Hermit Wizard

Wizard’s Name (5)

Listening to the story made me curious, too. Why was that world so special? Why was the soul so rich in that place alone, and what plan was the Dragon up to?

However, nothing came back to me to satisfy my intellectual curiosity.

No matter how many souls there were in that world, it was said that in the next few hundred years, all of them would be taken away to other worlds. No matter what the Dragon was planning, he was already dead, and I would prevent its resurrection. Whatever the ascetics do, it had no meaning unless the Dragon, the main subject of the plan, survived.

I said, “I refuse the invitation. The Dragon is dead, and whatever his plan was, it’s like a failure. The Truth-Seeker wouldn’t have done that in preparation for the world after his death.”

I conveyed what I thought about.

“And crucially, what can your master do just because I’m going over there? I think you already know, but the only traces of Dragons left in me is the Channel. Can your master see the Dragon’s plan by looking at this Channel? It’s absurd.”

Carraderina’s answer came back.

=No, my master thinks differently. As already explained, the Black Hermit has no motivation to open a Channel to another world. Nevertheless, he left a Seed on your chest. This is meaningful.=

Wait, that was a contradiction. There were so many souls in that world that he didn’t need to open Channels and take them from other worlds. Why did he plant a Seed on my body?

=My master guessed that the Black Hermit probably wanted to evolve the Channel on your chest into an adult. He then would’ve connected it to any dimension. Even at the cost of making a slight flaw in the integrity of the dimension barrier.=

… What?

“Why is that so?”

=Do you know? After the Channel evolves into an adult, your body becomes close to immortality, and you cannot even die or reincarnate.=

Yes, it would be a piece of meat that couldn’t die even if you want to die.

=The moment the Channel is completely open, your soul is now trapped in your body. You can’t get out of the grip of the Black Hermit. It’s also impossible to buy time by running away with the ring of reincarnation. You can’t live freely through reincarnation. This is indeed the perfect restraint. That’s what it means to create a Channel in the mortal body.=

Carraderina continued.

=The Truth-Seeker will possess your soul perfectly for a long time. With the current body locked. This is a completely different approach from the way the Truth-Seeker treats the souls of the mortal. Originally, randomly among the souls joining the ring of reincarnation of the world… Ah, it would be better to talk to my master in detail on this part.=

My head hurt more after hearing it.

“… Why the hell only me?”

=Let’s find out why. If the Black Hermit had considered you so precious, he would’ve taken other steps instead of simply leaving a Channel. My master is trying to find the trace.=

Further action on me?

As soon as I heard it, something came to my mind. A black smoke-like memory that even Yodmo couldn’t interpret its identity. Shortly, I shook my head and dismissed the possibility. It was buried in memories before the age of seven. However, the Channel opened when I was eight years old.

The Dragon couldn’t have left the black memory. It then should be interpreted that the Dragon had been watching me for at least a year before planting the Seed.

I got goosebumps when I thought all the way there.

Still, it couldn’t be. If he had any intention, he could just use his hand. Why would he have been watching me for over a year?

No, let’s focus on the current situation. I made up my mind again.

“No matter how much I think about it, I think it’s a suicidal act to let a Truth-Seeker-class entity study me. The Dragon is dead, and now it is irreversible. Would it make sense to study what his plan was? Anyway, whatever the reason, I can’t accept the offer.”

=Of course, I guessed it was an offer that you could not easily accept. Therefore, there is a condition that my master has prepared.=

Carraderina said.

=Reclusive Soul, have you ever thought about it? What will happen to the dimension without a Truth-Seeker in the future?=

I had already guessed about the future of that world, and it was proved through Alice. It would be a world where all souls were taken away through Channels, and most living things were extinct.

Carraderina said after it repeated the same story as I thought.

=That is the end of the dimension where the original Truth-Seeker disappeared. It becomes a soulless world and remains a primitive dimension filled with low-level creatures. However, what if there is a way to avoid the expected outcome?=

“… Well?”

=It seems like you must listen to this story first. This dimension is now the subject of interest of numerous Truth-Seekers… because there is no Truth-Seeker, who guards this wealthy dimension.=

“Yes, I supposed so.”

=But their concern is only to take away the souls of this dimension. They don’t care what this world, called Earth, will eventually become.=

It was just as I guessed.

=But my Master’s thoughts are different. It isn’t only interested in the souls here, but in this dimension itself.=

“What does that mean?”

=That’s what it means, Reclusive Soul.=

With Shockmeem’s will, Carraderina’s explanation is delivered.

=My master has a plan to abandon his current dimension and become the Truth-Seeker of Earth, right here.=

***

My head was throbbing.

“What? Why here? There are hundreds of holes in it, and the souls are being taken away.”

Even if it became the Truth-Seeker of Earth, that place would be an empty dimension within hundreds of years, but why did it dare to?

=Well, if there are too many Channels open, the answer is simple. What you need to do is to close them.=

Alice said that the resurrected Truth-Seeker would close the dimensional door through the Earth to stop the souls from leaking.

“How?”

=Adult channels are essentially connected only between the same level dimensions. It can’t be connected to a higher dimension. This place is the lowest level even among the connected ones, so souls are only leaking out. But what if you grow Earth’s level and surpass the other dimensions? The soul will not flow out of that Channel. It will turn into an inflow.=

hat meant that the role of the doors that were already open would change. Not the outlet, not the exit, but the entrance. Did it say that the soul flowed high?

