Full-scale war preparations began in the early morning.
Supplies and provisions piled up.
However, the quantity was not massive; instead, the quality was exceptionally high.
This was because only the most elite units were entering.
As the day dawned, the knight orders, fully prepared, gathered, and the assembly point was soon filled with people.
The Imperial elite knight orders: the 1st Knight Order led by Gail Einsidel, and the 2nd Knight Order led by Courtois Veneker, a former Royal Knight.
The Leriant Knight Order, a unit of pure skill users led by the Awakened Zarathus Muel.
A unified unit created from long-range interception units, support units, and supply units.
Finally, the highest knight order led by the great Sword Saint Vitalianus Mahel, the Royal Knights.
The number of people was modest for going to war, but considering the level of each individual, a formidable force had gathered.
Even those in charge of supplies and support were all comprised of knights.
Around two hundred of such elite personnel had gathered.
It seemed that was all, but it was not the end.
“The guild personnel have arrived.”
The group entering the assembly point appeared to be about 70 people in number; they were the guild people who had been mentioned continuously before.
Claire had heard them referred to as the Adventurer’s Guild, but she did not know why Sirbert was included among them.
Nor did she know why the presence of each individual was so powerful.
The fact that they were Bingija was information known only to a very few, so most people here, not just Claire, were unaware.
They only knew that these people were experts in the space they had begun to call the Magic Realm, and that they were strong individuals who had been preparing for this situation for several years, having foreseen it.
That was the extent of their knowledge.
“You are the proud expeditionary force that will defeat evil and bring peace to this Continent…”
The day had fully broken.
The departure ceremony, with minimal procedures, began, and Empress Sylvia Verden personally ascended the platform to read the call to arms.
The moment it ended, the expedition commenced.
The target Gate was in the outskirts, slightly away from the Huang Palace.
The area was already perfectly controlled, and the citizens gathered along the way sent enthusiastic cheers to the expeditionary force.
It had begun to be widely known officially.
The existence of the Magic Realm and the launch of the expeditionary force to stop it.
And that the departure would take place this morning.
This was the first official expeditionary force heading into the Magic Realm.
It was the first step that would be recorded as the start of the war.
“The types for the 53rd Floor are the Floor of Endeavor and the Floor of Infinity.”
In front of the Abyss Gate.
The briefing, which started before entering, was being conducted under the leadership of the guild.
“I’ve given you a brief overview, but I’ll state it clearly once more.”
In front of the blackly shimmering Gate, the area was silent as a gloomy energy enveloped the expeditionary force.
Since the vast area centered around the Gate was entirely under control, only the explanation of the guild members echoed along with the quiet tension.
At the very front were Vitalianus, the commanders of each knight order, and facing them were the core members of the guild.
“When you enter the floor, you will see two more massive Gates on the left and right.
What you must be careful of is that you must absolutely never enter those Gates.”
The space of the Floor of Infinity can be broadly divided into three areas.
One space of infinity and two spaces of endeavor.
“You can think of the giant Gates on the left and right as the Spaces of Endeavor, and everywhere else as the Space of Infinity.”
The method to clear the floor seemed complex, but it was simpler than expected.
First, they decide on two people to enter the Spaces of Endeavor.
Exactly one person must enter each Gate; if this is violated, the clear fails immediately.
Once the designated individuals enter their respective Spaces of Endeavor, Abyss Monsters will begin to pour out into the Space of Infinity from that point on.
Until the two people who entered overcome all trials through endeavor and emerge from the spaces, those in the Space of Infinity must literally endure infinitely.
Thus, the names given were the Floor of Endeavor and the Floor of Infinity.
“It may sound very tricky depending on how you hear it, but with the power gathered here, we believe it will be possible to clear it without significant damage.”
The Floor of Infinity was one of the floors where clear failures occurred most frequently back when it was a game.
If there was a reason, it was unity.
Unity was the most important thing, but it couldn’t be achieved within the game.
There wasn’t just one Abyss Gate that appeared on the Continent.
All sorts of people entered through such Abyss Gates, and the more they did, the more the number of monsters appearing in the Space of Infinity increased.
And if it exceeded a certain number, the space would break and the clear would fail, regardless of whether the Spaces of Endeavor were successful.
In a way, both the Space of Endeavor and the Space of Infinity were floors with population limits.
Those who wanted notoriety would purposely enter the Space of Endeavor and fail, so one could imagine how chaotic the situation was.
But now it was different.
Most Gates were controlled by the Empire and various nations, and the gathered personnel were a small elite group.
