Adil and I began exploring the Sanctuary in earnest. As he had said, it was so well maintained that I could hardly believe it had stood for tens of thousands of years. The interior was spotless, and judging by the quantity and condition of the emergency food and daily necessities, everything was ready for Elysium’s residents to use the place whenever they needed to.

But that wasn’t what mattered to me. I had come here to see the sacred relics kept in the Sanctuary—especially any connected to my power or capable of sending me back to Earth. I only thought there was a good chance of finding something like that here. I didn’t know where it might be, or even whether it existed.

After we had looked around for a while, I asked Adil, “Is there a place where the sacred relics are kept together?”

“Hmm... There is.”

According to him, the relics there were so valuable that outsiders were barred, and even citizens of Elysium couldn’t enter without permission.

“I’m not sure whether you’re allowed in, Minjun. Please give me a moment to check.”

Adil took a notebook from his bag that appeared to contain the rules for the place and flipped through it page by page.

I worried that I might not be allowed in, but Adil and the people of Elysium were right to be careful. After all, the person they were considering letting into the relic vault had already absorbed one of their relics. I hadn’t done it deliberately, of course, but they couldn’t help being concerned. There was no guarantee it wouldn’t happen again.

I was afraid I’d have to leave empty-handed, but fortunately Adil told me I could go in.

“However, you may not touch the relics or even approach them. Please keep that in mind.”

“Of course.”

“And situations may arise beyond what I’ve just explained where I’ll have to stop you. If they do, you must follow my instructions.”

I agreed to obey whatever rules applied inside, and Adil led me toward the area where the relics were displayed.

Speaking of which...

“The route’s a little complicated, isn’t it?”

We kept going up and down, and the passages twisted and turned.

“I understand it was designed that way on purpose. What’s stored there is important, so they made it difficult to reach.”

“The security was already tight just getting in here from outside.”

And we’d passed through several layers of security wards on the way. At this rate, a thief would give up from exhaustion before reaching the vault.

Adil nodded in agreement. “We have to minimize the risk of theft. As I understand it, security was tightened further after Bellium’s Tears went missing several hundred years ago.”

“Bellium’s Tears went missing several hundred years ago? You don’t mean...”

“Yes. The one you absorbed.”

I hadn’t done anything wrong, but hearing him say it made me feel guilty anyway.

In any case, only after following the maze-like route and passing through several elaborate magical defenses did I finally reach the place where the relics were kept. But I couldn’t go straight in.

“Please wait outside for a moment.”

Adil asked me to bear with him while he strengthened the wards, just in case something like yesterday’s incident happened again. About ten minutes passed.

“You may come in now.”

The moment I stepped into the relic chamber, the first things I noticed were the intricate magic circles surrounding each individual relic. After all the security we’d passed on the way here, even that hadn’t been enough?

“At this rate, even a dragon couldn’t steal anything.”

“I can’t speak for anything else, but this place’s security is probably among the five best on the entire continent.”

Enough admiring the security.

With Adil as my guide, I began examining the relics on display.

“You probably can’t see it well with the naked eye from here, but over there is one of the only two Bellium’s Tears left in the world.”

The relic was small, and between all the magic circles and the distance separating us from it, Adil handed me a telescope to look through. As I took it, I wondered if all this was really necessary. Still, when in Rome, do as the Romans do.

I looked at Bellium’s Tears through the telescope.

“I thought so when I saw one before, but it really is beautiful.”

I hadn’t been able to look properly during the battle. Now that I could take my time, it seemed far more beautiful than I remembered.

“And maybe it’s because of the legend you told me earlier, but... I feel strangely moved, too.”

What was more, though it might have been my imagination, the sensation I’d first felt before Bellium’s statue seemed a little stronger now. My heart pounded fiercely, yet I felt strangely at peace. I was a little worried I might accidentally absorb these Tears too, but thankfully nothing of the sort happened.

Starting with Bellium’s Tears, Adil explained each relic to me in detail.

“Now, as for the next relic...”

“This is a Dragon Bone Sword made by Lord Bellium himself...”

“This cup may not look like much, but...”

As I examined the relics and listened closely to his explanations, I checked every single one for any change in the sensation I felt before it. Unfortunately, I noticed none. Perhaps I’d have to go all the way down to the lowest level, where Bellium’s remains lay, before I found anything. Having achieved nothing yet made me impatient.

“We’ve seen about half of them now.”

“... Already?”

Maybe my lack of progress had made me anxious, because time seemed to have flown by.

“Yes. But Minjun, I’m a little tired. Would you mind if I got a drink and rested briefly before showing you the rest?”

“Sure.”

“I’m sorry. Anywhere else would be different, but this is a sensitive area... Could you please stay right where you are while I rest?”

Even my movements were restricted. Once again, I was struck by how thorough the security here was.

“Of course.”

