༺ Ella ༻
My gaze was fixed on the portrait placed in the room.
Daisy.
I first met her as an employee of the Red Bear Inn, she was the leader of a terrorist organization named “The Empire’s future”, and her real identity was the princess of the Ionia Kingdom.
Being in the room of someone who died in my arms stirred an indescribable feeling.
I made a bitter expression as I looked at the portrait.
Indeed, there was a resemblance.
It had been 15 years since the Ionia Kingdom fell, so this portrait must have been drawn before that.
The image of the young girl in the portrait was quite similar to Ella, except for the color of the pupils.
But the Ella I remembered did not appear so calm, and she did not wear such a splendid dress.
Crucially, a name was engraved small at the bottom of the portrait. The name was Daisy de Ionia.
The name Daisy seems to have been her real name after all. Perhaps she decided to only use her given name since her home country had already been destroyed.
Remembering those who are no longer here always complicates the emotions.
I didn’t want to stay here any longer. My head was too cluttered, and it would certainly only interfere with my rest.
Just as I was about to leave to find another room, a thought suddenly popped into my head.
‘Come to think of it…’
The smell of blood was everywhere in the palace, yet this room was exceptionally clean.
The other rooms showed clear signs of barricades built to stop the undead, but Daisy’s room, while showing signs of a hasty exit, remained untouched as if it had not been attacked at all.
Could she have had the chance to flee the palace before the attack?
If so, the chances of something remaining here were very high.
Ignoring my intuition, I thoroughly examined Daisy’s room, hoping to uncover some information about the situation 15 years ago.
But whether she was not the type to keep a diary, I couldn’t find any records that would shed light on anything.
Instead, I found a ring in a drawer.
Tucked in the back of an emptied jewelry box, in a corner so deep that it could be easily missed, was a signet ring engraved with the emblem of the Ionia royal family.
By the size of it, it was perfect for a young girl’s finger.
Given the circumstances, the owner of this ring would be Daisy.
Did she not realize in the hurried situation that she hadn’t taken the signet ring? By the time she would have noticed, the palace had already been occupied, so she wouldn’t have been able to return to retrieve it.
This is a very important item that proves the legitimate succession of the Ionia royal family. Perhaps Daisy might have desperately searched for this ring during her lifetime… unfortunately, it was not what I needed.
As I tried to put the ring back where I found it, overcoming my regret…
Paaa-!
Suddenly, a bright swarm of lights began to seep from the ring.
“What…!?”
I reflexively threw the ring, preparing for a trap or an explosion.
But the ring that hit the floor only emitted a faint light, and nothing else seemed to happen.
Why is it suddenly shining?
The moment I cautiously picked up the ring, I felt a powerful magic from the ring connected to somewhere completely different from here.
Then I realized it. This signet ring was a guidepost leading to a hidden subspace.
However, knowing the direction and location wasn’t enough. The key was the power to open the door.
For the Ionia royal family, it wouldn’t have been a problem at all. Their bloodline possessed the power to easily open doors to other dimensions.
But opening a dimension was not something only possible for the Ionia royal family. If there was enough power, even an ordinary person could create a door to a different dimension.
Swoosh-
I pulled Ajetus out of thin air.
The power of Ajetus to cut out the non-existent. Originally, it would have been difficult with Ajetus alone, but now, with this ring connected to the hidden subspace…
Swoosh-
Krrrkrk!
I succeeded.
I opened a dimensional gate leading to the subspace. It was possible since the signet ring indicated the location.
But I had no idea what lay beyond. Considering that it’s a place accessible only to members of the royal family, it wouldn’t be too dangerous. Even if there is a degree of danger, it doesn’t concern me.
Without hesitation, I stepped into the dimensional gate.
With the sensation of being sucked in, the first thing I saw when I opened my eyes was a vast mountain of gold.
“…A treasure vault?”
Suddenly, I remembered the task Elizabeth had asked of me.
