Alright, Mom, it looks like I've finished dinner.
"My goodness, that was quick. Alright, rest well and sleep soundly, my dear."
"Have a good rest, son."
"Good night, big brother."
Thank you all, I'll head to my room first, but before that, I think I'll go to the bathroom.
"Alright, my dear."
I started leaving the dining area and walked toward the bathroom.
Huh ... Alright, wash my face and brush my teeth.
I hope that "something" hasn't happened yet, and starting tomorrow, I'll focus on fixing and upgrading the time machine left by Master Zeko.
After brushing my teeth and washing my face, I left the bathroom and headed to my room.
But I ran into my little sister, Fanny.
Hey, Fanny, what are you doing here?
"Hey, big brother, I can't sleep, so I'm just wandering around the house."
Goodness, is it because of your wings?
"No, brother, I just can't sleep."
Oh, I see.
Hah ... What's wrong with you?
Fanny hugged me tightly, with a warmth I'd never felt from her before.
What's this? Why are you hugging me, Fanny?
"Because I'm scared of that day coming. The day when creatures like us will be wiped out. You know about it, don't you, brother?"
Yeah, but don't worry, something like that won't happen as long as we keep doing good.
Focus on your goals.
If your big brother can give you some advice, I will.
"Huh? What advice?"
At the very least, get some sleep first, Fanny. Tomorrow, I'll explain it to you.
"Alright, brother, good night."
Good night to you too, Fanny.
Fanny left me and went back to her room.
Looks like it's just me now. I'd better head to my room to rest.
I walked to my room, opened the door, closed it again, and ...
Yup, lying down like this feels nice.
It's been too long since I felt the warmth of Fanny's hug.
But what's really going on, and what's about to happen?
Huh ... I guess I'll just go to sleep.
Good night.
"Whoosh ..."
"Srrhhh ..."
Huh? What's that sound?
It sounds like waves or a current, but why is it here?
No way!
Why? It looks like a tidal current.
Wasn't I just sleeping?
What kind of current is this?
I'm trapped in a massive current that looks like a river or an ocean.
It's light blue and adorned with several swirling currents, giving the impression of a temporal flow.
Could it be? Is this the time current Master Zeko talked about?
No way, I can't be trapped here.
This has to be a coincidence, right?
The river's current flows fiercely—"wruuusshhh ..."—and it seems to be dragging me forward.
"Wruuusshh ..."
Help! I'm being swept away by the current!
Somebody, please help me!
The current is getting stronger, pulling me toward whatever lies ahead.
Is this time current dragging me to see the future?
"Shhh ..."
What? What's actually happening?
Why am I seeing streams of water surrounding me?
Several streams of water swirl around me, forming a vortex that looks like a dragon and creating a unique pattern of words.
This pattern of words refers to ...
[το μέλλον.]
It's like an ancient language.
The time current pulls me forward, and a vortex of water forms a dragon pattern, then shapes into strange words like this.
Could this clue be pointing toward ...
The future.
Suddenly, the ocean-like time current surrounding me vanishes in an instant.
And I see someone.
Someone with horns and black wings.
Could that be ... the Demon King Master Zeko talked about?
Huh? Why?
The Demon King turned around and stared at me with his piercing gaze.
"The future you desire will never come to pass. You're just a pitiful man trapped in the same cycle."
What? What does he mean by the same cycle?
Before I could ask him, the Demon King vanished from my sight.
There's nothing strange here.
"Whoosh ..."
Suddenly, the current of the time ocean returned.
The current formed a pattern of an honorable warrior and once again shaped into words.
[No hagas cosas en vano.]
What is this? I don't understand.
"Shhh ..."
Huh? This current is dragging me backward now.
The current pulls me swiftly, just like the first one.
Help! What's actually happening?
"Shkkk."
Ouch, that hurts!
This vortex of water forms a pattern of someone with their eyes covered by a cloth.
And, like before, the vortex shapes into a word.
[Pictura.]
Huh? What's this?
All the water vortices start to vanish again, and I see myself as a child.
The times when I barely knew the outside world.
Yeah, it seems back then I loved painting and writing.
Those were beautiful times when I earned the nickname "story kid."
