'A Hidden Quest?'

Thoroughly bewildered, Yuto looked at the Status Window. It helped him assimilate the Void's power, but it had been a very long time since a quest had appeared like this.

What was more, the notification said he had already completed it. Was that because it was a Hidden Quest? Tilting his head, Yuto operated the Status Window.

[Hidden Quest.]

[Admission to Maria Academy achieved.]

'This counts as a quest?'

Puzzled, Yuto glanced at Elun. With the constellations' gaze so strong here, he was trying to be careful even about what he said and did, but Elun seemed unconcerned.

"There is no need to be quite so cautious. There are no humans contracted to constellations nearby, and constellations do not ordinarily watch a human's every move. Unless, of course, that person warrants observation."

Being close to a constellation's gaze meant receiving that much more power. Yuto had used the Void's power in front of Levian back in Belkain, but her contracted constellation would not have noticed his power at the time.

"Even if it had noticed, it would not matter. Levian Marigold's constellation is of high standing and friendly toward humans. At the very least, her constellation is not our enemy yet. Here and now, it is Shiro's gaze we must be most wary of."

Elun murmured the words, reading Yuto's mind. They had already discussed this matter. She pattered over and stood on tiptoe to look at his Status Window with him.

"The Void has given you an answer to your concerns. Consider it an honor."

"My concerns?"

"Your frustration over your growth."

Elun was reading his mind. Enrolling at the academy had been necessary, but although Yuto could raise his own level during his stay, the growth of his Void Skills would stagnate.

"Quests support your growth and test whether you can wield the Void's power. In your first quest, you escaped from underground and realized who you were."

Elun raised a finger and poked him in the chest.

"Next, you hatched me. I serve as your guide and adviser, and grant you more of the Void's divine authority."

"What about the Hidden Quest?"

"That was not a quest decided by the Void. Your accomplishment became a quest. You chose to enroll at Maria Academy, Yuto, and achieved it through your own planning. The Void judged that your admission here served 'our' purpose and brought us considerably closer to it."

With a proud smile, Elun placed a finger on the Status Window.

"This reward is proof."

As Elun herself had said, she was his guide and adviser. Yet even she could not answer all his questions, particularly those concerning the Void.

It was not that she would not answer, but that she could not. In the end, she was the Void's agent, not the Void itself. She could obtain only the knowledge it permitted and pass that on to Yuto.

[Hidden Quest completion reward.]

[Tower of the Void has been unlocked.]

Yuto immediately checked the Status Window. One of the entries in the skill list that had remained a question mark had changed to 'Tower of the Void.' Rather than ask about it right away, he crossed the garden and opened the door.

The residence had been cleaned neatly. Just as Levian had said, everything he needed for daily life was already in its proper place. Yuto first opened the wardrobe to check inside. He found five academy uniforms, along with athletic wear and other clothes.

'This brings back memories.'

Even if all those cherished memories were riddled with the lies of his time with Shiro, he could not help feeling a moment of longing. After looking at the uniforms for a while, he turned and went to sit on the sofa.

"What is the Tower of the Void?"

"A tower for your growth."

Elun sat opposite him, then closed her eyes and fell silent for a moment, taking in the information flowing into her mind from the Void.

"Not... solely for your growth, it seems. The Tower of the Void will help not only you but Flokiro grow as well."

"Me?"

Flokiro, who had hopped up beside Yuto, tilted his head, eyes wide.

"When Yuto gets stronger, so do I. He supplies me with aether."

"A foolish beast cannot comprehend the Void's great designs. That power is not enough, which is why the Void has extended its mercy to you as well."

Wearing a haughty, solemn expression quite at odds with her cute face, Elun continued.

"Here at Maria Academy, neither of you can use your full strength. You have your reasons, but even the sharpest blade will grow dull if left unused."

Elun raised a finger toward Yuto's Status Window.

"But there is no need to hold back in the Tower of the Void. Other constellations can neither interfere with that place nor observe it. It is a tower made for you two, not by the constellations, but by the Void alone."

"I'm grateful for that, but how do I use it? To be honest, I doubt I'll have the time."

Yuto frowned as he spoke.

"Students enrolled at the academy are generally required to follow its rules. We're constantly observed within the designated areas, and we need permission to leave the academic grounds for other areas."

"Yuto, you are every bit as foolish as that stupid beast. Do you think the Void would fail to consider that?"

In truth, Elun herself had known nothing about the Tower of the Void and was merely reciting the information the Void had given her. Nevertheless, she continued to mock the pair before her.

"The Tower of the Void does not exist in reality. It is a place you may enter when you fall asleep. Your physical body remains where it is while you dream a dream created by the Void."

"Much like that virtual space earlier."

"There is no divine authority the constellations wield that the Void cannot. Of course—the dream the Void has created will not be sweet."

