When the plot-skips players into the game world

This time, the number of people who could vote clearly increased.

Apart from the soul-state "Sour Wine" and the Princess who had left the first painting, the soul-states of Aiwass and the Old Mage were added in an instant, along with the still-living Aleister and the ever-loyal "Old Dog" Laro.

The number of voters had risen to six. Half of them were soul bodies.

This time, five points were directly added, one of which was gleaming. The iron door finally showed some change—it now had a deep groove etched on its surface, and touching it felt like handling a keratin-like texture.

The groove was a dark golden color, resembling either the claw marks of some animal or the scab formed after human skin rips open.

"At last, the storyline of this painting is moving forward..."

Aiwass let out a breath of relief. "Luckily, their unfamiliarity with modern societal rules didn't cost us too much critical information..."

After a brief count, the number of living humans had silently shrunk to just four—or perhaps five.

Since the first painting was now inaccessible both to enter or leave, it was unclear whether the Son of the Moon, still petrified within it, counted as alive or permanently sealed.

If she didn't occupy a living slot but had no soul to vote either... then the count of living individuals would shrink to only four.

The Princess, Laro, Aleister, and the captured warrior. If just one more person died, the special victory condition of "Three out of One" would be triggered.

...What a farce.

Upon closer look, two out of the top three in strength were already dead.

Ironically, the Princess's faction, dismissed at the start, saw both of its members reach the finale.

"I wonder if resurrection is even possible..."

Aiwass muttered with some frustration.

...Because, according to his calculations, there was a slim chance that he wouldn't resurrect this time.

The revival bound by [Sinful] required the killer to be slain within the three minutes of receiving the curse, or it wouldn't work.

If Aleister wanted to resurrect Aiwass, she had to precisely kill the Princess.

But with Laro prepared to sacrifice himself, he was highly likely to block the blow—if Aleister killed the wrong person, the curse's timer would easily run out.

Moreover, the Old Mage, attuned to the Path of Wisdom, had fully grasped the game rules of this ascension ritual. Although Aleister couldn't be resurrected if killed outside the curse's timeframe, the Old Mage could still synchronize a curse onto Aleister, weakening her to prevent Aiwass's return.

Aiwass was inherently powerful and a support specialist in the Path of Devotion. If he resurrected with the intelligence gathered in his soul state, he and Aleister would undoubtedly secure the top two positions.

——To avoid this outcome, the Old Mage would surely impede Aleister at every turn.

Because he knew that his score was unlikely to surpass Aiwass's.

Aiwass could assemble the conditions for [Divine Resurrection], but he had to achieve it by sacrificing Aleister; otherwise, he'd face certain death... and surrendering wasn't even an option. However, he wouldn't let Aleister realize this.

Once Aleister surrendered or adopted a conservative strategy, aiming merely to survive until the end while giving up on reviving Aiwass, then the Pelican could never return. That was why Aiwass hadn't cursed Aleister even once—so she wouldn't discover it... silently lying in wait for that singular opportunity.

But even if his score didn't top the ranks, leading to his permanent death... Aiwass wasn't overly afraid.

——Because he had one revival token left.

A gift from the Lord of Scalefeather.

Originally, he had intended to save this revival chance for battling the Fallen Celestial Marshal... but it ultimately didn't matter if he used it earlier.

He wasn't even fazed by the prospect of true death—he could leave this chance to revive Aleister instead.

With Aleister sharing the exact same memories as Aiwass, she could care for his family and friends in his stead. As for the apocalyptic crisis looming in the future... demonology as a profession was bound to the Path of Transcendence anyway—it merely meant losing access to Advanced Divine Arts.

If they could both survive, then all would be well; yet, if one between the Path of Devotion and the Path of Transcendence version of himself must die, Aiwass hoped it would be him.

He was willing to perish for Aleister; and for the world, Aleister had to survive.

"...I hope the resurrection match goes smoothly."

Aiwass sighed, but he had already braced himself for the worst.

After all, everyone here... well, except for the warrior he wasn't too familiar with, seemed to have reasons they couldn't die.

Trapped in the Holy Nation, Aiwass watched Aleister's actions in Stibnite... and he felt both envy and bewilderment.

Envy at all the things Aleister could do that he yearned for, and bewilderment because... Aiwass didn't know what tasks remained that only he could accomplish.

