Chapter: 21
Undoing the barrier wasn’t all that difficult.
Compared to breaking in from the outside? This was nothing…
Twisting open a gap in the barrier from the outside is a real ordeal, but if you’re inside, releasing it is easy.
Just like that, the barrier came undone without issue.
We returned to the research lab.
“Looks like the barrier stone was single-use.”
The barrier stone that had been floating at the center of the lab was shattered, scattered across the floor.
To leave no evidence behind—they must’ve made it disposable.
I moved my hand over the broken pieces, trying to sense any remaining magic.
Not even a trace.
“Yep. They cleaned up after themselves. I can’t feel any magic at all.”
They didn’t even bother creating a proper entrance, yet the cleanup job is immaculate.
Honestly, they didn’t even need to wipe the magic this thoroughly—residual magic alone wouldn’t have told us much anyway.
Somehow, this pisses me off.
What should be here is gone.
What didn’t need to be erased was erased to perfection.
It feels like watching a clueless rookie at work—doing everything except the thing they were actually supposed to do.
…Ah. PTSD hits.
My neck tenses up just thinking about it.
Stop thinking about it. No reason to get even more annoyed.
But… why is Rosaline so quiet?
Shouldn’t she have reacted when I said there was no evidence?
I pulled my hand away from the barrier stone and stood up, turning toward her.
Rosaline was glaring at me—wide-eyed, as though she were staring at something that shouldn’t exist in this world.
Why?
“What you just did… how did you undo the barrier?”
“The release? What about it?”
Why is she asking that?
“Nothing special. I just twisted open the gap in the extradimensional barrier so it collapsed on itself…”
It’s a standard method of breaking an extradimensional barrier.
Is that surprising?
Any magician who’s studied barriers even a little can do that—not just me.
She looked at me like I just said something incomprehensible.
“Why do you look like you’re hearing it for the first time?”
“Because I am. It’s literally my first time hearing that.”
…Huh?
“You’ve never heard of it?”
“Nope. I didn’t even know extradimensional barriers had gaps.”
“…Why?”
“Why? Stop asking obvious questions. I’ve never heard of it because I’ve never heard of it.”
…Why though?
Back in Yongsan, the method was so widespread that even regular adventurers—not just mages—knew how to deal with extradimensional barriers.
There’s no way Rosaline wouldn’t know that.
“How do you not know?”
“Don’t make it sound like I’m the weird one. The weird one here is you.”
Rosaline let out a baffled sigh.
“Extradimensional barriers are known as perfect, unbreakable barriers in the academic world.”
“…What?”
Perfect?
That barrier?
I do remember hearing that before the method was discovered… wait.
They were called perfect barriers—in the past.
I heard that line from a party member after Act 3, around the time we left the academy and started properly adventuring.
Which means…
The method hasn’t been discovered yet at this point.
In this era, extradimensional barriers are still considered absolutely unbreakable.
…Okay. That explains why she’s shocked.
Now I get it.
“I see. The gaps were so obvious to me that I assumed everyone knew.”
Time to adjust my story.
Instead of ‘I used a famous method’, I need to go with:
‘The gaps were obvious, so I noticed them.’
Because…
I’m supposed to have only recently started learning magic.
That’s the only way it makes sense.
“That can’t be right. If the gaps were that obvious, someone would’ve found them in the last fifty years. Barrier studies isn’t exactly an unpopular field.”
“They say the darkest place is right under the lamp. Maybe it was so simple that everyone overlooked it.”
“…It’s that simple?”
“Yes.”
Maybe it’s because I understand magic intuitively—not through formulas or structure.
Either way, the gaps stood out clearly to me.
…Well, from inside the barrier.
Breaking it from outside was hell.
“What kind of gap is it?”
“Hard to explain in words. I just… saw it.”
“You mean it looked different? Like a different color?”
“Not quite. More like… a structural flaw.”
“A structural flaw… in an extradimensional barrier?”
Rosaline’s eyes narrowed as she mentally ran through the barrier’s structure—trying to find what I found.
“Can you show me again later?”
“You mean release another extradimensional barrier?”
“Yeah.”
“Of course. As long as you prepare one, I can show you anytime.”
Her face brightened.
“Really? You promise?”
“I don’t go back on my word.”
“Great. Then I need to acquire another barrier stone right away.”
She fell into thought again.
“So, Senior Rosaline—why were you in there fighting a monster?”
It’s great that she’s thinking ahead, but I’d like some explanation first.
I need to know how Yodarla set this all up.
We need to understand what happened to plan ahead.
“Why were you fighting a monster inside that barrier?”
“…Ah.”
Her expression darkened.
“It’s… personal. Family stuff. I didn’t want to talk about it. But I guess it’s only right I tell you.”
She let out a small sigh, then began.
—Rosaline’s summary—
Lea gave her a barrier stone as a “gift,” saying she could use it for research.
Excited, Rosaline started researching immediately—until late at night.
While studying, she sensed an odd magic inside the stone and approached it.
Suddenly, the barrier activated and absorbed her.
Inside was that mithril-plated beetle monster. It attacked, and she had to fight for her life.
She said the rest was what I already knew.
“So that maid, Lea, tried to kill you?”
“No. Lea wouldn’t act alone. She doesn’t have that kind of power.”
“True.”
An extradimensional barrier stone.
A chimera monster armored in mithril.
A mere maid can’t get those.
“There’s someone behind this.”
“Do you have any suspects?”
“Plenty. I didn’t mean to, but… I’m the only direct heir to the Genek Trading Company. There are more people who want me dead than I can count.”
If Rosaline dies, the legitimate successor is gone, and one of the executives is likely to take over.
“So the culprit’s probably one of the high-ranking executives.”
“Right.”
“Anyone you suspect specifically?”
