Ch.57Perpetual Motion Machine

With a hazy consciousness, Sae-erin observed her inner self. She could wake up immediately, but chose not to. Fragments of inspiration swirled around her, glimmering as if trying to reveal something.

This feeling was fundamentally different from gaining enlightenment by taking another’s memories. This was inspiration built entirely on her own experiences. Her head felt hot. Though her body’s senses were dulled by deep sleep, only the sensations in her head remained vivid.

A massive trace had seeped into the blood flowing through her thin vessels. Her body now contained the mysteries of countless mages. That trace had traveled through her heart, spreading through her blood vessels to reach her head.

Numerous memories rose and fell repeatedly. She added others’ memories to the inspiration born from her own experiences. She took what she needed and discarded the rest. The memory of a solitary swordsman whispered to Sae-erin.

‘Embody nature itself? What does that even mean?’

‘If you don’t understand, that’s the end of it. If you wish to progress, you must realize it yourself.’

Where had this memory come from? An elderly man answered a young boy’s question. Their attire seemed both strange and familiar. The clothing of past lives appeared that way due to the mixture of countless memories.

The old man showed nature to the boy. Holding a single sword, the elder sometimes became a mighty wind, sometimes an immovable mountain, sometimes fierce waves.

An unusually large fragment of inspiration lost its light, disappearing as if having fulfilled its purpose. She had felt it since entering the fairy forest—something just beyond her reach that had been frustratingly elusive. Now it revealed its outline.

A new clue. She couldn’t miss it. Sae-erin used the swordsman’s memory and the Imperial Sword Form’s mantras as her foundation. The mantras began to break down and reconstruct themselves. The Imperial Sword Form was originally a martial art created for the bloodline of a renowned sect that once ruled the world.

It was a martial art difficult to use without the special developmental process and innate temperament engraved in the blood of a major sect’s descendants. To use it more freely, she needed to modify it to suit herself.

Enlightenment came suddenly.

A moment of sudden awakening.

The fragments of inspiration filling her mind emitted a brilliant light.

Sae-erin felt the consciousness penetrating the mantras. The scattered words of the mantras began to fit together. It felt comfortable, like wearing a custom-made uniform.

‘The White Dragon Heart Sutra is…’

There was no time to dwell on that. Sae-erin pushed aside her thoughts about the White Dragon Heart Sutra. This came first right now.

From the first mantra to the last, everything flowed without obstruction. The emperor’s arrogance looking down upon the world was no longer present. She had removed the unnecessary parts and kept only the essence—the power to dominate space itself.

Sae-erin overlaid this with the flow she had seen in the spirit forest.

An unstable flow. It scattered all control of mana flowing outward. Within it, mages couldn’t even properly use magic. The same applied to knights. High-speed maneuvers using mana emission would become impossible, and protective barriers would also be unusable.

Except for herself alone.

This was a domain solely for Sae-erin herself. It dominated space and suppressed the opponent’s power. It felt different from an emperor crushing opponents with overwhelming force.

‘A world for the empress.’

A technique vaguely straddling the three disciplines—sorcery, magic, and martial arts—was completed.

Simultaneously, Sae-erin opened her eyes. Her bodily sensations returned clearly. As she felt the soft blanket against her skin, her blurry focus recognized an unfamiliar ceiling.

*Rustle*

“Where is…”

As she sat up in bed, she took in her surroundings. It was an unfamiliar place not in her memory. Yet she felt no fear, having spotted Envi dozing nearby.

‘Must be the magic tower…’

She had lost consciousness after dealing with the transmigrator in cooperation with the mages. They must have taken care of her. Sae-erin checked her physical condition as she got out of bed.

Empty. The mana she usually felt in her heart was extremely faint, and she felt a painful hunger as if she hadn’t eaten for days. Her mouth was dry. Her lips, which she lightly touched, were the same.

‘Not good for my skin…’

Lack of moisture would make her skin rough. Sae-erin shifted her gaze and grabbed a large water bottle on the table.

That’s when the dozing Envi woke up. Sensing movement, she rose and took in the sight of the small girl. A sickly-looking girl. Extremely beautiful.

Envi stared at Sae-erin for a long time.

“How many days was I asleep?”

A voice that broke the reverie. Even her voice was beautiful. She was cute enough that Envi wanted to keep her by her side as a little sister. Envi belatedly collected herself and shook her head.

