Chapter 186
Chapter 186
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 186
Chapter Title: Special Room - 1
-----------------------------------------------------------------
The next day.
The day of the decisive battle had dawned.
We decided to split up with Adwin and Jenia at the inn first.
[It's a brilliant idea, even if it's a bit belated to say so. Sending Adwin to the afterlife.]
True, but it sounds just like saying we're really going to kill him.
I said to Adwin,
“Can you do it?”
“Of course. I memorized the path to the afterlife that you showed me back then.”
“You know what to do?”
“Absolutely.”
Adwin could find out whose world those afterlife bubbles belonged to.
Not only that, but by touching a bubble, he could share vision with its subject and communicate with their soul.
He was going to act as our command center today.
Risel asked,
“But there are tons of bubbles clustered in the afterlife, right? Can you touch multiple ones at the same time?”
“Yes. Since I exist there as a soul. No matter how many bubbles or how far apart they are, it's no problem.”
“I don't get it at all…….”
“I felt the same way yesterday when Sis sliced Maime in half.”
Jenia chimed in.
“But is it really okay if I sit this out?”
“I'd hate to lose combat power like yours, but it can't be helped. Adwin needs someone to ring the bell for him. You learned it well from Neril yesterday, right?”
“Yes. To the point where I can hear it even in my dreams.”
“And don't forget to keep treating Adwin's body. If you leave a body without its soul, it'll die fast.”
Jenia nodded with a resolute expression.
Adwin said,
“My life is in your hands, Sis.”
“Ugh. Don't say it like that; it stresses me out.”
“Hey, don't worry. What's the worst that could happen? I'll die. Literally.”
“Even more stressful.”
And so we split the party.
All the preparations we could make were done.
All that was left was to give it our all.
Beyond the door in the imperial castle basement.
A world of pure white.
More precisely, a world covered in tens of thousands of pure white doors.
The group looked around curiously.
Neril said,
“I had a hunch, and sure enough.”
“Hm?”
“No red doors in sight. That's the special room, right?”
“To be exact, that's my guess.”
“Anyway, they all look pure white to me. What about everyone else?”
The group shook their heads in unison.
Neril continued in a disappointed tone.
“I thought maybe fame lets you see it, but apparently not.”
“Hmm.”
“There must be some other condition. Considering only Maide can see it…… Does it have to be a hero?”
I shrugged.
Then I scanned the surroundings.
Ah.
There it is.
A red door standing out intensely in the distance.
I strode toward it.
The group already followed silently behind me, even muffling their footsteps.
Soon, we arrived in front of the red door.
“Alright. This is it.”
“Maide.”
“Relax. We'll follow the plan. Adwin, you hear me?”
I asked into the empty air.
Adwin's voice soon echoed through all our souls.
[Yes. Loud and clear.]
“Found it faster than expected? Our bubble worlds.”
[I roughly mapped the location last time I went.]
“The bell's ringing fine?”
[Yes. No issues at all. Jenia Sis was pretty tense, but it was unfounded.]
Neril snorted.
“I taught her all night; it'd be idiotic to mess up now. She's an idiot, but not that much of one.”
[Uh…… Just so you know, Jenia Sis is listening in on this conversation too? She's focusing her mind, so she can't chime in right now.]
“Perfect. Jenia, if you screw up, no more preservation magic on your meat from now on.”
[Oh. The bell sounds clearer somehow.]
Anyway, it meant our basic setup was complete.
I took a deep breath and said,
“Opening it.”
We all swallowed hard at once.
Swipe. Boom.
I opened the red special room door.
And stepped inside.
Even though I'd described the interior beforehand, the group covered their mouths in shock.
This place, where seasons and terrain changed in the blink of an eye, was truly a mad world.
The kind that made you want to turn tail and run immediately.
‘It's not just the changes. There's a weird vibe.’
[Yeah. It's mentally draining.]
Then Idria's voice came through Adwin.
[Maide? You're here?]
[Yeah. Tell Firensha to bite her tongue.]
[We're all hearing this anyway? And that kinda sounds like you want her dead, you know?]
Serein reacted.
[If you say so. If you don't like biting your tongue, slice an artery instead.]
[……Serein.]
[Yes, yes, Serein.]
[I'm Firensha.]
[Don't argue. I have zero good feelings toward you?]
That made sense, since Serein had nearly crossed the Redbi River after her soul got bound to Firensha's.
But still, for a reunion with her dead sister, their banter was so chummy it gave me chills.
Idria said,
[Enough chit-chat. Firensha.]
[Mom. She started it…….]
[It'll hurt, but just one drop of blood, please.]
[Sigh, fine. Hey, Serein. Pretend I'm spitting this at you? Ptoo.]
Serein twitched her eyebrow at that.
Offense had originally planned to draw blood painlessly with his special tool.
But Serein bit her tongue right back and spat.
[Keh. What a brazen kid. Ptoo!]
[Your mom's kid!]
[Your mom is Idria, right?]
[I mean when she was human, you idiot.]
[Idiot? You done talking?]
Somehow, the conversation was turning childish.
‘I wonder if Serein and Firensha living as family would've looked like this.’
[Both have tempers. If those two were sisters living together, the house would've never been quiet.]
‘Firensha was supposedly very quiet and gentle in life.’
