I began to descend the stairs as the curtain of sand parted to let me through. The stairs, made of an unknown material, were firm under my feet. With each step, my footsteps echoed. I had spoken with the Mirage-Walking Princess on the ninetieth floor. Below that was the eighty-ninth floor—my holy ground.
Stepping inside the Garden of Withered Flowers, I saw the Death King Clan vassals who took on the role of gardeners. They were moving about in neat suits made by Ivansia tailors with water silk woven by the mermaids of the Aegim Empire. The gardeners held scissors, shovels, watering cans, or other tools for tending the garden. When I saw Sylvia walking toward me with garden shears, I quickly crouched behind a rock.
—Death King, what are you doing?
The princess stared at me weirdly. I awkwardly scratched the back of my head.
—Well, I acted all cool and cut my hair before I went up to the nineteenth floor. It’s a bit embarrassing to run into them now. They’ll ask me why I came down already.
I paused and closed my mouth.
—Uh… hmm? My voice is…
What came out of my mouth was a faint whisper. No, it was more like the voice forever present in one’s head—the kind that seemed to be there but wasn’t.
—Uh...
That wasn’t all. I slowly took a step back and realized that I couldn’t hear my own steps.
—Huh?
I tried walking around some more, but it was the same. The echoes of my footsteps, which had accompanied me from the upper floor, were now gone.
—Ohh…
I tried a squat jump. There was no thud when I landed. Not only was there no sound, not a single grain of sand or leaf stirred.
—Don’t tell me…
—Yes, it’s exactly what you’re thinking.
The princess smiled. Only then did I realize that her voice and steps also had no effect on the area. That was how I understood what was going on.
—You and I are in the same state as Mr. Sword Emperor, aren’t we?
—Yes!
Feeling curious, I turned and looked at Sylvia as she approached me.
—And that means…
Right in front of me, Sylvia sighed. “It’s been about two hours since the patriarch went up.”
As expected, she couldn’t perceive me at all!
“I’m going crazy. Why the hell would he insist on climbing? What’s so great up there?”
Crouching on the ground, Sylvia grumbled as she dug into the soil with her trowel. Uburka walked over in his gardener outfit, a large bucket balanced on his bald head.
“Ugor, Chief Steward, someone might hear you trash-talking.”
Sylvia shrugged. “Hmph. Nooooo one’s listening except you. I’ve already made sure of it. That’s why I can trash-talk like this.”
“You sure about that, ugor?”
“You bet I am. I attended Sormwin Academy twice and even defeated the Duke of Ivansia once. What do you think that means? It means I’m quick and sharp,” Sylvia said cockily.
I’m listening to you right now.
I pitied Sylvia’s confidence as much as I pitied her, but this also meant that my current stealth mode was flawless.
Anyway, this is fun.
I circled Sylvia and Uburka, walked around, did handstands, somersaults, even danced. The Guardian had a rare, embarrassed look on his face.
—Zombie… Why are you going insane like a puppy drooling over a bone?
—Thank you for the compliment. This is what you did when I was trying to learn how to use my aura. I felt the same as you’re feeling now.
The Guardian covered his face with his hand.
—Is that so, you little shit? I didn’t know that. Now that I do, I deeply regret it. Regardless, just because I did that doesn’t mean you should do the same. Breaking that bad cycle is always the duty of juniors and students.
—I also wanted to break that cycle, but I’m too weak. The snake coiled around my heart hisses, “Do the same to others. Are you just going to let others push you around all your life? Go on. Now is your chance to get revenge.” Time after time, I give in to the demonic snake within me. You could say it’s my incompetence and inability…
—Fine, I lost.
—Victory achieved.
Even while we talked nonsense, Ubruka and Sylvia showed no sign of noticing us. It was getting a little awkward.
—Princess, Mr. Sword Emperor, what am I supposed to do here? Where are the keys?
—Hmm, I don’t know. How about you search the spots that come to mind?
The princess’ smile was bright.
Hmmm. The look on your face makes me feel uneasy.
I suppressed that unease and walked away from Uburka and Sylvia, who were still chatting.
—Where are you going, Scream Sky?
—Well… you said to check spots that come to mind, right? That’s what I’m doing.
—You’re energetic! That’s good.
It was also a very disturbing remark from the princess, but I tried not to pay much heed and moved on. My first thought was to find my orphanage director.