“Vivian is alive!”

Cytortia’s voice lighted a brilliant sunshine through ZAWRUDO’s terminal. Rem activated the octopus communicator to report his finding to the Congress of Hope, and that excitement was the first thing out of Cytortia’s end of the telephone line. He melancholically observed the evening sunset outside the cave as the excited Cytortia gushed about Vivian. Wayward, on the other hand, opted to stay behind and chatted with the goddess. Personally, Rem believed it was less a chat and more to visit his comatose adopted sister. If he had to guess, Vivian probably kept her in the basement.

“Aunt Artio spoke of her fondly. She was quite a daredevil in her younger years. Even Nu Wa admits in that she is slightly better than her in setting up workshop and formation. Even Ishtar called her a rival in the Inter-Pantheon Goddesses Pageant. I always want to meet her. LinLey will be so jealous. Can I ask for an autograph? I can’t wait to see what the egotistical mermaid expression will be when she realizes I have Vivian’s favor.”

Rem decided that the time cometh to stop the gushing of Cytortia — for the sake of the emotionally crushed Lady of the Lake.

“Cy, I really want to get her autograph for you,” Rem walked away from the Vivian’s cave. “But Vivian is currently like you. She lost her [Divine Core], and is in hiding from all her enemies. She is a nervous wreck.”

“That is why we need to stick together!”

Rem needed to admit such a proclamation would fall to deft ear to a more jaded man, but as an aspiring hero, he couldn’t brush it away. If any random joe with addiction to justice said the same sentence, he would introduce them to a bucket of water to break waterboarding world record. But if anyone could understand Vivian, it would be Cy who experienced the same situation. Her empathy wasn’t an empty one.

“Maybe next time,” Rem spoke. “How about this. Why don’t you start as a pen pal? This way you won’t have your expectation to collapse from a disappointment and Vivian can slowly get out of the shell.”

Cytortia was impressed, “Wow, I can’t believe you can be this considerate. Are you sure you didn’t take a wrong medicine?”

Then Melody’s voice spoke from the terminal, “Let ignore the fact Rem needed that medicine. And yes, buddy, I notice you limping up this morning. Seriously, your declining health is a worrying factor.”

“I am fine. Just pull several all-nighters in a role. A little power nap and I will be back on track.”

That was a lie. The element of Center Force was slowly invading his body, and dear old buddy REM returned every night for a death match (the current score is 315 wins 0 losses). Although Rem defeated him every time, it did no favor for his declining stamina. He even resorted to actively using [Tenshou] to prop the body that would fall over in a stiff breeze to be combat functioning. Popular viewer would say Rem was the most subtle of the group in power, but that was because he couldn’t afford to put a hundred percent of his power in a fight. Significant portion of Rem’s ability was actively employed to keep himself functioning.

In the move which exemplifies who he was, Rem refused to let the Dawn knew about his declining condition. The impact on morale would be enormous and they would likely strap him to the bed. He needed to misdirect them from the truth under the guise of stress and overwork—a juggling act to keep the ice-berg hidden beneath the wave. Let them believed this was overwork, reinforced the misconception, and met them part-way to ease their supposed concern.

Yes, this was a blatant manipulation of his own friends and allies. Rem was under no illusion about his selfishness. They would inevitably discover the deception and grilled him for it. Hopefully, the Dawn would have enough foundation fortitude to cope with his permanent retirement, or worst, going rouge and needed to be put down.

Until then, the charade must go on.

“Limping like that isn’t fine,” Melody was stern.

“My health can wait. The mission come first. One all-nighter and I will have a rest.”

“Rem!” Cytortia yelled.

“Okay, okay,” Rem knew he succeed in his bluff. “This will really slow us down, but for your sake I will take 5 hours sleep tonight.”

“Do you want to be strapped to the bed?” Melody said.

“9 hours then,” Rem put out the real number he prepared on the phone. “Are you happy?”

“Smiling ears-to-ears,” said the demoness who was convinced she won the negotiation she lost.

“Wipe that smile off,” Rem feigned grumpiness to cover his relief. “How is Ehto and project Cerebro?”

“Complete right on schedule,” Melody answered. “So, what did Vivian tell us about the seal?”

Rem reflected on what he discovered. The knowledge was alarming. It sounded innocuous when anyone first heard about it. Predictably, like most harmless pop-corn flick, it could be horrible once you started dissecting the plot.

“A seal erected with the three safeguards, namely the guardian entity protecting the Leyline in each nation of Tengen Continent: The World Tree guarded by the dark elves in Frisnia, The Garuda of Starland, Earthshaker of Centuria. Each one is the royal family contracted beast and the land guardian.”

