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Chapter Text

Undertale.

Fate/Grand Order.

"Fate/Scarlet Order"

Chapter 1.

"My name is Frisk Dreemurr"

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[Entry number 18]

Rules have Changed...

I'm unsure if I've made the right choice.

Neither how far this new partnership with my collaborator will go.

Have I made a mistake... ? no.

Even with all her power, and after the catastrophic consequences the X-Event had on the entire multiverse as a whole... from a certain point of view, she is predictable.

As long as she is entertained, I can safely say that neither the integrity of my new world, nor mine are in danger.

But I can't say the same about everything I've seen; now that the "Anomaly" has taken over the fundamental laws of this timeline.

They say that life is all about choices; I remember my father, Semi, used to compare them with "Doors" and "Paths"; every day we close doors, windows, and walk a road, whether we decide to act or not.

So its worth asking...

Will this child make the correct choices to save this new world... ?

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-[Prologue: They lived happily ever after]-

"Hmn... how hot..."

Muttered Ritsuka Fujimaru, taking one hand to his forehead in a poor attempt to clean up the leftover sweat, obviously, in vain. After all, with that horrible and overwhelming heat, it would be impossible for him to get some sort of freshness, peace and quietness to deal with this odyssey. If there was something that the youngest child of the Emiya/Tohsaka Marriage hated with his entire heart, was summer; not because he actually disliked the beach, pools or anything of the sort, he just... it was all about the heat.

That damned, stifling heat.

To his side, his older sister, a beautiful girl with orange/reddish colored hair, similar to his father, waved in one of her hands a red fan, Rurika looked at the water bottle hanging from her School bag, denying with her head, her expression changing into one of defeat, at that very moment, as she realized, not even a single drop of water left. Her and her brother drank it all walking to the school... and they hadn't even arrived yet. The small "Grr" she let out like a dog, made him give her a dicreet look.

Both the Fujimaru twins shared the same feeling, sadly.

"Don't you have any leftover money, Ru-nee? we could buy ourselves an ice cream..."

He asked, shrugging while carrying his own, the daughter of Emiya Shirou caressed her chin, deep in thought for a brief moment, before stopping. Rurika took her hand to her jacket's right pocket, searching for her wallet; trying to avoid her little brother's prying gaze, god damn it, fourteen years old and he still behave like a brat... but she wouldn't complain. Rikka searched desperately for some bills or coins in it...

And Ritsuka looked at her with those shiny, puppy-like eyes all the time, all he needed was to start moaning or move his nose to complete the "stray animal" set. Sadly, the only thing he got would be the saddened look from the golden-eyed girl. It felt like a needle, or a blade, perforated his heart at that very moment.

"Sorry, Ri-nii... I'm broke..."

The volleyball player said to the basketball player, Fujimaru brought his hands to his chest in an exaggerated grimace of feigned pain, as if rather than being a member of the baking club, he belonged to the Theater company. All he needed was make a stupid death sound "UGHHH!" and throw himself to the ground, a drop of sweat descended through the girl's cheek at the view... well, at least he didn't make a fool of himself in the middle of the street, it would've been very embarrassing... for both of them.

DAMN IT

Rikka thought at that very moment, no matter how much she wanted to quench that overwhelming thirst she had, they had no other alternative. Both were dying of heat; it wouldn't be an exaggeration if she said her tongue became a damn desert, quite the contrary; she was being sincere. Her own uniform, her jacket, her shirt, her sweater, it all added up to melt her in unison, how did Mom and Dad managed to survive this season in their youth? for all she knew, and had seen in old photos, Mother used to wear a red jacket above her uniform quite often.

That was a question that even nowadays still tormented Fujimaru, for her and her younger brother literally came out walking out of their home, and ended up reaching Homurahara, not walking; but crawling, turned into two human soups.

That's when she saw it.

"Oh? Ri-nii, look at this!"

Her voice took Ritsuka out of his own head, that and the fact that she ended up dragging him by his ear. "A-Aaaagh!" the blue-eyed young man complained due to the strength of her finngers, he almost fell on his back at that very moment, but he didn't do it by miracle. Now what was on that maniac girl's head?, Ritsuka turned around, taking a hand to the ear she pulled, caressing it in an attempt to ease up the pain; he saw it as well.

Hanging on one of the nearby posts, was something as simple as a pamphlet.

"A blood exam?"

"With free ice cream!"

She shouted, pointing to the small letter in the contract. yes, a simple paper offering a box of juice and ice cream in exchange of a blood sample. Who could say no to that? all they had to do was go to the place, but that was the key detail. Ritsuka looked at the hour on his phone; they had to make a choice. Either arrive early that day, or lose thirty to forty minutes searching for the place, and then run towards Homurahara, praying to all the gods past and present they managed to reach the school in time to avoid getting in trouble.

Rikka on the other hand, already had figured it out her priorities. Her beautiful golden eyes turned around to look at her younger brother, clenching her fists as hard as she could as she looked at him as if she was the younger sibling; as if she had seen a toy she wanted, about to go to grab her Mother, Rin's hand, and beg for her to buy it, playing with it until it broke like everything that went through her devious little hands.

"Ru-nee... I don't think its a good idea... I mean, look at that Emblem. Is that a C surrounded by an Olive Wreath? doesn't that look sketchy?"

He pointed out, his finger and attention solely focused on the strange emblem at the bottom of it all. It was some sort of "C" surrounded by an Olive Wreath, like the one the greeks used. The older one of the couple growled slightly, tilting her body slightly to the left, her arms hanging from her shoulders, oh come on, did he have to be so distrustful and doubt everything? not like something bad would happen to him...

After all, she was there to protect him.

"Come on! I'm burning alive wearing this uniform! You're not hot as well? it'll be just five minutes! look, if we do end up late for class, why don't you let me talk to the teacher instead? I can make an excuse and take the blame, what do you think? Hmmm?~"

She asked, with a knowing grimace, Ritsuka rose an eyebrow, part of his will crumbling at that very moment. His sister was a damn troublemaker, which wasn't the same as a bully or something of the sort; out of the two, Rurika had always been the one with the most "open" personality, way more emotive and expressive; not only she had more energy, she had this charm, easy to talk to, and to talk with, but that didn't make her dumb in the slightest, neither stupid, she was very, very smart. No, no, it wasn't the same. But that was the key; Rurika, generally, took advantage of her sibling's introverted personality to drag him anywhere she wanted.

To make him part of all her crazy schemes... but not this time.

No... fate played a trick on both of them that day.

RIIING~

"Ugh, now what?"

The little girl grumbled, crossing her arms, just as she saw her younger brother about to give in to her request, his cell phone vibrated. Ritsuka asked his sister for a moment, and the stupid face he after focusing his eyes on the screen was all she needed to know what the hell had happened. There was only one girl in all of Homurahara, in all of Fuyuki, and in the whole damn world who could make him act like a complete idiot, as if he had nothing inside of that big head of his; he thought not with his brains, but with his heart.

"Oruta-chan..."

"Of course..."

Ritsuka turned around, walking away from his sibling in order to get a tiny bit of privacy. Rurika's annoyed gaze watched as her younger brother walked some five steps away from her, turnign his back on her and all, what could it be so important? way more important than getting some free juice and ice cream? more important than her, his twin sister, his own blood? simple... his freaking childhood friend and the love of his life. Inside his chest; Ritsuka's heart was pounding with the strength and speed of a machine.

Bump, bump, bump it sounded, and the rest of the world stopped existing for him entirely. By his body language, in Rikka's eyes, something very good must've happened to Ritsu. Seriously? would she invite him to hang out again or something? each time Oruta was free, she told him, and nor her, nor auntie Sakura, not even their parents, saw Fujimaru again until seven o'clock, where he ended up arriving with the face of a complete imbecile, smiling like a brain-dead idiot, and wakling as if he was drunk.

If being in love to the core would be considered to be drunk, then yes. Ritsuka Fujimaru Emiya Tohsaka, would be an alcoholic; a LOVE alcoholic, completely fixated and drowned in romance and joy, because of Oruta Shiakaze.

That... was a divergent point in time.

Something that shouldn't happen, yet it did so anyway. Something as simple as one call broke hundreds of thousands of paths that would never be rebuilt again, but not because of destiny itself... rather, because of an omnipotent and omnipresent white-haired girl who did something so simple, so small, so... so harmless, like making sure that earlier in the morning...

"Ru-nee, good news!"

Ritsuka shouted with all his might after ending the call. Rurika rose one of her eyebrows, noticing how the aura surrounding her younger brother had changed entirely. Not only his eyes were shinning with excitement, his cheeks were reddened as well. The fourteen years old squeezed his phone, before shoving it inside his pocket, pointing towards the Academy, they could see the building already, even if it was still a little far away, it wouldn't take them more than fifteen minutes, way less time than going to that clinic and donate some blood like she wanted.

Not only would they arrive at school early, but also...

"Enlighten me Clyde, what did Bonnie say to you that made you so ecstatic?"

"Oruta-chan packed up some extra water bottles! She said it was so hot earlier in the morning, and her mother gave her her allowance yesterday! She said we could eat an ice cream, all of us! together! her treat!"

A civilian packed up extra water bottles, and didn't forget bringing her wallet as she should have...

Rurika Fujimaru's eyes lighted up at that moment. Eh? Oruta would go as far as to buy ice cream for them both? damn, alright; maybe four. Knowing Matthew, she would get jealous and would want to be her who invited Ritsuka and Rurika something fresh, yes; go running towards the school to ease up that horrible heat would be a thousand times better than just staying here, or search up that place in god-knows-where, to donate a blood sample, in exchange of just some ice cream and a juice box.

Yes, yes yes yes, she already made her choice.

"Alright, you convinced me! Come on, let's go!"

The girl screamed, and thus go they did. The Fujimaru twins, born from who a long time ago was Archer: EMIYA Shirou's Master, and the boy who commanded Saber: Artoria Pendragon, broke with their own hands the paths they should've walked by. Just to make sure, as an extra precaution, the white-haired girl snapped her fingers, disintegrating the pamphlet that in so many timelines, had started an unforgettable adventure. Ceroes and Ones devoured the small paper sheet, erasing it from existence, right in front of so many people, men and women who went to work, children who went to school...

Not a single soul questioned it; no one saw that paper sheet vanish... because there had never been one in the first place, not anymore.

Just like that... a small and insignificant choice as simple as satiating the thirst of two teenagers, on a morning of June 2015, completely changed their fate, and the fate of every single person they could've met.

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-[Fragment 1: For the future]-

June 28

Riiiiing~

After hearing the sound of the clock ringing in his ears, Frisk opened up his eyes, closing his eyelids soon after. The boy, at the end of his fourteens, close to reaching fifteen years old, he stood up and stretched his arms, the sun's rays filtering through the curtains, what time would it be? Hmmm... Just as he had guessed, it was seven AM. The now not-so-little ambassador of monsterkind got out of his bed, walking to his closet; filled to the brim with light-blue and purple clothes, as one would assume.

