Chapter 323.

[Mirinae Mountain]

The grand magician brought us to her home . It looked no different than a prehistoric hut on the outside, but the inside was far bigger than what we imagined, having enough space to fit twenty-two soccer fields . Shimurin locked us in here and went outside .

“Shimurin was famous as Arunheim’s grand magician . ”

Meanwhile, Harin began to explain Shimurin’s background .

“She became an official magician when she was 8, became a grand magician at the age of 18, and reached the highest realm in history at 28 . She was titled ‘The One Closest to the Truth . ’”

Harin looked around Shimurin’s abode and continued .

“But 10 years ago, on the year she became 30, she left the kingdom . She disappeared completely . Her juniors reported her saying that she wanted to ‘leave this world’ before disappearing . That’s why the world thought she committed suicide . ”

“…But in reality, she’s been hiding here the whole time . ”

Harin nodded .

“Yes, though I don’t know why . ”

“Mm… . ”

I checked the quest summary once more .

===

[Quest]

[Level of difficulty — Highest]

[Summary — ‘Shimurin’ is a magician who studies interdimensional migration . Disillusioned with the secular society, she took refuge in Mount Mirinae . She abhors humans . ]

[Goal — Persuade Shimurin to come to the Republic OR survive Shimurin . ]

[Reward — Your ‘Aether’ armor]

[Failure result — Probably death]

===

The summary said she was studying interdimensional migration . Her coming here probably had something to do with it .

“To think Shimurin was in Mount Mirinae this entire time… I’m surprised no one noticed all these years . ”

“…I’m sure she’s killed everyone who did . ”

I said with a shrug, and Harin raised her eyebrows .

“What do you mean?”

“No one noticed because she killed everyone who saw her . She said it herself when we first met . That she could eat us alive . ”

“… . ”

Harin’s face froze . But soon, she smiled forcibly and shook her head .

“No way, a grand magician would never—”

Whoosh .

At that moment, Shimurin returned with a gust of wind . Harin froze immediately .

I stared at Shimurin and saw a book in her hand .

According to Observation and Reading, the book was called [Shimurin’s Magic Book] and contained Shimurin’s research into magic .

“… . ”

Suddenly, Shimurin began to murmur a spell . Her magic power seeped into the book, while Boss instinctively used Shadow Barrier, covering just me and herself .

“W-Wait, what about me—”

While Harin muttered in a fluster, I thought about what to do . The answer was easy . After all, the quest window showed what Shimurin wanted .

I took a deep breath and shouted .

“Are you studying dimensional travel?”

Shimurin’s expression immediately stiffened .

**

[Republic of Leores — Underground Prison]

Kim Suho was locked up in a prison . After receiving Chae Nayun’s message, Kim Suho ran to find Seraine, throwing open her door hastily . Seraine screamed and fell, and the knights guarding her had arrested him .

“…Geez, couldn’t you have knocked? You were almost executed for an attempted assassination, you know?”

Thanks to Seraine, he didn’t have to suffer any harsh treatment . Currently, Seraine was staring at him with a dumbfounded look .

Kim Suho said to Seraine from behind bars, “Seraine-ssi, my friend will come here soon with the Loren Clan’s eldest daughter . ”

“Then we’ll let Arunheim Kingdom know . That their wanted criminal is in Leores . ”

“… . ”

Hearing this, Kim Suho clenched his teeth . He looked genuinely angry, and Seraine had to take a step back .

‘I guess I shouldn’t have made that joke . ’ Seraine let out a few dry coughs and then nodded her head .

“…Anyways, even if we don’t contact the Arunheim Kingdom, we can’t let her cross the border . ”

But Kim Suho refused to give up, “They will be valuable allies . ”

“I know that the Loren Clan’s eldest daughter is a powerful knight . I’m sure she has the potential to rise to a high position within Leores . But—”

“No, I’m not talking about Loren’s eldest daughter . ”

“…Pardon?” Seraine tilted her head in confusion .

Kim Suho spoke with trust and faith in a certain someone, “My friend, who is bringing Loren’s eldest daughter to this place, can stop the war by himself . ”

“…What?”

