So, I have to rewrite the later half of chapter 8 because I got things wrong about Regulus. If you don't want to reread it, let's just say that nothing happens when Sakuya tries to compress all of Regulus' past and future into the present. This in turn makes Sakuya question the impossibility of it since it is impossible for anyone to not have a past while being in the present… other than suggesting that the cosmic memory of Regulus was lost, which is impossible.
Anyway, here is the chapter.
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(A/N: Please translate the "World" as the "Universe" from this point on. And by the way, Regulus' power now works differently for a few chapters due to some circumstances that will be revealed in this chapter. His ability will work like how it is supposed to after a few chapters though so don't worry.)
Chapter 9: One Second of Planning Part 1
Sakuya Izayoi P.O.V
In the world, there are three layers.
The first layer is the physical layer, this layer follows the law of physics.
The mental layer comes second representing the spiritual and the collective sea of subconsciousness of all beings, this is where all your emotions lie.
Then there comes the third layer, the layer of memory. This layer dictates that everything, no matter if they are sentient or non-sentient, will have the 'memory' of things that have happened. These 'memories', that can't be forgotten and repeated, may keep altering the probability and constructing the future. This layer is known by many as the 'Determinism' interpretation, where the past determines the present and the present determines the future, or so I heard from Patchouli-sama anyway.
Erasing the world's memory is impossible—no, just merely suggesting it is outrageous, and so, how is this Anomaly able to do it? To not exist in the past while standing right here in the present — not in time, but in presence — it can only mean that the 'memory' of him did not exist at all, and so just how did he make the world forget about his existence?
Not only is he an anomaly in regard to space and time, he is seemingly also an anomaly regarding his standing in the world… Truly, the more I learned about the Anomaly, the more the word 'Anomaly' fit him.
As I'm pondering that, the sound of Anomaly complaining about trivial things can be heard in the background, never stopping. In one second he talked about how insulting him is a violation of his rights, in the next, he talked about how we are standing too far apart from him as if we are trying to avoid him, therefore we are discriminating against him as an outcast, which again is a violation of his rights, and then he goes on to contradict himself and said that we are bothering him and how we should leave him alone while justifying that this is his rights.
With utmost honesty, this guy might be the most talkative guy I have ever had the displeasure of meeting.
As I'm Listening to him, I feel like his rant can go on forever, and that might be why no one is willing to interrupt him as this can buy us some time to think of a way to get rid of this stalemate that had been going on for even before I had arrived. And so I decided to use my time wisely and begin to think about a way to bypass the Anomaly invulnerability.
Of course, I also accelerate my thought time for good measure so that I can have more time in my hand to think.
…
…
…
After some time of me thinking about his ability, I now began to doubt if his ability is really all about him freezing his own time in the past since if he really did freeze his own time, his time should be in the past of this world, but again, there isn't, and that is what baffled me greatly.
I am now beginning to suspect that my previous speculation was wrong. But if his ability wasn't him freezing things in the past including himself, what else can his ability be? Wait, now that I think about it, since his time, his progress, did not exist in the past of this world, is it even right to say that he froze his time?
Freezing time of oneself to not have time to move forward with them; that is what I previously thought about what the Anomaly is doing. But now, it seems more likely that he did not have any time at all to begin with based on how I had erased his past, present, and future out of this world but it doesn't seem to do anything to him. It is an outrageous proposal since without time, how could he even get to where he is now without progressing through time?
The Anomaly has the appearance of a 20 year old guy… without time, he should be even less of a fetus in terms of development, but what is this? Where did that 20 years of his time go? That just doesn't make sense.
Regardless of that, I need to figure out his weakness.
But I will find his weakness soon enough in this infinite time.
After all, with infinite time I can achieve anything.
…
But no matter how much I try to figure out his ability, I don't understand.
No matter how long I think, I cannot figure out how he did what he did.
Even though I could be called the master of space-time, I cannot even fathom what his abilities entail nor what his weaknesses are as the very existence of the Anomaly violates the very law of space-time that I'm accustomed to.
The way time works for the Anomaly is just too bizarre. It just didn't make sense. How can someone move through space without moving through time… No, the Anomaly might not even exist in time to begin with, but if that were to be the case, how can he move through space and interact with it then? His existence right now seemingly does not exist in this world's time axis or space, yet, he is here in space and seemingly goes along with the flow of time without existing in it. How does that make sense? It just seems like he still operates in space-time and not outside of it; the fact that he only seems to act outside of the laws of physics and never once outside of time or space reinforces this, yet, why when I try to erase his time in this world, there is none of his time to be seen? It's like the Anomaly can't decide whether to exist or not. The Anomaly also seems to carry this disconnecting yet connecting feeling that is very similar to Yukari's gap for some inexplicable reason, which just complicates the matter. I cannot conclude anything about his ability at all. Perhaps I just simply know too little about the Anomaly to even be able to conclude anything about what he is capable of, how he is capable of that, and what is his weakness?
