While Ortes was preparing for the convening of a general meeting with the board members, Carisia was also making her own preparations.
Caike. As the creator of the Artificial Tenth Rank, he must have roughly surmised the entirety of the plan that Carisia and Ortes were preparing.
Not long after being summoned by the chairman, Caike arrived. This was thanks to modifications made to part of the Ethereal Space deployment device installed at the base of Mount Etna, allowing access from within the Hydra Corp building.
“What is it you called me for?”
The bespectacled giant asked calmly. His life’s research was nearing its conclusion, and with it, he carried the ease of someone who had fully realized his dreams without further desires.
“You claimed you were creating the Artificial Tenth Rank in order to find ‘the Clue to Ascension.'”
“Yes.”
“You also reasoned that the Wizard King, who ascended beyond the outer dimensions, is essentially the same as the gods.”
“Yes.”
“In that case, assuming the Wizard King is a god, his essence would be that of a ‘God of Magic,’ wouldn’t it?”
Caike nodded. It was an extremely heretical theory. The followers of the old gods, whom the Ten Towers had denigrated as superstitious zealots and sought to exterminate, were now effectively recognized as having no essential difference from the Wizard King.
However, Caike had no intention of retracting his conclusions. He had already achieved some success in using divine power to open a conduit connecting to the transcendent realm of ascension and the infinite force of metaphysics.
One characteristic of the Ten Sages similar to the phenomenon of “Infinite Magic Power” was evident. Caike was a man of principle; even if labeled a heretic, he could not tell a lie against his beliefs.
With unwavering conviction, he replied:
“The Wizard King… he is a god.”
“In the context where the definition of a god is an entity capable of freely connecting to the ascended realm beyond the outer dimensions.”
Caike nodded again. Simultaneously, a question arose. Until now, Carisia had focused more on the results of his heretical theories rather than the theories themselves.
He had been given complete freedom to research the Artificial Tenth Rank.
Of course, at this point where the Ten Towers were faltering, he was considered a dangerous element as a supporter of heretical doctrines. If Caike’s research were to leak out, the very existence of Etna City would be endangered.
Still, Carisia did not think she would eliminate him and keep only the Artificial Tenth Rank. After all, Ortes, a far greater threat, existed.
Since the appearance of the Wizard King, everything in this world naturally contained a trace of magic. This was the result of the Wizard King, as a god, rewriting the principles of the world.
And yet, Ortes—an entity whose magic power was neither close to zero nor definitively nonexistent—remained inexplicable.
“Caike, external director.”
“Yes.”
Carisia’s voice broke his reverie. Slowly, she declared:
“I will destroy the Ten Towers.”
“…I had somewhat anticipated this.”
The fact that she had tolerated the heretical implications inherent in the Artificial Tenth Rank suggested something beyond mere ambition to become the eleventh Tower.
If she were a faithful adherent of the system established by the Ten Towers, the very concept of the Artificial Tenth Rank would have been deemed blasphemous—or more explicitly, sacrilegious.
The stance of the Ten Towers was that the Wizard King was distinct from mythical deities. However, from Caike’s perspective, having left the Ten Towers, the viewpoint of magicians who revered the Wizard King was qualitatively no different from that of priests who worshiped gods.
“In that case, madam, you must have some connection to the old gods’ sect.”
“Ho. I thought you were solely dedicated to your research.”
“Yes. I have been solely dedicated to my research. But I do have experience with the Ten Towers, don’t I? To focus on research there required a certain degree of political acumen.”
“Politics. Didn’t the Ten Towers claim to be the purest seekers of magic?”
“The purer they proclaimed themselves, the dirtier they became. Coating things with oil so others couldn’t steal their research results, gaining patronage by catching the eye of some elder. Once you’ve seen such politics, it becomes simple.”
Caike then discussed the artifacts supplied for the development of the Artificial Tenth Rank. Some artifacts could not be explained by the investigations conducted by the board members or Lampades’ improved radar.
The twelve divine artifacts personally brought and shown by Ortes as samples.
“If such powerful divine artifacts had already surfaced in the world, I assumed they would have left records, either excavated directly or obtained from their original owners. Either way, there would likely be ties to the religious orders.”
