Although Shiomi had lost consciousness before being placed on the stretcher, it was simply because he had fallen asleep from extreme exhaustion.
A full examination using the Storm Border's medical facilities only confirmed that conclusion.
"I told you earlier, my husband was just worn out and needed a good sleep," Morgan said with an easy smile. "Since we have the time, we should check everyone else and see if anyone was injured."
"And yet Mother-sama was clearly worried," Caren remarked dryly.
Morgan's face reddened slightly. She cleared her throat to cover her embarrassment. "Of course I was worried. But after all these years, I can tell what state he's in at a glance."
"Hahaha… In any case, he's fine. Everyone made it through this operation more or less safely," Romani explained with a relaxed laugh. "King Arthur and Queen Scáthach only suffered minor injuries. They treated themselves with Magecraft right away. Miss Melusine was about the same. As for the three Valkyries…"
Olga Marie, who had followed along out of concern, spoke up at that point. "They pushed themselves too hard during their struggle with Demeter and suffered fairly severe damage. Lady Skadi is overseeing their repairs now, with Touko's assistance."
That said, the Valkyries, as beings personally created by the great god Odin, were neither simple machines nor ordinary lifeforms.
"On that front, it's fortunate we launched our operation directly against the Atlantis Lostbelt, Theos Klironomia, also known as the 'Legacy of the Gods.' It helped a great deal," Romani said with a wry smile as he flipped through the medical records in his hands.
"If I remember correctly, the Valkyries' prototype was the White Giant defeated by the wielder of the Holy Sword of the Planet. Odin modeled the Valkyries after that existence to face Ragnarök in the Nordic Age…"
He had unintentionally gone into details that were unfamiliar even to Olga Marie, and to Caren as well.
"In any case, they're far from simple beings. The divinity the Valkyries possess is proof enough," Morgan said lightly as she picked up the thread. She gently stroked Shiomi's sleeping cheek while she spoke. "For now, let's leave it to Skadi and Orange. If things don't go well, we can revisit it after my husband wakes up."
"Is the teacher really all right?" Olga Marie asked, still frowning with concern. "I feel like I've seen this kind of situation far too many times."
"It really has been many times," Caren replied while organizing Shiomi's discarded battle outfit. "So even though I worry, I've become a bit numb to it."
"..." Olga Marie sat down, looking somewhat dejected. "I know the teacher isn't an ordinary person, but even so, yesterday's battle was just unbelievable. According to Chaldea's original records, Kirschtaria shouldn't have had that kind of absurd magical energy at all.
"At the moment of their final clash, both Kirschtaria's Magecraft and Shiomi's trump card produced enormous mana reactions."
"Kirschtaria activated his Astromancy Magecraft first, and it immediately knocked out all of the Storm Border's detection systems. That was why Morgan had to go out onto the deck and confirm things with her Fairy Eyes."
"I understand the theory behind that Magecraft, but under normal circumstances, all Animusphere can do is adjust Magic Circuits days in advance before activating it, and even then, it only summons small meteors to bombard the ground."
"Even in the Sixth and Seventh Singularities, being able to wield it at that scale depended heavily on the unique conditions of those environments."
"Whether it was the support from Nitocris and Ozymandias, or the backing of the Uruk temple, it was always the same."
"Without the foundation of the Age of Gods, she shouldn't have been able to bring that Magecraft to such a scale on her own."
"This Lostbelt is the Age of Gods, isn't it?" Morgan reminded her with a soft chuckle.
"Huh?" Olga Marie froze for a moment.
Off to the side, Romani realized he had just let slip far more information than he should have. Fortunately, Morgan gracefully covered for him, and he quickly adopted an air of vague, half-understanding.
"The Director should know very well that modern Astromancy Magecraft is a degraded form of what it once was. Originally, Astromancy drew power directly from the cosmos. But after humanity chose to pursue civilization, it declined, until all that remained was astrology and observation."
"I… I do know that," Olga Marie said, sounding a little aggrieved.
This was squarely within her field of expertise. She shouldn't have missed it. But the sheer shock of what she had witnessed, combined with the stark difference in aptitude between herself and Kirschtaria, had dragged her into a slump and made her overlook the obvious.
"That magical energy didn't come from him alone," Morgan said evenly. "He linked the stars of the cosmos together and connected them to himself, turning them into an enormous Magic Circuit. I've read his Magecraft theory. Outside the Age of Gods, it truly would have been impossible. So it's no surprise the mediocrities of the Clock Tower dismissed it as 'fantasy' and refused to take it seriously."
"The mediocrities of the Clock Tower…" Olga Marie felt a bit awkward.
But considering the words came from Morgan, it somehow didn't sting as much.
At least she hadn't called them 'incompetents.'
"So Kirschtaria joined Chaldea…" Caren spoke up at that point. "Was it to complete that Magecraft?"
"That's quite possible. A planet long removed from the Age of Gods can't reproduce Astromancy Magecraft of that era. But once the planet is bleached, and the Age of Gods is replanted through the Fantasy Tree as a pruned phenomenon, it becomes the perfect environment for him," Romani nodded seriously. "Seen that way, the Alien God choosing Kirschtaria makes perfect sense."
A man with immense talent yet no means to change the world, paired with an Alien God capable of bleaching human history and restoring the Age of Gods. It really was a perfect match.
No wonder the Atlantis Lostbelt flourished to its greatest extent during New Chaldea's observation period.
"But Professor Shiomi even fought Kirschtaria to a standstill," Olga Marie said, her eyes already sparkling with admiration. "If he hadn't been exhausted, he might've captured him on the spot…"
Anyone with eyes could tell what was going on.
Romani could only raise his water bottle and quietly sip through the straw, pretending not to notice. Bursting that bubble would only bring trouble.
"Purely in terms of Magecraft talent, my husband isn't actually that exceptional," Morgan said, shaking her head with a helpless smile. "You could even say that him breaking through Kirschtaria's Magecraft in that situation was a kind of 'cheating'… At least, that's what he would say himself."
"Cheating?" Olga Marie echoed.
Caren didn't understand either.
The two of them could only stare blankly at Shiomi's sleeping face.
After all, Morgan had no intention of explaining any further.