The Crimson Beauty under the Moon

So this is the treasury... I must say, this is even more magnificent than I was expecting.

Wooow! I could spend days poring over everything in this place if only things weren't so dire right now!

This is where Qin Shi Huang keeps all the treasures of the sage world on display.

There should be bark and leaf samples from the Fusang Tree right around here... Ah, there we go.

I trust nobody will mind if I borrow these for a moment? Wonderful.

All you need now is the right spell, and you'll have an antidote in no more than five minutes.

Well, I'd say that wraps up our business here, but while we're at it, would you like to see the real thing?

Qin Shi Huang must have transplanted the Fusang Tree to the innermost sanctum after pulling it out of the sage world.

...I would be lying if I said I wasn't interested. As a detective, I feel obligated to examine it. However...

Holmes?

I cannot help but feel a tad bit perturbed at how you seem to be leading us into a trap, Ms. Koyanskaya.

Oh my, aren't we suspicious? But you might just be a teeensy bit too late there.

...

Yu Mei-ren!? And Xiang Yu, too!?

Great, just what we needed right now!

I thought it might come to this...

What? You mean you knew this would happen?

Nothing so certain, to be sure. Perhaps I should say that my suspicions were right on the mark.

...Oh, yeah. Now that you mention it, you did say that the next time we saw Yu Mei-ren

...It would almost certainly be where the Tree of Emptiness is hidden.

？！

When did you figure it out?

Oh, I was never sure of it. It was never more than a hunch. The Tree of Emptiness's whereabouts being so unclear all this time simply made no sense.

It was therefore only natural to suspect it may be connected to this Lostbelt's most mysterious object, which also happened to be a tree.

...I can't believe a Disciple of the Foreign God would bring the enemy straight to a Tree of Emptiness's roots.

What in the world were you thinking, Koyanskaya?

...Hehe. Hehehehe.

What was I thinking, you say? I was thinking I'm just doing my job.

It's like I told you before, Yuie: you can't play mind games against Chaldea.

They're so good with that stuff you'd think they were working off an answer sheet.

So don't think of this as giving the tree's location away. Think of it as leading lambs to the slaughter.

So as a Crypter, all you have to do is play the executioner and use Mayall's power as a guillotine.

Now why don't you go ahead and get started, Ms. True Ancestor of the sage world?

Mayall... So that's the third Tree of Emptiness's name!

(Hang on. Mayall? First Orochi, then Sombrero, now Mayall...)

(...Is that what the Trees of Emptiness actually are!?)

You have some nerve... Did you already forget how you tried to kill me!?

Oh, come now, Yuie. We both know you're not the type to let a little murder keep her down.

Can't you just let bygones be bygones?

Hmph. There goes our truce. I figured it was just a matter of time till this bitch backstabbed us.

Check the fine print before you go around flinging baseless accusations. Oh, right, we didn't put it in writing, did we?

I'll still make an antidote. I make it a point of professional pride to always fulfill my obligations.

So once Fujimaru is good and dead...

...I'll be sure to leave it on his grave along with some lovely flowers.

Fou, fooou!

...Whatever that fox may be plotting, the fact remains that you Chaldeans are the source of this disturbance.

Now that we face each other once again, I will use all the power at my disposal to stop you. Is that all right, Yu?

...Yes, Lord Xiang Yu.

...Here they come, Master!

We win! Xiang Yu! You may. Be advanced. But you are also. Alone.

Your storms. May make. You invincible. But you have. No rivals. With which. To compete! Your strength. In fighting. Alone is. What sealed. Your defeat!

Ghh...!

Lord Xiang Yu!

Hah, no way in hell we're losin' to your overgrown horse's ass three times in a row!

I am Mordred, the damn Knight of Treachery. If you think you read my future, then I'll just rebel against that shit too!

H-hey! Yuie! What are you trying to pull here!?

Why haven't you removed Mayall's disguise yet!? What possible reason could you have to hold back now!?

Shut up... Shut up!

...What is the meaning of this?

Qin Shi Huang!? Of all the times for the emperor to show up!

