I flipped the Key of Dinsions in my hand, feeling the cold tal.
It was incredibly light compared to any other tal.
My fingers traced the grooves on the surface of the card as my heart pounded.
"A Rank 7 Relic..." I murmured.
Why did this thing appear before without any warning, and even bond with ?
Through that bond, I caught a glimpse of what the Key of Dinsions could do.
My thoughts raced as I tried to figure out a way to take it without being noticed.
I tried to put it into my Storage Ring, but it simply refused to enter.
I was so focused on the card that I didn’t even notice the sounds of battle had already stopped.
Nor the person who had appeared beside .
"What are you doing?" A soft voice slipped into my ear... a voice I recognized instantly.
I straightened unconsciously and tore my focus from the card, trying to hide it, but I didn’t know what to do.
I turned my head and found her standing there, indifferent as always.
Her white hair hung like silk strands, while her crimson eyes focused on .
Was this the reinforcents who had arrived?
Seeing that I didn’t answer, she glanced around, specifically at Lucas’s corpse on the ground, then at the card in my hand.
"Did you kill him?" she asked.
I nodded. "Yes, he was one of them."
She gave a small, accepting nod as if it were nothing, then looked at the card in my hand.
"And what is this thing doing in your hand?"
My mind raced to find the best answer.
"I found it with Lucas," I said.
Just bla the dead.
Her eyes stayed on the card for a few monts before she responded.
"Give it to now." She extended her hand, demanding the card.
I hesitated for a mont, but in the end, I handed her the Key of Dinsions.
Refusal wasn’t really an option.
But it didn’t matter—the bond it had ford with still existed... and I felt I could reach the card whenever I wanted.
Alicia stared at the black card in her hand for a few monts, then redirected her attention to .
She looked at with her crimson eyes before asking the question I had been waiting for.
"So... what happened here?"
I smiled at her.
"Well, it’s a long story... but I’ll make it brief."
No reaction appeared on her face, she just stared.
I wasn’t bothered and continued.
"A few hours after the journey began, the train was bathed in purple light, and we all fell into a deep sleep while dreaming beautiful dreams... Sohow, I found myself awake inside the dream."
I hoped she wouldn’t ask about that last part... Well, with her indifferent personality, I doubted she would care.
I went on.
"With the knowledge I got from so books, I realized we had fallen prey to the Demon of Dream... a Rank 5 monster, so I broke my dream and faced the Demon of Dream in a fierce battle, and in the end, I won, and everyone woke up."
I didn’t ntion that Elliot had participated in the battle too.
Well, I didn’t want to share the credit... but she would find out eventually.
I pointed to Lucas’s corpse on the ground.
"As soon as I woke, Professor Lucas, who was supposed to be in Car 2, was right in front of with a blood-stained sword, the guard was dead beside , and the other attackers were casually looting the Relics... At that mont, Professor Lucas pretended to be with us... but it didn’t take a genius to realize sothing was wrong."
"So I let him turn his back and killed him... I’m sure you’ll find enough evidence in his communicator."
There were caras on the train, but I didn’t think they were stupid enough to leave them running... maybe they even tampered with the previous records.
She looked at silently, listening to every word I said.
"And because I was completely drained of essence, along with the aftermath of the battle with the Demon of Dream, I couldn’t go and fight with the others... I would’ve just been a burden."
Well, even without essence, I was confident I could perform well... but what’s the point when I could leave everything to them?
Silence settled around us as I prayed internally that Alicia wouldn’t ask any questions.
I knew my story had gaps...
Especially the part about staying conscious inside the dream.
Since that day she interrogated , she had started showing a strange tolerance for my actions, so I hoped she would do the sa today and ignore those details.
And she did.
She nodded calmly, her strands of hair moving with her.
"Well done," she said.
She pulled out her communicator and began scrolling through it.
"What do we do now?" I asked.
I spoke without taking my eyes off her phone.
"Others will co to replace you, whether to return the Relics or complete the transfer."
She seed to finish what she was doing on her phone and looked at .
"As for you, you’ll return to the Axis."
"Go stay with your colleagues, I’ll transport you shortly."
With those words, she disappeared from my sight with the card in her hand.
I looked at the spot where she had been standing, then at the tattoo on my wrist.
"The bond is still there," I murmured.
I felt the card... not its location, but I was certain that if I wanted, I could summon it to appear before .
I placed my hand on my head, ruffling my hair with a sigh.
"More questions..."
...
I made my way outside, where the sea breeze hit .
The sun had fully risen over the endless ocean.
I looked around at the destruction from the battles others had fought, as they gathered near one of the train cars.
I saw dirt and wounds on their bodies, showing the fight hadn’t been easy.
I didn’t approach them directly, instead staying there, watching the beautiful blue waters.
Thinking about it, it had only been about 35 minutes since the attack, but it felt like more than a day.
I stayed there until Alicia returned with so people, probably the ones responsible for completing this transfer or wherever they were headed.
Seeing that, I headed toward my other colleagues.
As I approached, before anyone could react, I felt the world distort around .
It was ti to return.
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