Chapter 767 Meeting With Ater [Pt 5]
"Emil is a different case, though."
Ater's response to Rey caused him to raise an eyebrow, but he still waited for an elaboration to be made on the matter.
"Emil is a Symbiote, and so she takes on a lot of your qualities as you take on hers. In essence, it's not like she's a distinct entity as I am. She's a part of you and you're a part of her. Ahh… how envious I am of her…"
Rey shivered slightly, definitely creeped out by Ater's words at the end.
The smile he rendered as he remained on his knees and looked up at Rey made the whole thing seem even weirder.
~Hehehehe! It's a good thing he knows his place!~
Emil's laughter of victory nearly deafened Rey's inner thoughts, almost drowning his worries. However, that couldn't completely silence the concerns that still littered his mind.
"Even if that is true, your argument for being from another world doesn't work."
"Hm? Why do you say so?"
"I'm an Otherworlder, and so are my classmates. Yet, not only could The Oracle use [Clairvoyance] on me, but I can also use it on any of my classmates."
In essence, Ater's excuse was refuted by its own logic.
If Otherworlders were still subject to the Skill, then how was Ater any different? What made him distinct from other Otherworlders?
"I should be considered a special case, though. After all, you Otherworlders were called by the world through a means that isn't strictly within the bounds of the System, while I was brought in here by a Skill under the System."
Rey could see that Ater was telling the truth, but he didn't understand how he could draw such an inference and make such a conclusion.
It all seemed quite absurd.
"The Interdimensional Summon was done through Ancient MajiK, or at least… some version of it. You spoke about seeing Seraph, an Angel, right? That means your travel was fully sanctioned by the world, and so your arrival here was completely registered by the world."
"I still don't—"
"Think of yourself as someone who got a permanent residency or citizenship in H'Trae, and me as something of an Illegal Immigrant." "You—"
"Yeah, I learned that from Belle as well."
"I see…"
"Since you were called by the World, you received benefits from the System—one of which was the ability to be subject to [Clairvoyance]. That way, you are recognized as official denizens of H'Trae that can be used by the world to push its agenda. In essence, you help the world and the world helps you."
Just as a permanent resident or citizen's case would be.
"But shouldn't you be the same? If you were summoned by a Skill, that means the System was involved… right?"
"You would think so, right? But no. Beast Summons aren't particularly accepted by the World. They are the tools of their Summoners, and so the one who summons them is responsible for their wellbeing and upkeep."
The way Rey understood it, getting into H'Trae the proper way was what gave he and his classmates the privileges they got, including H'Trae's welfare system—the [Clairvoyance] that came about by the System.
Beast Summons like Ater, on the other hand, were not given this welfare system.
At least, not completely.
"My Stats were reset upon arriving here, I lost some Skills that were incompatible with this world's set of Skills, and my Class remains that of a Beast. So, I am recognized by this world as a foreigner. Of course, Leveling Up remained something I can do, since EXP is something that has been common in all the worlds I've been to, but it's much more difficult for Beast Familiars to Level Up—especially an entity like myself."
The more Rey listened, the more he understood Ater's situation.
It sort of made sense in its own way, and Rey could hardly find any hole in his detailed explanation.
Perhaps this was because Rey didn't know much about the System and Worlds that Ater spoke so confidently about.
"To begin with, [Clairvoyance] is meant to keep track of the World's Assets and to lay the groundwork for its future. It measures all the constants and variables, calculating everything accordingly in order to arrive at its desired conclusion."
"You mean the destruction of every other race apart from the Elves?"
"... Is that what The Oracle told you?"
"Y-yeah."
This was the first time Rey was telling this to anyone. It felt a little nice to get this matter off his chest, but saying the grim future only made him more frightened about the possibility of its fruition.
"I see. Then, I suppose that is this world's objective."
"Objective?"
"Yes. Every world has one, and it makes sure the action of everything and everyone in that world functions in accordance to that directive."
"You mean—"
"Yes. This world will be destroyed, one way or the other. The Elves will be the only survivors, and its objective will be achieved."
"But why? Why would the World desire such an end?"
"I don't know. All goes in accordance to Nature, I suppose." Ater shrugged, clearly unbothered by the potential elimination of millions, if not billions of lives.
He didn't care in the slightest.
"Let me guess… you've experienced the destruction of a world before."
Upon hearing this, Ater made a dark chuckle. His eyes glowed bright crimson as he looked at Rey with an amused grin.
"I have DESTROYED worlds."
A slight shiver instantly rushed through Rey's body as he heard this, forcing a period of silence between the two parties.
"But I'm completely unrelated to the fate that will befall this world. Unfortunately, I won't be having the pleasure of wreaking havoc here."
"Ater, you…"
"Don't worry, Master… I'm on your side."
"What does that mean?"
"You want to save the world, right? You want to prevent the predetermined path that this World should undertake, right?"
"Yeah…" Rey responded a little slowly as he watched Ater with slightly unsure eyes.
This response only caused Ater's grin to widen in satisfaction.
"That is also what I desire."