How did you get to our treasury in the short time we were absent?

We must have taken longer to reboot than we realized. That is vexing.

...

Oh no. If the emperor is here, then Jing Ke must be...

(Now how are things going to go? ...If Qin Shi Huang reconciles with Chaldea, I'll be right back to square one.)

(Well, there was never much to gain from this Lostbelt, anyway. It won't be any great loss.)

Yep, Hinako. If it makes you feel any better, you were absolutely right.

I should honor my agreement with the Foreign God, and see my job through to the end.

So I'll go ahead and have the Tree of Emptiness take care of Chaldea right now.

No! P-please, stop!

Go on then, Mayall, it's time to wake up! Show this tiny Lostbelt what your cosmos is really made of!

What the... Why is the Fusang Tree splitting apart!?

Foooooou!

Whaaaaaa!?

Oh yeah... That's a Tree of Emptiness if I ever saw one!

I knew I was correct in my supposition, but I never expected anything quite like this.

A-are you sure that's a tree!? It's the size of a mountain!

How did something that big fit inside a bunch of dried up twigs all this time!?

Qin Liangyu told us that the Fusang Tree was a treasure trove of hidden Mystic wisdom, also known as the "Tree of Life."

But there are no ordinary means for such a vast amount of information to fit inside a single tree.

That tree from the sage world must either contain some sort of independent dimension, or

Shut up and get back! The spatial inconsistency is trying to correct itself, and it's warping gravity all around it!

Teehee, the Tree of Emptiness has been slurping up pleeenty of magical energy from inside the Fusang Tree's pocket dimension.

It didn't even have to reveal itself out here to extend its roots throughout all of China's leylines!

Ah... Ah...

The Fusang Tree... The divine tree that sits at the heart of our empire! All this time, it was being co-opted by invaders...

The Tree of Emptiness... So that impossible mythology does exist...

Then...does that mean Akuta and the fox woman were telling the truth all along!?

Of course. This world was pruned away, and the one the Chaldeans belong to is in fact Proper Human History.

The nations you brought together... Your visions of everlasting peace... None of it was meant to exist.

Your entire history for the last two thousand and two hundred years was never more than a pipe dream.

So, how does that make you feel? Sad? Dejected? Utterly crushed with abject despair?

...Hehehe. Hahahahaha! Do not be ridiculous. This is wonderful news!

Huh?

Thanks to our greatness, our eternal empire exists right here, right now.

After all, dreamers cannot distinguish between dreams and reality. For them, they are one and the same.

So if the world is about to dream again...who can say if your corrupt, ruined society, or our prosperous world, is the one that truly exists!

Oh, I get it! Like whether I'm a Lu Bu who thinks he's Red Hare, or a Red Hare who thinks he's Lu Bu.

When you get right down it, it doesn't really matter!

Would you just shut it, horse? We're trying to have a serious conversation here.

N-no way. Qin Shi Huang's self-esteem is off the charts...! I swear, this is exactly why I hate you so much! You ARE the "ideal" human aren't you!?

Well, obviously. Qin Shi Huang's been an emperor for over two thousand two hundred years, remember?

He's probably overcome all sorts of things in that timeHe's practically impervious to despair by this point!

Very well then. The victor here will determine the true history. No matter how many other branches there are, we will prune them all away!

...!

...Ohhh, now I see. So this is what you were afraid of, huh, Yuie?

You knew that Qin Shi Huang would get fired up once it was clear the Pruning Theoretical Phenomenon was true...

...so you decided to keep the Tree of Emptiness secret until the very last moment.

Is that so? Hmph, you thought this through. And we certainly fell for it.

You knew it was pointless to lie to an omniscient, omnipotent ruler.

So instead, you were perfectly honest about it all, knowing Qin Shi Huang would never believe a word.

By hiding the evidence that would validate your story, you were able to turn fact into fiction.

You must have really, really wanted to prevent Qin Shi Huang from learning the truth.

But, why...?

Why were you so desperate to keep Qin Shi Huang from acting?

Fooou...

