"Looks like this is how it turned out."
After using [Spatial Transition] to move from the world of five thousand years ago, I found myself floating in a pitch-black space, arms crossed, sighing.
[Spatial Transition] is a divine teleportation technique that can even cross the walls of the world. Its range is not just limited to space—it can also transcend time.
Of course, moving through space is easier than traveling to another world, and even more difficult is crossing time.
What happens when someone as inexperienced as me tries it?
As you can see, I ended up in the rift between time and space, unable to move.
I could escape, but doing so would just send me back to that Xenoah from five thousand years ago.
It would be incredibly awkward if Edda and Ryuri were still there after we had just parted...
So, I’ve been thinking about other ways to get out of here, but... damn it, it looks like there’s no choice...!
"Help me, Grandma Tokie!"
"Yes, yes!"
When I called out into the darkness, as if waiting for it, the God of Time, Grandma Tokie, cheerfully appeared in front of me.
"You’ve been watching the whole time, haven’t you?"
"Hehe. I thought maybe you’d come up with something, so..."
Sorry I didn’t come up with a way to transcend time! Is it that easy to come up with a way to time travel?!
"It’s not that hard, you know? For the past, it’s still difficult, but for the future, there’s always the option of cryosleep."
"Are you telling me to stay frozen for five thousand years?"
I’d rather not. Freezing myself like that would be a no-go. Plus, there’s no guarantee I’d even wake up.
I could wake up a thousand years later, and that’s way too much of a risk. The odds of oversleeping are too high.
Wait, hold on... In this era, could Dr. Babylon still be alive in the Holy Empire of Partheno?
If I explain the situation, maybe they could make a cryosleep device? Asking the past doctor for help feels like something straight out of a time travel movie...
No, no, involving the past would only cause trouble. I need to rely on the gods for this.
"Time travel is difficult if you're not used to it, right? Well, you’ll eventually get the hang of it."
"By the way, how long do you think that will take...?"
"Maybe three or four thousand years, and you should be able to do it."
There it is, that divine perspective... Either way, it seems it’s impossible while I’m still on the surface.
Still, compared to regular gods, the time-space god, Grandma Tokie, can move through time on a whole different scale.
For people like us, and even Karen-neesan, if we master [Spatial Transition], we can only move across time from the birth to extinction of humanity. That’s already amazing, but how much time can Tokie move through? From the creation to the end of the universe?
As I thought about this, Grandma Tokie lightly clapped her hands.
The next moment, we were back on the altar where Gold had jumped into the circular ring. That was fast. If Gold knew how much preparation went into creating the time tunnel, he’d probably cry...
"Well then, this is no longer necessary."
When Grandma Tokie snapped her fingers, the large circular ring that had been glowing was crushed with a squelch. At the same time, the time tunnel that had been created also easily vanished.
"Wait, is it okay for you to destroy it? Didn’t you say something about favoritism earlier...?"
"Well, Touya-kun, you’ve already taken care of the cause. This is part of my job as the God of Time. No problem."
Well, I still can’t close the rift in time myself, so I had no choice but to rely on her. Does that mean this is within the scope of support? I couldn’t stop Gold from doing what he tried to do, but I can handle the aftermath?
...It feels like I’m really going through training right now... I guess it’s not wrong, though.
To the other gods, I probably seem like a CEO’s relative who got in through connections. I’m sure there are some gods gossiping behind my back.
To earn the respect of those gods, I’ll just have to take it slow and prove myself bit by bit.
Well, I have time, so I’ll just go steady and solid.
As I made this new resolve, a huge shockwave suddenly reverberated through the space from outside. It seems the battle is still going on.
Huh!? If Gold disappeared, shouldn’t the things he summoned disappear as well!?
Ah! The things Gold summoned weren’t created by summoning magic! It wasn’t a summon; he used the power of 'Black' to open a 'Gate' to a parallel world and pulled them here. Of course, they wouldn’t disappear, because they weren’t summoned using his own magic.
I quickly refocused, thinking about the situation at hand.
I’ve got no time to waste—this isn’t over yet. The battle rages on outside, and it looks like the summoned creatures are still causing chaos.
Looking around, I noticed the monstrous shape of a four-headed dragon. This creature was fused with mechanical parts all over its body, including four tails. Each head was spewing a different element—fire, ice, lightning, and... machinery?