They were his favorite colors after all; one of his signature characteristics.

"Good morning, you little brat"

"Ah..."

Turning around after extending his hand to reach out for a hanger where a purple shirt with blue strips rested, the brunette's eyes clashed with a golden flower looking at him with his classic mean looking face. Flowey the Flower... Asriel Dreemurr had woken up, just like him, the eyes and mouth of the flower had a completely different expression when compared to his happiness, even if he was "Doing his best" to try and recuperate his emotions, at the very least an echo of them; he knew it was useless.

He had no soul after all, but he had lost the war. The only motive as to why he decided to accompany Frisk, was precisely because it was Chara's wish, what she would've wanted. And talking about the Princess of Monsterkind... Flowey frowned slightly, looking at Asgore and Toriel's third child prepare his outfit perfectly, before picking up a shower and some sandals, first thing he would do was taking a shower, then go downstairs and eat something; in fact, Frisk could already hear the steaming kettle in the kitchen.

His small vacations began no more than 3 days ago, even if it was June, it was more than enough for him. A small break not just from school, but from his politic life, which, mind you, was a complete hell of course.

"Let me speak with her. I doubt she'd like to watch you take a shower... isn't that right?"

"Ehehehe~"

Frisk laughed slightly as he nodded; his hand going to his chest, pressing it slightly; a red heart, his soul, came out with a loud "Bing"; not long after, from it, the specter of a beautiful girl with no more than fifteen years, short brown hair, a green sweater with one yellow strip, and brown pants made herself known. Chara Dreemurr, eternally bound to the soul of her partner, crossed her arms. Frisk greeted her with another nod, before vanishing through the door, closing it to leave the brothers alone.

From among all his friends from the Underground, the only one who could see the first fallen, was her brother. It had been... awkward at first, but Frisky truly had a golden soul, after all, he allowed the princess to take over his body at the end of the "True Pacifist Route", after Asriel destroyed the barrier, knowing full well both of them had so much to speak of, and a lot to let out. They both cried their heart out, shouted, screamed, argued, for a long time... after all, both had died because of her.

Asriel openly had told her she would've preferred a friend like Frisk... and even then, not even a single time did Chara felt hate towards the goat boy she had condemned herself. Her, now a specter without a body, him; a soulless flower unable to feel emotions entirely. The result of her actions would haunt them for the rest of eternity, no doubt about that.

But at least... they had something decent to call "future", all thanks to the Eight Fallen.

[Azzy]

"Chara."

The golden flower greeted back, observing the brown-haired, red-eyed girl, who's hands were under her armpits, before his gaze lost itself looking at the rooftop; the first fallen of Mount Ebott floated around her partner's room, followed closely by the flower's gaze, and to think it had been around... five years since the barrier shattered. Frisk now was fourteen, this year not only he would be fifteen, but also the sixth anniversary since they all got their happy ending. Even with all that, the Master of the Timeline, the "World Master", just as he promised her...

Just as he promised them BOTH, and Sans of course... he hadn't touch the Reset Button not a single time. Only doing the occasional saving just in case, but so far, the integration of both races had gone smoothly, kind of. That was something she still couldn't quite believe. After the small fiasco that was their attempt at massacring her village the day Asriel absorbed her soul almost one-hundred years ago, she thought they'd never be forgiven, but her life passed by without pain nor glory, just as her sibling. And it frustrated her, with all her heart.

Flowey, of course, extended himself from his pot, growing closer to his sister's semi-transparent face.

"You look angry, Chara. What's bothering you?"

He asked in a poor attempt to sound worried about her wellbeing, both knew he was lying, but decided to ignore it. The adopted child of the Dreemurr marriage denied with her head, her beautiful, shiny red eyes fixated themselves on the photos hanging from the walls; in them, multiple moments that Frisk had lived with the others the last five years. A photo of everyone together on the beach, with Undyne hitting a Volleyball to Papyrus who had his bulging eyes expression; she hit him right in the skull.

Her Mother, her Father, and Frisk between both of them, holding Flowey's pot; the day the little brown-haired boy, back then just a ten years old, had been officially named as Monsterkind's representative in politic. Then there was that one time where he was playing a guitar, standing above the car of the younger Skeleton Brother; Papyrus and Undyne had painted their faces as if they were Rockstars, meanwhile Mettaton was holding a microphone, part of his head monopolized the camera that day.

Yes, she was angry... but it was due to other motives that, she wasn't that sure if Asriel would be able to understand.

[You wouldn't get it, Asriel. I'm angry... but it's not because Frisk and everyone is happy... ]

She growled, her gaze now focusing on the oldest picture of them all. Both her mother and father still had that old photo they took the day they adopted her; both of them were still children, she was afraid and shy; hiding her face behind that flower bouquet as if they were a shiled instead, they had just started to open up her heart to the Dreemurr Family, meanwhile, Asriel was smiling with his entire heart, happy about having a new best friend; a sister, and someone who would accompany him. Being the son of the King and Queen had given him a solitary life.

That, until she came to brighten the life of not just him; but his parents as well, and in reply, all three of them made Chara feel loved and wanted for the first time ever.

Flowey looked in the same direction, observing that remnant of a time long gone, before his eyebrows rose with sadness, just like her. She didn't need to finish that phrase, because he, despite her not knowing, DID in fact understand her. Its not that they were angry about Frisk doing the right thing, and bringing in a better future for them all, where peace was a reality; where magic and traits were being re-discovered around the entire globe, but... rather...

They were angry about the fact that neither of them could enjoy this eternally happy ending properly.

"There's nothing we can do about it. I know it... and you do so as well"

And that's why she felt guilty. They had died because of her. Her father murdered six innocent children because of her; her family broke in two because of her. The only thing she managed was to destroy the hopes and dreams from everyone beyond repair, and just now, after one-hundred years of suffering, fake promises and of course, innocent blood, things were starting to improve. But there was so much more to do, they passed on the torch to Frisk, and there was nothing they could do to change the past.

At the very least they were together again... despite them being mere echoes, shadows, of what they had been in life.

[That doesn't make it any easier, Asriel... ]

"I know"

He replied, going back to the pot; the door opened up, Frisk came in dressed, his hair still wet. He took his clothes with him into the bathroom so he could dress up right after taking a shower, that smile he had on his face after seeing the duo looking back at him made them both feel a pang of pain, Flowey sighed as he felt the boy's fingers grabbing him, he closed the door just after Chara got out of it, a beautiful gesture, she had to admit, despite the fact that she could now go through walls, Frisk always let her get through the door as if she still had a physical body.

He was too kind for his own good, that was something she would keep repeating him.

The third Dreemurr took the stairs down, the first thing he saw being his Mother's back. Toriel, once the monarch of monsterkind, now nothing but a humble teacher, cooked some pancakes for both her and her only child while humming a sweet melody, the delicious smell by this point already having filled the entire house, after sensing him coming down the stairs so loudly, she couldn't help but smile as her face turned to look at him, the boy's cheeks reddened in joy, his stomach growled as well after seeing the small mountain, crowned by a piece of butter.

"Mom..."

"Good morning, my child."

The greeted each other mutually, Flowey let out a small "HMPH" at the interaction Chara on her end bowed her head slightly to her mother, of course, to Toriel, she was still dead, but despite being a little more than nothing, her royal manners alongside her "good daughter" attitude would always remain as long as she was still herself. Flowey's vines extended themselves from his pot, using them as "arms"; he opened up the cupboards, searching for some cereal and some milk, despite not having a stomach or anything of the sort...

But he had been trying to recuperate his liking for food for at least two years now, so far? not so much luck, but at the very least he had made it an habit. Frisk let his pot in one of the chairs, so he could get closer to his mother and hug her affectively, such showcase of love between a mother and her child triggered mixed expressions in the Dreemurr brothers; Chara averted her eyes from the scene, deciding to "sit", floating on the chair next to Flowey, meanwhile he simply took his tongue out; one of his vines surrounding and squeezing the cereal box, emptying a small portion in a bowl, the other vine, adding up some milk.

After the small hug, Toriel and Frisk each started to help with the table; he brought two vases and a jar with orange juice, meanwhile the goat lady on her end, left her and her son's plate with the mountains of pancakes for both her and Frisk, alongside some honey, the butter melted, extending across the food, giving them an even tastier look than the one they already had. His soul beat with Determination after witnessing the exquisite breakfast; he sank his knife in it, then the fork, preparing himself to eat.

That's when Chara, who had her eyes closed until that moment, opened them.

Ding... dong~

She had a sixt sense for this kind of stuff, and she had been right. Flowey didn't rose his gaze, more interested in enjoying the mixture of cereal and milk he was eating, unlike Frisk and his mother, who interrupted themselves to look at the door, this early in the morning? who could it be? she had taken care of the trash right after waking up, and they had no guests... as far as she knew, that is.

"MAIL!"

Oh, so that's what it was.

The Queen of monsterkind rose from her seat instantly, not before going to the rack and picking up a jacket, maybe it would be just a brief moment, but the cold was almost unbearable this time of the year, all of New Ebott was hit by a heatwave, the Monsters that a long time ago lived in Hotland were the ones who enjoyed themselves the most, meanwhile the former inhabitants of Snowdin even if their lives weren't in any danger, they were obviously struggling, trying to find solace in any shadow and cold place they could find.

When she opened up the door, as one would expect, she found the pink whale in charge of flying and delivering mail across all the town; Wally, despite technology existing and the "Undernet" monsterkind invented becoming quite popular, there were still a lot of people that preferred traditional mail, Toriel being among said people, after all, she had been alive ever since before the war between Humans and Monsters, she was thousands of years old just like her exhusband, Asgore Dreemurr. Technology, for her, was too complicated.

"Good morning your majesty! There's a bunch of letters for you"

Greeted the small creature, his wings moving slightly, the red-eyed monarch tilted her head. Letters? would it be related to her school? or the embassy? whatever the answer was, Toriel had a bad feeling. Flowey stopped eating after seeing the ghost with rosy-cheeks squinting her eyes, completely focused on her mother's back who, educated as she was, thanked the small monster before it flew away, he still had a lot of mail to deliver for both humans and monsters across the entire town.

Toriel was holding quite a bunch of letters, Frisk, who continued eating, rose an eyebrow intrigued as Flowey shoved the spoon inside his mouth. The "homely" vibe vanished instantly, because... somehow, that morning, The princess, the former queen, the ambassador and the flower felt inside their gut that something wasn't right.

One by one, Toriel started to look at the letters, electricity bill, water bill... some ads... and then, eventually, she found the "Holy grail" of sorts.

"Hm? My Child... this letter's for you"

She spoke, quite shocked, because it didn't look like anything one would expect; normally, Frisk received love letters from some admirers, or his fans, both humans and monsters appreciated him for what he represented and what he had done, something he grew accustomed to as time went on, fame went hand in hand with being a hero who saved an entire civilization, and the ultimate proof that pacific coexistence between both races could happen... However...

