KamiKowa: That Time I Got Transmigrated With A Broken Goddess-Chapter 96: [] Through the Looking Glass

Xavier plummeted through darkness, his fingers still locked around Calypso’s wrist. The void swallowed all sound except for the rush of blood in his ears. He couldn’t tell if they were falling up, down, or sideways—direction had lost all meaning.

"Calypso!" he shouted but no sound came out.

A pinprick of light appeared in the distance, expanding rapidly. The darkness shattered into fragments, replaced by a kaleidoscope of colors that surrounded them. Purples and blues twisted into greens and golds, forming impossible geometric patterns that broke apart and reformed. The colors weren’t just visible—they seemed to have weight and texture, pressing against Xavier’s skin.

The sensation was familiar, reminding him of moments from his past life when everything hung in the balance.

His heart hammered against his ribs as reality fractured around him. Images flashed through the maelstrom—his mother Elaine smiling at him, Thalia Sinclair unleashing her Zantei, Ashley’s golden shield, Naomi’s smile. Each image dissolved into the next, colors bleeding between them.

Xavier tried to focus on Calypso, but her form blurred and shifted. One moment she was the goddess he knew, the next a figure made of pure light, then a collection of stars in human shape.

This isn’t right. Gates don’t do this.

The colors spun faster, the patterns growing more complex. Numbers and symbols appeared in the chaos—probability calculations, gate classifications, dimensional coordinates. Xavier’s head throbbed as information poured into his mind faster than he could process it.

『Gate Type: Narrative!』

Professor Rousseau’s warnings about unclassified gates echoed in his memory.

"Thirteen of my students encountered an unclassified gate. Only one survived."

His grip on Calypso’s wrist tightened as another message formed in the swirling colors.

『Clear Conditions: Destroy the Heart of Winter』

What the hell does that mean?

『Time Limit: N̷̝̺̭̜̯̹̠͔̳̠͚͌̐̈̓̎̓̄͌̃̄͠ͅơ̶͖̙͍͉̒̅̄̎͑̊̿̽̐͌̽͝t̷̨̛͓͖̺̘̝̯̂̽̈̀̾̓̉̀̓̔̈͝ ̴̫̜̫̺̯͇̲͓̪̘̮̓͜ͅA̶͇̺͔̝̰̘̰̯̰̐̑̔͗͋̈́̚p̸͓͕̥̋͗̽̀̕͝p̶̝̈̈́̅̒͆͌̇̚͠l̸̜̪̆̂͆̽̑̀͌̎̈̈̚͜͠i̷̭̥̽̍̅̿́̿̅̀̌̊̕c̸̘̠͙̪̫̰͆̽̉͋̓̀͗͌̄͝ā̴̛̫̻̞̮͔̩̭̠̪̙͙̰̟̆́͆͊̄̒͂̅̌̆͠b̴͖͈͙̆̊͑̂̒̌̚̚l̴̛̠̮̳̯͕̩͎͔̙̥̎̌͐̎̑̾͗̍̈́e̴̛̩̜͈̟̯͖͆̊̇͌̈́ͅ』

The colors shifted again, coalescing into a new pattern. Through the chaos, Xavier caught glimpses of snow-covered mountains, frozen lakes, and vast forests blanketed in white. The images flickered by too quickly to focus on any single one.

"Xavier!" Calypso’s voice finally reached him, sounding distant and distorted. "Something’s pulling us apart!"

He felt it too—a force tugging at their joined hands, trying to separate them. If they were separated in this place, would they die?

"Hold on!" Xavier shouted, tightening his grip on her wrist. "Don’t let go!"

The force grew stronger. Xavier’s fingers began to slip from Calypso’s skin. He strained against the pull, muscles burning with effort. For a moment, their eyes met through the chaotic swirl of colors. frёeweɓηovel_coɱ

"I’ll find you!" he promised as their fingers finally separated.

Calypso’s scream echoed through the void as she was yanked away, her silver hair streaming behind her like a comet’s tail. Xavier reached for her, but his hands closed on empty air. The colors spun faster, the patterns growing more intricate and disorienting.

