Having finished their rally, the four converged back to a country on the Eurasian side.
Laurel stretched his hands as he and Luminous approached Mei and Lux.
At the top of a high-rise building:
"Haah, mission completed~"
"So, it worked?"
Lux was the first to ask, and as he did, Laurel nodded, making the Drag knight let out a wry smile.
At first, he'd told them of this plan before they arrived, and he was even more sure after giving Luminous her [S-type skill].
"Laurel?"
"What is it, Mei?"
"I, or rather, «Ei» said she noticed a change in the inhabitants around here. Do you know what happened?"
Mei glanced around before looking back at Laurel, who gave a nod. As he did, Laurel then explained the reason for the change.
"I see, so that means we can come here anytime?"
"That's pretty much what happens whenever we conquer a world."
Saying that, the others nodded in understanding. However, before anyone could speak further, Laurel turned to Luminous.
"By the way, Luminous, there's a world I want to take you to."
Hearing that, Luminous raised an eyebrow, and as she did, she felt a sense of foreboding and quickly turned to Mei.
It was as she thought; Mei was looking at her with a calm smile, but it was a little too calm.
Was Mei jealous? Never, Luminous thought. But considering her situation with Laurel, it was plausible.
"Don't worry, this is simply to get our hands on the power of time."
Luminous, who was about to channel every bit of hatred toward Laurel later, suddenly froze, turning to him in surprise.
Even Mei and Lux mirrored her expression.
Now, while it's true that Luminous has strong people who can objectively use time stop, that is all. Among those who could actually manipulate time, only Chloe had that ability.
She knew this.
Having a [Covenant of Time] means one could slow down time and speed it up: [Gensoku], [Kasoku].
Like this world, it was a world with an uncertain future (Chronos Ruler isn't a completed work, and it has no light novels), and the strongest feats before that were their time hax and city-level feats.
And that was where the idea came from. What would happen if that minor time manipulation were to evolve under the right conditions?
Giving partial control to the voice of the world, then allowing it to evolve as an [S-type+] skill.
"What would be the result?"
Laurel said with a chuckle, earning weird stares from everyone, including Mei, who was unsure what to think.
"Did I do something wrong?"
Luminous shook her head. "Not really. We're just astounded by you."
"?"
"No, forget that. Before we leave, I also have some matters to attend to here."
Laurel said that before donning Nidhogg, flying away into the horizon. Since Lux and Mei had no more business here, they left, leaving Luminous alone.
Japan,
Fujimi Academy.
Originally saved by Laurel, seeing that the zombies crawling around had vanished as though they never existed—
They ran to the staff office, tuning into the news, and what they saw was nothing short of supernatural.
A goddess in the sky along with her followers eliminating the legions of undeads, and it hadn't even been an hour.
Newscasters who obtained information during that timeframe announced that the World Union signed a contract with the organization led by the goddess.
Of course, not everyone agreed with the contract, but then it happened.
A police officer who was trying to save a person collapsed under rubble he could not have lifted alone, suddenly tossed the rubble high.
Humanity awakened. And as he did.
[Hello Awakened—]
This happened.
From here, it would continue to spread to even those who had heard Laurel's voice even before he arrived in this world.
And now, currently—
"So, you're saying that the person we saw is one of those people, and you heard his voice even before the apocalypse started?"
Still inside the staff room, filled with tables, desks, and shelves, Saya shot Takashi and Saeko an uncertain glare.
"So Busujima-senpai heard it too."
"Yes. I was sure of it after hearing his voice. And from what the blue panel said, this world is currently under the regulations of Goddess Luminous."
Oddly enough, other than some specified rules, such as Awakened humans are prohibited from harming non-Awakened, things such as autonomy are retained.
And both of them explained everything to the rest as they had seen it on the blue panel.
"So what will you tell me next? This world has to go through an apocalypse to filter out the next generations of humans that will evolve?"
"Well, if you put it that way, then you're not wrong."
In response to Saya's grumble, someone at the far end of the room, someone who was not supposed to be there until now, appeared.
"Ya."
"It's you!"
Saeko said that. Originally, hearing the foreign voice, she had gripped her wooden sword; however, seeing it was him, she released her sword.
"Good choice. Even if the two of you who have awakened were to attack, you wouldn't leave a scratch on my body."
He wasn't just showing off; he was stating facts. Sure, they had awakened, but their awakening was nowhere near the point where they would leave a scratch on his body.
Their abilities, on the other hand, were: T-type skills, or trait-type skills.
Unlike D- or S-type skills, T-type traits are basically weaker versions, comparable to common skills from the Luminous world.
For Saeko, her trait-type skill is [Swordsman].
Of course, there are effects such as increased attack potency, speed, accuracy, and so on when wielding a sword.
In addition, there would be increased mastery and certain learning benefits when learning sword techniques.
Just perfect enough. Not too strong, not too weak.
"I already know that, Cardinal Number 0 and Administrator of the All-World Guild, Laurel-sama."
Saeko said this with her hands on her chest and a slight bow, leaving even Laurel a bit taken aback.