What? Why is he turning toward me?
"You may be smart, but you're actually foolish."
"Wruuusshh ..."
The vortex of water returns, and the image of my younger self disappears, just like the vision of the future.
Damn it, this water again.
The vortex swirls around me once more, forming a pattern of a monkey king, and, like before, it reveals another word.
[ 不要被力量迷惑,因为你真正的力量来源于你的聪明才智.]
Huh? What's this now?
"Shhh ..."
The current now brings me back to the starting point.
The vortex projects a soul-like image of Master Zeko.
Is that Master Zeko?
"I entrust the future to you, and I hope you won't waste your time continuing what I have tasked you with."
Hmm ... Master Zeko, you ...
Suddenly, a giant hand appears, reaching toward me, trying to grasp me.
What is this? Could it be you?!
The giant hand gets closer.
Somebody, please help me!
"BOOM!"
Huff ... huff ... huff ...
Was that just a dream?
Oh no, it looks like I'm late again, and I need to get to that old house right away.
There's no time to waste anymore.
I quickly cleaned myself up and got my clothes ready.
I rushed to the kitchen and grabbed the food my mom had prepared.
"Whoa, you look like you're in a hurry. What's wrong?"
Nothing, Mom.
I'm heading out now, okay?
"Alright, be careful on the way."
I left my house and hurriedly made my way to the old house.
Damn it, why did I have that dream?
Ugh, no time to waste!
At the very least, I need to get to that old house quickly.
I quickened my pace to reach the house faster.
Huff... huff... huff...
Finally, I'm here.
I need to get inside this house. I started pulling out the key from the small pocket of my pants.
Here it is.
"Click!"
Huff ... I made it.
I have to speed up this time machine project.
I began gathering various tools, reassembling the machine with some guidance from the book.
I worked on powering up the machine while eating the food Mom prepared.
I spent at least half the day doing all this.
Huff ... That was exhausting.
Alright, let's take a break first.
Oh, right, that book—I want to read it again.
I picked up the book and started reading it once more.
But something felt a bit off.
[Chapter 2: Dimensional Corridor.]
Dimensional Corridor?
When I was a time explorer, I often experienced contractions between the relationship of dimensional fragments and the dimension of time itself.
This made time travel somewhat difficult for me. But at the very least, it wasn't too dangerous for me.
There are many dangerous things when undertaking time travel, but in my opinion, there's something extremely dangerous.
It's called the Time Calamity.
A disaster that I had to stop myself because I was the one in the dimensional corridor of time.
If that disaster isn't contained, it will have a massive impact, either altering timelines or erasing them entirely.
Yes, a major catastrophe with a huge impact on time travel.
I sent the Time Calamity to a place called the Void. A place where broken things reside.
I even had to split the dimensional time space just to send the Time Calamity into the Void.
Hmm, interesting. Does that sword have such immense power that it can stop the Time Calamity, which has a significant impact on timelines?
But what is the form of the Time Calamity itself? Is it large, or can it not be seen?
The Time Calamity itself cannot be seen by me. I sensed its presence because the ticking of time's seconds changed, one by one. And the atmosphere in the time dimension felt oppressive.
That was the first time I encountered a Time Calamity.
Huh? Wait, didn't he say he couldn't see it?
While fighting the Time Calamity in the time dimension, I was helped by someone. Someone who appeared to be a strong and formidable warrior, skilled in handling such situations.
He even gave me a slight boost to fight the Time Calamity.
I don't remember his name, but I recall he was called Star—that was his nickname.
Star?
"Ting! Ting! Ting!"
Huh? The bell's already ringing like that?
Goodness, I was just reading this book.
It's not wrong to read a bit more, right? Hehe.
For time explorers, the Time Calamity is the true embodiment of destruction, and what I defeated earlier was only 25 percent of the true form of the Time Calamity.
"Thud!"
What? Only 25 percent?
Seriously? Alright, at the very least, I'll focus on fixing this time machine first.
And I'll put this book back on the shelf.
Time to be a scientist again, Liam.
I started working on fixing the time machine again, based on what I remembered from school and the book about time reality theory.
