Chapter 1392: 150. The Mysterious Figure

"Although I am praising the Love God's cuteness, your style doesn't exactly seem like that of a Love God believer..."

Sunlight spread across the land.

Flowers swayed gently.

Ancient walls stood in silence, like a solitary shadow cast by the endless river of time.

Yet this utterly ordinary scene completely shut out the nightmare-like light and shadow beyond.

Inside the newly born Divine Kingdom, the stunning blonde woman with long, voluminous curls ignored the girl in her arms, whose face was filled with intoxicated bliss and comfort, and coldly raised her head toward the empty space ahead.

A hint of scrutiny flashed through her blue eyes.

Right.

If this were that scheming bastard of a Love God, it probably would not choose this moment to show itself.

But...

"Since you've already attacked, is there really any point in hiding?"

The sea of stars remained completely empty.

Were it not for the traces of magical power still lingering around them, the inexplicable sneak attack just now might almost have seemed like an illusion on Muen's part.

But there was absolutely no way it had been an illusion.

"Didn't you say this place was safe?"

Muen bared his teeth and secretly glanced toward the hazy mist beside him.

"This isn't what you promised!"

"Normally, as long as Douglas doesn't return early, there is nowhere in the entire Origin Tower safer than this place. Even if you tested explosion magic here and reduced everything to ruins, the outside world wouldn't notice a thing."

Peles's hazy form gradually condensed again from its dispersed state, though her delicate brows were clearly furrowed.

"But there are always abnormal circumstances..."

"What does that mean?"

The corner of Muen's mouth twitched.

"I told you before. The reason we were able to reach this place is because I once left a back door here."

"You did."

"But I never said I was the only person capable of leaving one."

"Huh?"

Muen looked confused.

"Senior Peles, you're not about to tell me that this supposedly core region guarded by the three great cores is like some public carriage running through the Lower District, where anyone can come and go whenever they please, are you?"

"No."

Peles's expression turned serious.

"Within the Origin Tower's system, from beginning to end, there has only ever been one person with the qualifications and authority to tamper with this place..."

"...The Tower Master?"

"Yes. The Tower Master."

"So this is something Douglas left behind?"

"Not necessarily..."

"Not necessarily?"

Muen frowned, puzzled.

Peles did not explain further.

She merely pointed at herself.

"I was once a Tower Master too..."

"Ah..."

Muen suddenly understood.

The position of Tower Master was unique within the Origin Tower.

There could only be one at any given time.

But the people who could be called Tower Master were certainly not limited to one.

For example, among the Tower Masters of the Origin Tower that Muen currently knew of, there were already two.

One was the current Tower Master, Douglas.

The other was Senior Peles, who had served as Tower Master several hundred years ago... however many generations back that had been.

Both of them were Tower Masters of the Origin Tower.

One was now.

One had been before.

Either way...

Both counted.

"Normally, once a Tower Master loses the position, their authority is immediately revoked..."

Peles spread out her soul force, attempting to locate the person who had launched the sneak attack.

"But exceptionally talented people always find ways to leave a trace behind within the three great cores. That trace isn't enough to control them, but it can..."

"Make things a little more convenient at a critical moment?"

Muen's cheek twitched violently.

So in the end, weren't these so-called three great cores still basically a public carriage?

Except one where you could only rub against the edges without truly getting inside!

That was even more shameless!

"Most of the time, traces like that are useless. Mages care a great deal about strength and seniority, after all. Even temporary rotating Tower Masters are usually ancient old things with one foot already in the grave. Before long, they disappear from the world entirely."

Peles rested her chin on one hand, thinking as she clicked her tongue.

"But judging from the current situation, if the person in front of us isn't something Douglas left behind, then that means there may be others like me who have survived in this world through unusual methods."

"Please don't say that..."

Muen sighed.

"I really don't want to run into some ancient monster."

He released Ariel from his arms and prepared himself seriously.

This had originally been supposed to be a relaxed and pleasant infiltration and investigation.

But the sudden appearance of an unexpected intruder had made the entire story start turning strange.

Putting aside exactly what direction that strangeness would take, one thing was undeniable.

The core of all this seemed to keep circling back to those two words:

"Tower Master."

"Something still doesn't add up..."

Muen muttered to himself.

