episode_0054

“Sigh…. Sigh….”

The grandmother, or rather the sighing witch, continued to sigh until she noticed Alaina.

“Sigh, what’s this now…. Is it time for the angel to come take me when I’m about to die…. I should just die….”

Saying that, the witch tried to get up from the bed.

“Mom. She’s not an angel. Stay still. Don’t fall like last time.”

“Sigh…. Now I can’t even walk….”

As the woman spoke, the sighing witch sighed again.

“Sorry. I’m like this all the time. But it’s fortunate that I only sigh and don’t do anything else strange.”

“Oh, okay….”

Alaina couldn’t hide her confusion on her face.

The man clearly said to go find the sighing witch.

Although he didn’t specifically say what to do once found, Alaina thought he would probably teach her some way to significantly improve her skills.

However, the sighing witch who had come was like a dried jujube, old and wrinkled like that, sighing away due to dementia.

Was the man mistaken about something?

“Again.”

When the woman spoke, the witch was nodding off.

“Sighing, sleeping, sighing, sleeping, endless loop.”

“Yes….”

The woman closed the door and came out, pointing to the comfortable chair in the living room.

“Sit.”

As Alaina sat down, the woman casually gestured with her finger, bringing a kettle and teacup from the kitchen.

Alaina’s eyes widened at the sight of the treats floating gently onto the table.

She had met some wizards before, but they used destructive magic; she had never seen anyone using domestic magic like this.

“So, you came all the way here looking for our mother? Who are you?”

“I’m Alaina. I travel the continent having adventures.”

“Hmm, an adventurer. You don’t look like one at all. What have you been doing so far?”

Alaina briefly explained the things she had done starting from the initial village.

“Why are you so good at telling such little lies?”

The woman chuckled and took a sip of the tea.

“Unless a god descends to tell you everything about the future, there’s no way you could do those things.”

“There was a god.”

“What?”

“Probably a god.”

“What are you saying? Anyway, why did you come looking for our mother?”

“To become stronger.”

Just before coming here, Alaina had barely defeated the Scarlet Dragon, which made the woman’s eyebrows furrow.

“I heard rumors about that… that was you…?”

Seeing that more explanation was needed for her to believe, Alaina showed the vibrant insignia on her chest.

The woman’s expression changed as she examined the insignia given to Dragon Slayers.

“Is that true…?”

“It is. I came here because the sighing witch said there’s a way to become stronger if I visit her.”

“Who told you that story?”

After a moment of contemplation, Alaina decided to talk about the Potion Master.

There was no reason for the Potion Master to send her here without cause.

Alaina needed help from the sighing witch, and hiding crucial information would hinder the conversation.

“Hmm….”

Listening to all the stories about the Potion Master, the woman touched her chin, lost in thought.

Her already pale face seemed even paler as she pondered.

“Hmmmm….”

After a while of deep thought, the woman slowly spoke up.

“The owner of the potion shop in Starting Village?”

“That’s right.”

“How could such a person know all this and tell you…. It’s very suspicious in many ways. Especially the incident during the dragon hunt.”

The woman calculated something as she folded her fingers.

“It doesn’t make sense. Even a decent magician wouldn’t be able to cross this far. If that man really crossed over, he must be a grand wizard. Such an extraordinary person wouldn’t run a potion shop. What is this, really.”

“Perhaps it was just a dream. I wasn’t in my right mind back then.”

“Nonsense. If it was a dream, you would have died long ago. Even thinking it was a fantasy is strange. Wait a moment.”

The woman muttering to herself got up from her seat and walked over to the bookshelf.

She pulled out several thick books from there, placed them on the desk, and started rummaging through them while mumbling something.

Although it was difficult to understand what she was saying overall, words like dimensional leap, secrets of world creation, or interdimensional transfer were occasionally heard.

As Alaina waited for the woman to find the book, she fidgeted by the fireplace.

“Sir. I came here, but now I don’t know what to do. I wish you would appear again and guide me like last time.”

“Hmm?”

Alaina’s eyes widened at the sensation that the frog statue next to the fireplace was moving, but it remained still. It was probably just a misconception due to the flickering firelight.

“If returning from the future means experiencing all those events, it’s strange.”

For a long time, the woman couldn’t take her eyes off the book, and Alaina, growing impatient, cleared her throat.

“Ahem.”

“Oh? What? How long have you been there?”

“Since a while ago.”

“Oh, right. Sorry, sorry. Once I start reading a book, I get completely absorbed.”

The woman who returned to her seat said.

“That man is probably a human from another world.”

“Another world?”

