“Ally, that’s the way, that’s the way! Yes, yes, it’s going smoothly!”
—Ah, I can hear Dia’s voice.
However, the quality of the voice was completely different. It wasn’t her usual masculine way of speaking, but a soft tone fitting for her body.
I understood in an instant.
This voice was not Dia’s, but ‘Shis’, and I was dreaming right now.
I was remembering the memory of that castle again.
An overly new and beautiful grand hall.
But, it was a little different from last time. Looking out the window, it was raining heavily. Since there was no glass, the storm-lashed raindrops entered the grand hall.
With a cheerful, steady patter, the raindrops reached the magic circle drawn across the floor.
As if to escape the rain, countless books were piled up like mountains in the center of the grand hall.
As if buried in the pile of books, a boy and a girl were talking harmoniously.
—And I looked down on them from above.
That dream again.
The castle I reached after searching and searching for a way to save my sister.
There lived ‘Apostle Shis’, ‘Saint Tiara’, and a masked man—three people.
As someone who had been living in another world for a long time, I understood.
Right now, these three were developing magic in the castle’s grand hall.
On the magic circle, they refined the magic power within their bodies, repeatedly experimenting with decomposition and construction, and then, they were inscribing those ‘magic formulas’ into books one after another.
Even I, a human with the highest class reaching Level 20, was amazed by the amount of magic power filling the castle. The girl, Tiara, manipulated it as if playing with clay.
The masked man watched her with sharp eyes. The gaze visible through the gaps in his mask seemed to glow.
He analyzed Tiara’s magic with his eyes, his hands moving without interruption to record the formulas in books. And it was clear he was also engraving the formulas into his own brain.
—I understood the masked man as if he were myself.
After all, the masked man’s name was ‘Kanami’. It’s only natural.
“Hey, Master. Is it like this?”
It was the same as before. As always, Tiara called the masked man Master.
Tiara nervously checked how her magic was coming along.
“Ah, you’ve gotten better, Tiara. …But that’s not the end. Your conversion efficiency is poor, and the construction of the ‘conversion result’ is full of holes.”
The man smiled faintly and evaluated the girl’s magic.
“Don’t compare me to Master. The construction of Master’s ‘conversion result’ is too perverted; I can’t do it…”
“But you’re going to apply this to the entire nation someday, right? You can’t show weakness here.”
“That’s right. If anyone could do this, no one would call ‘magic power’ ‘poison’ anymore… I have to try my best…”
The girl renewed her determination with a grunt and started her magic construction from scratch again.
Seeing that, the man was impressed.
“You’re amazing, Tiara. I can push myself because it’s for my sister, but you can push yourself for someone you don’t even know.”
“…Well, yeah. But Master is amazing too. Because Master guided me. You said we’d create ‘magic’ that would make everyone happy together.”
“In the end, all I could create was ‘curse technique’, not ‘magic’. This time, I’m being careful not to incur a large price, learning from my past mistakes, but I don’t know if it will work…”
“I’m sure it will work. This time, it will be ‘magic’— ‘magic’ that makes everyone happy. It’s magic that turns the world’s darkness into light. It’s very kind and warm, sacred magic.”
“I wish it would be like that…”
Saying so, Tiara constructed her magic.
A small light flickered to life, gradually illuminating the grand hall.
I knew this magic.
This was ‘Divine Magic’.
However, its completion level was abnormally low. The formulas were full of holes.
But it was indeed a magic construction that was the prototype of ‘Divine Magic’.
It might be rudimentary now, but if it continued to evolve smoothly, it would become the ‘Divine Magic’ I knew.
Two magicians were developing magic under the watchful eye of Apostle Shis.
Was this the beginning of ‘magic’?
The foundation of magic said to have been created by the Shiso.
“Hmm, it’s difficult!”
Tiara puffed out her cheeks, frustrated that her magic wasn’t working.
Then, she asked the masked man.
“First of all, I don’t really understand the meaning of the words. ‘Magic conversion’ is ‘level up’, and ‘conversion result’ is ‘status’? Why did they get those names?”
The masked man, confronted by Tiara’s pure eyes, could barely hide his agitation.
“Huh? Ah, no, well… those are common words in this world…”
The masked man responded flusteredly.
At that moment, a voice intervened from another direction. It wasn’t Apostle Shis, who had been watching.