This wasn't any letter from a girl in love, from an admirer, nor anything related to the school or New Ebott's committee.

Toriel walked to the table, handling over the letter to her young child before sitting once again, trying to eat while she kept looking at the bills, but still paying attention to whatever her son was doing. Frisk opened up his eyelids a little bit, showing his beautiful golden-colored irises, his gaze, distant but by no means less warmth nor caring, this time, was filled with curiosity.

"Chaldea?... What's this about... ?"

He muttered, Chara floated from her chair, her and Flowey both dragged in by the sheer weirdness of it all, ending right behind the ambassador. It was a letter, quite the elegant document, written in print, probably with a typewriter or something like that? Frisk's eyes, Chara's and Flowey's started to read the lines one by one as quickly as they could, each of them changing their expression into something different; Chara's face was filled with hostility, Flowey was confused and annoyed, and lastly, Frisk just closed out his eyes in stoicism.

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Esteemed Frisk Dreemurr, Ambassador of Monsterkind from New Ebott:

In view of your achievements, as well as your position as a cornerstone in the current relationship between monsterkind and humankind, you have been given special consideration in the examination you have recently taken.

After a series of deliberations in view of your extensive and distinguished record, the staff of Finis Chaldea and myself have considered giving you a position as the forty-eighth Master chosen for the next phase of testing that our organization will carry out.

I strongly ask that you see this as an opportunity, not only for yourself, but for us as well. Among our short-term objectives, we seek not only to have a close relationship with you, but also to ensure a prosperous future for the Earth. Therefore, we ask that you please strongly consider our proposal and, if you accept it, contact us as soon as possible.

All expenses (including housing, transportation and food) will not be a problem for any of your family members, as you will be provided with everything you need during the period of your stay at our facilities.

We reiterate our desire for you to be part of our team, so we will be eagerly awaiting your cooperation. If you accept, you only have to come to the address attached in the other document that is included in this letter. Otherwise, ignore what has been explained.

Without anything else to add, I wish the best for you and your loved ones.

Second Director of Finis Chaldea, Olga Marie Asmleit Animusphere

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Toriel observed attentively the notarial letter her child just gave her, rereading the lines over and over again. All her motherly instincts triggered at the same time, alongside her royal instincts and politician instincts from her era, what did she just received? what the hell did she just read... ? Finis Chaldea? Olga Marie... Animusphere?

A drop of sweat descended from her body, losing itself in the fur of the former ruler of monsterkind; completely ignoring that just like her, her daughter caressed her chin with a serious face, Flowey at the same time, while finishing his cereal, just like her... had an even more annoyed face than before. As the former owner of the power to control the fate of this world, he had experienced all kind of situations.

Damn it; he had fought Sans on multiple occasions, stupid smiley trash bag, even nowadays he started at him with a heavy aura, probably, deep inside of him, he still had a sense of Deja vu, so subconsciously he felt that Flowey's presence couldn't mean nothing good. Sans was too smart for his own good, but that wasn't important right now... the main topic right here, right now, was Frisk.

The little ambassador, on his end, observed the other document that came inside the envelop, it was just a simple address... but the problem was that, him at least, couldn't remember the place, which was weird, because he knew his own town. The letter spoke about housing, transport and food... that could only mean that, wherever he had to go, would be far away.

Far, very far away.

"Mom?"

The brunette called out, but Toriel didn't answer him. The Queen had turned her back on the boy, deciding to walk towards the small table where the phone was. As fast as she could, she started dialing a number, but not the one that came with the invitation to participate in Chaldea's experiment, no, of course not. Right now, faced with such a serious matter, what she needed was the presence and views of her colleagues, after all, anything concerning Frisk's future...

Especially in the political or professional sphere... it concerned all of them.

"H-hello?"

Alphys' voice sounded from the other side, trembling as always. The second Royal Scientist adjusted her glasses, in her own home, her girlfriend, Undyne, looked at her from the table, drinking some hot tea, both of them completely ignorant of the serious situation worrying their former queen, and her son. Toriel sighed, it was prudent for her to contact Alphys first, and then would contact the others, while the Goat lady spoke to her former Husband. The dark red eyes of the former guardian of monsterkind were filled with worry and anxiety.

"Alphys, dear... I need you to contact Sans, Papyrus and Mettaton. I'll talk with Asgore. We have... something to talk about"

The teacher replied to the question, instantly the yellow reptile changed her attitude to one of nervousness, how? how, how, how? usually whenever they gathered they received some heavy, important news related to some reunion or choice the council took about Monster Rights, and all that, but nowadays, Frisk should technically be free; it was holiday season. The red-haired captain already knew that look her girlfriend had, understanding that, whatever she was hearing, wasn't anything good.

"Un-Understood, M-my Queen... we'll gather at your home."

Said and done, the two hung up almost at the same time, neither of the two deceased children of the Dreemurr marriage paid attention to Frisk, nor to their mother. Because both the ghost and the flower had their heads occupied with the same matter, wondering exactly the same thing that had disturbed their Mother so much. Finis Chaldea? Olga Marie Animusphere... ? How far would that place have to be to require lodging and food? That only meant that it would be a relatively long time.

The idea, for some reason, inspired enormous discomfort in the rosy-cheeked young woman, who occasionally exchanged discreet glances with the flower that her brother and best friend had become.

[God damn it, Partner... what the hell did you got into?]

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.

When Asgore Dreemurr, the King of Monsterkind ever since the Great war one thousand tree-hundred years ago, received a call from his ex-wife, his soul jumped in excitement inside his chest at the idea of strengthening and tightening their bond even more. It was obvious, but after so many years, he still couldn't forget nor be able to completely discard his feelings for his former lover. Maybe he was being a little selfish because he thought that he still had any chance of being with her? she was still angry at him, furious because of his actions back then.

But all he did, he did so for his people... and to cope with the death of his two children. He still had nightmares with Asriel's bloodied body from time to time; bathed in Chara's blood, arrows, landing on his knees in their garden before turning into dust, unable to say "Mom" and "Dad" properly, tortured by overwhelming pain, before vanishing completely. One hundred and three years... Asriel and Chara had died one hundred and three years ago, and it still hurt as much as it did the first day.

He wanted to be there for her; learn to be better. Not just be a better husband... but also a better father, because he truly saw in that small boy; in Frisk, the same star of hope that his daughter was at one point. These six years had proved him right, he truly was a pure soul with no equal, he had been helping him in all he could in politics, not because of interest... but because it was the right thing to do.

They were still his subjects; and now they had to colaborate together, for the sake of peace, because that's what Chara and Asriel would've wanted, no doubt.

That's why... when Toriel called him telling him a letter from an organization from god-knows-where arrived to her home, wanting to recruit their son, he had a chill running down his spine. There he was, sat; Toriel to his left, Frisk to his right: on the table's left side were the Skeleton Brothers, on the right side, Alphys, Undyne, Mettaton and his cousin Napstablook, the ghost had come because the black-haired robot invited him.

The situation was so serious that not even Sans had said one of his jokes, now when they needed him the most to ease up the overall mood.

"... Animusphere... That surname... "

Spoke the goat man, frowning gently in annoyance but not because of anger; rather, because he could've sworn he had heard that name a long time ago. But they had been trapped in the Underground for so long, so, so very long. Mettaton, who had been searching in his database for around three minutes, plus having connected himself to the internet, denied with his head, before Asgore even had the chance to ask him about it.

"I'm sorry, your Majesty. I haven't found anything searching up "Finis Chaldea" nor "Olga Marie Animusphere" nowhere around the Net."

"Its normal you didn't, dear"

Toriel replied, her hand going to the inside of her jacket, becoming the center of attention. In her hand, one of the multiple books about History that used to be in that section, at the Underground's library. She had already put a small ruler in one of the pages, it was then that Asgore's brain clicked, after his ex-wife opened up the book in one of the multiple sections dedicated to the magic families that, during the war, were fighting against them in favor of Humanity, as one would expect.

The drawing, presumably, was from one of the ancestors of that family from back then.

"The mages of the modern day don't like being remembered, nor known. They prefer anonymity. The Animusphere Family from our time was headed by this man: Aetherius Animusphere. His main interest was the study of astronomy and celestial bodies, that's why his magic was so... peculiar, him and his children were able to mix up the mage of their trait; Perseverance, with their natural talent for Astromancy and predicted the future... although their prophecies weren't one-hundred percent exact"

The Queen explained, well, that solved part of the mystery. Chara, who was floating in the middle of the room, was completely focused on reading about the passages former historians of her people had written regarding the achievements Aetherius and his two children got in their efforts to annihilate monsterkind, losing any semblance of a good mood she had. The war and History weren't her favorite topics whenever she was learning during her first life.

Humanity would be better going extinct.

Sans, now, was the one who added a small grain of sand, no pun intended, winking his right eye socket, keeping his classic smile.

"Well, now we know that a family from mages with over a thousand years of history wants the kid. The real question is... for what?"

"Why couldn't it be a simple Astronomy project, Sans?"

Papyrus spoke, innocent and naive as always. For the love of god, of course not, they were speaking about mages god damn it. Mages smart enough as to not leave any trace of their existence, at least not in normal history books that spoke about the Great War, god knows how did Aetherius and his two children to convince the seven leaders from back then to not mention them, it was weird... but many of the magic families Toriel and Asgore remembered from their youth, before being imprisoned inside Mount Ebott...

Had vanished. One of the two; either they hid themselves, or went extinct. Despite basic magic and the way to use Integrity, Kindness, Perseverance, Patience, Bravery and Justice was common knowledge, all the knowledge that went "even further beyond" had been hid from a vast majority of the population. Undyne denied with her head, her face mixing up fury, rage and frustration.

They had more than enough dealing with those beasts sitting at the highest of the politic sphere in the city, seeing them as less than nothing, and now they wanted to take the kid away from them?

"That's freaking stupid Papyrus! THINK! What else would they want Frisk for if not to corner us?! without him here to speak for us, Asgore has no hope of drawing any sympathy from those snakes!"

"I-I-I d-don't think they could be... cruel enough as to try and make Frisk disappear, U-Undyne..."

Alphys said, attempting to try and ease up her girlfriend's rage, and also try to make her see reason. Well, she had a point; if this was some sort of trap, and Frisk "vanished" from the face of the earth, things would indeed go to hell... for both species, mind you. After all, these last six years, he had been a victim of many kidnaps and/or assassination attempts, from which, miraculously, he always came out unscathed... that's what they believed at least.

Actually, all he did was go back in time using his ability to control the timeline, and save not just his own life, but avoid as many casualties as he could. Determination was quite the strong trait, and very usefil when it came to avoid a damn bomb exploding into your face, killing you and everyone you loved..

"Ohh... w-well... the queen says that... it was a real family... wouldn't that be another reason to trust them?"

Napstablook interjected, slightly in favor of the Letter, in an attempt to ease up the heavy mood with his own opinion. If these "Animusphere" really had been a Family of Magicians back during the Human/Monster War, and now this woman named Olga Marie had contacted them, specifically Frisk, maybe, just maybe, it was because she was being honest.

