“The Great Demon has presumably landed…”
Gugugugu…
The manifestation device, Alma, in the basement of the White Magic Tower stopped functioning.
The Master of the White Magic Tower, Temurlen, emerged from the control room, shuddering as he read the report.
The Great Demon, Belphegor.
An existence that once plunged the current world into fear.
A being powerful enough to spread a massive perfect barrier over Basel had reappeared.
“There’s a high probability that the one who neutralized the undead legion is the Great Demon…?”
An onslaught of shocking news followed.
The undead legion had been a thorn in the alliance’s side for some time.
Suddenly, the Great Demon reappeared and annihilated that undead legion?
It was a flow of events that was utterly incomprehensible.
Why on earth?
What could the Great Demon possibly gain from wiping out the allied forces?
“No way?!”
At that thought, Temurlen’s eyes widened in disbelief.
Originally, the undead legion was supposed to be a sacrifice for the transcendent being, Necromancer Luna, he had heard.
That plan was shattered, the transcendent being was neutralized, and now they found themselves here.
If that were the case, the only reason for the Great Demon to eliminate the undead legion would be to use them as sacrifices.
But what for?
Temurlen finally reached that question.
He felt goosebumps all over his body.
“My expectations turned out to be next to nothing…”
He had no clue.
He didn’t know what the Great Demon had been plotting in the three years of complete absence.
He had no idea why it had returned after three years.
He couldn’t fathom what preparations had been made during that long time to stage such a flamboyant comeback.
That only filled him with more fear.
From the beginning, the Great Demon had been an incomprehensible entity that allowed no predictions.
Now it was showing even more unfathomable movements.
He couldn’t discern the principles behind its actions, nor the final destination towards which its route was aimed.
At this rate, he felt he’d be nothing more than a slave to the whims of randomness.
“Maybe that’s too much…”
Temurlen scratched his nearly bald head, flipping through the report.
The next page was a document from the alliance.
Temurlen tilted his head in confusion at it.
The White Magic Tower had been consistently rejecting the alliance’s requests for cooperation, yet he wondered why there was contact after all this time.
“What the?!”
The content was nothing short of a ‘warning.’
It indicated the movement trajectory of demonic anomalies, confirming that it was heading toward the White Magic Tower.
In the midst of it all, the speed of movement was striking.
It was moving nearly 100 kilometers north every day.
Although the alliance had supposedly dispatched troops to respond, they couldn’t keep up with that speed and sent this warning in advance…
“A recommendation for evacuation…?”
“Evacuate? At this age? What’s there to fear about evacuation?”
“That’s true… Should I sortie then?”
Just then, Alma’s mechanical device opened up.
A figure stepped out, removing its helmet from the darkness.
Temurlen looked at him skeptically and clicked his tongue.
Humm…
“Why act like you’re troubled? You know my skill.”
“I know, and that’s why I’m troubled. I’m worried you’ll go smashing up some buildings…”
…
That wasn’t what he was worried about.
This guy couldn’t possibly lose in a direct confrontation.
No matter how great the demon might be, he just couldn’t imagine a future where this guy lost.
If anything, if the Great Demon had any ploys, it would likely involve inciting damage to the surroundings while trying to draw his attacks during battle.
Perhaps enduring the Great Demon’s attacks might inflict greater damage in the end.
Temurlen suddenly found that thought creeping in.
“Alright! Just handle it moderately and minimize the attacks!”
“This will soon be your property. Please treat it with care…”
“Why is it mine? You’re talking nonsense again. Have you taken your medicine and eaten on time?”
“Hey! Why do you keep treating me like a senile old man?!”
“You keep saying ridiculous things. There are people who have dedicated decades to learn under the master, so why would I inherit it when I just came along?”
“Does dedication and effort provide food? Whether it’s a rolling stone or not, if the ability is good, that’s what matters, right? If you don’t want to operate it, sell it off or smash it; do as you please. No one will say a thing because I’ll pass it on to you.”
…
Temurlen completely turned his back, looking toward Alma.
His resolution was made, and there was no going back now.
Regardless of being a rolling stone or whatever, this guy was the best fit.
‘No one has handled Alma this well since that slippery man passed through.’
Originally designed to manifest memories, this machine, Alma…
After that unfortunate man left, Temurlen was forced to see ‘Alma’s’ new purpose.
He had undergone countless modifications since.
Yet, despite all that effort, the manipulation close to a person’s soul was impossible, and despair filled him until this guy appeared.
