The Old Sage!!!

Saturday,

31 August 1991

Scotland

The Old Sage regretted nothing more than coming to this accursed Harry Potter Random World.

He regretted it so much, in fact, that he considered falling back an entire Set, if such a thing was even possible.

The Old Sage was an old man with a hunched back. He had a long, white beard under round glasses, behind which his beady, blue eyes were gleaming now and then. He was walking slowly, using the Staff in his hands as a cane.

Today, he had donned a violet robe over a white shirt.

The deep frown on his face, coupled with the troubled look in his eyes, ruined his sagely appearance, though.

After gaining his first Life Halt, he had faced almost no major obstruction.

Ranked 2nd in his Tournament of Worth, with the theme Mana, the number of Organizations from the 6th to 12th floor that had contacted him wasn't small, either.

Yet, the Old Sage had refused all… because he was a loner.

Now he regretted that, too.

At first, when the Old Sage had arrived at this Random World, the height of his joy and ecstasy was beyond the sky.

Since his Initiation Mission, he had always desired to visit the Harry Potter Random World because it shared the greatest characteristic with his power; his Inheritance - Mana!

The Old Sage possessed the Inheritance of Touko Aozaki, a puppet maker and an extremely powerful sorceress from The Garden of Sinners.

Relying on his capabilities alone, the Old Sage had ascended floor after floor, becoming a Top-Level 8th-Floor Contestant.

One could even say that Mana was in Old Sage's blood.

Now, one could also say that he was destined to become the next Top-Level 9th-Floor Contestant because…

The Old Sage remembered Rogan of the Quasi Cypher Pol Organization, who was unanimously thought to be the next Prime Protector level figure, and his steps faltered.

One month ago... the Old Sage had arrived here with the Main Mission of Protecting Hermione Granger for her entire Hogwarts term.

Yes.

The Old Sage was a Lead Protector.

Generally, the Protectors belonged to the same floor.

For example, if the Overall Grade of a timeline was C+, then almost in all cases, the Protectors would belong to the 9th Floor, with the Prime Protector being a Top-Level figure.

For Old Sage to get selected as the Lead Protector of Hermione was a matter of great pride.

It was almost like Chaos acknowledging his strength and potential.

But things had been taking the strangest turns since his arrival.

First, it was the ridiculous existence of Darcie Malfoy.

The Old Sage had heard of Random World where Harry Potter was Hillary Potter. But the Malfoys having twins was something he had seen only here.

Second, it was the ridiculous existence of Darcie Malfoy.

How monstrous could a mere child be? When he had read about Darcie's achievements, the Old Sage had thought he had arrived at some futuristic setting of the Harry Potter timeline.

Third, it was the ridiculous existence of Darcie Malfoy.

The Old Sage was innately a curious Contestant. After hearing so much about Darcie, he couldn't control himself and had gone to Diagon Alley to take a look.

The young girl had barely passed by him, but Old Sage's knees had buckled because of the sheer magical might, even though he had used a puppet.

The Old Sage had promised himself to stay away from Darcie, lest something unexpected happened.

Being a loner was already hard. Being a curious loner was harder.

And the Old Sage dared not step into the hardest.

Still, even after facing such a blow to his self-esteem, he had been doing fine.

Chaos itself had indirectly acknowledged him by making him a Lead Protector. So, of course, he had nothing to care about.

So what if he failed to get the most common Milestone here? It was okay…

So what if he failed to get the second most common Milestone here? It was okay…

And then the Supreme Protector appeared and killed Rogan like butchering a chicken.

Crunch!

The Old Sage gasped at the sound. No! He didn't!

There was a crumpled envelope in his hands.

It was red on the front side and blue on the backside.

It carried a waxen seal on it as well, half blue and half red.

The seal portrayed a tower with an extremely blurry appearance.

The Old Sage hurriedly took out the white-colored letter from within, hoping he hadn't ruined the most important night for himself.

—

Old Sage,

As per the tradition carried out since the olden antiquity, you are invited to the Night of Truce at 2100 hrs, 8 km southwest of Dufftown, Scotland, at the top of Mt. Ben Rinnes.

All conflicts and fights are prohibited for 6 hours after the start of the event.

Even if you can't come, acting against other Contestants or jeopardizing their Missions is forbidden.

Please bring the letter with you, if you decide to join your fellow Contestants at the venue.

The Primordial Tower.

—

The Old Sage sighed in relief, adjusting his glasses.

Tomorrow, the original storyline would begin with the most bombastic phase with the main character, Harry Potter, taking the train to Hogwarts.

The Night of Truce always took place on the night of such events.

Somehow, despite spending years in the Primordial Tower, this was Old Sage's first Night of Truce.

When he had arrived in the Random World, the mere thought of being a part of it had excited him the most.

Now, though, he was just afraid to stand out too much.

Just as the clock struck ten, he had already arrived at the venue.

At the top of the mountain, he saw dozens of Contestants disappearing into the Mirror Dimension with a step.

But there was something odd about it.

A lot of Contestants seemed afraid to move forward, Old Sage felt.

As more Contestants standing at the back were blocking his view, he hastened to see what was going on.

The Old Sage adjusted his glasses and let his Mana run amok.

Hummm!

The magical vibration seeped into the crowd, making them part involuntarily.

Gasping for breath, the Contestants eyed the Old Sage as he passed through them, his chin up. But, with his hunched back, it just made him look odd.

Suddenly, he felt cold.

Old Sage's heart quivered.

Such elements shouldn't affect him. Not at his power level. So where did the cold come from?

Then he saw it.

Hovering above the grounds, was a black-hooded creature, its tattered cloak rippling behind without wind.

With the Old Sage's standing just at hands-reach, a rotten, scabbed hand came out and unfolded its skinny fingers.

A… A Dementor?!

Old Sage's mind was a mess. How could a Dementor be here?

The Dementor hissed.

Old Sage brokenly threw the letter in its palm, hoping it wouldn't touch him.

A door opened in front of him and he walked in, still looking at the dark being over his shoulder.

"Mr. Old Sage?"

Eh? Old Sage brokenly looked up and found the most handsome man he had ever laid his eyes on. His heart skipped a beat. He had to use Mana to rein his emotions.

First Dementor, and now… this. Old Sage thought… maybe… maybe… he wouldn't regret coming here.

"Mr. Old Sage?" the black-haired and black-eyed man, dressed as a butler, asked again.

"Oh!"Old Sage straightened his hunched back a bit. "Yes, I am him."

It had always fascinated Old Sage how they found out all the Contestants in a timeline for the Night of Truce.

Because that was some scary Skill if someone got it.

"Please take your seat. Yes. Just go straight."

The Old Sage walked straight, still looking at the butler over his shoulder. God, he's handsome!

At first, none cared about Old Sage's arrival.

But as he kept walking straight, approaching the stage, eyes moved toward him with raised brows.

When Old Sage saw those eyes, he too remembered who he was and what he represented.

Power!

He again put his eyes forward and, suddenly, paused.

At the end of this straight path, he saw a black throne, looking not only grand but ominous.

And, sitting not only leisurely, but also grandly, on this throne, was a yellow-cloaked figure, it's head hidden behind a hood.

The Old Sage's throat went dry.

The more he looked at that lonely figure… the more he felt it wasn't he who represented Power, but...

No. He definitely wouldn't regret coming here, Old Sage reflected.

This man's presence alone screamed that refusing the invitation wasn't even a choice. Not only for him but for any Contestant in this timeline.

In this world, this man stood at the Peak of Absolute Power, for he was —

— The Supreme Protector!

**************

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