Chapter 194: Conversation with Alaya
The world fell into desolate solitude. A gust of wind blew away all the clouds, and looking up, one could see the sky full of stars, countless of them twinkling with various lights.
In fact, among these visible stars, apart from the nearby planets and satellites in the solar system, most are stars like the Sun. Some stars are visible to the naked eye precisely because they are large and bright enough.
The Sun, which is about 109 times larger than Earth, only appears this size to people on Earth. In the universe, the Sun is only considered medium-sized. Within the stellar ocean, there are numerous stars that are several times or even hundreds of times larger and brighter than the Sun, and there are even supergiant stars thousands of times larger than the Sun.
In front of these giant stars, the Earth is only a few ten-thousandths or hundred-thousandths its size, as insignificant as a bacterium.
These giant stars shine brightly, passing through an unknown number of light-years to bring the romance and beauty of the stellar ocean to humans living on a bacterium-sized planet. Perhaps only the radiance of the strongest Holy Sword can compare to it.
The stellar ocean covered the entire world, dissolving from the edges into long, crystal-like, powdery streaks of light, drifting up like meteors returning to the cosmos.
As Shirou left, he did not wake up immediately but was pulled into another space.
This space contained countless screens resembling crystal mirrors. The sight of the dissolving dream world was being played on one of these crystal mirrors.
Shirou examined the surrounding mirrors; they all seemed to display scenes that were both familiar and unfamiliar.
Hovering above was a rotating vortex of blue and white light. The voice of a woman whose age could not be discerned came out:
"Hello, Shirou. It's nice to see you."
"I believe this is our second meeting? You've come for me after all?" Shirou looked at the circle of light that appeared, instantly recognizing what kind of existence stood before him.
The Counter Force, or more specifically, Alaya. Not the concept from Buddhism, the eighth consciousness, but the unconscious collective will of the primate species to survive, the urge to keep its world going.
It differs from the other Counter Force, the world's self-protection instinct, 'Gaia.' Gaia only protects the Earth and is indifferent to the survival of humanity. If humans threaten the Earth, it will even send out monsters to eliminate them.
Alaya also protects the Earth, but only because if the Earth is destroyed, humans cannot survive either. If the continued existence of humanity is to be guaranteed, it might not hesitate to destroy the Earth as a necessary cost.
The protection mechanism operating under the Alaya-Vijnana is constantly running. For example, it might shift the trajectory of a comet that could strike the Earth, prevent a magus from reaching the Root, or exterminate sources of infectious diseases that could kill humans.
It eliminates everything judged as "potentially capable of destroying primates" in various ways. Sometimes, the Counter Force manifests itself by possessing a person or object as a medium; sometimes, it takes the form of a natural disaster to directly destroy the harmful part; and sometimes, it sends out Heroes and Guardians with whom it has made a contract.
For the continuation of the primate species, it sometimes kills a part of the existing primate species. It is arguably the coldest yet most reliable protection system in the world.
The boy knew of the plight of the Emiya Shirou from another world through Possession Summoning, and he wasn't particularly keen on dealing with such a protection mechanism. While he disliked it, this was humanity's protection mechanism, and he himself was a member who contributed to this consciousness.
The greatest contributor to humanity's continued existence, silently saving humanity countless times in the background in the most efficient and proper way. If he were to hate such a system, it would be as futile as a member of society directing their anger at society itself.
"You're so indifferent," the circle of light said.
Then the circle of light suddenly transformed into the appearance of a silver-haired, red-eyed girl about ten years old, wearing a Russian-style tall hat and coat, leaning forward and saying adorably, "Is this the type you like? Onii-chan~! If you need, I can change into any appearance you want to see."
"Ilya! You! What are you trying to do?" Shirou asked, surprised.
"Don't get excited. The last time I spoke with the other you in the most efficient way, I was driven away. So this time, I'm trying to simulate something you might like, to see if conversing in a way you are most comfortable with will yield a better outcome," Alaya said.
