He did not really understand spatial Rift at all, and even stuck his head inside to take a look. It was pitch black, with nothing there, and none of the usual chaotic currents people talked about. He fired a couple of heat rays into it, but there was no response.
"Does this kind of spatial Rift have other uses? Let's see." Belial recalled a skill he used fairly often, though it did not appear very much. Gravity Tornado. He tried to use Gravity Tornado to pry the spatial Rift open, not knowing if such an intangible force would work.
"It actually works." To Belial's surprise, the healing of the spatial Rift was forcibly held back by the unreasonable power of Gravity Tornado, and dense Rift appeared all around. He walked over curiously to take a look.
At that moment, the boomerang that had been flying for almost an entire chapter finally came back. Just like the saying goes, before you win, never trigger the Flag-Planting Trope. Think back to what Belial said in the previous chapter.
The thing he was prying at right now was exactly Spatial Rend. A spatial Rift that had been forced open was still being repaired by the world's healing process, but the space in the middle was caught in a struggle between two forces, spawning countless Rift. They expanded larger and larger until they reached a critical point.
The space around Belial could no longer hold, shattering into Shard fragments. With a blank expression, he fell straight into the void beyond space.
At a border region of the Paraten Empire, work continued without pause. To repair her floating Sky Island and the badly damaged Spatial Barrier, Lilith the Reclusive Witch spent another day mixing mortar and patching cracks. If one compared tearing everything down to rebuilding versus fixing what still worked, even the Lord would agree that repair was far more cost effective.
Fortunately, she had found an untouched vein of Magic Crystal Ore nearby. By extracting enough Magic from it, she could replace most materials and comfortably restore her small home. That was more than enough for her needs.
"So, what do you want?" she asked. She leaned on her Magic Staff while floating in midair, splitting her focus to command groups of Mud Golem that carried bricks, raised walls, and spread cement. On the barren edge of the Sky Island, a refined villa suited to a witch's taste slowly took shape.
At the same time, she stared with slightly darkened eyes at the man before her, dressed in a long coat and a tall hat. From his uniform, insignia, and the information she had already gathered, she had mostly guessed his identity. Still, since she was building on someone else's territory, she chose to ask.
"Excuse me, are you the famous Lilith the Crystal Witch?" The man removed his hat and gave a formal salute. "I am from the Paraten Empire Third Army Group, serving as its commander, also deputy director of the Grand Magitech Development Bureau, and commander of the Mobile Task Force. You may call me Ludwig."
"Yes, that's me," she replied. It was clear that Ludwig had already investigated her before arriving, which did not surprise her. "So why are you here? My Sky Island recently had a small accident and the guest area is damaged, so I am not receiving visitors."
"I understand," Ludwig said, glancing calmly at the Mud Golem. These clumsy looking giants handled everything from bricklaying to gardening with ease. Each had a clear role and worked with remarkable speed, even one assigned to idle around, which revealed more than it seemed.
After clearing his throat, Ludwig continued, "Miss Lilith, some time ago we surveyed this border area and discovered this Magic Crystal Ore. We have already begun installing mining facilities. Recently, we learned that you are here and using this site, and this matter is somewhat sensitive."
"I know what you want to say. I have no interest in the minerals themselves," she cut in. She did not believe his claim that the site had been surveyed earlier, since she had noticed the spies slipping away. Within a thousand miles, little escaped her notice, and she was not easily fooled.
"I'm only borrowing the Magic here to repair my barrier. The amount I use is insignificant, and I dislike beating around the bush. You can state your purpose directly. I am not someone who causes trouble for no reason."
She spoke with confidence, not only because she meant it, but because few dared to test her. As a witch of the highest rank, sheer strength alone made her formidable anywhere.
"That is good. Then I will be straightforward," Ludwig said. "This deposit is very important to us and classified. We would like to ask you to leave. If you need Magic, we can provide another location."
"If you can repair the Spatial Barrier of my island and make it move again, I don't mind," she replied. "Or is that beyond your ability?" A floating Sky Island of such scale, along with its vast Spatial Barrier, was not something many could fix.
Ludwig clicked his tongue lightly. Everything here had been investigated in advance, and the earlier exchange was merely a necessary step. "We can allow up to two months. That should be enough for repairs. If you still need more time, perhaps we can discuss further."
"No need. Two months is enough. That's it," she said. She had no interest in whatever lay behind this and planned to leave soon anyway. "I'll be gone within two months, maybe earlier. Withdraw those rats. I don't need reminders."
"Very well. A pleasant cooperation," Ludwig said with a stiff smile that looked almost forced. "Please limit your usage to within about a hundred miles, and do not draw Magic beyond that range."
After sending away the expected visitor, she put on a small pout and resumed directing her constructs. Mixing mortar was not simple at all, as every step mattered. "The Magic Array nodes are mostly in place. We just need to gather a bit more Magic."
She looked toward the distant mountains, where Magic Array separated and collected the Magic from the Magic Crystal Ore. The extracted energy formed dense nodes, arranged in a perfect circle around her Sky Island. Between them lay countless circuits and finer pivot nodes that had to link together.
This massive Magic Array required enormous labor, calculations, and precision. Without her unique nature, even a mage of similar rank would struggle for quite some time. Repairing Spatial Barrier demanded vast Magic, equivalent to creating a stable, long lasting subspace, almost a small world.
She had once been very confident in her barrier defense, like a layer that could not be touched by those on another plane. As long as nothing strange appeared, it usually held without issue. Running into that thing in the gaps between worlds had already been absurd enough, and it surely would not happen again so soon.
"That should do it," she said. Feeling the barrier slowly collide with surrounding space and form gentle wave like patterns, she nodded in satisfaction. The spatial fluctuations had taken shape, and the repair would soon be complete.
"I still need to buy some things. Fine, I'll head into the city," she muttered. Pain flared through her body, and she frowned. Her constitution meant that merely existing in the world caused constant harm, but wrapped in balanced Magic, she could move around for a while.
Many items destroyed on the shattered half of her Sky Island could not be made by hand. She was not worried about her home, since the Mud Golem, the barrier, and the passive defense of Magic Array were more than enough to deter most threats. With that, the witch headed toward the nearby city.
The Magic Array continued its program, compressing Magic and shaping the surrounding space. The air twisted faintly like ripples on water, forming tiny undulations on the structure of the world itself. These were so small that they could be ignored, unless one looked very closely.
"So it seems you can get in from here?" Surrounded by countless mirror like reflections of the world, forming a crystal maze, Belial poked at a surface that rippled like water. He had played a bit too hard and ended up in this strange place, but his instincts told him he could leave from here.
There were other weak points as well, but he had lingered out of curiosity. After staying for some time, he decided it was time to go back, since there was nothing to eat here. Sensing the abundance of Magic, he nodded in satisfaction and charged straight in.
The ground shook violently as a mass weighing tens of thousands of tons slammed down. Belial rubbed his head and looked around, sensing that the climate, moisture, and Magic density were clearly different from before. "So I really sent myself to some unknown place, probably far from that forest."
It did not matter, as long as he was back. He looked up at the hole he had made, which was rapidly healing, and then sensed something far more interesting nearby. Large amounts of Magic were buried underground, spread out much like a rich vein he had once seen near a Nuclear Reactor.