Ch.208Epilogue.(7)

Crackle, crackle, crackle…!

The path to the higher dimension was, honestly speaking, more treacherous than words could describe.

The flow of space-time, once as gentle as a stream, would suddenly turn violent without warning.

Whoooosh…!

Just like now.

It was a scene that would astonish anyone, but those present here had long transcended the boundaries of ordinary.

“Melina.”

Kiel turned to look at Melina. Emperor Aria also gazed at her.

No further words were necessary. It was clear whose role was most crucial in this moment.

A massive magical formula bloomed around Melina, stabilizing the [Gateway] to the higher dimension against external shocks.

Not satisfied with just that, she artificially slowed the flow of the internal space. Seeing the suddenly calmed landscape, Aria spoke.

“Let’s move quickly. I don’t know how long we can deceive the world…”

Her words didn’t reach completion.

Crack…!

A sound, like something splitting apart. Melina’s face hardened in real time.

The entire space-time was twisting.

“Why…?”

“It’s because the living and the dead are crossing together.”

As if she had known from the beginning, Aria shrugged nonchalantly.

It was impossible from the start for her, who was merely a soul, to cross dimensions in the same way as those with intact physical bodies.

“It seems my guidance ends here. Melina, you’ll have to find your own path from now on.”

“…What do you intend to do?”

“I plan to use the path of reincarnation. I’ll arrive several times faster than you. That passage should be much safer than this one.”

The Emperor, wearing a completely relaxed expression, muttered.

“I’ll go ahead and wait for you.”

“…”

Kiel silently nodded.

Roooooar…!

The space swirled like a storm. A small gap visible in between.

Without hesitation, Aria advanced into that gap.

.

.

.

.

.

She dreamed.

Honestly, Emperor Aria didn’t know if this was truly a dream or if she was glimpsing fragments of her past life. She remembered throwing herself toward the path of reincarnation.

But…

What was this scene before her now?

At least in her memories, there had never been a cycle like this.

The first thing she saw was an unfamiliar cage.

Next was the image of herself, holding young Olivia and wailing in a space filled with moisture and mold.

“It’s all my fault. So…”

A convulsive sob rather than mere weeping.

“…goodbye.”

Aria’s eyes settled calmly. She realized this wasn’t a simple dream.

“…”

The realization came too late.

Aria silently watched the scene gradually fade away.

This was the end of the princess.

No, it was her own end as well.

The princess who transferred all her abilities to Olivia of the 0th cycle would lose her memories and, after hundreds of cycles, eventually become her current self.

‘…Will I become like that too?’

She suddenly felt anxious.

Roooooar…

Aria’s thoughts couldn’t continue. It felt as if her soul was being sucked somewhere.

‘Where to?’

Aria’s consciousness gradually drifted away.

*****

Thud!

Feeling a strange sensation on her back, Aria unconsciously lifted her eyelids.

“Ah…ah?”

Her voice came out. Not a mental projection. It was a voice emerging from her vocal cords.

Her fingers and toes moved properly too.

But she couldn’t move them completely at will. It felt like moving the body of an underdeveloped child. Aria struggled to get up. Fortunately, there was a mirror right in front of her.

“…”

Aria slowly traced her face. Clean golden short hair, eyes full of vitality and intelligence.

‘They’re brown.’

Only the color of her eyes was different.

Of course, if that were the only difference, it would have been fortunate.

Her fingers were small. Her height was short too. She looked to be about three or four years old at most. Aria curiously kneaded her cheeks. They were soft.

‘…Oh my. Is this reincarnation?’

Her memories… weren’t complete. Only the important cycles came back clearly, while the rest were blurry as if erased. Aria thought this was actually fortunate.

If she remembered all cycles even after reincarnation, her mind wouldn’t have been able to bear it.

Aria slowly looked around. Children her age were running around wildly with all sorts of toys. However, almost all of the children had black hair.

‘The whole world is filled with Kiel’s genes.’

But it didn’t feel that strange. Rather, it seemed natural. During the past five years when she hadn’t been aware of her past life, her mind had completely melded with this world.

‘At least my name is the same.’

Seoul Municipal Kindergarten, Lily Class, Aria (阿理峨).

It means “to rule majestically from a high place.”

‘The name is well chosen.’

Though she thought so, her mind was still in turmoil. In a world with over 7 billion humans, she had no idea how to find Olivia.

Tap tap.

At that moment, someone touched her back. The exact same sensation she felt when she first became aware of her past life.

She turned her head immediately. A boy slightly taller than her was standing there with a smiling face.

A round, plump face like a steamed bun. He would probably grow up to be quite handsome.