The creature was in the midst of a battle with the Frame Gears. I had to act quickly.
I pulled the [Reginleif] from [Storage] and climbed into the cockpit. Once inside, I set up my smartphone and activated [Search].
"Searching... um, what was it again? The four-headed dragon?"
I wasn’t entirely sure how to word it, but I spoke my thoughts aloud. Thankfully, [Search] scans based on my perception, so it wasn’t much of a problem, though it felt like a clumsy request.
'Search complete. Displaying results.'
The map on the cockpit monitor displayed the location of the creature.
"Target lock. Activate Flying Sword Fragarach."
'Lock complete. Activating Flying Sword Fragarach.'
The crystal plates on Reginleif’s back detached, transforming into twelve long swords.
"[Meteor Sword Array, Gladius]"
The crystal swords, launched like missiles, pierced the heads of the Stegosaurus trying to open a summoning gate one after another.
Ah, looks like there are three of them trying to open a big summoning gate. I won’t let that happen.
I manipulated the three crystal swords and pierced the skulls of the three Stegosauruses from above.
The gate that was about to open shut, and a large, unidentified, crocodile-like mouth that had been trying to emerge was neatly severed by the distortion in space, falling to the ground with a thud.
That was close. From the size of that mouth, it was probably just as big as the four-headed dragon.
Well, it’s possible that it had a huge mouth, but the body was small.
In any case, this should prevent reinforcements from arriving. Now, I just have to deal with that four-headed dragon.
'『Bujin-ryu: Shinra Ryuusei Kyaku!』'
Elze’s Gerhilde and Ende’s Dragoon flew into the air, spiraling as they delivered a jumping kick to the four-headed dragon.
The four-headed dragon staggered back a few steps after taking the kick to its body.
'『Cannon Knuckle Spiral!』'
Just as they followed up with the attack, Suu’s Ortlinde Overlord fired its right arm, which spun as it collided with the chest of the four-headed dragon.
The golden giant arm pierced through the chest of the four-headed dragon, sending it flying backward. With a powerful thud, the dragon collapsed, leaving a crater in the ground.
Well, looks like they took care of it before I could do anything.
Now, it’s just a matter of cleaning up the smaller ones.
'『We’re moving into the mop-up phase! Everyone, don’t push yourselves too hard—team up to take down the enemies!』'
'『Understood!』'
With the order from the commander, Lain, everyone moved into mop-up mode. The enemy was already in tatters, but we had taken significant damage too. Some of the machines had been heavily damaged, and the knight pilots had escaped through the transfer devices, returning to Vaal Albus.
"Well, I guess I should join in too."
It would be awkward for just the king to watch from the sidelines. I had Reginleif hold the crystal swords in both hands and began flying toward the hybrid dragons.
◇ ◇ ◇
'『Search complete. Zero results.』'
"Alright. Mop-up complete. The battle is over."
'『Understood. Mop-up complete. Battle finished.』'
I reported the search results to Rain, the commander, and informed everyone that the battle was over. Finally, I could relax.
The knights began exiting their Frame Gears, stretching their bodies after the long battle. It had been quite a while since we fought for such an extended period.
After a thirty-minute break, we’ll start packing up. I’m tired, too...
I stored Reginleif back in [Storage] and sat down on a large rock nearby. Ah, the cool breeze feels so nice...
"Daddy!!"
"Wait! Dad is super tired right now! No tackles!"
I quickly stopped Steph, who was about to leap toward me. Somehow, I managed to stop her before she could use [Accel], and she just ran up to me normally. If I had received her Steph Rocket in this state, I’d definitely be blown away.
Steph, running towards me, leapt into my chest. If it were normally like this, I’d be fine...
Then, I noticed Gold following behind Steph, and for a moment, I froze.
Gold was created by the power of 'Black'—an existence from the parallel world of Gold’s, from the Golem’s parallel world.
The memories of Chrom Ranchesse that had been there were erased by Steph, meaning that Gold could be considered the true 'Golden Crown.'
No... who was summoned here, it’s hard to say. Maybe Gold was the creation of Chrom Ranchesse in this world, and the one I defeated, the Golem Gold, was from another dimension... but I guess thinking about it doesn’t really matter.
It’s an ironic situation, though, but by having Chrom Ranchesse’s memories erased, Gold didn’t stray from the right path.
