Chapter 101
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 101
Chapter Title: The First Dimensional Transfer, And...
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After washing up in the dormitory and coming out...
Elrim was frantically wandering the academy in search of someone.
"Seriously. Where the hell did that perverted stalker trash old man go?!"
The incredible mage who had appeared during the subjugation festival.
No matter how much she searched the academy, he was nowhere to be found.
Even when she asked the supervisors, they said there had been no intrusion by outsiders on the subjugation festival field.
"He was definitely an incredible mage..."
He had definitely been an incredible mage.
She had clearly said she would question him again after the subjugation festival ended.
Was that a lie? He had vanished.
Whoosh—
The Redlight Stitch circled around Elrim.
The incredible mage who had appeared saying he would give her this as a gift.
In truth, she hadn't sensed any pressure from mana like that of an archmage duke.
Rather, he felt so ordinary that she could have believed he was just a regular person—nothing at all emanated from him.
But that's exactly why Elrim was convinced he was a great mage.
To sneak into the subjugation festival without permission and emit no presence at all meant he had surpassed the academy's level and could perfectly contain his power.
In ancient history, there were tales of mages who surpassed even archmage dukes.
Anyway, stories of mages who had reached the absolute pinnacle.
They, or he, were said to be hermits who no longer appeared in the world.
They were practically legendary, far-fetched rumors.
The kind used to get children to behave, like, "If you're good, a great mage will appear and grant your wish."
Come to think of it, Hisenna had once mentioned something about the "First Mage."
It was one of those legends or rumors about hidden mages. The tale of the First Mage.
That the First Mage existed, and great archmages like the current archmage dukes had received teachings from him or whatever.
Of course, it was just superstitious gossip.
Hardly anyone truly believed it anymore.
Even archmage dukes had never mentioned it, apparently.
But having witnessed it herself, Elrim couldn't ignore it.
If there was a mage greater than an archmage duke, and she could learn magic from him...
Then she could really become an incredible mage.
In fact, the situation when she met him had been so urgent and bewildering that she hadn't been entirely honest.
Elrim had been quite flustered by the appearance of this transcendent being.
She had reflexively thrown out her usual dishonest words.
Her focus on the Redlight Stitch had also been to hide her fear of that mighty existence.
Looking back now, it was a miracle she hadn't been killed for calling a great mage "trash" and such.
But thinking about it, he must have held some goodwill toward her, so that's why.
She wondered if receiving some teachings from him could make her even stronger.
"That trash old man! He tricked me!"
In the end, she couldn't find him anywhere.
He had definitely run away.
Without leaving a single trace.
"Leche! Find him!"
Even when she shouted at Leche, it just kept circling around her.
Leche wasn't a familiar but more like a tool, so of course it couldn't understand speech.
"Eeeek!!"
Elrim stomped her feet in frustration before letting out a long sigh, "Phew."
Exhausted, she looked up at the sky.
She probably wouldn't be able to find that old man. Unless he came to her first.
'That's why. I just wanted to let you know that there is someone cheering for you. Even if everyone ignores and curses you, there is always at least one person somewhere far away who supports you.'
Elrim recalled the words he had left behind.
Was he really watching over her? The great mage.
Even though it was their first meeting, Elrim strangely felt understood.
Attention. Gaze. What Elrim had always longed for.
The days when she thought no one was watching her.
Maybe someone had been watching after all.
Maybe her efforts had been acknowledged, and that's why she received the gift.
"No! Leche is mine—I caught it myself!"
No. She hadn't received a gift.
She had caught Leche herself.
"Hmph..."
What kind of old man was he, anyway?
Was he really a great mage?
Or was he just some illusion?
...Or maybe, because she had lived diligently, the great mage had given her a gift?
Next time they met, she would question him properly.
By then, she would be stronger and show off her even more impressive skills. Elrim resolved herself.