“…?”

But if that were all, she wouldn’t have widened her eyes.

He resembled her.

He looked so much like Olivia.

If Olivia had married Kiel and had a son, he would look exactly like this.

Aria hurriedly reached out and grabbed the boy’s cheek.

“Who ah you!”

Who are you.

The moment she said that, Aria realized her tongue wasn’t working properly.

“…What’s this? What, what…?”

As she was flapping her mouth due to the sudden regression of her language ability, the boy held something out in front of her face.

“Wanna eat this?”

…A snack?

Normally she would never have accepted it, but the current Aria was different. By the time she came to her senses, the snack was already going down her throat. It tasted like strawberry.

“Aria eats well!”

Aria furrowed her brow.

“What’s your name?”

“You don’t know my name?”

This is maddening.

Aria tried to check his name tag first. No matter that she was five years old, now that she was aware of her past life, language shouldn’t be a problem.

“I’ll give you another one later!”

But before she could check his name tag, the boy said that and ran off somewhere with tiny steps.

“…”

Aria watched his retreating figure as if entranced.

It was too similar to dismiss as mere coincidence, even the aura he gave off was identical. Suddenly, she remembered what Aurelia had said.

That question, ‘What do you think Olivia reincarnated as?’…

For such a young child, even sharing one’s snack with others isn’t an easy thing. Unless an adult told him to do so, or he liked her.

But no such indication was felt from that child.

It was simply his nature.

But…

‘Even if that child is indeed Olivia’s reincarnation, what difference would it make?’

When he doesn’t remember her.

For someone who doesn’t remember their past life, past connections are merely shackles.

Even if they look similar, even if their personalities are similar, that’s all there is to it.

Their memories and the lives they’ve lived are different.

“…”

But would it be okay for her to be greedy?

She couldn’t help but sigh.

After hesitating for a long time, Aria came to a conclusion.

After death, she had met her departed friend like this again.

That alone was already enough of a miracle…

At that moment.

“Waaaah!”

It started snowing outside the window. All the children shouted in unison and ran outside. Aria watched the boy with dazed eyes, as if bewitched.

Snowflakes piled softly on his hair. As light reflected off them, something faintly shimmered above. That presence, half-connected to the boy, turned to look at her with brilliant white hair flowing.

“…!!”

It felt like her breath stopped.

‘…Olivia?’

There was no mistake. It couldn’t be an illusion.

The more snow accumulated on the boy’s hair, the clearer Olivia’s figure became. She looked at the boy with glowing blue eyes, then turned to Aria.

And smiled.

That warm, radiant smile was exactly the same as the Olivia that Aria had known.

“…Ah.”

Her voice trembled. She felt like she might cry.

Aria rubbed her eyes vigorously. Olivia’s figure had disappeared, but that no longer mattered.

She wanted to feel this small miracle a little longer.

Just a little more.

*****

“…Where is this?”

Holding his throbbing head, Kiel looked around. Trees surrounded him in every direction. When he came to his senses, he found himself in some unknown forest.

The last scene he remembered was the Emperor’s figure disappearing into the raging current.

“…It seems we’ve succeeded somehow.”

It was Melina.

As an authority on spatial magic, she could tell immediately.

The flow of magical power, the movement of the atmosphere, everything was different from the continent.

‘How long has it been?’

It was probably just a few days, but the place they had been drifting wasn’t an ordinary location.

The intermediate zone of dimensions where time flowed arbitrarily.

It wouldn’t be strange if a few days had expanded into decades.

Melina checked her physical condition.

She had to pay a considerable amount of magical power as a price, but it was within an acceptable range.

‘…Fortunate.’

Now the remaining task was to find out what Aria and Olivia had reincarnated as.

Of course, there was a possibility they had reincarnated as lesser creatures, but for some reason, she felt that wouldn’t be the case.

Crunch.

Just as she was about to walk along a small path, the sound of footsteps on snow came from nearby.

Human footsteps.

“…”

Melina pondered for a moment. Whether it would be right to ignore them, or better to meet them and gather information. As for language, she could simply use translation magic.

Just as she thought that.

“If you walk around in such clothes, passersby will find you strange.”

“…!!”

“Eighteen years. Not a particularly pleasant-sounding number, but since it hasn’t reached twenty years, I’ll forgive you.”

Saying that, Aria chuckled.

“Change into these clothes. I bought them from a department store.”

…Department store?

But more than that unfamiliar word, Melina was more surprised that Aria hadn’t aged at all despite eighteen years having passed.

“When you’re done changing, I’ll take you to Olivia.”

Aria added with a smile.