Asgore asked his ex-wife for the letter, reading it once again, in silence. What intrigued him the most out of all of this, was this so called "exam", but what kind of exam exactly? the King with golden hair looked down; Frisk clearly nervous, his eyes slightly opened, obviously the overall situation making him feel uncomfortable.

"Young one... It says you did an exam. Do you remember having gone through anything recently?"

His voice tone was affectionate and understanding, because he tried to make Frisk feel less guilty and to ease him up, but seeing himself being stared at by everyone in the room, made him tremble. Yes, he might've be fourteen years old so far, and be part of hundreds of events where he had been observed by thousands of people across the entire globe, but not even his Determination could help him get out of this mess. Because it was the first time where "External forces" outside of New Ebott were searching for him, usually, all he had to deal with were... politicians. Human politicians that, sometimes, wanted to take advantage of his age and saw him as a fool.

All so they could take away a little bit of the monster's rights and limit their freedom.

Other times, he had to deal with the stupid yellow press dirtying his or his friends images, making scandals out of small things... but... Mages? get out of town, alone? that was new for him, because generally, Toriel and Asgore came with him, after all, they were still the King and Queen of Monsterkind.

He couldn't think clearly... maybe not him, but Chara could.

[Partner. Didn't you take a Blood Exam three weeks ago?... I recall they were offering some hot chocolate, and cookies to fight off the cold]

Flowey rose an eyebrow form his pot after hearing his sister speak, before turning his gaze towards the little brat. Frisk seemed to "enlighten" himself in realization; she had refreshed his memory. Asgore worried, misinterpreting his expression, mistaking it with fear or something of the sort, he would talk, trying to calm him down, but he was unable to.

Because he got the answer he was looking for.

"Well... around three weeks ago... I recall I had read a pamphlet on the street; they were offering hot chocolate and cookies to anyone who came take a blood exam, do you remember now, Mom? that day I arrived a little late... it was because of that."

He explained, and Toriel's memory clicked as well; she had sent Frisk buy bread that morning, it was meant to be a simple task, a simple trip, but seemingly, it wasn't. And, even now in this situation, she still couldn't believe something as simple as a blood exam would end up causing this whole mess. The only thing Frisk thought of was spoiling Chara a little bit that afternoon, and warm up his own stomach so he could fight off that damn cold.

And now here they were... stuck not in a small problem; but a massive-sized mess.

And, based on that, a new discussion began, with him being the main topic again, but fueling a new problem: he did not measure the danger, sometimes being too innocent even though he wasn't a child anymore.

Asgore argued with Toriel, one of the few times they did so ("You sent him alone? Are you crazy?" "He went to the damn Bakery two streets from here, don't talk me about craziness"). Alphys tried to calm Undyne down, who was already preparing herself to go fetch those people looking for answers ("U-Undyne, please, w-we d-don't even know if they're still there!" "NGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH!").

At least only those two pairs were arguing, the rest was simply trying to joke around ("SANS! do you think they would sent a letter to me as well if I donate some blood?" "We have no blood, Pap" "ah, my bad, Nyeh). And he greatly appreciated it.

Things got to a point where he couldn't stand the bad face Chara was giving him anymore.

What are you looking at?

[I told you the place was weird]

And you wanted the damn chocolate. No matter you look at it, you're the one at fault here.

The former user of Determination snorted as she crossed her arms, a small "Whatever" coming out of her lips as she tried to ignore the fact that, indeed, this was her fault. Yes, in situations like that, the best way to reply to Chara would be with a small touch of meanness. It only worked with him, of course, because she wasn't accustomed to him rising his voice, so each time it happened, it threw her off balance.

With one less problem to worry about, he simply took his hand to his temples. It was the first time he went blindly. To treat with people, Mother was helpful because of her kindness. To treat with politicians, Asgore helped with the over one-thousand years of experience he had, no matter the era; they were still the same scum they'd always been. To treat with scientists? Sans and Alphys were always by his side.

He hadn't faced the unknown ever since he fell into the Underground and, even then, he trusted Monsterkind because they weren't as bad as the stories used to tell. Now, Frisk had a feeling of uncertainty in his stomach, extending itself through his entire body, and throat.

Whatever it was, now he had to face it off alone. Face it; be a "man", make a choice, here and now.

But how can you make a choice when facing the unknown?

He thought with some apprehension, scratching his neck. His sweater began to itch, damn it, he would accept help from anyone right now...

...

There was a saying out there. "Be careful who you ask for help." You never know who might answer your call. Sometimes it might be an "angel," other times a "tender red-eyed devil," or an "innocent flower." But almost everytime, everytime, the one who answered your call was...

KNOCK KNOCK

The Devil.

They all shut their mouths at that moment, turning their heads robotically to the door, no more than fifteen steps away from the table.

Knock Knock

It sounded again. The monsters looked at each other, exchanging glances, who was missing? was it another guess? They were full... right? Asgore looked at Toriel and she looked back at her ex-husband.

"You called someone?"

"I was just going to ask you the same thing"

Knock Knock

The boy with closed eyelids moved himself in his chair, uncomfortable. Flowey extended his stem, rising himself above the human's head, looking at the door.

Chara floated, trying to get closer to it, all she had to do was go through it and see what was behind it. She kept going for a good couple of meters, but stopping abruptly.

The ghost girl frowned, trying to advance, but finding herself unable to.

[I can't move myself]

Knock Knock

The younger skeleton looked at his older brother. Sans' smile reduced its size. A small drop of sweat fell through Papyrus' "forehead".

"Um, Sans. You're not hitting the table, right...?"

"Nope, not me..."

Knock Knock

"... Can someone open the door already? Its getting on my nerves..."

Toriel laughed nervously at Mettaton's comment, letting out a small "I'm sorry" after shouting "Coming!" while she stood up, trying to answer the call and open up the door. While her mother was doing that, Chara floated back to Frisk, her scarlet-colored gaze completely focused on the door.

Strange... really strange.

"Hmngh... alright!"

The one who was once the prince of monsters grumbled, seeing how his mother was walking too slowly, her legs trembled a little bit, Flowey turned his head around, after seeing Chara freezing herself, that reaction mixed up with everyone's faces AND how slowly his mother was walking, told him and Frisk all they needed to know.

But as one would expect... not even Frisk himself believed Chara would be able to help them in such situation.

"If you want something done right, just do it yourself!"

The golden flower shouted, no matter how much of a bad feeling this gave him, it didn't matter. Whatever it was, Frisk had already died and returned from all kind of situations by this point. Making a Save Point at least once an hour became an habit to him, one Flowey was truly proud of, it had proven quite useful in avoiding dying horribly over the last six years.

A vine extended itself from his pot, grabbing the door handle before Toriel finally reached it, twisting it almost instantly, not caring at all about the shocked or worried expressions his parents and everyone else had. Some tears escaped from Napstablook’s eyes due to nervousness, that fearful "Ohhh..." he let out gave the overall situation a more eerie vibe.

Cliiink~

Chara Dreemurr's kept her expression being the first one in crossing eyes with the man who had interrupted her family's reunion so abruptly. Was he able to see her... ? no, he couldn't have. But, somehow... someway...

The aura he had... something in him repelled her, taking no more than two steps, his expression of tranquility and frankness changed slightly, as the ruby-eyed girl backed away, returning to Frisk’s side a second time.

"... Can I come in?"

There was something in his voice, behind that sweet, almost seductive tone, that made them react instantly.

"O-Of course... c-come in..."

Said the queen of monsterkind, grabbing the handle just as Flowey's vine let it go, looking at him. The Flower snorted slightly, turning around to avoid his mother's gaze, if he had arms... more than likely, he would've crossed them in defiance.

.

.

-[Fragment 2: The world, and its mysteries]-

The man got inside the house, his neat, slicked-back crimson hair had a few small sweat drops trapped in it from waiting in such a sunny afternoon.. his eyes were behind a pair of black glasses, but even so, the depth of those purple-colored eyes was more than obvious.

[A Perseverance mage...?]

Muttered the former princess, floating carefully next to Frisk, almost hiding behind him. He looked at her with slight annoyance, really? using him as a shield? its not like he could touch her...

Even if the smile from that mysterious man made her think otherwise.

Can he see you?

[I'm unsure... and that disturbs me]

Oblivious to the interaction between the two fallen, the mysterious man opened up his jacket, taking it off carefully before placing it in one of his arms. The black of his suit accentuated his snowy, almost sickening skin, and it gave him more notoriety among the present figures.

"Mr. and Mrs. Dreemurr, monsters of New Ebott, Mister Ambassador; its a pleasure to meet you. My name is Sarff Hynafol, agent of the Clock Tower, stationed in this city and I have come here to answer all your questions."

He introduced himself, adding a small head bow at the end, everyone had the same expression on their faces: confusion. I'm sorry? Alphys adjusted her glasses slightly, Undyne crossed her arms, in an attempt to contain her anger, a very poor attempt mind you. Papyrus looked at his older brother searching for answers, but Sans, who had lost his pupils, denied moving his head from side to side. Toriel and Asgore looked at each other for a brief moment, despite being divorced ever since the death of their children, they had been a couple for a vast majority of their lives...

So they still had the ability to communicate with their eyes, and knew instantly, that neither of the them had any idea of what the hell that man was talking about. Something he seemed to notice, because his lips curved into a slight smile, one that only Flowey, Sans and Chara seemed to notice. He was pleased with their ignorance.

THAT was good. Very... very good.

"Clock... tower?"

"I don't blame you for your confusion, Your Majesty. After all, after your people were caged inside the mountain, society changed a lot around the entire globe... especially in England"

Said Sarff, who's free hand extended itself towards the only available chair, pulling it outwards so he could sit, letting out a small "Excuse me", discreetly, Sans tried to read that man's face, attempting to decipher his character and what kind of person he was, as he used to do... but there it was, the key detail that he disliked and inspired so much distrust from the comedian...

He couldn't. It was as if this guy... wasn't human; as if he had lost the ability to feel or express emotions entirely. Bare minimum of what any mage that respected himself should dominate, after all. Sarff closed his eyelids for a brief moment, meditating about what should he say, and the topics he would like to discuss. He had been waiting for this moment ever since his superiors assigned him to keep an eye on this child and his family six years ago, this day was inevitable.

"First and foremost... I'll start from the beginning. As I presume it must be part of your history, back then, it took approximately three months to gather all the monsters from planet Earth and transport them to the Ebott Kingdom after we won the war, right?"

It was a rethorical question. By then they had suffered astronomical losses. Yes, two races ruled over earth... ALL earth. After all, the monsters that ended up living in Hotland, a long time ago, used to live in what they called Hawaii, because of its warm weather, alongside deserts. Yes, humanity had unified and put aside their differences... the fact that they had accomplished that in an era prior to technology, united solely because of their hate towards monsterkind and their ability to absorb humans souls to reach divinity...