… Even if I have some concrete idea about what his ability entails, I also feel like I know nothing about it at the same time… Maybe I went at this wrong? From the very beginning, I had been only coming up with hypotheses… I should probably test them out too, after all, I wouldn't get anything done at this point if I keep pondering the possibility that may or may not be true.
Thinking about it, it makes sense. I should probably test the water some more, maybe then, I might be able to glean some information and weakness out of him… who knows, maybe his ability only works when his body interacts with the solid ground or something. It is a foolish notion, but it is still something to hope for. In this battle where pure strength, destructive magics, all kinds of force, and all kinds of defense are all meaningless against the Anomaly who can probably go through the greatest of defenses like paper and may even survive the greatest of power; the only way to win is to exploit the Anomaly weakness. But the problem is that the Anomaly doesn't have any obvious weakness…
This is not a conventional spell card battle where one only needs to fire magical bullets in the form of patterns to win. This is a battle where utility is focused instead of pure firepower. Specific magics or abilities that are able to counter the Anomaly ability, or at the very least, able to affect him, are what determine whether I win or lose in this battle.
For someone who didn't specialize in magic such as myself, I have been thinking of using nothing but my ability all this time, which makes sense, after all, I had long determined that the Anomaly ability is related to time. I might potentially be able to counter the Anomaly with my ability, and so I place my focus on making use of my ability to its fullest.
For those who specialize in magic… Marisa is the first person who comes to mind.
Since this is no longer a spell card battle where it is intended to be a one vs one battle, I can also work with that and use that fact to my favor by working with Marisa and Keine now that I think about it.
Marisa specialized in magic so maybe Marisa has some magic that is perfectly suited for this situation. But… that is unlikely since Marisa specializes in demolition. Based on what I've seen of Marisa thus far ever since I know her, there is no doubt that she only has bombs, bigger bombs, lasers, and larger lasers.
And thinking about it, since any kind of firepower regardless of how powerful it is would be meaningless against the Anomaly from what I have seen thus far, Marisa might have to go backstage in this battle. But… she is pretty good at distracting the Anomaly so maybe she can help with that.
For Keine... I don't know much about her capability. Though she once said something about returning the history of the human village back after the threat is neutralized, and so from that, she may be capable of hiding history and returning them.
Keine's presumed ability is remarkable, truly fit for her status as the guardian of the human village, after all, why bother defense when you can hide things away so they can no longer be attacked.
… Wait, maybe Keine can hide Marisa and I, making us disappear just like the village history she suggested to have hidden away?
The Anomaly thus far showed that he wouldn't be affected by anything physical, maybe it is time to test whether or not he can resist something mind related.
It is then that I look at both Marisa and Keine, who are both in the distance frozen like everything else in this infinitely 'stretched' one second that only I can perceive.
Perhaps it is a good idea also to bring them in this prolonged eternity of a second. It's not like anything is stopping me, I might tire myself out faster but that is fine too, after all, I plan to not prolong this battle for too long since this is the battle of unstoppable force and immovable objects where no matter how strong I am and how durable I am, I can get shredded if I even make one mistake so it is best to not prolong it.
The more time this battle goes on, the more chances I will make mistakes.
Maybe it is a blessing that the Anomaly attack was very predictable and did not go beyond using dirt and wind, so I can dodge them very easily. But even if it is child's play to me to dodge those unstoppable forces, the fact that I will eventually get tired and make mistakes is still inevitable. In a normal situation, I might be able to replenish my stamina by simply stopping the time of the world and rest in it, but this situation is anything but normal so I don't know how long I can keep going.
Thinking such, I reached my arms out to both Marisa and Keine, who both were in the distance, then began to manipulate the time of their bodies and thoughts to the extreme.
It is not until I finish accelerating both their body and mind that they come to sense in this world of gray.
After being pulled to the world I 'perceive' as reality, both looked around in confusion, surprise, and contemplation. It also seems that Marisa is the only one who knows what pulled them into this abnormal silent world where wind was too slow to make even a sound.
"This is ya doing ain't it, Sakuya?" Marisa broke the silence with a question that she knew to be right but she asked anyway for confirmation.
Knowing that it would be rude to leave her without answering her, I answered, "That is correct," I nodded and said, "I accelerated both your mental processing speed and also your physical body."
