A few days had passed since the incident.
Things had slowly returned to normal within the Architects' Domain.
Or, at least, as normal as things could be.
Sasaki and Mao had begun spending considerably more time together.
At first, it was small things.
Mao would sit in Sasaki's office while he worked.
Sometimes she would bring him tea.
Sometimes Sasaki would find her waiting outside his office without saying a word.
Other times, the two would simply walk through the castle together.
They didn't always talk.
Sometimes they didn't need to.
Their presence around each other had gradually become natural.
Kural and Nexus had noticed.
Whenever Sasaki and Mao were alone, they conveniently found somewhere else to be.
Kural would suddenly remember an important task.
Nexus would claim he needed to inspect the lower realms.
Neither of them wanted to interrupt the two.
Of course, they also had no intention of letting things go too far.
They simply wanted to give them their privacy.
And, if necessary, intervene at the right moment.
One afternoon, Nexus stood alone in the throne room.
The enormous chamber was quiet.
The throne remained empty.
Nexus stood beside it as he always did, one hand resting against his staff.
Footsteps echoed through the room.
Kural entered.
"Hey, old man."
Nexus glanced over.
"What do you want?"
Kural walked toward him.
"Don't you think those two have been getting a lot closer lately?"
Nexus raised an eyebrow.
"What do you mean?"
Kural stopped beside him.
"Sasaki and Mao."
Nexus looked toward the throne.
"I've noticed."
Kural scratched the back of his head.
"They've been saying some weird stuff to each other."
"Weird?"
"Yeah."
Kural thought for a moment.
"Some of it sounds like the stuff Cupid used to say to Mao."
Nexus slowly turned toward him.
"Cupid?"
"Yeah."
Kural shrugged.
"That always pissed her off."
Nexus chuckled quietly.
"I remember."
He looked toward the empty throne again.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then Nexus smiled faintly.
"I suppose it is good that Mao has someone she feels comfortable around."
Kural nodded.
"It's not a bad thing."
He paused.
"But romance in a place like this?"
Nexus looked at him.
"You doubt it?"
"I doubt anything stays simple around here."
Nexus smiled.
"Perhaps Sasaki will change that."
Kural looked toward the hallway.
"Maybe."
He folded his arms.
"I wonder how the other Architects would react if they found out romance existed between fellow Architects."
Nexus laughed quietly.
"I suppose we'd find out eventually."
Kural turned around.
"Well, see you later, old man."
"Take care."
Kural walked away.
Nexus watched him disappear down the hallway.
Then he turned back toward the throne.
For some reason, the room felt unusually quiet.
Elsewhere in the castle—
Sasaki sat alone in his office.
A newspaper was spread across his desk.
A cup of tea rested beside it.
He calmly turned a page.
The room was peaceful.
For several minutes, nothing happened.
Sasaki took another sip of tea.
Then he turned the page.
His hand stopped.
There was a large article near the center.
Sasaki stared at it.
For several seconds, he didn't move.
The headline read:
UNKNOWN MAN APPEARS IN RECENT INCIDENT
His eyes narrowed.
Below the headline was a photograph.
The image was blurry.
The quality was poor, as though whoever had taken it had been standing far away.
But Sasaki could still make out the figure.
A tall man.
Dark clothing.
A sword at his side.
Long hair.
Sasaki leaned closer.
Something about the image felt familiar.
Very familiar.
His eyes moved down toward the caption.
Witnesses claim the individual appeared moments before the destruction of an unidentified settlement.
Sasaki's expression slowly changed.
"..."
He looked back at the photograph.
The figure's face was mostly hidden.
But the eyes—
Sasaki felt something twist inside his chest.
He had seen those eyes before.
Not recently.
Not in the Domain.
Somewhere else.
Somewhere he couldn't remember.
His fingers tightened around the newspaper.
He continued reading.
The individual reportedly spoke to no one before disappearing.
Sasaki's breathing slowed.
Then he noticed something else.
At the bottom of the photograph—
A small symbol.
Almost invisible.
A black mark on the man's wrist.
Sasaki stared at it.
His eyes widened.
"...No."
The word escaped his mouth quietly.
He dropped his gaze toward his own wrist.
Nothing.
He looked back at the photograph.
The symbol was still there.
For some reason, his mind suddenly felt painfully crowded.
Images flashed through his thoughts.
A forest.
Snow.
A woman's voice.
A sword.
Someone calling his name.
A hand reaching toward him.
Then—
Darkness.
Sasaki gripped the edge of the desk.
"What..."
His vision blurred.
The room around him seemed to stretch.
