"How did this place form…?" Gently pinching her chin, Herta wondered inwardly.
Before this, the Imaginary Tree had always been caught in a cycle of being theorized, disproven, re-theorized, and disproven again.
Those who believed in the existence of this theoretically real mystery and those who didn't had always disagreed.
It was just that now, the theory had finally been proven true.
For so many long ages, no one had ever truly discovered Its existence, enough to prove how high Its rank was.
But what was she seeing now? A door standing right before her, leading directly to the Imaginary Tree!
"No wonder you ended up like this."
Glancing at the three people who still looked completely lost, unable to understand what was happening, Herta spoke another sentence that confused them even more.
"Um, Lady Herta… is there something wrong with this place?" The Bloodhound Family's patriarch asked, his eyes full of concern.
The Iris Family's patriarch pressed her lips together. Their family had invested heavily in this place, yet after Dr. Primitive's reckless actions, they had already suffered severe losses.
Judging by Herta's reaction, there was clearly some hidden truth here that they had failed to discover.
And this hidden truth was most likely something far beyond what The Family could ever hope to touch.
Wasn't this equivalent to planting an untouchable forbidden zone right in the heart of The Family's territory, an eyesore that not only brought heavy losses but also left them completely helpless?
If it were somewhere else, fine, they could simply seal it off. After all, it was still their land.But this was The Family's very heartland!
"Lady Herta, Mr. Screwllum… you two are geniuses renowned across the universe. I wonder if you have any solution that suits The Family's current situation? We and The Family would be deeply grateful."
Slightly bowing, the Iris patriarch looked at the two earnestly.
The Nightingale Family's patriarch stayed silent. The Family simply could not withstand any more losses.
Shrugging, Herta said, "Wait. If your luck is good enough."
Luck. The three looked at each other, reading a shared lack of confidence in one another's eyes.
If they really had good luck, something like this probably wouldn't have fallen on them in the first place.
....
The turmoil of the outside world could not affect the Quantum Sea, which had long since returned to calm.
But at this moment, this deep sea that should have remained forever tranquil was showing signs of disturbance.
Ever since Dr. Primitive began acting, strange and undetectable viruses had started spreading, viruses that could not be observed with the naked eye.
Any surviving life in infected worlds began to regress at a speed visible to the eye.
Humans became apes, intelligent machines reverted to ordinary metal shells.
A suffocating atmosphere began to spread, and countless worlds could not understand what was happening.
Meanwhile, some people who knew that their own worlds had long gone silent, only not yet completely collapsed, or temporarily anchored by some special force, now stared wide-eyed, veins bulging on the backs of their hands.
They didn't understand.
They couldn't understand why, after working so hard, even to the point where they were on the verge of restoring their worlds… they were now confronted with this crushing disaster.
This incomprehensible calamity!
But no matter how unwilling they were, under the assault of such a power, all they could do was sink into resentment and unwillingness as they turned into apes with only a faint glimmer of intelligence.
Everything had to start over again.
"Meme virus?! No… no, that's not right! What is this thing that resembles a meme virus, yet is far more dangerous?"
Among the crowd, those who had come together to end Dr. Primitive were now struggling to comprehend the nature of this virus spreading across their world.
"You know what's happening?" The Herrscher of Sentience grabbed a nearby Memokeeper by the collar and hurriedly questioned her.
"I know a bit… but it doesn't match what I know. In my memory, there's no meme virus that lines up with this."
The Memokeeper hurriedly shook her head. The confusion in her eyes perfectly reflected her current state of mind.
Memokeepers of the Garden of Recollection were meme-based lifeforms. To pursue drifting memories, they transformed themselves into what they were now.
Being a meme-lifeform wasn't an issue, in fact, their form allowed them certain advantages.
Existing as memes meant they did not need to worry about lifespan. Though they could still die someday, they would retain youthful vitality until that moment, assuming they didn't simply grow emotionally exhausted.
Logically, the Garden of Recollection, which stored knowledge from countless worlds, should not lack information on events occurring across the universe.
