[Mirinae Mountain]
The grand magician brought us to her home. It looked no different than a prehistoric hut on the outside, but the inside was far bigger than what we imagined, having enough space to fit twenty-two soccer fields. Shimurin locked us in here and went outside.
“Shimurin was famous as Arunheim’s grand magician.”
Meanwhile, Harin began to explain Shimurin’s background.
“She became an official magician when she was 8, became a grand magician at the age of 18, and reached the highest realm in history at 28. She was titled ‘The One Closest to the Truth.’”
Harin looked around Shimurin’s abode and continued.
“But 10 years ago, on the year she became 30, she left the kingdom. She disappeared completely. Her juniors reported her saying that she wanted to ‘leave this world’ before disappearing. That’s why the world thought she committed suicide.”
“...But in reality, she’s been hiding here the whole time.”
Harin nodded.
“Yes, though I don’t know why.”
“Mm....”
I checked the quest summary once more.
===
[Quest]
[Level of difficulty — Highest]
[Summary — ‘Shimurin’ is a magician who studies interdimensional migration. Disillusioned with the secular society, she took refuge in Mount Mirinae. She abhors humans.]
[Goal — Persuade Shimurin to come to the Republic OR survive Shimurin.]
[Reward — Your ‘Aether’ armor]
[Failure result — Probably death]
===
The summary said she was studying interdimensional migration. Her coming here probably had something to do with it.
“To think Shimurin was in Mount Mirinae this entire time... I’m surprised no one noticed all these years.”
“...I’m sure she’s killed everyone who did.”
I said with a shrug, and Harin raised her eyebrows.
“What do you mean?”
“No one noticed because she killed everyone who saw her. She said it herself when we first met. That she could eat us alive.”
“....”
Harin’s face froze. But soon, she smiled forcibly and shook her head.
“No way, a grand magician would never—”
Whoosh.
At that moment, Shimurin returned with a gust of wind. Harin froze immediately.
I stared at Shimurin and saw a book in her hand.
According to Observation and Reading, the book was called [Shimurin’s Magic Book] and contained Shimurin’s research into magic.
“....”
Suddenly, Shimurin began to murmur a spell. Her magic power seeped into the book, while Boss instinctively used Shadow Barrier, covering just me and herself.
“W-Wait, what about me—”
While Harin muttered in a fluster, I thought about what to do. The answer was easy. After all, the quest window showed what Shimurin wanted.
I took a deep breath and shouted.
“Are you studying dimensional travel?”
Shimurin’s expression immediately stiffened.
**
[Republic of Leores — Underground Prison]
Kim Suho was locked up in a prison. After receiving Chae Nayun’s message, Kim Suho ran to find Seraine, throwing open her door hastily. Seraine screamed and fell, and the knights guarding her had arrested him.
“...Geez, couldn’t you have knocked? You were almost executed for an attempted assassination, you know?”
Thanks to Seraine, he didn’t have to suffer any harsh treatment. Currently, Seraine was staring at him with a dumbfounded look.
Kim Suho said to Seraine from behind bars, “Seraine-ssi, my friend will come here soon with the Loren Clan’s eldest daughter.”
“Then we’ll let Arunheim Kingdom know. That their wanted criminal is in Leores.”
“....”
Hearing this, Kim Suho clenched his teeth. He looked genuinely angry, and Seraine had to take a step back.
‘I guess I shouldn’t have made that joke.’ Seraine let out a few dry coughs and then nodded her head.
“...Anyways, even if we don’t contact the Arunheim Kingdom, we can’t let her cross the border.”
But Kim Suho refused to give up, “They will be valuable allies.”
“I know that the Loren Clan’s eldest daughter is a powerful knight. I’m sure she has the potential to rise to a high position within Leores. But—”
“No, I’m not talking about Loren’s eldest daughter.”
“...Pardon?” Seraine tilted her head in confusion.
Kim Suho spoke with trust and faith in a certain someone, “My friend, who is bringing Loren’s eldest daughter to this place, can stop the war by himself.”
“...What?”
