Chapter 83

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Episode 18 - Gate of Memory [4]

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"Hey, you’re a villain, right?"

My words caused a dozen pairs of eyes to turn toward me and then toward the man in front of me.

I focused my attention on the seated villain, who had quickly lifted his head to look at me.

His strength was somewhere between Class 4 and Class 5, perhaps at the peak of Class 4 or the beginning of Class 5.

It was difficult to determine the exact power of villains with Mana Sense, since they did not possess mana.

So my estimate was based on the information my senses provided me.

Naturally, killing him would not be a problem, although his guard had gone up the moment I approached.

’It’s so obvious that you’re a villain, otherwise you wouldn’t be this tense.’

His breathing was somewhat irregular; his emotions revealed surprise, shock, disbelief, suspicion, fear, and more.

The sound of his heartbeat had risen above normal. His body temperature had also increased slightly due to his blood accelerating because of my words.

Among many other details.

Of course, very few people would notice this or, at best, no one at all.

But in front of me, nothing escaped notice, no matter how small the detail.

The man with the greatsword abruptly stood up and shouted:

"You dare slander me as a villain? Do you even know what you’re saying and the consequences of saying it?"

A mocking smile spread across my face.

Shortly afterward, I shrugged and said:

"Come on, man, it’s obvious you’re a villain. Maybe no one here noticed it, but nothing escapes me, and besides, the way you’re acting right now proves it. Because someone who clearly isn’t a villain wouldn’t react like that."

My words slowly fell upon the ears of everyone present.

Slowly, the eyes behind me shifted away from me and focused on the man standing before me.

To be honest, it was quite an easy change of opinion.

Because what I said easily exposed a villain, and the man in front of me had already proven it himself.

What clearer evidence could there be?

’Thanks, friend, you’re my ticket to getting closer to Luminus.’

Smiling inwardly, I focused my senses on the villain before me.

A villain exposed in front of the public could react in different ways.

Taking a hostage, attacking directly, fleeing, or creating a distraction.

Then I focused on his emotions, making his next move obvious.

"Damn it."

He grabbed the hilt of his greatsword, which was at least two meters long, and swung it toward me.

Still wearing a mocking smile, I calmly took hold of my sword.

I circulated Inverted Mana, and the muscles in my arms tightened.

Then I moved my sword in the blink of an eye.

"..."

The villain suddenly froze just as he released his Power of Chaos.

A thin red line appeared over his shoulder, a line that ran around his arm, and in the next second, his arm fell off.

One of the foundations for mastering the First Form of Inverted Heaven was sharpening the blade of the sword through Space itself, using the same concept employed when cutting through space.

That was the Mastery Perfection.

The other Masteries used different concepts for applying the First Form.

’I didn’t even feel anything. It was like cutting through air.’

Well, even I was surprised by the concept of sharpening.

Anyway, when the arm fell to the floor, the atmosphere turned silent and heavy.

The only sound was the dripping blood from the villain’s severed arm.

His Power of Chaos overflowed from his body, making it clear that he was a villain.

So, without wasting any time, his head was sent flying in a swift motion.

There was no scream of pain, no reaction, nothing.

His head hit the floor, and shortly after, his body followed, falling backward onto the table.

’If I want to move my sword even faster, I need to reach Perfect Mastery in the Second Form. Only then will I be able to accelerate time in any part of my body instead of my entire body.’

Anyway, I slowly turned around with a smile.

I focused my senses on Luminus, who had frozen in place.

"So? Ah, and by the way, I’m Adel, and this is my companion Charlotte."

I didn’t mention any surnames. Normally, nobles in this era, especially foreigners, prefer to keep their family names hidden.

One of the main reasons is that many of them are fleeing their homelands for certain reasons.

So, keeping myself shrouded in mystery and demonstrating my strength would be a good way to make Luminus keep us even closer.

And it seemed to have worked.

"I truly have no words. Well then, I’m Luminus."

she said as she rose from her seat and walked toward the villain’s headless corpse.

She extended her hand, and instantly, all the blood, the head, the arm, and the villain’s body disappeared.

The moment I noticed this, my thoughts immediately accelerated.