"Still prefer the Japanese-style sister?" As soon as she spoke, she transformed into a small girl in a kimono with long black hair and amber eyes like the boy's.
"Perhaps an innocent girl of this age would be better?" Saber-Lily, in a white dress with a ponytail, appeared here.
"You seem interested in the well-endowed type, too." A woman with pinkish-purple long hair and a tall, curvy figure, who was clearly a stunning beauty even with a black eye patch, appeared before the boy and cupped his face.
"A blue-clad, blonde, blue-eyed knight, a red-clad, black-haired, twin-tailed little devil, or a purple-haired, purple-eyed underclassman? Or the girls from the second world?"
Alaya continuously shifted her appearance, switching between the familiar forms of the girls to the boy.
"Or perhaps you prefer a type that likes yourself more than others? Or would a male be better? King of Heroes, Son of Light, or the red-clad Emiya Shirou?" The silver-haired, braided-hair 'Archako' stood there wearing an apron.
"Stop! That's enough! Changing won't make any difference." Shirou refused.
"Is that so... Then let's leave it at this. All I need is to have a proper talk with you and persuade you," Alaya stopped changing and maintained the appearance of the silver-haired, braided 'Archako'.
"Why is the premise of this conversation that I must be persuaded?" Shirou retorted impatiently.
"Hm?" Alaya tilted her head in the manner of a grown-up Ilya, looking surprisingly blank and cute.
Just as Alaya possesses supreme authority but cannot understand his thoughts, he probably cannot understand the thoughts of the world's consciousness, the collective subconscious of humanity, a system like this.
"Never mind. Just be direct. Why did you bring me here?" Shirou asked straight to the point. Last time, he offered to make a contract at the cost of his life to save the people in the nuclear power plant, but she disappeared midway.
In the end, he used his last strength to desperately pull off a miracle, and he was born into the current world, retaining his memories for some unknown reason, and possessing very powerful innate Mystic Eyes.
The Counter Force is not omnipotent; everything must be built upon the foundation of rules. It could freeze time for Artoria at the moment before her death, but it couldn't directly give Artoria the Holy Grail or directly grant her wish. The issue lies here.
At this point, Shirou does not feel the need to pay a huge price to request the Counter Force. However, as a system only responsible for the survival of humanity, if it sought him out, there must be an important reason.
"Shirou, look at these dreams." Alaya waved her hand, and several crystals gathered.
In one scene, in a city, a King Kong was furiously pulling up hundreds-of-meters-tall skyscrapers, throwing them into the sky, recklessly destroying everything. At that moment, a small baby woke up from sleep, staring blankly at their own raised, soft, white hands, and began to cry loudly in the crib.
"Oh, baby? What's wrong? Mommy's here, shhh, don't cry." The sleeping mother nearby quickly got up and picked up the child.
"Strange, no wet diaper, not hungry either? What's going on?"
In another crystal mirror, a King of Soldiers was constantly being hunted and tortured in his dream, and he was also torturing others, lighting a cigar for himself. His bare back was covered in scars and bullet holes. He was a man who lived through a hail of bullets.
After the last battle, he woke up with a start. A round-faced boy with baby fat was sweating all over, feeling a bit damp and warm between his legs. He lifted the blanket and revealed a surprised look.
"These are the people from the dream world before... Does that mean all those strange monsters I fought before were actually creations of the Paris children's dreams?"
After all, the numerous times it had been proven that a child could get everything they wanted just by crying, children naturally used crying as a weapon to assert their rights when things didn't go their way. This is the law of children.
But it is precisely the dreams of such self-centered children that can be the most unbridled.
A handsome rich man, who drove luxury cars, frequented high-end clubs, challenged high-altitude skydiving and bungee jumping, and was always surrounded by four beautiful women, woke up. He was a deeply tanned man with sunken eyes, lying in a hospital bed with a catheter, his head shaved bald.
An affectionate couple who constantly exchanged glances with each other, went out for French cuisine, and then walked away arm-in-arm, dancing openly in front of a fountain. When they woke up, the bedside lamp in the bedroom was still shining with a dim yellow light. One side of the double bed was empty, and a wrinkled, skinny hand reached out from under the blanket on the other side. This was a white-haired old man.