The pain in Xavier’s head intensified, becoming a spike driven through his temple. The kaleidoscope of colors began to fade, replaced by a blinding white light. Cold air rushed against his face, carrying the scent of pine and snow.

I’m coming through the gate. Coming out somewhere.

The light grew brighter until it consumed everything. Xavier closed his eyes against the glare, but it penetrated his eyelids, burning into his retinas. The sensation of falling changed, becoming more directional. Down. Definitely down.

His body hit something solid, knocking the air from his lungs. The impact sent fresh waves of pain through his skull. He lay still, gasping, afraid to open his eyes.

Where am I? Where’s Calypso?

Slowly, sensation returned to his limbs. He was lying on something hard and cold. Wood, maybe. The air around him was frigid, his breath forming clouds when he exhaled. Voices murmured nearby, speaking too softly for him to make out the words.

Xavier forced his eyes open, blinking against the light. Above him stretched a gray sky, heavy with clouds. Snow fell in lazy spirals, landing on his face and melting against his skin. He was in some kind of wooden cart or wagon, its sides rising around him like the walls of a coffin.

His head throbbed with each heartbeat, the migraine making it difficult to focus. He tried to sit up, but his limbs felt heavy and uncoordinated. The wagon creaked beneath him as he shifted his weight.

"Look who decided to wake up!" a gruff voice said.

Xavier turned his head, wincing at the pain the movement caused. A man sat across from him in the wagon, bundled in furs and leather. His beard was thick and unkempt, streaked with gray, and his breath fogged in the cold air, carrying the distinct smell of garlic and something fermented.

Beyond the man, Xavier caught glimpses of the landscape. Vast mountains rose in the distance, their peaks lost in clouds. Forests of pine trees stretched along their slopes, bending under the weight of snow. The road they traveled on wound through a valley, the packed snow crunching beneath the wagon’s wheels.

This wasn’t California. This wasn’t anywhere near Mount Eddy or the GGA facility. This was something else entirely.

Frostfall.

Xavier struggled to make sense of his surroundings through the pounding in his head. The migraine blurred his vision at the edges, making it difficult to focus on any one thing for too long.

"Where..." His voice came out as a croak. He swallowed and tried again. "Where am I?"

The bearded man laughed. "Hit your head harder than we thought, eh? You’re on the North Road, headed for Vykengard."

None of those words meant anything to Xavier. He pushed himself up on his elbows, fighting against the pain and disorientation. The wagon was being pulled by two shaggy horses, their breath steaming in the cold air. A driver sat at the front, wrapped in so many layers that Xavier couldn’t tell if they were male or female.

"The others," Xavier managed. "Where are the others?"

The bearded man frowned. "What others? We found you alone, half-frozen in the snow. Lucky the wolves hadn’t gotten to you yet."

Alone. Calypso. Where’s Calypso?

The two-hundred-meter limit. If they were separated beyond that distance...

"You’re not from around here," the bearded man observed, eyeing Xavier’s attire. "Where’d you come from, dressed like that?"

Xavier’s mind raced, trying to piece together what had happened. The gate at Mount Eddy had expanded, pulling in multiple students. Now he was here, wherever "here" was, apparently separated from the others.

Clear conditions: Destroy the Heart of Winter. What does that even mean?

"I’m..." Xavier hesitated, unsure what to say. "I’m trying to find my friends. We got separated."

The bearded man nodded sagely. "Dangerous to travel alone in these parts, especially with the Winter Court pushing north. You’re lucky we found you."

Winter Court. Heart of Winter. The connection seemed obvious, but Xavier had no context for what any of it meant. His head pounded harder, the migraine making it difficult to think clearly.

"Thank you for picking me up." he said, deciding that gratitude was the safest response while he gathered more information.

"Wasn’t my idea," the man grunted. "The seer insisted. She said you were important, though you don’t look like much to me."

The source of this c𝐨ntent is fre𝒆w(e)bn(o)vel