“You should’ve opened it if you were going to! Why didn’t you open it sooner?”

After snorting and chiding her, Koko fluttered out the door. Briefly surveying the corridor, Rosha cautiously stepped out as well.

The sight of different lights streaming through each window never ceased to amaze her.

Walking across the warm sunlit floor, she soon entered a section bathed in crimson evening hues.

Rosha tread carefully along this surreal path.

Her solitary footsteps echoed through the empty hallway.

‘Here… it really feels like I’m isolated.’

A sudden sense of being the only one in the world washed over her.

Similar feelings would arise whenever she snuck out of the mansion at night, but this was far more intense.

‘Did Froy experience this loneliness from a very young age? That must have been… so lonely.’

Her gaze then fell upon a window reflecting nothing at all.

Beyond that window said to display the ‘crevices of space’, only vacant emptiness could be felt. The source of the distinctive aura she sensed from Froy’s ability, perhaps.

Leisurely exploring the mansion, she eventually made her way downstairs.

“…Ah?”

Something vaguely familiar caught her eye.

At the end of the first-floor corridor was a towering white marble door.

‘…Where have I seen that before?’

While the first floor had higher ceilings compared to the others, only a portion of that immense door had manifested, as if part of the wall itself. Intricate carvings adorned its surface.

After racking her brain for a while, Rosha finally recalled where she had seen it.

‘Ah, this is from the sacred relic trial.’

The trial she had undergone immediately after obtaining Hildor.

“Huh? Are you interested in that door?”

Having calmed down from exploring the mansion, Koko fluttered over to the marble door.

Following her, Rosha hastened to examine it closely. Too dark during the sacred relic trial, she hadn’t been able to properly see the carvings then, but they were clearly visible here.

However…

‘What is this supposed to depict?’

Contrary to her expectations of mythological scenes, the carvings depicted towering buildings reminiscent of Seoul, albeit integrated with elements of this world’s landscape.

She glimpsed something like a motorcycle, people wielding guns, government buildings and noble manors in the background. Ah, and a clock tower too.

Perched on Rosha’s shoulder, Koko scrutinized the carvings before remarking,

“Hmm… this seems to tell a story from the ancient era.”

“The ancient era?”

“The sacred relic you possess is also a relic from that era, right? It’s even depicted here.”

Following Koko’s gesture, Rosha saw a long-haired woman holding an oddly shaped object.

It was Hildoir.

While resembling an ordinary handgun, the hologram-like markings projected before its barrel confirmed its identity as Hildoir’s innate ‘Prediction’ property.

‘Why is it carved here?’

Suddenly, she recalled the Guide God’s words from their previous encounter:

-Among sacred relics, Hildor was a top-grade item lacking nothing in performance or achievements.

For sacred relics, both performance and achievements were crucial.

The reason Cassis’s sacred relic ‘Shadow of Radiance’ retained its A-class rating despite a broken blade was its ‘achievement of slaughtering tens of thousands of monsters and earning renown in the ancient era.’

This piqued her curiosity about Hildoir’s own achievements.

“Hmm…”

However, the abstract carvings made it difficult to discern what those achievements might have been.

After briefly examining Hildoir, Rosha returned to her initial question.

‘So why is this marble door in Froy’s mansion?’

Unlike in the sacred relic trial, it didn’t seem to function as an actual door. Instead, it was simply embedded into the wall like a museum exhibit.

As if part of Froy’s subconscious.

“…”

Rather than diminishing, her questions only accumulated over time. Just what was the nature of this world’s composition?

The mysteries surrounding it were profound indeed.

“You say these are carvings from the ancient era? That’s quite strange. If you’re really curious, just ask him about it.”

“…I suppose I should.”

The problem was that Froy wasn’t currently present in the mansion.

But then again, they did say even dragons would come if called upon.

Creeak-

At the sound of a door opening on the first floor, Rosha swiftly turned to see the now familiar man emerging from the central stairway corridor.

Quickening her pace, she approached him.

“Froy! You’re back. Actually, I had something to ask you.”

However, the expression on Froy’s face as she drew closer seemed rather unsettling.

That visage she had always considered beautiful was now rigidly frozen, resembling a handsome sculpture. With a deeply furrowed brow, the man addressed her in an unusually low voice.

“Rosha. The trial has just begun, it seems.”

* * *

Like the third trial described as occurring within an imperial county, this one required entering a rift as well.

The problem was that the rift had formed underwater.

-There does seem to be something like a rift… but it’s too deep to enter without protective gear.

Not only entering, but even approaching the rift was difficult. The one who had ventured closest by borrowing magic’s power had strangely reported that the seawater had frozen solid.

Moreover, there was another issue.

-The trial rift isn’t just located within our principality’s coastline, but also Atica’s! We must clearly establish whose jurisdiction this falls under!

Torn between which side should commit more manpower, the two nations descended into utter chaos. Amidst this confusion, the time limit expired, and the rift opened.

Prince Nardil of the Atica Kingdom had arrived over a day after the rift’s opening.

“…Whew.”

Standing by the shoreline, Nardil let out a soft sigh.

The white coastal city had been partially destroyed, with the damage worsening the closer it was to the sea.

Since half of the desert nation of Atica was uninhabited, most people resided near coastal cities, making this even more devastating.

‘Somehow, I need to destroy that.’

His gaze, which had been surveying the ruined city, soon turned towards the strange structure that had eerily materialized in the middle of the sea.

An ice palace.

Ever since the rift opened, demonic beasts had periodically emerged from that palace’s entrance, just like now.

“They’re coming again, it seems.”

Noticing the palace’s doorway turning an opaque white, Nardil inspected his combat forces before unsheathing his crescent-shaped longsword.

It was then that someone addressed him.

“She will definitely come.”

It was an imperial noblewoman with pink hair.

Lysithea, was it? A male imperial knight accompanied her as well.

While he knew who she referred to, Nardil remained skeptical.

‘How could she come when there’s a mark above her head?’

The people here would do anything to prevent the trial’s progression. Even Nardil didn’t particularly want her to come, preferring she avoid this if possible.

After briefly glancing at Lysithea, Nardil began walking ahead as he responded:

“It would be preferable if she came, but unavoidable if not. Tomorrow, we will enter that ice palace.”

To stop this crisis, they would ultimately have to infiltrate that palace. Hence, he had already assembled warriors and mercenaries for the task.

The white monsters emerging from the palace entrance slowly approached, their chilling aura freezing the ocean’s surface – an impossible phenomenon in Atica’s mild climate.

Standing at the vanguard with a hardened expression, Nardil gripped his sword tightly.

It was at that moment.

“…What’s that?”

Someone quietly muttered while gazing upwards.

Something was descending from the sky. With his exceptional eyesight, Nardil was the first to discern they were two individuals.

However, he couldn’t make out their identities.

For a sudden reddish mist had begun gathering in midair.

Swish-

The mist coalesced into a fiery cloud, shimmering brightly as it ignited. Within, a massive straight object rapidly took form.

A blazing spear.

Swooosh!

The massive, dual-pointed spear shot towards the ground.

Boooom!

Instantly shattering the frozen sea, the fiery spear vaporized the white monsters without a trace.

“No…”

“What is this…”

Witnessing the abrupt transformation from an icy sea to an inferno, people collectively gasped in disbelief.