Thud!
Elsez struck the cyclops’ leg with her fist, causing it to collapse.
Enraged, the cyclops swung its fist to catch Elsez, but its slow speed due to its massive size made it impossible.
As the cyclops struggled to stand, Elsez summoned a massive magic circle beneath it.
Just as the cyclops was about to rise, she activated the magic.
A dark magical explosion erupted from beneath the cyclops’ feet, attacking it.
“Roooaaar!”
Watching Elsez skillfully combine physical and magical attacks, Reti marveled,
“Oh, human. You’re quite good at magic for a first-timer.”
“Of course. Even though I wasn’t a damage dealer, I was proficient in magic.”
That’s why experience matters.
Elsez shrugged.
The one-eyed cyclops, ensnared by the magic, thrashed in pain, destroying the outer walls of the abandoned palace.
Elsez watched the cyclops, panting heavily.
“It just won’t die…”
The cyclops was a physical attack-type beast.
While its size made its attacks powerful, it also made it slow.
As long as she didn’t get caught in its rhythm, she could take it down with time, though it wouldn’t be easy.
However, its size also meant high defense and health.
As Elsez prepared to cast the next spell before the cyclops could stand, a question suddenly popped into her mind.
‘But isn’t the imperial palace supposed to have a magic-blocking barrier?’
Because of that, magic couldn’t be used within the palace.
‘Is this building too far out to be affected?’
While Elsez pondered this, the cyclops, freed from the previous spell, charged at her.
Elsez quickly tried to activate the magic circle, but the glowing black magic circle flickered and died without casting the spell.
‘Huh?’
Checking her bracelet, she found that the mana potion, which had been at a minimal level from the start, was empty.
“Roooaaar!”
Startled, Elsez barely dodged the cyclops’ fist as it smashed down.
Crash!
The ground where Elsez had been standing moments ago crumbled and collapsed.
Seeing this, Reti gasped, “Hiiik! You said you were a mage! Don’t you manage your mana potions?”
“Well, I haven’t used magic in a while, so I forgot!”
Elsez dodged the rampaging cyclops’ fists and slid between its legs to get behind it.
Then, she kicked its back, sending it crashing forward.
“Urgh!”
Elsez climbed onto the fallen cyclops’ back and struck its heart area repeatedly.
Finally, the struggling cyclops stopped moving.
“Hah…”
Elsez stared blankly at the cyclops’ body disintegrating before her, then looked up.
Beyond the cyclops, she saw the dimensional rift slowly closing.
“Reti, you can feel the energy of the original world from this rift, right?”
“Yes. I came back to this world through this rift.”
Now she understood why she had come to this world when the dimensional rift began to appear.
Someone had opened this rift to resurrect the demon lord, and during that time, she had died and Reti had crossed over to this world through the rift.
‘So, the one who tried to resurrect the demon lord knew that Reti hadn’t died but had returned to the original world with me?’
Elsez briefly considered this but then dismissed the thought.
‘That doesn’t matter right now.’
What mattered was that this rift in front of her could send her back.
“If I go through this rift, can I return to the original world?”
“Since the energy of the world you lived in can be felt from this rift, probably. But there are many other dimensions connected to this rift.”
“So, I could end up in a completely different dimension?”
“Yes. We were lucky to end up in this world, but there’s no guarantee we’ll return the same way.”
Elsez gazed at the shrinking dimensional rift.
When she was Ruel, she had thought of it as a door from which monsters emerged, never imagining it could be a pathway to other dimensions.
Reti asked Elsez, who was deep in thought, “Are you going back?”
“…I don’t know.”
When she first returned to this world, she desperately wanted to go back to her original world.
Even now, she still wanted to return.
She wanted to leave behind the fate of the demon lord and world conquest in this world.
As Elsez pondered, Reti chirped, “Don’t worry. No matter where you go, I’ll be by your side. Because we’re friends!”
Elsez chuckled at that.
“Even if I get trapped in there and become a dimensional castaway, at least I won’t be lonely.”
Elsez pondered, fiddling with the brooch that held Reti.
‘Considering the chance of becoming a dimensional castaway, do I have a reason to return?’
There was no one waiting for her in the real world anymore.
She had friends, but none with whom she had formed deep relationships.
Having moved schools every year since childhood, she never formed lasting bonds, expecting everyone to leave eventually.
‘There are people who hope I never return.’
Thinking of her uncle’s family and cousin, her blood ran cold.
‘But if I go back, I can take the police exam.’
After returning to this world, she remembered her long-forgotten dream.
Ever since she was young, she had always wanted to become a police officer.
She wanted to catch criminals and help the weak, making the world a better place.
Her father had disapproved, saying it was too dangerous for a girl, but her grandmother had supported her, despite her worries.
However, her grandmother passed away without seeing her become a police officer.
‘If I return, I can visit her grave as a police officer.’
That was her only lingering regret in the real world.
‘Should I go back?’
Staying here and becoming the demon lord seemed worse than dying at the hands of her trusted comrades.
‘If I’m going to return, I need to hurry. If the palace knights hear the commotion and return, things will get complicated.’
Just as Elsez made up her mind and stepped towards the shrinking dimensional rift, a voice echoed in her mind.
‘…Don’t go. Stay by my side.’
The voice of a young Rashiel held her back.
Simultaneously, she remembered her grandmother’s words.
‘Catch the bad guys who disturb the world, and be a strength to those who need your help.’
Elsez paused mid-step.
She couldn’t move forward.
“Human?”
Reti called out to her softly, puzzled.
A chilling night breeze rustled Elsez’s hair, disheveled from the battle.
Elsez closed her eyes, recalling a face now faded like an old photograph.
‘…Grandma.’
There’s a friend here who needs my help.
That friend might be a criminal, and I might have to arrest them myself…
But because of that, I need to stay.
‘I think I need to stay here for now.’
Having made up her mind, Elsez opened her eyes.
The dimensional rift, once as large as the abandoned palace, had shrunk to her height.
As Elsez watched, someone suddenly grabbed her wrist from behind. The hand was cold.
At the same time, a voice similar to the young Rashiel’s echoed.
“Don’t go.”
Startled, Elsez turned around and saw a man wearing a white mask.
In his blood-red eyes and desperate grip, she sensed an urgent emotion.
“If you go in there, you might become a dimensional castaway.”
Elsez stared blankly at him.
‘This man is…’
Perhaps because she had just been thinking about Rashiel, the man’s voice sounded just like his.
‘If you really are Rashiel, you shouldn’t be here.’
If he were uninvolved, he wouldn’t know about the events here.
Elsez gazed at him, her eyes wavering. Then, she reached for his mask.
Wearing a mask meant his face was a weakness he couldn’t reveal.
Yet, she felt certain he wouldn’t attack her. Sadly.
The man hesitated as Elsez’s hand approached his mask.
He could have easily dodged or fled, but he didn’t. Instead, he slightly lowered his gaze, submitting to her touch, yet never breaking eye contact.
Just as Elsez was about to grab his mask, she sensed a presence approaching rapidly.
It was moving so fast it was more accurate to say it was flying.
In the same instant, a sword flew towards the masked man.
He barely managed to create a magical barrier and pulled Elsez behind him for protection.
Clang―!
The blade clashed against the magical barrier, producing a sharp, piercing sound.
The man’s magic held against the attack, but it was a swift and powerful strike, challenging even for him.
The attacker was Tezette.
“Take your hands off my fiancée.”
His usually unreadable green eyes were filled with intense, murderous intent.
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