“…No. I never got involved in company business.”
She massaged her temples in frustration.
“But if I catch Lea and interrogate her, I might learn something.”
Interrogate Lea…?
“That’s impossible.”
“Why?”
“Someone willing to kill you to seize Genek wouldn’t leave their pawn alive.”
Lea is probably already dead.
After causing this mess, there’s no way they left her alive.
They’ve likely prepared a story, faked her death, and swapped her with a corpse.
“…Yeah. Whoever pulled this off inside academy grounds wouldn’t let Lea live. They definitely silenced her.”
Rosaline bit her lower lip.
“That idiot… I told her so many times not to get greedy…”
Looks like she and Lea were close once.
Maybe they drifted apart—leaving resentment behind.
“So finding the mastermind is basically impossible.”
“Yes. Most likely.”
“So all I can do now is contact them and pressure the executives…”
She sighed.
“…Didn’t expect I’d ever have to call them because of something like this.”
Another sigh.
Considering her relationship with her parents, it’s understandable.
“Anyway, thank you. You saved my life.”
Rosaline bowed deeply.
“I’ll repay this debt. If you ever need anything—anything at all—tell me. If it’s within my power, I’ll do it.”
Anything, huh?
“You did say anything, right?”
“What? W-Well, yes…”
“A promise is a promise.”
Her eyes trembled ever so slightly.
“…W-What are you planning to make me do?”
“Nothing unreasonable. I just have something to say to your parents. Could you arrange a meeting?”
To learn why Black Night suddenly wants to seize the Genek Company,
I need to talk to the company heads.
“Something to say to… my parents? What could you possibly—”
Her eyes widened—as if she’d realized something huge.
“You… don’t tell me…”
Her pupils shook like an earthquake.
“So that’s why you were always around… trying to get close to me, hoping for a chance to meet by fate…”
She lowered her gaze, fiddling with her index finger.
“I’m sorry, but I can’t accept your feelings. I understand I’m irresistible as the greatest beauty in academy history, but I’m not ready for romance yet. I want to focus on magic.”
She bit her lip, eyes trembling.
“W-Well… compared to saving my life, marrying me would be cheap payment, and with your talent, you’d be more than qualified as a husband, but…”
Her face flushed red from cheeks to ears.
“I-If you really like me that much, I suppose I could…”
Dry lips.
Shaky breath.
Glances stolen from the corner of her eyes.
A complete spectacle.
“B-But going straight to meet my parents is too—”
“I just want to talk business.”
“…Wh—what?”
Rosaline froze like a statue.
“B-Business?”
“Yes. I’ve got a great business idea.”
She stared at me with huge eyes for three seconds.
“A-Ah. O-Oh. R-Right. Of… of course. Business. Yes…”
Stammering like a broken radio, her face redder than before,
she bowed her head and sprinted out of the lab.
“I-I’ll… arrange a meeting somehow!”
She shouted—voice flustered—and ran out, slamming the door.
“GYAAAAAH! I’M SUCH AN IDIOT!”
Her scream echoed down the hallway.
It was delightful to hear.
* * *
God, I’m exhausted.
Maybe twisting open the barrier consumed too much magic.
My head throbbed, and my body felt heavy.
If I use any more magic, will I go into mana exhaustion?
Probably.
Mana exhaustion… really don’t want that.
If this is already tiring, I don’t want to imagine the real thing.
I thought that as I entered my dorm room.
“Master.”
As soon as I closed the door, black mist formed in midair—
and Reaper appeared.
Holy—!
I nearly jumped out of my skin.
[Mentality EX Rank suppresses emotional instability.]
If not for that, I would’ve screamed.
What now? Why is he here?
I send Yodarla away and now Reaper shows up?
Why are they doing this to me?
I was silently stewing when—
“…I apologize.”
Reaper suddenly prostrated himself.
“For daring to doubt you—and worse, to test you.
I sincerely beg your forgiveness.”
…Huh?
Doubt I get—but he tested me? When? How?
I was still trying to process that strange statement when—
FWOOOOOOOSH!!
Suddenly, light flared outside the window—like the sun had risen.
…The sun? At 11 PM?
I moved toward the window to check the light source—
“This magic…”
Reaper’s gaze turned ice-cold.
[Aura of Death saturates the surroundings.]
[Mentality EX Rank resists the Aura of Death.]
“…I will properly apologize for today and what I’m about to do—later, in the appropriate setting.”
A massive surge of energy burst from Reaper’s body—
CRACK! SLAM!
Before I realized it, my face was pinned to the floor,
Reaper’s hand crushing my skull into the ground.
SHNK! FWIP!
Before I could speak—
Reaper raised his dagger toward my head.
I had no time to think—
no time to question—
no time to resist.
I could only wait helplessly for the blade to pierce my skull—
“Stop.”
With that unknown voice,
Reaper froze.
“Move that dagger even a millimeter more…”
The voice came from outside.
I rolled my eyes toward the window.
FOOOOM—!
The wall around the window burst into flames and vanished.
Through the hole in the wall,
a woman walked across the sky.
“…and you—your organization Black Night—
I’ll burn every last one of you to ash.”
Flaming red hair.
The principal of Garam Academy.
A dragon who has lived for millennia—
the last dragon in existence—
former Dragon Lord—
Red Dragon Heneta.
With a sun-sized fireball floating behind her,
she glared down at Reaper.
“…Your return was faster than expected. I thought you were still wandering Endrich’s domain.”
[Dragon Fear saturates the surroundings!]
[Aura of Death saturates the surroundings!]
CRACKLE—ZZZZT!
Dragon fury and reaper killing intent clashed,
sparking red-black lightning through the air.
What kind of insane situation is this…?
[Mentality EX Rank suppresses emotional instability.]
My mind could barely keep up.
