Chapter 186: Two Great Suppressive Forces

Kirei Nanako fell silent for a moment, then said slowly: “Just how much do you know?”

Lin Yu thought for a moment, then replied frankly: “Everything I should know, I already know. Some things I wasn’t certain about, I’ve just confirmed from your reaction…”

“…”

Kirei Nanako gazed at him deeply.

“The changes on Bai Ze Ming—were they done by you?”

“Yes.”

“Do you also want to interfere in the Holy Grail War?”

“No, he’s the one who wants to interfere in the Holy Grail War.”

Lin Yu shook his head and smiled: “As for me, I have little interest—at most, I’ll show up at the last moment to help them resolve the Holy Grail’s curse.”

Kirei Nanako froze: “You can resolve that curse?”

“Of course!”

Lin Yu smiled, raised his hand, and ruffled Kirei Nanako’s hair as the other stared in surprise: “So this time, you can focus entirely on stopping that volcano—no more endless cycles of the world!”

“…”

Kirei Nanako snapped back to himself, frowned, then stepped back and fixed Lin Yu with a hard stare: “Time reversal happened because my power isn’t strong enough—it has nothing to do with the Holy Grail War.”

“Is that so?”

Lin Yu smiled and changed the subject: “Then let’s not talk about that—tell me about you.”

"As a born superpower user, don't you ever wonder where your power truly comes from?"

Kirei Nanako blinked again, then locked eyes with Lin Yu: “Do you know?”

“I didn’t before.”

Lin Yu studied him: “But after seeing you with my own eyes, I think I’ve begun to understand.”

Kirei Nanako pressed urgently: “What do you understand?”

Lin Yu sat on the edge of Kirei Nanako’s bed, looked up, and asked with a light smile: “How much do you know about mana and magi?”

“Not much.”

Kirei Nanako shook his head: “Though I maintain a surface peace with those magi, their organizations and institutions secretly despise me.”

Lin Yu smiled: “Do you know why that hatred exists?”

Kirei Nanako shook his head again.

Lin Yu spoke slowly: “This brings us to the two great suppressive forces on Earth.”

“Suppressive forces are invisible powers aimed at preserving the world. One, born from the collective unconscious of sentient beings seeking human survival, is called Alaya.”

“The other, born from the world’s own instinct to avoid destruction, is called Gaia.”

“Gaia’s suppressive force protects the Earth; Alaya’s protects humanity.”

“But compared to the Earth, humanity is far more fragile—so Alaya’s suppressive force emerges far more readily than Gaia’s.”

“So-called superpowers are suppressive forces generated unconsciously by humanity.”

“And as for their target—you can guess, right?”

Kirei Nanako mused: “Magi?”

“Bingo!”

Lin Yu snapped his fingers and smiled: “But we can be more precise—【Magic】.”

“In the world of magi, abilities that cannot be replicated by magic are defined as superpowers.”

“To some extent, they don’t merely hate you—they fear you.”

Kirei Nanako fell silent.

After a moment, he asked again: “So my superpower comes from Alaya’s suppressive force?”

Lin Yu nodded, then shook his head, smiling: “Yes and no.”

“…”

Kirei Nanako’s face darkened.

After living so long, this was the first time he’d ever missed telepathy.

…Get the riddle-talker out of Gotham!

Lin Yu watched his clearly annoyed expression and chuckled: “Already impatient? I thought you’d enjoy this feeling you never get normally!”

Without waiting for a reply, he continued: “Under normal circumstances, Gaia and Alaya never clash—but fundamentally, their goals are entirely different.”

“Gaia only wants the Earth to endure; what happens to humanity doesn’t matter.”

“Alaya is the same—if humanity survives, even if the Earth is destroyed, it’s fine…”

“Thus, under extreme conditions, the two suppressive forces inevitably collide.”

“Yet strangely, this world has never experienced such a conflict.”

“The two suppressive forces have, miraculously, compromised—because of one being beyond common understanding!”

Here, Lin Yu paused, then gazed at Kirei Nanako and said slowly: “That being is you—Kirei Nanako!”

“A superhuman with divine power, capable of halting world destruction—and even reversing it after the world has already ended!”

True, Kirei Nanako’s birth involved interference from both suppressive forces—but it went far beyond that.

Rather, the two suppressive forces merely used him to achieve their own ends, granting him numerous world-affecting superpowers in the process.

But fundamentally, Kirei Nanako remains a born superpower user.

The true origin of his powers—even Lin Yu, at this moment, cannot perceive.

Hearing Lin Yu’s explanation, Kirei Nanako stared blankly, as if his entire worldview had been shattered.

