CHAPTER 182: CHAPTER 182 – AN UNUSUAL NEW DAY

A few minutes after the door closed, silence returned to Sylvia’s room. Soft morning light began to filter through the thin curtains, bathing the space in a golden hue. The morning air carried the scent of dew, blending with the faint lavender aroma of incense that had almost finished burning.

Sylvia remained lying down, but her eyes were wide open, staring at the ceiling without expression. After a while, she slowly sat up in bed, combing her long hair with her cold fingers. No words were spoken only silence.

A heavy silence.

She no longer pretended. There was no one watching, no one to convince. Just herself... and the emptiness quietly growing within her chest.

"Celes..."

The name escaped her lips. Not with anger. Not with regret. Just a word soft, honest, and fragile.

Sylvia lowered her gaze, staring at the creases on the side of the bed. They were still warm. There was still a faint trace of the girl’s unique scent. She exhaled slowly, pressing her fingers to her chest.

"Why... do you keep getting closer?"

No answer, of course. But the question wasn’t meant to be answered just whispered to the new morning.

After a few minutes of silence, Sylvia finally stood. Her steps were light, almost soundless, as she walked to the marble washbasin in the corner. Cold water refreshed her face, washing away the remnants of dreams and last night’s thoughts.

She looked at herself in the mirror. Those deep red eyes reflected an unchanged image cold, strong, yet starting to show tiny cracks invisible to the outside world.

"I have to keep moving."

A soft towel dried her face. Afterward, she opened the tall wardrobe beside the stone wall. A few dresses hung neatly inside. She chose an elegant black dress embroidered with silver wilted flowers. The dress flowed gracefully and hugged her silhouette in a refined yet understated way.

Once dressed, she slipped a small rapier into her waist belt, more out of habit than necessity. Her hair was half-tied, leaving the rest cascading freely. The final touch a pair of black crystal earrings that emitted a calm aura.

She walked out of her room, down the castle’s long corridor still wrapped in the morning’s shadows. The lantern light was fading, replaced by natural sunlight pouring through tall windows facing the inner garden.

The corridor was silent, save for the soft sound of Sylvia’s low-heeled shoes echoing against the stone walls. A few undead servants she passed bowed respectfully in silence, then disappeared back into the shadows.

Her destination today was clear: the main office in the eastern wing. There, stacks of reports from scouting units, castle operations, and undead deployments awaited her.

Upon arrival, Sylvia was greeted by a large desk covered in documents. Several maps were pinned to the walls, showing zombie troop positions and information relay points across this world.

She pulled out the large chair at the end of the room and sat quietly. A black quill floated in the air, following the gestures of her finger guided by a small spell.

"Unit Four has secured the swamp region... Unit Seven reports an anomaly in the northern hills..." she murmured while reviewing the reports that appeared one by one in enchanted scrolls.

Her eyes narrowed when she found a report about a ’holy aura reaction’ at one of the observation points. She quickly took notes, then marked the area in red on the map.

"Holy aura... that means they’ve started moving. The gods won’t sit still."

She continued her work with a fast and precise rhythm, occasionally striking through notes, marking locations, and summoning battlefield holograms using her Death magic. Though her expression remained calm, her thoughts were divided between focusing on the mission... and the image of someone far away Sofia.

Meanwhile, in another part of the castle...

Alicia stood in the inner courtyard, wearing a simple white outfit with an outer cloak fastened at her shoulders. In her hands was a large notebook filled with building layouts and repair reports.

Several undead technicians in light armor were busy reinforcing walls, replacing lanterns, and cleaning up debris left over from recent experiments.

Alicia observed them closely, occasionally giving orders or double-checking structures. Although she preferred reading and research, she took her role as a building supervisor seriously.

"Has the eastern support pillar been reinforced?" she asked one of the undead.

The undead nodded obediently and pointed to the newly reinforced structure that glimmered faintly. Alicia jotted down a note, then closed her book.

"Hmm... with this, we should be able to withstand minor aerial attacks."

She smiled faintly and looked up at the sky. This morning was clear. But she knew clear skies in this world never truly meant peace.

Elsewhere in the darker, quieter part of the castle, among piles of books and the scent of old paper, a girl was still awake.

Stacia sat cross-legged on a large table in the main library, surrounded by towering stacks of thick books. Her gray hair was messy, and her eyes looked tired but still sparkled with curiosity.

She wrote quickly in her notebook while studying ancient diagrams on the structure of the world and high-level magical symbols.

"This theory... if it’s true... could open access to the old dimensional gate," she muttered while scribbling and redrawing complex formulas.