You really are hopelessly foolish, Akuta. You would go that far to avoid war, hm?

You knew we would employ Xiang Yu in the war to be recorded as this planet's rightful history...

...so you wasted your time delaying the inevitable.

...

To think you would choose such small comfort even in the face of certain destruction!

So this is the nadir of foolishness to which love has driven you!

...Um, is it just me, or...?

...Yes. It is. Descending swiftly.

Naturally, I will not be taking your foolish, selfish wishes into consideration.

This will be a battle for the future of humanity. Those of you who are not human can stay out of it!

Uh-oh!

Dammit! I knew this jackass was gonna fall on us! Which one of you dumbasses said this wouldn't happen!?

Fooou, fou!

Oh, dammit! This is what I have to deal with now that the king knows the truth about Lostbelts!?

Yuie refuses to help, Qin Shi Huang's out of control...!

There's clearly nothing to be gained here anymore! I'm out of here! I'm going back to the office!

Hey, she got away!

Fou, fooou!

Forget her! We've all gotta get out of here!

Mayall, the Tree of Emptiness, was it? We shall grant you our protection.

We shall descend from on high...the most powerful guardian ever to exist!

...Hang on. Where exactly is it going to land?

(Cough, cough)... Wh-what the!?

Epang Palace has fallen... Is everyone all right?

I thought for sure the emperor was going to fall right on top of us. Did Qin Shi Huang just miss...?

Such foolish notions hardly deserve to be given voice. We acted only out of generosity.

Chaldeans of Proper Human History, we are about to enter into contest as to which of us truly embodies what it is to be human, as well as over the direction in which mankind should proceed.

Settling this dispute simply by making use of our mass would resolve nothing.

...So, rather than destroy us in order to protect the empire, you want to converse with us about who should have the right to determine the future?

Why would you make that kind of concession now...?

You need ask!? We are the emperor. We care first and foremost about humanity's future.

We must...grudgingly admit that our empire was indeed pruned away from history.

However, we cannot ignore that Proper Human History was so weak as to be so easily wiped out, even as you advanced the Chronicle Theoretical Phenomenon!

History is woven together through human will; its course is no mere coincidence.

Thus, the one who leads the Chronicle Theoretical Phenomenon must be the stronger, superior human!

...Someone is coming out of Epang Palace! Is that...a person?

It is. The ultimate human form. It has overcome death, transcended yin and yang, and reached the truth of immortality. This is the only Zhenren in existence.

This is Qin!

A human form...!?

But...I thought the emperor was a giant machine, like in those movies about interstellar warfare!

(...That isn't the only surprise. That Spirit Origin is less strong than it is...great...)

(In Proper Human History, it would be ranked Grand. So then...why is the emperor a Ruler!?)

We grew this body by applying the eclosion ascension method we learned by analyzing the Fusang Tree...

...to the physiological data we collected from Akuta Hinako.

We had not planned on actually using it, but our discussion with Jing Ke changed our mind.

If we are to prove our path for humanity is superior to Proper Human History's, then we must do so in a human body.

Your path for humanity...?

Should humanity prioritize safety in stagnancy, or growth, which is inextricably entangled with risk?

The question of which humanity is best suited to lead Earth from the Chronicle Theoretical Phenomenon can no longer be decided with words alone.

Thus, we will decide this matter by punching you! We shall also permit you to punch us in return!

Whomever remains standing in the end shall be the one entrusted with the hopes of the future!

The hopes of...the future...

Fou, fooou!

We are the ultimate human! There is only one of us!

Whereas you, Fujimaru, are but one of many humans from your world.

Whichever one of us is stronger shall be the one to face Earth's next great challenge. We trust you agree there can be no fairer way to settle our dispute?

Well, how about that. You're a damn sight more reasonable than I gave you credit for.

Putting aside that Qin Shi Huang only came to this because both sides refuse to consider the other's position...

...I quite agree that we should accept this offer.

There can be no better way to determine who is more fit for these chaotic times. This is how contests of power should happen.

...Master...

？！

？！

Right! As members of the Chaldea Security Organization... No...

