it grew...

He only caught a glimpse of what was happening in both worlds; the restoration was ongoing. It could not be mistaken for something else.

The world did reset... Yet, why did Rise feel his body being pulled somewhere? And his connection to the world was becoming weaker? It was as if... He was never supposed to have a connection with it.

What was going on? Could it be... he was now being rejected by the world because of the world will? Rise’s mind churned up worst-case scenarios, proving how anxious he was.

He saw the world, the ruined world, and even the noble’s world... he passed by each one of them. Gradually, the familiar scenery left him until he found himself in a place that was both unfamiliar and familiar.

It was similar to the dark space where the book or the world consciousness was located, but there was something different too. In here, it was not complete darkness.

In fact, it was almost like the sea of stars in the sky. Some were huge, but most of them were not large. A vast universe... No, a word flashed across Rise’s mind as though it had always been imprinted there, but he had only forgotten.

The Myriad World of Stars.

And it seemed their world... or the world he knew was only one of them. Then this place was... before his mind answered for him, a voice rang beside him.

At some point, that person he wanted to see the most appeared before him. The two looked at each other; there were various questions in Rise’s mind, but he did not utter any.

His heart settled seeing him.

"Kamille..." Rise exclaimed with utter relief in his voice.

Kamille gave an assuring smile, his gaze softening as he held Rise’s waist to pull him closer. Just by being this close and feeling their warmth, their emotions immediately calmed down.

"We’re on the world boundary," Kamille repeated. "It’s a place that has been calling me."

Kamille arrived here before Rise, but it was because something that belonged to him was in this place. It was not something grand.

"The one who is calling me." Kamille placed the object in Rise’s hand.

Rise widened his eyes slightly.

"My picture?"

Right. It was Rise’s picture. However, it was a picture Rise could not remember. His attire was a bit different from his guide uniform. Moreover, his silver hair was also shoulder-length. He was standing in front of a fountain, smiling at the camera.

A realization dawned on him.

"It wasn’t taken in this world."

Kamille also nodded, confirming it. Like Rise, he had no recollection of it, but he had an impression that he was the one who captured it.

Rise stared at it for a while before he looked up and met Kamille’s gaze.

"Kamille... What’s going on?" He paused and shifted his gaze to the vast expanse of stars. "What... are we?"

At this question, even Kamille could not answer, and he could only tighten his hold of Rise.

Even when they witnessed what lay beyond the gates... The uncertainty about their identity and what truly happened remained.