The Lone SF Transmigrator in the Otherworld Forum

Chapter 65: Trade (3)

The flesh of the Great Sephiroth, and its supreme, sublime treasure.

The Mother's blessing that everyone, whether it were the 《Roots》, 《Trunks》, or 《Branches》 of  Sephiroth, desires and yearns for.

And that's not all.

The 《Fruit》 is what even the highest-ranking entities of Chaos covet.

A priceless treasure that was the best material, treasure, and elixir for all powers related to dimensions.

Of course, the blue flame there wasn't the real 《Fruit》.

To be precise, should it be called a degraded version? Or perhaps a counterfeit?

It was more like a failed product made by processing the crumbs of the 《Fruit》 as much as possible.

But it should definitely have some effect.

When thinking that way, the person who created that stele and blue flame was undoubtedly someone related to a Sephiroth member.

Considering they dared to attempt to imitate Mother's grace, they must have been a madman.

In any case, since she was about to benefit from it, she couldn't completely condemn it.

If I just have that...

Thirst rose. Even though it was just a counterfeit and a degraded version, in the current situation, it was more than she could ask for.

Then a thought occurred to her.

Perhaps...?

Yes. A way to not only recover her power but also advance to a higher realm!

Originally, she had planned to either open a Dimensional Door to return to the Sanctum or request help from a comrade.

The former would take time to recover her strength, while the latter would greatly damage her pride.

However.

Even if it was a counterfeit, a Fruit was still a Fruit.

What if I use that to open a new passage and fix it in as a connection to the Sanctum...?

She recalled the battlefield where 《Chaos》 corpses and silver Sacred Blood flowed like a sea.

Wars always came to an end eventually.

Even after the fierce battle ends, neither side would be able to linger for spoils due to the risk of escalation.

After all, if one side makes a move, the other side is bound to respond.

So, if the plan succeeds…

A sea of treasures.

An inexhaustible spring.

An elixir mine.

She would want for nothing. It would probably be more than enough to recover all the losses incurred from abandoning her physical body.

[Hehehe.]

"..."

To think they would leave such an incredible treasure just lying around.

This was why mortals were called stupid.

Inferior beings.

Foolish creatures who can't see what's in front of them even with eyes.

Even this girl, puffed up with temporary superiority, is no different.

[This is undoubtedly one of the Dimensional Spells written out in this world's method. I'm not sure about the latter part though.]

"Dimensional Spell?"

[Hmm... The term is all that comes to mind, but I'm not sure exactly what it is.]

"..."

Of course, for now, she should play along to some extent to gain trust.

There was just one thing she had to accomplish.

She just needed to encourage this girl to make contact with the Fruit.

That was the end of it.

After that, she could just turn the girl into a vegetable, steal her body, and use the Fruit's power to escape from this damned metal lump.

[Hoho. That part there can be interpreted ambiguously, so you should understand it differently.]

As if conscious of the woman's voice, the girl's movements changed slightly.

The woman inwardly smiled in victory.

Yes. That’s right. I just need to humor her until then.

I just need to endure until then.

Go ahead and be smug all you want.

The woman revealed a lot of information in the process of the girl interpreting and mastering the stele inscription.

In reality, the stele inscription was content that transformed Dimensional Spells into this world's form of martial arts, and there was no small margin of error.

In this part, she also had to pour her mental energy into interpreting and researching Dimensional Spells.

Is the goal to make it usable even by humans who are not part of the clan?

However, there were quite a few parts that were lacking, missing, or incorrect for that to be the case.

She tried to explain those parts in as much detail as possible while keeping pace with the girl.

As they say, sincerity moves the heavens, don’t they?

The girl spoke first.

"What you want is that, isn't it?"

[....]

"You've been particularly tight-lipped about the Sacred Flame."

The woman was startled by the girl pointing at the Sacred Flame.

She had definitely been a blockhead who had been focusing only on training without paying attention to her surroundings.

However, this changed things. This meant the girl had been observing her all this time as well.

Why did she deliberately say she had lost her memories?

It was because, right now, she was in a completely subordinate position. Therefore, to avoid being pushed too much on the defensive, she had pretended to have lost her memories, trying to gloss over things.

"Hmm."

[....]

"It shouldn't matter. It seems you've received permission too."

Huh? Permission? Who gave permission?

"Anyway, once I fully grasp the entire content of the stele, I'll do as you wish."

[!!]

"If I find even the slightest negligence in that regard, it will be as if nothing happened."

Yeah, that’s right. What does that matter?

I just need to get my hands on the Fruit.

In the woman's opinion, Virdel seemed like the type to absolutely keep her word once given.

Alright. I'll give it my all.

And so began the collaboration between the woman and the girl.

Perhaps because she was putting her heart into it for the sweet reward of the Fruit?

