Story Reader / Main Story / 21 Spiral of Chronos / Story
As Lee extends his hand toward the solitary answer within the ocean-vast picture, his consciousness navigates through an unfathomable multitude of paths in one mere moment.
The tower itself manifests the spacetime continuum. You can think about it this way: here you may encounter "possibilities" that transcend the confines of your own world.
Originally isolated, these possibilities are affected by the Punishing Virus, intertwining within the "tower" of the spacetime continuum. Here both the past and the future take tangible form, shaped and molded by your cognition.
Simply put, your interference with the "past" in the tower carries a significant probability of impacting its very structure.
You may also reach the rifts between space and time, fall into a realm distinct from the present reality where you reside, and encounter phantoms that defy logical explanations and ought not to exist.
Such matters are not for you to linger upon. Break free from the confines and search for the true path leading upward amidst the boundless array of possibilities.
As the answer is derived through deduction, the surroundings begin to fade. In the form of ever-shifting blocks, the structure within the tower constantly repeats the cycle of collapse and re-establishment. That once distant and fragmented voice becomes tangible and distinct in this very moment.
Sometimes, the key lies hidden in minute details.
—Hope has embarked on its journey toward the past countless times. The page must be turned for the next chapter.
...!
A bullet slices through the air, landing in the core of the last Corrupted with unparalleled precision. The heavy metal chunk crumples in a resounding thud, bringing everything back to silence.
This is Lee reporting in. I've cleaned up all the Corrupted in Area C-20 and am ready to return.
Copy that. The clearance operation in Area D is at 80% completion. Let's rendezvous at the temporary headquarters once the task is finished.
No Corrupted reaction is detected in Area B. The Iso-Device has been set up! I'm heading to the next location!
Got it. On my way to the rendezvous point.
The nearby Corrupted signals have all vanished. After Lee ends the communication, he secures his guns back onto his belt, frowning at the wound on his leg.
I let my guard down...
Not foreseeing a Punishing Conversion Probe positioned perilously close, he got infected inevitably while trying to destroy it.
Despite the minor injury, his infection level has already receded within the safety threshold, thanks to the timely treatment.
Ugh...!
An unusual surge of pain emanates from his Inver-Device, coinciding with a momentary overload within his M.I.N.D. Yet, just as swiftly as it appeared, everything normalizes as if nothing had occurred.
Suddenly, Lee's attention is captivated by some new data lying in his M.I.N.D.
What's this?
It is a sequence of seemingly garbled codes, arranged in a manner that evokes an indescribable sense of familiarity. A hunch begins to form within him as he is reminded of the cipher he and Murray once used for their clandestine communication.
Could it be...?
There!
These are... coordinates?
He and Murray are the only ones who know this cipher, but this does not look like a message sent by Murray. Instead, it appeared in his M.I.N.D. out of the blue, without any known source.
Confusion envelops Lee's heart, and an inexplicable pull compels him to investigate the coordinates, as if guided by an unseen hand.
According to the map... this location is less than two kilometers away.
The message showed up with such uncanny timing, almost as though the sender had prior knowledge of Lee's presence in the area during this precise moment.
Anyway, I should go check it out first.
It looks like I'm going to take a detour.