“You’ll know when you see him . ”

Kim Suho was well-aware from experience that bullets were far scarier in war than arrows . Kim Hajin could kill a hundred soldiers with a single bullet, which was enough to overturn any battle .

“…But . ”

“Lady, don’t listen to him . He’s only here because of his connections . ”

Lekendol said as he approached Seraine . But Kim Suho didn’t give up and stared into Seraine’s eyes, and after meeting his gaze for a long time, Seraine had no choice but to comply .

“Whew… fine . ”

In truth, what Kim Suho said last won her over .

A man who can stop the war by himself . As someone who had a deep interest in martial arts, she wanted to know what man the sword commander would have such high praises for .

“…I’ll talk to Father and try to deploy a squad secretly . But make sure no one finds out . Otherwise, we will both be killed . ”

“Thank you—”

“There’s one more thing . ”

Seraine held up her index finger .

“Even if they arrive safely, we’ll test their skills, especially the man you speak of . They’ll have to prove they’re worth the danger we’re putting ourselves in . As for the method…”

Seraine pointed at Lekendol .

“Lekendol will do it . ”

Hearing this, Lekendol smiled with satisfaction .

Kim Suho let out a sigh of relief, “…Yes, I understand . Let’s do that . ”

Kim Suho looked relieved . He trusted that Kim Hajin would succeed no matter what .

“Good… Okay, we’ll let you out now . ”

Seraine eyed Lekendol, and Lekendol promptly opened the cell with a key he brought .

**

[Arunheim]

A gathering of nobles, Arun Summit, took place before matters of national emergency . In this long tradition of Arunheim Kingdom, all reputable nobles came together at the royal palace to discuss .

“I detested the Republic of Leores at this time . ”

On this important day, Prince Krisbell was with Jin Sahyuk .

“… . ”

Jin Sahyuk seemed to be thinking with her eyes closed, and Bell continued talking as he stared out the window .

“Because the Republic killed someone I loved . ”

Jin Sahyuk replied, “Didn’t you say you went back in time to see this person again?”

“…Yeah, so I saw her for another six years . She died when she was 20 in the original timeline but died at 26 in the second . It’s almost like death is set by fate . Someone who is fated to die early will die early and won’t live past 30, and someone who is fated to die late will live past 70 at the earliest . Funny, isn’t it?”

Bell smiled . But it quickly disappeared and was replaced by a cold voice .

“Anyways, in a month, there will be a transnational peace conference in the Republic of Leores . Representatives from every nation in the world will gather to discuss the spreading Demon Realm Transformation . That’s where I summoned Baal . ”

Bell closed his eyes and reminisced the past . The peace conference had transformed into hell at the descent of Baal . After materializing at the heart of the continent, Baal destroyed the world in just four days .

“…So I want you to change that future, Sahyuk . Release me from that fate with death . ”

Jin Sahyuk didn’t answer and simply stared at the room’s door . Just now, she felt a presence in front of it .

Jin Sahyuk turned to Bell and asked, “Did you call someone?”

“…Hm? Oh, is he already here?”

Bell grinned and raised his body . He walked to the door and opened it .

Kiik—

Standing beyond the door was a nicely dressed Shin Jonghak . When Jin Sahyuk saw him, she scowled immediately .

“Shin Jonghak?”

Shin Jonghak also noticed Jin Sahyuk and instantly put on a similar face .

“What… crazy bitch, why are you here? Prince, this woman might look pretty, but she’s a psychopath . I’ll hold her back, please escape . ”

Shin Jonghak said as he looked back and forth between Jin Sahyuk and Bell . On the other hand, Jin Sahyuk glared at Bell, not Shin Jonghak . She was demanding an explanation .

Bell shrugged his shoulders . “Characters mentioned multiple times are bound to appear again . ”

“What bullshit is that?”

“Bullshit? You’re speaking to the Prince! I see you have no manners in this world either . ”

Shin Jonghak muttered while pointing his finger at Jin Sahyuk .

“What the hell are you saying? Don’t you know who this is?”