I think this might have been Steph’s achievement.
As I thought to myself, I realized I was being somewhat of a proud parent.
At that moment, everyone else began to come over from their Frame Gears.
"Has the battle been decided?"
"...Well, I guess so."
I explained to everyone what Gold had tried to do and the purpose behind his plan.
"How should I say this... It's so empty..."
"Regardless of the reason, it cannot be forgiven... But, I think I understand how he feels..."
Lu and Yumina muttered, looking down. It was a small relief to know they felt the same way I did.
Some might say, "For such a trivial reason!" or "There's no room for sympathy!"
Values are different for everyone. What one person treasures, and what they find worth risking their life for, can only be understood by the person themselves.
'Is that so... Chrom must have had someone important to him too, huh...'
Silver, hanging from Kuon’s waist with the "Silver" Crown, muttered quietly. She must have a lot of thoughts about her former creator.
'Did that Chrom... manage to find peace?'
"Who knows. At the very least, his wish was fulfilled, so I think he’s satisfied."
When Silva says "that," she’s referring to Chrom Ranchesse’s memories that resided within Gold.
Do Golems have souls... I’ve never seen it with my divine sight, so maybe not.
But it’s said that objects can sometimes have souls. I can't completely deny it.
There’s also the legend that after long years, tools can develop souls and become tsukumogami. Well, in this world, they would just be monsters, but...
"The battle is over, but... the aftermath is going to be tough."
Linne muttered, looking at the scattered remains of the Cyclopes, hybrid soldiers, hybrid dragons, and hybrid mages.
I personally think leaving them here wouldn’t be an issue, but since the hybrid soldiers are from another world, and the Cyclopes might have connections to the Evil Gods, it’s best not to leave them here. If they get into the wrong hands, it could be a huge problem. I’ll collect them in [Storage], then sort and dispose of them later at Babylon.
"Good job. Looks like the clean-up is going smoothly."
"Grandma Tokie!"
Suddenly, as I was about to relax, Steph tackled her from beside her. Whoa...! Is she okay...?
Grandma Tokie, as if it were nothing, accepted Steph’s tackle and began gently patting her head, smiling warmly.
As expected of a high-ranking god. Steph’s tackle is no problem for her.
"From here on, it’s my job. The time distortion should settle down after a while. Once the effects completely dissipate, I’ll send the kids back to the future."
As soon as I heard those words, the air around me and the wives became much heavier. The kids were also somewhat drooping. They knew that the time for parting was near.
This can’t be helped. It was the future that was set for us. We’ve worked hard for this future.
Still, saying goodbye to the kids is painful... It’s become so natural to have them around...
"...How long will it take for the time distortion to disappear?"
"Well, two or three weeks... no, to be safe, maybe a month."
A month, huh. I’m sure Grandma Tokie could probably do it faster, but she’s probably giving us some extra time so we can make some final memories with the kids.
"At the end, I think we should all go on a family trip."
"A family trip, huh?"
Linne looked at me curiously.
"Sounds nice! Not just somewhere close, but maybe to a town on the Western Continent that we've never been to..."
"No, I was thinking we should go to the place where we went on our honeymoon."
I cut off Elze’s words, and immediately the movements of my wives came to a halt.
"Huh? Huh!? To Japan!?"
"We can go with the kids?!"
"Is that really possible?!"
"Sounds wonderful, Touya-san!"
"Does that mean we’ll be seeing your father and mother-in-law...!"
"Yes! I’ll be able to show them my grandchildren!"
"We need to start preparing right away!"
"Hehe... This is getting exciting!"
"Well done, Your Majesty!"
While the mothers were all excited, the kids were left confused, not understanding what was going on.
Looks like I’ll need to explain things to them.
And then... there’s the matter of what to do about Alice. Should I take her along as Kuon’s fiancée, or not?
It’s a family trip... But, well, Alice is part of the future family, so... there’s no doubt she’ll want to go. But that would leave Leyle alone at home.
If we take Alice, the question is how to convince her father... That’s probably going to be a high hurdle.
Maybe I’ll have to ask Melle and the others for help? When the wives and daughters ask, the husband has no choice but to give in. I know I would.
A trip to Japan with all the kids in tow... It’s starting to feel like a school field trip.
...Wait a minute... Do I need to become a kid again? Huh? Shouldn’t I be the one getting led around?
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