Chapter 1171 Malevolent Reminder
We were currently standing in the wedding venue, the last known location of Legris Damien in anyone's memory.
The goal was to track him down by monitoring the traces of dimensional energy that he was bound to leave behind once he left our reality.
'It's possible that he didn't leave our reality from this specific location, but as long as I can capture his trace and extrapolate that to determine his movements, it will eventually lead us to his last known location in this world—and, in extension, the next world he traveled to.'
I hadn't attempted to track down someone using this method before, and even with Magic it seemed like a strainious way to connect the dots.
But… I had to try!
I separated myself from the rest of my allies, using a Spell to propel me into the air, to the very position Legris had occupied when he crashed the wedding.
From that height, I looked down and observed te countenance of the people beneath me, while also having the luxury to behold the entire Ainzlark Campus.
'So this is what you saw, Legris…' My mind trailed as I recollected the events of that day with sheer precision.
Now wasn't the time to dwell on nostalgia, though.
"Time to track him down!" Closing my eyes, I activated my Spell—a combination of two distinct formulas.
One was [The World], which would help me collect data from all over the planet at once in response to dimensional energy.
As for the second element, it was [Resonance].
'By resonating my [The World] Arcana with theirs, as well as keying into Legris Damien's remnant energy, I should be able to track down his path.'
For good measure, I had to use Spellcraft.
'There's a lot of data to sort through, but I also had to be as thorough as possible.' With that thought constantly hammered in my head, I activated my spell.
"[World Resonance]"
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"I got it!"
An excited expression spread all over my face as I finally found the information I needed.
It only took me eight hours, but I succeeded in tracking down Legris' next location after he left this world. The mere fact that I pulled it off in such a short time amazed me, and I felt tingles of achievement course through me.
To the ones who waited for me from below, they probably couldn't understand how I felt. However, I knew… I was immensely happy that my postulation succeeded!
Descending from my height, I reunited with my comrades, and the first one to approach me was Maria.
"Congatulations, Jared. You pulled it off."
'A-ah! Did I let my excitement show too much?' I wondered to myself, smiling sheepishly at her.
Still, I had to take back my assumptions from earlier.
It seemed Maria had noticed how happy I became as a result of my very risky experiment being successful. For someone who hardly showed any emotion, she was great at detecting mine.
"So, what now? We move to the next world that Legris traveled to, right?" Kuzon interrupted my interaction with Maria before I could properly offer a response.
"Thank you." I mouthed those words to Maria and focused on Kuzon's question.
"I've sort of created a linking tether to Legris by Resonance, so we should be able to track his activities through the worlds."
That was why [The World] was such a major component in the tracking Spell.
"So what are we waiting for? Let's g—!" Hearing Gerard's impatient voice, and watching him get knocked on the head by Serah felt satisfying for some reason.
In as much as we had to tread carefully when it came to Legris, we also had to consider the time aspect. It would be unwise to delay any further after all our preparations.
"Gerard is right. We should leave now."
Swiftly activating [The World], I opened a shimmering wormhole before all of us. The swirling distortion glowed with different colors, and right beyond it was our destination.
"Let's go. Maintain your guard, okay?"
It was highly improbable that we would encounter Legris on our first trip in tracking him down, but we couldn't afford to rely on mere assumptions.
As a result, it was important to be prepared for anything.
We all stormed into [The World], with the strongest of everyone present—Kuzon and Edward—leading the way, while I had to remain behind as the last to enter due to me casting the Spell.
Once everyone had stormed in, I inhaled deeply, still smiling a little at myself. The flutters in my heart just wouldn't cease.
'... And people ask why I got so obsessed with Magic.'
I stepped into the swirling rift, and everything instantly became a blur until I appeared on the other side within no time at all
The first thing I noticed were the burning rays of sunlight that washed over me. It felt so undreasonably hot, but the moment I decided to address the issue… I experienced the rest of the world.
And at that very moment, the smile on my face faded away.
"T-this is…" I muttered, unable to translate the rest of my thoughts into words.
Right before my eyes were the rotting of an immeasurablw number of people; a civilization in complete ruin.
I spread my senses instantly, praying and hoping for a survivor. However, the only thing I found was more death.
Everyone and everything in this planet was dead.
… And the vile energy of our target stained this world like a putrid odor.
Once again, I—no, everone present to witness this—was reminded of the kind of person Legris Damien was.
"A tragedy…" I heard Kuzon's voice leak out in a murmur.
It seemed all of my allies began to develop pity for the people in this world, the fallen ones whose stories we didn't know.
But for me, it was different.
As I stared at the chaos that our target had wrought, the only thing that enveloped me was rage.
'That monster!'
I clenched my fist and gritted my teeth, my resolve hardening the more I watched the dead world laid before me.
"We need to stop him… before he wreaks more havoc and destroys more lives…" I whispered.
I had never been so eager, so desperate, to catch someone before.
"He's not getting away with this."
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[A/N]
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