Several candles around her were half-melted. But she didn’t care.

"If I can solve this before my sister gets here... maybe she’ll be proud."

Her cheeks flushed slightly at the word "sister." But she quickly scoffed and shook her head, brushing off her own thoughts.

"Ngh... not that I care or anything. I just... well, it’s important, that’s all!"

She bit the end of her pen, then returned to the ancient texts before her, letting the outside world vanish behind page after page of knowledge she sought.

Back in the office, Sylvia had just finished her last report. She leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes for a moment.

Soft footsteps echoed in the distance. When she opened her eyes, a female undead servant entered, carrying a tray with a cup of warm tea and a small plate of toast.

"Thank you," Sylvia said briefly.

The servant bowed and left without a sound.

Sylvia sipped the tea slowly. The herbal aroma mixed with netherroot a strange but soothing taste. She gazed out the large window behind her desk. The sky was now bright blue, with thin clouds drifting slowly. On the surface, this world looked peaceful.

But deep inside, Sylvia knew: their time was limited.

This peace... was only temporary.

Sofia... how are you now?

She wanted to know. But she couldn’t see her home world from here. Not easily. Not without consequences.

She closed her eyes, trying to hold back the longing that began to claw at her mind again. But at least... today had gone smoothly. For now.

"There’s still much to do. But before night falls... maybe I can take them out for a bit," she whispered.

With that, Sylvia stood, stored all the reports and scrolls into a magical storage space, then stepped out of the room.

It was indeed an unusual new day. But Sylvia knew one thing for certain

She had to keep moving, for everything she had built.

Sylvia stepped out of her office with calm strides. The afternoon sun was beginning to dip, casting a soft orange hue along the walls of the black stone castle that now appeared warm beneath the light. Her footsteps echoed gently through the long corridor leading to the inner garden, a place she often visited when she needed to think or simply unwind.

The hallway was quiet. The undead servants who passed by always bowed in silence, and the guards stood motionless at their posts, like tireless living statues. Sylvia moved past them gracefully, walking the stone path toward the grand balcony on the eastern side of the castle.

From there, she could see the stretch of mountains far on the horizon, thin mist rolling gently over the nameless valleys. This world... still felt foreign, yet slowly, it was beginning to form into a temporary home.

But still, nothing could replace Nocture.

And no one could replace Sofia.

She stood there for a while, letting the wind brush through her long hair. Her eyes looked far into the distance, yet her thoughts drifted back to the room that morning. About Celes. About herself who said nothing even though she knew what had happened last night.

’Why couldn’t I stop her?’ she thought. ’Or... why didn’t I try?’

Those questions hung in the air. There were no easy answers. Guilt was no stranger to Sylvia, but this time... there was a softer, more complicated layer one she couldn’t name.

After standing in silence for a long moment, she decided to return inside the castle. There was still time before nightfall, and before the gods or anyone disturbed her day again.

As she walked back through the corridor, she ran into Alicia.

"You look tired," Alicia said softly, watching Sylvia with gentle eyes. She was still wearing her work robe, a bit of dust visible near the hem.

"A little. But I’m fine. Everything going as planned?" Sylvia asked, falling into step beside her.

Alicia nodded slowly. "The western walls have been reinforced. The underground area has also been cleared of last night’s magical residue. We can start the next experiment tomorrow."

"Good. Thank you, Alicia," Sylvia replied succinctly.

They walked together toward the main hall, where Stacia had finally emerged from the library red-eyed and slightly wobbly, but with a victorious expression on her face.

"Hey, look at this!" Stacia called out as she dragged several heavy books to the center table. "I found old-world ritual notes that might... maybe... open cross-dimensional communication. Well, at least in theory."

Sylvia and Alicia exchanged a glance. Then Sylvia gave a faint smile.

"You haven’t slept, have you?"

Stacia turned her face away, slightly blushing. "Don’t act like a big sister. I was just... curious, that’s all."

"Good kind of curiosity," Sylvia said as she approached and gently stroked her adopted sister’s hair. "But you still need to sleep tonight."

Stacia scowled, but didn’t resist the gentle touch.

The room warmed for a moment. The three of them sat together in that lounge space, discussing new findings, plans for the coming days, and without realizing it about what they missed most... their home world.

None of them said it outright. But every sentence, every dreamy glance toward the window, conveyed the same thing: they wanted to go home.

And they wanted to know what was happening there now.

Was Nocture thriving?

Was Sofia all right?

Was time moving faster... or slower?

Those questions lingered. But night began to fall, and the time to answer them had not yet come.