That she had lived diligently. Sure, she had done plenty of naughty things, but she truly wanted to become stronger.
If there really was a great mage. If she received acknowledgment from that existence.
Then everyone in the world would pay attention to her.
Elrim walked back with her usual gait.
A bouncy, excited step.
Elrim would still work hard and shine.
But unlike before, her heart felt a little lighter now.
Even if it seemed like no one cared,
She now knew that at least one person was watching over her.
Latent Abyss Dragon – Riftlord Lupulvihil Mirimilelia.
She was lounging in her lair as usual, browsing the gallery.
It might look like she was just rolling around gallery-surfing, but that wasn't all she did.
Contemplating the world.
The reason she lounged in her lair was that she was a contemplative dragon.
Even from her lair, she contemplated everything happening in this world.
And a few hours ago, she already knew that something impossible in this dimension had occurred.
And after a few hours of waiting, someone arrived at her lair.
"SubsidyRiceEater?"
One of the gallery's high-nics – the great researcher SubsidyRiceEater.
The gallery's greatest researcher had crossed dimensions.
In truth, she had only contemplated that an unusual ripple from another world had crossed over,
She hadn't known it was SubsidyRiceEater specifically.
Because he was an existence on par with her, one she couldn't fully contemplate.
Since Kim Muggle had passed the blue orb to SubsidyRiceEater, she figured he would come.
"You knew, huh. Dragonling."
And naturally, her guess was correct.
A tall, gaunt man in loose-fitting suit pants stepped out of a rift in space.
"I often watch over what happens in this dimension. Did you just meet Kim Muggle?"
"Precisely, I met the redhead, inspected Kim Muggle's bracelet, and taught her a spell."
"Why do you talk like such an idiot? Stop holing up in your lab writing papers and meet some people."
"I don't want to hear that from a dragonling like you."
FlapFlap and SubsidyRiceEater let out low chuckles.
Though it was their first meeting,
It felt as comfortable as reuniting with an old friend.
"So. Why bother coming all the way here? To tell me about dimensional magic and the orb? I'm not great with theory."
"I don't expect academic debate with a dragonling. I'll base it on inspecting the bracelet and observations from this dimensional transfer, research it, and post to the gallery."
"Any useful results?"
"Simply put, the blue orb enables dimensional transfer for about 24 hours. The magic bound to the blue orb operates continuously for 24 hours, and I've closely observed its manifestation process up to now."
What SubsidyRiceEater did while spectating the subjugation festival wasn't just meeting the redhead.
He had meticulously observed the blue orb's magic that enabled dimensional transfer.
Researching those observations and the bracelet's info seemed likely to yield meaningful results.
"Looks like you got some harvest."
"It'll be a long study."
This dimensional trip had been a chain of hard-to-interpret information.
It would take time, but that only fueled SubsidyRiceEater's research passion.
"Anyway. So why come here? You could gallery-post that stuff."
"Coming to this dimension reminded me of that guy."
"...Ah. You knew? That he's from the same dimension as me."
"I suspected."
A gallery regular who had vanished long ago.
Thinking of him, SubsidyRiceEater sought out FlapFlap.
"Well, even if you ask, I got nothing to say. I don't know his whereabouts either. No need to dig, right? We only meet in the gallery anyway."
"True. But if he were here, dimensional magic..."
"I know. He was impressive."
"Didn't you say you contemplate this dimension?"
"He vanished one day. That's it. I can definitely contemplate those below my level, but peers are hard. And contemplation is my thing, not direct intervention."
"Fair enough."
I see. SubsidyRiceEater muttered disappointedly.
As a researcher, he had quite liked that guy.
"...Got it. I'll head out then."
"Already? Stick around longer~"
"Not leisurely. And the orb's time is running out. Want to take in this dimension's sights before then."
"SubsidyRiceEater acting sentimental."
"Part of the research."
"Go on. See you in the gallery."
"See you in the gallery."
