Chapter 52 : The 10,459th Earth and the Elf Queen

Choco sniffed the slab and dashed off somewhere.

Had it already found another fragment?

Panting and running cheerfully, Choco was chased until we arrived at the plain.

Seolha was waiting there.

“Woo min?”

Choco, confused by Seolha’s presence, hesitated.

Then it sniffed deeply and pulled out a small space pocket from Seolha.

“Choco, no.”

I hurriedly grabbed Choco.

“Ahahaha, sorry.”

Bow Bow!

Choco urgently took the space pocket from its mouth.

Could there really be something here?

“Seolha.”

“Yes?”

“Do you have an item that looks like this?”

Hoping for a lead, I showed the slab excavated from the mausoleum.

Choco’s intense reaction meant there was definitely something.

Seolha looked at the slab and smiled faintly, then furrowed her brows slightly.

“Is this the reward you just received?”

“Reward just now?”

“Oh, yes. Thanks to the flower bracelet Somi and I made, I just cleared the 51st floor.”

It had been about two weeks since clearing the 50th floor.

That was an incredibly fast pace.

Usually, top-tier players take about a month to clear a new floor of the tower.

From this point on, strategy was more important than raw ability.

They constantly challenged tower ascension, analyzing monsters’ weaknesses.

Analyzing the surrounding environment and preparing suitable items was also essential.

There was a reason why the Association had a dedicated operation management team.

Especially for players like Seolha, ranked first representing their countries, gathering as much information as possible for those who followed was critical.

Anyway, leaving that aside.

Seolha returned the space pocket and began checking the recent rewards.

Most were consumables like potions.

Among them was something that looked familiar.

It was the slab inscribed with the Trace of God.

Similarly, it was severely damaged, as if it would break at any moment.

[Second Trace of God discovered.]

[The divine aura further permeates the hidden plain.]

[The power of the multiverse expands.]

[You can now send up to 14 characters.]

[Communication with connected dimensions becomes smoother.]

As expected!

Choco hadn’t misread the scent.

Another fragment was with Seolha.

However, her reaction seemed somewhat underwhelming.

“What is this exactly?”

“A Trace of God slab.”

“Huh? For me, it just looks like a worthless stone slab.”

Could it be that the description people see differs by individual?

“Really?”

“Yes, wait a moment.”

Seolha explained what she saw.

[Worthless stone slab] An old stone slab. Purpose unknown.

It was true.

Though I clearly saw the Trace of God inscribed on it, to Seolha it was just an old stone slab.

Was it because the items we had differed?

But there wasn’t anything that would explain such a difference.

We both had the flower bracelet, but items like the slime wand, spiderweb launcher, and undead summoning necklace were missing from Seolha’s inventory but present in mine.

Could those change the item description?

No way.

There must be another reason.

Something only I possessed, not an item though.

Ah! The power of the multiverse!

Suddenly, everything started to make sense.

“Seolha, could you give me that slab? I’ll make sure you get a proper reward.”

Even if she didn’t need it, it was a fragment inscribed with the Trace of God.

If it was useless to her, I was more suited to have it.

After my request, Seolha gladly handed over the item.

“It’s useless to me anyway. Also…”

She suddenly stopped speaking.

“And… I owe you a great debt, Woo min.”

Her face flushed.

Maybe because it had been a while since we met.

She seemed embarrassed all of a sudden.

Did she have a fever or something?

Anyway, we had the second fragment as well. Time to quickly piece it together.

While bending over to align the two slabs, a reply came from the 10,459th Earth.

[I am the Elf Queen.]

Finally, a response.

More than that, the Elf Queen.

Could this be a joke?

[Really?]

I sent the reply again.

[Yes, that is correct.]

The answer came back.

What was this?

Could it really be an Elf?

If so, let’s change the question.

[Is that Earth also?]

[Yes.]

[Is the Black Tower there as well?]

[No.]

Most answers were brief—either yes or no.

Not exactly bad, but somewhat ambiguous.

[Are there humans?]

[If humans?]

Then, the reply ended ambiguously for the first time.

What was this? Was something being withheld?

[Five thousand years ago, during a war,]

[they destroyed themselves.]

Destroyed themselves?

Really?

I doubted my eyes for a moment.

But no matter how I looked, the content was the same.

Well, perhaps it was strange that humanity was still alive now.

They constantly fought and plundered each other.

Besides two world wars, there had been countless disputes and wars.

Nuclear war?

It wouldn’t be surprising if it had already happened.

[Then on your side,]

[are there only Elves?]

[Yes.]

The more questions I asked, the more curious I became.

What kind of world was that?

An Earth without humans.

I couldn’t imagine it at all.

Would it be covered in green grass, as anthropologists theorize?

