Chapter 245

Pulled down by gravity, Do-Jin kept plummeting through the air. Meanwhile, Sion flew beside him at the exact same speed.

Eventually, she asked, “Why are you here?”

Her eyes were filled with genuine shock that didn’t suit an Archmage at all. It was only natural, though, since she’d never imagined a scene where the disciple who was supposed to be in Lostania would suddenly come falling out of the sky in the middle of the Void.

“Isn’t it obvious? I came to drag my runaway master back home!”

All the trouble he had gone through finally caught up with him the moment Do-Jin saw her. He couldn’t help but shout without holding back.

“Then I should change the question. How did you even follow me he—”

“Can we do the rescue first? Seriously, help me out first!”

“Oh.”

Sion had been absentmindedly matching Do-Jin’s speed as she flew, and only then did she realize how close the ground had become. Mana rippled outward from her in a clean pulse and several perfectly calculated spells activated at once and seized control of the entire situation. Do-Jin’s falling body stopped abruptly in midair, and the impact that should have shattered him scattered harmlessly into the air. Just like that, Do-Jin escaped the fall without a single injury.

“Huff... huff... They weren’t fucking kidding when they said there’s no place like home...”

Was there about three hundred meters left? He’d started falling from such a ridiculous height that he’d gotten lucky. If not, he would’ve already turned into a bloody mess. Even so, the remaining distance would still disappear quickly, and free-falling without a parachute wasn’t exactly a fun experience.

“Now that you’re safe, you can answer calmly, can’t you?”

Give him a second to breathe first.

Without even giving him time to steady his breathing, Sion pressed him for an answer. Do-Jin pulled out the key and shoved it forward.

“I got this from a dungeon. It’s supposed to open sealed spaces. Even the door you closed opened with it, Master. And as for the ‘why,’ there are two reasons.”

“Two?”

“The first one is obvious. I got worried that my master vanished out of nowhere.”

“Worried? About me?” Sion looked genuinely flustered, as if she’d never expected that answer.

“Isn’t that obvious? Elthomagia’s in chaos right now. Even the old Purple Rank folks are crying their eyes out.” 𝘧𝓇ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝘣𝓃ℴ

“What?” Sion looked completely lost, like she genuinely couldn’t understand what he meant. “I’ve lived in seclusion for a long time. Even so, Elthomagia has run just fine on its own. Why would my disappearance suddenly cause problems?”

Her words carried nothing but sincerity, and Do-Jin found himself at a loss for a moment. It was ridiculous enough that she proudly admitted to abandoning the Magic Tower and doing whatever she wanted, but now she was acting like her disappearance didn’t matter because everything kept running without her. It felt like she didn’t care at all about the people who followed her. No, it wasn’t that she didn’t care. She simply couldn’t empathize with them.

Expecting social skills from an Archmage was fucking stupid of me. Most mages were already crazy bastards to begin with. If that was the baseline, then an Archmage... yeah, he decided not to finish that thought.

“Haa... Rifts are exploding all over Lostania right now and I’m pretty damn sure it has something to do with you, Master.”

“I made sure the door was sealed before I left.”

“I’m sure you did. But what if you dragged in something that could smash its way through whether the door was closed or not?”

Sion frowned, as if a possibility had finally begun to dawn on her. Seeing that, Do-Jin laid it out clearly so she would understand exactly what she had caused.

“Something drifting through the Void is heading toward Lostania. Something dangerous enough to affect the world just by getting closer.”

Back in 1974, humanity had sent a message into space, a letter meant for aliens transmitted through radio waves. Sion’s search magic had produced a similar effect. By punching a hole through the barrier surrounding the world, the spell she used to find her friend had revealed Lostania’s existence and location to something wandering the Void. Just like radar or sonar, magic couldn’t remain one-sided forever. When one stared into the Abyss, the Abyss stared back.

“So it is my fault.”

Sion didn’t know much about the Void itself. The Void was an unknown domain from the start. More than anything, her mind had been completely consumed by thoughts of Anne, and that obsession had drowned everything else out.

“Then how do you know something like this?”

“Did you forget that I come from another world?”

The truth was that he knew because he came from the future, not another world. Yet that detail didn’t matter to either of them right now.

“So we don’t have time to stand around here. Let’s move.”

Sion shook her head in response and drifted backward through the air. “If the problem came from something I summoned, then whatever it is will approach from the direction I’m heading. I can resolve it here.”

She had no intention of turning back. Something weighed on her mind, yet even after weighing every doubt she felt, the place most important to her still lay ahead.

“I’m sorry. I went and created this whole master and disciple bond, and yet... at the very least, I’ll make sure you can return safely.”

“What are you even talking about? I’m obviously coming with you to find your friend, so let’s move already.”

Do-Jin wasn’t an idiot. There was no way to make this hopeless master turn around here. Only one path existed, and that was to push forward, find the missing friend as quickly as possible, and then head back. Even if they returned now, it wouldn’t magically fix the situation anyway.

Whatever was approaching Lostania was coming no matter what. If that was the case, it was better to follow Sion’s judgment and find a way to deal with it here in the Void rather than letting it reach Lostania.