The newspaper trembled beneath his fingers.
He tried to focus.
But another image appeared.
A throne.
An empty throne.
Someone standing beside it.
And behind them—
A figure with golden eyes.
Sasaki's pupils contracted.
"...Use."
He didn't understand why he had said that name.
He didn't even know why the name felt familiar.
Then another thought surfaced.
Not a memory.
A warning.
Don't let Mao near me.
Sasaki froze.
His fingers slowly loosened.
The cup slipped from his hand.
Crash!
The sound echoed through the office.
Tea spilled across the floor.
The newspaper slid from the desk.
Sasaki stared at the page one final time.
The photograph was gone.
The article was gone.
The newspaper was completely blank.
His breathing became quiet.
"...What is happening to me?"
For a moment, nothing happened.
Then Sasaki looked down at his hands.
They were already becoming transparent.
His expression remained strangely calm.
As though some part of him had already understood.
He looked toward the door.
Toward the rest of the castle.
Toward Mao.
His lips parted.
"...Mao."
He took one step.
And then—
Sasaki disappeared.
No flash.
No explosion.
No warning.
One moment he was there.
The next—
Nothing.
Mao rushed into the office moments later.
"Sasaki?"
She stopped in the doorway.
Her eyes moved around the room.
The broken cup.
The newspaper lying on the floor.
The empty chair.
No Sasaki.
Mao slowly stepped inside.
"...Sasaki?"
Silence.
She looked underneath the desk.
Then toward the windows.
Nothing.
She turned around.
"Sasaki?"
Her voice became quieter.
Still nothing.
Mao stood there for several seconds.
Then she slowly clenched her hands.
Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
The first day passed.
No sign of Sasaki.
The second day passed.
Still nothing.
Then a week.
Kural searched the castle.
Nexus searched the surrounding realms.
Mao searched everywhere she could think of.
They searched through portals.
They examined traces of Essence.
They searched the places Sasaki used to visit.
Nothing.
No trail.
No message.
No explanation.
Days became weeks.
Weeks became months.
The empty chair in Sasaki's office remained exactly where he had left it.
The newspaper was eventually removed.
The broken cup was replaced.
But Mao refused to let anyone change anything else.
She kept expecting him to walk through the door.
Every time footsteps approached, she looked up.
Every time a portal opened, she turned toward it.
Every time someone called her name, she hoped it was him.
But it never was.
One evening, Kural returned to the throne room.
Nexus was already there.
As usual.
Standing beside the throne.
Kural looked exhausted.
"Nothing."
Nexus didn't respond.
"I searched three more realms."
Still nothing.
Mao had stopped searching with them as often.
At first, Kural thought she was simply tired.
Then he realized she was breaking down.
She began spending more time alone.
She barely spoke.
Sometimes she would sit outside Sasaki's office for hours.
Sometimes she would simply stare at the door.
Waiting.
Kural looked toward Nexus.
"We're going to find him."
Nexus nodded.
"We will."
Neither sounded convinced.
Several more months passed.
One night, Nexus stood alone beside the throne.
The room was dark.
Moonlight entered through the enormous windows.
Nexus stared at the empty throne.
For just a moment—
Someone was sitting there.
A familiar silhouette.
Nexus froze.
His eyes widened.
"..."
The figure disappeared.
Nexus slowly closed his eyes.
"...Come back soon."
His voice was barely audible.
Meanwhile, Kural continued searching.
He traveled from realm to realm.
He searched through ancient ruins.
He questioned beings who had existed longer than the Architects themselves.
Nothing.
Then—
He heard a voice.
Kural stopped.
"...What?"
Silence.
He looked around.
The voice came again.
"Young Architect."
Kural's expression hardened.
He followed the sound.
It led him back toward the Architects' Domain.
Eventually, he entered the throne room.
Nexus was already standing beside the throne.
As always.
Kural looked at him.
"Did you hear that?"
Nexus nodded.
Before either of them could say anything else—
The voice spoke again.
"Hello, young Architects."
Kural spun around.
His eyes widened.
Standing several feet away was a figure with long blonde hair.
His appearance was almost impossible to describe.
His golden eyes seemed completely unnatural.
Not glowing.
Not shining.
Just perfect.
As if they had been designed rather than born.
Kural immediately recognized him.
"...It's you."
The figure smiled.
It was Sivarnte.
The Coalescence.
Kural stepped forward.
His expression hardened.
"Where is Sasaki?"
Sivarnte calmly looked at him.
"He is resting."
Kural's brow furrowed.
"Resting?"
"In a deep slumber."
Kural clenched his fists.