Hikma chose that moment to reply, “Three safeguards of that magnitude. That is pretty secure, isn’t it?”

“Yes, Hikma,” Rem replied. “On the surface, nothing on this continent should be able to break the seal. But the Fair Folks were relentless in the attempt to wear down the barrier. Their collective Mana already pervaded the continental Leyline like malaria infection.”

“That sound bad,” Cytortia surmised.

“It is bad. Vivian believed the guardians were forced to focus their entire brainpower on curbing this infection. All of them already went into trance-like state to block the invasion. It causes their hibernation. If they are distracted and awakened, the seal will slip.”

“Then we must prevent them from waking up,” Melody got the challenge. “Wait. Isn’t Tengen continent a war zone? What happen if someone landed a shell in the place they were sleeping.”

Rem was thankful someone got the gargantuan disaster incubating beneath their feet right now, “Exactly. One smartass turns desperate enough to wake them, and we are screwed. Maybe the seal can tank one slip-up, but I don’t want to risk it.”

Cytortia groaned as the expert of the Heavenly Daughter, “This is bad. LinLey will certainly try to rob the Starland royal family blind for her aid. Tai Hua is in Frisnia at the moment. They are the type who pokes the bear cave to steal the cubs, but this won’t be stealing a pet, it will be shifting the tectonic plate. One wrong move and they will end this entire continent.”

“Well, I think the solution is pretty obvious,” Melody was the voice of solution. “Let split up and guard the guardians.”

“Not easy,” Rem said. “I needed more time to divine the location of the Garuda. The World Tree is deep in Frisnia with the dark elves’ and the adventurer guide’s eyeball glue right through it. The Earthshaker is located by the royal family’s secret stash. One wrong move and will might cause a massive troop deployment that will blow the seal.”

The members of the Dawn got what Rem said. Beside the Garuda sleeping in no-clue land, the other two locations were surveillance hotspot. Sure, they could infiltrate the country and set a stakeout there, but it was risky and discovery guarantee immediate escalation. The escalation that the Dawn didn’t want to stomach.

Hikma got to business, “Then what is the plan?”

“I will think of something,” Rem muttered. He knew his reply was fostering the opposite of confidence.

“You don’t have a plan?” Cytortia was feeling the chill. “Rem, we need a plan right now? From you told us the fairy is like miniature divinity and they have been propagating uncheck for six centuries. We might be facing a full-scale crusade.”

“Cy,” Rem calmly spoke with sincerity. “Do you ever heard of the trope called you-can’t-thwart-stage-one?”

“I don’t know that one,” Melody pointed out. “But I already hate it.”

Rem smiled with total self-pity directed at himself, “Let me explain it. Supervillain G is trying to assemble the Superweapon using three different artifacts. This trope guarantee that no matter what the hero does, Superweapon will be assembled. The villain might plant the spy on the hero team. They might use hostage to trade pieces. Or just outright outplay them at every turn. This concept guarantees the hero failure in the mid-play because the narrative and the board are utterly stacked against them.”

Melody was still confused, “How does this get—oh.”

She got it and groaned, “You are telling me we can’t stop it.”

“Seriously!” Cytortia yelled. “You must be kidding me!”

“Yeah, we are in that scenario, right now. Centuria’s seal is currently open for all to see with its pant down at the location three different armies will go all-out to snatch the uncontested victory. We can infiltrate each camp and brainwash them into giving up, but that is a long-shot. Plus, I really have a feeling we can’t underestimate this dangerous-looking guy. As for the World Trees, our intel suggests Tai Hua is heading there, and you read the interrogation report I squeezed out of Chuang.”

Chuang’s interrogation repot. It was the document that force the Congress of Hope to put several legislations to stop from mind-raping prisoner. Sure, they got every piece of Chuang’s brain, but the life-loop Rem put her through broke the Heavenly Daughter of Fire to shards of fracture psyche. It was so bad even Rem believed he went too far and the entire Dawn designed to erase her mind and transform her into Shyme Enma as her new maid.

But the information gain wasn’t in vain, they discovered Chuang was a victim of theoretical time-loop. She experienced the future timeline where the Dawn never came to be and Phantasia predictably got its ass kick by the World Enemies. Of course, it was only partial information. Chuang’s future vision was limited. While some averted disaster, such as Melody’s ill-fated conquering of the Demonic Continent and fall of Lightwell by Luxinna were reported, it missed several major plot.

Venistalis Incident. PALISADE. Orwell Mehest and Arden Christy. Samael Wayward.

Those were major global that never appeared in Chuang’s version of the future.

