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Chapter 90
The moment the ballroom went dark, Mehen instinctively realized that something was wrong.
“There should be a barrier in the palace, right?”
“Quick.”
A man who had approached Mehen, as if he knew something, clicked his tongue and disappeared.
The overwhelming pressure that had made it hard to even breathe vanished, and as if that were the signal, the room lit up. Simultaneously, screams erupted from all directions.
“Eek—!”
“There are people here!”
People vanished en masse, as if swept away by some force, turning the ballroom into chaos.
The imperial palace plunged into confusion in an instant.
I lost consciousness for a brief moment.
When I belatedly opened my eyes, I was speechless at the sight before me.
“This… this is it. Sharit Manor.”
Same place, different atmosphere.
The bizarre environment, painted over with inverted colors, made my neck tense with a sense of crisis.
“They said it’s the Otherworld.”
The weakest sensor in my worldview rang the alarm, warning me to flee immediately, yet somehow I felt calm.
“Huff… huff…”
“Are you okay?”
Ah, I wasn’t swept away alone.
“Th-this place is…”
Seeing Leslie’s face turn pale in an instant left me at a loss.
It was strange that she kept staring at empty space, as if seeing something.
There was nothing there.
“Um, you should calm down…”
“Ahhh!”
Leslie screamed convulsively with her pale face and suddenly bolted away.
That’s not good for drawing attention.
“Ah.”
I wanted to grab her, but she dashed out so quickly that she disappeared from sight.
“What should I do?”
I worried about Leslie. Should I go find her?
“Hmm.”
I paused, looking at the threateningly distorted surroundings.
I wanted to help, but recalling my own lack of endurance, I sank quietly to the floor. I was in more danger than her.
“Leslie at least can run. I can’t run for long…”
Sigh.
Lucky her, being able to run.
“What the heck is really happening here?”
In the novel, the Otherworld never appeared, so why am I repeatedly ending up in such strange places!?
My hand suddenly felt hot. The glowing patterns seemed to pull me, beckoning me, but I absolutely did not want to go.
“…How do I get out?”
I sank down after looking around the completely alien surroundings.
Who would come to save me?
“Mehen…”
The only name I could trust slipped out. The longing I had kept hidden in sudden darkness spilled out.
“Mom…”
Suddenly, I missed my mother.
The moment the palace barrier trembled, Valer headed first to the location where the barrier stone was hidden.
Existing at the edge between reality and the Otherworld, invisible not just to ordinary people but even transcendent beings, Valer could still see it using Halbern’s abilities.
“Nothing unusual.”
The barrier stone should have been affected by the anomaly, but it remained intact.
“So it’s not a problem with the barrier.”
The great defensive barrier of the palace, created personally by a grand wizard during the founding of the Albrecht Empire to pray for its prosperity.
Although magical studies and magical engineering had advanced greatly over the ages, the palace’s barrier remained a high-level magic no one could imitate.
If that’s the case…
Avoiding the officials who came to inspect the barrier stone late, Valer spotted someone on the way back to the ballroom and stopped.
“Impetuous mage.”
Robert, a 3-star mage of the Sky Tower, who had noticed the anomaly and was relocating, asked.
“You know me?”
“No.”
He only glanced at Valer briefly in the ballroom.
“You seem to understand the situation. Can you explain?”
“Well, the palace barrier has been disrupted.”
“…You must be joking. That barrier is not something to tamper with lightly.”
The mage’s incredulous tone was correct. It was a barrier not easily affected—if the culprit were human.
‘The lord of the domain called it “invisible.”’
A being able to blind an immortal must be of equal magnitude.
Although I did not like the mysterious giant who suddenly appeared, handling the anomaly was the priority.
Just as Valer turned back toward the ballroom:
Crack—
The twisted barrier opened a gap that would normally remain firmly shut.
“The Otherworld!”
The eyes of the impetuous mage, noticing the bluish crack, changed instantly. Valer’s gaze deepened as well.
An open gap was a red flag.
There must be people swept away. If unlucky, some might be swallowed by the gap.
That didn’t concern Valer. He ignored it and stepped forward.
[Valer.]
If Nata hadn’t spoken through the gap…
[Your daughter has been swept away.]
“…”
Sigh. Valer ran a hand through his hair and exhaled lightly.
“Hey? What are you doing?! Step back! You want to die getting caught up in this? It’s dangerous!”
No matter how Robert shouted, Valer approached the gap.
“You there.”
“What?”
“Report this to His Majesty and tell him to handle it.”
“No, wait—!”
Before Robert could stop him, Valer tore through the crack and stepped into the Otherworld.
Robert could only watch helplessly at the gaping gap, laughing dryly.
“What is this… Huh. Are you a suicide hopeful?”
The forcibly opened gap quickly closed.
Robert felt he would never forget the last sight of this nameless handsome man.
“Hopefully he went to a good place.”
The mage mourned the nameless man.
Valer’s steps into the Otherworld were without hesitation.
The quivering sights and sensations, the discomfort that felt like his brain was being kneaded, passed, and breathing became easier.
For an ordinary human, merely glimpsing, touching, or entering the gap would drive them mad for countless reasons—but nothing in the Otherworld affected Valer.
“Welcome…”
The illusions that swirled to consume human emotions and mind shook chaotically.
Is my daughter okay?
Worry—a feeling both familiar and strange. A feeling long forgotten.
When was the last time I truly worried about someone?
“I’ll do anything for you.”
His daughter seemed skeptical, but Valer’s words were sincere. He truly could do anything for Arelin, even risk his own life.
‘But that doesn’t mean I’ll die easily.’
Even if it’s a death trap for others, this place was familiar to Valer.
Commonly called the Otherworld.
A parallel world that doesn’t exist in reality but shadows reality.
Accessible only through certain gaps or entrances, it is not a place anyone can freely enter.
This secret was Halbern’s specialty, and Valer was familiar with such things.
Wasn’t Halbern’s secret library also in such an Otherworld?
Moreover, this was the imperial palace.
Mirroring the palace, this Otherworld was also familiar to him—a domain where Nata rested in slumber.
Apart from the threatening environment and illusions, Valer’s steps were confident as he explored the serene Otherworld.
“I just need her to be safe…”
As long as his daughter had Nata’s protection, nothing major should happen here.
He widened his senses, looking for a single presence in the twisted world.
Then—
“—Daughter.”
Not far away.
A small figure sat on the floor, hugging their knees with their face buried.
“So you were here.”
For a moment, I thought I misheard.
“What are you doing playing alone here? Making your father worry.”
I tensed at the handsome face before me as soon as I looked up.
An illusion? A dream?
But why this man?
If he wanted to charm me, wouldn’t Mehen or Mom be better? Questioning the choice of this vision, I flinched at the touch on my cheek.
Cold.
“Uh… uh?”
Could this be real?
“Why so surprised?”
“Uh-uh-uh.”
Blinking rapidly in shock at the cold touch, my biological father chuckled.
“It’s not a dream.”
If it’s not a dream…
“Why are you here…?”
Warmth filled his gaze as he looked down at me.
“Then who should come?”
“….”
Blinking, he froze.
I hadn’t meant the question in that way—I just couldn’t believe it.
He really came to find me? This man?
“You… came to find me?”
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Of course I had to come.”
Smiling, his strong arms and chest embraced me. The gentle voice melted my frozen body.
“You’re my daughter.”
