Chapter 74

Chapter 74, Visit

A floating sensation wrapped around my entire body, the same kind I had felt when first entering the Inner World.

Unlike back then, though, it wasn't nearly as intense.

At most, it felt similar to what you experienced when jumping lightly in place.

I let my body drift with the sensation and felt my consciousness gradually sinking.

My mind became hazy as though I were falling asleep, and my judgment and thoughts grew dull.

Even the world I could see was slowly darkening.

My consciousness sank deeper and deeper, almost as if I were truly falling asleep.

Then, the moment it reached some invisible threshold, everything suddenly cleared.

The faint stuffiness I had felt turned into freshness.

My fatigue transformed into energy, filling me with vitality.

I had never experienced anything like this before, so I couldn't think of a proper comparison.

If I had to describe it...

It felt like I had been trapped deep underwater, waiting to lose consciousness, only to suddenly be transported into another world.

Like I could finally breathe freely after being unable to breathe underwater, and instead of the exhaust-filled air I was used to, I could inhale the impossibly clean air of another world.

Even as I thought about it, I knew it was a ridiculous comparison.

But that really was what it felt like.

“...Yuhyeon, are you all right?”

I opened my eyes when I felt someone shaking me.

Apparently, I had closed them without realizing it.

I blinked and looked around.

Then an exclamation escaped me.

“It's incredibly beautiful.”

No matter where I looked, the scenery around me was breathtaking enough to draw admiration.

The enormous fluffy clouds filling the sky like rising bubbles were beautiful.

The pale blue sky visible between those clouds was just as beautiful.

Simply looking at the sky and clouds felt enough to cleanse my mind.

And the sky wasn't the only beautiful thing.

The land below was just as stunning.

Still, examining every beautiful detail one by one would take far too long, so I forced myself to turn away and look for Arlin.

She was right beside me.

Confirmation Bias was holding my hand while rapidly looking around.

Just like me, the two of them had been staring blankly at the natural scenery.

Soon, they came back to their senses.

“As expected, it deserves the name Utopia. The scenery is beautiful.”

“It really is. But we don't have much time. We can look around later, let's visit the exhibition first.”

A cool breeze blew past me as though trying to hold me back.

Its temperature and strength were both perfect.

There wasn't a single irritating thing inside False Utopia.

I almost wanted to stay here indefinitely and explore every corner.

But that desire quickly faded.

It wasn't because I exercised any particular self-control.

I simply already had somewhere even better.

No matter how beautiful the natural scenery here was, it would be difficult for it to surpass all the different landscapes available through the library inside the Inner World.

If I really like this place, I'll just ask Eriel to recreate it.

With that thought, I let go of my lingering desire and looked around.

“I think that's the exhibition.”

A building was faintly visible at the far edge of the horizon.

It was quite far away, yet we could still see it from here.

That meant it had to be enormous.

We made the building our destination and began walking.

Thanks to Arlin eagerly using magic because she wanted to see the exhibition as soon as possible, we arrived quickly.

Up close, the building that had been sitting on the horizon was far larger and more extravagant than I had imagined.

A banner that looked completely out of place hung across the old-fashioned building.

It celebrated the three-hundredth anniversary of the Mystery Protection Association.

“Looks like we came to the right place.”

“It does!”

Bias and I read the banner and relaxed after confirming that we had properly arrived.

Arlin openly showed her anticipation.

“This is exciting. I don't know which Mysteries the Mystery Protection Association decided to display, but with an exhibition of this scale, I suspect they'll have brought out several fairly valuable ones.”

“Do you think there might even be a 900-series Mystery?”

“I'm not certain, but probably not. There is always the risk of theft, so I doubt they would take such a risk unnecessarily.”

Something about her answer confused me, so I asked.

“Didn't you say that anything that happens inside False Utopia becomes as though it never happened once you leave?”

If that was the case, even if a Mystery were stolen, wouldn't the theft disappear once everyone left False Utopia?

Arlin nodded at my words, then firmly denied that conclusion.

“That is true, but Mysteries are the one exception. Even inside False Utopia, Mysteries retain physical reality. Everything else here may be a dream, but Mysteries themselves are not.”

“...Then isn't this exhibition dangerous? Anyone who understands the value of Mysteries would be tempted.”