“Yes. I’ve been continuing the research my mother was doing. I’ve reached a conclusion from there.”

“What is it?”

“This world is not real. It’s a virtual world created by someone or some people.”

Alaina didn’t know whether to laugh or how to react to this situation, as she had never learned from the man how to handle such moments.

“This place is a very large stage on a continental scale. What is performed and who the protagonist is remains unclear.”

“That, that’s… true….”

“Everyone exists as extras for the protagonist. Their existence value can only be proven through interaction with the protagonist. I’ve calculated it multiple times, and the same result always comes out.”

“Uh… Is that the correct calculation…?”

“Maybe? Right now, I’m rambling like this, but my mother is a genius. There might not be a magician in this world who can use magic as well as my mother.”

“Yes….”

“And in my opinion, you are that protagonist.”

“Me?!”

Alaina was startled and halfway rose from her chair. Suddenly, what…

“The Starting Village, right? At the tip of the continent? You’ve come from there to here. Along the way, defeating all sorts of evil and saving countless people. There have been many heroes in history, but compared to the feats you’ve accomplished, they are nothing more than minor characters in a narrative.”

“No, I’m not that capable…”

“And perhaps the final destination of your journey is…”

Alaina’s mouth half opened at the woman’s words.

That place mentioned in the walkthrough’s final chapter. How does that woman know about it?

“Is that also a result of that calculation?”

“No, it’s just a feeling. When I traced the paths you took, I somehow felt you would go there. Anyway.”

Talking about the potion man earlier, the woman looked at the walkthrough on the table and said.

“In my opinion, that man is the creator of this world. Whether a god or a transcendent being beyond our comprehension. And that person has chosen you as the protagonist of this world.”

Alaina truly didn’t know what to say at this moment.

Would the man have provided the appropriate answer if he were here?

“If that’s the case, you can probably guess the reason why that person sent you here.”

“What is it?”

“It’s probably because of the dimension of sighs, which is your mother’s special skill.”

The dimension of sighs.

A secretive space beyond an infinite barrier that cannot be observed in reality.

A place where one second in reality becomes a year due to a distortion in the timeline.

“It seems like they intend to make you stronger in a short period of time there.”

“I don’t really understand it up to that point.”

“Right. If not, there would be no reason to send you here all the way. But it’s really strange.”

The woman tilted her head.

“Why would such an extraordinary person choose such a difficult method instead of training you directly? Or creating a world only for one protagonist from the start, that’s not something a sane person would do.”

“He is not insane.”

When Alaina said this seriously, the woman widened her eyes slightly in surprise.

“Sorry. I was too blunt.”

“You are kind and gentle. If it weren’t for you, I would have died several times.”

“Do you like that person?”

“Yes.”

Alaina answered without hesitation.

“I like him. I’ve never stopped thinking about him. After everything is over, I will go to him.”

“And set up a love nest.”

“Uh…”

As Alaina fell silent, the woman burst into laughter.

“You’re cute. Alright, let’s get started.”

“Is the witch asleep right now?”

“Yeah. I’ll handle it instead of my mom. She’s not in her right mind anymore and can’t use magic. Why the strange look?”

Seeing Alaina’s suspicious gaze, the woman raised an eyebrow.

“Don’t worry. Despite looking young and fresh on the outside, I’ve honed my magic for fifteen hundred years.”

“Huh?! You’re an elf?!”

At Alaina’s incredulous words, the woman sighed.

“Ugh… Can’t even get any sleep with all this noise…”

From inside the room came the witch’s sigh.

“If you live as an elf for a long time, you can live for so long as a mage who has reached the highest level. Now, open up! Dimension of Sighs!”

A gap appeared between the woman and Alaina.

Looking at the ominous purple flickering gap, the woman explained.

“One second here is a year inside. I can control and set everything within the dimension as I please. It’s a kind of fantasy space. You can see your condition as if it’s in the palm of your hand, so don’t worry at all.”

“Understood. But…”

“Can you believe it? Not believing me means you don’t trust the man who sent you here, right?”

With that, Alaina clenched her fists and stood up from her chair.

“I’ll go in.”

“Good. I’ll prepare food and a comfortable place inside, so give it your best shot.”

“Um, but…”

Alaina, standing at the edge of the gap, asked.

“Why is it called the Dimension of Sighs? Is there a reason for that?”

“You’ll find out once you go in. See you later, kid.”

Guided by the woman, Alaina entered the Dimension of Sighs.

* * * * *

20 years later.

“Ugh… When will this end…”

Alaina, sitting atop a pile of dragon corpses, sighed in exhaustion.