Jin Sahyuk pointed at Bell . Hearing this, Shin Jonghak observed Bell closely . He should have seen Bell’s face during the Orden Assassination Mission… but he didn’t recognize Bell’s changed appearance and went back to glaring at Jin Sahyuk .

“Shut up—”

“Alright, now that Shin Myungchul’s grandson is here, why don’t we start the real talk . ”

“…What?”

In that instant, Shin Jonghak paused . The name, Shin Myungchul, struck him like cold water .

“…Wait, you… . ”

Shin Jonghak finally recognized Bell, who put on a peaceful expression .

“Take a seat . You’re part of the story I’m about to tell . ”

“… . ”

Shin Jonghak frowned . He glared at Bell and didn’t sit . He acted as though that was the last thing he wanted to do .

Seeing this, Bell added another sentence .

“Listen up . This is a story about me and your grandfather… a story about Returners . ”

With that, Bell took out a crystal ball and threw it . The ball rolled over to Shin Jonghak’s feet .

Shin Jonghak looked down and stared at the crystal ball .

Inside was the face of a young Shin Myungchul .

**

[Mount Mirinae]

“…What did you do?”

Harin whispered at me as she sent a side-glance at Shimurin .

Shimurin was currently leading us somewhere . Harin seemed to be wondering what I did .

“Let’s just say we came to a mutual understanding . ”

I replied with a shrug .

“Mutual understanding?”

“It’s a bit hard to explain . ”

When I mentioned dimensional travel 30 minutes ago, Shimurin chased Boss and Harin away to talk with me alone .

First, she asked how I knew about her topic of research .

I answered truthfully, that I came to this world from another dimension .

Shimurin asked for proof . None of the other earthlings would have been able to give proof, but I could since I had Stigma’s magic power .

As a grand magician, Shimurin could feel the inexplicable power contained within Stigma’s magic power . I then utilized Stigma’s magic power to show a projection of the world I came from .

After that, the negotiation was a piece of cake .

“Tell me . What mutual understanding did—”

“Damn it, guys?” At that moment, Shimurin turned around cursing .

Harin, who was about to ask me something, froze in place .

However, what Shimurin said next made the fear within her disappear . “Do we have to keep walking?”

“…Pardon?” Harin tilted her head .

Shimurin unleashed her magic power as though she was heavily bothered by all the walking .

“I’m talking about Teleport . Why can’t we use something like it?”

“…N-No, we can . Of course, we can . Why wouldn’t we be able to?” Harin nodded her head fiercely and encouraged Shimurin .

Teleport, an instantaneous method to get out of this mountain range . If it was possible, Harin wouldn’t hesitate to beg on her knees to use it .

“I can? Good, then I’m gonna use it . Is that okay?” Shimurin turned to me and asked .

I nodded my head, and Shimurin’s magic circle immediately enveloped us .

“—”

Shimurin muttered a strange chant only she could understand . The magic circle activated, and Shimurin’s teleportation magic enveloped our bodies .

Woong—

The world seemed to twist, and a floating sensation spread through my body .

I closed my eyes, and soon, my feet touched the ground . I didn’t feel nauseous and wasn’t in pain . It was a perfect teleportation spell .

“You can open your eyes, scaredy cats . ”

“… . ”

Everyone opened their eyes .

“…Wow . ”

An exclamation of awe left my mouth . The mountain fog was nowhere to be seen, and Leores’s buildings were spread out before our eyes . A city resembling modern England . In just three seconds, we had crossed several hundred kilometers .

“Let’s see… HJ?”

Shimurin said, pointing at me .

“Huh? Me?”

“Yeah, you . Follow me . We’re going to my workshop . You didn’t forget our promise, did you?”

“…Ah, yeah, sure . By the way, it’s Hajin, not HJ . ”

“Your name doesn’t matter . I just need your magic power . ”

Shimurin began to march forward .

“Um, grand magician-nim, what do you mean by workshop? You have something like that here?” Harin asked as she chased after Shimurin .

Shimurin nodded her head, “Yeah, it’s easy to get a fake identity in the Republic . This country doesn’t have a damned caste system . ” Shimurin scowled as she said that final line .

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