"Ren, did you get the information?" Aron asked, glancing at Ren, who was intently observing the mental prison's containment field.
Ren didn't look away from the shimmering barrier. His eyes traced the patterns of energy flickering across its surface, reading the data embedded in its light.
"Of course I did," Ren replied, his tone calm but focused. "And one of their members' goals is to create the perfect timeline for every person and Pokémon. Looks like he's going to be troublesome too."
Before Aron could respond, Alied's Pokédex buzzed sharply. He pulled it from his pocket and glanced at the screen. A message from Theo.
Alied answered with a hint of irritation. "Hey, Theo. Weren't you the one who said you wanted to come here? Why are you calling me again?"
Theo's voice came through, tense and urgent. "I found something strange."
Alied's expression shifted to confusion. "Strange? What do you mean? We're in the middle of preparations."
"I just rechecked the location data," Theo explained. "It changed again."
Alied's eyes widened. "What?! Changed again? How is that possible?"
"I don't know," Theo admitted. "I'm waiting for updated data from the academy, but it's taking a long time. I might be late getting there."
Alied let out a frustrated breath. "Fine. Just get here as soon as you can."
He ended the call and slipped the Pokédex back into his pocket, then turned to face the others. His expression was grim.
"Alright, everyone. We're in an emergency situation now. It looks like Theo's team won't be arriving anytime soon. So if something happens… we'll have to stall for time."
He glanced over at Azure, who was studying a holographic display. "Oh, and Azure—can you use your ability to detect the latest changes?"
Azure groaned, rubbing his temples. "Oh, come on… Why did it have to change again? It was only a few hours ago that it shifted last time."
Xian clapped Azure on the shoulder, offering a lopsided grin. "I know your ability depends on location and target. You must be exhausted with all these constant changes."
Azure shot him a sharp look. "You clearly have no idea. When the location changes, I have to build an entirely new model. And do you think it's that easy to create a functional model from scratch?"
Xian's grin didn't waver. "But you *can* do it, right?"
Azure stared at him for a long moment, realizing that arguing would only waste more time. With a sigh, he waved his hand over the table. Light coalesced, forming a detailed three-dimensional map that floated above the surface.
"Fine. This is our location—Ariestal City."
Devon leaned in, studying the map intently. His brow furrowed as something caught his attention.
"Wait a second," he said slowly. "This city wasn't this close to the coastline before. And… it looks way larger than I remember. Last I checked, there were only 25 zones. But now there are 43?"
Azure zoomed in on the map, highlighting the expanded areas. "It seems they've already used Alcrypna to merge this world with another."
Xian crossed his arms, his expression troubled. "Merging timelines? That shouldn't change the city's geography like this. At most, it should have been affected by a Rewrite—not a complete structural transformation."
Aron spoke up, his voice measured. "Alcrypna is an artifact shaped like a spear—forged from gold, silver, and multicolored crystals. I've heard rumors that it's actually part of a set along with the Nexus Sapphire and other crystal relics. But I never knew for certain if that was true or not."
Alied nodded slowly, his gaze fixed on the map. "From what I understand, Alcrypna's abilities include destruction, reconstruction, spatial-temporal manipulation, and many others. I'm certain they used it on one timeline—overwriting it with our timeline and another one."
---
Meanwhile, Allen, Vera, and Roxanne were walking through the streets of Ariestal City.
The evening air was cool against their skin, carrying the distant sound of music from a nearby café. The sky had deepened to a rich indigo, scattered with early stars.
Roxanne walked beside Vera, her head tilted curiously. "Oh, hey, Vera—why are we still wearing our academy uniforms? Isn't this a bit… conspicuous?"
Vera didn't break stride. Her expression remained composed, almost clinical. "It's a tactical decision. We *are* academy students. That means we'll be permitted to conduct a study visit at the museum. This is the safest way in."
Roxanne considered this, then nodded. "Oh, that makes sense." She fell silent for a moment, then her eyes lit up as another thought struck her. "Oh! Hey, Allen—I just realized something."
Allen—who had been quietly walking on Vera's other side, her green wolf-cut hair swaying with each step—glanced over. "What is it?"
Roxanne tilted her head, genuinely curious. "Why do you go by 'Allen'? Wouldn't 'Ellen' suit you better?"
Allen was silent for a moment. Her expression flickered—something unreadable passing behind her blue-green eyes. Then she shrugged.
"To be honest, I don't really know. But maybe… in the world before the Rewrite, I wanted to be male."
Roxanne blinked. "Can that even happen?"
Allen's lips twitched into a small, wry smile. "But if you prefer… you can call me Ellen."
Roxanne's face broke into a bright, genuine smile. "Alright then! Let's go sightseeing, Ellen!"
Beside them, Vera shuddered involuntarily. A chill ran down her spine. She hadn't expected the artifact's effects to reach this far—to alter even something as fundamental as identity.
She turned to Ellen, her voice low. "Hey, Ellen. Don't you have access to a lot of information? Do you know how that artifact actually works?"
Ellen adjusted the strap of her black briefcase, thinking carefully before she spoke. "If I remember correctly from the books I've read… the artifact technically has no limits when it comes to merging timelines. But the consequence is that everything gets merged—all events, all histories, all possibilities. What happened here is that Lord Alvion merged two timelines in order to obtain the painting. But…" She paused, her expression darkening. "We don't know how vast this world truly is. We don't know how many possibilities can exist. There's a third timeline now. It seems we're trapped in our fate."
Vera's eyes narrowed. "What do you mean—trapped in our fate?"
Ellen continued, her voice quiet but steady. "You see, Lord Alvion used the artifact to merge two timelines. But he also used gravity-based abilities to unite two different times simultaneously. And another timeline was pulled in—one that should have been destroyed."
Vera shook her head. "But that timeline was already erased. It doesn't exist anymore."
Ellen gave her a pitying look. "You're still very naive, aren't you, Vera? You don't seem to understand—as long as something has possibility, anything can happen. Even a supposedly destroyed timeline can still merge. I don't know how it connected. This plan had been in preparation for so long. But… Espers can never escape their fate. Lord Alvion knew this would happen. He knew it all along. Yet he still went through with it." Her voice dropped to a near-whisper. "It seems he really is selfish."
Vera said nothing. She simply walked on, her crimson reflection glancing off the darkening windows of Ariestal City, the weight of Ellen's words settling deep in her chest.