After exchanging greetings, Rin Tohsaka's attitude became much more familiar, and her posture relaxed.
She sat primly on her bed, hugging a large teddy bear, her slender legs tucked to the sides. Her dark eyes watched Su Mo with curiosity.
"Lord Su Mo, you said before that you wanted to use the Second Magic to create a Celestial Spirit?"
"Mm," Su Mo nodded and explained simply. "Although the Undying God's Domain in the Campione! world has the ability to interfere with parallel worlds, the God's Domain can only rewrite mythological history, not the planetary chronicles themselves."
"So, through the God's Domain, I can only solidify Athena's divine status as the Primordial Mother, Gaia. I can't truly make her into the corresponding Celestial Spirit."
"For that, I need a more versatile Authority of parallel world interference to meet the requirements."
In short, the God's Domain's interference and rewriting of parallel worlds was limited to the realm of mythology. The Second Magic was different. All Five Magics were manifestations and continuations of the laws of creation. The complete Second Magic could use parallel world interference to spread anything Su Mo desired throughout the multiverse.
Whether it was to perfect Athena's spiritual rank or to strengthen himself, the Second Magic was a crucial power.
"Hmm... so how does Lord Su Mo plan to obtain the Second Magic?"
With her intelligence, Rin Tohsaka could roughly understand Su Mo's intentions, so she didn't ask about the principles. Instead, she began to inquire about the practical steps.
"With your current strength, connecting to the Root itself probably isn't too dangerous, but if you become too engrossed in it, things could get tricky."
Recalling the mages' descriptions of the Root, Rin Tohsaka's brow furrowed, a hint of worry in her eyes.
She knew how strong Su Mo was, and she knew he had reached Tier 6. But the Root, in terms of its level of existence, was absolutely above Tier 7.
It was the sum of all concepts in the entire Nasuverse, formless and shapeless. In the realm of concepts, even mythology and entire pantheons were but tendrils of the Root. The entire parallel world of the Nasuverse itself was just a tiny fragment born from the Swirl of the Root.
This concept of "all and nothing" was equivalent to the sum of infinite parallel universes. Even the Aeon of Nihility, widely considered the strongest in the Star Rail universe, represented a concept that was merely one corner of the Swirl of the Root.
In the presence of something of that magnitude, one's very self could easily dissolve. Forget a Tier 6 Su Mo; even a Tier 7 being might not be able to retreat unscathed.
"Don't worry, I know the dangers of the Root. I won't act rashly."
Su Mo could naturally appreciate Rin's concern. He wasn't the arrogant type who thought his Tier 6 power was enough to look down on everything. The evolutionary path of a Aeon of Life was but a fragment of cosmic civilization's development; it naturally couldn't compare to the weight of an entire world.
"However, as long as I don't venture too deep inside, there won't be much danger."
So many people in the Nasuverse had been able to connect to the Root. Su Mo's strength was far greater than theirs, so his ability in this area would naturally not be any weaker.
"As long as I take protective measures beforehand, or use existing safety mechanisms, there won't be a problem," Su Mo said.
"Existing safety mechanisms?"
The twintailed little girl tilted her head, as if she had thought of something.
"Could you be talking about... the Holy Grail War?"
She now knew that the so-called Holy Grail War was, in fact, a magical ritual held in pursuit of the Third Magic. And for a mage, the very act of obtaining the Third Magic was to connect with the Root—something all mages dreamed of.
"That's right," Su Mo nodded slightly.
"Although it's a bit crude, the Holy Grail War ritual can indeed break through the world's barrier and construct a path leading to the Root. It even has a set procedure for returning."
"While I don't need to use the Grail ritual to break the barrier, and the Greater Grail doesn't have the power to protect me, the apparatus itself can serve as a warning device, a reminder not to get lost."
Just as a tomb raider would bring a candle deep into a tunnel to check if the oxygen was sufficient, or sometimes bring a rooster to check for traps and dangers, for Su Mo, the Holy Grail system was a chicken to be used as a reference. He didn't need the chicken to provide any help; he only needed to refer to its state to decide whether or not to leave the Swirl of the Root.
"I understand," Rin Tohsaka nodded, then blinked, suddenly remembering something.
"But Lord Su Mo, did you forget something?" she asked, straightening up and leaning closer to him.
"There's still over half a year until the Holy Grail War officially begins... didn't you arrive a little too early?!"
The last time Su Mo came, the Holy Grail War was still in the preliminary stage where the Three Founding Families were summoning their Servants. There was still a year until the real war began. Although some time had passed since then, it was still a long way from winter.
Did this mean Lord Su Mo would have to wait half a year to come back... or would he stay here with her for over half a year?
At the thought of this possibility, the twintailed little girl's heart warmed, and she spoke excitedly.
"If Lord Su Mo is willing to wait, I can give you my room to stay in! I also recently found a lot of the Tohsaka family's secret magecraft from my father. If Lord Su Mo is interested, you can take a look!"
Like a spendthrift heiress, she offered up her family's best treasures without a second thought, just hoping to help Su Mo pass the time.
If Tohsaka Tokiomi were to see this, he would surely want to vomit blood.
Unfortunately, as she spoke, Rin Tohsaka herself realized it was unlikely.
With Su Mo's personality, half a year was probably enough for him to advance to the multiverse level. How could he waste it in a tiny place like hers? How could he be attracted by her useless magecraft archives?
Rin had thought Su Mo would simply refuse and leave.
She never expected Su Mo's reply to be this:
"It's fine. If it's just a matter of time, a little rewrite will do."
As Su Mo spoke, the world outside was still an early summer night, stars shining, a warm breeze blowing.
By the time he finished speaking, snow was already falling outside the window. It had completely turned to winter.
The positions of the stars overhead had also changed, as if someone had pressed the fast-forward button, advancing the entire world by over half a year in one go.
Only her consciousness remained from six months prior, like a coma patient who had been asleep for a long time, unable to accept the passage of time.
"Lord Su Mo... d-d-did you just leap the entire world forward in time?" Rin Tohsaka asked, her voice trembling.
Even though she knew Su Mo's power was sufficient to do this, actually seeing this miraculous change left her dumbfounded.
Was there anything he couldn't do?
"Relatively speaking, you could also see it as only the two of us having leaped into the future," Su Mo replied casually.
Then, seeing Rin's skin tremble slightly from the outside chill and the way she seemed to be shrinking back, he casually took out a phantasmal beast pelt and draped it over the girl's shoulders.
"Thank you, Lord Su Mo!" Rin said gratefully, feeling the warmth.
"You're welcome. If you're worried about falling behind on your studies, I can turn time back afterward," Su Mo said nonchalantly.
For him, it wasn't a difficult task.