If things follow the same path as my previous life... then her friend is probably trapped inside the World Devourer, that being formed from lost remnants drifting through the Void.

For several reasons, Do-Jin had decided to help her. Sion, who had no way of knowing those details, could only stare at him in disbelief.

“So you didn’t come here to drag me back?”

“I did come to bring you back. We’re just going to rescue your friend first, then return.”

Seriously, just how much power did she burn through? Do-Jin glanced down at the scorched land below, where countless dragon-type monsters lay sliced apart.

“You came this far because she’s someone you wouldn’t trade away, not for the Magic Tower, your disciples, your own life, or even the entire world, am I wrong?”

His words struck straight into Sion’s chest.

“Is this how you were thinking from the very beginning...?”

“What, do I look like an idiot? I knew I couldn’t drag you back by force, and you are not the type who gets convinced with a few words. I didn’t come here planning to shove you around.”

Something inside Sion shifted. It felt unfamiliar, like an emotion she had never experienced before. Or perhaps it was simply something so old that she had forgotten it existed.

“It’s reckless. Realistically speaking, there is no way you could actually help me.”

That wasn’t entirely true. Now that a quest had formed, he had a role to play, whatever that role turned out to be.

“If I can’t help, I’ll at least cheer you on. And if things go sideways, I’ll keep you company in the Void. Drifting together sounds less lonely, doesn’t it?”

Sion let out a helpless laugh, shaking her head at the absurdity of his words. Maybe it was because she was finally moving closer to her friend. Standing beside him made her feel like the version of herself from long ago. Maybe it was also because the one who sometimes made her glance back toward paths she had already walked now stood right in front of her.

“If you’ve made up your mind, then let’s move. It looks like things are already wrapped up here. The key’s protection doesn’t last very long.”

Sion glanced briefly at the transparent cube Do-Jin was holding and waved her hand lightly.

[Another type of power has begun protecting you from the Void Dimension.]

The countdown that had been ticking down alongside the system message suddenly froze.

“You really are... a high-maintenance conversation partner.” Sion almost let the words slip out too lightly, but she steadied her tone at the last moment. She was still the master here, so she had to keep at least a little dignity.

Do-Jin ignored her comment and said, “I already knew you were impressive, but seeing it firsthand makes it even crazier.”

When it came to magic, she really was on another level. Everything else about her might be a mess, but her magic was untouchable. Considering how LOST worked, the real nightmare probably started after meeting Sion. Do-Jin knew that well, yet the moment the timer that had been strangling his heart stopped, he finally felt like he could breathe again.

He placed the cube-shaped key back into his inventory and met Sion’s gaze, giving her a small nod.

When Sion raised her hand and drew it downward in one clean motion, the space was torn open. The Void flashed through the gaping rift with a violent whoosh, and in the next instant both Sion and Do-Jin vanished. They had stepped outside the fragment through spatial movement.

“Do you know how much farther we have to go?”

Sion shook her head. “I don’t know. I’m certain about the direction, though.”

They became streaks of light cutting through the Void. Do-Jin felt once again how heavily the quest and the system were boosting him. Without that support, there was no way he could have kept up with someone moving at this speed.

He turned his eyes slightly to the side. Sion came into view, staring endlessly forward without even blinking.

I managed to meet her. Now the important part is figuring out what this quest actually wants from me.

The person he had to help was none other than Archmage Sion Grace. That meant half-assed spellcasting from the sidelines would never make a difference.

There’s a high chance a decisive moment will come where I can intervene.

Or maybe the system would throw in a mechanic only a player could handle, letting him support Sion indirectly. No matter what the situation was, Do-Jin quietly prepared himself. He needed to identify his role instantly and execute it perfectly when the moment came.

***

Inside Möbius Corporation, Monitoring Team 159 was more tense than ever before.

“User Zeta has linked up with Sion Grace. Remaining time at the moment of rendezvous is approximately twenty-three hours and fifty-eight minutes. That gives us about three hours and thirty-seven minutes more leeway than predicted.”

“The quest is progressing faster than we expected, so the remaining quest segments are being reconfigured in real time!”

Reports poured in from every direction, and the team leader fired off orders without missing a beat.

“I heard the time briefing already! Run simulations on how the quest is going to unfold from here and report back immediately!” Then he singled out one staff member. “What about the messages? How many system messages do we still have left that we can output during this quest?”

The employee in charge of system message input answered right away. “We can use up to four messages in total. However, if the message contains critical information, we are limited to two.”

“Only that many left and we have not even displayed the quest update message yet. Damn it. Don’t output anything until I give the order.”

The team leader didn’t even wait for a response. His eyes stayed fixed on Do-Jin, who moved across the screen. He had made it that far on his own before they even had time to mobilize the contractor. That speed went far beyond their expectations.

I hope he keeps surpassing expectations in a good way...

Would that really happen? He didn’t know. The only thing he knew for certain was that his stomach was twisting from the stress.

“Partial forecast results are coming in. The benefit to our side from the earlier-than-expected rendezvous is...”

The employee checking the hologram’s numbers suddenly grimaced, their expression tightening.