Blue beams flickered like flames on Cassis’s broken sword, extending far beyond his height.

The beams whipped violently inside the shrine, leaving deep gashes.

It was like an outburst, but not without meaning.

This was because the treasure previously placed on the platform had mysteriously vanished.

“Tsk, where did it go? It didn’t fall down at least…”

Lovell muttered after thoroughly searching the floor.

Rosha also wanted to look around, but for some reason couldn’t open her eyes properly, likely a side effect from the power she had just used.

Whenever she tried to open them, her eyelids felt painfully stuck to her eyeballs, as if glued.

“Ugh…”

“Are you okay, Rosha?”

As Rosha sat down and covered her eyes, Froy, who hadn’t taken his eyes off her, leaned down and asked.

He had clearly witnessed Rosha do inexplicable things.

The tree that had remained unfazed even by the tremendous flames suddenly shattering like a crystal. Simultaneously, the immense illusion that had driven them toward death had vanished like a mirage.

Moreover…

‘That illusion just now…’

Whenever he looked at Rosha, countless questions and indescribable emotions welled up within him.

It wasn’t simply because she had many secrets.

He still vividly remembered the premonition he had felt when she had entered the rift.

‘That was… not something that could be dismissed as a mere illusion.’

That’s why he had asked her if they had met before in the past.

Then, Rosha spoke up in a weary voice.

“Froy, by any chance… how much time do we have left?”

“You mean the time limit shown in the blue window? Roughly… about twenty minutes left, I’d say.”

“Twenty, twenty minutes?!”

Contrary to her earlier closed eyes, they now snapped wide open.

It was understandable.

Returners are only given one chance to clear. Good luck.

As soon as she had entered the trial, such a line had appeared in a blue window before her eyes.

Recalling those words, the pain in her eyes suddenly became insignificant.

Layering her crimson eyes with a golden special ability once more, she abruptly rose.

Now wasn’t the time to conserve her strength.

‘I can’t afford to die here. It’s better to go all out and recover later.’

With no time to explain, Rosha didn’t even ask for Froy’s understanding as she grabbed his arm and pulled him along.

The [Guid’s Lantern] led her towards the best path.

Coincidentally, it pointed towards the area behind the bookshelf Cassis had destroyed earlier.

Seeing the intricate pattern engraved in the center of that wall, Rosha immediately recalled where she had seen it before.

The basement door of Marquus Lycaon’s mansion from the first illusion she had just experienced.

“This is…”

Unable to withstand everyone’s piercing gazes, Heres said with a confused expression:

“It’s a magic formula restricting entry to only direct members of the Lycaon family. It was created by one of the family’s ancestors, you know? I can’t do anything about this.”

“…”

“I really have no idea why it’s engraved here. Honestly.”

“Just hurry up and open it.”

He seemed to want to further prove his innocence, but unable to withstand Rosha’s intense gaze, he placed his hand on the pattern.

Then, what had seemed like a dead end wall slowly parted, revealing a new space.

Seeing this, Rosha suddenly realized why ‘the lantern’ had chosen to bring Heres along.

‘It was for this very moment…’

Just how far ahead had it been able to foresee for such a prediction?

At that moment.

Slash-

Without warning, she felt a thin cut on her cheek as blood trickled down.

Simultaneously, sharp crystal shards began raining down across the entire space before her eyes.

Fortunately, Froy swiftly protected the group with his ability, but everyone had already suffered a few cuts here and there.

“This bastard… fights dirty.”

Adding insult to injury, a crystal golem had appeared, prompting Cassis to grit his teeth and summon his ability. Rosha, too, began gathering her mana to assist him when:

“You… your mana is backflowing, isn’t it?”

“Backflowing? No, that’s not…”

However, before Rosha could finish her reply, she coughed up blood with a gulp.

Her body had reached its limit due to excessive use of her ability and accumulated fatigue.

‘Damn it, just hold on a bit longer…’

If she was only realizing the mana backflow now, her condition must be far worse than she thought.

“Damned beast!”

Seeing Rosha’s state, Cassis unleashed his ability in a rage. Blue beams erupted recklessly, tearing through everything in sight.

Normally, she would have nagged him to use it more efficiently, but…

‘He claims battles are fought with instinct, not the mind, but how does he seem to know exactly what to do?’

Just in time, catching sight of the tattered robe of the magician that had appeared, Rosha slowly drew out the sacred relic she had strapped to her thigh.

Having reached her mana limit, she had to borrow the power of a sacred relic.

Bang! Baang!

After infusing his sword with blue energy, Cassis momentarily vanished before reappearing behind the magician, striking down at his head.

The magician narrowly blocked with a barrier, but the sword’s swift arc sliced through its legs regardless.

“Aaargh!”

What is this? Just a research magician?

Perhaps so.