"This world of dreams wasn't entirely a bad thing." Shirou remembered the girl who fought so tenaciously until the very last moment.
"No, this is a dream, but there's no distinction between good and bad; that's just a physiological reaction. The problem with this incident is the process of so many people being pulled into the same dream," Alaya said calmly.
"What do you mean?" Shirou asked. Indeed, merely having a group of people enter a dream would not be enough to make the Counter Force manifest.
"Human consciousness continuously stacks and aggregates. The scale is less than a hundred people now, but what happens when thousands or tens of thousands of people are having the same dream every night? What happens when tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of people are having one single dream?" Alaya asked.
"Society would fall into great chaos?" Shirou tentatively asked.
"No. If it were just that, I wouldn't need to intervene. Shirou, there are also methods in magecraft to control people in their sleep, and there are even existences like incubi/succubi who can travel between dreams and specialize in manipulating them.
Even if your world has protections to avoid the influence of most mysteries, the physiological and psychological impact of dreams on humans is terrifying.
One person's panic won't cause any severe consequences, but when that panic spreads to hundreds or thousands of people, it can cause a disaster. If a rumor takes hold, like a shortage of salt, water, or disease, the goods in stores can easily be price-gouged and fought over until empty.
The unified dream is like placing tens of millions or hundreds of millions of people on the same street. It's naturally impossible in reality, but it can be realized in a dream.
Humans are social creatures, but the number of friends one can truly get along with might only be three. And even among family members who live together every day, even in a monogamous marriage, there will absolutely be uncomfortable moments."
When the number of people increases, contradictions and disagreements are inevitable. A classroom will always be divided into many small circles. The number of people in the small circles may change, but most of the time, they will unite against outsiders. Those who cannot fit into a circle are easily ostracized.
For a group like this to unite, there must be a leader who emerges, discusses with the leaders of the various circles, and then, only when holding a class meeting or organizing an event, will they not be a scattered mob, each looking out for themselves.
The larger the organization, the more positions will be allocated. Top leaders lead middle management, middle management leads lower management, and lower management leads even lower-level administrators.
Therefore, even when a monarch or modern leader delegates power, they still have to simultaneously face dozens or even hundreds of circles formed by various forces and for different purposes. They must implement various checks and balances on them, trying to maintain healthy and fair development without disrupting the balance.
But even so, this mechanism has its limits. For example, small countries like Switzerland, Finland, and Norway can be very fair, clean, and affluent. But that operational method cannot work in large countries with hundreds of millions of people.
Although they are all descendants of Homo sapiens, they are divided by skin color.
Although they share the same skin color, they are divided by different countries.
Even within the same country, they are still divided into various regions.
There are always various excuses to divide people.
It's not a lack of unity, nor a lack of friendship. Everyone has their own likes and dislikes. Humans are simply creatures who must live in groups, yet cannot avoid conflict within that group.
Hence, there is no lack of wars and various power struggles.
"If the Demonic Dragon in Britain was destroying humanity by eroding the land and polluting the world, then this Black Mud Servant was using a spiritual invasion to erode the minds of all humanity. Both are extremely dangerous.
If hundreds of millions of people share the same dream, it is equivalent to creating a new world, a world more advanced than the internet. Humanity does not currently have the capacity to exist in such a world; it would only lead to self-destruction. That is why I came here," Alaya said.
"But the matter is already resolved, isn't it?" Shirou asked.
"Yes, but I'm here to retrieve this. Although she was the enemy this time, her ability is very rare, and I believe preserving it will be useful for humanity," Alaya said, taking out a crystal in her hand. Inside was a sleeping little girl holding a black book.
"That's the Black Mud Servant child!" Shirou exclaimed in surprise. He had felt regret for her earlier, wishing they could have met sooner to correct her mistakes. He didn't expect her to be alive, but considering the entity before him, was this a good thing?