After asking my understanding, Adil took a drink, sat down where he stood, and caught his breath. A superhuman like a hunter might have been fine, but an ordinary person would naturally be tired after walking this far and talking so much.

I decided to use the break to meditate. Usually I did it for training, but today I had a different purpose.

‘Let’s see if there’s somewhere I can sense even a faint trace of a different energy.’

I might have missed something. The pounding I’d felt since before entering made this far from an ideal place to meditate, but it was better than doing nothing.

“Since we’re stopping anyway, why don’t you rest a little longer? About twenty minutes?”

“Would that be all right?”

“Yes. There’s something I’d like to do, too.”

I settled into a familiar position and began to meditate. Both my surroundings and my condition were completely different from usual, so it didn’t go well at first. Fortunately, I soon found my focus. I concentrated harder than ever, trying to catch the faint energy emanating from the relics.

‘... What’s this?’

A different energy entered the range of my senses. I couldn’t define exactly what it was, but I was certain it was unlike the sensation I’d felt before. As I focused on it, it gradually grew stronger.

How could I describe it?

The more I concentrated, the more it spread through me like ink through water, until an entirely unfamiliar sensation filled my whole body. Longing and sadness, a racing heart, a sense of peace, a surge of strength, and yet...

... It wasn’t easy to put into words. It was more intense than what I’d first felt before Bellium’s statue. It was as though dozens, even hundreds of emotions and sensations had been compressed into one, and the impact stunned me.

Wanting to find out more, I hurriedly called to Adil, who was still resting.

“Adil, there’s somewhere I need to go.”

“Where...?”

“Honestly, I don’t know. I can sense some kind of energy coming from somewhere, but I can’t tell exactly where.”

I didn’t know the Sanctuary’s layout well, and even if I had, I couldn’t have identified the exact spot it was coming from. That might sound incomprehensible to anyone else, but it was the truth. Adil asked again, clearly unable to make sense of it, and all I could do was repeat what I’d said.

“I don’t understand. I really don’t, but...”

He hesitated, drawing out his words, then asked, “Just point to the direction you feel it coming from.”

“Over there.”

I didn’t know how far away it was or what was there, but I could tell the direction.

“I have no idea what’s going on... but let’s go.”

Adil got to his feet with a grunt.

I slowly set off, feeling for the energy I’d sensed while meditating. Sure enough, the closer I got, the stronger the sensation became. And at last, I reached a door that looked suspicious at a glance.

I didn’t know what lay beyond it, but the moment I stood before it, I felt as if that sensation had completely taken over my body. My legs suddenly gave way.

“Are you all right?”

“Ah... yes.”

Fortunately, Adil was beside me and caught me before I fell.

I stared blankly at the door in a daze for a moment, then came to my senses.

“I think this is it. The source of the energy I felt.”

“...”

Instead of answering, Adil gazed at the door with a troubled expression. Judging by his reaction, there was definitely something inside.

“Adil, what exactly is in there?”

“The truth is... I don’t really know either.”

“What?”

“No one knows what’s beyond this door. Not even me.”

His answer stunned me. How could that be? The Sanctuary had existed for at least tens of thousands of years and had been maintained and used throughout that time. There had to be a special reason no one knew what was behind the door.

“We’ve tried all kinds of magic to open it, but no one has managed to.”

“Couldn’t you at least use detection magic to see what’s inside?”

“We’ve tried everything we can. Nothing worked.”

Adil shook his head. “No magic has any effect on it. People have been trying to discover what’s inside for ages, but no one has succeeded.”

That only made me more curious. What on earth was hidden in there?

“Would it be all right if I tried to open it?”

Adil clasped his hands and nodded. “Please do. If you can open that door, you’ll make history, Minjun. I’m not exaggerating.”

Adil readily stepped aside. I grabbed the handle and gave it a hard pull, but the door didn’t budge. Of course. If it were that easy, someone would have opened it long ago.

What if I used the power in the Dragon Bone Sword? It was worth a try. I took the sword out of my pocket dimension. Adil looked a little startled to see me draw a sword when I’d said I was going to open the door.

“Are you... going to break it down?”

“No. I thought the power in this sword might help somehow. Did I mention it’s a Dragon Bone Sword?”

“I don’t know what you intend to do with it... but all right. To be honest, I don’t think it would matter if the door broke. We just need to find out what’s inside.”

If the door could be broken down, someone else would have done it long ago.

Holding the sword in one hand, I drew out as much of its power as I could and gripped the door handle again. That alone might not be enough, so I decided to try dragon speech, though the chances of success were slim.

After picturing what I wanted to happen, I directed dragon speech at the door.

[Open.]

I pulled with all my strength as I spoke, but the door still wouldn’t open. What on earth had Bellium hidden in there to make it so immovable?

I was just wondering whether I should take an artifact out of my pocket dimension when a brilliant radiance burst forth.