As humans representing our own world and history...we agree to your terms, Qin Shi Huang!

Hehehe. Good. With that firm gaze and fighting spirit, you should make a foe well worth crushing with these two hands.

Now, come at us with all your might, members of humanity's masses! We shall test you ourself!

Was that... Has our knee truly touched the ground first?

...It did. Are you convinced now, Your Imperial Majesty?

You went out of your way to fight us as human, even knowing that we had no chance in battle against your mechanical vessel.

You have borne a vast responsibility all these years, and for that you have my respect. But, the results speak for themselves.

Even as a Zhenren, you chose to prioritize defense. But defense is a role for gods, not humans.

Humans' nature lies in pressing ever onward, no matter how foolish it may be to do so or how disgraceful the results may be.

...Yes. We can express only our genuine shock.

Tell us, Fujimaru. In your world, are all people...no, all humans, as strong as you?

？！

？！

I'm not so sure, Fujimaru. I mean, our world is pretty well stocked with dumbasses.

Still...I guess I could be bothered to help out if there was someone even half as freakin' stupid as you trying to handle this.

Oh yes, I'd be even more inclined to trust someone like that, being a horse and all!

...We see. So even if you had fallen, you have every conviction that someone else would come to take your place.

Fou, fooou!

If all of you are possessed of such resilience, and the will to endure life's tribulations...

...then perhaps humans may indeed be able to overcome any obstacle in their path toward a future with limitless possibilities.

Yes. That's what we believe, too...along with someone else who helped us come this far.

...Very well. We will take that bet.

We leave the future of the Chronicle Theoretical Phenomenon in Proper Human History's hands. See that it flourishes under your care.

？！

...

No. No, I do not accept that.

...Huh?

General Xiang Yu...?

Even if that is what the humans have agreed upon, I cannot accept it.

You would defy our decree, Kuaiji Zero?

You are my lord no longer, Your Imperial Majesty. My only loyalty now is to my companion, Yu Mei-ren.

Lord Xiang Yu...

Yu, my beloved, has chosen this Lostbelt as her home. She has wandered far too long in search of peace...

...and now, at long last, she has found it. I cannot take that away from her.

You have got to be freakin' shittin' me! He wants to go another round!?

Please stop. This madness! Your body. Needs maintenance! You are. In no. Shape to. Fight again!

P-please, Lord Xiang Yu, you mustn't! You're already at your limit... There's no way you can win!

It's all right. This body of mine can still move, so I will not let them cut down the Tree of Emptiness.

Your future...my first and final prayer...can only exist beyond its branches.

Xiang Yu is preparing for battle again, Master!

The Xiang Yu from Proper Human History died plagued by regrets. Now, I will see his wishes fulfilled.

Just this once, I will fight not for the empire, but for the woman I love.

Now, behold what Xiang Yu can do when he is pushed to his absolute limit!

...Alas, I could not make my wish come true...

...

Lord Xiang Yu...

Forgive me, Yu. Once again, my failure condemns you to an eternity wandering alone...

I wanted nothing more than to grant you solace. I wish we could have spent endless days together in peace...

However, my functionality could not make that dream a reality.

Ahh, so this is what it feels to have regret gnawing at you in your final moments...

Lord Xiang Yu, I...!

Ah, Yu... My companion... I am sorry...I cannot stay...by your side...

Ah, Yu... My Yu... What will your fate...be...

Ah... Aaaaaah...!

Lord Xiang Yu... Lord Xiang Yu...! Lord Xiang Yuuu!!!

...Akuta...

Don't, Mash. No one can console her now.

...

I don't think any humanany being fated to die, really, could understand her pain right now.

This is what it means to live for all of time.

Fou, fooou...

...!

Chaldea, Qin Shi Huang, Proper Human History...

Do you think this is over? Do you think your path forward is clear now?

What are you doing, fairy? After all that has come to pass, you would still try to stop Chaldea?

The future of mankind has never meant anything to me.

I never cared who got pruned away or who got to carry on the chronicle.

