Chapter 24: BOOM!

BOOM!

A clash of breath and transcendent magic. 

In the aftermath, a giant crater formed in the middle of the jungle.

“Was it a lizard?” Lea brushed the soot off her gauntlet as she emerged from the smoke caused by the clash of power. 

After toppling the tower situated in the heart of the jungle, a selection window appeared before her. 

It was a window to manage entry rights to the jungle floor she now owned. 

She had chosen to expel all players except for the current Emperor, Lion, and Albus. 

No one else was supposed to be in the jungle.

“It seems they used draconic language to avoid the system’s expulsion. 

How audacious of the so-called guardian of the intermediate realm.”

For a high dragon, nearly a demigod, mastering the draconic language was more than possible.

“The intermediate realm is of greater importance,” Carthesia said, standing protectively in front of Albus.

“Heh.” Lea let out a small laugh. 

“To think that my first love rival would be a high dragon. What a twist of fate.”

Behind her, countless magic circles began to draw themselves again. Carthesia gritted her teeth and extended her hands forward.

“However, I have never missed out on something I desired, no matter what it is.” Lea raised her hand as she looked down at Carthesia. “That boy is mine.”

**BOOM! BOOM!**

With her gesture, numerous spells started raining down on Carthesia. 

“…Tch!” 

Carthesia extended both hands, deploying defensive magic. 

Though it was a deluge of destructive spells, they all dissipated before reaching her.

“Ha… ha… ha…” Despite blocking the attack, Carthesia’s hands were trembling.

“To think you would face me in a polymorphed state instead of your true form. How arrogant. I wouldn’t want my fiancé to get hurt, so why don’t you give it your all?”

Lea looked down at Carthesia with a disdainful expression. 

‘Polymorph! That’s it!’ Albus, watching Carthesia’s labored breathing, realized why she was struggling. 

Early after Rudera opened, Carthesia had asked him for a favor. 

She found moderate-difficulty games enjoyable but feared she might inadvertently reveal her true form, so she asked him to prevent her from releasing her polymorph and revealing her true form.

Thus, Carthesia couldn’t summon her true form and had to fight with a human body. 

Even as a high dragon, her breath was weakened and difficult to use in a human form. 

She was naturally at a disadvantage against Lea, a transcendent being, especially with Albus, someone she had to protect, behind her. 

Albus opened the command window immediately. 

He could make Carthesia an invincible dragon or crush Lea if he wished.

‘But doing that risks revealing my identity.’

The Iron-Blooded Empress’s power was immense, but her intellect was even more dangerous. 

History scholars agreed that no strategist in the empire’s history could surpass her.

No matter how careful he was, she could deduce his identity as a GM from just a few clues.

‘A way to escape this situation without leaving any clues.’

Authorization settings.

Coordinate check. 

Coordinate change. 

Words formed in the command window visible only to Albus. 

And then, suddenly, Carthesia and Albus vanished from Lea’s sight without any warning.

“…!”

She hadn’t anticipated it. 

Space transfer without any prior indication of magic accumulation. 

Lea slumped weakly onto the throne.

“As expected of a high dragon. They had a hidden move.”

For the first time, the man she loved was stolen by a female lizard.

“Interesting.”

CRACK.

The throne’s armrest crumbled under Lea’s grip.

“Very interesting.”

Lea’s eyes glowed ominously. 

She had never once failed to obtain what she wanted. 

She had taken the empire, the throne, the continent, all as she desired. 

That boy would be no different. It wouldn’t take long.

Generally, wizards are scholars who continuously research to explore and reach the truth. 

When another world called Rudera appeared, wizards across the continent couldn’t help but be enthusiastic. 

Though it was created with the help of the Mage Tower, the intervention of Carthesia erased the memories of all the wizards involved, making Rudera a newly discovered otherworld to them.

A dimension separate from the continent. 

A place with unique flora, fauna, and environments not found on the continent. 

Easily accessible, and even if injured or killed during research, it caused no harm in reality. 

Could there be a better research location for wizards?

Most wizards established their research labs inside Rudera. 

The Mage Tower in reality only served to provide them with a place to sleep. 

So, what did the wizards do once they entered Rudera?

Did they analyze the world comprising Rudera and search for the secrets of the dimension? 

Did they peek at taboos and transcend forbidden magic to reach the truth?

In the largest research lab within Rudera, the Tower of Truth, hundreds of wizards were surrounding an experimental table shielded by a magic shield.

“Whoa-!”

“With the heart of a shrew, chirp chirp!”

Given that wizards usually conduct personal experiments, the sight of so many gathered in one place was extraordinary. 

Even more so in such a collective frenzy.

FLASH.

A bright light flickered on the table.

“Woo-hoo!”

“Success!”

“Success of the shrew!”

The wizards cheered at the flash. 

It signaled the success of a research project they had worked on for years without proper rest. 

The magic shield receded, revealing a small animal on the table.

“The perfect shrew is complete!”

The tower lord carefully lifted the animal and declared. 

It was an animal that Albus knew from his previous life on Earth as an elephant shrew, which he had whimsically named and placed in Rudera as an Easter egg. 

For Albus, it was just a creature created without much thought. 

“A creature that interferes with mana, an anti-magic being, the shrew! But now, we have succeeded in injecting mana into this shrew’s body!”

By inadvertently bringing a creature from a world without magic, it was given the ability to erase surrounding mana, making it neither a magical nor non-magical creature.

Soon after the discovery of the elephant shrew, wizards became captivated by it. 

A unique being that defied the established rules of the continent. 

Research on this creature soon led to the exploration of deeper truths. 

Not to mention, its inherent cuteness couldn’t be ignored.

“Success!”

“The completion of the mana-using shrew!”

Years of research to transform an anti-magic creature into a magical one had succeeded. 

It was the largest project since the tower’s establishment. 

Wizards guarded the shrew’s lab in shifts, not letting their guard down for fear of their efforts going to waste.

“Chirp chirp chirp!”

“With a chirp!”

Thus, they could all the more celebrate this moment.

“Today is declared the Day of the Shrew! With this, we have conquered the organic structure of magical and anti-magic creatures!”

If Albus had witnessed this scene, he would have been speechless with astonishment. 

So many wizards gathered for one characteristic that he could change with a flick of his finger, and they were the best wizards on the continent. 

Fortunately, unaware of this fact, the wizards were reveling in a grand celebration.

“Truth is within reach!”

“This is the path of magic!”

“Our predecessors would be proud of us!”

The wizards were in a frenzy.

Then,

DING.

“Chirp?”

“An alert?”

“Is the system congratulating our success?”

-The fourth floor of the Labyrinth Tower has been cleared, unlocking the labyrinth shop for all players.

A world notification echoed throughout Rudera.

“The labyrinth… shop?”

It signaled the advent of new content that would shake the continent.