The capital of Ionia, Karia, was destroyed overnight, and the undead were only interested in human blood, not in the wealth they had accumulated.
And so far, including S-ranked adventurers, no one had ever reached the royal castle, so there was a high probability that a considerable amount of wealth was still left in the royal treasury.
Elizabeth had explained that the treasure accumulated there would certainly be helpful in defending the city.
But no matter how hard I looked, I couldn’t find a place in the palace that looked like a treasury.
‘No wonder I couldn’t find it.’
The power connecting to another dimension flowed through the bloodline of Ionia. Having such power, they could simply link the treasury to another dimension. Then only members of the royal family could access the treasury, so there would be no need to worry about it being stolen.
Sparkling gems and gold filled the surroundings, but my gaze passed over them indifferently.
It was a treasury that was used as a national treasure of a kingdom. If I took the treasures here, I could become a rich man envied by the king of a country, but I was not interested in such things.
From the beginning, my attention was directed towards Ella and the Immortal Corps Commander.
This is a hidden space that can only be accessed with the royal family’s signet ring. Perhaps there may be clues about Ella here.
With that anticipation, I glanced around the inside of the treasury and moved further in.
The treasury was not just filled with gold coins. The deeper I went, the more various scrolls, magic items, precious swords that I had only heard of in rumors, and expensive magic ingredients were stored.
As I casually brushed past those items and went deeper in, I eventually reached the end of the treasury.
“……”
There was a shabby and unremarkable iron door. It was an incongruous sight that did not fit at all with the flamboyant and grand treasury, rather, it aroused even more vigilance.
Contrary to appearances, the iron door was protected by an incredibly strong barrier.
If it was still firmly maintained even after several years since the kingdom’s destruction, it was easy to guess that the magician who spread this barrier was extremely skilled.
There must be something inside. I could think of nothing else.
However, no matter how robust the barrier is, the blade of Ajetus can easily cut it off.
Ripping through the barrier with Ajetus in a single breath, the moment I opened the door and stepped inside…
A storm of intense ominous energy engulfed me.
“Guk…!?”
This place is a different dimension. There was no other way to express it.
Such power and concentration, and an overwhelming sense of pressure…!
The heterogeneous magic of another dimension filled this place. It feels similar to when Daisy once opened the door to the dark realm in the system. But in terms of scale, comparison was impossible.
If then it was merely a door that had opened, this place was already another dimension…!
“Kuaaaak! Save me!!”
“It’s regrettable! So regrettable!”
“I don’t want to die! Why do I have to die?”
“I want to live more! I want to live!!”
A chilling cold enough to freeze me to my core penetrated my body.
It wasn’t because the temperature was low. The grudges held by the dead and the energy of death were leading the living to death at every moment.
Ruellyn’s words flashed through my mind.
“The Immortal Corps Commander probably used that child, Ella, to open the gates of the afterlife. From there, he summoned the legion of the undead.”
The gates of the afterlife.
If there is a living hell connected to the afterlife, it would certainly be here.
My heart started to race wildly. A powerful intuition surfaced in my mind, and I impulsively stepped forward.
Just as you cannot cut through a pouring waterfall, there’s no use trying to cut the storm of ominous energy that filled the surroundings like air with Ajetus.
The only way was to endure and move forward.
Withstanding the raging storm with my body, I took one step, and then another step forward.
This place was already the afterlife, and for the living to dwell in the realm of the dead meant getting closer to the deceased. Strength had nothing to do with it. It was just the natural order of the world.
With each step I took, my body got colder as it neared death.
But the colder I got, the more strongly my heart pounded as if it would burst.
Cutting through the ominous energy and moving forward, moving forward endlessly.
At some point.
I stopped in my tracks.
“I’ve found her.”
With the wide-open gates of the afterlife behind me.
In front of me, she lay, eyes closed in peaceful repose, as if locked in a deep sleep within a crystal of ice.
I didn’t know what to say to her.
I didn’t know what expression to make.
“Ella…”
I just sat down, silently, right there.
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