But now, you humansyou loathsome, despicable, disgusting humans are all I can think about!

Her Spirit Origin is...dispersing? What's going on?

I knew that True Ancestors were essentially Elementals, but...is she truly abandoning her incarnated body?

Wait! The Tree of Emptiness's magical energy is absolutely skyrocketing! I...I think it's absorbing her Spirit Origin!

True sages and fairies like her have always been something akin to a Divided Spirit of the Fusang Tree.

So if this Tree of Emptiness fed off the Fusang Tree to manifest here, she may be able to possess it...

You humans don't deserve a future! I won't allow it!

Not after how you've gotten as far as you have by feeding on the dreams and despair of nonhumans everywhere!

The Tree of Emptiness's magical energy is entering an active state! Looks like it's finally woken up...and it's about to come at us!

Dammit, we don't have time to just stand here with our thumbs up our asses!

Get ready, Fujimaru! This is it! It's do-or-die time!

If that thing would curse all of mankind, then it is our enemy as well.

Qin Shi Huang!?

？！

You may have been strong enough to defeat us, but this is still our territory.

What's more, the fairy has shown great impertinence in taking our Fusang Tree. We will therefore gladly lend you our aid in battle!

Die! Die!!! I will wipe you from existence!!!

All of my hatred, all of my curses, all my fury shall power the Tree of Emptiness!

Hear me, Mayall! Hear me, my Origin, ruins of the last Fusang Tree! Use your jagged canopy to skewer humanity's last hopes for their future!

Master, look out...!

The internal temperature of the Tree of Emptiness is rising rapidly! I'm detecting gravitational shifts creating fault lines in space-time!

I'm also detecting gamma rays...! They...they appear to be cosmic in origin!

Mash, patch me into the Ortinax's sensor data! ...Wait, what!? What IS this!?

Is this fake!? Miniature!? Connected to the real thing!?

Ah, hell with it! There's only one thing I can say for sure!

It's a galaxy! There's a real, actual galaxy inside the Tree of Emptiness!

？！

Indeed. Unlike those of Russia and Scandinavia, this Tree of Emptiness has fully blossomed.

People have said that the hollows of great trees connect to other worlds ever since the Age of Myth.

This one contains a galaxy...and one we know at that. Sadly, I cannot yet say what the greater significance of that may be.

Any analysis will have to wait. That tree is directing all its energy straight at us!

Be ready to continue fighting, Fujimaru! That thing cannot be allowed to remain on this planet!

？！

...Yes, Master! We'll target the Tree of Emptiness's heat source five thousand meters above the ground!

It's time to complete Order Lostbelt No. 3...our last battle in the Chinese Lostbelt!

Aaahhh... Aaahhh...!!!

Its magical energy signal is fading! We did it!

But, Akuta's...

...He knew. He knew this would happen...

His grief was because he knew I would be consumed by rage, and disappear as a vengeful ghost...

How foolish I've been... To think I brought him such sadness not once, but twice...

That is your only regret? Why, it could not be simpler to put an end to Xiang Yu's grief.

Huh!?

Xiang Yu's grief was over how you would spend your final moments. If you wish to end that grief, you need only choose an end for yourself that would let him rejoice rather than despair.

What...?

Become a Heroic Spirit.

As an Elemental, surely such a choice is within your power. Joining the Counter Force should be trivial.

I-is that really how it works?

I mean, I know Fujimaru has formed contracts with Divine Spirit-class beings before, but...

You would have me become a pawn of the Counter Force? You would have me protect the very humans I despise more than anything?

We are sure the idea holds little appeal to you. But it was dedicating his life to doing so that gave Xiang Yu such pride.

If you were to carry on in his stead, he would surely have no more reason to lament your fate.

...

Hehe, so you are still not fully convinced? Then consider this...

You are the only one in all of your history to know the truth about Xiang Yu, are you not?

Should you bring your knowledge of him to the Throne, he may also be appointed one of humanity's guardians.

Should that come to pass, you may one day have a chance to see him again.

...I...

Well, whatever you choose, there is no need to decide right now.