Impressed, Keine spoke up, "You are actually capable of manipulating time… It's hard to believe, but I'm glad to have you on my side."
"As long as you didn't put m'lady to harm, I wouldn't be your enemy," that is what I respond to Keine.
After that response, Marisa spoke up, "Hey Sakuya, does this mean that I can stack a bunch of lasers and bomb at the white hair guy like you with your knives?"
I can see in her eyes that she wants revenge against the white hair guy for what he did to Reimu, I know how she feels but I shut her desire for revenge down with my words of reason, "It's possible to do that, yes. However, it is best to not do that as it would be a waste of resources and magical power, after all, the Anomaly is shown to have an impenetrable defense. It is best to discard firepower and use something else. For example, blinding the Anomaly would be a better use of your spiritual energy than wasting them to create a big laser that wouldn't do anything against the Anomaly except blinding him anyway."
Hearing that, Marisa clicks her tongue and playfully remarks, "Ya got a point-ze... But really, I want to blast the annoyin' white hair guy with the [six-fold Master Spark] or somethin'! Meh, it's not like I have the energy to burst my spiritual reserves big enough for [Master Spark] more than 3 times now anyway…"
I nodded at Marisa and began to say with my face straight, "Glad that you concur, Marisa. Now, let's move on to the importance. I pull you both into this state so that we can have time to discuss our onward action and perhaps even execute it. I believe that conversing in the midst of battle is a bad idea, thus why I bring you two here so that our conversation will only last for only a second."
Keine, who was silently listening, spoke up after I finished, "I see… I do have a question. How long can you keep us… like this?"
"It is a valid concern, however, it is unnecessary as I can keep it up all day."
It is then that Marisa slid herself into the conversation and said, "We got a lot of time then," after she said that, her face turned a little grim, "Now what-daze? Reimu got thrown to the underworld somewhere. My Master Sparks didn't work. Keine's spell card doesn't seem to hurt him either. Ya [Sakuya] threw a bunch of knives yourself, so ya probably know how durable he is. At this rate, we will only be stallin' time. Do y'all have any plan-ze?"
The playfulness of Marisa that seemed to endure even in the face of crisis was nowhere to be seen. Her sentiment is clear, subduing the Anomaly is akin to an impossible task based on our current understanding of him. It is even more so now when we don't know how to get past the Anomaly unconventional durability, but… "If we can't defeat him, then don't defeat him." That is what I said amidst the silence.
Seemingly confused at my words, Marisa and Keine looked at me uncomprehendingly.
"What do ya mean by we're not gonna defeat him-ze? Are you suggesting we should leave him alone?"
Keine also added her input right at that moment, "He is too dangerous to be allowed to wander around without any safety measures."
Seeing that my previous statement was highly misunderstandable, I reclassify, "You're misunderstood. What I meant is that if we can't defeat him conventionally, why not try to seal him or something similar?"
With a contemplative face, Marisa said, "Ah, that could work-ze. But, the thing is, I don't know how to even seal, ya probably don't know either, Sakuya…" And then Marisa paused and hesitantly tilted her head toward Keine.
Keine shook her head as if saying nonverbally that 'I cannot seal things either.'
Dejected, Marisa continued, "... Keine cannot do that either. The only one here that can do it is probably Reimu who got thrown to the underworld earlier."
After Marisa said that, like offering a solution, I spoke up, "Perhaps we can bury him deep down into the ground instead? The solution is temporary, however, it can buy us some time for Reimu to come back."
Marisa shook her head, "No, I bury him once with my Master Spark, it will only give him the chance to use the dirt around him even more.
"Might I suggest suspending him in the air instead? Or possibly, throwing him to space?" Keine offered her idea.
Listening to her idea, Marisa perked up, "Wait wait! Stop right there Keine! Maybe that could work-ze! Some say that there is no air in space! If we throw him up there, maybe he won't be able to come back since he won't have anything to use!"
Hearing such, I mutter confusedly, "There… is no air in space?" Shooking my head, I continue, "That might work. But, how are we going to do such a thing? He can become immovable if he wishes."
It is then that Keine interjects, "That might be true but from what I've observed of him, he needs to consciously try to make himself immovable, so most of the time, he can still be moved by momentum."
After Keine said that, Marisa added, "We can catch him unaware and make him notice too late that he got blasted off to outer space-ze!"
Seeing that their idea is valid, I go along with that idea. But before that, I ask, "But how are we going to accomplish such a thing?"
With such words being spoken, a grueling hour of pure thinking/planning ensues in the span of 1 second that seems everlasting.
