[Tokyo Airbase — Dawn]
The sky burned gold above the horizon, reflected on the silver wings of the departing aircraft.Yurina Kaito stood on the tarmac in her black-and-white Guardian uniform, the silver emblem of Japan's crest gleaming over her heart.
The wind lifted her dark braid.Her eyes—amber, steady, unreadable—followed the sunrise without emotion.
"Lady Yurina, boarding in five minutes," a soldier reported."Understood," she answered softly.
Inside her chest, she felt the faint hum of her power—the Null Vein, they called it.All Attack Nullification.A barrier strong enough to deflect artillery, elemental spells, even the claws of the new Demonkin.
It made her untouchable.It also made her feel nothing.
She boarded the plane without looking back.Her mission: attend the First Round Table Conference, hosted at Seoul, the city rebuilt around the massive trunk of the World Tree—now the geopolitical and magical heart of Earth.
[Seoul — The City Beneath the World Tree]
When the aircraft descended, Yurina caught her breath despite herself.
The World Tree pierced the clouds, its leaves glimmering with mana light like a second sun.Its roots formed bridges across rivers and highways, glowing faintly in the dusk.
From afar, it looked divine.Up close, it felt like judgment.
Every major power had sent their representatives:the Western Knights' Order, the Northern Mage Circles, the newly united Demonkin delegation, the Dwarven Engineers, and the Elven Council from the shattered forests.
And among them—Yurina Kaito, the Guardian of Japan.Her presence alone bent the cameras that tried to capture her; even technology hesitated near her aura.
[Inside the Hall of Resonance]
The Round Table wasn't wood or stone.It was carved directly into the living root of the World Tree, etched with sigils that pulsed in time with the Earth's mana flow.
Fifty chairs encircled the glowing surface.Each one bore a nation's crest.
At the head of the table stood a figure draped in white military robes, the Supreme Commander of the Allied Front—the magician who had once defended the Korean border in the First Cataclysm.
"Commander Aiden Park," the herald announced.
Yurina inclined her head politely, but something in his presence struck her—a faint, inexplicable ache, as though the air recognized her before he did.
She dismissed it quickly.Strange déjà vu. Nothing more.
[The Prophecy of the Countdown]
When all were seated, the hall dimmed.A holographic globe appeared above the table, flickering between blue and crimson.
From the depths of the projection, the System's voice emerged—no longer synthetic, but alive, echoing like thunder.
[Announcing: Phase Omega.]
[Timeline Compression — Initiated.]
[Countdown to Final War: 365 Days.]
The world fell silent.
The System had spoken directly—physically, not through interface screens.Its voice reverberated in every mind.
[Warning: Dimensional Merge at 0.5% Completion.]
[Hostile Entities: System Architect Fragments Detected.]
[Objective: Prepare for Direct Conflict.]
Gasps filled the chamber.Even the Demonkin envoy looked shaken.
The Elven Queen rose from her seat.
"You speak of fragments—does that mean the System itself will descend?"
[Affirmative.]
[Architect Core Entity 'Balance' Preparing Manifestation.]
[Contact Event in: 354 Earth Days.]
The world leaders erupted into debate.Yurina sat still, hands folded, her expression unreadable.A low hum resonated in her bones—the same static she'd felt on the day she awakened.
"Another war…" she whispered. "And this time, even gods will bleed."
[After the Announcement — Outside the Hall]
Yurina walked along the suspended bridge between the roots of the World Tree, night wind rustling her coat.Behind her, envoys shouted, argued, and bargained over alliances.
She preferred silence.
She rested her hand against the living bark. It pulsed faintly, like a heartbeat under her palm.A flash—an image—flickered in her mind.A woman's hand pressed against the same bark, whispering something she couldn't hear.
Her chest tightened painfully for no reason she could name.
"Are you all right, Lady Yurina?" one of her aides asked."I'm fine," she said automatically, pulling her hand away. "It's… familiar here. That's all."
[Unknown Transmission — Unrecorded Layer]
[Observer Log #9001: She walks again. Not as the goddess, but as the wall between worlds.]
[Architect "Balance" preparing to descend. They will finally step onto the battlefield.]
[Prediction: She will stand before them again—without knowing why.]
[How delightful.]
A faint laugh echoed through the void.
"The countdown begins, little Yurina.Let's see how you stop a war when even the System itself chooses to fight."
[ — The First Round Table]
[Global Notification: Countdown Active — 365:00:00:00]
[Objective: Unite or Perish.]
[System Entities Preparing Descent.]
[Observer Watching.]