Daneel first took a moment to distract himself from the image in front of him.
World Eater.
He had to admit that the name perfectly fit, because this really did look like some sort of terrifying being that could gobble up an entire continent whole.
He could just imagine those tentacles completely reaching down and holding the edges of the continent, before engulfing it in that mist and swallowing each and every being it could find.
Of course, he couldn't really tell whether this was how it would play out if that massive hole didn't exist that had certainly been caused by the Emperor wielding the Grand Inheritance, but that was how he imagined it.
After that, he continued to ask the first question that came to his mind.
"Why? Why do so many organizations want to massacre everything on this continent? What do they get out of it? And where are they even from?"
The Emperor did not turn to Daneel to answer the question. Instead, he just talked, while Daneel listened with complete attention.
"Getting right down to the important stuff, aren't we? Well, the answer to this is simple, and it is the answer that you would get for most of the questions that you can ask about those who wish destruction - power. You must have already guessed that Angaria is just a continent in this World, the true size of which even I do not know. However, what I do know is that Angaria is a mid-sized continent compared to others, and that it is one that has come into existence recently relative to other continents. The place that these organizations come from is simply called the Mainland - it is the oldest continent that has existed, and nobody even knows when it came into being. The mainland is vast - larger than you can ever imagine. In one estimate, it can be said that a hundred Angarias can fit into it. Even though this is the case, there are only a few major organizations which control large tracts of it. And the one which is currently attacking Angaria in this vision - is one of them. Here, I have to disappoint you just a bit - I cannot state its name, as doing so would call its attention upon us. But I can tell you why they wish to do this."
Indeed, Daneel did feel a little bit of disappointment when he heard this, but he was actually fine with it as he had no intention of gaining attention from such a behemoth, especially when he wasn't strong enough to even handle the forces in current Angaria.
So, he just took a deep breath and waited to get the answer to his first question.
"You see, the way the world works is that each and every being which is born in it is given a certain… ability to affect it, and mold it to their will. In those who are talented, this manifests in the form of Mageroots and Body Potential, which they can use to train and achieve great things. But what about those in whom this is not the case? These people should also be able to influence the world in some way, as it is the right given to them. Hence, they gain the ability to influence the Will of the World. I think you can guess what this Will is. When a Champion resonates with something inside himself and causes a reaction within the world, it is this Will that responds and lends its power. When a Hero ascends, it is the quintessence of this Will that he takes control of to dramatically increase his power by making the world itself move for him. And when one wields the Grand Inheritance, it is this Will that they control to do whatever they wish. Finally, this is also the answer that you seek - all of these organizations wish to control the Will of the World, which holds immense power, to drive their own agenda of either defeating their enemies, or becoming stronger so that they can continue to live for millennia. But herein lies the problem with the Will - the Will of the World is a combination of all the thoughts of all the beings that inhabit it - in case you have used the Ruler's Inheritance, you must already have gotten a taste of what this means. Such a large amount of individual thoughts can only be controlled and ignored, if all of those people, or at least most of them are loyal to the one who wields the Will. This has always been the singular rule that covers the Will - when wielded by one who is supported by a large part of it, it will not put up as much resistance, as they are deemed to be worthy. But when this is not the case, it will retaliate, and attempt to drive them mad. If someone gets over this and still uses it, it results in this catastrophe - a complete and utter retaliation by the Will which drives all those above the level of a Warrior into a state where their only objective is to destroy everything around them. That is exactly what you are witnessing below."
Daneel had been holding his breath as he heard all this, and he finally let it out as he realized that most of the suppositions he had had before were right. He couldn't even begin to express the amount of satisfaction that came from having them confirmed, but he stopped all these thoughts when he saw the Emperor continue.
"Now, to understand why they wish to massacre the inhabitants of the continent in order to get this Will, I ask you to simply think of something: you are a King who has definitely swayed a lot of people toward your side with great difficulty in order to reach this stage. Instead of that, imagine a race of people who are brought up while being taught a single thing: to revere you like a god, and always support you while keeping you in their hearts no matter what you do. Wouldn't this directly allow you to wield the Will without fearing the backlash, and also let you rest assured that outsiders cannot steal away the right to wield the Will?"
