With the beautiful new main illustration of Kai no Kiseki, wonderfully drawn by Katsumi Enami, dropping earlier today there’s a lot to talk about. And through this illustration, I believe we now have a firmer idea of what the ending of Kai no Kiseki may look like.
To begin, however, it’s important to discuss what this main illustration shows us. Of note, are two blue spheres, one on the top and one on the bottom. The sphere at the top is a world with continents and the sphere at the bottom seems to be reminiscent of what mirrors it, but broken with jagged lines running across it. On top of this broken, glowing sphere are two figures: Van and Agnes, looking determined in the face of the catastrophe before them. Between them lies a cube, with Rean on the left and Kevin on the right, both presenting with reassuring smiles. And just above them is Nina on the left and the Grandmaster on the right. Nina praying with her eyes open, hopeful, and the Grandmaster in acceptance, with her eyes closed. The background is brilliantly white, with concave edges at the top that are softly dissipating indicating that it’s disappearing from top to bottom.
Many things can be taken from this illustration alone and while I could talk for hours about it, I want to focus on a few details in particular for now. One of the more significant, and recurring, themes of Kai’s promotional cycle thus far is the “two worlds”. These two spheres with one glowing, cracked, and another that is familiar to the Earth that we know of. Throughout Kuro no Kiseki we are repeatedly informed of one truth: Professor Claude Epstein prophesied the world would end in 120X. To this end, we know Epstein created tools to observe the world, the primary driving force of Kuro’s arc, the Genesis. Before this, within the context of Sen IV, we learn that the world of Zemuria is closed off. There are unexplainable phenomena that prevent people from observing further out from a given point. In addition to this, McBurn himself comments on the state of the Beyond. All of this is to say, that there has been an underlying theme throughout Kiseki that has become increasingly more poignant as time goes on: Zemuria exists in a closed-off state with the Beyond being this space that exists ‘outside’ Zemuria. Epstein understood this and created tools to observe the world, fearing its inevitable end and likely aiming to find a way to offset Zemuria’s end even by a second. This is reinforced by what the Grandmaster has previously had to say, in regards to the “Eternal Recurrence Plan”.
──《黄昏》による終焉は回避され、
世界の命数は僅かながら伸びました。
“全ての無”へと至るまで、およそ３年──
The world has escaped the Great Twilight,
extending its lifespan ever so slightly.
Three years yet remain until all
returns to primordial nothingness.
From this, it’s easy to infer that when the end arrives all will be wiped out. And of course, one detail about the “Eternal Recurrence” is the inherent implication that Zemuria itself is stuck in a loop. And so, the Grandmaster’s intent may as well be to transition Zemuria into its “new world”, explaining her role as an observer especially in regards to the Sept-Terrion. An idea that can receive an entire theory on its own.
Within Kai no Kiseki, it appears that Gramheart is set on pushing this boundary as far as it can go with the hopes of seeing what lies beyond Zemuria. (His motivations, while somewhat shrouded in mystery, can be an entire theory on its own though I think it’s fair to say we know what it may be.) And, in both Kai no Kiseki CM’s, it conveys one exhilarating revelation, we will finally see what lies beyond Zemuria. Taking this into account, it would not be far-fetched to state that the world Van and Agnes are standing on is Zemuria, while the world that Nina and the Grandmaster are facing, is the intended “new world”.
This particular moment from the first CM is reminiscent of the main illustration we were presented with today. Van seems to be sitting down in shock and awe at the sight above him.
There are two incredibly important details about Van in this illustration. The first is that both Van and Agnes are standing on this cracked sphere. I propose that this cracked sphere is, in fact, Zemuria facing its inevitable end. Thus, Van and Agnes are standing determined on it in the face of this “bad end”. This is mirrored by Nina and the Grandmaster facing the “new world”, both of whom are tasked with ushering this transition into it. Both Nina and the Grandmaster look like mirrors here, almost embodying multiple aspects of Aidios herself. And so this inherent mirror of Van and Agnes standing firm in the face of destruction, and Nina and the Grandmaster praying for the new world and guiding it feels incredibly symbolic of the transition the series is making with this entry. This symbolism is only elevated by the disappearing white veil in the background which I believe is a connection to the opening, “White World”.
Another detail, and arguably more important, regards Van. In this illustration, his legs have the very same cracks that run along the surface of the sphere at the bottom. This could be an implication regarding his Grendel transformation but I believe it’s a more significant detail than just that. This white line that ensnared both of his legs, trails into the world that both Van and Agnes are standing on.
..Almost as if he were anchored to it.