“Therefore, as long as the two people entering the Spaces of Endeavor do well, I don’t think there will be any major problems.”
When the explanation reached that point, someone lightly raised their hand and asked.
It was the Commander of the 1st Knight Order, Gail Einsidel.
“What is the level of the monsters appearing in the Space of Infinity?
How does it compare to the previous Conquest Floor?”
“They are expected to be stronger than those.
However, since fewer than three hundred people are entering, the number of monsters rushing in per wave will not be that large.”
“So you’re saying those waves will repeat until the people who entered the Spaces of Endeavor come out.”
“Yes.
Infinitely.
So you must never let your guard down.
If you fail to continuously eliminate the monsters pouring in with each wave, they will pile up until they eventually become unmanageable.”
Of course, it wouldn’t come to that.
Based on experience in the game, the Floor of Infinity was difficult because of the lack of unity; blocking the monster waves wasn’t a major problem.
“In that case, the people entering the Spaces of Endeavor will be the most important.”
The condition for a successful clear was for the individuals who entered the Spaces of Endeavor to successfully complete all trials and emerge.
And to eliminate all the monsters accumulated until then.
If those two things were achieved, the clear would be a success.
The difficulty varied drastically depending on how long it took for the two people to overcome the trials and come out.
If they were to even slightly fail to overcome the trials, the clear could fail regardless of the Floor of Infinity, so it went without saying that it was the most important mission.
“Therefore, two people from our side will go into the Spaces of Endeavor.”
In order to overcome the trials, martial prowess and experience were both important.
From the Empire’s side, martial prowess was sufficient, but wasn’t it true that none of them had experienced the Spaces of Endeavor?
The guild members thought it was a fairly reasonable suggestion, however.
“That is not possible.”
It was a statement that Vitalianus could never permit.
“How could I leave such a difficult mission, on which the fate of the Empire depends, solely to you?
We have many talented individuals on our side as well, so do not worry.”
“…Does that mean you will choose two people from the Empire’s side?”
“That is correct.”
“That makes no sense.
There are no experienced individuals on the Empire’s side.”
“Won’t you be the ones providing the information?”
“The difference between hearing it in words and experiencing it firsthand is extreme.
You know that well, don’t you?”
“Is that so?
That’s quite strange.”
Vitalianus’s golden eyes were calm as always, but they were the eyes of a predator that one couldn’t help but tremble upon meeting.
“To my knowledge, you also have no firsthand experience.”
“T-That is…”
Because it was difficult to meet those eyes directly, the Awakened from the guild who was speaking eventually averted their gaze from the predator’s eyes.
They couldn’t tell how much Vitalianus knew—whether he was speaking because he knew they had only played a game, or if he was just guessing.
But they couldn’t back down here.
The Spaces of Endeavor were that important, and they had very reliable cards in Antipus and Daphne.
“That is not true.
As people who sincerely worry about the world’s crisis, we have simply made a cold judgment.”
“You sincerely worry and have made a cold judgment.”
So, while they averted their eyes, they did not stop speaking.
“Yes.
If it weren’t for our efforts, the Continent would have long ago been in the Abyssal…”
“Then why did you flee in such fear on the 51st Floor?”
However, this time, they couldn’t continue speaking.
“Those who sincerely worry about the crisis.
Those who say they know that heavy responsibility better than anyone else!
Even though you knew what would happen to the world if you fled, what were you so afraid of that you ran away?”
It was a truth for which they had no excuses, even with ten mouths.
Of course, it felt unfair.
The 50 Bingija who had previously broken through the 52nd Floor, and the 20 Bingija who rejoined afterward.
These roughly seventy Awakened were those who had remained and fought until the end on the 51st Floor.
And since their world would also face a crisis if the clear failed, it was also true that they sincerely worried.
Nevertheless, they could not continue.
“If you were that afraid, you should have at least informed me, the Empire.
That you did not was your greed and arrogance, and was that not the tragedy that resulted?”
Being crushed by a greater truth was the reason.
A single clear failure.
Just how much damage had been suffered because of it?
How many innocent people had died?
“With what can I trust such people to entrust them with the most important mission? Answer me.”
Excessive greed, arrogance.
The tragedy caused by them.
It could not be denied.
There were only about seventy Bingija gathered now.
But at the time of the 51st Floor, there were several times that number—hundreds of them—so they hadn’t thought for a moment that they would fail.
Thus, they were speechless and could provide no answer to Vitalianus’s words.
As if he had expected that, Vitalianus looked around the crowd.
It was to decide the two people to enter the Spaces of Endeavor.
The first one called was, as expected, the leader of the 1st Knight Order.