I became a heart-stealing thief in Azure Files

"This is... one of the 'Otherworldly Armaments' used by Sensei."

He was filled with curiosity about the 'mysterious object' that he could easily weigh in his hand and that changed constantly according to his thoughts, but Black Clothes did not immediately explore its 'functional limits'.

It shimmers with dazzling colors and gathers astonishing mystery... It is fundamentally different from the "secret rituals" mastered by various esoteric arts.

The white light on his face flickered faintly, and black flame-like substances emanated from his head. The man in black slowly put down the single-shot rifle, which was engraved with arc patterns and contained deadly power.

“Sensei, the creation you provided… the ‘Spear of Eternity,’ is indeed of great research value.”

"Well then... Sensei. Now, let's talk about the deal you proposed..."

With his elbows resting on the table, the man in black spoke in a calm and steady tone, yet with an eagerness to achieve his goal.

"Having temporarily stepped away from the game of 'children's play,' you've come to the sidelines. Here and now... you confront me and offer me a 'deal.'"

"Exchange this otherworldly weapon, called the 'Eternal Spear,' for the information you seek."

"Ha ha……"

After letting out two low laughs, the man in black suddenly said, "The 'Master's Card'... well, Sensei hasn't used it since arriving in Giwatos, has he?"

"…Indeed."

When the 'adult's card' was mentioned, Amamiya even seemed to be in a daze for a moment.

—If the man in black hadn't mentioned it, he would have completely forgotten that he even had such a card.

"Using 'Adult Cards' isn't entirely without cost... Miracles and magic aren't free."

“You don’t need to use Sensei…because you already have your own ‘world’ in your own hands, walking the path that is always best for you.”

After ignoring the 'adult's card,' the man in black changed the subject and said, 'Sensei, I know you want to know something about the Mystic Arts...'

"……"color"."

"Sensei wants to understand whether the mystical arts have a deeper connection to the color that was almost summoned by the 'Madam' but left traces, and to explore its true nature more deeply."

"...That violates the mystical arts of numbers, no, at least my personal original intention regarding the mystical arts of numbers."

"Ever since you suppressed 'Madam'... her attempt to summon color has been unilaterally banished by several secret techniques."

Why is it a unilateral expulsion?

Because the true form of the 'Madam' is simply impossible to find.

After being bound, crushed, and banished by the Ten Commandments... Beatrice completely 'disappeared'.

The man in black spoke eloquently, perhaps out of interest in the 'trade item,' or perhaps out of interest in Amamiya, an outsider... He recounted the events point by point without Amamiya needing to ask.

"Let's get back to what Sensei wanted to know..."

The person in black seemed quite happy to act as a 'temporary commentator'.

He straightened his tie, his grin widening, and spoke in black: "Color is an inexplicable concept devoid of will, desire, and purpose."

"We used to explain it this way."

"About everything about it... very little is known about the mystical arts."

“Of course, I can’t fool Sensei like that.”

"Color may lack will and desire. Its purpose is inexplicable... but its actions are imbued with a clear 'will' and 'planning.'"

Extending his thumb and little finger, he made a 'telephone' gesture, waved it near his ear, and continued, "After 'Madam' summoned Color... Color responded and lowered its power."

To put it simply, Beatrice is "making a phone call." And "color" hears her call, responds to her, and makes her its "agent."

"The 'Madam' imbued the colors that descended into this other world with will and planning."

It sounds complicated... but it's actually quite simple to understand.

This is actually quite similar to the classic 'Cthulhu Mythos'.

Perhaps—perhaps.

The so-called 'color' can actually be understood as the 'color of stars'.

The Starry Sky of the Cthulhu Mythos is an invisible substance that originated from the ancient stars, beyond the known universe.

As a non-complete and unique life form, it feeds on various organic life forms.

The 'caller' of color... can actually be understood from the perspective of a fanatic.

Adventists will never be lacking.

Amamiya crossed his arms and stroked his chin, seemingly lost in thought.

"Color is trying to absorb all the mystery, terror, and sublimity of Kivotos and make it its own—"

“Sensei, do you know why I am interested in capturing and studying both the ‘Wolf God’ and ‘Horus’?”

The man in black continued speaking slowly, but what he said made Amamiya raise an eyebrow.

"...Because I unexpectedly obtained some information from the 'legacy' left behind by the 'Nameless Gods'."

"Records related to the 'Nameless Gods' mention a unique technology... When necessary, these technologies would emerge from the earth across the world, spreading the light of 'color' throughout Giwatos."

"All the mystery surrounding Giwatos's existence is transformed into 'horror.'"

...Holy crap!

A reverse "Seed of Light" project?

Amamiya was truly shocked to hear this.

He had truly witnessed similar 'situations' before.

At this point, the man in black stopped, carefully observing Amamiya's expression.

“…Sensei, you don’t seem surprised.”

Amamiya shrugged: "I have indeed seen the Kabbalah Tree of Life 'burst forth from the earth,' spreading light across the world, illuminating heaven and earth, and showering the world with emotions accumulated over millions of years."

"..."

The man in black remained silent, taking another look at Amamiya with great interest.

Then she looked away and continued the conversation: "I really want to ask for details... but time doesn't allow it."

"...No matter how you interpret it, or even if you've seen similar scenes... 'color'... or rather, the purpose of the 'pioneer' will not change."