I believe that Kai no Kiseki may end with Van locking Zemuria in a state of permanence, acting as a gate to the Beyond (or the new world), to prevent Zemuria from being wiped out. We don’t know what may happen at the world’s end, but it’s safe to assume that all of those living on Zemuria, and the continent itself, may likely disappear in the face of this transition. If this is true, then without a doubt our protagonists will not agree with such an outcome. The memories they made, the experiences they had, and the trails they walked all had meaning. This is integral to the theme of Kiseki and in keeping with this theme, I do think this ending is possible. Hear me out.
I believe we may have seen a similar phenomenon before in Kuro 1. At the end of Kuro 1, Van locks himself away in the 无限の狭間 (Endless Expanse) otherwise known as, むげんはざまあおぐろ黝き魔王の斎場 (Blue and Black Demon Lord’s Funeral Hall). An interstice between Zemuria and the Beyond, an endless expanse that exists as the boundary between worlds. He does this to isolate himself from Zemuria so that the Demon Lord’s, Vagrants-Zion, desire remains unfulfilled. To achieve this he shackles himself in chains to seal himself and the Diabolic Core away. Shackles are incredibly important to Van. In the finale of Kuro 1 Van transforms into Grendel SiN and this transformation is initiated with the following dialogue: “I exist in this world by the Lead of the Fragile Chain”. This line emphasizes Van’s fragile existence in the context of the world, a detail we learn shortly after from Bergard, and places emphasis on the “chain” that binds him. Van embraces his nightmare and in doing so becomes more powerful. Chains are symbolic of tying things together, they inherently possess a negative connotation which is reinforced by Van’s ongoing struggle with both his existence in this world and his past. However, in embracing these chains he was able to face his nightmare and overcome it. He then uses these “chains” to isolate himself shortly after, hoping to buy his friends even a fraction of time.
And this decision makes sense to him. Van Arkride, believes he is an aberration. He is erroneous to the natural condition of the world due to the nature of his birth. Bergard reveals to us, and the cast, that at a time “when the world was being rewritten” an additional five demons, the Demon Lords, came into existence. Van is a proxy (the word I would love to use is bunrei) of this Demon Lord of Vagabonds that “possesses power over time”, a condition that implicates a natural danger to the world and his friends. Something dark, twisted and unfortunately evil.
Van states he would be able to contain himself within his Funeral Hall for “a few hundred years” at least and in doing so, he would pursue a path that isn’t black or white, not even gray but it is a solution. It is his solution to protect this world and his friends.
And I believe this exchange is fundamental to coming full circle with Van’s character in the ending of Kai no Kiseki. Van would use this ability, these shackles, to effectively arrest Zemuria in this state that allows it to exist but without time passing. He would do this by pinning himself to Zemuria’s world and chaining himself so that the other protagonists (all of the cast across every arc) can be granted time to do what has to be done to transition into this new world safely. This is why Van has the “cracks” that trail into the world but Agnes does not. Rather than do this out of self-hate and as a last resort, he does it out of love for his friends. He doesn’t do this out of spite for himself, but out of hope. He makes this same decision in Kuro 1 but does so because he knows that his friends will be able to handle whatever comes their way, granting Zemuria that extra bit of time Epstein so desperately attempted to gain. In this way, he would be “paying back the debt” to the world by protecting it on a scale that would inherently give meaning to what he believes is his erroneous state of being. This wouldn’t be white, a solution of creation, or black, a solution of destruction, but gray, his own path that treads both in the hopes that a better future can be created from destruction. And the “daybreak” would be the better world at the series conclusion.
This sacrifice would also work in the context of the series’ remaining arc. After this, we are assuredly going to the Far East, the edge of the world. And so it’s safe to say that only a few games remain which is especially true given recent Famitsu comments by Kondo. He has given this series an estimation of 90% completion with Kai no Kiseki, a completion rate that has scaled with Sept-Terrion’s across the many games in this series. He has estimated that the series would conclude within 5-6 years but no more than 10 at most. And he has commented that the series is fast approaching its conclusion with Kai no Kiseki marking “the beginning of the end”. If we assume the Far East will be two games (haha) then Van’s sacrifice here would buy just enough time for Zemuria to unite against this impending doom, journey to the Far East to uncover the remaining truths of the world, and overcome this destined erasure.
Another detail I wanted to add but didn’t since it’s a bit of a stretch, is that one DLC bonus from Chara-Ani’s limited edition bundle is a Van ride-along titled “枷の騎士” which is transliterated to, “Knight of Shackles”.
The design here seems to be largely similar to his Kai no Kiseki design but with added armor. This may be an outfit Van obtains in-game as part of story progression, or it’s just a DLC-specific costume. But I think the name, “Knight of Shackles”, holds meaning in regards to Van as the emphasis on “shackles” reinforces that his role in this game may be one to chain things together. Keeping in theme with how he walks this gray line, supporting people warmly from the shadows so they can do what needs to be done.