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Academy City, District 7, inside the Windowless Building.
George once again stepped into the special chamber where Aleister Crowley, the "Fallen Man," resided.
"This guy is even stronger than I imagined!"
As George's spiritual power swept over Aleister, he couldn't help but marvel inwardly.
He had always known Aleister was strong, someone far beyond his ability to defeat, yet until now, he had never been able to gauge the man's true depth.
But with his own strength multiplied many times over, everything had changed.
In his human form, thanks to the gradual completion of his miniature world, his power had risen to a level infinitely close to that of a single-universe entity. Even in his dragon form, his individual strength was now at the same threshold.
Only now could he clearly perceive the true power Aleister had been concealing.
Through his senses, he realized Aleister had not yet reached the single-universe level, but was infinitely close to it.
In other words, the two of them were now evenly matched, fifty-fifty. If they truly fought, the outcome would depend entirely on their methods.
And in that regard—he wasn't being arrogant—George believed Aleister was inferior to him.
From their previous dealings, he had already learned many of Aleister's tricks.
Of course, Aleister hadn't shown him everything, but that hardly mattered. Soon, he would obtain the one hundred and three thousand grimoires from Index, which would allow him to master over eighty percent of this world's magic.
This meant that he already understood most of Aleister's arsenal, while Aleister only grasped a fraction of his.
In terms of methods, George had studied spells from countless worlds, making his mastery far superior to Aleister's.
"Impossible!"
In contrast to George's calm, Aleister's heart was in turmoil.
The moment George's spiritual sweep brushed against him, he instinctively reassessed George's strength.
In just a few short months, George's power had grown to the point that even he felt threatened.
What did this mean?
It meant George's strength now stood on equal footing with his own.
The last time they had met, their difference had been absolute—if Aleister had truly acted, he could have crushed George with overwhelming ease.
In his eyes, his only true opponents had been the Magic Gods.
But now, he was no longer so certain.
"Perhaps this isn't a bad thing."
With a shift in thought, he reconsidered. This development might actually be beneficial.
They were, after all, supposed to be partners. If used wisely, George could become a powerful weapon against the Magic Gods—just as he had nurtured Imagine Breaker as a countermeasure.
In the blink of an eye, countless schemes flashed through his mind.
"What did you call me here for this time?"
George was the first to speak.
Even though he now had the strength to stand against Aleister, it didn't mean he intended to turn hostile.
They were allies, and he still intended to extract value from Aleister. For now, things would proceed as before.
The only difference was that, unlike before when he had been the weaker party, they now stood as equals. If Aleister ever tried to move against him, he would no longer be limited to hollow threats.
"I need you to handle a rather disobedient child for me—and also make a trip to England."
Aleister smiled faintly as he spoke.
George didn't hesitate.
"What's in it for me?"
"I can teach you any kind of magic you want to learn."
Aleister knew well that what George desired most was magic.
But this time George shook his head.
"This time, I don't want magic. I want to thoroughly understand the matter of the Magic Gods."
He could obtain magic from Index soon enough; there was no need to waste this opportunity. Far better to exchange it for intelligence on the Magic Gods.
His understanding of them was still limited—he only knew that magicians who reached the realm of the Magic Gods possessed the ability to casually destroy entire universes.
The reason he wanted this knowledge was simple: in the current world, aside from the Magic Gods, nothing else seemed capable of threatening him anymore.
If possible, he even wanted to see if he could capture one and use it for spirit assimilation. After all, in this world he had yet to perform such a feat.
Lesser spirits were beneath him. If he was going to assimilate, it had to be a great spirit. Though the digestion period would be long, the increase in his power would be immense.
"Very well."
Aleister narrowed his eyes slightly before nodding in agreement.
Since he intended to use George against the Magic Gods, it was inevitable that he would eventually share this information anyway.
"Life is destined to end in death. Apples are destined to fall downward. One plus one equals two. These are the unshakable laws of the world. Yet all of them can be destroyed, reshaped, or recreated through the magic inscribed within grimoires.
One plus one could become three. Apples could fall upward. The dead could be revived.
Those who can accomplish such feats are what magicians call Magic Gods."
Aleister slowly revealed the essence of what a Magic God truly was:
"They are not deities of some demonic realm. A Magic God is a magician who has achieved perfect mastery over magic, stepping into the domain of gods, able to bend every law of existence at will. They are the ultimate form of the magician."
The explanation continued for a full hour. George listened with unwavering focus.
The intelligence was extremely detailed—who the current Magic Gods were, how they had become such beings, their attitudes toward this world, and the threats they posed.
Though Aleister never outright said it, George could clearly detect a trace of hostility in his tone.
Aleister seemed deeply antagonistic toward the Magic Gods.
"Thank you for the information. As for the two tasks you mentioned—I'll handle them."
Having received the knowledge he wanted, George readily accepted Aleister's requests.
Aleister had given him two tasks.
The first was to suppress and retrieve Kakine Teitoku, Academy City's second-ranked esper, who had turned traitor.
The second was to travel to England, where the Roman Catholic Church's darkest faction, "God's Right Seat," was plotting to incite World War III, aiming to seize both Imagine Breaker and the one hundred and three thousand grimoires.
Aleister needed him to protect Kamijou Touma—allowing him to undergo trials, but ensuring he relied only on Imagine Breaker and no other powers.
As for why Kamijou had to be protected, Aleister made no effort to hide it: he intended to use Kamijou's power against the Magic Gods.
For George, neither task posed much difficulty.
Suppressing an esper would be child's play. As for protecting Kamijou, it conveniently aligned with his own plan to acquire the one hundred and three thousand grimoires from Index.
"Eye of Investigation!"
Teleporting above Academy City, George's eyes suddenly gleamed with a blood-red cross.
As the cross lit up in his pupils, a massive eyeball materialized in the sky above the city.
"Found him."
With a flicker of his figure, he vanished once more.
The Eye of Investigation was a spell belonging to Scarlet Despair Eileen. By summoning a giant eye in the sky, it allowed him to observe every event occurring within the city.
It was far more convenient for locating someone than his tracking curse.
(End of Chapter)