Chapter 100: The Door
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 100: The Door
My body felt heavy and numb.
If my hazy memories served me right, I had probably collapsed while training. I’d clearly overestimated my limits, pushing myself until my stamina finally gave out.
‘Where am I?’
A sense of déjà vu washed over me. I felt something soft against the back of my head—a sensation of pure, unadulterated comfort.
I remembered the time I had Eden attack me to test the Elemental Bracelet. When the damage accumulated and I fainted then, I had woken up in Luce’s room.
It seemed someone had dragged my unconscious body away again. Was it Isaac’s older sister, who had been stalking me lately?
‘…No, there’s no way.’
Before I blacked out, I remembered scanning the area with [Clairvoyance]. Isaac’s sister was nowhere to be seen.
In other words, it was someone else.
By the way, this pillow was incredibly smooth and soft. Wait, I thought it was a pillow, but…
What… is this?
My brain was still struggling to reboot. I slowly opened my eyes, expecting to see an unfamiliar ceiling. Instead, I was nearly blinded by a brilliant radiance.
“Are you awake, President?”
Beyond the soft curves of her chest, a smile as bright as starlight met my gaze.
Lavender hair cascaded down, framing eyes that held an entire universe within them, complete with her signature star-shaped pupils. It was Dorothy, her face beaming with joy.
We were in a corner of the butterfly garden, beneath a zelkova tree bathed in the golden light of the setting sun. This was the spot where Dorothy usually sat and chatted with me while I trained.
And right now, I was lying in Dorothy’s lap.
‘Oh, it’s just Dorothy.’
Yeah, I’m never getting up.
I closed my eyes again and turned my head to the side, letting the skin of my favorite waifu caress my cheek.
“Nihihi! Presideeeent~ aren’t you being a little too obvious?” Dorothy giggled, clearly seeing through me. “This big sis is going to get embarrassed, you know?”
“Opportunities like this don't come often, so I have to enjoy it while I can. It’s fan service, right?”
“Sure, sure. How is it? Are you happy?”
Of fucking course I am.
“What brought this on? It’s unlike you to offer a lap pillow out of the blue.”
“…Lately, I’ve felt like the President is pushing himself too hard. Both your mind and your body.”
It seemed impossible to hide anything from Dorothy. She must have sensed the urgency driving me.
“How did you know?”
“Hmph! This big sis knows everything, you know?” Dorothy answered triumphantly, placing a hand over her heart. “That’s why I wanted to come bother you a bit to lift your spirits! I just happened to find the President unconscious. You did a good job fainting!”
So I passed out at the perfect time. Nice.
Of course, I couldn't indulge in this bliss forever. I was lucky to have even this brief moment of peace. Since my stamina had recovered slightly during my nap, I needed to get back to work.
“Thank you, Senior. Now, I should—”
“President.”
As I tried to sit up, Dorothy grabbed my shoulders and firmly pressed me back down onto her lap. Her message was clear: Don't get up.
“Rest, at least for now. Stay with me.”
I hesitated, unsure of how to respond.
“Good boy,” Dorothy whispered in a soothing voice, stroking my hair as if I were a precious doll.
She looked like she was roleplaying a mother, a faint, tender smile on her face. Her voice and touch made my heart feel strangely at ease.
“…”
Take a rest, she says…
In the Hell Difficulty of ❰Magic Knight of Märchen❱, I had been racing forward without a single moment’s respite to defeat the Evil God. The only time I’d experienced even a hint of leisure was the night of the social gathering, after eliminating Marlog the Envious.
To be honest, it was an obvious sentiment, but…
It’s tough.
If I had to be transmigrated into this game, I wished it had been on Normal Difficulty. I wanted to enjoy dating without fearing for the future, steadily defeating enemies without this crushing sense of haste. It would have been so nice to just take it easy…
…I must be really tired.
My body went slack with exhaustion. Even if the nap had helped, I could still feel the deep-seated fatigue in my bones. My mana was flowing in jagged, rough pulses rather than its usual smooth current. It felt as if every cell in my body was on strike.
Maybe I wasn't an ironman just yet.
“…Okay, then.”
Dorothy’s touch was so gentle that I allowed myself to sink into her. I quietly closed my eyes.
“I’ll rest… just for a bit.”
For the sake of future efficiency, I decided to accept the break.
“Yay! Okay!” Dorothy chirped.
I fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.
*
Isaac had drifted off.