“What?”

“I asked how many days I’ve been lying here.”

“A, a week… That should be right.”

Sae-erin’s gaze turned to the area around the bed. A small washbasin, wet towel, and change of clothes were prepared. From the circumstances, it seemed Envi had been taking care of her for the past week.

“I’m hungry…”

“Ah, just a moment!”

At Sae-erin’s words, Envi quickly brought food. What was provided to Sae-erin was thin soup. Well-boiled vegetables easily mashed. There could be no better food for someone who had fasted for a week.

Sae-erin sat on the bed and drank the soup.

“How bold…”

Her way of eating didn’t match her appearance, being incredibly bold. Yet even that seemed charming. Whatever a beautiful girl does tends to look impressive.

“What happened to the transmigrator?”

“Dead. Split apart along with the iron golem.”

“And his body?”

“Our magic tower recovered it… They said a body that conceived an independent magic system has high research value.”

Sae-erin nodded. Her role was to eliminate transmigrators. What happened to their bodies afterward wasn’t particularly important.

By now, the soup bowl was empty. Sae-erin used a large ladle to refill her bowl.

“I’d like to contact the Empire…”

“For mission reporting? Don’t worry about that. Someone from the Empire visited not long ago.”

“Hmm…”

If someone from the Intelligence Department had visited, they would have confirmed the mission’s success. They would have also finished all necessary discussions with the magic tower. The mission success would have been reported to the Blue Wing headquarters as well.

There was nothing left for Sae-erin to do.

As she finished eating, her body regained strength. Her mana was still depleted, but not to the point where she couldn’t move. Sae-erin put on her cleanly washed clothes and equipped her two swords.

Her body tilted to one side. The dark-colored sword was quite heavy. Sae-erin had no choice but to put one sword down on the floor.

“I’d like to be alone for a while. If you don’t mind, I’d appreciate it if you could leave.”

“Huh? Um… sure…”

Envi’s expression noticeably drooped at Sae-erin’s request to leave. Watching her, Sae-erin smiled slightly and said:

“I’ll come find you when I’m done. I’d like to tour the magic tower…”

“…Alright!”

Finally, she smiled. Sae-erin turned her gaze away from Envi’s retreating back.

*Click*

With the sound, the door closed. Silence descended upon the room. She was finally alone. It was a good opportunity to test the martial art she had created in her dream.

‘Can I even call this a martial art…’

Sae-erin closed her eyes. And breathed quietly. As inhalation and exhalation continued, the surrounding sounds grew faint. Her senses sank to their limits.

Her small hand rested on the White Dragon Sword. The remaining mana in her body changed its properties following the mantras. Her mana reserves were ridiculously insufficient. She could manifest the mental image for only a single moment.

But for now, that was enough.

*Whoosh*

The mana spreading from Sae-erin’s body created a special flow. At that moment, her closed eyes opened. As a subtle gleam flashed in her eyes, a vortex of mana began to form around Sae-erin.

Inner World Manifestation

A World for the Empress

The mana vortex changed the surrounding environment. Rather than simply spreading energy to suppress opponents, it overlaid a virtual space onto the existing space.

But the time was brief. As soon as the technique was completed, the world collapsed.

A deep smile played on Sae-erin’s lips. Until now, the martial arts Sae-erin mainly used were all based on memories taken through the sword. Memories that weren’t originally her own, but belonged to others.

But this time was different. A technique created solely for herself.

It had been successfully realized. She couldn’t help but feel a new sense of accomplishment. A happy smile bloomed on the small girl’s face.

***

“Restoration is impossible…”

“Hmm…”

Many mages sighed deeply as they put their heads together. They were the leaders of the magic tower. Key figures from each school had gathered, but the problem remained unsolved.

The elderly mages looked at the large mechanical device sprawled on the floor. A power device said to endlessly produce mana lay before them. It was every mage’s dream object, but now it was nothing more than cold scrap metal.

It had certainly been emitting mana when transported to the magic tower. As Shave had said, it was producing mana infinitely. But shortly after arriving here, it stopped working. Since no one had touched it, there was no one to blame.

“Perhaps it was damaged by the impact of the battle…”

“That’s certainly a possibility…”

“Then what should we do?”

“…I think we should ask the dwarves for help…”

The expressions of all the mages collectively soured.