They stepped through the towering gates.
And the moment they crossed the threshold—the world outside seemed to fade.
Not literally. But the noise of Lumeris… the distant laughter… the drifting lanterns… all of it felt suddenly far away.
Inside the Legends Pantheon of Echoes, silence ruled.
Not empty silence. Reverent silence. The kind that made footsteps instinctively softer.
The entrance hall stretched vast and cathedral-like, its ceiling arching so high that faint constellations were etched into the stone itself. Mana-light drifted through the air like quiet fireflies, illuminating murals carved along the walls.
Scenes of wars. Sacrifices. Coronations. Extinctions.
History itself seemed to breathe here.
Null glanced around slowly.
"Okay." His voice came out a little quieter than before. "Now this is a museum."
Sora didn't respond. She had already begun walking deeper inside.
Null followed. Their footsteps echoed faintly against the polished white stone floor as they moved through the corridors of the Pantheon.
The structure seemed almost impossibly vast from within. Hallways branched into wings. Each wing housed chambers filled with relics, preserved weapons, enchanted tomes, fragments of armor, crystalline memory archives—each belonging to someone who had once shaped the world.
Yet Sora didn't slow. She walked with purpose.
"The Hall of Heroes is at the core of this Pantheon." Her voice echoed softly against the high ceilings.
Null glanced around. "So basically… the final boss room of history."
"Null-san."
"Right. Reverent silence. Got it."
For several moments, the only sound between them was the quiet rhythm of their footsteps.
Then Sora spoke.
"Null-san."
Null hummed. "Yeah?"
She kept walking as she spoke. "This is something you should know about the mortal hero summoning ritual that brought you here."
Null's expression shifted slightly. His attention sharpened.
"I'm listening."
Sora inhaled softly.
"Simply put, your unblessed status is anomalous."
Null blinked. "That's a fancy way of saying 'you shouldn't exist.'"
"Correct." She said it without hesitation.
Null chuckled faintly. "Good to know my brand remains consistent across worlds."
Sora shot him a sideways glance. "Please do not interrupt."
Null raised his hands slightly. "Right. Sorry. Continue."
She nodded once.
"Originally, the otherworldly summoning ritual is a forbidden ritual." They passed beneath a long archway where glowing runes flowed across the ceiling like a slow river of light. "It has been banned for over a century."
Null tilted his head. "Banned?"
"Yes." Her voice grew quieter. "Because of a certain incident."
They turned down a wider corridor. Statues lined both sides—heroes frozen mid-action. Warriors. Scholars. Kings. Saints.
"Unfortunately," Sora continued, "the details of that incident no longer exist in historical records."
Null raised a brow. "Completely erased?"
"Almost." She nodded. "Only vague fragments remain." A pause. "But we do know this much."
Her gaze grew slightly darker.
"The last batch of otherworlders summoned a century ago… were responsible for a catastrophe."
Null's brows lifted. "That sounds unpleasant."
"One of them," Sora said quietly, "was a crazy scientist."
Null made a soft sound. "Ah."
"You already understand."
"Yeah." He scratched his chin lightly. "Not surprised."
Sora glanced at him. "You are not?"
Null shrugged. "Anyone from the mortal world suddenly thrown into a place filled with mana, magic, supernatural physics… especially researchers or scientists… they'd go insane with curiosity."
He gestured vaguely. "Imagine discovering an entirely new system of reality. They'll try to break reality open just to see how it works." He smiled faintly. "And some would absolutely lose their minds chasing that power."
Sora frowned slightly. "Null-san."
"Hm?"
"Do not interrupt."
"Right." He coughed lightly. "Sorry. Please continue."
Sora sighed quietly before continuing.
"The crazy scientist among that summoned group slowly rotted with ambition and dabbled in chaotic inhumane experiments that eventually caused the destruction of the very nation that summoned them."
Null's eyes widened slightly. "Well." A beat. "That escalated."
"Not only that." Her voice lowered. "The surrounding territories were devastated as well. The exact details were deliberately erased from history." A pause. "But the event became known by many names." She paused slightly. "One of them being the 'Abominable Catastrophe'."
They walked in silence for several steps. The weight of the words lingered.