“You’ll know when you see him.”
Kim Suho was well-aware from experience that bullets were far scarier in war than arrows. Kim Hajin could kill a hundred soldiers with a single bullet, which was enough to overturn any battle.
“...But.”
“Lady, don’t listen to him. He’s only here because of his connections.”
Lekendol said as he approached Seraine. But Kim Suho didn’t give up and stared into Seraine’s eyes, and after meeting his gaze for a long time, Seraine had no choice but to comply.
“Whew... fine.”
In truth, what Kim Suho said last won her over.
A man who can stop the war by himself. As someone who had a deep interest in martial arts, she wanted to know what man the sword commander would have such high praises for.
“...I’ll talk to Father and try to deploy a squad secretly. But make sure no one finds out. Otherwise, we will both be killed.”
“Thank you—”
“There’s one more thing.”
Seraine held up her index finger.
“Even if they arrive safely, we’ll test their skills, especially the man you speak of. They’ll have to prove they’re worth the danger we’re putting ourselves in. As for the method...”
Seraine pointed at Lekendol.
“Lekendol will do it.”
Hearing this, Lekendol smiled with satisfaction.
Kim Suho let out a sigh of relief, “...Yes, I understand. Let’s do that.”
Kim Suho looked relieved. He trusted that Kim Hajin would succeed no matter what.
“Good... Okay, we’ll let you out now.”
Seraine eyed Lekendol, and Lekendol promptly opened the cell with a key he brought.
**
[Arunheim]
A gathering of nobles, Arun Summit, took place before matters of national emergency. In this long tradition of Arunheim Kingdom, all reputable nobles came together at the royal palace to discuss.
“I detested the Republic of Leores at this time.”
On this important day, Prince Krisbell was with Jin Sahyuk.
“....”
Jin Sahyuk seemed to be thinking with her eyes closed, and Bell continued talking as he stared out the window.
“Because the Republic killed someone I loved.”
Jin Sahyuk replied, “Didn’t you say you went back in time to see this person again?”
“...Yeah, so I saw her for another six years. She died when she was 20 in the original timeline but died at 26 in the second. It’s almost like death is set by fate. Someone who is fated to die early will die early and won’t live past 30, and someone who is fated to die late will live past 70 at the earliest. Funny, isn’t it?”
Bell smiled. But it quickly disappeared and was replaced by a cold voice.
“Anyways, in a month, there will be a transnational peace conference in the Republic of Leores. Representatives from every nation in the world will gather to discuss the spreading Demon Realm Transformation. That’s where I summoned Baal.”
Bell closed his eyes and reminisced the past. The peace conference had transformed into hell at the descent of Baal. After materializing at the heart of the continent, Baal destroyed the world in just four days.
“...So I want you to change that future, Sahyuk. Release me from that fate with death.”
Jin Sahyuk didn’t answer and simply stared at the room’s door. Just now, she felt a presence in front of it.
Jin Sahyuk turned to Bell and asked, “Did you call someone?”
“...Hm? Oh, is he already here?”
Bell grinned and raised his body. He walked to the door and opened it.
Kiik—
Standing beyond the door was a nicely dressed Shin Jonghak. When Jin Sahyuk saw him, she scowled immediately.
“Shin Jonghak?”
Shin Jonghak also noticed Jin Sahyuk and instantly put on a similar face.
“What... crazy bitch, why are you here? Prince, this woman might look pretty, but she’s a psychopath. I’ll hold her back, please escape.”
Shin Jonghak said as he looked back and forth between Jin Sahyuk and Bell. On the other hand, Jin Sahyuk glared at Bell, not Shin Jonghak. She was demanding an explanation.
Bell shrugged his shoulders. “Characters mentioned multiple times are bound to appear again.”
“What bullshit is that?”
“Bullshit? You’re speaking to the Prince! I see you have no manners in this world either.”
Shin Jonghak muttered while pointing his finger at Jin Sahyuk.
“What the hell are you saying? Don’t you know who this is?”