A fourth character, absent from the previous dream, appeared.
“—No, it’s my older brother’s hobby. It’s a sickness, so to speak. What, are you teaching Tiara lies?”
A voice like the ringing of bells.
A girl entered the grand hall.
She was wearing a white cloth like a patient’s gown, with black hair and black eyes. For a moment, I mistook her for Maria. But I quickly realized she was different.
Her hair was longer than Maria’s, and her skin was unnaturally pale, with a sickly pallor.
She looked similar, but she was a different person.
—Ah, as expected…
“Huh, Master is sick too!?”
Tiara exclaimed at the words of the black-haired, black-eyed girl.
“Yes, a very, very serious illness. A chronic illness that worsened after coming here.”
“N-no! Master, is that true!?”
Tiara stopped her magic construction and approached the masked man.
The man hastily shook his head.
“It’s not true! I’m not sick! I’m the picture of health! Hidaki, you’re the one teaching lies!”
And then, he called her name.
—He called her name.
The man, who was once called Uzunami, uttered Hidaki’s name.
I felt many hopes crumble and many speculations arise.
The girl, who looked exactly like my sister, smiled.
She exchanged jokes with the man who resembled my older brother.
“I’m offended. I’m not lying. After all, my older brother still wears a mask to look cool. Isn’t that what they call ‘chuunibyou’?”
“I need to wear it! I’m not wearing it because I like it!”
“I believe you originally said it was to get along with the people in the ‘north’, right? We’re the only ones here, so you don’t need it?”
“…No, it’s just become a habit now. Besides, I’ve decided not to take off my mask anymore, as anyone could visit at any time.”
“See, you can’t feel at ease without wearing the mask. That’s an illness.”
Ah, how nostalgic…
Such a normal sibling conversation felt like it was from years ago.
And this was the scene I truly desired right now.
That was precisely why I didn’t want to see it.
I didn’t want to realize it.
Experiencing both peace and suffering simultaneously, the dream world itself began to distort.
“Mm-hmm. You’ve gotten quite energetic, haven’t you? Hidaki’s ‘magic conversion’ seems to be going smoothly, ally.”
Amidst the distortion, Apostle Shis smiled.
“No, not yet. It’s still not perfect. It’s not enough.”
However, the masked man did not smile in response to Apostle Shis’s words.
“…I know.”
“Shis, let’s go to the ‘North’. We need to gather much, much more.”
The man touched his black mask and spoke of his resolve.
“The ‘Mad King’ resides there— no, that ‘Ruling King’. It’s dangerous.”
“I’m aware of the danger. But we have to go someday. For my objective, and for yours.”
“Yes… I suppose so.”
Apostle Shis and the masked man understood each other without exchanging many words.
And then, they decided on their next course of action.
“—Well then, shall we go? To the ‘border’ of the ‘North’ and ‘South’, the center of the battle.”
“Ah, let’s go. …It’ll be alright. I’m sure it will go smoothly until the very end.”
Apostle Shis smiled sinisterly and turned her gaze towards the ‘North’.
The man smiled at the slightly anxious Tiara and Hidaki, urging them to head ‘North’.
Thus, Apostle Shis, Saint Tiara, and the two of them—four people—set off for the ‘North’. They set sail from the new continent, docked at a port on the ‘Mainland’, and began walking towards the ‘North’.
—The dream continued. However, the dream gradually became vague.
As the world distorted while progressing, I couldn’t help but grimace.
I had already realized it.
This dream was a playback of memories.
I didn’t know why. I couldn’t be sure of its authenticity.
However, I was certain that these memories belonged to Aikawa Uzunami, and were from a thousand years ago.
Like throwing a stone into a stagnant lake, the submerged memories were surfacing.
Which one was the cause?
Was it meeting the Guardian? The deductive reasoning of ‘Parallel Thinking’?
Or was it due to the increased stats from leveling up, or Aide’s spell?
Perhaps it was all of them.
Everything seemed to be the key to unlocking my memories.
My subconscious was as intricate as a labyrinth, and everything felt prepared to lead me to its deepest part.
However, the continuation of the dream was still long. The deepest part was still far away.
And then, the four arrived in the ‘North’ and met.
The girl who became the ‘Ruling King’.
Two men who supported that girl—Aide and another.