"I came here to investigate matters related to that cheap senior brother of mine, so why do I keep getting dragged back to this so-called 'Tower Master'?"

"And just who exactly is this 'Tower Master' we're supposedly not supposed to trust?"

Really...

The deeper this went, the more confusing it became.

And the more curious he grew.

"Left side. Eleven o'clock!"

Peles's voice rang beside Muen's ear.

At the same time, a gentle force settled over his arm, like a hand lightly gripping his wrist and guiding him toward a precise direction.

"Time Slow!"

Without the slightest hesitation, Muen activated the alchemical core at full power.

Enormous magical power surged.

The entire world slowed before his eyes.

With a Crowned-class body enhanced by the Authority of Time, so-called distance offered about as much obstruction to Muen as Ariel's chest.

Not even an instant passed.

Muen had already reached the exact location Peles indicated.

He swung with everything he had—

Slash!

Brilliant blade light transformed into a crescent moon.

And this moon was no longer the same as the one from before.

It seemed capable of illuminating the entire sea of stars.

"Hm?"

Yet Muen suddenly made a surprised sound.

He had definitely sensed the presence of something there.

But when his blade came down, he felt no impact whatsoever.

"No. He's... in front!"

Peles's voice rang out again.

Of course, "in front" could not mean in front of Muen.

His strike had unquestionably hit nothing.

Which meant...

Muen abruptly turned his head.

A human silhouette slowly peeled itself away from the dim background of the sea of stars like a chameleon revealing itself.

The figure appeared.

One wide sleeve swept outward.

A hand extended—

Straight toward the colorful bubble.

"This guy..."

"That sneak attack wasn't simply meant to stop us."

"It wasn't even meant to attack us."

"His target... is Douglas's office too!"

"Damn it, he tricked us!"

In the span of a flash, Muen's accelerated thoughts under Time Slow immediately grasped the situation.

But even faster than his thoughts was a dazzling blaze of fire.

"Heavenfire—unsheathe!"

Blazing flames illuminated the sea of stars.

The sharp sword aura surged forward with the momentum of an army.

Ariel swung her greatsword.

The storm of flame she created not only forced the figure back, but sent her own dress fluttering dramatically around her, making her look outrageously dashing.

"You think I'm going to embarrass myself in front of Miss Muse?"

At some point, she had somehow produced a rose and was now holding it between her teeth.

With an unbearably showy toss of her little head, even the bangs across her forehead began fluttering.

"Let me tell you."

"Absolutely impossible!"

Muen: "..."

Could you please stop being this handsome and this aggressively dominant?

It's genuinely terrifying!

"Who exactly are you?"

Muen hurriedly pulled himself back together before his thoughts could drift into dangerous questions about who was dominant and who was submissive.

He turned toward the figure.

Only then did he realize that under Ariel's fierce attack, the opponent had also been forced out of that special concealed state.

The mysterious person's figure was finally exposed before Muen.

But all Muen saw...

Was a wide black robe.

Just like every person in the world who wanted to do something they couldn't let others see, the obviously magically enhanced black robe concealed every detail of the wearer's appearance.

Height.

Build.

Complexion.

Beauty or ugliness.

At least until that robe was removed, Muen had no way of knowing any of it.

"..."

Naturally, the mysterious person gave no answer.

Muen was not annoyed.

Instead, he merely smiled bitterly, finding what amusement he could in the situation.

"Fine. Don't talk."

"Looking like this already lets me confirm a few things anyway."

Refusing to show their face.

Charging straight toward the office...

Which meant this person was almost certainly not something Douglas had left behind.

The situation was, inevitably, racing toward the most troublesome possible category.

"Leaving aside whether this person is some ancient monster or not, everyone here seems to be hiding their identity."

Muen's gaze moved around.

Ariel had obviously disguised herself too.

There was no way she would come cause trouble while wearing her real face.

As the heroine of a power-fantasy novel, that much was practically basic professional etiquette.

As for Muen himself, there was even less to say.

He had already thrown away even the last scraps of his dignity.

Miss Muse had returned to the world.

Senior Peles was a soul body, so unless she deliberately revealed herself, outsiders would not be able to see her appearance.

And the person in front of them was wrapped so thoroughly in black robes that even perception itself was blocked.

"So..."

The corner of Muen's mouth curved upward.

"Are we playing some kind of game where whoever reveals their identity first loses?"