FlapFlap waved her wings while lying down, and SubsidyRiceEater left the lair.
Borishutain flew through the sky, gazing down at the dimension.
It was definitely different from his own dimension.
But the natural laws didn't seem particularly different.
Life inhabited it just the same, only the appearances varied.
Observing other dimensions was a key clue for dimensional magic research.
Knowing how each dimension differed was useful.
But he couldn't find major differences in natural laws.
As expected. All dimensions shared the same magic system, after all.
Magic was universal across dimensions. The supreme concept of all dimensions.
"Pushed too hard, huh."
His head ached.
A great archmage, yet in these 24 hours, he had overtaxed his brain.
Thoughts on a scale ordinary humans couldn't achieve in a lifetime—he had several in 24 hours.
Time was up.
In 10 seconds, he would return to his original dimension.
Borishutain floated still in the sky, feeling the winds of this other dimension.
Would the day come when he could freely traverse dimensions?
If so, magic would leap forward exponentially.
Sharing knowledge across dimensions to elevate magic further.
That was why gallery users couldn't let go of dimensional magic research.
As archmages, they all sought higher magical achievements.
Connecting all dimensions meant linking all that knowledge.
Stagnant areas would explode in progress.
"Not just that, though."
Of course, the desire to connect dimensions wasn't only that.
Meeting FlapFlap this time made Borishutain realize.
Archmages were lonely existences.
Hard to understand in their own dimensions.
Their level far exceeded the dimensional average.
The desire for connection.
But specifically, to connect with those on the same level.
No reason to mingle with lesser archmage dukes, naturally.
Thus, gallery users lived in exalted solitude in their dimensions.
Strictly speaking, it wasn't disinterest in world affairs,
But rather, no one in the world could share their level.
That's why they couldn't leave the gallery.
There, unlike their solemn real-world images, they could reveal their foolish true natures.
Borishutain gained an unexpected insight.
Connection. Gallery. Solitude. And archmages.
The reasons they all persisted in dimensional magic research.
Ssshh—
He felt the rift between dimensions opening.
The journey ended here.
Borishutain surrendered to the dimensional flow.
"It was enjoyable."
The rare outing had been fun.
Hoping to return someday.
Would like to meet the redhead again then.
Kim Muggle needed to get his act together.
Just like arriving, the gallery opened as he crossed dimensions, and Borishutain's body was sucked into it.
———!
An unknown number of dimensions and the space between them.
Feeling that awe once more, Borishutain returned to his original dimension.
Screech—creak—creak—
No, wait.
This was different.
Unlike the inbound path filled with mystery and wonder,
The return passage felt off somehow.
Not the multidimensional mystery pathway,
No, it was clearly the same passage.
But it brimmed with a terrifying bright darkness,
An unknown mana—no, magic? Overwhelming enough to make even the archmage Borishutain tremble in fear—
"————!!"
Borishutain gasped in a breath.
Something seemed to be watching.
He couldn't tell what.
It was just enormously vast— and, and and and terrifyingterrifying—
-...Arrogant......dimensional influence... one......
A distant voice resounding across dimensions.
With it, immense power approached.
Borishutain, consumed by terror—no, before he could even feel it fully, desperately.
Amid indescribable sensory whirlwinds, he urgently calculated a spell.
Whatever it took to protect himself—
[Zero-Phase Absolute Immunity Resonance Field]
Borishutain deployed his highest-level defensive magic.
At that moment, something profoundly distant approached.
It clearly bore malice, tampering with Borishutain's mana.
Soon, as if to tear him apart completely, it brutally shredded his mana.
"...! Ah- kuaaaaagh!!"
While crossing the dimensional rift, Borishutain was savagely ravaged by it.
At the end of endless agony, Borishutain escaped that place and fell somewhere.
It was Borishutain's laboratory.
Thud—he collapsed,
His body and circuits utterly wrecked, and he lost consciousness.