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(A/N: Another additional stuff to the chapter that didn't fit in anywhere, so I will put it here.)
Origin
Time.
Fundamentally, time is just something human-constructed.
Time is simply a unit of measurement, and without it, we wouldn't be able to distinguish between yesterday and tomorrow, so from that context, time is just a unit that measures changes. However, from the universe's standpoint, time is an integral part of it just like space. For a space to take form, there must be time. To move in space, time must correspondingly move forward.
How exactly we view 'time' is by comparing our 'clock' — the way how we see changes — to the part of the universe that is always moving forward. By doing that, we were able to perceive the progression of events from the past to the future. So for that, everyone is congruent to 'time' and perceives it as a shared phenomenon. However, things can't be said the same for an existence known as Regulus Corneas.
With his time frozen, it is only him that deviates from the rest who has to follow and share the nature of time. That means that even if his time is stopped, time continues to move on without him.
With him being left behind and only his shadow of the past remaining in the present, he continues to walk on the world in his own little world that didn't follow with the rest, and so he looks down on others and marks himself as someone who stands above everyone else.
This view of his didn't change even in the time when he was about to die beneath the feet of everyone in the world. In fact, this event only invokes the feeling of hatred from Regulus for the world. But disregarding his lingering animosity, his soul began to descend towards the direction of the world, or Od Laguna, anyway without his consent in order to put him through the cycle of reincarnation.
However, even the world itself didn't have the will of its own denied Regulus Corneas' very soul. This is mostly due to Regulus having the very thing that contradicts the world, the witch factor, and thus the world denies him. And it is not until afterward when he got rejected by the world, that his witch factor of greed transferred to Natsuki Subaru, who had killed him.
With him not having anywhere to go, he floats endlessly in a place that exists not in the world, but between it.
With his consciousness not being cleansed by the Corridor of Memories, Regulus remains as himself as he curses the world to burn in the void without end.
In that void that does not align with any world, the formless soul of Regulus floats on endlessly for an undetermined amount of time, and during those times that are long overdone, Regulus who has been expressing his desire (complaints) for eon finally undergoes a qualitative change in one moment of infinite as one of the fundamental and interconnected aspects of one of the countless worlds that have Regulus in between gives him an ability.
An ability is something that is uncommonly manifest in people given that their desire is strong enough. For example; Sakuya, with her pure desire to be 'on time' for her mistress, developed an ability to manipulate time, Reimu, due to her desire to 'float' through life without worry, developed an ability to float, and it is the same case for the young Kosuzu, her pure desire to decipher books, give her the ability to do just that.
Ability connected to people's desire, and so Regulus developed an 'ability' that derived from his sheer greedy desire of wanting to stay in his own little world where he had everything.
And perhaps due to the witch factor, which had previously been shaping Regulus' soul for hundreds of years for its commendation, had disappeared, the 'ability' that developed in Regulus' soul after, like to fill in that commendation, developed into a similar ability to that of Regulus' own Authority of Greed.
And so, Regulus' time once again freezes, and afterward, his strong desire quickly anchors his soul to the forgotten land, dragging him into it, making him become a ghost, an existence that can be described as the soul of dead human whose desire bound themself to the physical world too strongly.
With him descending into the world with his time already being frozen, it prevented his presence from adding to the memory layer of the world, and only Regulus' action can be projected outward.
Normally, when Regulus freezes his time, his clock — his progression — would be frozen and disconnected from the universe's progression, which when that happened, his 'time' still exists somewhere, after all, he merely halted them.
However, this time on the other hand is different. This time his 'clock' simply not only disconnected but there is none to exist since when he arrived into the world, his 'memory' — his record of progress — never actually being built up.
To make it easier to understand, let's imagine time — the order and progression of events in the whole universe — as a straight-flowing river, past to future. Freezing your time — your clock — means leaving that river so that you'll not continue flowing forward, however, even if you had left the river, the water trail you made in the past still remains. But, what if you walk away from the river you just came out of and walk to another river but not jump into it? Of course, that would mean that there wouldn't be any trail of you in that new river.
Without any metaphor, it means that Regulus' presence is not in the new river of time — since he did not jump into it yet — and the only trace of his presence is in the previous river of time that he was in before. So essentially, Regulus coincidentally became an existence that is outside of the world flow of time and exists in another, which subsequently made him become a bridge that connected the two dimensions.
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A/N: My time in Physics class was well spent. I also acquired the skill "bullshit spiller". But seriously though, I hadn't planned to make Regulus this overpowered, but it couldn't be helped really… Well, unless you want to read a story that ends with Regulus dying anticlimactically the moment he meets Sakuya.
