Academy's Second Seat [part 2 Complete]

Chapter 274: Saint Haruna 2 (7)

After letting Aryandor get away, I returned to where Haruna was.

As soon as Haruna saw me, she ran towards me.

"What happened? What about Chancellor Ophillius...?"

"The Chancellor wasn't there. I have no clue what happened."

"He wasn't there?"

"Yes, only Aryandor was there."

If Ophillius had been killed by Aryandor, there would have been some trace of it.

Either his body or signs of a struggle.

But there was nothing there.

Not even a trace of Ophillius's blood existed.

It was also impossible to know what had happened there.

Time magic had been used so extensively that it was hard to tell how it was used.

"Was there... anything else strange?"

"He said something odd."

I explained to Haruna what had happened.

About the method to return to our original world and that Aryandor had suggested it.

Haruna listened closely to the story, then sat down.

"Could you wait a moment, please?"

"What is it?"

Haruna didn't answer my question and closed her eyes.

Then, an unknown power began to emanate from her body.

I could instinctively recognize the energy.

"...Dimensional magic?"

After a while, Haruna stood up.

"What did you do?"

"I looked into what happened."

"Is that even possible?"

"Not completely, but to some extent, yes."

"So, what happened? What about Chancellor Ophillius?"

Haruna hesitated before speaking.

"I don't know if it's good news... or if it's regrettable..."

"Hm?"

"Chancellor Ophillius is not dead."

"He's not dead?"

"But, he's in a state as good as dead."

What does that mean?

As I looked puzzled, Haruna stood up.

"There exist gaps in the world. In time, in space, in dimensions. There are gaps."

"Gaps?"

"Our world seems interconnected, but it's actually not. We only see and live in the connected parts."

"So, what does that have to do with anything?"

"Chancellor Ophillius has headed towards that gap."

"So..."

"He might be alive, but in a state that's not truly living. As I just said, we can only live in a continuous world. Entering such a disconnected place would render him in a state of being both existent and non-existent."

Being existent and non-existent.

It was a contradictory statement, but I understood what it meant.

"Did he make that choice not to pass his power to Aryandor?"