"No. She is now completely a new existence, with no black mud remaining in her body. I made a contract with her. Perhaps one day, her abilities can be put to use for humanity. If this world truly needs to be destroyed once, finding a new way for humanity to survive might also be an option," Alaya said calmly.
"Are you going to make a little girl like that into a Counter Guardian?" Shirou knew getting angry was pointless, but he couldn't help asking.
"This is the cost. She made the decision of her own will and personally accepted the contract, which is why I could use my power to keep her alive. In fact, it's the same as the contract she made with the master behind the black mud before, only this time, she is on the side of humanity."
"So, what exactly do you want with me?" Shirou asked, frowning.
"I just came to talk to you this time. There is indeed something that must be done by you, but the time is not yet right. So, I'm here to confirm, Shirou, are you willing to save this world?" Alaya asked.
"If it's truly something that I must do," Shirou said coldly, looking at Alaya.
Although he couldn't imagine a situation where the Counter Force couldn't succeed, but he could.
"Is that so? Believe that I will come for you soon," Alaya said, holding the crystal, turning into a beam of light, and leaving the space.
The boy felt a gust of wind blow him upward. The speed exceeded that of light. Returning from the universe to the solar system and landing back in Paris took only a few seconds.
The boy lying on the bed opened his eyes. He checked his phone; the time was 8:50 AM.
Shirou felt like one wave hadn't settled before another arose, but he got up, grabbed his towel and toothbrush, and headed to the washing area. He still had an unfulfilled mission: to use delicious food to help the people of Paris, who were affected by this incident, recover their spirits. That was what he had to do.
After washing up, Shirou changed into his chef's uniform and hurried towards the event area. If Erina were alone, the large crowd would be quite exhausting, but fortunately, it was just 9:00 AM, and he was still on time.
As Shirou ran to the entrance, he saw Shizuka Hiratsuka hiding in a designated smoking area for visitors, cigarette in mouth. She also looked his way.
"Oh, Shirou, that's great! Did things go smoothly for you?" Shizuka Hiratsuka was happy to see the boy return safely and immediately patted his shoulder.
"Yes, it's finished, Sensei. How about you?" Shirou asked curiously, seeing Shizuka Hiratsuka still dressed in her usual business suit.
"Well, there'll be a singing performance after 10:00 AM, and it seems there'll be an open stage for anyone to sign up in the afternoon," Hiratsuka Shizuka spread her hands helplessly. However, having more people to share the attention would be a good thing for her.
Just because she sang a song yesterday, she inexplicably gained a bunch of elderly fans who were fussing over her with concern. She felt she couldn't quite handle the attention.
"Is that so? Good luck with your performance," Shirou encouraged her.
"Hmph, that's not something a mere 'good luck' can solve," Shizuka Hiratsuka muttered quietly, a cold, vengeful light flashing in her eyes.
"Is something wrong, Sensei?" Shirou asked suspiciously. He felt a hint of malice from the female teacher just now.
Shizuka Hiratsuka waved her hand, dismissing the boy, saying, "It's nothing, nothing. I'll tell you later. You should go check on Erina. If you don't hurry, she's going to throw a fit."
"Oh, see you later, Sensei." Shirou walked inside.
Up ahead, the principal was standing by the door, seemingly waiting for some guests. She saw the boy approaching and waved happily.
"Good morning, Principal," Shirou greeted her.
"Oh, Shirou-kun~! You finally arrived. Erina has been waiting for you for a long time. Now the competition can finally start!" the principal said with a smile.
"Competition?" Shirou asked in confusion.
"That was my idea. After tasting your and Erina's cooking yesterday and listening to Hiratsuka's wonderful performance, I decided to hold an even grander event!" the principal said.
"Hah, I see. In any case, I will do my best with the cooking," Shirou agreed. That was his plan all along.
"It's not just about cooking. But you go ahead. The cooking competition is about to begin. Good luck! My students are also very talented chefs," the principal encouraged, kindly patting the boy's shoulder.
