Chapter 701: Things Fall Apart [Pt 1]

One second.

Five seconds.

Ten seconds... and then one minute.

"What's going on? Where's Neron?" I found myself blurting out.

Timeless World was supposed to take a mere instance for us, so it was surprising to notice how a minute passed without any sign of Neron.

'What's happening?' A dark thought crept into my mind, but I didn't want to imagine it until it was the only choice left.

'Is Neron messing with us? No... he wouldn't do that at this point. Then, where is he?' I ran many simulations in my head, wondering what could have happened.

Did he undo Timeless World for some reason? Did he have to interact with something? But, even if it were the latter, only he and that thing would be moving out of time.

'T-then... are we also in Timeless World?' I doubted it, considering the clouds were moving, and everything seemed normal.

Neron had shown me what it felt like in Timeless World before, and it definitely did not feel like this. Time was running its course... I could see that—or rather, sense it.

"Jared... I've lost contact with Neron." Serah suddenly interrupted my thoughts with more bad news.

I felt a twitch inside of me, and I checked my connection with Neron... just to be certain.

'H-he's gone...' My eyes widened in surprise.

No matter where Neron was, our communication connection still had to be intact. This stability made it a reliable way to at least tell whether Neron was around or not. However—

"I can't connect with him at all!"

—It was almost as if Neron vanished from this plane of existence.

At the moment, I had two immediate theories. Considering the little amount of time we had to work with, this was the best I could do.

'Neron is either stuck out of time—that is, stuck in Timeless World—or something has happened to him."

Considering the mental elements of Neron, it was highly improbable that he would intentionally do something like this. It had to either be by accident or due to a malicious attack from the enemy.

But that left the question... what or who exactly could have been powerful enough to stop Neron?

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After waiting for five more minutes—mostly thinking and deliberating—I concluded that Neron wasn't coming back. At least, it was better to make our next move with that in mind.

Since it had come to this, we had to make a choice; to either continue the mission or...

"Jared, what will you choose? It's your call." Serah told me with a calm expression on her face.

I knew she was just being composed for the sake of the team, and so that I wouldn't make any biased choices that would cost everyone's safety.

'She's planning to go off on her own if that's what it takes...' There was no way Serah would sit still after this unknown circumstance that had befallen Neron.

The question was, could I do the same?

After contemplating time and time again, I couldn't arrive at any other conclusion. The Nether Cult's headquarters was dangerous, and the enemies were going to be very powerful. With Neron gone, not only did we lose information on the landscape we would be invading, but also about half of our combat potential.

Continuing the mission would be risky—too risky.

Still... STILL...

"We're going to continue with the mission."

... There was no way I could abandon Neron!

Anytime I thought of it, his image would just pop into my mind, and I couldn't stand the thought of it. Was it because of how much I owed him... how much he helped me?

'I was going to die back then... when Kahn had invaded Ainzlark. If it hadn't been for Neron, then—!'

That's right! I couldn't leave him behind.

"I would have said that Serah and I alone, would be going, but frankly we would be at a disadvantage without the help of everyone here. What do you all say?" This time around, the mission was more personal than it was logical.

However, even if it was personal, I had to use my intelligence. We had a better chance of succeeding if we went as a team. Unfortunately, that also meant that if we lost... it would be deadly.

'If the one that got Neron is still out there, it doesn't matter if we attack sparingly. We might as well stick to the original plan and go all-out.'

The choice, however, was up to my teammates.

"Of course, we're doing this!"

"What do you think I trained all that time for?"

"This is the optimal moment, right? The Golden Time!"

It seemed we were all on the same page. Thank goodness.

"Alright, guys... I hear you. Let's get ready to go."

We didn't have the privilege of information any longer, and Neron was no longer on our team. The probability of success had just reduced drastically. Still, it hadn't dropped to zero.

And also—it was just a gut feeling, but—I knew wherever he was, Neron wasn't going to allow himself to remain there forever.

'He's going to find his own way out... and we'll be there, waiting for him when he does!'

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With everyone ready for the teleportation, I steadied my breathing and used [Strength] to enhance my abilities. In case we met any danger, it was best to be prepared—though we also had to be lowkey so as not to be too forceful.

There had to be some room for stealth.

'The First Seat will probably see it coming, though.'

In any case... we only had one shot at this. And it was NOW!

>VWUUUUUUUSSSSSHHHHHHHH<

The portal appeared, and we all warped away from the Eastern Kingdom plains. Whatever we would find there... whatever we wouldn't... we could only hope for the best... and prepare for the worst.

>SHWWWUUUUUUUSSSHHHHH!!!!<

Space undulated, and we were soon going to appear at our destination. However, something odd began to occur.

>ZZZZTTTTZZZZZZZ<

The blue energy became bloated and began spasming and retracting as though it was being affected by a strange phenomenon.

"W-what?!"

>BZZZTTTZZZZZ<

This glitch had never occurred mid-travel before, and as I tried to wrap my head around this occurrence, the most devastating thing occurred.

"H-huh?!"

I found myself all alone! None of the other members were with me. Only I was surrounded by the blue energy!

However, before I could even scream, I found myself at the destination I preset... the Nether Cult's Island. It was shaped weirdly, and the white-coloured beach was different from what I expected, but that was hardly my concern.

"Everyone... where's everyone!"

I looked around me, and spread my senses as far as I could... but I couldn't sense them.

'Damnit! What happened back there? Why did we get separated? How?!'

It seemed like interference Magic of some kind. Was it the enemy? Did they know we were going to appear at exactly that destination? How could they have predicted so far and interfered with the teleportation?

'The only other possibility is that someone in our team did it, but... that's not possible. The mental elements don't add up.'

I was left confused, but confusion was going to get me nowhere.

'This is a big island—bigger than my senses can decipher. I'll just have to scout the area and hope that I come upon any other member. Or better yet, I'll keep a lookout for all of them.'

'You guys had better be safe! I'm coming for you all!'

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[A/N]

It's funny how the 'perfect plan' keeps falling apart.