’A Spatial Trait, and judging by how the Power of Chaos completely disappeared, it seems she used that Unique Trait.’

Most of this woman’s traits are honestly absurd.

〖If she had lived during the era of the Third Calamity, all of us, the Five Swords, would have survived. Well, the other four would have. I would’ve simply died〗

"...."

I dismissed my master’s sarcasm and shook my head.

Luminus then turned around and stared directly at me.

"Alright, let’s form a group."

Seeing her emotions, the suspicion, intrigue, and caution were all very strong.

She raised her hand, and sensing this, I raised mine as well.

Then we clasped hands in a firm handshake.

"But before we leave, I’m going to finish dinner first, so if you don’t mind..."

"Ah, yes, go ahead. There’s no rush."

Luminus returned to her seat, picked up the utensils, and started eating the breakfast the man at the counter had brought her.

In any case, by then, the others in the tavern had stopped staring.

But from time to time, I could still feel a few gazes.

’Well, the first step is already done.’

So I went back and sat down in my seat.

***

About ten or twenty minutes passed before we left the tavern.

The cold, powerful wind struck my face.

Instinctively, I raised my head, and soon, thousands of kilometers away, the shape of a colossal tree began to take form.

Although, from my point of view, the tree only had intensely golden branches, from its trunk to the smallest and largest of its branches.

’So this is the Floating Continent.’

It seemed we were in some small human city.

Most of the cities on this continent obviously were not human, though there were also some other races.

The Elvenheims were naturally the owners of this continent.

In any case, I extended my senses around me.

And instantly, I noticed it—the Power of Chaos covered not only the entire sky, but also all the surroundings.

The moment I stepped on the ground and used my senses, I noticed the earth was extremely dry, with grass and vegetation completely withered.

The ambient mana was unstable and scarce.

The atmosphere was silent, overwhelming, and heavy, while men, children, and women of all ages wandered aimlessly.

Above all, the corpses of monsters, humans, and different races spread rot everywhere.

’Ugh, fuck this smell.’

I instantly suppressed my sense of smell, otherwise I wasn’t sure what would happen.

So the stench ceased to exist.

’It’s like an apocalypse story, isn’t it?’

I raised my head toward the sky.

There, a dense mass of Power of Chaos covered the entire sky.

’So that is the gate to the abyss.’

At this time, that thing covering the entire sky still existed.

In the present day, it had disappeared after being sealed.

If the sky could be seen right now, it would be black; instead of rain, ash was falling, and the air was sometimes hot or cold.

"This is terrifying."

Beside me, Charlotte murmured as she looked at the sky, the surroundings, and basically everywhere.

"Avoid showing emotions. Everyone is used to living like this. If you show anything out of place, it would be suspicious."

I spoke quietly enough that only she could hear me.

But obviously, I wasn’t the only one who heard her faint murmur.

Luminus also looked up at the sky and said:

"Well, even now it’s still terrifying, isn’t it?"

Charlotte nodded unconsciously.

"They say only those with 10 Stars can see the so-called blue sky, although maybe it’s just a fairy tale. But someday, I’d like to see for myself whether it’s true."

Her voice sounded melancholic, sad, or emotionally hopeful.

’I suppose that in this era, the blue sky or clouds are simply fairy tales.’

Since a hundred years had passed after the first Calamity, no one in the last eighty or ninety years even knew that a blue sky had once existed.

Charlotte spoke after hearing Luminus’s words.

"Seriously, that means you have some kind of purpose, right?"

"..."

I slightly turned my head toward Charlotte. She returned my gaze with a smile.

’She really took the opportunity to bring up the whole purpose thing.’

This prologue was called Principles of a Purpose.

And to clear the Fallen Maiden’s Memory Gate...

It had to be related to something involving Luminus’s purpose.

Maybe creating a purpose for her, giving her a purpose, defining her purpose, or guiding her toward it.

’There are honestly too many possibilities.’

In any case, Luminus fell silent and, instead of answering, asked:

"By the way, are you two a couple? Maybe dating or married?" 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Suddenly, a strange silence changed the atmosphere around us.

And the first and only thought that crossed my mind was...

’What the hell, did she really just say that?’