Was a miracle on its own.

"Well, after the monsters were sealed, a small... part of history was removed from our books. The seven mages had a meeting with the most influential families from all continents from that time. A meeting of considerable proportions; and a consensus was reached: although it was impossible to make magic disappear from the public eye, since the mere fact of being human makes you born with the potential to be a magician... the knowledge of the common civilian could be limited."

"Why?"

Toriel questioned, truly interested in the small tale. The red-haired man, while not openly showing it, was happy. He was waiting for that question, after all, in the old era, there were no secrets for neither of the two races. Precisely because there was no limits on the knowledge humans and monsters were reaching in the magic world as a unified society back then... was why everything went to hell.

"Simple, your majesty. A vast majority of humanity is... lets say... mentally inefficient. After all, we'll never be able to forget the fact that, yes history it is written by winners, but its a well-known fact that even your species doesn't see with good eyes the ability to reach divinity. If it hadn't been for the insatiable curiosity of learning and breaking the limits of the common folk back then, we would've never discovered you were able to absorb souls and reach heaven... then, seven mages after creating the barrier asked themselves a very simple question..."

“How long will it take before another catastrophe occurs?”

He let out, and from a certain point of view, it made sense.

"..."

Sarff basked himself in their silence, before crossing his arms on his lap, his purple eyes shining slightly, scanning everyone, one by one, until his gaze landed on Frisk, who moved in his chair, uncomfortable due to the intensity.

"Tell me, little ambassador. Do you know how many times the Earth was on the brink of destruction?"

"Uh... No... I don't know"

"Calm down, I won't scold you for not knowing the answer. In fact, not even we know how many times the earth has been on the verge of being an inhospitable place... and do please consider; we almost caused it ourselves once or twice... "

The purple-eyed mage moved his hand in the air, as if diminishing the importance of his words, and their fears. It did nothing to calm down those who possessed a bigger knowledge than the rest.

The "boss monsters" adverted their gazes, acknowledging the man's words as truth. When they got out, they had a long and intense "study session" to know what the hell had happened over thirteen hundred years they were out.

The answer wasn't the best: wars, too many. However, they were surprised to learn that the damn electricity was functional for humans less than one hundred and fifty years ago.

From there, things went upwards. Maybe too much. Humans went as far as to reach the moon with their knowledge, but they did a lot of harm as well.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki would be the first thought you'd had, going to the Tsar's Bomb. Human's potential was different from monsters; theirs was innate, covering many places and areas... meanwhile, humans seemed to have evolved to specially to kill.

"... You feared us?"

"At first we did, but after casting the Barrier, they thought no one would be so..."

"Naïve?"

"Naïve is... way too light... I would say, more or less; they thought no one would be stupid enough as to try and course through the barrier that was put there in the first place to make sure nothing bad could happen."

[HEY!]

Frisk frowned in pain, Chara's scream ringing right in his ear for she was still behind him. That wasn't very nice, because that comment referred to him and the seven children who fell into the Underground before him, but that didn't mean his words weren't the truth:

Only someone too innocent or a complete imbecile would make that choice; especially considering that to get in you'd have to survive a fifteen-meter fall. The fact that Chara didn't die and only broke her leg due to the lack of a massive-sized flower bed was stroke of luck.

"I shall continue: After the sealing, they thought that with the monsters out of the picture, all humanity would have to worry about would be a crazy emperor wanting to conquer one half of the planet, for example. So they put their efforts into something else... the creation of a system to avoid world-ending calamities."

He finished, but instead of clarifying the situation, it made everything more confusing and intriguing. Alphys rose an eyebrow, a drop of sweat descending through her yellowish skin as Napstablook looked at his cousing, searching for answers, but obviously, not even Mettaton with his advanced processing system could give him one. Sans, despite his passive and imperturbable appearance, tried to make sense of what he just heard, sadly being unsucsessful. Flowey, noticing the silence that Sarff's revelation brought, snorted, clearly annoyed.

Both him and Undyne were in similar situations; patience wasn't one of their virtues, much less their trait.

"I don't know if you're expecting any of us having an idea of what the hell you're talking about. Let's recap: Monsters have just been sealed Underground, and now humanity fears another event that threatens the earth, like one of us reaching godhood. Explain yourself, piece of garbage!"

He shouted, hitting him with one of his vines, Sarff let the vine itself dirty his shirt slightly, not giving much of a care, he didn't even looked at the soulless creature. Toriel, obviously, reprimanded her son's "Familiar", demanding for him to apologize, while she herself apologized to Sarff because of his actions... but, from a certain point of view, he was right. The mage, without a care, took his gloved hand to the dirt-covered zone, patting it slightly to remove as much of it as he could.

Well, that confirmed him that this strange... creature the Ambassador had a contract with, didn't had the slightest idea of how to respect a superior, nor anyone for that matter.

"Very well. I will put it in the most simplified terms so that even a baby can understand, after all, your knowledge is thirteen hundred years behind..."

She growled, shoving his arm inside his jacket, and pulling out seven small chips from it. "Oh my!~" the blackhaired robot let out, the eyes of the king and queen of Monsterkind changed into a gaze of nostalgia; those seven chips had painted on them exact replicas of the seven leaders that participated in the creation of the barrier on 700 AD. Argus Sandoval(Determination), his wife; Rita Hilacy(Patience), Edward Halloway(Bravery), Raymond Otrium(Integrity), Irina Keypril(Kindness), Maybel Dorium(Justice) and Grace Talaz(Perseverance).

Sarff's index finger rested over the chip where the eternally serious face of Grace was, demanding the attention of everyone around him.

"Yes, as I've mentioned, we feared you. A monster that absorbed seven human souls would reach godhood; heaven. So it was lady Grace who during humanity's first and last council of humanity, once the monsters were sealed, that make a proposal that would change our history."

“Why don't we fight fire with fire? why couldn't we reach godhood as well?”

[But they'd never be able to...]

The brunette mentioned, just like a monster could absorb a human's soul, humans should be able to absorb monster souls... but they shattered at the same time their bodies turned into dust, due to how synchronized they were. Not only they were sealed underground back then, but even if they were at the surface, there was no such spell nor any sort of technique that would allow a human to absorb their souls or bodies.

Not even in the modern era.

"But... our souls and our bodies are intertwined... "

"Exactly. To absorb the soul of a monster is impossible due to your bodies being magical, not physical like ours; who endure inside our souls as consciousness even after our bodies die. Even with drastically different magic families from all type of cultures and different ways to employ magic reunited at Ebott for the first and last time in our history, we as humanity were never able to find the solution Grace was looking for so we could reach heaven and attain godhood... at least, not until around one-hundred and fifty years later."

Once again he went silent, shoving his hands inside his jacket one last time, only pulling three chips, rather than seven. Papyrus, who was caressing his chin, recalled his history classes from when he and Sans had arrived to Snowdin so long ago, yes, he remembered this part from when they used to talk about the mages that ruined his people's efforts the most when it came to winning the war.

That man with blue hair, that woman with such red, deep eyes like jewels, white hair like snow, and lastly, that man with long, black hair without a doubt were--

"O-o-oh! T-these are.. descendants of the Tohsaka, Einzbern and Makiri lineages! isn't that... r-right?"

"Correct"

The redhaired man smiled softly as he nodded slightly, humming while searching the correct words to explain what came next.

"To create the barrier, the power of the seven mages was required. They had to be concentrated in their spell casting, but they required some external help as well. They asked for it to anyone who could, yet the only ones who answered their call were these three families. The Makiris. The Tohsakas. And the Enizberns. In gratitude, Grace gave them a copy of the ritual they had planned to try and scratch godhood with their fingertips, in hope it would help them achieve it."

"Wait, you're telling me they entrusted such an important investigation to a group of foreigners?"

"Of course. Knowledge, no matter how cursed it is, exists to be shared. Its not meant to be kept in a basement, you know?"

He gladly ignored the gaze the Oldest Skeleton brother gave him, rising his hands to receive the small cup of coffee Toriel offered him, at the same time a small "thank you" escaped his lips.

Sans maintained his gaze on the mage. Sarff's eyelids were closed, but even so, he could still feel the overwhelming power emanating from his soul... and how, seemingly, his attention was focused on him.

Even with his eyes closed, the mysterious guest let out a small sigh, before opening them, and looking at the small scientist with slight boredom, and a clear lack of interest.

"If you have any question you'd like to ask, it would be wise to do so"

"... From what they used to teach us when we were kids back at the Underground, there were many, many magic families back then. Even if they all were way weaker than the seven mages who sealed us, strictly speaking, they all would've been more than enough to help the seven."

"Sans, what are you trying to sa—?"

"What I'm trying to say, Kiddo, is that there was no need to contact with foreigners. Magic families were distrustful, the phrase "Knowledge should be shared" only limits to how much you want the rest of the world to know about you. If the seven were planning a way to reach godhood, sharing it wasn't just counterproductive, but a very, very bad idea as well."

"But... why?"

The yellow-eyed teen asked, Undyne was who, after taking a serious posture and having calmed down after analyzing that man's words, replied to him. Perhaps he might've been their ambassador, and their hero... but sometimes, Frisk, despite being on the verge of his fifteens...

Was too naïve.

"Don't be an idiot, Frisk. Think about it... they died leaving their legacy behind to three families so they find a way to turn humanity into gods precisely because they were afraid that we were capable of doing it."

Asgore scratched his beard, the pieces were already starting to fit, way easier than one would've expected, Chara and Flowey looked at each other discreetly, they were the first in realize the meaning behind those words.

"But... there was no guarantee to Argus or the other six that their investigations to be used to help humankind... they could've easily end up creating an "invincible, divine tyrant" thousands of years later, who would enslave or destroy planet earth... that's why they sealed us into Mount Ebott; so the Seven Mages made a bet with fate itself."

"At the end of the day, it was both an insurance, and an hypothesis. The investigation came to a dead end by the time they left it, because sacrificing seven souls so just one could become a god didn't sound good in theory. And, believe me, neither of them wanted to try and make human experiments back then."

The redhaired man commented, without a care in the world, leaving the empty cup on the table in front of him. His purple eyes shone slightly.

"Of course, you were capable of it, but at the same time, they had to be capable mentally to endure all the pressure that came with wielding so many different souls."

"This is the moment where we dive into speculations?"

Sans asked, and Sarff smiled at him.

"Indeed, my dear skeletical friend. You see, it has been known for centuries that Determination Souls are strong enough to overshadow the other six traits, which is why they are so rare. Hypothetically speaking, if a Monster was able to endure a Determination soul, it would also be able to endure the rest and, consequently, become a God."

"But, why monsters and not humans?"

"Little ambassador, you have to understand something: Monsters are magic in a physical state. You store magic, but you're not made of it. Hypothetically speaking; if humans could absorb souls, and did so without the ritual the Mages were developing, you would die."

