Director Edward

Chapter 228: The End of the Paradox Spiral Screening! (2)

Imperial Mage Academy

As the ending credits slowly rolled, the mages sat in stunned silence, unable to process what they had just seen. It took a while before they finally began discussing it, unable to hold back any longer.

After all, from the battle between Shiki Ryougi and Soren Araya to the film's conclusion, the concepts introduced in The Garden of Sinners: Paradox Spiral went far beyond anything the mages had imagined. There was so much to analyze and debate.

"I really didn't expect Shiki Ryougi to defeat Soren Araya in such a way."

"Yeah, in a sense, Shiki was actually saved by Soren Araya. As he would say, it's all about causality."

"That being said, what exactly is this 'Counter Force' that Soren Araya and Touko Aozaki kept mentioning? It sounds like a formidable concept, but the entire Garden of Sinners series never seems to explicitly introduce it."

"Didn't you catch what Touko said at the end? She explained that all human consciousness is connected to a deep, shared 'lake,' a collective unconscious formed from humanity's subconscious. When humanity faces a crisis, this collective unconscious instinctively eliminates dangerous factors. So, from the very beginning, the concept of the Counter Force might have already been at work. Whether it's Fujino Asagami, Shiki Ryougi, or even Mikiya Kokutou and Touko Aozaki, they might all be manifestations of this Counter Force."

"Is that how it works? But when Touko mentioned the Counter Force, it seemed she wasn't just referring to humanity's Counter Force. She also mentioned that the planet itself has a Counter Force."

"The planet? That's such an advanced concept. To think, it was only a few centuries ago that the Imperial mages confirmed we live on a planet. Back then, the first great sage of astrology proposed his theory, and it shook almost every mage of the time."

"Yeah, after all, who would have thought that the ground beneath our feet isn't flat but a massive sphere?"

"Back to Touko—she really believes that the planet itself possesses a Counter Force? But how could a planet have consciousness?"

"Who knows? At the end of the day, these ideas are just part of The Garden of Sinners' fictional world. Such mystical Counter Forces probably don't exist in our reality."

"Exactly. After all, our world isn't inhabited solely by humans; there are countless other races. If the concept of the Counter Force is a power meant to prevent the extinction of a species, then every race would likely have its own Counter Force."

"On that note, I've been thinking about something. In The Garden of Sinners, they use the term 'primates' instead of 'humans.' If 'primates' refers to all sentient beings with self-awareness, then the Counter Force in our world might be a power that encompasses all races, working to ensure the survival of every species."

"That sounds ridiculous. If such a force existed, there shouldn't be any wars between races."

"Not necessarily. In The Garden of Sinners, humanity still wages war against itself, doesn't it? Since the collective unconscious operates on a subconscious level, it doesn't influence subjective will. It only activates under certain conditions. Its greatest adversary is mages, as they are the most likely to trigger events leading to a species' extinction."

"If that's the case, then if a Counter Force for primates existed in our world, who would be its enemy?"

"That..."

At this point, most of the mages fell silent. It was clear they had thought of something, yet none dared to voice it aloud.

Before long, the conversation shifted to other topics, with the discussion about Shiki Ryougi quickly taking over.

"Honestly, was it really Shiki Ryougi who defeated Soren Araya in the end? Something about it felt off."

"I thought so too. It felt like Shiki wasn't in a normal state at that time."

"But Shiki Ryougi only has two personalities. With SHIKI already dead, only her original personality remains. How could she turn into someone else?"

"Do you remember the beginning of A Study in Murder: Part One? When Kokutou Mikiya first met Shiki, it was on a snowy night. The two clearly met back then, but by the next day, when they entered school, neither Shiki Ryougi nor SHIKI seemed to recognize him. I thought it was strange at the time but never said anything. Looking back now, it really is unsettling."

...

"Wait... are you suggesting that there's a third personality inside Shiki Ryougi?"

"That's... highly unlikely."

Most mages found it difficult to accept such a conclusion. Even the mage who had proposed the idea struggled to fully believe it.

As a result, this line of discussion ultimately led nowhere. Most of the mages eventually abandoned deeper speculation, shifting their focus instead to the relationship between Shiki Ryougi and Mikiya Kokutou.

In a way, while The Garden of Sinners isn't a romance series, the stark contrast between its main plot and its brief moments of romantic interactions makes those rare scenes all the more captivating.

Most viewers found themselves deeply enchanted by the subtle expressions of affection between Shiki and Mikiya. In simpler terms, they were all-in on this ship: "I'm absolutely rooting for this couple!"

Of course, a considerable number of male—and even female—viewers were loudly declaring, "Shiki Ryougi is my wife!"

...

At the Top of the Alchemy Tower

After finishing Paradox Spiral, Dean Hohenheim couldn't help but sigh with amazement.

"I truly didn't expect that Durin could surprise us once again! The concepts of Taiji, magic for creating otherworlds, origins, the Counter Force, and the theme of death… Even though it's a fictional story, the logical coherence goes far beyond what you'd expect from mere fiction."

Next to him, Rosa nodded in agreement.

"Indeed. What intrigued me most was the concept of Taiji and Touko Aozaki's idea of puppet replacement. Honestly, whether it's the intricate structure of the Taiji diagram or the exploration of self and ego, it far surpasses the theoretical level of most contemporary magic studies."

"Exactly! I think that Taiji diagram is amazing. I'm planning to carve it into a magic circle and study it thoroughly," declared Warton, loudly and with great enthusiasm.

However, judging by the reactions of the surrounding great sages, none of them seemed inclined to take him seriously. Clearly, they didn't believe he would uncover anything meaningful from his "research."

After all, knowing Warton's personality, the final result would almost certainly be a Taiji-based explosive magic. Such antics were nothing new to the other archmages, who had long grown accustomed to his eccentricities.

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