"Because of that event," Sora continued, "all nations of Elpis collectively banned the use of otherworldly summoning rituals. No exceptions."
Null nodded slowly. "Makes sense. But the prophecy changed that, huh?"
Sora nodded. "Yes. The foretold awakening of the Evil Divinity. Without external variables… humanity's chances of survival are uncertain."
They turned another corridor. Ahead of them—a massive circular chamber entrance slowly came into view. The path to the Hall of Heroes.
But Sora continued speaking.
"However, the summoning ritual itself is extremely complex. It is a highly structured invocation system. A convergence of space-time manipulation, destiny alignment, and soul selection. It does not 'randomly' summon individuals. There are logistical constraints. Restrictions. And precise conditions."
Null folded his hands behind his head casually. "Such as?"
"The ritual requires specific summoning perimeters and resources necessary to act on that input. These commands determine the level of talent that can be summoned. Not everyone from another world can endure the process."
Her voice grew more technical now. "Those summoned must possess high destiny values and suitable aptitude. Otherwise they cannot bear a Sacred Gift. Even low-grade gifts require compatibility."
Null nodded slowly. "So basically… a cosmic recruitment filter."
He tapped his head in realization. "So what about higher-tier summons?"
"For high-grade talents," Sora continued, "the ritual requires high-ranking space and time mages. Along with rare dimensional catalysts. Artifacts. Mana cores. Astral anchors. For low-grade summons, artifact substitutes are sometimes used."
She slowed slightly as they approached the grand doors ahead.
"But the ritual that summoned you… was different."
Null's gaze sharpened. "How different?"
Sora stopped walking. Slowly. Before the massive sealed entrance to the Hall of Heroes.
Then she turned to him.
"The ritual used to summon you… was a Super-Grade Mortal Hero Summoning Ritual."
Null blinked. "That sounds expensive."
"It is." Her voice remained calm. "It has only been performed once before in recorded history."
Null's eyes narrowed slightly. "And the purpose?"
"To summon a single unparalleled talent. Someone capable of tilting the fate of the world in humanity's favor."
A pause.
"However… the higher the grade of the ritual… the lower the probability of success."
Null let out a quiet whistle. "High risk, high reward."
"Precisely." Sora nodded. "Fortunately… the ritual succeeded."
She looked directly at him.
"Two individuals were summoned."
Null gave a small smile. "Lucky us."
"However," she continued, "the anomaly appears here."
A faint tension entered the air.
"Mr. Kouki received the Sacred Gift Sovereign Accession."
Null folded his hands. "I know, I was there. Still, that gift sounds ridiculously overpowered."
"It is. An ability that matches the highest classification of sacred gifts." She nodded. "Which confirms that he was the true target of the Super-Grade Ritual."
"Which means…" Null murmured. "…he's the intended result." A pause. "Then… why the hell did I show up?"
Sora held his gaze for a moment.
Then—her voice softened slightly.
"At first, I believed it was a malfunction. Or coincidence. But after analyzing the ritual parameters and a bit of thinking… that explanation became impossible."
Null watched her quietly.
Sora turned her gaze toward the towering doors of the Hall of Heroes.
"That's why, after eliminating other unlikely possibilities, there is only one possibility that remains."
A quiet breath left her lips.
"The will of Grandmaster Aurelia."
Null frowned slightly. "Who?"
Sora's fingers curled slightly.
"The archmage who performed the ritual. The one who sacrificed herself to provide the necessary source of power required to activate the Super-Grade Summoning."
A pause.
"She sacrificed her life to do so."
Null's eyes widened slightly. "Oh."
Sora looked down for a moment. "Her mana became the final catalyst. Without it… the ritual would have failed."
Another quiet pause filled the corridor.
Then she spoke again.
"And because of that…" Her gaze slowly lifted back to him. "…I believe it was her will… that brought you here as well."
Silence fell. Heavy.
Null stood there quietly. Processing.
"So you're saying… I wasn't supposed to exist in the ritual. But someone forced the universe to make space for me anyway?"
Sora nodded softly. "Yes."
Null looked at the towering doors ahead. Then back at her.
"Huh."
A long breath escaped him.
"That's one hell of a cosmic accident."
Sora didn't smile.
"I do not believe it was an accident."
A quiet pause passed between them.
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