"What does that mean?"
Sivarnte tilted his head slightly.
"Exactly what I said."
Kural's voice became sharper.
"Is he dead?"
Sivarnte smiled.
"Goodness, no."
He paused.
"I wouldn't kill my own Incarnation."
Kural relaxed slightly.
Then Sivarnte continued.
"...Well."
He smiled wider.
"I suppose I would."
Kural's expression immediately hardened again.
"But I did not."
Silence filled the room.
Nexus finally stepped forward.
He lowered his head.
"I greet the Great Truth."
Kural looked at him.
"What are you doing?"
Nexus ignored him.
"I'm sorry for his ignorance."
He bowed again.
"Forgive him."
Sivarnte looked toward Kural.
"Very well."
He turned his attention back to both Architects.
"I have come to deliver a message."
Kural's expression changed.
"A message?"
He stepped closer.
"From Sasaki?"
Sivarnte nodded.
"Yes."
The room became completely silent.
Sivarnte took a breath.
Then began speaking.
"Dear Architects."
His voice carried an unfamiliar weight.
"I will no longer be one of you."
Kural's eyes widened.
"What?"
"But I will still be here."
Sivarnte continued.
"Just not physically."
Kural stared at him.
Sivarnte paused.
"Unfortunately, I will lose my memories upon awakening."
Kural's expression slowly changed.
Nexus lowered his gaze.
"But I ask you to remember me."
Sivarnte's voice became quieter.
"And..."
He looked directly toward the hallway.
"Do not let Mao near my office or my room."
Kural froze.
"...What?"
Sivarnte didn't elaborate.
"That is the message."
Silence.
Kural looked at Nexus.
Nexus said nothing.
"What could have possibly happened to him?"
Kural asked.
Sivarnte simply smiled.
"Fear not."
"He is safe."
"He will awaken perfectly fine."
He paused.
"If anything..."
A faint smile appeared on his face.
"He may awaken better than before."
Kural didn't know whether that was supposed to comfort him.
Nexus, however, finally exhaled.
"Poor Mao."
He looked toward the hallway.
"She's going to be devastated for a few years."
Kural stared at him.
"A few years?"
Nexus nodded.
Then—
A faint sound came from the hallway.
Both Architects turned.
Nexus's expression changed.
"..."
Kural slowly looked toward the doorway.
Mao stood there.
She was completely still.
Her face was pale.
She had heard everything.
Her lips trembled.
"W-What..."
Her eyes moved toward Sivarnte.
"What happened to Sasaki?"
Nobody answered immediately.
Mao took a step forward.
"What happened to him?"
Sivarnte looked at her.
For the first time, his expression became unreadable.
Years passed.
Kural continued his work.
Nexus remained beside the throne.
Just as he always had.
And Mao...
Mao disappeared into her room.
She locked the door.
At first, Kural thought she simply needed time.
A few days passed.
Then weeks.
Then months.
Eventually, years.
One day, Kural stood outside her door.
He placed a plate of food on the ground.
"Mao."
No response.
He waited.
Nothing.
He sighed.
"How long has it been?"
Nexus stood behind him.
"...About nine years."
Kural slowly turned.
"Nine years?"
Nexus nodded.
Kural looked back toward the door.
"She's still in there?"
"Yes."
"She's not even taking the food anymore."
Nexus stared at the door.
Silence.
Then something seemed to click in his mind.
"...This happened to the Leader once."
Kural turned toward him.
"What?"
"The Leader of the Architects."
Nexus's expression became distant.
"Yes."
He sighed.
"I remember those days."
Kural frowned.
"What happened?"
Nexus didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he looked toward the empty throne.
"I miss the old days."
Kural rolled his eyes.
"When you were in your prime?"
"Yes."
"Yeah, whatever you say, old man."
Kural turned away.
"Keep missing the past."
Nexus smiled faintly.
But then his expression changed.
He raised one hand.
The air beside him distorted.
A circular rift slowly opened.
Kural's eyes widened.
"O-Old man!"
He rushed toward him.
"Stop that!"
Nexus stared into the rift.
Beyond it was another moment in time.
Another possibility.
Another version of the past.
For a second, Nexus seemed tempted.
Kural grabbed his shoulder.
"We still need you here in the present!"
Nexus remained silent.
Then, slowly—
He closed the rift.
The room became quiet again.
Nexus looked toward Mao's room.
Then toward the empty throne.
His expression softened.
"...How are you doing, Ryu?"
He lowered his head.
"Are you okay yet?"
No answer came.
Nexus remained there.
Standing beside the empty throne.
Just as he always had.