Just how much time has passed with me in this state…?
The transfer of Chaos Mana to the new Mana Core took… so much longer than I imagined.
It feels as though I'm drifting in a calm, still ocean—aware of everything within, but utterly blind to everything outside...
It might seem like ages have passed here, but I'm sure it wasn't that long in the real world...
Twenty years.
That's how long it took to transfer Chaos Mana into the new Mana Core.
Well… maybe all isn't quite the right word. Describing what's been transferred as "everything" compared to what this chaos still holds is laughable...
Infinite mana. That's what Chaos Mana truly is.
And from what the Black Wish revealed… I likely still can't pierce through the massive wall that is known as "Half Virtue."
It seems the time just hasn't come yet.
…Hah.
I suddenly feel an immense weight pressing on me...
As though the responsibility for all living things now lies on my shoulders.
I still don't fully understand my wish… but I do feel the enormity of it.
Alright… time to leave.
---
The moment I thought of leaving, I found myself already standing in my master's room.
I don't know how long it's been, but I finally emerged from that Dragon's Nest.
Strangely… my master didn't teleport to me this time, despite surely sensing my presence.
So, I stepped outside, letting instinct guide me… until I arrived at the grand courtyard of this colossal palace.
The first thing my eyes noticed was the golden light of a setting sun…
And the first thing my skin felt was a gentle breeze laced with a sharp, chilling bite.
As I stood there lost in the moment, one of the dragon sentries spotted me.
"Ah! Young master!"
Seems he already knows who I am.
"Where is my master?"
"I'll summon him at once, your grace!"
He must've done a lot of talking while I was gone.
And sure enough, just seconds later, my master appeared in the courtyard.
Oddly… he hadn't changed one bit.
"You little brat. So you've finally decided to return?"
"How long was I gone?"
"…Five years."
I was right. Even if time flows faster inside the nest, it looks like the Black Wish altered the temporal ratio...
So time there flowed at five times the speed of here.
But...
What's with that look on his face?
"How long did you spend in the nest?"
"About twenty-five years."
"…Sigh. That explains that strange calm about you. It seems you've truly gained something…"
"A lot, actually."
He turned and walked toward the outer garden—the same garden where he always liked to sit.
His curiosity was obvious.
So I followed him, and we talked along the way.
"So? How far have you come?"
"Far enough to make me completely untouchable."
"Even by me?"
"Without a doubt."
He turned to glare at me in disbelief. Honestly, I don't blame him.
Hearing your student say he's surpassed you… it's bound to sting someone like him.
"You don't believe me? Come. Follow me."
I flew off toward the outer garden, stopping at a barren area near the largest mountain—about a hundred miles off.
"I can use Mana without restraint now…"
I raised a finger toward the mountain, gathering a dense sphere of Chaos Mana at the tip.
A violet, crushing energy began swirling there, growing heavier with every breath…
Until it compacted into a tiny sphere.
"I may not have become a Virtue yet—but I do know this one truth…"
I fired.
The sphere flew at the speed of light—no eyes could possibly track it, no matter how focused.
It vanished from view, followed by a deafening crack… as the mountain quaked, then crumbled into dust.
"…I am unbeatable in this world~"
My master stood stunned, eyes locked on the ruins of what once was a mountain.
But before he could even speak—
"Wh-what is that—"
—an earth-shattering explosion echoed outside this world…
Half of this world's first moon vanished. Just. Like. That.
---
Once my master composed himself, we returned to the back garden.
This time, I made the tea.
"…My god. How could something like this exist?"
"No need to be that shocked. That was just a fraction of what I can do now…"
"I know! I know… I could pull it off too—but it would take everything I had…"
"So you're the one who destroyed the third moon, huh?"
"This world only has two moons. I'm not stupid enough to destroy one of its foundations just to amuse myself."
...Well.
Let's just hope this moon incident doesn't mess up the world either.
"Have you ever been to the world of Opera?"
"The one made of glass? Yeah, I have. It was incredibly fragile, though."
"It's not glass—its buildings are covered in glass. Anyway, the concept they had for 'Dark Energy' in that world is actually Chaos Mana."
My master was stunned beyond the ability to be stunned any further.
We talked on until the sun fully vanished behind the horizon.
---
"By the way… where are my disciples?"
"Sigh… I must say, you really raised monsters between your fingers.
Although… there's no monster like you."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"See for yourself."
He led me to the grand banquet hall of his massive palace…
I wonder what his 48th wife will say when she finds out he's been hiding this place from her.
"Call those two girls."
"At once, my lord!"
As the guard left, I heard the sound of bare feet running with everything they had…
A voice I hadn't heard in so long…
"Master!!!"
They said it in unison as they saw me from afar.
Has time passed that quickly…?
Or is it just me who feels it move slowly?
"Stop!"
I shouted as they rushed toward me to embrace me—
They froze in place with wide-eyed fear.
"M-Master? Wh-what's wrong??"
Maria's voice—trembling and afraid—something I hadn't heard in what felt like a lifetime.
Kajsa's once-childlike face… now completely changed.
But…
"You old man… are you messing with me?"
"Heh… I must admit, humans do grow fast."
Their tiny bodies had become those of young women in full bloom…
I knew I'd been gone a while—but did humans really age this quickly?
…Not that I have the right to say anything.
"What are you afraid of? Have you forgotten your master's face that quickly?"
Their faces lit up with joy, their fear melting away…
They slowly stepped toward me, amazed I hadn't aged a single day.
They were nearly as tall as me now…
I lifted my arms and said, "I'm back~"
And they threw themselves into my embrace, crying from the depths of their hearts.
The longing they'd held for five years...
Which, to me—had been twenty-five.
---
…Wait.
Does that mean I'm in my forties now??