“As you expected. Some were excavated directly, while others were transferred from the Theistic Order. They are useful allies under the premise of opposing the Ten Towers.”
A plan to overthrow the Ten Towers’ regime using the old gods’ sect and the Artificial Tenth Rank. An ordinary magician would likely hear this and, out of fear, report this horrifying scheme.
“What, then, is the role of the Artificial Tenth Rank in your plan? A counterbalance to the Ten Sages?”
Caike was no ordinary magician.
“That’s about the extent of what I expect for now. There are also usage methods still under consideration.”
Carisia refrained from explaining outright that one of these methods involved a magical bomb. For now, only Ortes needed to know the full scope of the plan.
“I am satisfied knowing that my methodology for ascending is correct. If you defeat the Ten Towers and obtain the Ten Sages, the path to ascension will become clearer.”
Caike’s remaining organic eye gleamed with determination.
“I’ve always wanted to see what happens when all Ten Sages gather in one place.”
“So, you’re betting everything on Hydra Corp, then?”
“I’ve already bet everything, haven’t I?”
Carisia nodded. According to the plan, the Ten Sages were indeed scheduled to gather in one place. Though they were also scheduled to explode completely at that moment.
“Very well. External Director Caike, with the Artificial Tenth Rank practically completed, I have a new task for you.”
A single sheet of paper was passed from Carisia to Caike. The use of holograms or emails via Ethereal Space for information transfer implied that this document must be thoroughly shredded, leaving no trace.
Carisia’s proposal discussed the differences between extradimensional beings and gods. Even assuming extradimensional beings and gods were qualitatively the same, there was one difference within this world.
That difference was the world’s resistance. Whenever extradimensional beings attempted interference, they faced the resistance of what was known as the World Barrier or Dimensional Barrier.
Most rifts caused by extradimensional beings automatically sealed because the world itself rejected them. Gods, however, were exceptions to this resistance.
“The power bestowed by gods, whether extradimensional magic or divine power, fundamentally operates on the same mechanism. However, importing extradimensional magic into our world requires complex procedures, whereas divine power does not.”
“I’ve never considered it from this perspective, but it is an intriguing subject—the difference between those who ascend and are resisted by the world and those who aren’t.”
Caike slowly read through Carisia’s hypothesis. It proposed artificially implementing the world’s resistance against ascenders.
In other words, it was akin to forming an artificial world barrier—a topic that, if perfected, would greatly enhance defenses against extradimensional threats.
However, Carisia’s suggestion was not aimed at extradimensional beings.
“I want to devise a means to invoke the world’s resistance against ‘magic’ itself—not just extradimensional magic.”
“…”
Carisia was conceptualizing a magic that destroyed magic. Reconstructing the principle by which the world barrier excluded extradimensional entities, but applying it to magic.
“The name, hmm…”
Anti-Magic Field.
Upon reading Carisia’s proposal, Caike raised his magic and cleanly incinerated the paper. It was a terrifying spell even to imagine.
If Carisia’s vision could be fully realized, no mage would be able to cast spells within the Anti-Magic Field.
This would apply to Carisia herself as well…
But she had Ortes.
An entity existing outside the principles the Wizard King imposed on the world—perhaps the world’s sole perfect non-magical being.
“…There is one thing I wish to inquire about.”
Carisia gave a slight nod. With her concise approval, Caike carefully chose his words.
“What exactly is Ortes, the head of the Divine Investigation Department?”
An unsolvable mystery. Within Hydra Corp, guessing his true position wasn’t difficult. Likely, he served as a representative or equivalent figure of the Theistic Order, acting as a special envoy to coordinate cooperation with Hydra Corp.
However, as far as Caike knew, no priest in this era could be entirely devoid of magic.
Unbeknownst to Caike, Kine, who handled both magic and sacred arts, was living proof of his theory. Since 2074, following the Wizard King’s ascension, magic had permeated every corner of the world.
A faint smile graced Carisia’s lips. She spoke with remarkable confidence, leaving no room for dissent:
“I don’t know either.”