The results started coming faster than expected.

[!!]

"Haa..., haa."

The void rippled and a crack appeared.

It was only at the level of a subtle crack, but it had clearly left a mark on the Dimensional Wall.

[....]

Can this really be seen as just a matter of talent?

Of course, although she had helped as much as possible, she had only reinforced the theoretical aspects, and even she couldn't guarantee its effectiveness.

Seeing her accomplish it so demonstratively left the woman dumbfounded.

"I've got... the general idea."

[...You've got the general idea?]

"For now, this is like this..."

Virdel once again fell into a spiritual state of perfect selflessness

The woman was at a loss for words.

...Well, it doesn't matter. Whether it's bluster, lies, or delusion.

As long as the goal is achieved.

As a bit more time passed like that…

Whoosh-

[!!!]

A clearly visible crack.

[Th-This is a success! Of course, it's unimaginable to squeeze through here and go to another dimension, but it can be said to be a success in opening a door!]

"Is that so? It's certainly different from before. It seems last time was just a coincidence."

[This is impossible...!]

It was so clearly impossible.

And what did you say? Before? Coincidence? What on earth are you talking about?

The woman wanted to question her immediately out of surprise, but held back.

Right, it's going to be 'my' body anyway. It's not too late to find out then, right?

[Th-Then about the promise...?]

"..."

Fortunately, it seemed she hadn't forgotten the promise.

Yes. That’s right. A mortal body can't pass through a dimensional passage anyway. The entire soul would probably be torn apart and become lost between dimensions.

In other words, it was meaningless unless she provided additional help!

She had subtly dropped bait about that. Just in case she tried to break the promise at the end, so she could threaten her.

Even Chaos beings need to go through a special process to stay in Dimensional Passages.

There was no way a mortal could withstand the pressure of the passage.

However, fortunately, it seemed there was no need to resort to threats.

"Let us get ready, then."

[Fufufu. Alright.]

Now then. It's time to obtain a new body.

***

[A message has arrived from the Administrator.]

-That was some pretty delicious information, huh?

[A message has arrived from the Administrator.]

-I think I've got a rough outline. Good work.

[A message has arrived from the Administrator.]

-But that punk still hasn't completely let their guard down. It's full of superficial information. Of course, even this has been a great help.

[A message has arrived from the Administrator.]

-What? Haha. That's not it. You're already doing plenty well as you are now. I have separate expectations for you.

[A message has arrived from the Administrator.]

-Hmm. Rather, about that Sacred Flame, was it? I think it's better to just ignore that... There are minimal safeguards in 'Hydra', but... due to circumstances, it's even worse than regular suits when it comes to stuff in that field.

[A message has arrived from the Administrator.]

-Well. I don't want to recommend it, but your will is what's important.

[A message has arrived from the Administrator.]

-Right. Anyway, good work. If you need anything, just let me know anytime.

Virdel collected herself in front of the Sacred Flame Stand. It was hard to calm her mind when she recalled her conversation with him.

For now, the soul(?) residing in the armor was quite an easy-to-read fellow. Although she tried to gloss over things by saying she had lost her memories, how could her acting not be awkward?

Moreover, she showed a cautious attitude, trying not to bring up the topic as much as possible when talking about the Sacred Flame.

What could that mean?

Obviously, it meant it was something that would harm her. That was why she was trying so hard not to even mention it.

Thinking that way, the expected repertoire would be trying to steal her body, wouldn't it?

In truth, if she had been an ordinary Otherworlder, she wouldn't have been this suspicious.

However, the [Integrated Dimensional Community] was full of all sorts of people, and all kinds of stories were spread out like a sea.

How to put it… It was kinda within the range of reasonable expectations, wasn't it?

The Administrator expressed concern and said there was no need to do this, but…

I want to be of more help.

No, perhaps it was a desire to meet him as soon as possible?

At that moment, the woman's voice echoed in her head.

[What? You're not going to break your promise now, are you?!]

[If you're thinking of teasing me, stop it! It's not funny!]

Ha. Teasing? Funny?

As if.

She always did her best. Because saying she did her best to get just a little closer to him was not enough.

He was clearly showing interest in her.

But was that really the kind of interest she wanted?

No. She knew that clearly.

It was easy to understand if she thought about how she treated Namgung Jin, Vice Cult Leader Zhuge Hyun, and others.

It was just that kind of emotion. Like the fleeting interest one might have in a street dog passing by.

They could never be equals.

It was just one-sided interest.

And even that could be withdrawn at any time.

Was that kind of interest enough?

First, I need to prove my usefulness.

For that…

I should be able to take some risks.

No, rather wouldn't I need to risk my life to have even a slight chance?

I wonder what kind of world he lives in.

Virdel put aside her thoughts and slowly began to walk towards the Sacred /genesisforsaken