Multiverse: Why does the world show a health bar? !

On October 30th, while southern Japan was being battered by a typhoon, Academy City, which occupied a third of Tokyo, enjoyed nothing more than overcast skies, with occasional sunlight breaking through the clouds to reach the ground.

In a certain office building located in the upper floors of a commercial center in District 10, there was a room elegantly decorated, with bookshelves lining three of its walls. It felt more like a small library than an office.

Inside the room, a young man and a transparent shrine maiden spirit were present.

"Oh? You brought back those books? Thank you for your trouble."

Li Mo sat in his office, a property in District 10 that had been part of Gensei Kihara's spoils. After their confrontation, all of Gensei's assets had fallen into Li Mo's hands.

This time, he had taken everything for himself.

Gensei Kihara's influence was much smaller than that of Shiokishi. That's why the other vultures had come sniffing around, hoping to get a share of the spoils.

The shrine maiden spirit bowed slightly before disappearing into Li Mo's shadow.

On the desk in front of him sat a computer, and beside it were several ancient-looking books.

—Grimoires.

Not the kind of polluted knowledge stored in Index's mind, but actual physical grimoire originals.

When Li Mo first arrived in this world, he had made a deal with the immortal witch, Ladylee Tangleroad. He had taken her immortality and, as part of the deal, received a portion of her collection of grimoires.

But...

"I've already read all of these."

Grimoire originals possessed many mysterious powers, but they could also backfire. For ordinary magicians, they were like ticking time bombs, ready to explode at any moment.

But for Li Mo...

"I'll just hand them over to Kihara Gensei later. Or maybe I'll sell them."

He didn't care.

The task of retrieving the grimoires had been carried out by the Dark Side, with the help of the shrine maiden spirit. The "pollution" contained within the grimoires was something ordinary people couldn't withstand, but as Li Mo's familiar, the shrine maiden spirit could resist it.

—Moreover, the unique connection between a familiar and its master allowed Li Mo to absorb the pollution himself.

Li Mo turned on his computer. The war between Academy City and Russia was still ongoing. After days of escalation, the conflict had spread to multiple countries, evolving into World War III.

He browsed through the war reports. The aerial battle over the Sea of Japan between Academy City and Russia had ended in a complete victory for Academy City. Russian missiles were either intercepted in the atmosphere or destroyed by lasers. Additionally, Russian submarines attempting to disrupt Academy City's supply lines found themselves unable to locate their targets.

The technological gap left Russia utterly defenseless, and the war was completely one-sided.

But...

Li Mo noticed a new image on the screen.

"The Star of Bethlehem has risen?"

The Star of Bethlehem was the star that appeared when Jesus was born in Bethlehem. Thus, its rising signified the birth of Jesus.

Li Mo looked toward the distant north, where the frozen lands of Russia lay. The archangel Gabriel had descended, and the waves of angelic power had swept across the globe. Li Mo could feel his fourth tail becoming more active.

The fourth tail—constructed from the characteristics of the Right Seat of God and the existence of Raphael. It symbolized the messenger of God, representing the concept of an "angel."

Li Mo knew that the rising of the Star of Bethlehem marked the moment of Fiamma of the Right's defeat. Fiamma had made himself the enemy of the world, allowing his "Holy Right" to gain unimaginable power.

His goal was to become "above God," to transcend the "Age of Osiris" represented by Christianity and become part of the "Age of Horus."

Then, Li Mo turned his gaze back to the city.

He could sense that something subtle had changed in the city's AIM diffusion fields, as if something was missing.

The phone rang, and Musujime Awaki's voice came through.

"Misaka Mikoto and Shokuhou Misaki have left Academy City together via the HsB-02 supersonic bomber in District 23. Additionally, the combat suit has been delivered to Shokuhou Misaki through the appropriate channels."

"That's good. Has Mitsuari Ayu been controlled?"

"She's already under control."

"Then start preparing. Wait for my signal."

When the Star of Bethlehem falls, it will mark the end of the war. That's when we can begin the final phase.

Li Mo hung up the phone.

The combat suit given to Shokuhou Misaki was based on Mitsuari Ayu's design. The biggest weakness of espers like Shokuhou Misaki was their lack of close-combat ability. Someone like Shokuhou, who was terrible at physical activity, would likely be in serious trouble on the frozen lands of Russia.

That's where the combat suit came in. It would greatly enhance Shokuhou's physical abilities, ensuring she wouldn't hold Misaka Mikoto back.

Using information about Kamijou Touma, Li Mo had successfully convinced the #3 and #5 espers to leave Academy City. The #1 and #4 espers had already set foot on Russian soil...

"It's time to go out."

Li Mo stuffed the grimoire originals into his system inventory and left the office.

He always went out alone, without any bodyguards or even a driver.

No one dared to attack him now.

His victory over the #2 esper had deterred many would-be assailants. But Academy City was never short of reckless individuals. After all, even the #1 esper's home had been attacked. The city's advanced technology gave people a sense of confidence.

More importantly, Li Mo's reforms hadn't been enforced yet.

No one's interests had been pushed to the breaking point by his actions. After all, hadn't Gensei Kihara already been thrown into prison?

Li Mo headed toward the windowless building in District 7.

"Are you looking for me, boy?"

On the street, Li Mo heard a voice that clearly didn't belong to a human.

He glanced around. There were a few students wandering about, and most of the shops were nearly empty. It wasn't peak hours, after all. Among the sparse crowd, he couldn't find the source of the voice.

Li Mo wasn't panicked. He knew who the voice belonged to.

"Aiwass, are you going to appear in broad daylight among the crowd?"

"No, I can just maintain contact with you like this. Not long ago, Kazakiri Hyouka left Academy City."

"I know. The AIM diffusion fields, which were originally confined to Academy City, suddenly extended a path to Russia. After all, I'm the one who used the AIM diffusion fields to create an angelic body."

"Li Mo, are you going to see Aleister now?"

"Yes."

"What about the Dark Side reforms? Aren't you going to handle that?"

"If the 'dragon' doesn't show up, why bother? Everything's been set up to this point. They can handle it." Li Mo said, "On the other hand, Aleister is more important right now."

Before he knew it, Li Mo had arrived at the center of District 7, in front of the windowless building. Activating his spatial movement magic, he entered the building, which didn't reject his visit.

He stepped inside.