Chapter 357

#1. Yukline Office

The head of Yukline, Yeriel, was sitting in her office and sorting out family matters, moving her hands at great speed.

There was really a lot to do. Reports on the success of the various enterprises of Ukline, the Order of the Knights and the Tower of Magic, plans for the future, budget allocation, as well as fines and punishments ...

Yeriel carefully checked all the information so that there was not a speck on Ukline's reputation, so that Ukline would preserve and increase their greatness.

"Oh... one word from me, one action... sets billions of elne in motion."

Yeriel, no, the head of Uklaine manages tens of billions of elne a day, but she is very difficult to deal with.

But I'm always on edge.

Because she was always irritated.

Her sensitive and demanding personality makes even the commander of the Imperial Knights, Delric, wary of her.

"People don't know that the world has been destroyed.

Yeriel had reasons for this. People did not know that this continent had already been destroyed once and reborn.

"For them, [Outworld] is nothing but a demonic technique that the dastardly Declain used, and Sylvia is the sun that saved them from this prison or something like that.

[Outworld] is the great demonic magic that Declain manifested with the Altar, resulting in everyone being trapped and only surviving thanks to Sylvia's magic...

It was a false story that irritated Yeriel a lot.

- What is this nonsense ...

Yeriel looked ahead, tapping her fingers on the table.

"Ha ha... well, nothing can be done about it.

The person who had to listen to all this, sitting opposite, was Riya. She smiled bitterly and scratched the back of her head.

- Because the professor himself wanted it.

- ... yes, that's right.

Yeriel pouted her lips.

- In any case, you still haven't found it?

- Not yet.

- If you can't find it, then no one will.

In the history of the Empire, only one team of adventurers, the Red Pomegranate, received official recognition from the imperial family. Yeriel and the Empress entrusted them with a task that would make them heroes of the continent.

They had to find Declain.

Where the hell did he go?

Yeriel grunted and looked out the window.

The most fertile land and the most commercially and scientifically expanded province with the second largest imperial metropolis after the capital.

All thanks to Declan's legacy. Thanks to the knowledge he left on his lighthouse.

- If he died...

- He's alive.

Riya interrupted Yeriel's worries.

- ...a?

Glancing at Riya, who radiated such confidence, Yeriel licked her lips.

"Then where the hell is he?"

- What are you going to do if the professor is still alive? Ria asked.

Yeriel replied immediately:

- I have to protect his last moments.

Yeriel knew Declain didn't have much time left. Even if he is now alive and breathing, his time is extremely limited.

I want to be with him in these last moments. I want to show him that I didn't let him down and that the Ukline family is thriving.

- That's how...

Riya smiled slightly. Seeing her like this, Yeriel raised her eyebrows.

- And you?

- What?

Yeriel pointed her finger at Riya.

- What will you do if you meet Declain?

- ...

Riya thought for a moment without saying anything, and then suddenly stared into space. At least to Yeriel, it seemed like a void, but a notification was displayed in front of Riya.

[Victory]

The main quest ended with the disappearance of the final boss. And the ticket was the reward.

What is this ticket? A ticket to an amusement park, a ticket to a club or a restaurant, or is it something that will bring her back to her old world?

Riya didn't know for sure.

- I... I don't know. It's just that there are a lot of things... that I want to do and that I want to ask him about.

- What?

Yeriel narrowed her eyes. Suspicion crossed her face.

Riya was silent.

She wants to ask Declain why he gave her the diary. And also...

- Hmph, okay. What will you do after that? Will you still be an adventurer? Yeriel asked.

- ...

Riya smiled bitterly without saying a word. Yeriel blinked.

- Hm? Do you have other plans?

- Yes. I need to think about it.

Riya spent quite a long time on this continent. However, now she had a ticket, and she vaguely suspected what it was for.

However, the problem is that there was only one ticket.

- Because the person I love may be somewhere nearby.

In Rhia's mind, Declan's image was still clear. His face, so similar to Kim Woojin's, flickered before her eyes.

- The person you love?

- Yes. If I find it...

If suddenly he really is Kim Woojin, and if he really dies...

"Then I want to give him something.

She will give him this ticket.

#2. Desert

A desert where winds blow endlessly.

A place where thick sand binds the feet, a place where hot air with mana mixed in it warms the skin, a place where even human footprints remain only for a short time on the barren sandy hills.

This desert was carelessly crossed by a man. Step by step, he moved further along the surface, which seemed to be melting from the heat.

- ...

Without saying a word, he walked forward, but suddenly stopped and looked around. The distant sun and the same distant horizon.