"Alright, goodbye." Shirou continued towards the venue and indeed saw several newly erected stalls. Many local students in chef's uniforms were already preparing there.
Right next to his old stall, the blonde girl was preparing breakfast dishes, and a long queue had already formed there.
"Yo, Erina," Shirou smiled and walked up, greeting the girl in the chef's hat.
"This is no time for 'yo'! You're too slow!" Erina complained. She folded her arms and continued, "Never mind. I've already prepared the ingredients you listed on your recipe. Hurry up and get ready! Now is the time for us to have our showdown!"
"I know, I know, don't be angry. At least tell me the rules," Shirou said helplessly.
"Quiet! Although the students here are all talented, they are no match for you! You only need to compete with me! Honestly! The official competition starts at 9:30 AM. Dedicated plates will be delivered by the school staff here, and the winner will be decided based on the number of empty plates returned. Also, take this!"
The girl, without further ado, took out a bowl with gorgeous patterns and a silver fork with beautiful carvings from under the counter and shoved them into the boy's hands.
"Um, thank you." Shirou looked at the toasted bread and the girl's specialty breakfast, the exquisitely presented Eggs Benedict. The sauce drizzled on top even had a beautiful arc, showing the girl's dedication to the dish.
"You haven't had breakfast yet, right? So hurry up and eat, then go and prepare!" Erina shouted, turning her head away from the boy and lowering it to continue cooking.
"Oh... then I'll take it elsewhere to eat. Staying here will only obstruct you and your customers." Shirou said, holding the plate.
"Hehe." The people eating their eggs nearby smiled kindly, with expressions that seemed to say, "It's okay, we're just watching," and "Young people arguing is so cute."
"Wait, where are you taking my dedicated bowl and fork!!" Erina looked up, her face already flushed red, and shouted.
"Huh? Why do I have to use your dedicated bowl?" Shirou asked, confused.
"It'll get mixed up with the bowls here!!" Erina was stunned, not knowing how to answer, and shouted in exasperation.
"Couldn't you just put it somewhere else?" Shirou mumbled quietly. However, having experience with temperamental beasts, he knew it was best not to talk back at this moment.
Excellent chefs often have stronger and more persistent feelings for their cooking than ordinary people, and thus have more requirements, such as using the most comfortable tools, the best heat, and cooking in the most comfortable space.
Tools like the cleaver and wok for meat and vegetable dishes, or the rolling pin for dough, are things they try to bring with them even when traveling to other cities.
And Erina, in addition to her cooking utensils, also had a matching set of tableware. Both the bowl with the gorgeous patterns and the carvings on the knife and fork were specially custom-made by renowned artisans. Initially, she only brought one set for herself.
"Then I will gratefully accept this meal," Shirou said, and then began to enjoy the breakfast the girl had meticulously prepared.
The golden Hollandaise sauce, sour and sweet, was delicious. Slicing into the poached egg with the fork, the semi-liquid yolk flowed out, giving a smooth yet slightly grainy texture. The bacon and toast, coated in egg yolk and Hollandaise sauce, created a mouthful of pure happiness.
"Here! Milk tea!" At that moment, the girl promptly handed him a drink.
"Oh, thank you, Erina. It's delicious. Thank you for the meal." Shirou took the teacup. This one was plain white ceramic, so it wasn't the girl's dedicated one.
"Hmph, that's only natural," Erina said, folding her arms, extremely confident. "Now that you've eaten breakfast, hurry up and go! Don't forget you promised to compete with me! This is your chance!"
"I know. Since I accepted your meal, it wouldn't be right to refuse," Shirou thought for a moment and agreed. After all, the serious matters were over. He might as well showcase his culinary skills and exchange ideas with excellent chefs while satisfying the customers.
At this moment, the chefs at the various stalls were also smiling confidently, looking up. They were all ready.
The school had arranged for assistants to deliver trolleys full of bowls marked with the fleur-de-lys symbol to each stall.
There were a total of ten participants in the competition, including Shirou and Erina, and the top elites from every year of the culinary arts program.
At 9:30 AM, the competition officially began!
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