Chapter 59 - Towards Nexus With Peace…?
Yesterday was completely unproductive.
I was so exhausted after everything Ysvéra put me through that I could barely move for the rest of the day.
Sometimes I simply forgot that, compared to her, I was still just an ordinary human.
She was a Vampire of an unknown age, possessed an absurd physique, and had abilities that could casually overwhelm groups of people.
I really needed to stop underestimating the difference between us.
’But fuck... why am I still mentally exhausted?’
After getting a proper night’s sleep, shouldn’t I feel refreshed?
That was supposed to be how sleep worked.
Yet these days, I rarely woke up feeling truly refreshed.
Even after sleeping for hours, there was always a strange sense of fatigue lingering somewhere in the back of my mind.
’Could this somehow be related to my Aspect?’
I glanced toward Ysvéra, who was still asleep beside me.
She was clinging to me as though I were a particularly comfortable pillow.
I had no idea what she dreamed about, but she occasionally mumbled in her sleep.
"Not a bad bat..."
I stared at her.
’What does that even mean?’
I had considered visiting a doctor, or perhaps finding a Hero specializing in mental abilities, but I still had Ysvéra beside me.
If there was something wrong with my mind, she would probably notice it.
At least, I hoped she would.
For now, the diagnosis could wait.
Eventually, enough time passed for the exhaustion to fade, and Ysvéra woke up as well.
While I freshened up for the day, she also did something
"Alright, it’s done!" she announced.
She pointed toward the center of the room.
A complicated red magic circle had been drawn across the floor, its numerous symbols glowing faintly.
"Sit in the middle."
I looked at the circle.
Then at Ysvéra.
Then back at the circle.
"...This will really help me train, right?"
I asked for confirmation, just to be safe.
Ysvéra gave me a peculiar look.
It was the sort of look that silently asked: Do you not trust me?
It wasn’t that I didn’t trust her.
Just... that I simply believed getting a confirmation was generally considered wise.
"Haa!"
Ysvéra sighed with obvious disapproval.
I blinked.
’Am I really that easy to read?’
"Fine."
I sat down cross-legged in the center of the magic circle and closed my eyes.
"Let’s begin."
The moment I settled down, the red circle flashed.
For an instant, the entire room disappeared.
Then, my consciousness was somewhere else.
I opened my eyes.
A vast white space stretched endlessly in every direction.
There was no ground, no sky, and no horizon.
Just an infinite white space.
A moment later, Ysvéra appeared beside me.
"Since I’m controlling the spell, let’s start with monsters I’m familiar with," she said.
She raised one hand.
The white space immediately distorted.
Something enormous emerged from the distance.
It had four arms, a muscular body, and a completely faceless head.
"That’s a monster you’re familiar with?"
"What are you doing, Husband...? Take this."
Ysvéra smiled before tossing something toward me.
It was a sword.
I looked down at the weapon before tightening my grip around it.
"I’ve adjusted the monster according to your current abilities, so you won’t be fighting something completely beyond your level."
She pointed toward the creature.
"You can use this opportunity to practice your swordsmanship, your Aspect, and that martial art you learned."
Then she took a few steps backward.
"I will be watching."
She smiled brightly.
"And I will cheer for you too."
Before I could say anything, her figure disappeared from this place.
"..."
I looked at the empty space where she had been.
Then I looked at the monster.
The creature slowly raised all four arms.
A strange tension filled the white void.
I tightened my grip around the sword.
The creature suddenly bent its legs.
Its entire body tensed.
KEUUUYYAAA!
A horrifying screech echoed through the white space as the four-armed monster lunged toward me.
My eyes narrowed.
I lowered my stance and raised my sword.
And just like that.
My training arc began.
***
Some Days Later...
After going through the airport security checks, I finally boarded my plane.
Fortunately, this time I had managed to get a window seat.
I settled into my seat and glanced outside at the airport.
Ysvéra was with me as well.
Technically, she was inside me.
Her body had seamlessly merged into my blood, allowing her to remain hidden without attracting any attention.
It was probably one of the strangest abilities I had ever encountered, but considering the trouble a Vampire Royal could cause if discovered on an international flight, I wasn’t about to complain.
As the plane prepared for takeoff, a thought suddenly crossed my mind.
During Ishikana’s trial, I had asked Ysvéra what had happened on her side.
She had mentioned that she and Ishikana’s other fragment had spent most of their time arguing.
Apparently, the inheritance had also been restricted in some way, making it impossible for outsiders who weren’t native to that planet to properly access certain parts of it.
At the time, I hadn’t thought much about it.
Now, however, it made me wonder just how many rules existed in this world that I still didn’t know about.
I leaned back against my seat.
My destination was the World Bastion.
More specifically: The Nexus Academy.
I was heading there to take the entrance examination.
After everything I had done during the past few weeks, I was cautiously confident that I could at least pass.
I wasn’t arrogant enough to believe I was the strongest candidate.
Far from it.
But I had trained.
I had improved my Aspect.
I had learned the foundation of a completely new martial art.
I had fought monsters.
I had gained actual combat experience.
And most importantly, I had prepared myself with a cheat.
The Nexus Academy wasn’t an ordinary school.
It was practically a den of monsters.
The greatest young talents from all over the world gathered there.
Heroes. Mages. Martial artists. Knights. People with bizarre abilities.
People with ancient bloodlines.
People carrying inheritances that could change their entire future.
And probably, protagonists.
’Will I actually meet a player?’
The thought had been bothering me for a while.
The world I was living in can also be called a game.
At least, that was how my alternate self had understood it.
If players truly existed somewhere beyond this world, there was a possibility that I might encounter one at Nexus.
The problem was, how would I recognize them?
I certainly couldn’t walk up to someone and ask, "Hey, are you a player from another world?"
That would probably get me labeled as a weirdo, or worse, killed by the player.
There was only one reliable clue I could think of.
Their growth rate.
If someone suddenly appeared with mediocre abilities and then began growing at an absurd pace, constantly acquiring rare opportunities and surpassing people who had trained their entire lives.
That would certainly raise some questions.
But even then, I couldn’t be certain.
This world was already filled with ridiculous geniuses.
There would undoubtedly be protagonists, antagonists, villains, anti-villains, future legends, hidden monsters, and people who simply had their own ambitions.
Everyone would have their own story.
And now, I was going to walk among them.
A place where countless stories intersected.
A place where fate, opportunity, ambition, and sheer absurdity gathered together.
The hottest location in the world of GREAT NEXUS.
The setting where countless major events would eventually unfold.
And yet, my alternate self had never managed to finish the game.
I had only vague clues.
And a mountain of unreliable information.
"Haa..."
I slowly exhaled.
There was no point overthinking it now.
I had already come this far.
I looked through the window as the clouds stretched endlessly beneath the plane.
Nexus, here I come!
The plane continued climbing.
Everything seemed peaceful.
For approximately three seconds.
BANG!
The entire aircraft violently shook.
Several passengers screamed as the cabin lights flickered.
A warning alarm immediately erupted overhead.
I grabbed the armrest and stared toward the front of the plane.
A flight attendant stumbled into view, her face pale with terror.
"THIS PLANE HAS BEEN HIJACKED!"
Well... Fuck!