Daneel nodded without hesitation when he heard this. He had just now experienced this firsthand when he had tried to sway the citizens of Axelor. They had been brought up while being taught to support the King. Hence, even when they saw that that man was responsible for them losing their loved ones, they had still needed time to betray him.
"That is their objective. It is, in fact, two-fold: one, by killing millions of people, there is a certain power that is born which they can use. Two- they can quickly populate an empty continent and raise those people to support them, allowing them to easily wield the Will as they wish without having to go through any difficulties. As for why they want the Will: I am unclear about this, too, but one reason is that there is always a struggle in the Mainland, which can be won by those who control more Wills, and can hence defeat their opponents using overwhelming power. Another is that it is said that a Will can be used to prolong the life of those who stand above the level of a Hero. Continue. What else do you wish to know?"
Daneel decided to first to ask and get all the answers he wanted, before mulling over them later. So, after thinking for a bit, he asked, "If this risk still stands, why did you even leave behind the Grand Inheritance? And from what you said before, I can gather that you know that loopholes can be used to take control of it. Why did you allow that? And how did you even discover the Grand Inheritance? And what happened in this fight? Why didn't they return to attack again?"
This made a smile of sadness appear on the face of the Emperor.
After letting out a sigh, he spoke.
"Let me answer your last questions first. In my time, I was blessed with more talent than most others, and I went ahead to grow stronger and stronger until I reached the farther edge of the Hero level. There had never been anyone before who reached that level. Excited, I forged ahead. That…was when I was exposed to the Grand Inheritance, as my mind reached a complexity which allowed me to detect it. I found it in a spot at the center of the continent, and when I realized what it was- I acted like a fool. In my quest to grow stronger, I used it just a little bit without caution, and this…was the thing that attracted the attention of one of the organizations on the Mainland. You see, until that point, Angaria had been veiled. In other words, I am the fool who is the reason behind our continent being targeted by organizations from outside. In this final fight, I used the Grand Inheritance even though I didn't have the required amount of support to gravely injure their strongest weapon, and also ensure that the veil that was originally around our continent would come into existence again, at least for a time. I wasn't strong enough to make it stay forever. I knew that it would dissipate one day. I knew that Angaria would once again become a target. And that is why I left behind the Grand Inheritance, and the Empire Spirits so that our descendants would be able to learn from our mistakes. You have the chance, now, to do right by Angaria, and defend it without causing the catastrophe."
Daneel couldn't believe it. But he stood by the decision he had taken before, and just listened.
"As for why I allowed those loopholes, it was because I could not jeopardize the existence of this continent on my faith that one such as you would arise who could use the correct method to reach the level where the Grand Inheritance could be wielded without the risk of causing the catastrophe. You see, until I actually used it to get rid of the threat, even I didn't know the exact criteria that it used to judge the 'worth' of someone. I just thought that it needed people to be happy. I gave them everything they could ever dream of. But that was not the answer. You seem to have found it. I used everything I learned to make the seals. The objective of leaving behind the loopholes was that in the case where Angaria was once again under risk of being destroyed, one would be able to use the Will to defend it, even if it meant that they would reach the criteria by using horrible means to get to the required satisfaction level. Isn't it better to have a few die when you can save the rest, as opposed to letting everyone perish? It was always all about the satisfaction level. The seals, the Race- all of it. I simply wished for one to come forward who could use the Grand Inheritance to wield the Will without causing the catastrophe, like I did. And as for the Ruler's Inheritance, it was my creation based on how the Will worked. It was supposed to be used for practice by those who were using the correct method-such as you, for the time when you obtain the Will. Those who used other means would not have obtained that technique. In either case, Angaria would have been saved. I feel…that I have succeeded. Don't you?"
Daneel was tempted to just continue to ask questions.
But he decided to speak his mind.
"No. You failed. Those who used loopholes to get the Will might have used it to defend Angaria. But such a person…might opt to give up Angaria anyway, to obtain the knowledge to reach a higher level and live for even longer. How could you not think of this?"
In response to this, the Emperor looked to the side, and actually…smiled.
Only, it wasn't one of mirth.
"Of course I did. I didn't become an Emperor by being foolish, King. I set up a secret backdoor in the Grand Inheritance. Anyone with that intention…will perish right after defeating the threat."