It was as if he had dropped from the heavens.
‘No, wasn’t it something hidden inside that man’s clothing that manipulated Alma?’
Is there a distinct talent for observing and handling a person’s soul?
Temurlen believed he was somewhat of a pioneer in that field himself.
But since meeting that man and then this guy, he realized he was at an absolute beginner’s level.
Temurlen had just barely begun to perceive the existence of ‘My Inner World’ and was only at the stage of peeking.
Reaching beyond that seemed impossible.
No, perhaps if he encountered that man again and closely investigated, he might have a chance of advancing.
And the clue for regression as well…
‘That was a thing of the past.’
That would never happen.
Because that man was dead.
Regretting not being able to hold onto a dead person was one of the dumbest things one could do.
As Temurlen shook his head at that thought, he suddenly heard footsteps approaching Alma from behind.
“What! I’ll try to take it easy!”
…
Leaving behind a response that was far from reassuring.
The figure flickered away in an instant, like a vanishing act.
…
…
…
‘It seems my stamina has greatly increased.’
It was ironic.
Having faced the God of the Underworld severely injured his body.
The Guardian Knight had even shut down, causing a significant drop in stats, yet his body felt surprisingly energetic.
It seemed his basic stats had increased a lot.
If the Guardian Knight were to activate now, just how powerful would he become?
Of course, it was just a future thought that was not even grounded in reality.
“Am I still far off?”
“Why so whiny? Are you hungry?”
“Umm… I might be hungry. How did you know?”
How would he know.
When it was time to get hungry, annoyance just kept piling up.
I scratched my neck and inflicted an injury on Mi Jeong, who was piggybacking on me, urging my steps.
So where exactly am I heading without pause?
To the White Magic Tower.
Where the vile old man, Temurlen, resides.
‘He was one of those who awakened the ability to see souls.’
I didn’t know it back then.
‘My Inner World’ is closely tied to the soul.
Just because one can see souls does not mean they can enter ‘My Inner World.’
Still, honing that training would certainly increase the likelihood of awakening the ability to manage or at least enter ‘My Inner World.’
I had felt that firsthand through my own training.
Given Temurlen, who had been training diligently to the point of losing all his hair…
I imagined he had likely reached a higher level than I.
With that thought in mind, I embarked on a journey to meet him.
As the Master of the White Magic Tower, he might know how to create ‘My Inner World.’
No, it wouldn’t matter if he didn’t know.
If he could just provide me with a clue, that would suffice.
To begin with, since ‘My Inner World’ was so rare among people in the current world, even a trivial sharing of opinions would greatly help.
“….!”
At that moment.
Suddenly, a peculiar sensation caused me to halt in my tracks.
“….What’s wrong?”
“Something feels off.”
“….I’m sorry. I bit a bit hard.”
“Not that, though.”
Whether Mi Jeong bit lightly or hard didn’t really matter.
Whether she bit hard or not, it felt good no matter what.
Nevertheless, that wasn’t the issue. The atmosphere in the vicinity had drastically changed.
Perhaps due to my ability to handle demonic energy growing exponentially after returning from the Demon World?
Though I had received a significant blow to hide my existence, that ability remained within me, providing heightened sensitivity.
“Someone’s been playing tricks.”
Feeling the ground, I was sure.
Some kind of curse or barrier was laid in this area.
It was difficult to ascertain what exactly it was, as its power was still weak.
However, the intensity seemed to geometrically increase the further inward one went, making the total amount of mana entering this massive domain unfathomable.
‘What is this? Is it an explosion magic circle that can upheave the entire area?’
Could it be a magic circle that has been here since before?
Was I just unable to detect it due to my low level till now?
That was a possibility, but I judged it to be unlikely.
It seemed relatively recent in creation.
With that intuition, I braced myself for battle.
As I opened the sheath and grasped the hilt of the ‘Magic Sword,’ before the voice of Belphegor within could become a nuisance, the surroundings went pitch black in an instant.
“The Great Demon…? This doesn’t seem like it. Who are you? With such a huge amount of demonic energy being scattered, you can’t be human.”
“And who might you be?”
A voice echoed from the darkness enveloping the air.
But I couldn’t guess the direction from which the voice came.
I responded to this brazen voice, pouring all my effort into discerning this awkward situation.
‘It’s not the darkness or void of the God of the Underworld.’
This is not the fundamental darkness.
It’s merely an illusion magic that obscures sight.