There is no reason not to take some time to wander the mountains as you think it over.

...

I'm impressed you were able to talk down a vengeful ghost.

We are the emperor. Guiding our people with the light of reason has long been our duty.

If you had only wanted to protect this world, you could have chosen to join forces with Yu Mei-ren and defend the Tree of Emptiness together.

Just the sort of underhanded trickery we would expect from a tactician.

While, had she revealed the Tree of Emptiness to us sooner, we might have done so.

But we had already decided to abdicate in favor of Fujimaru, and we were not about to change our mind.

Hahaha. If there is no further need for a tactician, then it would seem my work here is done.

Agreed. Where you find war, you can also find tacticians. But if there's no more war here, then I had best be on my way as well.

Lord Fujimaru, I am sure we will one day meet again on a new field of battle.

Next time, I won't bother to test how strong you are. I will know you to be a Master worth following from the very start.

As for me, uh, I'd really appreciate it if you could summon me by name next time.

It's a bit weird, not being quite sure who you are...

We do know, though. As I have repeatedly told you... You. Are. Red. Hare.

Aw come on, really? I don't know if I buy that...

Oh yeah, I guess it's time for everyone to be heading back to the Throne, huh?

Hey, we'll stick around till you leave this Lostbelt.

You did summon us inside the Shadow Border, after all.

I see. I am. Very happy. Red one. We can. Stay together. A little. Bit longer.

Still, if the Heroic Spirits this world summoned are already gone, that must mean...

？！

That is nothing you need concern yourselves with.

...Though from the looks on your faces...

...we suppose you humans from Proper Human History cannot put your feelings aside so easily.

Well, we can assure you that there will be no weeping or lamentation of the sort you are worried about.

Our people do not fear either death or oblivion. Indeed they cannot comprehend fear or despair.

...

That is how we have raised them.

They will spend today just as they have every other day, knowing neither grief nor regret.

Even when the day of destruction arrives, they will simply fade away as easily as falling asleep.

That is the paradise on Earth we have created. That is the world we made for our beloved people.

...Got it.

The storm clouds have disappeared. That takes care of the Chronicle Theoretical Phenomenon overlap.

Oho, that is excellent news. Then our territory has finally become whole again.

We shall immediately connect to our Great Wall to see how our lands are faring.

Well done, Chaldea. Now, we assume you have your own urgent business to attend to?

？！

Go on then, humanity's next crisis awaits. Do not forget your responsibilityno matter how heavy the burden.

？！

Huh? Koyanskaya snuck into the Shadow Border? When!? How!?

It must have been while we were preoccupied with our battle against the Tree of Emptiness...

Admittedly I didn't think our security was so lax that she would be able to gain entry that quickly.

We did let her aboard after we recovered the Border at the Ministry of Technology... Do you think she tampered with security while we weren't looking?

Ugh, great! Just great! Now I have even more stuff to check before we start our next Zero Sail!

There's no telling what she might have messed with while she was here!

I don't think we need to worry. Yes, she could have sabotaged the Border in any number of ways while she was in here.

But all she left behind was the antidote. I imagine this was her way of keeping her word.

I'm certain we can assume the antidote to be safe as well. If nothing else, she seems to be quite serious about abiding by her contracts.

？！

...Senpai? How do you feel?

？！

Theeere we go! You see? I told you there was nothing to worry about, and I was right!

Yeah, okay, I can understand Gordy being excited about this.

Now if he could just be a little less oblivious, he'd be a much better director.

Ah, what's the harm? The important thing is that we're all okay.

...Yes. That's true, isn't it...

Why the long face, Mash? Something else on your mind?

...We just destroyed another world...

...Oh, yes. That.

I understand that dead-end histories without any possibility for future growth are destined to be pruned away.

I understand that the Russian and Scandinavian Lostbelts were exceptionally harsh environments for mankind, too.

But, this Lostbelt was...

Yeah. It was peaceful.

If we hadn't stuck our noses in, I doubt anyone here would have ever realized they were unhappy.

But you know, peace that becomes stagnation is its own kind of dead end.