Jin Sahyuk pointed at Bell. Hearing this, Shin Jonghak observed Bell closely. He should have seen Bell’s face during the Orden Assassination Mission... but he didn’t recognize Bell’s changed appearance and went back to glaring at Jin Sahyuk.
“Shut up—”
“Alright, now that Shin Myungchul’s grandson is here, why don’t we start the real talk.”
“...What?”
In that instant, Shin Jonghak paused. The name, Shin Myungchul, struck him like cold water.
“...Wait, you....”
Shin Jonghak finally recognized Bell, who put on a peaceful expression.
“Take a seat. You’re part of the story I’m about to tell.”
“....”
Shin Jonghak frowned. He glared at Bell and didn’t sit. He acted as though that was the last thing he wanted to do.
Seeing this, Bell added another sentence.
“Listen up. This is a story about me and your grandfather... a story about Returners.”
With that, Bell took out a crystal ball and threw it. The ball rolled over to Shin Jonghak’s feet.
Shin Jonghak looked down and stared at the crystal ball.
Inside was the face of a young Shin Myungchul.
**
[Mount Mirinae]
“...What did you do?”
Harin whispered at me as she sent a side-glance at Shimurin.
Shimurin was currently leading us somewhere. Harin seemed to be wondering what I did.
“Let’s just say we came to a mutual understanding.”
I replied with a shrug.
“Mutual understanding?”
“It’s a bit hard to explain.”
When I mentioned dimensional travel 30 minutes ago, Shimurin chased Boss and Harin away to talk with me alone.
First, she asked how I knew about her topic of research.
I answered truthfully, that I came to this world from another dimension.
Shimurin asked for proof. None of the other earthlings would have been able to give proof, but I could since I had Stigma’s magic power.
As a grand magician, Shimurin could feel the inexplicable power contained within Stigma’s magic power. I then utilized Stigma’s magic power to show a projection of the world I came from.
After that, the negotiation was a piece of cake.
“Tell me. What mutual understanding did—”
“Damn it, guys?” At that moment, Shimurin turned around cursing.
Harin, who was about to ask me something, froze in place.
However, what Shimurin said next made the fear within her disappear. “Do we have to keep walking?”
“...Pardon?” Harin tilted her head.
Shimurin unleashed her magic power as though she was heavily bothered by all the walking.
“I’m talking about Teleport. Why can’t we use something like it?”
“...N-No, we can. Of course, we can. Why wouldn’t we be able to?” Harin nodded her head fiercely and encouraged Shimurin.
Teleport, an instantaneous method to get out of this mountain range. If it was possible, Harin wouldn’t hesitate to beg on her knees to use it.
“I can? Good, then I’m gonna use it. Is that okay?” Shimurin turned to me and asked.
I nodded my head, and Shimurin’s magic circle immediately enveloped us.
“—”
Shimurin muttered a strange chant only she could understand. The magic circle activated, and Shimurin’s teleportation magic enveloped our bodies.
Woong—
The world seemed to twist, and a floating sensation spread through my body.
I closed my eyes, and soon, my feet touched the ground. I didn’t feel nauseous and wasn’t in pain. It was a perfect teleportation spell.
“You can open your eyes, scaredy cats.”
“....”
Everyone opened their eyes.
“...Wow.”
An exclamation of awe left my mouth. The mountain fog was nowhere to be seen, and Leores’s buildings were spread out before our eyes. A city resembling modern England. In just three seconds, we had crossed several hundred kilometers.
“Let’s see... HJ?”
Shimurin said, pointing at me.
“Huh? Me?”
“Yeah, you. Follow me. We’re going to my workshop. You didn’t forget our promise, did you?”
“...Ah, yeah, sure. By the way, it’s Hajin, not HJ.”
“Your name doesn’t matter. I just need your magic power.”
Shimurin began to march forward.
“Um, grand magician-nim, what do you mean by workshop? You have something like that here?” Harin asked as she chased after Shimurin.
Shimurin nodded her head, “Yeah, it’s easy to get a fake identity in the Republic. This country doesn’t have a damned caste system.” Shimurin scowled as she said that final line.
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