FSHSHSH!

At that moment the wind blew. It was an air current containing mana. It flickered like starlight, revealing some hidden place.

It was a hut. A small house made of wood.

- ... are you inside?

After asking this, the man opened the wooden door.

TFR!

The door creaked, and a pleasant interior without a single speck of dust opened up.

The man hung his thermostatic robe and turban on a hanger and sat down in a random chair.

- You come?

A voice came from outside. The man turned around and smiled.

Before him was the worst evil of this era, a man in a black suit with glasses on the bridge of his nose, reading a book. An accomplice of the terrible Altar, written in the textbooks as the enemy of the entire continent, a villain worthy of death...

Long time no see, Declan.

Declein von Grahan Uklein.

No, he is no longer a noble, so apart from the name, everything else was superfluous.

- Yes. Long time ago, Prince Creto.

However, he still looked handsome and relaxed.

With a body that is about to die, in a continent where everyone hates him, he was waiting for his last day, but he still looked nobler than any other person.

- What happened to Kuei?

At Declain's question, Creto smiled bitterly.

- Died.

Kuei was dead.

He protected Creto at the moment when the continent was collapsing. The puppet he used turned into a pile of debris and ashes. And Creto scattered his remains over the sea.

So Kuei died, and Creto suffered from strange emotions for some time. His heart was empty, and at the same time he was relieved.

- When he died, I felt empty, as if I had lost a part of myself.

- That's how?

- Yes. But the look on his face at the very end made me proud. He seems to have finally come to terms with himself.

Creto looked at Declain.

"I see," Declain said nonchalantly.

Creto thought for a moment, and then said:

- You probably know. Please tell me what is this feeling?

He needed an answer. Where does this "strange feeling" that Creto has for Kuei come from.

- This is the only reason why I came to you.

When Creto thinks of Kuei, he always experiences the greatest emotional excitement.

Creto wants to know the true nature of his heart, which cannot be explained by mere compassion or empathy.

- Your Highness.

Declain smiled at him.

Why are you waiting for an answer from me that you already have?

Creto's brow furrowed.

He asked sullenly:

- ...has already?

- Yes. The name of Your Highness Kreto, and the life you will continue to live, will be your answer.

Kuei had no other reason to save His Highness.

- ...

Creto thought.

For a while, only the wooden floorboards creaked in the hut, and the sandy wind rattled against the window.

And then Creto chuckled.

- Haha. Here's how.

In fact, Creto already understood this to some extent.

The name Creto (Creator) gave a big hint, and this continent already had a feeling similar to what he was now experiencing.

- If one day I have a child, and I lose it, will I experience the same feelings? Creto asked.

Declain shook his head.

- It's a feeling I don't know.

Creto nodded and looked at the table where the wand with the spells engraved on it lay.

Suddenly he remembered something.

"Are you going to Lokralen now?"

The promised day had arrived, and now Declain had to go there. Lokralen's president, Lokralen, will let him in.

After that, everything will happen exactly as everyone remembers.

This knot will be tied without a single mistake.

- ...yes.

Declain smiled faintly.

#3. Locralen

Ifrin was in Lokralen.

As an archmage, she had to get rid of Caydesite and spend 385 years in this limited space, that is, 140,525 days or 3,372,600 hours.

For such hardships, only one award was intended for her, or rather one meeting.

In Lokralen, Ifrin met with her past Declain and herself, who was too young to understand her feelings.

She met a man she thought she would never see again. She saw his face, talked to him and hugged him. You can't dream of more.

- ...Thanks.

Ifrin didn't know how many times she had already said that. Looking at the man who had stayed with her in Lokralen, where time stood still, she experienced the greatest happiness.

- Thank you, professor.

"You don't need to thank me," Declain said.

Ifrin was struck by such nonchalance.

"Do you know how many years we will have to stay here?"

- Who cares?

That rude tone, and the way he behaves and acts...

All this was the same as before.

She missed him so much that tears welled up in her eyes.

- Where have you been all this time? No, what time period did you come from?

"You don't need to know that," Declain said.

He was still lurking in her time, but now Ifrin didn't care. Now he was here, next to her.

She followed on the heels of Declain, who was busily heading somewhere.

- What are we going to do these 385 years? she asked.

Declain stopped and turned to her.

We'll find a way to shorten that time.

- ...

These words confused Ifrin.

Of course, this answer suited Declain best of all, but still...

"You're not really going to spend 385 years here, are you?" Decline asked.

Ifrin silently pursed her lips.

- It's impossible, Ifrin.