"Because the time between the 'Lady's' contact with color and its disappearance is very short, there is currently no 'pioneer' in Kiwatos."

"But the 'signal' has already been sent. The arrival of 'color' is only a matter of time for us... for this world."

"So, Sensei..."

"If you are already on guard, then do not let your guard down."

"...Heh. The ability you possess, called 'Persona.' And the 'Otherworldly Armaments' placed here as bargaining chips."

"If we understand them through the lens of 'this world's' knowledge, they are a manifestation of 'sublimity' in some form..."

"...Sensei."

Let's end the 'conversation' here.

"I hope you got the answer you were looking for."

Chapter Forty-Eight: The Kabbalah Tree of Life? I know that well!

A minor accident occurred...

The answer that should have come from Yuriko was ultimately obtained from Kurofumi.

After leaving the meeting place designated by the black-clad man, Amamiya sorted out her thoughts, and her tense mind relaxed a little.

What is the most terrifying enemy?

Of course, it's an 'invisible' enemy.

For many temple owners, the Phantom Thieves members came and went without a trace, using a method they couldn't understand—'stealing the inner treasures to make people repent'—to make them repent, and there were several other successful cases before them...

The master of the hall would naturally be terrified of this invisible and intangible 'enemy' who confronts you from another world.

Once the enemy's true nature is known, even if the enemy is stronger than expected, the panic actually decreases.

Because at least now you can 'see the health bar'.

Seeing a health bar means... at least you can take damage and be killed.

'As long as there's a health bar, I'll kill even a god.'

The Phantom Thieves have a history of defeating gods with exposed health bars.

On the way back to Xialai by car, Amamiya tried to piece together Yuriko's 'special reaction' and the information he got from the black-clothed man.

First of all... Yuriko believes that the elements that appear in the Hanaya Temple, such as 'Hana*Terror' and 'Apostles', which are different from ordinary temples, are strongly related to the Nameless Gods or Beatrice.

In reality, the former, through some method, traced its origins, crossed the sea of ​​the collective unconscious, and briefly arrived here in some unknown way.

Crossing the sea of ​​the collective unconscious may be more difficult than breaking through the barriers of the world.

The latter, however, was arranged by Amamiya. The "Black Knight" helped Hanaya refine her desires and shape the temple... a phenomenon that manifested in another world.

Due to a misunderstanding, Yuriko attacked Arius, captured and interrogated several Beatrice's loyal supporters, and extracted information from them by rewriting the diagrams.

After all, this matter had nothing to do with Beatrice, and Yuriko's intelligence gathering was in vain.

...So, what secret is Yuriko keeping?

Is it also related to the "Nameless Gods"?

The "Nameless Stop Ammunition" that Yuriko gave herself was ammunition specifically designed to attack 'mechanical creations', which she herself said was created using knowledge related to the Nameless Gods.

At the time, Yuriko's original words were: "We'll dig out the least dangerous special ammunition made from the most forbidden knowledge."

...Wouldn't the knowledge system of the nameless gods be like the 'Cthulhu Mythos' worldview, inherently contaminated with some kind of spiritual, cognitive, or memetic pollution?

Or is it that the impact of a complete knowledge system on the entire Kiwatos is simply too exaggerated?

It is currently unknown...

Amemiya speculated that Yuriko's 'explosive' reaction was more likely related to the 'terrifying' students.

Thinking of this, Amamiya recalled the meaningful words that Kuro had said to her before their 'farewell'.

Personas, in this world, can be considered a manifestation of "sublimity".

"Mystery," "sublimity," and "terror"... these are the three major categories of elements that constitute Kivotos.

Mystery leans towards the spiritual; to put it simply, the different halos above the students' heads, and the superhuman physical abilities these halos grant them, are the embodiment of 'mystery'.

"Terror" is the other side of "mystery"—like "matter" in Gnostic dualism.

Or rather… the theory of the Kabbalah Tree of Life. If the halo corresponds to the 'Formation Sphere' or 'Creation Sphere', then colorization corresponds to the 'Material Sphere'.

And 'sublime'...does that mean 'the realm of gods'?

Because an individual possesses both 'mystery' and 'terror' simultaneously, 'sublimity' can be born.

To understand it in a simpler and more straightforward way...

Amamiya recalled the various supernatural tales and beliefs in Shintoism, such as the "Eight Million Gods" and the "Hundred Demon Records," which were etched into his knowledge.

Or perhaps you've seen the 'Four Rivers Dragon Gods' in a game before and learned about them in 'Shadow God Map'.

These "deities" are believed in by people, who hope for their blessings and that their communities will enjoy good weather and abundant harvests. They are considered 'mysterious'.

On the other hand, people feared the wrath of the gods, dreading that their displeasure would cause storms, floods, or even years of drought. This was seen as 'terror'.

This contradictory yet combined "belief" of people constructs the "sublime" image of God as possessing boundless and majestic power and overflowing with divinity.

"...Tsk."

Talking to riddle tellers and figuring out what they're saying is really a lot of work.

'The students from the millennium generally have a slightly weaker 'mystery'... but they don't exhibit any inherent weaknesses in their attributes.'

Does the "sublime" compensate for this?

Is this related to the idea that the awakening of the persona among students over the past millennium could very well be that of a "philosopher"?

Amamiya felt that she had fallen into a mental trap.

He's been confusing himself with Kabbalah, the Tree of Life, the eight million gods, and Eastern mythology all in one minute.