Raising my head, I saw Edel giving a lukewarm glance.
“You.”
“Hm?”
“You’ve softened a lot.”
“…?”
Calling soone busy all the way here and then making random remarks out of the blue?
I tilted my head skeptically.
“Did you call here just to exchange pleasantries?”
“I’m allowed to share an impression or two, aren’t I?”
Edel brushed off my sarcastic remark with ease and crossed her arms.
“When I first saw you, you were brimming with venom, but now you’ve really llowed out.”
“I don’t think I’ve changed much.”
“Things like this are often noticed better by people who haven’t seen you in a while.”
Says the one who isn’t even human.
“With how you are now, even if an Imperial Army stood before you, you’d probably settle for just breaking an arm or a leg.”
“…You think so?”
“Yes, I do. Seeing the venomous little brat turn out like this, I guess the saying about the importance of one’s environnt holds true.”
“So, by saying that, you’re admitting Silia was a bad environnt?”
“Forget it. You haven’t changed at all. You’re exactly the sa as when you were in Silia.”
“No takebacks.”
“You never take a complint gracefully, do you?”
“That was a complint?”
“What else would it be? Did it sound like an insult?”
“Hmm…”
I agree with her, but the world has more surprising people than I thought.
Edel’s earlier comnt about having “softened a lot” could very well have been a disguised way of saying, “There’s no one as delusional as you, living in a dream world.” ꭆ�
“…Fine, just sit down for now.”
Edel rubbed her eyes as she spoke.
Obediently, I sat across from her. As if waiting for this, Edel imdiately began to speak.
“You’ve probably guessed why I called you here.”
“Because of the dinsional creatures.”
“Exactly.”
Just as I expected.
“You’ve had plenty of rest. You should be fully recovered by now.”
“Well… yeah. Honestly, I figured you’d call soon.”
“And yet, you didn’t answer my calls. Anyway, before we get into the main topic, I have a question. You opened a dinsional passage recently, didn’t you?”
“A dinsional passage?”
What’s that?
“Oh.”
I tilted my head for a mont before realizing what she ant.
That thing I showed Da-eun during our camping trip.
I was montarily confused because I hadn’t heard it called a “dinsional passage” before, but that must be what she was referring to.
I recalled the date and ntioned it to Edel for confirmation, and she nodded.
“So that’s what you call a dinsional passage.”
“It’s a placeholder na.”
“But how did you know?”
“Who do you think granted you the authority to interact with dinsions? Plus, it’s sothing I keep a close eye on. We can’t afford to fall for the sa tricks again.”
Edel casually tapped the desk with her fingers.
“So, why did you do it? Did you notice anything unusual?”
“I just wanted to show it off.”
“…Yeah, I figured as much. Still, even though I expected it, hearing it confird is pretty infuriating.”
“…Oh.”
I never thought I’d hear language like that in person, let alone from Edel of all people.
This was… oddly refreshing.
“…What’s done is done, so I’ll let it slide. But don’t do sothing like that again—those things might catch on.”
“Okay.”
I wasn’t planning to do it again anyway. It took a significant amount of energy, and there’s no need to show it off anymore.
Edel added that it was probably fine, but just in case, I nodded in agreent.
I could understand why she reacted so sensitively to this.
After all, we’re both in the sa situation, having lost our holands.
Raising her chin, Edel continued, her voice calm but laced with authority.
“Your tier has already increased. From now on, you need to use the unique traits of your soul to grow even stronger—and handle the dinsional creatures as part of the process.”
“You an I should kill the dinsional creatures and gain experience from that?”
“Exactly.”
“Hm…”
“Is there a problem?”
“Well… should I call it a problem?”
“If there’s anything that bothers you, just say it. There might be sothing I overlooked.”
After all, voicing my concerns wouldn’t cause any harm. Now that I had implicit permission, I decided to share the doubt I’d been harboring.
“Even if you say to gain experience, I’m not sure if I can actually get stronger like that.”
For Earthlings who play Silia Online, that might be possible.
They have the protection of the system, with experience points and stats.
By fighting enemies and steadily accumulating experience, they can eventually stand against overwhelmingly powerful foes.
But for Silia’s natives, it’s different.
Though they also “gain experience” through combat—
The difference lies in whether they grow stronger for certain, or only might grow stronger.
Silia’s natives don’t gain experience points or level up just by fighting.
Their growth entirely depends on themselves.
And I’m no exception.
“I’ve long since passed the stage where I could grow stronger just through fighting.”
If I were to feel any thrill or gain any enlightennt, it would have to be against an enemy as powerful as the Sage of the Empire I killed with my own hands.
I voiced my thoughts, and Edel shook her head.
