⟨⟩ ⟨⟩ ⟨⟩
The existence of the rift brought about several phenomena that directly affected everything in its surroundings. Some paths of fate had even disappeared within just a few hours, while the void—which should have remained untouched by the existence of anything—had instead begun to experience distortions.
This phenomenon raised a fundamental question.
How could the void possibly be affected by something originating from the opening of space and time?
Fundamentally, the void was the zero point of all existence. It was not an empty space that simply lacked matter, but rather an absolute nothingness—a place where the fundamental concepts of the universe held neither meaning nor existence. There was no space, no time, and not even any laws capable of defining its existence.
However, there was one exception that made this phenomenon even more difficult to comprehend.
The paths of fate.
Somehow, the paths of fate could still be found within the void. Their existence seemed to be not entirely bound by the limitations that applied to other concepts. Nevertheless, there was at least a more reasonable explanation for how the paths of fate could exist in a place that did not even recognize the concept of existence itself.
However, the same could not be said for the phenomenon currently taking place.
The distortion was not merely a change affecting something within the void. More than that, it was as though the boundary between nothingness and existence was being disrupted. Something that should have had no connection to space or time was now showing a response to both.
And the longer the rift remained open, the harder it became to ignore the reality that something was attempting to break through that boundary.
The rift slowly widened, resembling a door being forced open from the other side. It was as though something beyond it was trying to enter the void, even though that place should have had no room for anything to enter.
That was what the two living beings standing on their respective paths of fate were observing as they gazed at the rift in space-time, which continued to worsen the condition of the Pathways of World.
Infori then spoke to himself, but Noya, standing beside him, heard every word clearly.
"I don't know when this rift will reach its complete form. Perhaps it might bring something we don't know about." He then turned his gaze toward Noya and asked another question to clarify things. "One thing is certain: this rift is connected to the disaster that is about to happen, isn't it?"
"Your assumption might be correct, because we don't know what will happen when this rift reaches the limit of its growth. Meanwhile, Vael'Nyth will arrive soon. We don't know when, whether it will be in a few years or perhaps tomorrow. We don't know what awaits us on the day ahead," she replied.
Then, Noya shifted her gaze toward the rift. Her golden eyes stared directly into it, but all she could see were mysterious energies surging uncontrollably.
She then offered another assumption. "If that's true, then this rift is one of the signs of that approaching disaster."
Infori's eyes widened for a moment, but he soon lowered them again and tried to process what she had said. However, he remembered the question he had asked Noya earlier, which still remained unanswered.
Therefore, he needed to get his answer as soon as possible.
"But what does that rift have to do with my path of fate?"
"....."
"Is this related to the fate of a Believer that you've been talking about all this time?"
"That's right. The fate of a Believer is always connected to the fate chosen by the world, one who is entrusted with the task of saving it from something that threatens the balance of its world," Noya answered.
She once again shifted her gaze toward Infori, who was standing right beside her. Noya could see that his expression seemed to be asking for an explanation about his own existence.
"And that's you, Infori. Have you still not accepted it?" Noya then asked him another question. "Are you really trying to avoid your fate by constantly questioning it? Or are you asking because you have doubts about yourself?"
Infori Atziluth, who had spent all this time questioning his own existence, finally ran out of words. He simply fell silent, realizing that all along, he himself had been the one who had yet to truly understand the meaning behind every question he had asked.
"..."
He had asked the same questions over and over again. Yet no matter how many times he repeated them, the answers he received always remained the same.
All those questions had begun to emerge when he first set foot in this place—a dimension that served as the center of all the paths of fate belonging to living beings in Orleans.
Back then, he had met Dimsk, a mysterious man who served under Noya. Under Noya's orders, that man had been assigned to take the Blades of Mirage from him. The incident had happened so quickly. However, whenever he recalled it, time seemed to move far more slowly than it actually had.
In the middle of his battle against Dimsk, the man had offered a collaboration between himself, Noya, and Infori. However, there was one thing from that conversation that had continued to linger in his mind.
The Chosen One—the Believer.
Not only that, but Infori had also been described as an ambiguous existence within the Pathways of World. The reason was that his path of fate was divided into three different branches.
The first branch showed him as the guardian of two Seraphim, Lilith and Iris. This had once left him confused, considering that a Nephilim should not be able to interfere in the affairs of the Seraphim due to the established index.
The second branch showed him as an ordinary merchant, living his life without becoming involved in anything greater.
Meanwhile, the third branch showed the possibility of him becoming the chosen one—the Believer.
Those three possibilities continued to revolve inside his mind. From that moment onward, various questions he had never thought of before began to haunt him. Who was he really? Why could his path of fate be divided into three? And what did the title of the Believer, which was constantly associated with him, actually mean? Why did the second branch have to exist, when he himself was merely an artifact merchant running his own shop?
However, all of that was nothing compared to the reality he faced after successfully returning to the Overworld through one of the Doors of Fate.
Instead of receiving answers, Infori was confronted with a fact that was far more difficult to comprehend.
He was dead.
Yet, at the same time, he was not entirely dead.
A state that contradicted his understanding of existence, while also making all the questions he had carried with him even more complicated.
(All of this is making it even harder for me to think... And now there are two more problems I have to face: the rift right in front of me and a disaster called Vael'Nyth that will arrive soon. Meanwhile, I haven't even decided which fate I should choose...!)
He finally spoke after remaining silent for a while. Infori acknowledged Noya's questions and statements about him.
"That's right. You're absolutely right," he said quietly. However, his voice made Noya turn her gaze toward him again, her expression becoming serious. Noya saw that Infori's face had begun to look weary, and his eyes, which had always been wide open, now stared blankly ahead.
Even as the words left his mouth, he could only lower his head.
"Even now, I still can't... choose my own fate." Infori continued speaking. "I don't fight to defeat anyone, or because I want to kill someone, or because I hate someone. I've only ever been running away. Not just in my dreams, but in reality as well."
"....."
—However.
Infori raised his head once again. His gaze was now fixed straight ahead.
"But... Please believe in me!"
His words caused Noya, who had previously been somewhat skeptical of Infori, to immediately widen her eyes. She listened earnestly to every word that came out of Infori's mouth.
"I won't run away this time! To save this world, I'll do everything I can!"
His words echoed throughout the entire void.
For the sake of his best friend who had accompanied him all this time, who had always helped him from childhood until now, Flynn. For the sake of the two Seraphim whom he had initially distrusted, but whom he had come to realize were carrying out an incredibly difficult mission, Lilith and Iris. And for the sake of the world that had allowed him to live in peace all this time, as well as the people living within it. And also for the balance between the two realities.
"Because I'm the only one who can do it, just like a Nephilim who chooses his own path."
He had finally accepted everything. Infori had at last chosen not to keep questioning everything, but instead to move forward and let himself determine what his true fate would be.
"I'll do everything I can..."
He paused for a moment, looking seriously toward Noya.
"...until the very end."