Reset Life – Chapter 249

Chapter 249: Aira: Home, Sweet Home (2)

Even if I switched to a career perfectly suited for starving to death, it wouldn’t be a problem since I’ve saved up a lot of assets.

Mom, like Dad, spoke with a worried expression to me, who had suddenly started my research.

“Are you alright? Your dad might be so engrossed because he’s a bit of a lone wolf. The academic presentation date is approaching, so he might be feeling anxious.”

“I don’t think so. Of course, Dad is a much more amazing person than me, so he might have anticipated something I couldn’t and stopped his research beforehand. But I’m not convinced. Above all, his behavior is strange, isn’t it?”

“That’s also true, but……”

Mom nodded with a dubious expression. Thinking about how she, who was once a great swordswoman, is now a housewife preoccupied with worries about her husband and children, makes me feel the fleeting nature of time.

I smiled brightly. I wanted to reassure her by showing her my smile, which she loves.

“Don’t worry. I’ll stop if I’m convinced. Who knows? Maybe tomorrow or the day after, Dad will come in with an awkward expression, hug your slender waist, and say, ‘I’m sorry, honey!’”

“Aila, you’re saying things you shouldn’t. You should also be preparing to get married.”

“Tsk. I need to find a suitable person first. Honestly, I don’t feel like the noble sons are worth dealing with. Even the princes are all such fools. At the very least, I’ll meet a man I can respect and admire. With the premise that the man should also respect and admire me.”

“Sigh, you might end up getting married late like me.”

“Huh? It’s troublesome if you, who has a satisfied expression even after 27 years of marriage, say that, when you’re one of the few in the entire continent! It’s a done deal since a 28-year-old woman snatched up an 18-year-old man fresh out of society like a hawk snatching a chick. My uncle and aunt still find it so difficult to address you, Mom. You’re really old.”

“Aila, I told you not to talk about age!”

I giggled and ran away.

Well, it’s true, Mom is old. But her appearance looks younger than Dad’s. Anyone would be shocked to hear Mom’s actual age.

Hmm. Is that what they call constitution? But why do I look more mature as I get older? I also want to spend my 20s with a youthful face and my 30s with a 20-something appearance.

Tsk. Maternal genes, the world is unfair. Hmph.

Occasionally comforting Mom and fulfilling my duty as a good daughter, I continued my research while tracking down what kind of research Dad was doing.

Some more time passed, and it had been about eight months since I last saw Dad.

It’s not a good look for a daughter to have a hobby of rummaging through her dad’s study, but maybe picking locks and finding secret spaces, which I learned as a pastime when I was young, unexpectedly suited my aptitude. My talent as a phantom thief shone while I was searching Dad’s study.

As expected of our Dad. A double bottom under the desk? No wonder I couldn’t find it even after searching for months.

Inside, I found Dad’s diary, documents related to his real estate, a few gold bars and gems that seemed to be secret funds hidden from Mom, and a bunch of stocks. And beneath that, I found a few documents that seemed to be recent.

My discerning eye for valuables told me that the last documents were the most important, and after briefly apologizing to Dad in my heart, I unfolded them.

My first impression of the documents was as follows:

“Scribbles?”

Words scribbled haphazardly with a pen. Letters written from numerous angles, keeping a considerable distance from orderliness. Fragments of words written over other letters and then abandoned.

At first glance, they seemed worthless to keep, but I know very well why they were stored so preciously.

It’s Dad’s habit.

He would jot down anything that could be a clue for his future research, organize it, reach a conclusion, and keep it only until the research was completed.

In Dad’s words, it’s a research draft that he keeps “to remind himself of what he’s doing, but doesn’t take with him to see during the research to allow for other possibilities, and to examine his initial intentions if the research fails.”

Honestly, it’s an excuse that feels too long-winded. Not that I don’t understand it, though.

I persistently deciphered (yes, it’s more like deciphering) the document, and the knowledge that had recently surged in my memory from following Dad’s research followed suit.

As a result, this jumble of scribbles became a pivotal document forming a clue, and that clue, even after saying it out loud, I still couldn’t understand.

“A methodology to cross parallel dimensions?”

Impossible.

As a living being, as a being belonging to a single multi-space-time, there’s no existence that can cross parallel dimensions. Maybe only the Archmage Magnolia Beming could do it.

But there’s no other conclusion. Otherwise, there’s no way things like the origin of parallel dimensions or the rules of the world created by God would be heavily circled.

While engrossed in the document, I suddenly noticed something strange.

“The handwriting…… is strange?”

It’s Dad’s handwriting, but it feels a bit different.

The occasional flicks and the way the curves are drawn are subtly different. It’s even more noticeable because I can meticulously examine Dad’s research journal and replicate it.

Hmm, is it because it’s a rough draft and he wrote it carelessly?

For now, I inwardly tucked away this absurd question.

If Dad really is researching this, there must be a reason.

Simple observation can be done out of curiosity, but crossing parallel dimensions goes far beyond the realm of curiosity. It’s something that shouldn’t be done, and at the very least, he should have consulted with his family.

Because it’s dangerous.

I think I should have realized that danger sooner.

***

Artshever decided to break the fundamental norms of this dimension in order to cross parallel dimensions.

This world was the one that reached the essence of the world more deeply than any other parallel dimension he had been to. It’s a world with the technology to contact the universe through one’s inner self by developing a rare power called superpowers.

He thought if he missed this opportunity, there wouldn’t be another.

He would stop the entire time of this parallel dimension.

Even for a fleeting moment.

He would stop the time that forms the foundation of this world, taking this world from God’s hands. By doing so, he would become a being transcendent of all restrictions, able to freely traverse parallel dimensions.