In the previous world, many talented magicians had focused on research or crafting magic items for money.

‘Whatever.’

If the magician was weak in combat, she was grateful for it.

Confirming the neatly arranged treasures behind the magician, Rosha slowly aimed her firearm at it.

Noticing her weapon trembling uncontrollably, a sign she had truly reached her physical limit, Froy silently supported her arm.

It was then that the magician, seeing the sacred relic she held, cried out in a frenzy,

“That… That’s Hildor, isn’t it!”

“Hildor?”

“The thing you’re holding in your hand!”

Was that its name?

Come to think of it, the info window had only stated ‘Unknown Sacred Relic.’

As if responding to its name being spoken, a faint light gradually emerged from the sacred relic. Seeing this, the magician flinched and let out a short scream.

However, there was no time to question him further.

Kiiiii-

A strange force began to slowly constrict her.

Like a grim reaper approaching with a scythe, the aura of death loomed heavily over her.

It was the Hardmode penalty.

Simultaneously, a notification sounded in her mind.

-10

Instinctively realizing that only 10 seconds remained on the time limit, Rosha boldly pulled the trigger.

Bang!

For some reason, a brilliantly glowing bullet flew towards the magician.

Although he tried to evade it, the bullet surprisingly traced a gentle curve, like an unavoidable chastisement, tearing through the barrier to precisely embed itself in his forehead.

The magician’s face violently snapped backward.

Even if Cassis had held back, it was a rather pitiful end for a magician capable of manifesting such an illusion.

However, Rosha didn’t stop moving.

‘I have to get the treasure.’

-7

-6

-5

With each notification sound, the intangible force seemed to tighten around her neck.

Sensing it too, Koko encouraged her in a small voice,

“Hurry and grab it. Not much time left!”

Though only a few steps away, it felt endlessly far, having reached her limit.

Steadying her body on the verge of collapse, Rosha finally picked up the treasure when there were only 2 seconds left.

She wasn’t even curious about the true nature of this intricately constructed jewel box.

All that mattered now was:

The completion condition has been met, and the second trial is now over.

Along with the blue window appearing before her eyes, the force threatening her as a penalty dispersed into the air, as if disappointed. Feeling a sense of liberation, Rosha let out a long sigh.

Immediately after, the pain that had felt distant until now collectively assaulted her entire body.

“…!”

An accomplishment summary window seemed to have appeared before her eyes, but she couldn’t confirm it.

As soon as she deactivated her ability, the pain felt like her eyes were being scorched, and darkness enveloped her.

All she could register was the notification sound that rang in her ears.

-The unknown sacred relic’s item name has been changed to ‘Hildor’.

-Unique trait ‘Precognition’ has been permanently unlocked…

-…

Even that gradually faded, making it impossible to hear the rest.

‘Hildor or whatever, since I’ve gone this far, I hope the cleanup is taken care of automatically.’

Muttering inwardly, she let her body go limp.

As if realizing it could finally rest, her consciousness instantly slipped away.

* * *

At that moment.

In the village, Lysithea and Joel watched the armored knights with resentful gazes.

For the past few hours, Marquus Lycaon’s knights had been meticulously searching the village, interrogating the people.

Ostensibly to investigate the battle that had taken place, but everyone there knew the true reason.

‘It was probably because a carriage bearing the crest of Duke Echerzen had blatantly entered the village.’

Of course, the one who had arrived in that carriage was an elderly woman with a healing ability.

Lysithea looked at the old woman treating the village chief. A faint white light flickered from her properly dressed hands.

The healing ability.

“Ooh…”

“Oh heavens…”

Thanks to her, the village chief, surrounded by the villagers, was breathing steadily. The deep wound on his chest had long since vanished.

Amazed by the sight, even the Marquis’s knights would occasionally glance over as they patrolled.

It was at that moment.

Gooooooo-

An eerie sound erupted nearby, accompanied by a powerful gust of wind. It was an immense force that made even those unfamiliar with mana flinch.

“Ungh, what’s happening again?”

“Just what is going on in our village?”

The villagers, who had endured a prolonged terror from demon beasts and demons in human form, slowly gathered around Lysithea and Joel.

Seeing this, Marquis Lycaon’s knights let out exasperated laughs.

However, right after that.

“Out of the way.”

At the sudden chilling voice, the knights instinctively stepped aside, their hands gripping their sword hilts.

But they soon flinched upon looking ahead.

There stood a dark-haired man cradling a bloodied woman in his arms. The woman’s reddish-brown hair flowed down, swaying lifelessly in the breeze.

Recognizing his identity, Lysithea gasped in surprise and spoke:

“Duke?”

As if unable to hear her, the man strode towards the healer and carefully set the woman down.

Then he softly recited:

“Please heal her. As quickly as possible.”