[Probably faked it. She's exactly like Serein.]
Anyway, Neril approached the blood-mixed spit Serein had spat.
She grimaced and said,
[Ugh. Gross.]
[Gross? You really gonna say that?]
[That was one of your party members! Wax in your ears?]
[You must shit out your ears then?]
[Yeah, I shit from my ears. You shit from your mouth!]
[Both of you, shut up.]
Neril's icy voice miraculously halted the soul squabble.
How does she do that?
I'd never admired Neril more than today.
Neril opened her spellbook.
The grand wide-area search magic circle created by Byond was exclusive to the imperial castle basement.
Exporting it outside was absolutely forbidden.
“It's in the book? I thought it was engraved only there because of the ban.”
“Byond's pages are sealed anyway. Apparently, it was a secret project done behind the emperor's back.”
“That guy had a sneaky side.”
“As sneaky as you.”
I pretended not to hear.
Anyway, it was a massive spell, so even for Neril—who'd advanced explosively by converting fame to power—it took some time.
But soon.
Whiiiing.
A massive magic circle formed centered on Serein's blood-mixed spit.
It was impressive, but the blood-spit in the middle kinda ruined it.
“Done.”
“Where's Firensha? I don't even know how this finds her.”
“Like this.”
Neril held up her palm.
There was a miniature magic circle, shrunk to 1/30th of the floor one.
Precisely, floating about ten centimeters above her palm.
“Think of it as a compass. The needle points…… Sigh. About 480 kilometers that way.”
An enormous distance.
This place really was its own world.
Risel said,
“If we asked Maime to fly us, it'd be instant…….”
“But this op is stealth, so no. Stick to the plan.”
“Yes, Maime. Split please.”
Maime grumbled.
“Your Majesty. It doesn't hurt much since it doesn't talk, but it still kinda does.”
“Yes. I see. Please split.”
“Truly the king's dignity.”
His quick attitude shifts don't even amuse me anymore.
Sliiiice.
Maime split himself in half like yesterday.
Arms and legs sprouted from each half.
I shouldn't say this, but it turns my stomach a bit.
“What are you thinking?”
“Just grateful he's so devoted to us.”
“Good, you get it. Then, Your Majesty, I'll head up.”
Whoosh.
Maime A flew into the sky.
Meanwhile, Maime B perched on Risel's shoulder.
Only one preparation left.
“Phew.”
Offense pulled the corrupted branch from his bosom.
He declared resolutely,
“I accept the solitude and loneliness of being left alone.”
Then snapped it.
The group—except me—gasped in shock.
Serein asked urgently,
“Offense, that's not your wish, right? It was to find your parents.”
“That got pushed to second.”
“Why, why?”
“Dunno. Ask Maide later.”
“Hmm. You're embarrassed.”
She continued with a rare genuine smile.
“Hehe. You should be. Who'd guess Offense had such a cute wish.”
“Shut up. That's why I wanted to say it in my head.”
Huh?
I interjected,
“You can do it in your head, you know?”
“……? What?”
“I vowed silently too. Neril probably did the same, I think.”
Neril nodded.
“I wasn't there for yours, but I was when you snapped it.”
“I-I was giving a speech then…… No, why didn't you tell me?”
“Didn't think you'd wonder.”
“Ugh.”
Offense's face crumpled.
Serein giggled happily and said,
“Still, it's a nice wish.”
“Stop teasing.”
“I mean it.”
“Anyway, let's get started.”
Offense waved his hand dismissively.
And the next moment.
“Ugh.”
We were sucked into our shadows.
This was the core of the operation.
Shadow sorcery for undetectable travel.
The shadows were cozier than expected.
Totally different from the space I made.
Offense's voice came.
“As you know, this sorcery normally only works on shadows I've seen with my own eyes. But now.”
“Can you do it?”
“Yeah. The sorcery's unbelievably stronger. Maime B, describe please.”
Maime replied incredulously.
“Maime B? You mean me? What kind of ridiculous…….”
“Describe, Maime.”
“About two kilometers ahead, a desert stretches out. Twenty sand dunes. Suitable shadow under the third dune.”
“Good.”
Offense closed his eyes and focused.
Our bodies vibrated.
I couldn't sense outside, but instinctively knew.
We'd just teleported two kilometers.
Offense sighed lightly.
“Phew.”
“We really moved?”
“Yeah. Wanna check?”
“You're funny.”
“Next one. Maime B, please.”
Maime B grumbled,
“The terrain suddenly changed to mountains. Three kilometers ahead, a massive tree reaching the sky. Shadow in the swamp below it.”
“Good.”
We moved again.
Offense repeated this process.
Maime B relayed ground info from Maime A.
He described it in as much detail as possible.
Offense imagined the shadow's shape from the verbal description alone.
And shifted us shadow-to-shadow without ever exiting.
No stealthier method possible.
“Unbelievable. The sun just set. No good shadows.”
“It was noon a bit ago.”
“Exactly why it's unbelievable. Wait…… Ah, morning now. Let's move.”
Of course, the special room world's whims sometimes stalled us briefly.
But its extreme fickleness meant we never had to hunker down overnight in the shadows.
The sun set, then rose again right away.
How far had we gone?
About half a day, I judged.
Maime B said,
“We're here.”