For a moment, Klein felt the world go silent. The despair of never returning home was overwhelming, and he teetered on the edge of losing control.
"Be confident. You were about to lose control." Alaric said with a hint of exasperation.
As Alaric's voice cut through, Klein's emotions stabilized. He noticed his fur had grown wildly, his claws now sharp and elongated.
"Sorry, I forgot you just fought a boss battle. You're in rough shape and can't handle the shock." Alaric said apologetically. Normally, Klein might've handled the truth about transmigration, but fresh from battling an evil god's spawn, he was vulnerable.
Luckily, Alaric's abilities countered emotion-driven loss of control, pulling Klein back from the brink.
"…Thanks." Klein said wearily. Calmer now, he caught a key phrase in Alaric's words and looked up sharply. "Wait, what do you mean transmigrators can't return to the past?"
"Why the past?"
"You're sharp." Alaric said, unsurprised. He glanced out the window at the sky. "Where do you think we are? This is Earth."
"We didn't cross to another world. We're relics of an old era, sleeping for countless ages, only to awaken in this unfamiliar one."
Klein's mouth opened, his past questions suddenly clicking into place.
Why did this world have 24-hour days? Why was there a sun…?
"But the moon's red, and there's no oil…" Klein said, staring at Alaric, his voice dazed, grasping for a final shred of resistance.
"That involves knowledge you can't handle yet." Alaric said, meeting Klein's gaze. "I can only say the moon turned red due to an evil god, and the oil was devoured by a certain entity."
Klein lowered his eyes, lost in thought. Then he looked up again. "What am I? What's the Lord of Mysteries? Celestial Worthy? And the gray fog…?"
"You're the chosen protagonist of the stage." Alaric said, his gaze heavy with a sigh. "Unlike Dunn, the star of a single story, you're the protagonist of an era."
"Huh?" Klein froze, then gave a hollow laugh. "Should I feel honored?"
"You can grieve, Klein, for your fate." Alaric said, reaching out to ruffle the cat's head.
"For this damned fate forced upon you."
Klein felt a lump in his throat but held back tears. His voice hoarse, he asked, "What's going on? I was just an ordinary person. Why am I the era's protagonist?"
"It's a long story. Our era, our civilization, faced an apocalypse. We were the 'lucky' ones chosen to survive…" Alaric's voice dripped with sarcasm. "If you call surviving as a vessel for some entity's revival 'lucky.'"
"The Celestial Worthy, right?" Klein guessed instantly.
"You are indeed a vessel for revival former Lord of Mysteries who also known as Celestial Worthy of Heaven and Earth for Blessings." Alaric confirmed. "If the Evernight Goddess hadn't intervened when you arrived, he'd likely have revived within you."
Klein blinked, stunned. He hadn't expected the Evernight Goddess's involvement. He thought of his unusual lucidity in dreams, once assumed to be a transmigration perk. Now, it seemed like her blessing.
"Why?" Klein asked, confused. "Why would the Evernight Goddess help me?"
"Two reasons." Alaric said, raising a finger. "First, the Celestial Worthy's bad news. Given a choice, no one wants him back." He raised another. "Second, maybe a sense of kinship."
Klein froze, then realized, "So the Evernight Goddess is a transmigrator too."
"You, Roselle, and the Evernight Goddess are all vessels for the Celestial Worthy." Alaric said, not hiding it. It'd come out eventually, and he left a deliberate opening.
Klein seized it. "What about you and Jack? Aren't you vessels for the Celestial Worthy?"
"We're vessels for another entity." Alaric said smoothly. "I can't tell you its name... it could pollute you just hearing it. All I'll say is it's on par with the Celestial Worthy."
"Have you escaped it?" Klein asked, concerned for Jack and Lucifer despite his own predicament.
"More or less." Alaric said with a smile, dodging further discussion.
He'd said it deliberately, giving himself an out if his cover was blown later. It wasn't a lie... he was a vessel for Nyarlathotep's fragment, after all.
Klein relaxed slightly, sensing Alaric didn't want to dwell on it, and pressed on. "Have I escaped the Celestial Worthy?"
"Not quite. Thanks to the Evernight Goddess, you didn't become his vessel immediately." Alaric said, shaking his head. "Do you know why I call you the era's protagonist?"
Klein shook his head, bewildered. He'd jokingly thought of himself as a protagonist, but he didn't truly believe it.
"Because you have all the makings of one." Alaric said slowly. "Everyone expects you to be. No one wants the Celestial Worthy back, but they need someone like him to face the coming apocalypse. They've bet on you, hoping you'll defeat him, take his place, and save the world."
Alaric's gaze carried a sigh. "I've already warned you: Batman is watching you. The Batman watches the Joker. You're the Clown of Fate, Klein. Even if you can foresee everything, you're still powerless to change it."
***
Every 100 Power Stones and 5 Reviews will earn you a Bonus Chapter.
And if you want to read up to 50 chapters ahead, don't hesitate to visit our patron: pat reon . com / XElenea (remove space)