I am back – Chapter 146

It was just an ordinary evening when I got off work at the usual time and headed home.

“I did it!”

Before anyone could say “Welcome back,” Dana’s door burst open as if it were about to explode.

Of course, I don’t mean it actually blew up. It just made a loud noise as it swung open.

But for me, who had been traversing battlefields, that sound was quite startling. It had been a while since I’d heard something like that.

…Although, it was surprising that it hadn’t been a year yet.

No, it hadn’t even been a year; it was now just about four months. And even within those four months, so many things had happened that time felt unusually dense. But in the end, it had still only been four months.

Having spent a whole five years in such situations, I never thought I’d get used to this life so quickly after just four months.

Of course, I still needed time to fully adjust. Old traumas still occasionally resurfaced.

Those memories will probably never be erased. There’s really no other way but to keep trying to heal.

“I did it?”

As I took off my shoes and entered the hallway, I asked. My older sister came in behind me, and the door clicked shut with a beep.

She had her eyes wide open, still looking surprised.

Well, it was probably the first time she had seen me this way.

Dana, as the owner of the Magic Tower, held an impressive authority on her shoulders, but she wasn’t sitting there like some other authoritative mages, stroking her chin in silence. She was still in her mid-twenties and was bursting with youthful energy, unlike those elders who had lived for decades.

But even so, she rarely made loud noises. No, hardly anyone in our party talked loudly. They all had an idea of the authority that their own voices carried.

The only one who occasionally raised her voice was Pia, but usually, that was just because she was happy or excited; she didn’t actually scream or shout.

It was the same for Dana—

“I did it! I did it! I’m a genius!”

…Assuming there was no immediate danger, I’d often jump around shouting like that when discovering something big.

Though everyone already knew I was a genius without having to shout it out loud.

Well, it was just that exciting of a discovery, and I didn’t think I needed to say anything.

“Did something good happen?”

Seeing Dana jumping around joyfully, my sister asked with a still-surprised expression.

“Of course!”

Dana shouted and flashed a peace sign with her hands.

That was something she had learned after arriving in this world. She hadn’t used such hand gestures before. Still, it suited her. Making that gesture actually made her look younger, so one wouldn’t think she was the authoritative head of a Magic Tower.

“What’s going on?”

Pia peeked from the kitchen, her head just sticking out, having heard us come in.

She wore a pink apron and held a ladle, looking exactly like she had jumped out of a cartoon. Maybe she really had been influenced by it; Pia seemed to love shoujo manga.

“That is—”

Dana started saying, then paused, glancing around as if she had just realized she had been jumping around like a child just moments ago, and her face turned red.

She brushed her messy hair aside with her hand and spoke in a somewhat calmer voice.

“I figured it out.”

“Figured it out?”

Kalia, sitting on the living room sofa reading a book, closed it with a thud and asked. It looked like a thick and boring book.

“The way to get to Irrelaysia!”

“……Huh?”

My mouth fell open in shock.

Others echoed my expression.

Normally, the two elders of our party would laugh or lightly compliment Dana’s discoveries, but they were just as stunned as I was. Pia looked like she was thinking, “You finally did it!” and had a big smile.

Only my sister couldn’t seem to process the situation and was glancing this way and that.

“Oh, right. The principle.”

Seeing my sister’s expression, Dana clapped her hands and said.

“Let me explain the principle first. I’ll go into detail after dinner. I’m sure you all will understand.”

Dana looked at Pia as she spoke.

“Oh, dinner is almost ready. If you change, I’ll have it ready to go.”

Pia’s expression was incredibly warm as she said this.

I wondered if that was a look she learned from the shoujo manga she had been reading lately?

I decided not to ask.

*

After dinner, we all gathered around the living room table.

This had now become a routine. Even if nothing special happened, we would sit down like this to discuss what we did today, what we planned for tomorrow, or even just share random thoughts and ask for opinions.

It was also a way to bond and prevent any misunderstandings that might arise between those living in the same house.

“First, I’ll explain the principle.”

And naturally, today’s topic was Dana’s explanation.

“Actually, this is something I’ve been trying since last month. Pia has helped me a lot. If my magic was insufficient, I could supplement it with strong Divine Power.”

“But I haven’t really helped much…”

“Well…”

Dana smirked at Pia’s comment.

“You might think that since there hasn’t been a visible hole despite hanging in there for days.”

Dana continued her explanation.

“But I found it strange because I can ignite fire with my hands, right? That proves I have at least a bit of magic here in this world and that I can use that magic. Moreover, magic is based on physical laws, so if a small magic is possible, then larger magic should also be possible. Besides, we have the Goddess helping us, so it doesn’t make sense to fail.”

Dana’s point made quite a bit of sense.

If the miracles of the Goddess worked here as well, then that should mean they could be used in this world too. Divine Power and miracles were separate concepts.

So, if neither Divine Power nor magic worked, that meant there had to be some mistake or misunderstanding on the part of whoever was trying to use them.

“And what I was doing was indeed a misunderstanding.”

Dana said, showing her palm towards Pia.

“It turns out that your Divine Power was working properly!”

“Really?”

When Pia asked in bewilderment, Dana grinned and said.

“Actually, the tiny amount of Divine Power you used created a very tiny hole, and something flowed through it. If you think about it, it makes sense that I couldn’t amplify the magic without your help, even though it was there. And now…,”

As Pia snapped her fingers, a flame flared as if lit by a lighter at the tip of her finger.

“The very fact that I can use magic means that there’s an abnormal level of magic in this space compared to other places.”

“So, that means the magic from this world flowed through a tiny gap?”

“It’s a bit more specific than that,” Dana said.

“The space I asked Pia to open isn’t just anywhere in Irrelaysia; it’s my research lab at the Magic Tower. Specifically, it was the magic stone storage room. Even if only a small hole opens, we can bring over magic stones, making research much easier.”

Dana reached into her robe’s pocket and pulled out something that looked like a rock.

…It was a glowing blue magic stone.

“I had some for emergencies, but not this big. I actually brought this from my research lab in Irrelaysia.”

“You went through another world?”

“No, not exactly. The hole is still too small for that.”

Pia shrugged and said.

“So, going back to the beginning, when you used your Divine Power, what happened was, a very tiny gap opened, and some magic stone powder from my research lab came in. Pure, expensive powder from high-grade items.”

“And we lived with that for several days.”

When Pia finally seemed to have grasped the situation and said that, Dana nodded.

“Right, exactly. Thanks to that, I think my room is now completely saturated with magic. Because of that—”

Dana tossed the magic stone she was holding and caught it.

“We can create even a tiny hole. So, if we keep working steadily, we might be able to open a door to Irrelaysia sooner than we think.”

Then Dana looked at me and my sister.

“So, how about packing in advance? We should at least know how the world has changed thanks to you.”