Sarff answered to the boy, Alphys adjusted her glasses, well, that was public knowledge more or less. The monsters had a greater magic potential after all; that's what they were. Magic.

It was both ironic, and curious... Human bodies limited their potential, but at the same time, their physical form was a perk, and helped them persist after dying, even if for just a brief moment, meanwhile they had weak souls.

The intense way in which the red-haired looked at the ambassador of monsterkind didn't inspire not the slightest bit of confidence from Chara nor Flowey, because both of them realized, his gaze was focused on his chest.

"... Do you have any idea of how special you are, Frisk Dreemurr?"

"I... "

The World Master replied, not very that sure about the question, it was a rhetorical one. Poor boy... the clock tower mage let out a sigh, this child really needed a good education regarding his own nature... well, it was understandable. If he knew more than the average common folk, all the work they've been doing over thirteen hundred years would've been for nothing.

Sarff pushed Argus' chip slightly towards his direction, demanding for them to focus on it.

"Argus Sandoval. The deceased daughter of the Royal Family. And you. You're the only three determination souls we know of in our entire history as a species interested in knowing our origins, and what came before us."

The brown-haired ghost snorted annoyed at his comment, she had to give him credit where it was due. After all, her soul and Asriel's had shattered a long, long time ago and yet...

Here they were... all thanks to Determination. Her, turned into a ghost for the rest of eternity, or at least until Frisk died of natural causes.

And her brother Asriel, trapped in a plant, unable to feel anything except rage, hate, and maybe sadness on several occasions.

"Even we still have some registers about the day where Asriel Dreemurr came out of the mountain carrying his sister to try and left her body in her village, my most sincere condolences by the way. But that's not important; what's important is... both souls were compatible."

"Wait a second, you mean to tell me—"

"Just like how in the hypothetical case where a human body COULD withstand seven human souls would become a "god", under the right circumstances, an hypothetical monster who was able to endure the Soul of Determination, would be taking the first step into becoming one. And I'm quite sure you people know the reason as to why"

He let out, the way a drop of sweat escaped down Frisk's neck as he looked at Undyne, and the way Sans' face darkened, losing his pupils, while Alphys nervously played with her hands under the table were what gave Sarff the signal to continue. Yes, everyone had an idea, no matter how vague, of how dangerous and powerful the crimson trait was.

"...Determination is, without a doubt, a complete mystery. Its able to wield the other six traits, and we still don't know what it can do on its own. If the little prince was able to endure absorbing the soul of the princess for so long without crumbling or melting, hypothetically speaking, he'd be able to endure absorbing other six souls and reach godhood."

He revealed, causing a shiver in more than one. Asriel... could have become a god if he had been alive? The horror that took over the faces of Toriel and Asgore was unparalleled. Had their little one, that day... taken the first step to become a god? It was that simple?

However, the most affected by that story were Flowey and Chara themselves, the girl clenched her fists angrily.

[This son of a bitch knows something about the final battle we had at the end before Asriel opened up the barrier. I don't know how, but he's making very accurate and precise statements...]

We don't know that!

[With just conjectures he managed to deduce Asriel did became a God. Bite my ass, Frisk; he knows something]

The eight fallen remained in silence due to his small chat with the teenager, a silence Sarff took advantage of.

"Soul-related sorcery is something very unexplored, almost unheard of. Mostly due to the fact that a soul does not last long outside of its body if not contained properly. Memories, power, knowledge, everything is linked to the soul..."

Flowey frowned slightly in a face that, whoever didn't knew him well enough, would assume it was due to anger, but no. He was conflicted. He had to give it to him, he was right on that.

After all; traits came from the Soul. Determination included, but one thing was the magic coming from a trait innate from a soul, and another thing completely different were the souls themselves.

And... if it hadn't been because of him having absorbed all memories and feelings of love, care and friendship at the end of their battle, neither Frisk nor Chara would've been able to beat him. His emotions betrayed him, his feelings... his pain... and all the joy and gratitute the whole Underground felt for their current ambassador during their journey.

Chara, on her end, just smirked. They, despite it all, were one step further from god knows how many hundreds of years of investigation compared with Renown Mages ever since the monsters were sealed on Mount Ebott.

[Change the fate of the world and its people. That's what true Determination can do, isn't that right, Partner?]

"Wow... you really made a lot of discoveries after getting rid of us in order to attain divinity"

Mettaton said, quite amazed, and Sarff nodded slightly, thinking about how should he explain his next topic. Internally, Frisk thanked the Idol of New Ebott for his comment, the less anyone knew about the power to Reset, Save and Load, the better.

Controlling the timeline was an extremely dangerous power; so dangerous he'd rather take it to his grave.

"Although, well, nothing we know could compare with the Sorcery from the Age of Gods."

Said without a care in the world, despite being such a "simplistic" and "harmless" comment, it confused more than one in the room. Undyne tilted her head slightly, had this human actually gone mad... ? No, no. She couldn't judge him, so far, all he had done was sharing a lot of very resumed information of what had happened ever since humanity sealed them Underground... without expecting any sort of compensation.

He trusted them, and at the least she could do... what they all could do, was keep an open mind to him, no matter how ridiculous or complicated it sounded. This reunion also was a step towards a peaceful coexistence.

"Age of Gods?"

Who ended up expressing his curiosity was Papyrus, not before receiving a thumbs up from the former Captain of the Royal guard, at the very least it wouldn't be her who made the most questions tonight.

And surprisingly, the one who would provide him with an answer would be his King; Asgore coughed a little, accommodating himself on the chair, right as his people confused their stares on him.

"Before being Jailed Underground, Argus told me about how mages estimated time. Every civilization had their own unique way to perceive the "calendar", what we currently know as Year "2015 AD" its just an adaptation of the Gregorian Calendar that was stablished by humans as a way to "unify" time for everyone. For mages, time was divided in "Ages", from which we know two: "the Age of Gods" and the "Age of Man". By the time Argus told me this, the Age of Gods was coming to an end, and the Age of man was just starting."

He finished, even if it was just a very brief resume, it was more than enough to make everyone, anyone, understand it. Undyne calmed herself even more, this brought her a lot of nostalgia from back when she was still a girl going to school, and Asgore, from time to time, as he had always done, used to go to the school to share his vast knowledge with the younger generations.

Flowey hunched, moving his head from side to side, bored. Perhaps Asriel might've been "delighted" at the idea of learning more from his Father, but not him.

"That... doesn't explain much"

"That's where I was going to: the Age of Gods is known as such because it was the time where humans and divinity were strongly intertwined. Argus told me it was quite common for gods to mingle among Mortals. That's why it had another name; The Age of heroes and mythology, because during it, many of the iconic characters from different cultures and eras were born."

Frisk's lighted up slightly, oh. He knew this one! the topic quickly caught everyone's attention, in fact, one of the very few things they had told him when he was learning at school had been about the different cultures from the primal civilizations, among them; the Greeks. If what his father was saying was true, then... they weren't "Myths" but history.

And that included one of the greatest heroes of all time...

"Like Heracles?"

The Eight fallen mentioned, and the goat man nodded, his hand extending to his adopted son's head, patting it gently. Toriel, at the same time, took one hand to her chest with pride, seeing that not just her lessons, but the basic education her child had received had been worth it.

"Just like him, yes. Now, he also told me that the quality of sorcery was also noticeably lower. What we nowadays see as something outstanding or out of this world, back then was the minimum one would expect from anyone who traveled the path of sorcery; everyone should be able to."

He finished his small "class" with that phrase, quite the simple terms, simple enough to explain so many things and in such brief time, but time was something they didn't had much of. The meeting on its own was already proving itself to be way more enriching than anticipated. Papyrus closed his eye sockets, already picturing how life back then must've been.

Hell, he wanted to be just like that! A legendary hero! after all, friends and companions was something no true hero lacked in the slightest. Undyne cracked her knuckles, yes she might've loved Anime a lot, but she had to admit that her passion for the so called "Epics" that humans invented was big as well, they spoke of all kinds of legendary figures or heroes... but now she knew... she knew... they weren't tales.

They weren't like Anime... they had been real.

"Color me surprised; you're very well informed, Mister Asgore."

Hynafol couldn't waste the chance to compliment the ruler of Monsterkind. Who simply nodded humbly, quite frankly he wasn't a big fan of compliments, just because of his virtues, it didn't meant he had a big ego or something similar. His gaze, calm, now became one of longing and peace, recalling a time from an era that would never come back, and that sadly, didn't had the happiest ending.

"Argus and me... we were good friends. As a leader, I don't hate him, because he did what he thought was best for his people just like how I committed atrocities for the sake of my own people."

It was something as simple as empathy. No, he didn't hate him as a leader, that would be hypocrite. It would be stupid. Asgore wasn't proud of the fact that his hands were coated in blood; neither of the monsters who survived the era of the war, like old Gerson or his Ex-wife right next to him, were. But it was about survival... and then there were the six children he had killed.

Him and no one else would have to carry that burden. Those deaths weren't something he was proud of, but he did so out of pain. For love towards his people... and because he had seen with his very own eyes how his children were taken away from him in just one day. No, he could never hate Argus, nor humankind for rebelling against them when they discovered monsters could absorb their souls.

It was just life, nature itself... giving everyone a losing hand, and an ability neither human nor monsters asked for in the first place.

"Interesting... anything else you'd like to share?"

"Yes... Actually, yes. You see, Argus explained a few things to me that I see prudent to share with you all, I don't know how much things have changed over One thousand three hundred years, and what is and isn't taboo, but as neither I nor my people are governed by those laws, I'll take this chance to help Mister Sarff in my own way."

The former husband of the Guardian of the Ruisn mentioned, the King extended his right arm towards the perseverance mage, Sarff smiled slightly, nodding as a way to give him his blessing. Its not like he cared that much about being interrupted, in the slightest. He had come here exclusively to give them the information humanity and mage society had. Secrets, taboos, oaths he had made during his whole life...

Here and now, in just one night, he was breaking them all. Not because he wanted to; but because it was his duty. His obligation, and because, for better or for worse, both Frisk and all of them had a big impact and role in both magic and politician aspects of the whole world.

"Go on, Mister Asgore. I encourage you."

Giving him room for talk, the King of monsterkind said a small "thank you" before both arms went to the table, resting his chin on them so he could meditate for a brief moment. This would be a little... complicated, at least normally, when going in depth, but there was no better opportunity than now to speak about it openly, after all, the monsters themselves were trying to integrate into human society.

Now was the perfect moment to talk about the old discoveries his dear friend made so long ago.

"... Well, Argus used to say that in ancient times, existed many fantastic beings; Dragons, Faeries, beasts of all kinds which mages decided to call "Phantasmal Species", entities very sensitive and akin to magic, but very few had the necessary reasoning to be catalogued as "civilized". He shared a theory with me: us, Monsterkind, may originate from a distant branch from Phantasmal Species, which is why we're beings made of magic."

