Ray moved his body within the frozen world. He felt no sensation.
He had no idea what he looked like at the moment or how to escape from here.
As Ray imagined sighing, he began to perceive his surroundings again.
The lowering of temperature generally means the slowing down of molecular motion; thus, the ultimate freezing magic that trapped him in this world had stopped everything.
Ray experienced an unfamiliar fear in the absolute stillness, something he’d never encountered before.
To avoid being consumed by fear, Ray kept his mind active.
He had a rough idea of how to leave this space.
However, he lingered for a while, wondering if there were any clues left by Resina regarding her plans.
But the frozen world remained silent, as if time itself had stopped.
“…Time?”
Time.
The sudden keyword made Ray delve deeper into the frozen world.
A world where time had stopped.
A world where all matter was frozen to its extreme.
What differentiated these two worlds?
Ray pondered deeply in this peculiar space and then shook his head.
There was no way to distinguish between them, at least not with the senses Ray possessed.
However, the cessation of time and the cessation of matter were not equivalent concepts.
Ray manifested his authority.
The silence shattered, replaced by an indescribable pain searing through his soul.
Due to the loss of most sensations, Ray could more intuitively receive information from his power.
His core began to rotate.
The force that distorted space, created by the unparalleled genius Harshia, enveloped Ray.
Though he still couldn’t fully understand the principle behind it, only after entering this frozen world did Ray faintly grasp its essence.
Tsuzuzuzuk!
The world remained frozen, motionless as if time had halted.
Yet, change occurred. Where was the point of this change?
“Ah…”
Ray “saw.”
The unique characteristics of this place intertwined with the transcendent power bestowed upon him.
A human who had lived their entire life within the 4-dimensional spacetime briefly recognized a dimension beyond in that fleeting moment.
Ray belatedly realized.
What Harshia had created.
The power to leap into a higher dimension.
The Leaping Sword Energy wasn’t a sword energy that leapt through space.
It merely stepped into a higher dimension, escaping the perception of beings living within the 4-dimensional spacetime.
Realizing this now, Ray muttered under his breath.
“Harshia, you crazy bastard…”
In 4-dimensional space, four 3-dimensional spaces exist.
When moving to a higher dimension, the number increases exponentially.
The world Ray reincarnated into had means to interact with beings from other dimensions.
Spirits, demons, or something else entirely.
To kill them.
Harshia had created the power to leap into a higher dimension.
“Hah…”
Ray let out a hollow laugh.
Could this truly be an achievement accomplished by a human?
It was so absurd that admiration didn’t even come to mind.
Ttrrrdak!
The frozen world began to break apart.
As Ray regained sensation in his body, he found himself sitting in a white room without an exit.
A child’s voice echoed.
“Huh? You’re Harshia’s successor?”
A girl who appeared to be about ten years old approached Ray.
Dragging her golden hair that reached below her knees, she frowned.
“You’re neither royalty nor a woman, are you?”
“Yeah, I’m a well-endowed, strong man. So, are you a fragment of Resina’s remaining thoughts?”
The giggling girl replied.
“I’m just a programmed piece of data.”
“Ah, got it. Mr. Fragment.”
Ray flicked his fingers.
With no way of knowing how much time he spent in the frozen space, Ray wanted to escape as quickly as possible.
Others were surely worried waiting outside.
“I’ve come to retrieve the Resina Record backup code and whatever arrangements were left for the successor.”
“That part isn’t difficult to give, but… how are you still alive?”
“Guess I got lucky.”
Ray answered with slightly relaxed tension.
The girl standing close to him tilted her head as she stared at his chest.
“Wow, your heart must be incredibly strong. A human endured this?”
“Harshia did too.”
“She was a hybrid with dragon blood in her ancestors and had her heart reinforced with Dragon Heart, so she managed, barely.”
Could the legend of dragon blood flowing through the royal family actually be true?
As Ray blinked, a question arose.
“Hey, Fragment. Why did you bring up women earlier?”
