“No. There’s still a possibility,” Harrison said, shaking his head. His hazel eyes stared right at me. “Majima Takahiro. Your very existence is the answer.”
“Me...?”
Harrison nodded deeply. “You’re capable of interfering with a Dimensional Cornerstone. Nobody else is capable of such a feat.”
“Well, that’s true, but still...”
A Dimensional Cornerstone had the power to create worlds. The only one capable of interfering with one was the contractor to the Misty Lodge, who possessed the same kind of power. Harrison had apparently found some possibility in that fact.
“It was Lord Gerd’s will,” Harrison said. “Upon his death, he stated that you’re capable of becoming both the compass and the key in the Dimensional Cornerstone’s stead.”
“I can be both the compass and key...?”
I was bewildered by the sudden information, but there was certainty in Harrison’s voice. That was how much he believed in Gerd, and that was how little else he had to rely on.
“Does that ring any bells?” he asked.
“That’s not much to go on...”
Nothing immediately came to mind, but that was when someone unexpected raised their voice.
“Ah. Now that I think of it,” Lily said, tugging on my sleeve. “Master, back when we first arrived in the imperial capital, you sensed some kinda magic tool, remember?”
“Did I?”
“Sure did. You even brought it up.”
Now that she mentioned it, I vaguely remembered talking about something like that with her.
“What’s wrong, Master?”
“Oh, I was just thinking about how the presence of mana here is amazing.”
“Aah, that. It really is. It’s a little surprising, but I guess that’s the Holy Church for you, huh? They’ve got magic tools all over the place.”
When we first arrived in the capital with the Fairy Ring, while being shown around and looking down at the cathedral from a spire, my mind had gotten caught on the presence of mana. At the time, I’d figured it was a reaction to the many magic tools used by the church in their rituals and hadn’t paid it much thought.
“You’re the only one who reacted to it, Master.”
“So...”
She had a point. In terms of simply detecting mana, my companions had far sharper senses than me. The Dimension Door was apparently stored underneath the cathedral. So what if I’d sensed its existence at that time? It was entirely possible. It was worth testing, at least.
“Salvia.”
“Yes, my dear?” Salvia answered, appearing in the air in a cloud of mist.
“Will you lend me your strength?” I asked.
“Of course.”
At the time, we’d been much closer to the cathedral. Salvia’s assistance was essential for me to sense something so far away. I closed my eyes and Salvia wrapped her arms around me from behind. My heightened perception came from my contract with the Misty Lodge. We had terrific affinity when using her magic, allowing us to share sensations and even augment each other’s senses. I heard Nakajima let out a sigh of admiration as I sharpened my perception. It didn’t take all that long.
“That way,” I said, pointing my finger just as I found it.
“That’s the same direction Jinguuji Tomoya flew off to,” Harrison said with a small sigh of relief. “Looks like it’ll be possible to find him.”
“Majima,” Nakajima said, walking up to me and holding out a hand. “We’re planning to chase Jinguuji to protect the world. To that end, we’d like you to participate in the operation.”
“If you can’t bring yourself to forgive me,” Harrison added, “I’m ready to offer you my head.”
He was serious. Harrison was devoted to protecting the world, even at the cost of his own life. The threat we faced was enough to justify a sacrifice, in his mind.
“I don’t need your head,” I said, scowling. “Let’s call a temporary truce. It’s not the time to be fighting when the world is in danger of ending.”
Now that the exploration team’s leader was involved, Harrison was far less dangerous than before. The troops he could move behind the scenes had been annihilated, so the only fear we’d really had was whether they could manipulate the exploration team to be against us. Now that Nakajima knew what he did, that was pretty much impossible. Harrison dying and throwing the world into further chaos would be far more inconvenient for us than the danger of him being around.
Also, while it was possible for us to denounce Harrison right now, seeing that he was defenseless, that wouldn’t accomplish anything beyond satisfying our own egos. After all, Harrison was aware that what he’d done to us had been utterly cruel. He’d understood this so well, but had turned against us because there was something he absolutely had to protect.
Above all else, it hadn’t been his own failures that had driven him to such lengths. The real cause had been the overwhelming influx of visitors and the many problems they’d inflicted on him, especially when considering the precarious reality of the world. In a sense, he was a victim.
Naturally, from the biggest victim’s perspective, the story was entirely different. Mikihiko had told me that if he saw the man, he would immediately slug him, so he wasn’t even participating in this talk. Mikihiko understood how serious the situation was and had made sure not to be here in case his emotions got the better of him and messed up any negotiations. I couldn’t let his consideration go to waste.
“So forget about that and let’s get moving quickly,” I said, taking Nakajima’s hand.
Even now, Jinguuji’s group was getting closer and closer to the Dimensional Cornerstones.
“It’s decided then,” Nakajima said, smiling brightly like he was looking at an equal. “Let’s save the world, Majima.”