Elun narrowed her eyes.

"There will be formidable trials that even you will struggle to endure. Otherwise, they would be of no value to you. You must train your skills in the Tower of the Void and endure the suffering for the sake of our purpose."

"I don't mind if the process isn't sweet. So long as the reward is."

"Heh heh..."

Elun folded her arms with a triumphant smile.

"Flowers that struggle to bloom are hardy and beautiful, and fruit that struggles to ripen is sweet. The Tower of the Void will surely be of great help to your growth and our purpose."

"Good."

Nodding, Yuto sank back into the sofa. The Void's dream could only be dreamed in sleep, and he meant to see for himself what form it took and how it would help him.

"Do I have to sleep too?"

"Stupid beast. Once Yuto falls asleep and enters the Tower of the Void, you will fall asleep on your own."

"Why... why do you keep calling me stupid? I'm not stupid!"

"The fact that being called stupid angers you suggests that you truly are. Look at Yuto. He does not react at all when I call him stupid."

"Yuto... that's because Yuto isn't stupid."

"And you are."

... He was trying to sleep, but Elun and Flokiro's bickering was getting on his nerves. Yuto opened one eye and silently looked at them. Elun pressed her lips shut. Flokiro looked aggrieved, then closed his mouth as well.

At last, it was quiet. Yuto closed his eyes again. The exhaustion he had experienced in the virtual world still lingered in his mind, so simply closing his eyes and steadying his breathing soon brought on drowsiness. He did not resist it and drifted off to sleep.

He opened his eyes within a dream.

He had fallen asleep sitting on the sofa in his residence's living room. Now he stood somewhere entirely different.

Remaining still, Yuto looked around. The ceiling, floor, and walls were all pitch-black. He was standing in a corridor that seemed carved out of darkness itself.

Starting with his fingers, Yuto tried moving his body. It felt no different from reality. He ran a hand over the nearby wall, finding it cold and hard. He could not tell whether it was stone or metal, but this sensation, too, felt exactly like reality.

[Tower of the Void, Floor 0.]

[Current time: 3:27 p.m.]

"It displays the time in reality."

He had fallen asleep around 3:20, which meant he had entered this place roughly seven minutes later. Soon, the time changed to 3:28.

"This time is synchronized with reality, I assume?"

"Of course."

Elun answered as she appeared out of the darkness. At Yuto's will, Flokiro was summoned as well. Startled, he looked around before letting out a heavy sigh.

"Now I can't even sneak snacks while you're asleep."

"I heard sweets sometimes went missing from the Marigold storehouse. So you were the culprit after all."

"I... I wasn't the only one eating them. Sometimes Elun told me to steal them."

"You stupid, damned lying beast. When did I ever tell you to do such a thing?"

Elun snapped indignantly, and Flokiro once again looked wronged. Her reaction was so vehement that Yuto almost wondered whether Flokiro really was lying.

"How do I leave?"

"Simply think of leaving."

"I'm glad this will help me grow, but I'm concerned about mental exhaustion."

Although Yuto possessed superhuman stamina and could keep increasing it through the Status Window's stats, that did not mean he never felt tired. He was human, after all, and sometimes needed a deep, dreamless sleep.

"There is no need to worry about that. As far as your body is concerned, your experiences here will remain something that happened before sleep. You should, however, beware of fatigue from the accumulation of memories. Avoid entering the Tower of the Void every day."

Having said that, Elun smiled mischievously.

"Also... be wary of injuries here. If your arm were severed in this place, you would be unable to use it in reality unless you healed it here."

"What happens if I die?"

"It will not lead to death in reality, but there will be penalties. You will be barred from entering the tower for several days, and your senses will be affected."

"Affected how?"

"Food might taste like garbage... or a passing breeze might cause pain as though your body were being torn apart. Penalties of that sort. Even after you reenter the tower, they will not disappear until you overcome whatever caused your death."

At that, Yuto smiled.

"I see. So the process won't be sweet at all."

Even so, he smiled. The harsher the trial, the more it stirred his desire to take on the challenge—and the harsher it was, the sweeter the reward would be.

"Shall we, then?"

Yuto strode forward. Flokiro followed with a tense expression, while Elun melted into the darkness and vanished.

One step, two steps, three.

Footsteps echoed down the corridor. Other than his own footfalls, there was not a sound. The silence was so complete that it only put him more on edge.

Four steps, five.

On the sixth step, something flashed in the wall to his left. Yuto moved before he could think, jerking his head to the right.

THWACK!

A pitch-black arrow skimmed past his left ear and buried itself in the opposite wall.

The arrow embedded in the wall dissolved like mist. Seeing it, Yuto smiled again.

"I see. It seems the trials aren't limited to fighting something."

The trial had begun with this very corridor.