Sans, who had already lost his serious expression after the whole mood changed into something more bearable and friendly, regained his usual smile. His scientist side had come out, even if just slightly, both him and Alphys already finding the perfect comparison between his kind and the humans, so even his brother Papyrus, Frisk, and anyone for that matter, would be able to understand their King.

After all, Undyne was a warrior, not a scholar.

"Something like Darwin's theory?"

He asked, his soul filling itself with pride after he heard Papyrus let out a small "OH!", he understood perfectly what his king meant thanks to him. Clever, very clever. Even Undyne, who was slightly confused, smiled and nodded to herself, Alphys looked at her girlfriend with a loving expression, still a little bit nervous, before looking at Sans, thanking him, who just winked at her.

There was no need to thank him.

"Similar, I'd say. That would explain why we're able to reach "godhood" so easily, because among Phantasmal Species, a lot of them were catalogued as "divine beings". Argus told me that, when the Age of Gods ended around year 0 AD in the Gregorian Calendar, the Phantasmal Species went into hiding "somewhere else". What little bit remained from the old era started to vanish, but some things remained. Among them, what he denominated as "Magic"."

"Magic?"

The little brunette interrupted his fatherly figure, now completely confused. So, if he had understood correctly, magic wasn't just something Magic was not just something intrinsic to human beings with traits, but a remnant? He was right in something. If Monsters indeed were descendants from Phantasmal Species, then that would explain why their bodies and souls were in the perfect harmony to develop a magic potential way beyond the average human.

"Ah, now its my turn. And I'm very thankful, your Majesty. You're going right to where I wanted to arrive. You see, little Ambassador, the Age of Gods might've ended, but many small little things "remained". The techniques we Mages use are called "Sorcery" while the "Magic" is akin to what our sorcery used to be in the old era; similar but not the same."

"Um... I-if its not too much to ask for... C-could you give us an example?"

The current Royal Scientist stammered, clearly afraid of being a bother. Sarff remained in silence, a small "hmmm" coming out of him, it only just worsened and ruined the very few trust Alphys had already, but when he denied her with his head after rising his palm, she calmed down. No, its not that he was denying her request, quite the contrary.

"I can give you many, actually. But first, let me continue: inside our world there's something known as "The Root", where we all come from and where we all return to after dying. From there comes all the knowledge we have. What Mages, sorcerers, call them however you want: want to achieve, is to reach the Root, and the closest way to achieve this, is to get one specific magic. Magics are the pinnacle of sorcerers, but, what differentiates them? quite the easy answer: to make what's impossible, possible"

"H-how s-so?"

The royal scientist insisted, and said question caused that, inside his heart, the very few emotions Sarff still had due to his work, made him feel pleasure; bliss. As if, as they used to say... his soul were dancing inside his chest. Yes, he might've been a Perseverance Soul, but that didn't meant he couldn't feel such basic emotions like pride... or malice.

In this case, Hynafol felt like a winner.

"If I were someone with a lesser rank, I wouldn't know, but lucky for you, I do... how about... I don't know... operating parallel worlds? interesting, isn't it?"

[Oh, god damn it. He KNOWS!]

He let out, and Chara reacted almost instantly. The princess' spectral face shifted rapidly between rage and worry, her voice being heard perfectly by both Frisk, and Flowey. That raised another question; which one of the two had been the one to raise the alarms? Flowey had been controlling the timelines for a long, long time until a few years ago.

Probably he lost his role as "World Master" the moment Frisk was born, and he woke up his trait. He abused his control over time and space way more than the little Ambassador, so much that he had lost count... meanwhile, Frisk at most, had three timelines; three routes, and that's it. He truly didn't want to go back to the Underground, not anymore.

But even so, with all of that in mind... he knew it; Sarff knew.

Don't rush it! It might just be a coincidence!

He replied mentally to the girl with rosy cheeks, in a poor attempt to try and calm her down, he said so more so as a way to try and ease himself, of course... it was in vain either way.

"Now, Magics are something only the highest sorcerers know... and you as well, but lets leave that for later. Their effects are quite interesting, but right now we'll focus on the "Third Magic": a Knowledge that the Einzbern used to have, until they lost it."

"What did it do?"

"Oh, nothing special. Manipulate souls, that's all"

...

Sans' face darkened at that very moment, as a drop of sweat descended through Alphys' cheek. What? did he hear that correctly, or had he finally lost his mind? yes, of course he wasn't insane; he heard that right. Flowey squinted his eyelids.

Well... now things got serious. The princess changed her posture, crossing her arms. This was directly correlated with what had happened to her, or so she believed... and of course, with what happened with Asriel.

You couldn't exist without a soul.

Chara was less than one.

Napstablook, who was a Ghost as well, had also taken the bait. Soul manipulation? that could be related to his kin.

"Oh... then... to Dominate this "Third Magic"... is the first step for humans to ascend to godhood... without the need of absorbing Monster souls?"

"Maybe"

Quite a simple answer. Short. Frank. Concise. After all he had revealed that afternoon, one would expect him to give them a long explanation about it, but just one simple word was more than enough to shock them. Toriel rose an eyebrow, slightly confused. By this point she had been considering this man would be more than enough to satiate all the doubts they had regarding the current state of the Magic World.

And now he just couldn't do it? Why?

"What do you mean "maybe"?"

Sarff, for obvious reasons, expected that question. However the answer he would give them wouldn't be enough to satisfy either of them.

"The knowledge of Third Magic has been lost even before the first millenium AD. The reason as to why the Einzbern, Tohsaka and Makiri helped the Seven Mages in the first place, was because they believed they had found a way to reach the Third Magic."

"And what does it do?"

"In simple terms? It makes you a battery. In complicated terms? After you die, a soul doesn't survive for long unless absorbed or contained. When it cracks; it joins the Root. What the Third Magic does is "anchor" the soul to the Earth, without the need of a physical body, but with all the advantages that come with being an energy entity."

A low, comprehensive "oh" escaped Mettaton's metallic lips. He was born a ghost, but he possessed the robotic body Alphys made for him, so he couldn't help but be tempted at the idea of a so called "Perfect body", of course he would never change his current shape for anything in the world, but the sole idea of achieving such a magnificent...

Magnanimous state...

It was admirable. So that's what true Godhood was? no wonder humans wanted to achieve it so they could secure their existence.

"... Infinite Energy as long as you're alive. A mocking form of divinity, but substantially nothing could harm you due to the lack of a physical body."

"Unable to be harm, become a mega-battery of power, and achieve the impossible? sounds like a god to me"

Sarff shared his own thoughts, and he wasn't the only one with a similar idea. Every human, since learning the existence of the Third magic, thought the same. That's why there were mages who dedicated their entire existence to its study, the dream they've envisioned for so long; the idea the seven mages had during their lifetime, it was a reality. An actual, achievable possibility. Chara, who had been thinking about what she just learned, and searching in her memories for a while now, found what she was looking for.

It all sounded very, very familiar, and she now knew why.

[That... isn't that what happened with you, Azzy... ?]

The princess asked, recalling the final battle, just like Frisk himself, who seemingly sulked down in his chair, not due to shame nor shyness, but because he was thinking about their final battle with the Prince of Monsterkind before he shattered the barrier.

Six years ago, Flowey not only absorbed the six human souls his father collected over the years; but also all the souls in the Underground, thus allowing him to go back into his true form; Asriel Dreemurr.

And nothing they did could truly damage him. He had an indestructible body, and he was going to reset the timeline to stuck them all in an eternal loop, just as he so very wished, so neither him nor Chara would get separated ever again.

Flowey adverted his gaze very slightly to where his sister was floating, and denied her question as discreetly as he could, so they didn't think of him as crazy.

No. Remember Frisk was still able to hit me; I had infinite magic, power, attack and defense, but I also still had a physical form as well

[That means you must've reached some sort of "incomplete" Third Magic]

The second user of determination rationalized, he almost reached and obtained what humans had been looking for so desperately; Him. A Monster. How Ironic, but as a firm believer that her kind had no reason to exist, it made her happy. Chara hated, still hated and would continue hating a big portion of humanity; one thing was accepting that not everyone was evil... and another thing entirely, was accepting they had the right to exist in the first place.

Flowey nodded slightly, completely trapped in Sarff's explanation.

Maybe... lets keep listening...

"Now, turns out that yes, the plans the Seven Mages had were slightly related with the power of the Third Magic, which is why the investigation was left in the Einzbern's hands until year 1790 AD, where the leaders of the three families took the first step towards a ritual that could make possible to reach the Root and "transcend" as human beings, all thanks to the notes and papers left behind by the Perseverance Mage; Grace Talaz."

"You were going to... scarify seven humans?"

The one who asked that question was the King himself, his tone heavy, because he thought of it as hypocrisy. Doble Hypocrisy that is; because precisely due to them being able to turn into gods with seven human souls, was the reason as to why they were sealed Underground, but it was no big deal when the human themselves committed seven murders with the same purpose? What was the logic behind that way of thinking?

The red-haired man looked at the blonde goat, nodding much to Asgore's disbelief, and everyone else that is.

"Yes, but not in the way you think of... "

... Eh? Well, that was a nice way to break tension in mere moments. By the murderous gazes that almost everyone was giving him, one would think that Sarff would be, at the very least, intimidated or self-conscious about what he had just said, but he wasn't at all. Not even a little. Apparently, they had gotten the wrong idea after hearing his words, luckily, right now he could give them the answer they were looking for.

It was a much more... ethical method than they imagined.

"Do you remember when I mentioned the calamities that threatened Earth?"

"Yeah, something like that"

"Well, keep in mind that humans didn't have and they still don't have the capacity to put a stop to them. That's why, Earth has a way to protect itself in case something like that happens."

As quick as they let go off their hostility, they all went back into confusion. Papyrus let out a small, confused "Nyeh?". Was he actually talking about the same earth? the planet earth? Here where they were standing on? Napstablook let out an "Oh...", feeling bad with himself due to his lack of understanding. For a scientist like Alphys, it all sounded way too... crazy, to say the least.

"... The earth... As in... the Planet?"

Mettaton's cousin asked, and Sarff nodded affirmatively. It only confused them much more. Well, what came next would weird them all out even more, but he couldn't neither would blame them. When he was young, he had already experienced his own share of surprises and revelations that changed his perception of the world. He wasn't lying when he said that ever since their imprisonment under Mount Ebott, many things had changed.

Both in the "surface" magic world, and the depth magic world.

"More like its consciousness, yes. Our beautiful world has the ability to be connected to the Root of it all, making possible the "summoning" of human beings who achieved great things through history. These creatures are known as "Servants", and they would be the sacrifice to reach Third Magic."

Undyne's eyes seemed to light up at that very moment. At the same time, Asgore's gaze darkened slightly, because him and the former captain of the Royal Guard had the same idea.

To summon humans from any part of history... that meant... distant past, right... ?

"Included... ?"

"The Seven Mages? yeah. I trust you all here have the necessary education for some names to pop inside your heads right now."

Perseverance looked at the monsters and the young teenager surrounding him, Papyrus smiled, an excited cheerful "Nyeh!" coming out of him, of course! even he could think of some.