After a moment, he came to himself and spoke for the first time with a complex tone: “So… my desire to stop the volcano… was influenced by Alaya and Gaia?”

So he’d been thinking about this!

Lin Yu suddenly understood, then smiled gently: “Why think that way?”

“Set Gaia aside—Alaya is the collective unconscious of humanity.”

“You… aren’t you human?”

Kirei Nanako froze, then his mind reeled.

Of course—he was human too.

The collective consciousness forming Alaya included him as well.

If so, why obsess over whether saving the world was truly his own thought?

Lin Yu smiled: “Don’t overthink it. You’re you. Even if you were influenced by suppressive forces—would you still refuse to stop the world’s destruction?”

“…”

Kirei Nanako thought for a moment, then shook his head: “No—I’d still act.”

“Then there you go!”

Lin Yu pushed himself up from his knees, smiling broadly: “Well, I’ve kept you long enough—I should go.”

Kirei Nanako blinked: “Leave now?”

"What, you can't bear to let me go?"

Lin Yu teased, then said: “I came mainly to meet you and verify my suspicions. Both goals are achieved—why stay?”

As he spoke, he raised his hand again and ruffled Kirei Nanako’s hair.

“It’s late—get some rest.”

Before his words faded, silver light burst from his palm and flowed into the two arcade stick-shaped hair ornaments on Kirei Nanako’s head.

According to the plot, these ornaments were created by Kirei Nanako’s brother, Kirei Kusuo, as superpower suppressors to curb his growing abilities.

But in the original story, they’re fragile and easily destroyed by external force.

Lin Yu used his own methods to lay multiple seals, reinforcing the suppressors.

Kirei Nanako sensed this, which was why he didn’t stop Lin Yu.

One second, two seconds, three seconds…

Soon, thirty seconds passed.

Lin Yu was still ruffling his hair, as if unwilling to stop.

Kirei Nanako’s face twitched with annoyance, finally snapping: “Enough already?!”

At that, Lin Yu withdrew his hand and remarked with amusement: “I don’t know why, but your hair is so smooth—it’s like petting a cat. Did you ever turn into a cat?”

“…”

Kirei Nanako’s face darkened further and refused to answer such a ridiculous question.

Lin Yu smiled faintly, reached into the air, and pulled out a slip of paper.

“This is Bai Ze Ming’s contact info. If you have questions later, reach out through him—I’ll gladly play the wise older brother!”

You call yourself a wise older brother?

Kirei Nanako mentally scoffed, but his hand still reached out and took it.

Setting aside Lin Yu’s mysterious identity, he was the most powerful being Kirei Nanako had ever encountered—so much so that he felt like a student facing a master.

He had never felt this way in his entire life as a superhuman.

If possible, he wanted to stay in contact with Lin Yu, seeking guidance no ordinary person could offer.

Seeing Kirei Nanako accept the paper, Lin Yu smiled, flickered once—and vanished from the room.

The next second, the door opened and Kirei Kurumi entered carrying a fruit tray.

Seeing Kirei Nanako in the room, she paused, startled.

Where is Lin Yu?

He’s already left.

Qi Mu Nanxiong glanced at her.

“Oh, that’s too bad…”

Qi’s mother showed a look of regret, then raised the fruit tray in her hand and asked with a sweet smile: “Want some watermelon?”

Qi Mu Nanxiong: "..."

What utterly oblivious parents!

Meanwhile, Bai Ze and the others on the other side were not idle.

After successfully persuading Emiya Shirou to join the Holy Grail War, he took Emiya Shirou to the warehouse and summoned the final Servant—Saber—as in the original story.

She was a girl with golden hair and blue eyes, her figure appearing somewhat slender.

She wore a blue knight’s gown over a silver armor brimming with magical constructs; her gaze was like a deep blue ocean—clear yet radiating an indescribable powerful aura.

Upon appearing, she immediately stepped in front of Emiya Shirou, her expression grave as she stared at Zhao Yun and Red A.

Fortunately, Emiya Shirou reacted in time, grabbing Saber’s wrist and explaining the situation to her.

“So...”

Saber frowned and said: “Before dealing with the other Masters, you plan to form an alliance with your two classmates?”

Emiya Shirou nodded: “That’s right.”

Saber turned her gaze to Zhao Yun and Red A and said solemnly: “In that case, I can accept a temporary truce and alliance.”

“That’s perfect!”

Bai Ze smiled and said: “The alliance is formed. Now for our first move—I have a great target in mind, and I’m sure you two will agree.”

Emiya Shirou and Tohsaka Rin exchanged a glance.

“What target?”

Bai Ze said slowly and clearly: “Rider and Kiriatsuki!”

(End of Chapter)