Dogs, cats, cattle, rats, birds, and even insects.
Threads of fate connected Alice to tens of thousands of animals like these in the capital.
Evelyn, Dina, Rose, and the others looked at that scene in shock.
But when they heard Ysnay's next words, their shock turned into terror.
"… These threads connect at each seed in the capital."
"That is…!"
"Impossible!"
"Do you mean…?"
Alice, Evelyn, and Dina exclaimed in disbelief. They could not believe Ysnay's words.
No, they did not want to believe them.
In fact, even I was slightly surprised.
However, I accepted it in the next instant.
In the end, the person we are facing is an immortal. Although I was not expecting this, it's something that an Immortal can do.
Plus, I don't think Ysnay will lie at this kind of time.
"… In other words, humans are not the only hosts?" I asked.
Ysnay nodded.
"Exactly. Humans are just one of the many hosts. The one behind it can use any living creature with a soul to plant a seed in them."
My expression turned grave. This makes everything much more complicated than before.
If my thoughts are right, that Immortal is planning to use the seeds to advent at this world. I'm not sure of the exact method he is going to use, but I'm almost one hundred percent sure of my hypothesis.
Thus, I planned to destroy as many seeds as possible to try to delay his arrival.
But this… This makes things much more difficult.
Only in the capital, there are tens of thousands of seeds. How many are out there in the rest of the world?
"Do you understand now?" Ysnay said at this moment. "The situation is already this bad, if you hesitate at this point of time, it will turn even worse. The best thing you can do now is to kill as many seeds as you can. Although it will not change anything, it will at least delay the coming disaster for a bit longer.
"Disaster?" Dina, Katherine, and the others were confused.
But Evelyn, who had been in the destroyed world, and Alice, who knew a bit about this world's future fate, put on ugly expressions.
Even so–
"… We can't simply kill two thousand people like that. Even if what you say is true, how are we going to justify the deaths of so many people?" Evelyn stated.
Ynsay just shrugged.
"That is your problem, not mine. I'm only telling you what is the best course of action."
Suddenly, though, Ysnay froze.
Then, she smiled wryly.
"Damn, this one is a very careful one. Fortunately, I only located the seeds in the capital, plus I did not act directly and instead use this girl as a medium. Otherwise, he would have learned about my existence."
My expression changed instantly.
"Could it be…?"
Ysnay nodded.
"… Sorry, it was my mistake. I was not careful enough. I must go now. If I stay here, he will learn of my existence and that is something we don't want."
With these words, Ysnay's figure vanished.
The others were confused by our conversation, but I did not have time to explain now.
"Everybody! Get the hell out of here! Hurry up!"
"C-Claus? W-What is wro–"
Before Evelyn could end her sentence, a powerful pressure descended in the capital.
Then, Alice's face turned pale.
She looked at the threads around her in disbelief. Suddenly, one of the threads snapped.
Then another.
And another.
And all the remaining threads.
"Ugh!" Alice collapsed on the ground vomited a mouthful of blood.
"Young miss!" Butler Aaron and Knight Hannah hurriedly ran to support Alice, but they stopped abruptly before reaching her.
Because a powerful and overwhelming will filled with an aura of destruction froze their movements.
The same will that was now appearing in the infected people and creatures.
Evelyn, Dina, Katherine, and the others were looking at the two thousand infected people in disbelief. They watched how the infected roared in pain, trashed on the ground, and turned black.
That same phenomenon was happening to many animals in the capital. Tens of thousands of animals erupted with powerful auras equivalent to twelfth-layer monsters at the very least.
Then, the powerful wills coming from the infected gathered together, forming a single more powerful will.
And that will stared in our direction.
[So it was you, huh. My brethren.] The will of the Immortal spoke up to me. [… And I can feel a seer too. Such loathsome beings.]
Following the will's words, a powerful pressure attacked Alice!
Alice's face turned ashen white. A feeling of death overwhelmed her entire body.
It was obvious the will was planning to kill her directly.
But when she thought she was going to die, I appeared in front of her.
And with a wave of my hand, the pressure was dispersed.
"What do you think you are doing?" I spoke up, my voice resounding in the ear of all the people nearby.
Katherine, Rose, Dina, Hannah, and several other people were surprised by my actions. Just now, none of them could even move, too overwhelmed by that terrifying will.
They could not fathom how I could stand against that immense will without flinching.
But at this point in time, I could not care if my true strength was exposed. In this situation, only I can face this Immortal.
Fortunately, most of the people here are technically in my faction… As for the others, I will have to ask Ysnay for help later.
While I was confronting the Immortal's will, the Immortal chuckled slightly.
[Obviously, I'm killing the mortal that dared to offend me.] The will said as though it was a matter of course. [Besides, I can't allow you to use her to find the seeds I left in this world. That would be very troublesome to my plans.]
"Is it so?" I snorted. "Do you think a mere projection can kill one of my people in my presence?"
[… That is true. Just a projection is not enough to face one of my brethren, much less one as powerful as you.] The will admitted it words easily. [However… I'm confident you will not be able to destroy this projection so easily. Much less if you want to protect that lass or the people around here.]
That was true.
Although I was confident in defeating this projection even with my current weakened self, if we fought here, the collateral damage would be immense.
Perhaps the entire capital will be destroyed.
That is something I want to avoid if possible.
But… It's not as though I have not countermeasures for that.
"You underestimate me too much." I chuckled softly and snapped my fingers.
As though answering to my gesture, reality itself shook.
Then, a brand-new dimension was created, swallowing the Immortal's projection together with me and separating us from the real world.
"You will need more than that if you want to intimidate me."
...
P4TRE0N: patr-eon.com/aidnovels