That was ultimately why this history had to be pruned away.

...I know. That's the only conclusion I can come to as well, after seeing how it ended up.

But...then I remember what Qin Liangyu told us. How the warriors of the empire fought so hard to create this perfect, lasting peace.

And then, I can't help but think...

...what if one day, everything we've fought so hard to achieve turns out to be for nothing, too...?

I can't say that's impossible.

The Pruning Theoretical Phenomenon isn't driven by malice or error. It just...happens.

We're not immune, either. No matter how hard we fight for what we believe in...

...there's always a chance some other branch more worthy of being called Proper Human History could leave us behind.

If that ever happens...I only hope we have the same grace and bravery to pass on the torch that Qin Shi Huang did.

People are fond of saying "the possibilities are endless" as though it were inherently good, failing to realize the full implications.

Possibilities may be endless, but outcomes are anything but.

And that massive diversity of choice only adds to the pressure of the inevitable culling.

...It's a hard problem. A very, very hard problem.

Sometimes, I wonder... How wise do we need to be before we can know for sure what's right?

If we ever reach that point, it will only be after we cease being human and instead become gods.

As long as humans remain human...our only hope is to keep grasping for the truth as best we can from among the vast sea of endless possibilities.

Ahem, this is the Wandering Sea Chaldea Base. I have confirmed that the storm wall around the Chinese Lostbelt is gone.

I should be able to reach you via comms now. Do you read me?

？！

Excellent! That's what I like to hear!

And from the tone of Fujimaru's lovely voice, it sounds like you completed your mission handily.

Great work, everyone. Now, I bet you could all use a nice, hot shower, correct?

Then I suggest you head west about ten kilometers from your current position. Captain's on his way now.

Once you meet up with him, you can Zero Sail over to the Wandering Sea before the other Crypters spot you.

Oh? I would certainly love a good victory massage, but are you sure we can make it back so easily!?

Of course. Now that the Lostbelt's gravitational field has collapsed, my calculations and Captain's nav skills will have you back here before you know it.

Oh, but keep in mind that this method is strictly for getting between places that exist in THIS worldI can get you to the entry point of a Lostbelt and back, but I cannot get you in! Think of this as the world's most advanced airport shuttle!

Fine by me! Honestly, I was worried we were gonna have to drive all the way back from here!

Oh no, we would never make you waste your time like that. Especially not when you already have another Order waiting.

？！

What do you mean, Sion...? Are we moving up our plans to invade the Atlantic Lostbelt?

Ahaha, definitely not! In fact, that is not even possible at this point!

As they say, haste makes waste, clothes make the man, and sparing the rod spoils the child. I know now that this next part is essential to our larger plan.

Once you're all rested up, I'm going to have you head out on your next Order, Lostbelt No. 4...

...where you will investigate a strange Lostbelt that has been repeatedly expanding and contracting.

Moreover, the Captain will be joining in on your adventure into a dazzling realm of Indian mythology!

...Hey, are you sure it's okay to leave the cave?

Well, that nice doctor in the white outfit said we should be fine now.

There was a real strange air about them, wasn't there? Kinda reminded me of those Chaldea people...

"I start a song, and the moon begins to reel. I rise and dance, and the shadow moves grotesquely."

"While I am still conscious, let us rejoice with one another. After I am drunk, let each one go his way."

...Oho, a poem extolling the beauty of the moon. Lovely.

Yeah, poems are great, aren't they?

That one always makes me feel like I'm gazing up at the moon, no matter where I am.

Now that we think of it, all the poems we ever heard in Xianyang were about us. Of course, we were perfectly happy with that at the time...

...but still, would it have been so terrible to have someone regale us with a tale of the moon?

Say... Who are you? I don't recognize you.

We are the emperor.

The emperor? N-no way...

I heard the emperor lives up in the sky, and is always watching over us from above.

But, you're the same height as us...and you're here on the ground with us?

Indeed. We walk the same land, and gaze up at the same heavens.

We decided to spend our final moments with our people. We are, after all, human...just like all of you.