Only my vision was obscured; the flow of mana and magic, and even my tactile and auditory senses remained intact.
A normal human would have been incapacitated at this point.
But for someone like me, who relied more on instinctual information than sight, this wasn’t a significant limitation.
“….Over there.”
“I noticed too.”
“Wh-what?!”
At that moment, Mi Jeong pointed a hand in a certain direction.
Almost simultaneously, I too realized the location of the voice’s owner.
In the center of this massive magic circle.
She stood there.
Upon realizing that, there was no time to hesitate.
Mi Jeong and I immediately launched ourselves forward in a straight line.
“You seem calmer than you look!”
“I’m used to this illusion magic.”
“But what should we do? This isn’t illusion magic!”
“…?”
That moment.
The dark scenery unfolded around us changed.
This place, once a lush green field, suddenly transformed into an abyss.
“Ugh?!”
Then, in the very next second.
What seemed like a cliff morphed into a surging sea.
When I opened my eyes again, the once watery surface vanished, replaced by a lofty sky.
Just a mere illusion?
No.
All my senses and instincts said otherwise.
I had a similar experience before.
When I entered ‘Alma,’ all my senses melded to show me memories of the past.
But this was entirely different from that time.
This was reality.
Not an illusion.
All my senses screamed that it was.
So how is this even possible?
The answer is simple.
A world divorced from the real world.
It is undoubtedly her ‘Inner World.’
“Ahaha! Can’t find your wits, can you? Trying to fall off a cliff while showing off will genuinely get you killed because this isn’t an illusion!”
“How did you do this?”
“Huh? Curious? Dying to find out? But no! Until you reveal who you are and why you came, I won’t tell you a thing. You’ve got plenty of time, so let’s see if you can survive a hundred near-death experiences and then we can talk!”
“Here. This is your Inner World, right? I’m asking how you manipulate it so freely!”
“Uh…?!”
Laughter faded as I drew closer, her voice betraying her panic.
But I was just as flustered.
I had just learned to manipulate ‘My Inner World,’ but I wasn’t skilled enough yet.
I could expand or contract on an infinite scale or destroy it, but freely changing what’s inside was beyond me.
Yet this girl could so effortlessly alter the scenery of her world.
“Wasn’t it just the two of us and Temurlen! It seemed odd, but there can’t just be two people in this vast current world! You’re one of us, huh?”
“Uh, um? I-I don’t really understand what you’re saying…”
“Tell me! How do you manipulate this world? I’ll pay for the advice! Right now I’m practically broke, but once I regain my existence, I’ll be richer than any wealthy person or power broker!”
“I seriously don’t understand what you’re saying! This person is crazy! I don’t know!”
“Where do you think you’re running off to?!”
Catching the panic in her voice as she tried to leave.
I tried my best to chase after the voice, stepping upon the azure skies.
And at that moment.
“….?”
The air where I stepped suddenly felt solid.
When I looked down, the cold icy ground was beneath my feet.
Looking back up, the scenic blue sky had transformed into a snow-covered wasteland in an instant.
This was not just ‘My Inner World…’
No, it was a world that resembled it exceedingly.
That’s when I finally figured out how she was able to manipulate this world at will.
“I get it now. This isn’t your Inner World.”
“W-what do you mean?”
This wasn’t her ‘Inner World.’
She wasn’t someone greater than me.
She merely manifested something that closely resembled an ‘Inner World.’
In no time, the control of this world found itself in my grasp.
The true nature of this place began to reveal itself.
Was it a magic circle materialized through magic?
Well, as long as it was magic, I was unafraid.
I immediately grasped the ‘Magic Sword,’ or rather, Belphegor’s hilt.
“I don’t need any fakes.”
“….!”
Ka-gak!
The blade of Belphegor sliced through the air with felt resistance.
The air split as if fracturing dimensions, leaving a trail of cracks behind.
The cracks gradually spread like ink.
And soon it became an uncontrollable wave of destruction, endlessly washing across this entire world.
The flimsy magic-made realm shattered in an instant, crashing and crumbling into pieces.
“Hoo…”
As the incantation of the magic circle ceased.
Everything that had just transpired felt like a lie, as peaceful fields unfurled around me.
And before me sat a girl, now kneeling on the ground seemingly weakened, her posture was faltering.
“Who are you?”
“H-huh…”
Wearing a large hat.
Thick chains and locks adorned the hat’s brim, with flickering blue flames floating nearby like will-o’-the-wisps…
What on earth is this?