The dream journey continued, albeit distorted.
However, the distortion had reached its peak, and the visuals were now close to static on a TV screen.
I could tell that the ‘Ruling King’ and the masked man were talking, but I couldn’t make out the girl’s face or the content of their conversation.
To see clearer memories, I had to get closer to this masked man.
In other words, I had to level up more.
I understood that if I didn’t, the path ahead would not be shown.
However, contrary to that urge, I no longer wanted to see.
It was probably because I had a vague understanding of what awaited me at the end of this memorious journey.
Perhaps, when the journey ended, the masked man would fall into despair.
He would part ways with Apostle Shis and become an enemy to be killed.
He would be betrayed by Saint Tiara and lose all his trusted companions.
He would be overwhelmed by guilt towards Maria, unable to believe anything Rustyara said, and experience events that would make him despise Dia to no end.
I already knew.
That’s why I didn’t want to see the end of this dream—
◆◆◆◆◆
—I woke up.
I threw off the cloth that was covering me and sat up, exhaling deeply.
My rapid heartbeat wouldn’t stop. My body was covered in sweat, and I felt sick.
“That dream just now…”
Unlike before, I clearly remembered the dream I had just had.
However, I shook my head at my own words.
“—No. That wasn’t a dream. It was too clear… That was a memory…”
With a grimace, I admitted it.
And then, I began to analyze that memory.
Of course, I knew this wasn’t the time for such things. First, I should clarify where I was. I should confirm what happened after fighting Aide and the others.
But it was impossible now.
My ‘Intelligence’ stat, which had soared, wouldn’t let me leave that memory alone.
I couldn’t stop the ‘Parallel Thinking’ that had already started spinning.
I begrudged even the power to deploy ‘Dimension’, and channeled all my nerves into ‘Parallel Thinking’.
“As expected… As expected, is it…?”
I had no choice but to admit it.
I couldn’t keep saying it didn’t matter which way things went.
“I was alive a thousand years ago…? I wasn’t summoned to another world just a few weeks ago, but much, much further in the past…?”
I had to admit that possibility.
“In other words, I was in the labyrinth that day because I was ‘Recollection Convergence’ from a thousand years ago…?”
Having found the answer, I trembled and stared at my own palms.
I couldn’t believe they were really my own.
Moreover, they looked like the hands of a ‘monster’.
“Am I also a monster who was ‘Recollection Converged’ into the labyrinth, like the other Guardians?”
The innate skills I had from the beginning, ‘Dimensional Magic’, ‘Ice Magic’, ‘Swordsmanship’.
High aptitude and stats. And my sudden appearance in the labyrinth.
The answer derived from that information was the possibility that I was a Guardian.
If I was a Guardian, it would explain the skills I had when I came to this world.
The possibility of me being a ‘Thief of the Principles of Dimensions’ was high.
No, since Ice Magic is an innate skill and Dimensional Magic is an acquired skill, I might be a ‘Thief of the Principles of Ice’, or a ‘Thief of the Principles of Water’. The magic I devised also had a strong image of snow and winter. So that’s why Aide called me a ‘Thief of the Principles of Water’… ?
A little while ago, Rowen mentioned being summoned with power matching Level 30. He complained that it was only about 30% of his original power.
In other words, I was summoned to Level 1 because I was summoned to the first floor…?
“—That’s not all.”
The reason why Aikawa Uzunami was so favored.
Many systems like ‘Gaze’, ‘Inventory’, ‘Display’.
It was highly likely that Aikawa Uzunami also developed these. The masked man in the dream, who was happily creating ‘magic conversion’ and ‘conversion results’, must have developed them.
And that ‘labyrinth’ itself was also a product of ‘Aikawa Uzunami’—
“It makes sense that Rowen reacted to the name Kanami…”
The person Rowen was talking to—the kind ‘someone’ who created the labyrinth.
It was highly likely that it was me. I didn’t have certainty, but Rowen’s attitude strongly suggested it.
At that time, I thought my sister was with me, so I didn’t pursue the minor doubt. I could never confirm it again.
“But if that’s the case, why do I have no memory…?”
My thoughts didn’t stop.
Like a dam bursting, the cycle of self-questioning continued relentlessly.
“No, come to think of it, Arti’s memory was also vague… Rowen also said, ‘I finally remembered.’ Do creatures who undergo ‘Recollection Convergence’ have vague memories?”