"You… you used the system… wow, guess I underestimated you a lot."
Laurel, sitting comfortably in the chair, said that, his hands on his face before looking at them.
"Yes. I am the administrator of the organization you all saw in the news."
"Then tell me, are you the one who spread the virus?"
Saya, the braver of the rest of them, said that, stepping forward towards him with an inexplicable expression on her face.
"Saya, hold on, that guy…"
Takashi, on the other hand, tried to stop her. However, Laurel stopped him.
"We didn't do it. It was just the fate of this world. With the death of its arbitrator, things were already set on a path to the unknown."
"But we saved it, right? This world, I mean."
Not everyone understood what he was saying, but in short, this world was heading in an uncertain direction.
Whether humanity will be extinct is unknown. However, they cut off that uncertain future and made it certain.
Was that not enough?
"Hmph! As if—"
"Just shut up already!"
Before she could say anything more, he covered her mouth, dragging her back despite her squirming.
"Takashi… what is happening?"
Hisashi, who had survived this timeline, looked at Takashi, who glanced back at Laurel.
"It's because you haven't awakened yet… that person, everything about him is abnormal…"
Abnormal?
He didn't know how to explain it; however, now that he was awakened, he could definitely see that Laurel's figure was constantly distorting the space around him.
He could see that, but if it was something they alone could see, then it would explain why Saeko was treating him with respect.
And sure enough.
"As expected of the two I chose. And yes, I was the one who spoke to you before the apocalypse happened."
"Even when I spread the seed, I personally tended to both of your powers. It's simple. I want you both to be our representatives of this world."
Naturally, he'd update the system to match, so they would be recognized. Those who had awakened could access his system.
As such, they would be able to access several other functions, which was basically a real-life Discord.
There, they would be recognized as moderators, or in his words, Mediators. Those acknowledged by him would be given this role:
[World Moderator].
Both shine most brightly, Takashi with his leadership and Saeko with her strength.
He was not familiar enough with this world to choose others; hence, his choice.
"Why… us?"
"Hm? Do I need a reason to choose the people I chose? I have a reason for choosing you, so just accept it."
"....."
Saeko and Takashi looked at each other but said nothing. This was his cue to leave.
"Well then, I have other worlds to travel to. I hope to see a better world before I return."
Saying that, his figure disappeared again, leaving them alone in the staff office.
"...What just happened…?"
Shizue Marikawa, who had been silent the entire time, suddenly spoke with a tilted head, much to everyone's weariness.
Heading back to the same spot as before. Landing once more on the roof, he met the goddess, who looked at him in irritation.
'Was it something I said?' he thought, then his expression changed, beaming at her.
"It'll be me~ and you~ alone~ in a foreign world~♡"
"Wipe that expression off your face."
Facing Laurel's beaming expression, she coldly shot it down. And while he wiped the expression from his face, he still retained that smile.
"Now then, I believe we have a place to be. Let's get it over with."
Laurel nodded, selecting the second mission. World destination: [ChronosWorld].
World: [Chronos Ruler].
Japan, the year 2014.
Tokyo.
It was evening, amidst neon lights and bustling streets. Despite the time being relatively close to nighttime, the city was still active.
An alleyway; Laurel and Luminous emerged from a swirling portal, looking around. Upon entering, Luminous was the first to react, wincing slightly.
"Laurel, do you feel it…?"
"Yeah, the flow of time here… it's somehow messed up; even an Ultimate Skill user would notice."
"Are you making fun of us?"
"Nah, I'm just stating," Laurel said, shrugging before changing the topic. "By the way, how's it going?"
"...For a while now, I've been thinking you're starting to treat me like some kind of detector. I hope I'm wrong about that."
Luminous said that, much to Laurel's wry laughter, making her narrow her eyes at him.
"Err, why don't we find a place to stay for the night?"
Exiting the alleyway, Laurel looked around, and at the corner of his eye, he spotted a place, his eyes widening in surprise as he spotted said place.
Yes. That place.
A motel.
"That–I swear I didn't…."
Laurel began holding his hands high, further confusing Luminous, who began to walk over.
"What's wrong? Are you not coming?"
Saying that, Laurel blinked once. Does Luminous have no idea… oh wait, she probably doesn't know what those words mean.
And for a queen like her, she has never—
He understood it now. He thought so with a grin on his face.
"Uh—Luminous, if we're to look for a place to stay, I'll say anywhere but that place."
Here's the plan: speak in a tone that will interest Luminous, and if she insists, he'd insist even more, then after she steps in….
Such was the plan Laurel formulated.
"Stop being so roundabout. Come out and say it already!"
Gah! It didn't work. It would have worked if she insisted on going, but now if he tries to avoid her words, she'd catch on, and that's the end.
Tsk.
He mentally clicked his tongue.
Then, pointing over said place again, two couples, hand in hand, entered. It was then that Luminous finally understood.
However, she was no shy maiden who would blush at the sight of that. If anything, she was most curious.
"Say, do you wish to enter that place with me?"
She said so, turning to him, pointing her thumb back at the motel.