“Getting stronger doesn’t necessarily an reaching a higher state of being. By fighting them, won’t you beco familiar with their thods? That should make dealing with them easier.”
“Oh… so that’s what you an?”
If that’s the case, then I suppose it makes sense.
Leaning back against the chair, I conveyed my understanding and that I had no further questions.
“The signs from those creatures have been unusual lately. While the barriers remain intact for now… the feeling is ominous.”
“I understand.”
There was no need for more explanation.
If Silia collapses, this world will be next. I crossed dinsions to prevent that from happening.
Edel let out a deep breath.
It was a sigh of relief, carrying an inexplicable sense of reassurance.
“Honestly, I was a little worried when I saw you again after such a long ti. Like I said earlier, you’ve softened a lot.”
“As I ntioned earlier, I don’t think I’ve changed much.”
“…As I also ntioned earlier, these things are more noticeable to soone seeing you after a while.”
“As I also n—”
“—Stop.”
“Okay.”
Faced with her sharp interruption, I stopped mid-sentence and closed my mouth.
“The fact that you’re joking around with like this is proof enough, isn’t it? Would the old you have done sothing like this?”
“Hm…”
The old …
…It’s true.
When I first t Edel, I wasn’t like this.
Sure, I might have cracked a joke or two, but the atmosphere back then was definitely different from now.
“Still, it’s a relief. You haven’t dulled—your blade has simply beco more refined.”
“Isn’t that the sa thing?”
“It’s not. Before, your blade was so sharp it cut even its wielder. Now, that sharpness is directed solely at your enemies. That’s a big difference.”
“Really?”
Edel chuckled as if she’d narrowly avoided being cut herself.
“I’m not joking, you know. I’m serious.”
I ignored her unnecessary clarification.
“It seems humans grow stronger when they have sothing to protect.”
“…I just don’t want to lose Da-eun. That’s all. And it’s also my world now.”
“I never even ntioned her na.”
“….”
“How adorable.”
Edel smiled warmly as she spoke.
Annoyed by her infuriatingly smug grin, I pushed back my chair and stood up.
“I’m leaving.”
“I understand you’re embarrassed, but the conversation isn’t over yet. Sit down for a bit longer.”
At so point, Edel had risen and now placed her hand on my shoulder, gently pushing back into the chair.
“While I said all this, dinsional creatures aren’t the kind of monsters you encounter as casually as the ones wandering around the streets.”
Edel’s statent was spot-on.
Unlike the monsters or beasts that appear frequently, dinsional creatures are unpredictable.
If I had to make a comparison, they’re like cockroaches hiding in your house.
You know they’re there and that they’re harmful, but since they’re invisible, you can’t catch them.
Then, just when you’ve almost forgotten about them, they suddenly pop out and give you a nasty surprise.
Not that anyone would actually enjoy such surprises.
“…Pfft! That’s a pretty good analogy,” Edel said, stifling a laugh at my words.
“Exactly, they’re like that. But what if you already had a cockroach trapped in a cup?”
Her words were oddly grounded and human for a goddess.
I responded with an equally practical answer.
“You’d kill it.”
As much as I’d like to just fling the whole cup out the window, that’s not an option.
“There are a few of them we’ve managed to trap using their own thods. And among them is one that has a connection to you.”
“…A connection to ?”
“Yes. It’s the one that destroyed the Grasis Kingdom.”
“Oh.”
Her unexpected remark didn’t shock as much as she might have anticipated.
Edel seed unsurprised by my calm reaction and continued in a matter-of-fact tone.
“Since you already have a connection to it, how about starting with that one?”
“I’m not sure about the connection, but that doesn’t sound bad.”
My holand’s nesis! I’ll avenge it!
…Of course, I didn’t feel anything like that.
I didn’t have any particular affection for the Grasis Kingdom, after all.
If anything, they had been subtly provoking , and had the kingdom not fallen, I might have been the one to overthrow it in a few years.
Still, it was the country my father loved.
So, let’s call it avenging him on his behalf.
“Do I need to keep hiding myself there too?”
“That’s up to you. If you don’t mind the hassle, you can reveal yourself. Otherwise, keep a low profile.”
“Hm.”
I’ll need to think that over.
As I dusted off my clothes and stood, Edel ntioned one last thing before I left.
“You lost your weapon in the last battle, didn’t you? If you go to the one you care about, you’ll get a new sword.”
“There’s a sword with Da-eun?”
“It’s one she got from Justina. Didn’t you hear about it?”
Did she ntion sothing like that?
In any case—
“I don’t need it.”
That wasn’t particularly relevant to .
“When your purpose is to protect sothing, there’s no sword, no matter how legendary, that can compare to the one you already have.”
Co to think of it, I’ve been neglecting its upkeep.
It’s ti to give it a thorough polishing again.
—
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