“Not of royal blood and not a woman.”
The girl mentioned this when she first saw Ray. In the chaos right after escaping the Resina Record, he hadn’t paid attention, but upon reflection, it was an odd statement.
“Ah~ women?”
Shaking her head in thought, the girl conjured a chair mid-air, sat down, and crossed her legs.
“It’s supposed to be confidential, but since almost 600 years have passed, I’ll tell you.”
“?!”
“The core Harshia used—since it put too much strain on the user’s heart, experiments were conducted to generate the core in other organs.”
“…”
“For a long time, such attempts weren’t unheard of, but ultimately, the uterus was deemed the most suitable organ.”
“So, they conducted experiments creating cores in the uterus?”
“Yeah. It’s better for the uterus to burst than the heart, right?”
Crazy woman.
Ray muttered to himself.
“So, did the experiment succeed?”
“The side effects weren’t minor. Everyone became infertile, and most couldn’t endure more than a month before their internal organs ruptured. Still… the results were decent.”
“What kind of results?”
“It was confirmed that the strain on the body was significantly less compared to the heart. But the difficulty of controlling the core increased drastically compared to when it was in the heart, which was the problem.”
“Because unlike the heart, blood doesn’t flow as freely in the uterus.”
“Right. It seemed like a woman with an extraordinary talent for handling mana might have been able to control it, but the research was halted around that time. The emperor cut off all support due to excessive casualties.”
“…”
“If the empire ever reaches the brink, the research might restart. That’s why we assumed anyone coming here would either be royalty or a woman.”
The girl stood up from her chair and poked Ray’s chest.
“Well, that’s not really important now, is it?”
“Then what is?”
“You’re going to have a short life.”
Ray’s eyes narrowed slightly.
Despite delivering shocking news one after another, the girl seemed quite cheerful.
“Your heart is pretty strong, but you’re still just an ordinary human, right?”
“…”
“Just so you know, if you take the arrangements here, your remaining lifespan will drop below half.”
The girl grinned mischievously as she twirled her finger.
“Creating a circle won’t reduce the absolute strain on the core. It just temporarily boosts the burden your heart can handle. Ultimately, it’s a technique that wears down your body.”
The girl raised her heels.
An irritating whisper flowed into Ray’s ear.
“How about just going back if you want to live longer? There’s no need for you to sacrifice yourself, right?”
“…”
“If you’re worried, bring someone to replace your ‘role.’ There should be at least one person out there, right?”
Ray looked down at the girl.
The corners of Ray’s mouth stretched wide, mimicking the girl’s grin.
*
Saria momentarily glanced at the collapsed cliff.
Given that the dungeon had boundaries, there was a high probability that its internal structure was quite sturdy.
For now, eliminating external threats took precedence over excavating the cliff.
Kwaang!
The ground beneath Saria crumbled.
A bluish-green storm scattered in all directions simultaneously as Saria’s figure vanished from her spot.
A streak of lightning traced a meteor-like tail.
Breeze felt an intense pressure and collided head-on with the lightning.
Bang!!!
“…!”
Pushed back instantly to the cliff, Breeze furrowed his brows.
Considering the opponent’s appearance, skills, and equipment level, there was only one plausible individual.
“Saria Alstein…?”
The unexpected arrival of this person left Breeze perplexed.
Seta, who assigned this mission, intentionally omitted the information that someone related by blood to Saria was among Alesya’s group.
Additionally, aside from the group members, only Diorica knew that Saria was traveling with Ray.
“Why…?”
As Breeze was confused, another streak of lightning charged towards him.
Taking advantage of this opening, Sir Jenkins swiftly divided the roles among his companions.
“Mendes, assist Lady Saria with me. Abencio, protect the young misses with the retainers.”
This wasn’t the time for egotistical battles over command.
Mendes and Abencio silently nodded their heads.
Sir Jenkins drew his sword while glancing at Ropheiren.
“Ropheiren, hold your position.”
