"————"
It was a series of scenes of utter misery.
It was a series of scenes of unbearable sorrow.
People were crying.
People were quarreling.
People were lamenting.
People were suffering.
As though all the world's tragedies had been turned into visions, each one was being displayed here before his eyes.
There were scenes of battlefields littered with corpses, brought about by war.
Scenes of siblings slaughtering each other, driven by profit.
Scenes of nations plunged into ruin and disaster, caused by struggles for power.
Scenes of multiple innocent lives cut down without reason, all due to a single person's twisted desires.
There were natural disasters.
There were man-made disasters.
All the tragedies of the world were laid bare, surging into Rozen's mind.
It was as though he were soaring high in the skies, overlooking each one of these tragedies, drifting above smoke-choked battlefields as his eyes flickered with light.
Were it not for the perfected state of his Mind's Eye, Rozen's heart and spirit would surely have been violently shaken by these calamities.
And yet, even with the perfected Mind's Eye, Rozen still felt unbearably heavy-hearted as he looked upon these visions.
Because all of this was not fabricated illusion—it had truly occurred, countless times throughout human history.
"That is why I cannot forgive him."
A voice suddenly rang out from behind Rozen, making his pupils shrink. He snapped his head around.
There, a figure he had only seen once before—yet engraved deeply into his memory—stood before him.
"Solomon..."
Yes.
It was Solomon.
The King of Magic, Solomon, appeared behind Rozen.
Like Rozen, he gazed upon the visions of tragedy, and slowly approached to stand at his side.
"Long ago, there was a king who possessed eyes that could see through past and future alike."
Speaking as if to no one, or perhaps directly to Rozen without caring, Solomon continued.
"In every age, in every nation, humanity has always been plagued by countless tragedies."
His voice rang out, calm yet heavy.
"Those who kill their children, those killed by their children."
"Those ignorant of love, those who cast away love."
"Those who lament betrayal, those who live by betrayal."
"Those who fail to recognize family, those who abandon family."
"Those who lose their wealth, those destroyed by wealth."
"Those who never knew love, those who mocked love."
"Those who pursue success, those who despise success."
"Those who uphold faith, those who scorn faith."
"They love their kin, yet despise outsiders. They learn wisdom, yet spread ignorance. They foster hatred, misjudge others, cling to differences, revel in persecution, and pity the pitiful."
"This is humanity—ugly, sorrowful beings."
Solomon's voice brimmed with pity.
"But it cannot be helped. Mortals are mortals, not gods, nor omnipotent beings."
"They cannot save themselves, much less others. Born only to die, without meaning, without value."
"Perhaps only a god, only one with boundless wisdom and omnipotence, could save them."
"And such a man did exist."
Solomon turned his head then, fixing his gaze on Rozen.
The pity in his eyes twisted into anger, into fury.
"That king who could see past and future, who clearly possessed the power to save all, remained unmoved to the very end!"
Solomon roared with rage.
"He saw through every tragedy from past to future. He held both the ability and the means to resolve them. And yet, he did nothing—he only smiled!"
"If he were ignorant, then fine!"
"But he knew—he knew it all, and still he smiled!"
"Watching these tragedies, witnessing these scenes—how could he smile?"
"Unforgivable! Absolutely unforgivable cruelty and atrocity!"
"To behold so much suffering with his own eyes, and do nothing but smile—that demon, that man, can never be forgiven!"
Raging thus, Solomon suddenly grew calm again.
He turned, walking past Rozen.
Rozen turned as well—and in that instant, the smoke and battlefields vanished, the tragedies and sorrows disappeared.
He was no longer suspended above the world, but standing within a temple.
It was a temple suspended in the cosmos, as though at the very end of time itself.
Within this temple, Solomon walked forward, crossing the hall, ascending the steps, and finally seated himself upon a lofty throne.
Behind him was the very same light-ring that had appeared over every Singularity.
"To destroy it required all resources."
"To forget it required all time."
"For this, we built the temple, gathered the light, and at last achieved this grand work—the complete incineration of Human Order."
Seated upon his throne, Solomon looked down on Rozen and spoke.
"Go."
"Seek the path to the Final Singularity."
"There, upon the throne of the King of Magic, I await."
He stretched out a hand.
"This domain is named Solomon. The end's extreme, the altar of the time vortex, the hope of reaching the beginning."
As his words fell, flames erupted throughout the temple.
Instinctively raising his arm, Rozen was engulfed by the fire, consumed utterly.
———
"...!"
His spirit jolted, and Rozen awoke.
In his hands, the shining glow of the Tablet of Destinies had faded completely, vanishing without a trace.
Yet the visions burned into Rozen's mind would not disappear. They were carved too deeply.
"Awake?"
Gilgamesh still sat before him, narrowing his eyes at the sight of Rozen's return to consciousness.
"Seems you saw what needed to be seen."
At those words, Rozen raised his head to face him.
"That was just now..."
He began, his tone grave.
"Don't ask me—I know nothing."
Gilgamesh cut him off bluntly. "That is for you to ponder and understand. Those are the few clues tied to that one who calls himself King of Magic. If you can discern their meaning, then you'll understand the truth behind the incineration of Human Order."
Leaving only those words, Gilgamesh rose to his feet.
"Now then, trouble yourself over it as you will."
"The end is approaching soon anyway. Let's see if you can grasp the answer you seek."
"I'll be watching with great interest—Last Master of Humanity."
With that, Gilgamesh turned and departed from the embassy.
Rozen was left alone, staring down at the Tablet in his hand, recalling each and every vision he had just seen, and remained in silence.