"Another crater...! How many does that make now!?"
It was a town just a short distance from Luminous Academy—or rather, it was where a town had once been.
Staring into the massive void that had suddenly hollowed out a once-bustling community, a lone man groaned. The crater looked as though the earth itself had been gouged away. Having tracked these phenomena across the land, he had already seen several identical Great Holes by now.
As he traveled from region to region, following the wake of these appearing craters, he could sense a foul, sinister energy emanating from the pit.
While he stood there in a state of shock, harborng a growing suspicion, an elderly man—likely a resident of the former town—approached him.
"Pardon me, sir... Are you perhaps a traveler who came to visit us? If so, I am truly sorry. As you can see, we are in no state to offer any hospitality..."
"No, please, don't worry about me," the man replied. "You and your people are the ones suffering."
The man looked at the elder, who had lost not only his home but his entire community. The old man shook his head with a dark, weary expression, speaking as if he still couldn't fathom the reality of his situation.
"Even though something this catastrophic happened, we don't even know what it was. One moment everything was fine, and the next, the town was gone. Our homes, the streets we knew... everything vanished the moment this Great Hole appeared."
(It’s the same here as it was elsewhere. Everyone says the craters appear in an instant...)
The traveler had heard almost identical testimonies at every site he visited. One day, without warning, the crater would simply exist. While this was the first time one had appeared in the middle of a town, these Great Holes had been manifesting in mountains and plains for some time. No one knew who was creating them or for what purpose.
The witnesses all said the same thing: the holes appeared out of nowhere.
Furthermore, there was a bizarre commonality that linked every incident: not a single person had been killed. This inexplicable lack of casualties only served to heighten the uncanny, unsettling nature of the event.
(There's no way this is just an accident or a simple incident! This isn't something a normal human or a Magic Armor Beast could pull off...!)
Creating a crater large enough to swallow a town in an instant while simultaneously ensuring no lives were lost was beyond the capabilities of any ordinary person or monster.
If he had to guess, a being like a god—or perhaps a devil—was lurking behind the scenes. The man was certain of it.
There was one more thing he needed to confirm. He turned to the grieving elder and asked his question.
"Regarding this incident... did anyone from the Central Church come to visit? A Sister, perhaps?"
"Ah! Yes, a woman of that standing did come. She prayed fervently for us, asking that good fortune might find those of us struck by such calamity."
Just as I thought, the man mused.
At every single site, shortly after a crater appeared, this Mysterious Sister would show herself.
The traveler had pulled every string at his disposal to uncover the woman's identity, but his efforts had been in vain. Even with the help of organizations possessing considerable influence, her origins remained a complete mystery. All he knew was that she belonged to the Central Church in the Royal Capital and that she traveled with two men as her attendants.
"Traveler, if you would like, I can lead you to the shelter. I cannot offer much, but you could at least rest your weary bones for a while."
"I appreciate the kindness, truly, but there’s no need. I have to leave immediately."
Though he was grateful for the offer, he declined.
He turned his gaze back to the Great Hole, his expression growing grim as he contemplated the theory he had been forming. These Great Holes had been appearing for a while now, and they were gradually converging on a specific location.
The man believed that both the craters and the Mysterious Sister's group were heading toward that same destination.
If his prediction was correct, a Great Calamity was fast approaching.
There might be very little he could do on his own, but he couldn't afford to keep running away and doing nothing.
"You seem to be in quite a hurry," the old man observed. "Where is your journey taking you?"
"Actually, it's the opposite," the man replied. "I need to bring this journey to an end."
The elder sensed something profound in the man's posture and asked about his destination. The traveler turned back, exhaled a quiet breath, and spoke in a low murmur as he looked toward the horizon beyond the hole.
"The day has come for me to return. To Luminous Academy!"