But it was unnatural for only me to have no memory at all.
If I created the labyrinth, arranged the Guardians, and sent myself a thousand years into the future—then why was it that only I remembered not a single fragment of events from a thousand years ago?
Perhaps I was not ‘Reborn’ or ‘Summoned’ like the others?
Rastiara and Maria told me that ‘blood’ and ‘soul’ are more important than ‘memory’.
So did my past self from a thousand years ago prioritize the preservation of ‘blood’ and ‘soul’ over ‘memory’? If so, it would explain the lack of memories.
—No, that’s not it.
Surely, this situation was the result of prioritizing something more important. Just like I am now, Aikawa Uzunami must have prioritized something over ‘blood’ and ‘soul’. However, there might have been ‘something’ a thousand years ago that was more important than that very important ‘memory’.
For the sake of that ‘something’—
“Did I lose all my memories?”
And I could guess what that ‘something’ was.
My sister, Aikawa Hidaki. I couldn’t think of anyone else. If so, it would explain sacrificing everything.
“But Hidaki isn’t here…! She’s not here! Because she’s not here, I’m desperately trying like this, damn it…!!”
Then, was that ‘something’ I prioritized above all else not Hidaki? No, that’s impossible. As ‘Aikawa Uzunami’, it’s impossible.
Then, did Hidaki live her life to the fullest a thousand years ago and is no longer here?
My sister recovered from her illness, became happy, and lived out her natural lifespan a thousand years ago. Have I already received my reward?
If that’s the case, I understand.
I understand, but—
However, if that’s the case, it doesn’t explain why I hate my collaborators, Apostle Shis and Saint Tiara. If my sister became happy with their help, it would be strange not to be grateful.
In other words, was Aide’s statement just now a lie? That feeling was not ‘as it is’, but rather, it was indeed a form of special mental manipulation.
However, with the power of ‘Sensation’ and ‘Dimension’, I knew he wasn’t lying.
I don’t think he was lying, but—ultimately, I wasn’t sure. There was no guarantee that my insight from ‘Sensation’ and ‘Dimension’ would never miss a lie. For example, if Aide himself was mistaken, I might take false information as truth.
“Damn it…!”
That’s why I didn’t want to think about it.
There was no certainty in any of it. All I could see were contradictions.
Ultimately, even if I could speculate, I couldn’t obtain any certainty.
Not yet.
It’s still not enough.
The puzzle pieces of information don’t fit together.
As expected, at this stage, I couldn’t gain certainty. I already knew that.
Perhaps, it’s possible that all of this is just a杞憂. The scenes seen in the dream were all rubbish, the Guardians who knew me were mistaken, and the ‘Aikawa Uzunami-likeness’ felt in the labyrinth was just wishful thinking. That possibility exists.
Realistically and rationally, I shouldn’t rely on ‘dream memories’ or ‘information from others’.
“Therefore, either way, I have to go to the deepest part of the labyrinth…! I have to go back…! I have to go and see my original world, and confirm whether ‘Hidaki was truly left behind’! Only by confirming that will your claim of Hidaki being there a thousand years ago gain credibility…!”
For my current peace of mind, I have no choice but to find Hidaki with my own eyes.
Knowing that, I’ve been diligently exploring the labyrinth, brushing aside all doubts.
Either way, going to the deepest part of the labyrinth is essential for me.
“Either way, it won’t change…! It won’t change…!”
I gripped the bedsheet so hard it tore and squeezed out the words.
Then, I moved my weakened body and got out of bed.
My feet touched the floor unsteadily.
My mind was unstable, and my body was unstable too.
Everything was battered.
I could feel various balances collapsing. It was indeed starting to enter a state that could be called ‘collapse’. Remembering Hairi’s warning, I scoffed at myself.
It was then that I finally regained my composure and began to gather information from my surroundings.
First, I moved my neck to survey my surroundings.
It was a small, dilapidated room, not exactly clean. Dust had accumulated in the corner, making it highly likely that this was a room in Legacy’s villa.
The ‘Aris Family’s Treasure Sword Rowen’ was propped up on the bed. It seemed someone had retrieved it after the previous battle.
While storing the sword in my ‘Inventory’, I began to expand my ‘Dimension’ in earnest.