Yet what she was seeing completely exceeded her understanding. And she was a member of the Garden.
Dr. Primitive's actions were massive. Everyone noticed immediately and unleashed every ability permitted, or forbidden, from minor violations to absolute taboos.
No one planned to give up. Some didn't even understand what a gene virus was, but still did everything they could the instant it appeared.
Yet, all that effort seemed to be in vain.
When the first person began showing signs of mutation, inevitably, everyone turned their gaze toward him.
And then suddenly, they discovered their own bodies were changing too.
"You little cuties, can you calm down for a moment?! If even this tiny commotion shakes you, you might as well hurry back to your mother's arms!"
After that shout, complete silence fell.
In this place where the gene virus had now fully spread, everything had lost meaning. None of them could resist Dr. Primitive, who had become a lifeform of the Quantum Sea itself.
It all seemed predetermined.
Irreversible.
This final trial seemed fated to end with the victory of Dr. Primitive.
....
"Everyone! The pure and beautiful radiance will shine upon every warrior whose heart holds purity!"
"May the Pure Beauty prevail!!"
Though the road ahead was rugged and shrouded in darkness, the radiance of their hearts still shone upon everyone who had not given up.
A beam of dawn-light glowed within their hearts, awakening thoughts that should have gradually fallen asleep under Dr. Primitive's influence.
They had never given up! Never even considered giving up!
From the moment they stepped onto this path, their resolve was already set in stone.
Walking upon the road of the Hunt, they never wavered!
"Harmony will illuminate the way forward!"
Following closely behind, sparks of Harmony once again linked every mind together.
"I'm gonna blow your head off!"
Their consciousnesses linked once more. Every steadfast will shone together, glittering like a sky full of stars, brilliant, unyielding.
"Game time's up! Did you really think I wouldn't figure out where this place is?"
A radiant pillar of light shot into the sky, and starlight blossomed everywhere.
"Bzzzz!!"
An invisible yet clearly felt wave burst outward, spreading across the entire place in an instant, without the slightest weakness, crashing violently against the already-fragile world's barriers.
That was the road to freedom!
"What brilliance…!"
Dr. Primitive looked at that world with indescribable delight, that world which, even in this dark Quantum sea, still shone with boundless light.
Countless firm wills gathered at that moment, all charging toward the same goal.
They had come for this and this alone! There was once a phrase widely acknowledged across the universe:
Those who walk upon the Paths were born for this!
Destruction, Abundance, Erudition, Nihility, Preservation, Voracity, Trailblaze, Joy, Propagation, Remembrance…
For every Path, there may be someone, or no one, walking upon it.
But as long as these Paths exist for even a single day in this world, they prove their symbolic and practical meaning.
The first one to open a Path was the embodiment of miracle itself.
And now, they were marching upon the path, following the path traced by the Aeons.
United as one. Endless radiance would eventually call forth the one who loved lively crowds.
...
"Let there be laughter!" Thus He spoke.
With cheerful laughter, a towering and unimaginable presence, unseen by mortal eyes, descended upon the suddenly appearing domain.
At that moment, everyone felt a surge of power flow into their bodies, a warm current.
They did not know how this warmth appeared.
Perhaps it was the will of the world.
Perhaps it was an unyielding soul.
Or perhaps… merely an illusion.
But even if it was an illusion, at this moment, they accepted it gladly.
Because they were walking upon the right Path!
Dr. Primitive suddenly felt a chill down his back. Logically, there should be no wind in the Quantum Sea, but a howling gust brushed past him from behind.
He turned his head slightly to look.
And then,
"Boom!!"
A giant figure appeared behind him!
Flawless emerald scales lit up everything before him. Every movement of its muscles was the world's acknowledgment of Their existence. That lithe and powerful form was undeniably captivating.
As the pioneer of Atavism experiments, who had also dealt with biological studies, Dr. Primitive was not unfamiliar with this beautiful creature.
Oroboros!
The Leviathan turned Aeon!
To this day, no one knew where it went, whether it lived or died.