That sensation—it was so achingly familiar...

Like when he was much younger, before the earthquake that destroyed his childhood and everything he once knew. After school, as he watched his peers laughing and playing, all he could do was return home to study and learn.

Though his family was open-minded—his father would play bootleg console games with him once his homework was done, and his grandfather would take him fishing and play chess during their time together—the enjoyment of playing with family was fundamentally different from that of playing with friends.

He perhaps hadn't wanted to engage in silly games of tag or role-play with those peers. He merely wanted "to be with them."

Or more accurately, he feared being abandoned by his friends. It didn't matter what they played.

Aiwass simply hoped they wouldn't forget him.

His terror of being forgotten made him willing to help others without compensation—even if it meant becoming a mere tool. As long as people remembered Aiwass during and after using his help, that was enough to satisfy him.

——Except now, here, where the Pure White Saintess was temporarily acting as a vicar pope until fully cleansing the amber scar traces, providing power to the elves like some kind of battery, Aiwass couldn't identify anything that only he could do.

Perhaps... compared to himself, the Princess was far more meaningful to this era. She might change all of Stibnite... while Laro, harboring a death wish, was a true man, a stoic Stibnite son.

Aside from the Nurturing Skill... aside from being a "Shepherd," what value as a Contributor did he have?

Stroking the surface of the gate, the bewildered Aiwass softly murmured, "Please grant me some guidance, Candle Master..."

Resolving himself, Aiwass pushed open the gate.

——And then, his eyes widened abruptly.

The once azure sky had now transformed into one half deep red, the other deep purple.

A breathtakingly picturesque view, like the glow of a setting sun, stretched across the heavens.

The once thriving Royal Capital of Camelot had now somehow turned into ruins, as if torn apart by some catastrophic force!

Yet there were no visible enemies on the streets. Instead, many people were working fervently to rebuild their homes.

The chaotic Power of Transcendence—or rather, the Power of Metamorphosis—had created elemental turbulence, resulting in various anomalies in the surroundings.

The leaves on one set of trees were coated in frost, while nearby bushes had been scorched black—

The advertising screens on the streets had all gone dim.

Instead, numerous hand-written banners were strung across them with basic methods.

[If you spot Demon Followers or apocalyptic cultists, please report immediately to the Supervisory Bureau!]

[Disaster Relief Emergency Contact Center: XXX...]

[The third phase of shelters is under construction, expected to be operational in "3" days!]

...

Finally, Aiwass found, among the banners, the piece of information he most wanted to know at that moment.

The exact current date—

[Thursday, December 30, 1999]

One day remained until the end of the world.

"...What is this?!"

Aiwass's eyes widened abruptly.

Without a doubt, this was the power of the Serpent Celestial Marshal—or the Endless Knot!

He had clearly chosen the Fallen Celestial Marshal—

Because when the recent question arose, Aiwass had already deduced what two of the endings signified.

According to earlier deductions, the third painting's rule appeared to be "adding certain elements based on choices" to allow the painting to potentially match its ultimate resolution.

Although "Goodbye" was ambiguous and unclear in its implications...

But "Ring of Ouroboros" clearly pointed to the world's reset at the end of 1999, returning to the Amber First Year. A cycle conclusion without question.

As for "One Thousand Years Later," that likely represented the good ending. To attain it required breaking through the "apocalypse," shattering the cycle... likely necessitating facing the Endless Knot as an enemy.

For their current year of 1899, the year 1999 would be one hundred years later. Reaching 2899—one thousand years later—would mean that the apocalyptic crisis had been resolved.

Were this a game, Aiwass would undoubtedly attempt the hardest ending.

But this was reality. Each of his actions impacted the lives of others and himself.

The simplest ending appeared to be triggered by the descent of the Fallen Celestial Marshal.

As long as the cycle ending occurred, this instance was merely a rehearsal... saving as many lives as possible was the optimal choice...

"To save more lives—is that the best choice?"

A voice suddenly rang out behind Aiwass.

Aiwass instantly froze, turning around.

——And he saw...

Another version of himself.

Though alike in appearance and demeanor, this Aiwass seemed more masculine, more resolute.

He was shrouded in elemental power, a pure white crown inlaid with four gemstones atop his head.

"Indeed," the other "Aiwass" sighed, "I think so too."