He always felt the same admiration for human heroes, just as he admired Undyne and the Royal Guard.

"Of course! Nyeh hehehehe! Heracles, Odysseus, Jason, you humans have a vast quantity of heroic figures across all your countries"

"heh, slow down your train, Pap."

Sans interjected for his younger brother, before pointing at Undyne with his finger. The blue-skinned amphibian had fiery eyes due to the adrenaline and energy coursing through her soul, Mettaton let out a small "Oh my~" one last time, now the conversation had turned into something she actually liked and was truly, truly interested in, she was "hooked" as the Ketchup loving Comedian would say.

"U-Undyne... a-are you ok?"

"You tellin' me there is a slim chance of facing them?"

"Fight them? yeah Defeat them? I doubt it, but I'll give you some points for your initiative, miss Undyne. I mean, there are legends about a guy with a Red Spear that was enchanted to ALWAYS stab his opponent right in their heart, so... your winning chances are quite slim"

Feeling underestimated, Undyne let out a small "Hmph" just as Alphys let out a small, horrified "Eeek!" at the idea of her lover dying in such a horrible way.

Well, there goes the excitement.

"Damn it..."

The redhaired fish lady growled, crossing her arms, Toriel, who hadn't say much until then, looked at Sarff with a worried expression.

Well, after such a long, long talk, they already had an idea of how society worked as a whole and what direction it took ever since they were sealed inside Mount Ebott one thousand three hundred years ago, but they still need to resolve the main issue that triggered their meeting that morning.

"I'm really... thankful for you sharing so much confidential or forbidden information with us, Mr.Sarff. I can't imagine how many Taboos you've broken by speaking with us... "

She said with a caring tone, the Perseverance wielder waved his hand from side to side, asking for her to stop, so the queen did so.

"A couple hundreds. But if you're worried about my life, you can be at ease, your Majesty. My superiors gave me permission to broke my oaths when speaking with you, because of what you represent, small one"

And just as he said that, his gaze fell on the Determination soul once again, who's eyebrows curved. The Red-haired mage started to gather and store the chips he had let on the table, they had already fulfilled their purpose, so, they could finally speak about the Main topic and the reason as to why he was here in the first place.

"Now... regarding this Letter... my visit will end up soon. I've already told you all you needed to know, so allow me to explain you what Finis Chaldea is looking for, and its founder, Marisbury Animusphere's goal; alongside the motive as to why his child wants for you to be a part of the Staff as the Forty-eight Master"

Sarff pulled one last item out of his jacket; not a chip, but a small picture. A white-haired man with a braid on his shoulder, and a calm, passive expression. As he couldn't nor wouldn't hurt a single fly. But it was just a mere facade. Sarff loved seeing their faces change into weirdness, a photo wasn't enough to decipher a person's character, so not even Sans was able to decipher what type of man this "Marisbury" was.

The only one who trusted his words without a doubt was Chara herself. After all, she was used to lying and pretend being something she actually wasn't. After all; she managed to hide her hate towards humanity and how broken she was from both her parents and Asriel for a long time.7

"Marisbury was... a maniac, however, like many before him, he wanted to preserve humanity no matter the cost. While he was building Chaldea, he found out through unknown means that Earth would come to an end on year 2016 AD"

At that precise moment he wanted to burst into laughing. Undyne opened up her only eye in shock, Toriel took her hands to her snout; Sans' emptied his eyesockets, Papyrus opened up his mouth as wide as it would allow him to. Alphys trembled in her chair, while Asgore's face darkened, and both Napstablook and Mettaton had similar reactions: the ghostly DJ cried a little bit, his robotic cousin seemed to suffer a brief malfunction.

Who broke tension, ended up being no other than Flowey the Flower, annoyed.

What the hell did they just heard... ?

"... You gotta be fucking with me"

"Language!"

Toriel brought out of her stupor as a reflex after hearing the yellow flower curse; the annoyed whine Flowey let out alongside the Queen's bewildered voice seemed to ease up the tension as much as they could. I mean, they just received the most confidential information that could be passed on in the Magic world.

Earth and everything on it would cease to exist, just like that. That they were afraid, or in disbelief, was the least that could be expected from anyone with the slightest regard for his own life. Sarff let out a sigh, once again becoming the center of attention, as he stored Marisbury's photograph inside his pocket.

"As crude as it may seem, yes, that is the best way to put it. We don't know how, or exactly when, but humanity will not make it past the year 2016 AD. That is why Finis Chaldea exists, to prevent that situation from happening."

"And what does Frisk has to do in all of this?"

Sans asked, still not understanding too well what paper the brown-haired kid could have in the current crisis they were going through. The red-haired mage scratched his chin slightly, focusing himself on the small skeleton with blue hoodie, who's expression remained, alongside the heavy aura surrounding him. Who could blame him? he had just received the news that his homeworld would disappear.

Him and Alphys had the same thought; their investigations. Timelines jumping left and right, stopping and starting, until suddenly... everything ends. Now they knew, what they had seen, was the end of humanity as a whole on year 2016 AD.

"He may be young, but the potential of Determination is unknown. The mages that summon Servants usually are enhanced by their traits and vice versa, since an user of Determination has never been involved... well, think of it as an experiment to know more about it."

"Like a lab rat?!"

The blue-skinned lady shouted; WHAM, her open palms landed against the table, dangerously growing closer to the human with purple soul. Toriel extended her arm, reaching out for her son protectively. The Clock Tower magician cackled a little bit, it was kinda... cute seeing how emotional and protective they were with a boy that wasn't even from the same species as them.

He had thrown away his morals a long time ago when he decided to walk this path, so it was really... moving to see that all the stories that spoke about monsters being an emotional, pacific race were true. Frisk was really fortunate.

"God no, Frisk will be treated way better than that."

"Forty-eight Masters? Why do you need so many humans?"

Papyrus was the one who requested answers this time. It was a nice question, but not one that had much mystery. It all came down to both quality, and quantity. It was timely, too; because it was a nice way to deviate the topic from the fact that neither of them had any future beyond the Year 2016, not like they had much time in the first place.

It was June 28, 2015, after all.

"Huh, yeah. Its mostly to divide them in teams. Before the "main event" there'll be simulations. There's an A team, the best of the best from what current sorcery can provide... but we know it might not be enough. Frisk, by being part of the forty-eight candidates to become a Master, its testing himself to know if he can become part of the A-Team, or an hypothetical B-Team."

And that was it. Sarff remained in silence, it being a sign that he was done explaining himself, but it was kind of ironic. He came into that house with the intention of explaining their doubts, but he finished it all by dropping a massive bomb that blew their minds.

The end of the world?, no... The end of the world of absolutely everything and everyone?

Internally, Flowey couldn't help but ask himself if he could've changed things.... no, not really. His plan was to keep Frisk, who he had confused with Chara back then, trapped in a loop so they remained Underground forever, a loop wasn't the answer.

In this case; they had no future. Not just Monsters and Humans, but earth as a whole.

Toriel put a hand above her chest; her soul hurt. The brunette was looking at the floor, deep in thought, was he being serious? he thought it was all said and done.

Frisk believed his "fight" had concluded after the barrier shattered six years ago. Now his role was that of a bridge between both races; but he couldn't have been more wrong. Not just monsters needed him now...

Humans too.

All the peace he had built with them... his new life, his new family; it all would... vanish in a couple of months? just like that?

From the other side of the table, Chara's gaze clashed with his own, the girl frowned and crossed her arms, having lost any semblance of passion or comprehension she could've had.

To her... the answer was obvious. Both Frisk and Flowey knew that look on her face.

[Don't let all your efforts be for nothing, Frisk]

She had nothing else to say. Determined, the eight fallen faced his mother, his father, and his friends; inside his chest, his soul burned. This was the last push he needed to make a choice.

He already fought for the future once... how hard would it be to do so one last time?

"I wanna go."

He said to his mother's horror. Chara, on the other hand, regained her good mood. A feeling of pride coursing through her spirit after seeing, and feeling, the fire burning inside the soul of the boy she was joined with. Despite the situation being so serious, she wouldn't lie; it was really inspiring. After everything she knew... no; what they all knew about society shattered into pieces, and rebuilt itself at that same moment, plus learning about the impending doomsday...

But Frisk kept pushing forward. It was a true source of inspiration and admiration. Undyne smiled, clenching her fist, Sans let out a small laugh, just as Papyrus with his loudly "Nyeh heh heh~" motivated Napstablook to stop crying, Mettaton took one hand to his forehead, what else was to be expected from their ambassador?, Toriel looked at her ex-husband searching for support one last time... but Asgore denied her request.

Neither of them could say no to him with THAT expression on his face.

And Flowey? just rolled his eyes.

One would deduce Sarff would be happy, that he would smile or join in their celebration, but he didn't.

"... I won't say I'm satisfied with your answer, little ambassador, because I am not. But I really admire your spirit of self-sacrifice. You're the only one, other than the High Commands and the A Team, who knows what's at stake"

He ruined the hope-filled mood that Frisk had caused with just one simple phrase. Yes, he had done many things, and he managed to not just break the barrier, but bring in a new era of peaceful coexistence, that so far, these last six years, had done nothing but bring in prosperity and joy to both Races. That was admirable, it truly, truly was admirable... but Sarff wasn't an optimistic fool.

He was a Mage.

A Clock Tower mage.

And they never, ever, trusted themselves to sheer luck, or something as simple as hope... no. It was either winning or failing, there was nothing else.

"Neither of the others knows about it?"

Frisk questioned, genuinely surprised. So all he just heard of was confidential? keeping a secret wasn't hard for him at all, but it was very... discouraging, to say the least. I mean, him and other 47 humans were going to give their best to save Planet Earth, and give every living creature on it a future.

Wouldn't honesty about their mission be a good way to motivate them all? to make them take it with as much seriousness as they could? apparently, Olga Marie and her superiors didn't think so.

Sarff moved his head from side to side carefully, breathing longly through his nose, looking at him one last time. His gaze, deeper and undeniably more serious. Frisk gulped slightly, almost feeling a sword clash against their neck. However, as soon as it came, that feeling was gone.

The sorcerer with purple soul closed his eyes, taking a hand to his face to pull off his glasses, letting them rest on the table carefully. When he opened his eyelids again, much to his surprise, his irises were now yellow; almost golden. A sign of the Justice trait.

"Frisk…”

“Y-yes?”

“I'll be honest with you, and most likely it will be the last time any wizard will be honest with you: it would be good if I could tell you that I have the answers to all your questions, but I don't. The mystery surrounding the Earth is much greater than the one surrounding monsters.”

…

“You won't be alone, if that's what you're scared of. You'll make friends, but enemies as well. You'll love, hate, fear. There will be times where you'd feel like giving up, because you're a human being, but… please… stay determined”

End of Chapter 1.

Translation starting date: Friday, February 21, 2025

Translation ending date: Tuesday, March 4, 2025