But Dr. Primitive still believed it lived, just as he had exhausted every resource, calculated every side, and finally obtained entry into the Quantum Sea.
His vision, his ideal, was closer than ever.
This Leviathan might very well be quietly sleeping somewhere, waiting for the world to change once again, for the time for the Aeon of Voracity to return.
The Oroboros before him appeared as massive as a planet. But that was an illusion, that much Dr. Primitive was certain.
Its true size should be only a third of a planet, still just a baby.
However…
"That is… laughter?"
He noticed the almost human expression in Oroboros' eyes. A strange thought surfaced in his mind.
Before he could continue,
"Bang!"
Carrying overwhelming force, Oroboros lunged straight toward its target, Dr. Primitive standing in its path!
And from the front, the attack formed from countless gathered wills, combined with the power of a certain Lord of Joy, hurtled toward Dr. Primitive like an arrow capable of piercing stars.
He simply stood there, unmoving, letting both forces converge upon him.
Tap!
Suddenly, a crisp snap echoed beside his ear, the snap came from his own fingers.
His expression was calm, as if he were not the one being attacked from both sides.
"Ah!"
"Roar!"
With the snap, before even two seconds passed, waves of roars rose as massive quantum apes dashed forth, pounding their chests as they stood guard beside Dr. Primitive.
Their numbers grew, their presence rising!
Ordinary combat apes were usually bred by underground research apes. Occasionally, Dr. Primitive would also breed some to oversee his experiments.
As the culmination of both combat and research apes, the ones cultivated by him could even rival some Pathstriders in strength.
And the batch he had chosen and nurtured this time came from many lost worlds, selected, trained, even if only briefly, yet all overwhelmingly powerful.
However,
"Boom!!"
No matter how many apes appeared, they were powerless before Oroboros. They could never shatter this Leviathan of the dusk era.
Even though Dr. Primitive already saw that this Oroboros was no longer the same as before.
He was still fully prepared.
"Hum!!" A planet was gathering, rising!
It was an energy sphere vast enough to rival a planet. Dr. Primitive had noticed from the start that many lost worlds had mass far below that of normal worlds.
Because these worlds had soaked in the Quantum Sea too long, they had lost all possibility.
But Dr. Primitive did not mind. Waste utilization was a talent he possessed.
If these worlds had lost all possibility, then let them become the last possibility, bringing one final glimmer to the universe!
A sharp gleam flashed in Oroboros' eyes. Its speed did not falter as it opened its jaws wide.
To devour the world!
This attack was the purest extracted energy, ironically, Oroboros' favorite. The type it feared least.
The more you gave, the more it devoured!
In an instant, the planet-sized energy mass was swallowed whole, and its body grew yet another stage larger.
It seemed unharmed, but Dr. Primitive never intended for it to be.
"It's coming." His tone was calm, yet excitement grew on his face.
He slowly opened his arms, embracing the incoming force born from the gathered wills. His body trembled.
One who fought for an ideal never felt fear. He only showed emotion when he failed to progress toward it, or finally did.
And this moment was the latter.
"Let me see… yes, yes… how perfect. This is how the world should be!"
Feeling the potential contained in that collective will, Dr. Primitive grew even more exhilarated, but also regretful.
Why? Why was such perfect potential so scarce? Too scarce, far too scarce!
If every world in the universe held such potential… if everyone were such prodigies… the universe would be free of tiresome mediocrity. Everything would progress toward the better.
What a pity. What a pity!
Holding onto this thought, he did not evade. Emotion was about to overflow from his eyes, not as if facing an attack meant to kill him, but as if greeting a long time friend who had just returned.
Affected by an unknown factor, the form of the Herrscher of Sentience gradually surfaced at the forefront, right hand clenched, posture blazing like flame, the weight of ages and the spark of new life fused upon her form.
Perfect unity.
One side was the dream-chaser waiting in place. The other was the Herrscher of Sentience who stood firm in her will.
"Bang!!"
A punch filled with countless emotions was thrown.
And finally, that punch landed squarely upon his head.