Chapter 130
“Dimensional travel….”
“…A dimension?”
Bell and Rose asked at the same time.
Astrion watched their reaction, then began to explain.
“I am far older than you can imagine. Because of that, I have observed the history of humanity from near its beginning until now.”
His voice, calm and low, matched the way he gently held his teacup.
To anyone unaware, he would seem like nothing more than an ordinary boy.
“Human development has been… astonishing. At first, they knew only how to offer prayers to the gods. Then they learned to control fire, forge weapons, study the principles of the world through magic, establish kingdoms… and eventually build structures that seemed to pierce the sky.”
The sudden shift in topic made both of them fall silent.
“You were unlike us. While we advanced one step every thousand years, your kind spread like the roots of a tree—branching endlessly in all directions.”
What Astrion had witnessed was humanity’s potential.
While demonic knowledge grew in a linear fashion, human knowledge expanded exponentially.
“Especially in recent months… even I have never seen such rapid change. You learned to sense demonic energy, then to manipulate it, and now even to wield lightning.”
“….”
“You are a race that has compressed our long ages into mere months. The clue we failed to find… you may uncover.”
He looked at them again.
And repeated his question.
“If human potential is combined with demonic power and knowledge… can you find their dimension?”
A brief silence followed.
Then Bell spoke first.
“I don’t know.”
He narrowed his eyes in thought.
Even if demons appeared human-like, their perspective was entirely different.
They could traverse dimensions instinctively.
To them, dimensional travel was natural.
But for humans—
“Humans cannot advance through knowledge alone.”
That was the real problem.
Knowledge alone was never enough.
It had to be applied, spread, taught, and integrated into society.
That required time.
Generations.
Infrastructure.
“To reach dimensional travel… isn’t that too far ahead?”
Even if extraordinary knowledge fell from the sky, it would mean nothing without the foundation to use it.
“Though the attempt itself is not bad.”
For a moment, Bell felt a strange sense of kinship with Astrion.
A being who had lived long, carrying the burden of an entire world alone.
He too had tried countless times across countless lifetimes.
And yet—
“The possibility seems low.”
After Bell finished speaking—
Rose blinked in disbelief.
Is he insane…?
He had just… evaluated Astrion?
Has he lost his mind?
She swallowed nervously.
Astrion’s brows had slightly furrowed.
Before things escalated, she quickly spoke.
“His words are mistaken.”
“….”
“He simply does not understand the greatness of demonic power.”
Rose steadied herself.
“To begin with, that one is not particularly talented. He has merely failed to grasp your profound intentions.”
Astrion turned his gaze to her.
“Then… are you saying you are superior?”
Rose answered immediately.
“At the very least… I am not as incompetent as he is.”
Her heart pounded violently—
but she maintained her confident smile.
This was nothing new.
She had always walked this path.
“I will do my utmost.”
Both boys’ eyes sharpened slightly.
“If you would watch over me… I will meet your expectations.”
Time passed.
After the dreamlike encounter in the demon realm, Rose returned to her daily life in the Empire.
The blue dimensional gate vanished without a trace.
She collapsed onto her bed.
“…So tiring.”
From the next day onward, her routine resumed.
Morning: academy lectures.
Afternoon: secret research as “Lilis.”
“Student staring out the window.”
“Pay attention.”
The professor’s voice interrupted her thoughts.
What’s so important about this…?
Even as she sat in herbal studies class, her mind drifted.
Back to the demon realm.
“Dimensional travel? Haha!”
“What do humans know?”
“Demons cross dimensions as easily as breathing!”
The annoying voice of the dark elf echoed in her head.
Productivity…
She began thinking seriously.
Bell wasn’t entirely wrong.
Human innovation had accelerated recently—
but the infrastructure wasn’t there yet.
Then… what’s the most efficient way?
A thought surfaced.
Using monsters…?
She remembered her past success.
Using intelligent demons like Draigo.
Extracting pure demonic energy.
Driving researchers relentlessly.
Could I replicate that in the demon realm?
“Are you stupid?”
The dark elf’s voice returned.
“Monsters won’t listen to humans!”
“Demons only obey those stronger than them!”
Rose turned her head.
The skeleton soldiers.
Still—
after three days—
doing the same thing.
Sharpening blades that had become thinner than needles.
Useless…
Annoyance surged.
“They can’t even follow basic logic…”
She sighed.
Then forced herself to focus on class.
Electromagic.
A rapidly developing field.
“…?”
Her eyes stopped.
On the textbook.
A complex magic circuit.
Interwoven lines.
Flow paths.
“…?”
She couldn’t look away.
The structure…
It resembled something she had seen before.
The waterways of the demon castle.
A vast system carrying immense power—
yet used inefficiently.
“…This is…”
At that moment—
The inefficient image of the demon realm overlapped with the precise structure of the magic circuit.
And suddenly—
Her eyes lit up.