Second by second, minute by minute, day by day—I kept coming back here, trying to repair this machine, as if everything could be restored to how it was.
Until the time finally came.
"Huff …"
It's been five days since I started coming back here after Master Zeko's death, and I've failed every time to fix this machine.
I stared at the machine and approached it.
Goodness, why are you so hard to fix!
Oh, right, for the past four days, I haven't even touched that book.
Where is it?
There it is, on this shelf.
Huh … What's this?
[Chapter 3: Time is Approaching Destruction.]
What destruction is being referred to?
Three days until the time of destruction.
Hurry up with the time machine project.
Because ...
Huh? Because what?
Everything in the world of Limbara, including your family and the people you love, will ...
Die.
Die? No! What do you mean by that?!
Damn book!
I'd better just get out of here.
"Thud!"
Everything will be destroyed when the time comes.
The book closed again.
And I walked out, leaving the old house behind.
What's actually going on?
Why is it always destruction and ruin that I find in that book's pages?
If that book only speaks of destruction, where is the hope for everyone?
And why do we, the experimental creatures, have to be destroyed?
I need answers to all of this!
"Because ... you are the only one who survived the catastrophe that struck the world of Limbara."
Huh? Where did that voice come from?
"Above you."
Above?
I looked up above my head and saw someone perched on a tree branch.
Who are you?
"Who I am isn't important. What matters is that you can't create something by just combining the values 0 and 1."
Huh? What do you mean?
"To create something, you have to combine ..."
He pressed his index and middle fingers together.
Does he mean the number 2?
"This is all just a game of numbers, and as for that destruction, you can't prevent it. If you can understand what I'm telling you, then you must ..."
Must what?
"You must immediately fix that machine, and if you succeed, go straight to the world mentioned in the book. And don't ever try to prevent the destruction of Limbara."
What do you mean by forbidding me to stop the destruction?!
"Because destruction is the ultimate fate of every world, and you need to understand that."
You!
"Sometimes destruction isn't the end, but rather a prerequisite for the birth of something more meaningful."
"Alright, goodbye."
Hey! What did you mean by that?!
The person leapt from the tree branch and vanished to who-knows-where.
And now, should I go back to the old house to fix the time machine?
Alright, I'll head back to the old house and repair the machine according to the new guidance from that mysterious person.
I turned around and hurried back toward the old house.
I hope, at the very least, I can change small things like this.
"Click!"
Alright, it's time to fix this machine again based on the guidance that person gave me.
I stared at a potion bottle.
It was the blue potion, the Time Potion.
Yeah, this seems like the thing I can work with.
I started fixing the machine bit by bit, designing a new model for the time machine.
I made the time machine look like a belt to make it easier to carry. I added a ">" button to go to the future, a "<" button to go to the past, and an "O" button to enter or exit the dimensional time corridor.
Yeah, this looks pretty good—simple yet with a sophisticated vibe.
Now it's time to add a bit of the Time Potion to the belt.
Where's that potion bottle?
Ah, there it is!
Alright, I'll grab you, little bottle.
I took the potion bottle from the shelf.
Just the Time Potion? Hmm, I'll put the other two bottles in a safe place.
I took all three bottles and placed them near the time machine belt I had just created.
Yeah, I'll add the potion tomorrow. I need to head back now.
Alright, goodbye.
"Thud!"
The door closed, and I hurried back home.
I hope I'm not late again.
Inside the old house, a mouse managed to sneak in.
The mouse scurried around looking for food, and suddenly—
"Fiiing …"
The light from the three potion bottles caught the mouse's attention.
The mouse quickly darted to the table where the three potion bottles and the belt were placed.
Curious about the glowing light, the mouse touched one of the bottles.
"Squeak! Squeak!"
(What are these things?)
The mouse got closer and accidentally nudged one of the bottles.
The other bottles shook, and they all fell, shattering and spilling some of their contents onto the belt.
"Squeak! Squeak!"
The mouse left the table and scampered to another room, while the belt began to experience contractions due to the mixing of the three potions into its system.
"Bzzztt!"
A notification appeared from the belt's system.
[All energy flows confirmed.]
[Everything is being combined, creating a new energy.]