“It is difficult to pinpoint where exactly the future diverted in her version,” Rem said into the communicator. “But I believe I has a working theory. I think Chuang perceived the version of the future where the Heavenly Daughters are—this sound so corny—the main characters.”

“Excuse me?” The former Heavenly Daughters of Wood didn’t like that.

“Let me explain,” Rem said. “Chaung, somehow, experienced the true potential of Mana and asked for her future. The future where she can be the hero. Do you get me?”

“We are still here,” said Melody.

“In this version of the future, the Heavenly Daughters are the main cast. Mana rounded off every single threat capable of threatening their station as the protagonist. It essentially eliminated the problem Chaung can’t possibly surmount to give her the story she wanted to see. That is why there is no Wayward or Orwell or PALISADE. Those guys are so monstrously equation breaking that factoring them in will cause the world Shyme didn’t have a shot at anything.”

Melody was far from impressed, “So, Mana just shelved reality to create the world she wanted to see. How could someone be dumb enough to fall for it?”

“More or less,” Rem bit back a snort. Of course, Mel wasn’t impressed. She had no-sell the same trick when WORLD himself bamboozled her.

“But aren’t Melody and Luxinna in that false future too?”

Rem must admit, watching Cytortia’s tactical growth gave him a warm, fatherly feeling.

“They did, but those versions of them never possess True Magic. Oh, the Heavenly Daughter is in a fight for their life, but they can realistically gather an alliance to overcome the globe-uniting international threat of nut-out Luxinna and dictator Melody. Theoretical Heavenly Daughters have advantages of moral unambiguity and neon-sign visible enemies, but reality doesn’t work like that. Unlike evil Luxinna and Melody, our enemy didn’t give them such convenience.”

Rem could already get what will happen if the Heavenly Daughters faced against the Dawn’s villains. They wouldn’t be able to face Orwell who will unite and empower the people into a revolution army. Wayward would easily overpower them one-by-one. PALISADE would grow beneath the surface and ruthlessly and tactically overpowered Phantasia with his superior intelligence and technological prowess at the worst timing. LinLey, Chuang, Kar’dia, Tai Hua and the rest of the 33 Stars couldn’t possibly survive the Horizon Dawn’s difficulty. In fact, even without the home-grown threat, the World Enemy chewed them alive in Chuang’s version of the timeline.

PALISADE was right. Without Satholia and Dawn, Phantasia was doomed even in the best possible condition. However, incorrect as the timeline was, it gave Rem an insight into one-person’s potential ceiling.

“Tai Hua Tianshang couldn’t be underestimated.”

“Aren’t you spending this last few minutes yelling about how she and the rest of my senior sister are failures?” Cytortia pointed out.

“Failures? Totally,” Rem reaffirmed Cytortia without a hint of hesitation. “But Chuang is right to fear Tai Hua. Even when overwhelm and outmatch, Tai Hua is the last person fighting. Her political philosophy is impossible because of the self-interest of humanity, but with a better perspective she could have triumphed. If Tai Hua ever accepts that ‘law of the jungle’ is the incarnation of stagnation, she might actually win in those specific future.”

Cytortia was stunned at Rem’s unexpected commendation of her dreaded tormentor, “Wait! Then why in that ideal world do they lose?”

“Because Tai Hua’s sheer arrogance. Let me be clear, I mean arrogance, not pride. Pride has a basis in accomplishment tempered by personal growth. Arrogance lethally combines overconfidence and ignorance. Tai Hua is powerful. That timeline showed us her potential,” Rem said.

On the other end of the phone, Melody silently agreed.

They read the interrogation report and the account from the hypnotized Chuang about how powerful Tai Hua and her generals are. Somehow the Heavenly Daughter of Steel knew the marital art, Cultivation Technique and Spells lost to the Ancient. She was a charismatic leader capable of fighting above her rank. Her comprehension in the sage art and sword skill was on the level she could take down army after army of World Enemies. She was the impetus who laid the final blow to the tyrannical Melody and Corrupted Luxinna at the height of their power. Her talent, lost knowledge and grim determination were the stuff of legend.

“Still, Even amongst the god, her knowledge in ancient lore is abnormal. Between Tai Hua, and Nereo Melosov giving me bad feeling, I doubt we can stop what coming. Even if we somehow prevent the initial leak, the seal won’t hold forever. The goal of a barrier is too cordoned an event, but most of the time, said cordoning blow-up eventually.”

“So, we just give up,” Melody asked.

“No, we will give it all to buy time, but tell Ehto to design fairies killing weapons because by the end of this campaign I have a feeling we will need to wipe out a species.”