Sermaila only figured out the purpose of what he was trying to do. She didn’t know the reality of the act that needed to be done for that purpose.

While she was investigating the reason why the one who wasn’t her father had become that way, Artshever’s research had already reached its final stage.

When she, who had spent time thinking seriously but ultimately failed to grasp even a clue of the reason, decided she needed to talk to him.

This multi-space-time, while belonging to the universe, stepped onto a path of deviation.

***

There was no sound, no light, no feeling.

There was no way it could have any taste, let alone any smell.

Only the sixth sense, transcending the five senses, felt ‘it.’

Right at that moment, when I was heading to the lab to meet Dad.

My instinct grasped that this world had become something it shouldn’t be.

And the center of that feeling was Dad’s lab right in front of me.

Dad……? What have you done?

Without a word, I quickly ran to the lab. But the door was firmly shut and protected by magic.

“Dad! Dad! Open the door! What happened?! Huh? Dad! Dad―!”

No matter how much I knocked and pleaded, the door wouldn’t open. It just remained ruthlessly silent.

Tsk……! I have no choice but to do this.

I quickly started forming my superpower. It hasn’t reached its peak yet, but……! This much should be enough!

“Hand of Destruction!”

Although it was far from the technique that embodies the will of destruction, a white mass formed in my palm. A mass of will that destroys everything. I pounded on the door blocking my way with it.

Kwaaaang―!

A tremendous roar.

The magic on the door and my power collided, causing an explosion, and as a result, the door flew inward for several meters.

“Dad! Dad―!”

With an anxious heart, I looked around for Dad. However, despite the broken door, I couldn’t see anyone anywhere.

Then, a chilling coldness pierced my heart.

“This is……?”

A warning rang out from somewhere, telling me that something outrageous was happening. Every sense in my body was signaling danger. I quickly pulled out a dagger and cut my finger.

My finger was coolly cut, and blood flowed out. I scattered the blood in the air and used a spell.

Find my blood relative!

It’s a basic spell, but it’s quite useful in situations like this.

I flew towards the direction the blood droplets flew. While doing so, I formed all the superpowers I could and suppressed them just before activation.

My head hurts. As expected, excessive use of superpowers puts a strain on the brain. How many people have had their brains damaged from misusing superpowers?

“Could it be……? Dad?”

That can’t be. He’s Dad, called the greatest superpower user of this generation. There’s no way someone like him…… could be hurt so easily!

The top floor of the lab. My blood led me there. My blood relative, Dad, would be there.

I passed through corridors and climbed stairs. Without rest, I climbed the building for several floors. And finally, in the place where I opened the door……

There was a ‘stranger’ with white hair. I called out to him in a voice I couldn’t even be sure of myself.

“Dad……?”

“Indeed. I knew you would come. You must be my daughter.”

“Daughter? Who are you?”

My mind was under the tyrannical rule of confusion. That person is definitely my dad. But he’s not my dad.

What should I call this…… this contradictory feeling?

‘He’ smiled faintly. It was a strange smile, as if the cruelty of a child and the emptiness of an old man were mixed together. Moreover, it lacked the expression of joy that a smile should have.

“Oh dear. Your senses are sharp. Well, my daughter or son has always had sharp senses. Personally, the most uncomfortable thing is being transferred to myself, who has children.”

“Transferred? Having children? Daughter or son, what are you talking about?”

He raised his hand as if to ask me to wait a moment. And then he lightly snapped his fingers.

Snap!

At that moment, the giant magic circle beneath his feet took shape and rose abruptly. Equations and magic language intricately intertwined based on lines and figures.

The knowledge I possessed forced me to read it, and at the same time, I was horrified.

“Ma, magic, curses, holy spells…… and superpowers combined into one?”

“Indeed! As expected, you’re amazing. The level of magic in this world is quite high. I’m satisfied. Thanks to that, I was able to construct this 3-dimensional magic circle. Haha, I don’t know for sure, but I seem to be quite a remarkable person.”

He said, stroking his chest, and I couldn’t answer him as he spoke of himself as if he were someone else.

A magic circle composed of 3-dimensional equations that emerged in blue, red, yellow, and green. That’s a 3-dimensional defense equation that’s almost legendary even in the magic academia.

The cold child in my head said. That could even allow one to cross parallel dimensions.

No, that conclusion doesn’t matter. What did you just do? That bastard using our Dad’s body!

“You…… what did you do?”

“Oh, it’s nothing much. I just stopped the time of this world to cross parallel dimensions while possessing a physical body. It’s only for a fleeting moment, but since I stopped the time of the dimension itself…… it’s finally possible. I’ve also solved the question I’ve had for about 300 years.”

“300 years……? Could it be that you’re…… a demon?!”

Humans can’t live that long. Even if a mage prepares many spare bodies with clones, the soul has durability. That durability is connected to the body and creates lifespan.

If one can think deeply for 300 years…… then it can only be a demon.

However, he just chuckled at my words.

“Ahahahaha―! I hear that often, but it’s always funny! Ahahaha! Look at this, daughter. Are you denying your own feelings right now?”

“Wh, what feelings?”

“That I’m your father.”

“Ugh……! But I feel that you’re not our Dad! Who are you? What happened?!”

He raised his head. Then, he looked at the 3-dimensional equations spinning and completing the magic on their own. A faint aura settled on his face.

Longing for something…… like the face of a traveler looking in the direction of his hometown……

“It’s been a long time. I finally grasped the opportunity in my 1,611th life. It was so long and arduous, like an eternity.”

“What are you talking about?!”

I don’t understand anything! Why, why is the Dad who is not Dad talking to me as if I’m a stranger? Why can he say things I don’t know so sadly?

Who the hell is that guy over there?!