“It should be fine. There's no way the Mystery Protection Association came here without proper security, and they also maintain friendly relations with several major factions.”

She said that anyone who tried to steal from the Mystery Protection Association during the exhibition would likely spend the rest of their life as a fugitive, hunted by major factions until they died.

That made sense.

There was no way the Mystery Protection Association would have overlooked such an obvious danger.

So it seemed I could simply enjoy the exhibition.

We opened the doors of the building in front of us and entered.

It had been quiet outside, but inside was fairly noisy.

People wearing matching uniforms, apparently security personnel, constantly moved around and thoroughly inspected everyone entering.

It didn't take long before one of them approached us.

A man dressed in a black suit stepped forward.

“Welcome to the exhibition. Before you enter the main exhibition hall, we need to conduct an inspection. Would you be willing to cooperate?”

He politely asked whether we would allow ourselves to be inspected.

When I asked what exactly the inspection involved, he explained that they were checking whether visitors met the entry requirements.

The qualifications had been...

Possess at least three Mysteries.

Or possess at least one bound Mystery.

Apparently, they had some kind of Mystery capable of detecting other people's Mysteries.

That was probably why he was being so polite when asking permission.

Mysteries were like food during an apocalypse.

They were something you had to hide thoroughly.

Even if the inspection only revealed the number and not the detailed information.

Arlin immediately nodded at his request.

After hesitating briefly, I agreed as well.

Only after Bias nodded too did the man take a pair of glasses from his pocket and put them on.

The glasses were probably a Mystery that allowed him to observe other people's Mysteries.

He looked at Arlin first, then me, then Bias.

His expression remained ordinary while examining Arlin.

But the moment he reached me, his eyes opened incredibly wide.

The shock on his face was impossible to miss.

Come to think of it, how many Mysteries am I carrying right now?

I had brought quite a lot with me, thinking it would be safer just in case.

Even with a rough count, I definitely had more than ten.

Judging from the groups I had encountered so far, that was an unusually large number for one person to possess.

The man in front of me clearly knew that too.

He couldn't hide his shock.

His mouth opened slightly, and a quiet mutter slipped out.

“Twenty-three...”

It was a very small voice.

He hadn't meant to communicate with anyone.

The thought had simply been dragged out of his mind by sheer shock.

Under normal circumstances, the surrounding noise would have swallowed such a quiet mutter.

Unfortunately, the situation wasn't normal.

Anyone who possessed at least three Mysteries was already far beyond an ordinary person.

They heard the man's accidental words and each reacted differently.

Arlin beside me frowned.

A group farther away, holding dark red books against their chests, began whispering among themselves while looking at me.

Even the people waiting behind us for inspection stared at me with wide eyes.

It wasn't a pleasant situation.

This was basically the same as information spreading through an apocalypse camp that I possessed ten years' worth of food.

The people around me already had food of their own, but naturally, they would still want more.

Once they saw the absurd amount of supplies I had, greed would inevitably grow.

If they kept that greed inside their hearts, there wouldn't be a problem.

But most people wouldn't.

Some would definitely try to attack me for the food.

If we could remain inside False Utopia forever, that would be fine.

But we couldn't.

Eventually, all of us would return to reality.

And some of these people would remember me.

They would remember me as something like a treasure vault filled with an enormous number of Mysteries.

If they ever happened to encounter me in reality, the thought of attacking me would probably grow immediately.

Arlin understood that, which was why she was frowning.

And the man in front of us had only just realized that he had accidentally spoken the number twenty-three aloud.

Cold sweat began running down his face.

I silently stared at him.

He sweated heavily and repeatedly apologized.

But I was now facing the possibility of actual physical danger.

There was no way a few words of apology could settle it.

After apologizing several times, he asked us to wait for a moment and left somewhere.

Because of that, the people waiting behind us for inspection had to wait longer.

Yet not a single one of them complained.

Perhaps they were afraid of me.

In a world where Mysteries were practically a measure of power, I possessed twenty-three of them by myself.

I stood silently and waited for the man to return.

The noise gradually died away.

Silence descended.

The atmosphere grew colder and colder.

A little while later, the man finally returned.

And he brought compensation so generous that the irritation slowly building inside me disappeared instantly.