After saying that, Declan smiled.

- ...

Of course, Ifrin knew this. Together with Declain, she will definitely find a way out of this time trap.

From the old days, things that were impossible for her alone were always possible with the professor.

"...it will be difficult," Ifrin muttered softly.

Declain is here now and they've had 385 years.

If you are with a person you love deeply, even such long years will only be a very short moment.

- Difficult?

Decline frowned.

- Yes. When it comes to disintegrating the energy of time, I know better than you. But even for me it is almost impossible.

- You're right. Alone, this is not possible.

- ...a?

Declain put a hand on Ifrin's shoulder.

It was only the touch of a hand, but Ifrin's heart began to beat faster.

- Ifrin, I face the truth. Abolishing such a magical space is no joke, so I need your help.

- ...

Those last words gave Ifrin some hope. Which means even Declane couldn't handle it alone.

- Calm down, Ifrin. You can't be here for 385 years.

But Declain brought her back to reality, which made Ifrin feel slightly nauseous.

- ...why? Still, time has stopped. We will never grow old and die.

- Not. You will grow old and die.

- How...

- You will be mentally exhausted.

- ...

As Declan said, 385 years is a long time. No magician could easily endure this.

- To spend 385 years here means to be isolated from the world. If you spend 385 years here, will you be able to return to a world that hasn't changed a single second in those 385 years? Will you be able to communicate with the people of that world as before?

100 years is enough to turn a newborn into an old man.

Newborns and the elderly cannot communicate with each other.

Ifrin will be "one who does not belong to this world." Like Demakan, she will degenerate into something not of this world.

"I came here so you wouldn't be like this." I came to help you.

- And yet, Professor, if I'm with you ... - timidly replied Ifrin.

Decline smirked.

- It's 385 years old, Ifrin. Make no mistake. No man remains constant for 385 years. Your feelings for me will definitely change.

- Haha...

At that moment, Ifrin involuntarily laughed and looked at Declain.

- Look who's Talking.

- ...what?

While Declain narrowed his eyes, Ifrin took a deep breath and shook her head arrogantly.

- I'm sure.

- Sure?

"Yes," Ifrin said, pounding his chest. They won't change, I assure you.

- ...

Slightly surprised by this statement, Declain smirked.

- Well...

Ifrin took advantage of this moment and moved closer to Declain. Spreading her long silver hair, she threw herself into the arms of Declain, who had lost his guard, and wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face in his chest ...

"Let go..." Declain said, looking down at the top of her head.

- ...

Waiting for no answer, Declain sighed.

Frozen space. In Lokralen, where time did not move and no sound was heard, only Ifrin and Declain existed.

- So what you gonna do? Declain asked after a moment's silence.

Ifrin raised her head.

- In what sense?..

To her cautious question, Declain replied calmly:

- I can wait for you.

- ...

- Think as much as you want. I will spend this time with you.

At this moment, Ifrin's face flashed with a bright color...

After a while, her composure returned, and she asked, looking into Declain's eyes:

- How much do I want?

Decline nodded.

- Until you're ready.

- ...

Ifrin can be around Declain for as long as he wants.

Besides, he...

"Professor, you don't have much time left, do you?"

Declein, who came to this place, was dying.

He may live in Lokralen for hundreds of years, but if he leaves this place...

- ... you will soon die.

Her voice was filled with sadness.

Declain, on the other hand, smiled brightly.

- Yes.

Ifrin gave him a displeased look, then sighed and hugged him tighter.

"...one year," Ifrin said. - I think a year will be enough for you to put forward a theory that I am implementing.

- ...

- Let's start without delay. Let's make the most of this year.

1 year.

Compared to 385 years, this is too short a period, but that is why these moments will become even happier and more precious.

Decline said:

- Yes, I think one year is enough for me. But are you sure?

- Of course. If I say 100 years, you will hate me.

Ifrin smiled broadly.

"I don't want to wait until the professor hates me."

- ...

She just wants to show a side of herself that Declain might like, and she wants to be a mage that Declain will praise.

"Instead, during that year...

Ifrin has self-respect, so she doesn't want to beg for someone's love.

"I just want you to give me at least a little attention.

Even if he doesn't love her like she loves him...

She wanted a man named Ifrin to leave an imprint on Declain's mind.

Not as a student, not as a sweet girl, but as a woman.

- Is it possible?

At Ifrin's question, Declain sighed and smiled.

- Yes. I will try.

Ifrin released Declain and crossed her arms over her chest.

Let's take a look at Locralene first. Let's take a little rest before starting the study.