“The first savior...?”
I couldn’t hide the shock I felt at his unexpected identity. The first savior—the man who’d discovered the truth behind this world and had actualized a mechanism to maintain it to the present day. He was a legend from thousands of years ago.
“H-Hang on a sec,” I said, unable to digest this information. “How is the first savior still alive?”
“I know how to change the way of the world,” the man replied cheerfully. “I’m a Conduit. Still, I simply didn’t have enough talent or time. When I made the connection, I became a captive of the Sea of Unconsciousness.”
He smoothly spoke of how the first savior had met his end, something that wasn’t mentioned in any of the legends.
“Thanks to that, my plan was foiled. I meant to have the management of the world through the Dimensional Cornerstones be flexible to match the ages. Before I could finish setting that system up, I became a captive of the world, and so was only able to leave behind fragmentary knowledge. On the contrary, due to the world’s military forces weakening because of my sudden absence, the required knowledge was lost amid intense fighting. I prepared several backup plans, but because of unforeseen accidents, they weren’t quite ready and largely failed to accomplish anything.”
The mechanisms of this world were relatively stable, but not unshakable. That was why Harrison and the Holy Church had to work so desperately to stabilize it. However, those mechanisms were apparently not what their creator had envisioned.
“Still, getting caught in the Sea of Unconsciousness isn’t all bad things. I took the empty seat of the world’s custodian by chance and am even able to come in contact with you like this, after all.”
“With me...?”
“That’s right.” The first savior nodded. “The world is facing an unprecedented crisis.”
“You mean Nakajima Kojirou...? You called it being a Conduit, right? He’s one too?”
“That’s right. Depending on the circumstances, a Conduit can become a dreadful calamity. At this point, he should be called the Calamitous King.”
“Calamitous King...”
Having been the first Conduit who’d created the mechanism to stabilize this world, he understood the truth behind this threat.
“A Conduit is much like an independent Dimensional Cornerstone,” he continued gravely. “To be more precise, a Dimensional Cornerstone is a magic tool with the same power as a Conduit. He can’t do whatever he wants right now because of the Dimensional Cornerstones and the laws I imposed within them, but if the Dimensional Cornerstones fall into Nakajima Kojirou’s hands and he destroys them, the entire world will degrade to being the Calamitous King’s toy.”
“His toy... That can’t...”
“I’m not exaggerating. That man possesses that much power.”
The words of the one who’d decided the way of the world were heavy.
“Shall I put it in simpler terms?” he added. “The Calamitous King will become the world’s god. There is nothing a perfect Conduit cannot do, after all. That is, of course, only a problem if he doesn’t care about the world’s balance and the harm inflicted on its people.”
“He’ll become a god...?”
I felt a chill run down my spine. There was still so much I didn’t know, but considering the probability that Heaven’s Voice had been manipulating Jinguuji, it was entirely possible that the Conduit and Heaven’s Voice were the same person, or at least working together. It was bad enough for Kudou to claim that Heaven’s Voice simply delighted in watching their crimes unfold and sought ruin. If someone like that could do whatever they wanted with the world, there was no telling what could happen. At the very least, it was hard to imagine someone like that caring about the balance of the world or harm done to its people.
“Can anything be done?” I asked.
Nakajima Kojirou had to be stopped. For the sake of the world and in order to live in it with my companions, he just had to be stopped. But who could possibly stop someone who could be likened to a god?
“As another Conduit, can’t you do something about him?” I said, clinging to the only hope I could think of.
“Unfortunately, I can’t.” The first savior shook his head. “After all, I’m no more than the man who became the world’s custodian by accident. I can’t say I even had enough power in life, and I have to use my strength to maintain my ego while stuck in the Sea of Unconsciousness. There’s very little I can do.”
“No way...”
It was hopeless. However, the first savior kept speaking.
“Still, there is someone who can oppose the Calamitous King.”
“Really?! Please tell me. I’ll do anything.” I would go to any lengths to escape a future where my companions were toyed with and met their end. There wasn’t a hint of falsehood in my words. “Who could possibly...?”
“You don’t know?”
I fell silent. That was because the first savior looked straight at me—and only at me.
“Yes. It’s you. After all, you are, in truth, another Conduit.”