The instruction carried multiple meanings, to which Ropheiren responded with a slight frown.
Alesya, caught by the retainers, called out as she was pulled behind Abencio.
“Sir Jenkins! I will aid in the battle too!”
Sir Jenkins didn’t refuse.
Florya and Alesya, who had contracts with spirits, could contribute sufficiently without engaging directly.
“Lady Florya, please keep an eye on the mages above the cliff. Lady Alesya, use Phoenix to scout the surroundings. And…”
Sir Jenkins leaned forward earnestly.
“If the situation turns unfavorable, both of you evacuate the area on Fenrir.”
The intermediate wind spirit Fenrir could move faster than most horses.
After completing reconnaissance with Phoenix, even if more enemies arrived, they could escape.
Having calculated this far, Sir Jenkins kicked off the ground. Mendes followed closely behind.
Ahead, Saria was swinging Hercules down like a warhammer towards Breeze.
Kwaang!!
Breeze received Saria’s attack in place.
Before he could complain about the overwhelmingly heavy strike, the next attack came immediately.
Each exchange sent fragments of mana flying from the sword energies in every direction.
Amidst the perilous storm capable of shredding steel in an instant, Saria pressed forward another step.
“?”
There shouldn’t be any room to swing a greatsword like Hercules.
As confusion dawned on Breeze’s face,
Hercules levitated on its own while a new sword emerged from Saria’s waist.
Their sword strikes clashed once more.
Kagagagajik!!
At close range, the collision of sword energies gnawed at each other’s flesh.
In the center of the scattering flashes of light, Saria and Breeze inscribed trails of blood on each other’s armor.
Unable to withstand Saria’s brutal assault, Breeze retreated a step.
At that moment, Saria knocked his sword downward.
Just as Breeze tried to regain his footing, Hercules floating in the air descended.
Hercules had transformed bizarrely.
Its tip split into three branches, tightly gripping Breeze’s arm before plunging into the ground.
With his arm restrained, Breeze faced a charge from Sir Jenkins and Mendes from behind.
‘This is it.’
Basic swordsmanship alone had its limits.
Concluding this, Breeze pulled Hercules embedded in the ground while releasing dozens of sword energies toward the rear.
Though sharp, the sword energies weren’t precise due to his arms being restricted by Hercules.
Sir Jenkins and Mendes ignored the flurry of sword energies and continued their charge.
However, at that moment,
The trajectory of the sword energies curved.
“…?!”
Kagagagajik!!
Dozens of sword energies changed direction, pouring forth from all sides.
Sir Jenkins and Mendes hastily swung their swords.
Saria coldly deflected the sword energies curving toward her.
Each sword energy was as menacing as sharp claws.
‘This is…’
There were few sword techniques capable of implementing guided sword energies.
Among them, the only one that could release such intricate and threatening sword energies was ‘Aragan Swordplay.’
Aragan Swordplay.
One of the renowned sword arts of the Empire.
Saria had once witnessed Aragan Swordplay in the past, making it impossible for her to mistake it.
“Who are you?”
“…”
Breeze shed his robe.
The camouflage that stained his armor black disappeared.
The mana circuits engraved on his armor flashed, revealing the full capabilities of the Royal Guard-issued armor.
“Lady Saria Alstein.”
Breeze bowed respectfully.
“I don’t know the circumstances that led you to travel with traitors of the Empire, but I won’t inquire further. Can you step aside?”
“…”
Sword energy surged from Saria’s blade once more.
Breeze displayed a troubled expression.
“This is an imperial execution. Please reconsider…”
Kwaang!!!
A fireball fell onto Breeze’s head.
Ropheiren, unable to contain his excitement, stammered.
“T, these lunatics…”
Ropheiren thought this surprise attack was merely the Magic Tower’s unilateral decision aimed at him.
However, the royal family? And the Royal Guard?
Faced with this outrageous act of subordination, his anger exploded.
“Do you fools even realize whose blade you’ve raised against?!”