Dorothy couldn't stop smiling as she watched him sleep peacefully on her lap. Feeling the evening breeze turn chilly, she took off her cape shawl and draped it over him to keep him warm.
She continued to stroke his head gently, using the contact to begin channeling healing magic into him.
“I really can't figure you out.”
Dorothy was well aware that she was revered as a once-in-a-century genius, blessed by Lord Manhalla. But the man lying on her lap was overwhelmingly stronger than her. It was an undeniable fact that only someone with her power, [All In the World], could truly grasp.
Initially, Dorothy had been drawn to Isaac because of that hidden strength. However, it seemed his true power only manifested under specific conditions. She deduced that his relentless training was an attempt to bridge the gap to his original strength.
Even so… Isaac was overdoing it.
“Even if you’re working hard, there has to be a limit.”
Dorothy could feel the toll of his labor through his twisted mana circuits. The fatigue and pain must have been immense—enough to make any normal person scream for it to stop. And yet, he had been recklessly burning through mana for the sake of improvement.
Dorothy fondly rubbed Isaac’s cheek with her index finger. He tilted his head toward her touch like a sleepy puppy.
“Nihihi.”
Although Dorothy maintained a friendly, playful exterior, she always drew a line between herself and others. Since she was destined to die soon, she refused to let anyone into her heart. She didn't want to leave any lingering attachments in this life.
However, whenever she peered into Isaac’s mind with [Emotional Insight], he always radiated infinite affection toward her.
At first, she had sought him out of curiosity. But as she continued to feel that warm endearment from him, her heart couldn't help but find peace in his presence.
The sky was losing its light, dimming into twilight. Dorothy stared at Isaac, placing her hand over the center of his firm chest. His twisted mana circuits needed to be untangled. Her work had been interrupted when he briefly woke up, but now she could finish.
Dorothy closed her eyes and let her mana flow. She began to mend the circuits damaged by excessive training. With her starlight mana, she could reach deep into Isaac’s core and restore it from the source.
As Dorothy’s mana delved deeper into his essence…
“…!”
A vision of a vast, empty void filled her mind. A massive black door, radiating a frigid blue aura, stood in the center of a pitch-black field.
A chill ran down Dorothy’s spine at the sight of its overwhelming majesty. Her eyes flew open, her breath coming in ragged gasps.
“What was that…?”
A drop of cold sweat rolled down her face.
Compared to the "mysterious Isaac" she knew through [All In the World], a completely different existence was rooted at the source of his mana. Furthermore, the mana swirling around that door was dense beyond belief.
It was powerful—on a plane of existence that shouldn't be possible. It was the kind of aura that could only be achieved by reaching the absolute pinnacle of the ice element.
During the first semester, he had used otherworldly magic that bordered on an apocalypse…
Was that not even a fraction of his true power?
“President… just how much power are you hiding?”
It was already obvious to Dorothy that Isaac was stronger than her. But this? This was beyond comprehension. Isaac was an existence far too vast for this small, fragile world to contain.
Now, her curiosity had transformed into sheer, unadulterated wonder.
For a long time, Dorothy stared at Isaac with a complex expression while he slept on, blissfully unaware.
*
[I deeply apologize for last time!]
— Kaya Astrea
“What in the world is this…?”
At Elma Hall, the dormitory for mid-to-high-level students, Eve Ropenheim stood frozen in the hallway.
Next to her door sat a bouquet of flowers as large as the door itself, various magic tools, an expensive assortment of snacks, and even jewelry. There were so many gifts that Eve couldn't even begin to calculate their value.
Lately, a freshman with pale green pigtails, Kaya Astrea, had been constantly approaching her. From insisting on massaging Eve’s "stiff" shoulders to calling her beautiful at every opportunity, Kaya was always asking if Eve needed anything.
Eve knew of Kaya Astrea. As the second-ranked student in the freshman Magic Department, her reputation was immense. She carried the blood of the Swordmaster, Duke Gerald Astrea, and the genius wizard, Historia. Her talent was undeniable.
‘Why is someone so noble doing this?’
How on earth did my brother manage to charm someone like her?
While she felt a spark of sisterly pride, Eve realized Kaya was only trying to get on her good sides because she was Isaac’s sister.
As such, she couldn't treat Kaya carelessly. If she made a mistake here, the consequences could be dire.
Eve felt the weight of the situation pressing down on her as she stepped into her room, stepping over the mountain of gifts.