=It won’t stop there. The Earth already has enough souls, so there is no need to keep inflow. If so, there is no reason to leave hundreds of Channels open and leave anxiety elements. You just need to develop the dimension at a rapid pace and evolve it to a higher level.=

In the end, it didn’t require the inflow of souls, so it seemed to mean that the Earth could move to the next category, namely, the next level to disconnect.

Carraderina continued its explanation.

=After that, as the Black Hermit did, you focus only on defense with a high dimensional barrier. As soon as it reached a higher level, all existing adult Channels will be disconnected. Oh, the Seeds planted on your chest won’t be affected since no fixed dimension was connected. The Black Hermit was probably thinking of evolving the dimension and then turning your Seed into an adult. However, my master has no plans to do that.=

Its explanation followed.

=Also, the disappearance of all existing Channels will greatly impact the lives of mortals in this dimension. If you wish for peace in this world, it would be meaningful.=

Through borrowing Shockmeem’s will, Carraderina delivered its proposal.

=My master wants to be the Truth-Seeker of this world. That way, you can avoid the expected destruction. But before that, my master needs to figure out what the hell the Black Hermit was doing in this world. Because if it is something related to God… it could be a great risk factor.=

In a word, it wanted to gulp that world, but since there was a suspicious part, it wanted to know what the former owner did? Moreover, that guy thought the only clue was me.

=I suggest this to you, Reclusive Soul. Cooperating with my master guarantees your complete freedom after it becomes the Truth-Seeker of this world. If you need anything, it will support you as much as possible. Originally Truth-Seekers are not interested in the lives of mortals, but your request will be an exception. Moreover, it is advantageous for my master to have jurisdiction over this world, even by looking at your entire race. It will prevent the destruction of your people, and all of these Channels will disappear beyond your control.=

I sighed.

That alien really didn’t know how to negotiate. There was nothing much in my favor that Carraderina’s master offered me that time. If the Channels closed, the world would be safer, but did it make sense to offer me as a subject of the Truth-Seeker’s research in return?

How could it make such a blatant offer? Was it because it was the absolute strongest?

Moreover, there was a flaw in that statement.

“Wait a minute. The scenario we just talked about. If that’s possible, why aren’t other Truth-Seekers doing that? If there are still enough souls on Earth, can they just take the Earth’s jurisdiction and then close all Channels. And can’t they just start the wealthy life that Dragon enjoyed instead?”

=Two conditions must be met for this plan to be realized. First, before the Earth is deprived of its souls as it is now, it should be a Truth-Seeker that can quickly grow the dimension and evolve to a higher level than the superior dimension among the same level dimensions. Other Truth-Seekers are simply content to absorb the Earth’s souls because they don’t have that capacity.=

In other words, most Truth-Seekers were satisfied with sticking a straw in the treasure complex called Earth, but Carraderina’s master had the ability to rob the entire treasure and then cut off all other straws.

Also, I noted one possibility. Alice said the resurrected Dragon would close all Channels. The plan was already arranged before he died.

In the end, it meant that he had the ability to do so.

“But it’s still weird. Then why didn’t the Dragon… the Black Hermit grow this dimension earlier? No, but before that, what does it mean for the Truth-Seeker to grow the dimension?”

=There is information that I cannot answer to that question… Hmm? Ah, wait.=

With the last will, Carraderina didn’t come back for a while.

After waiting for a while, Shockmeem told me.

=Should I maintain control of the females? There is no response from the other person.=

I nodded.

“Yes, just keep it this way…”

=Ah, just now!=

Shockmeem’s consciousness cut me off.

=The being called Carraderina just spat out its thoughts, but…=

“But?”

Shockmeem’s telepathy showed signs of confusion.

=Unlike until now, I can’t understand the contents. Above all, it seems that more than half of the group of females who received the will have died.=

“… What?”

I opened my eyes to an unbelievable story.

=The will is too strong. To the extent that newborn females cannot handle it…=

So, in other words, they were exterminated for just one telepathic perception?

At that moment, Shockmeem said again.

=That person is talking again. It’s weaker than before, but… something is different. This isn’t Carraderina speaking directly. It seems that someone is talking instead through its mind.=

‘Don’t tell me…’

“Did you understand what it was saying this time?”

The Shockmeem mimicked Carraderina’s consciousness that it recognized through the females.

=Hey there, hello?=

“…”

Compared to the previous one, the feeling was completely different.

The Shockmeem continued to convey the opponent’s telepathy.

=Is this enough? Oh, they are dead a lot, but can they hold on now? Come on, Reclusive Soul. Are you getting my message?=

I answered.

“… I can hear you.”

The Shockmeem females reconstructed the string, and the person who read it replied.

=Hello? I’m ‘Gramiel.’ I will tell you about my true name as a Truth-Seeker later. The name I just told you now is the name I used before the second evolution. Yes, it’s the name I used in the civilization that I lived in then. As you might have guessed, I’m Carraderina’s master. I’m talking with this child’s spirit now. Did you understand?=

I exchanged eyes with Parvache. I remembered meeting the Silver Forest’s Truth-Seeker before, and I felt the intense will to dug out the mind. A similar phenomenon seemed to have occurred at that time.

I gave the answer assuming the other person’s words were true.

“… I understand.”

The opponent responded.

=Yes, I was watching your communication with Carraderina, and you kept prying into things that this child didn’t know. I came to answer for you, but, by the way…=

There was a distinct edge to the Truth-Seeker’s will, which was delivered with a brief gap.

=You’re making me feel a little bad. At best, I sent the ascetic as an ambassador. Are you playing with these bugs in front of it?=