Or maybe, like in fantasy novels, a vast continent?

“What is this?”

After a long exchange of messages, Seolha asked with a curious expression.

She must have been wondering why I only kept staring at the system.

“Actually, I planted the World Tree a few days ago.”

“Huh?”

Seolha was startled.

After all, the World Tree was no mere sapling bought from a flower shop.

It was the mother of all lifeforms.

In novels, the World Tree was often worshipped like a god.

To have planted such a colossal tree with my own hands…

I thought I wouldn’t be surprised anymore, but my thoughts were wrong.

“So, what now?”

“Thanks to the World Tree, we can communicate with lifeforms in other dimensions.”

“Ah.”

Seolha was left speechless.

No matter how much the world had changed, she simply couldn’t catch up with Woo min’s growth through common sense.

Other dimensions?

“What kind of place is another dimension?”

“I’m writing about it. I haven’t been there myself.”

That was somewhat reassuring.

If I personally traveled to other dimensions, I might as well be a god, not human.

Seolha was secretly relieved.

“By the way, there’s a good way to see for yourself.”

“Huh?”

Go in person?

Suddenly?

How?

“Wait a moment.”

Nonchalantly, I pulled something out of my pocket.

It was a tower exit designated seat.

Then.

“10,459th dimensional Earth, the Elf Queen’s residence.”

Muttering some words, a gate opened with a blue light.

“Oh, this works.”

“Let’s go.”

Seolha gave up trying to understand and followed me through the gate.

***

10,459th Earth.

A real-time message was sent to Silpia, who lay on her bed.

It came from the 1,592nd dimensional Earth.

At first, it was written in an unknown script.

But soon, another notification arrived.

The power of the World Tree had expanded?

The existence on that dimension wasn’t borrowing the World Tree’s power?

Even Silpia, who had lived through many events, looked somewhat surprised.

No matter how young the World Tree still was, it was undeniably a divine entity.

To freely use such power…

Was she the parent of the World Tree?

But she quickly shook her head.

That wasn’t important.

Yet, the surprises didn’t end there.

The power expanded again.

Not only translation abilities but now free communication was possible.

Actually, the reason she hadn’t replied until now was that unlike Woo min, who used the system’s power, Silpia had to use enormous mana.

It might take less effort than leaving traces of fate while traversing the void of space, but it was still no easy task.

She had to concentrate all day just to send a few characters.

Except for not needing a huge magic circle, it was physically demanding.

But now, even that communication process was shortened.

Now Silpia could use the system to easily send messages.

And in their own language!

“Who am I?”

Silpia’s gaze darkened as she carefully examined the translated characters.

What did this question mean?

Was it a casual inquiry about her identity?

Or was it a deeper, more profound question about essence?

After a brief moment of thought, she moved her hand over the status window.

Then sent:

[I am the Elf Queen.]

It was a simple, basic answer to the question.

After that, many more questions came flooding in.

From asking where this place was to irrelevant inquiries about the Black Tower.

Though some content was incomprehensible, she answered as best as she could within her knowledge.

Then,

[Are there humans?]

A hesitant question arrived.

Humans.

A race only found in history books.

A foolish race that destroyed itself through greed.

However, Silpia omitted those details and answered only that they self-destructed in a war 5,000 years ago.

“Your Majesty.”

It was at that moment that Eillin hurried over.

These days, Eillin never seemed to rest.

“What’s the matter?”

“W-well…”

Eillin faltered, then glanced around nervously.

“There were unfamiliar beings appearing just outside Your Majesty’s residence.”

“Unfamiliar beings?”

“I’m not exactly sure, but they seem human. One male and one female.”

At that moment, a thought of “Seolha” flashed through Silpia’s mind.

No more messages had come from the beings we had been exchanging messages with until now.

Could they have crossed into this dimension?

But it made no sense.

Even with the World Tree’s power, physically incarnating was a completely different matter.

Sending one’s spirit through the void of interdimensional space already drained huge mana.

If a spirit without a body suffered this much, how much more so the body?

Only a god could pull off such a feat.

So we had to verify it for ourselves.

If they really were beings who crossed from another dimension, we couldn’t ignore it.

They might be great entities, or even existences surpassing gods.

A small mistake could lead to the end of the world.

“Show me.”

Silpia put on a simple cardigan and followed Eillin.

Not far away was the Elf Queen’s residence.

There really stood two humans I had never seen before.

Even she had never seen living humans.

But she instantly recognized them.

They were the beings who had been exchanging messages until now!

Silpia hurried toward them.

Then.

“My lady!”

She grabbed Woo min’s wrist in greeting.

The existence from another dimension, long dreamed of, stood right before us!

That existence was a human!