CHAPTER 276: THE BEYOND

"Excuse me?" Veyla asked, her hand briefly adjusting her glasses, a subtle habit betraying her surprise. She blinked rapidly, trying to process what she had just heard.

Adyr explained in the same calm, almost casual tone. "You are the expert in this field, which is why I want you to meet the king of the kingdom I’m currently residing in. He has manpower for the mining operation, but I need someone who can advise on the tools and logistics. Will you come with me?"

Archaeology had been one of Adyr’s past-life professions—the closest to mining—but he knew very little about the practical work. Bringing a professional would make the mission faster and far more efficient.

"I..." Veyla froze, eyes flicking to the other researchers beside her. Shock, reluctance, and a trace of jealousy reflected in their gazes.

An opportunity to travel to another world and witness it firsthand? They would have given everything for such a chance.

"I will," she finally said, shaking off her surprise. "Of course. I just need my assistant and some equipment, and—" She began rattling off requests, her words tumbling in a rush.

"Slow down," Adyr chuckled, lifting a hand. "One assistant only, and nothing beyond what you can carry comfortably."

Transporting two people and their gear through the Sanctuary would consume a notable amount of energy. He needed to minimize it.

Veyla nodded quickly, then hurried off, leaving behind a trail of envious glances.

Ten minutes later, she returned with her assistant, a young woman wearing a white lab coat marked with the Subsurface Studies Department insignia. Both carried large backpacks, packed to the brim.

"I... I’m Isolde," the assistant said, voice trembling with tension.

Her blonde hair was pulled back into a ponytail. Adyr’s attention was drawn to her height—she was barely 1.50 meters.

"Hello, Isolde," Adyr said, extending a hand. His calm presence eased her nerves slightly.

"Before we go, there’s something you need to know," he continued. "You’re probably aware, but the kingdom you’ll visit—and the Velari themselves—look very similar to humans, aside from a few details. Most obvious is their height—they’re quite short." He cast a subtle glance at Isolde, letting his observation be known without words.

"They assume I’m one of them, a Velari. You should do the same. Follow the role I give you: you are Velari from outside the kingdom, and I met you years ago in Pacthold during my travels."

Introducing them as acquaintances from Pacthold would ease most suspicions, since that region was the only place where multiple races lived together in relative harmony.

He also quickly reviewed the other key points, ensuring they could convincingly assume their roles.

Adyr knew that no one in the kingdom would investigate or question their backgrounds—doing so would be disrespectful toward him—but he still went over the details to prevent any mistakes. As long as no one suspected they were aliens from another world, that would be sufficient.

"Are you ready?" Adyr asked, raising his hands toward them, ready to draw them into his [Sanctuary].

"Yes," Veyla replied, excited yet resolute, while Isolde offered a tense, silent nod, joining her without a word.

Once Adyr confirmed they were prepared, transparent energy flowed from his hands, rapidly and silently enveloping the two women. In mere seconds, they vanished before everyone’s eyes, leaving the researchers staring in stunned curiosity and excitement.

—

"Is this... The Beyond?" Isolde’s eyes widened as she took in the suddenly transformed surroundings, fear and exhilaration gleaming within them.

The Beyond—the name researchers gave to the unknown dimension, the game world players were currently exploring—stretched out before her in a way that felt both alien and awe-inspiring.

Every detail of the place seemed impossibly magical.

When she looked up at the sky, there were no clouds and no sun in sight, yet a soft, radiant light bathed the landscape, its source indiscernible. It shimmered like the gentle glow of sunrise, filling her with a profound sense of calm and serenity.

Beneath her feet, the ground was covered in endless, vibrant green grass, each blade glowing with life and health. Its subtle fragrance drifted upward, soothing her senses with a quiet, natural comfort.

The air itself was still—no wind disturbed the scene—but the silence was far from empty. A rhythmic, lively trumpet-like melody echoed through the space, playful yet harmonizing perfectly with the serene atmosphere, adding an almost whimsical layer to the peace surrounding her.

Following the sound with her gaze, she noticed a group of large, golden-feathered roosters striding ahead. Their glossy plumage caught the light, and with each lift of their trumpeting beaks, they contributed to a continuous, harmonious symphony that seemed both alive and deliberate.

They were not the only living beings here. Nearby, a shapeless, crimson, fist-sized head—likely one of the Sparks she had read about in reports—hovered silently. Its expressionless face drifted through the air, seemingly savoring the roosters’ symphony as if it were a connoisseur of music.

Amid the grass, she caught glimpses of a tiny insect hopping about, moving with relentless energy like excited children at play.

Every detail, from the vibrant flora to the lively creatures, seemed deliberately orchestrated, crafting a world that was fantastical, soothing, and overflowing with life—a stark, almost surreal contrast to Earth, where all vitality had long been extinguished in the nuclear devastation years ago.

"No, it’s not the Beyond..." Dr. Veyla Arden murmured, her voice barely rising, as if she were afraid to taint the atmosphere with her mortal presence.

"This has to be his Sanctuary." Her gaze was fixed on the gigantic tree at the rear of the island.

Its trunk, stretching meters into the sky, was dark brown and as solid as diamond, while its sprawling branches, covering half the island, bore luminous green leaves that seemed to contain every spark of life, radiating a divine aura.

"His Sanctuary?" Isolde’s eyes widened in disbelief, and she glanced around once more, as if needing confirmation from the surrounding expanse.

The island beneath them was enormous, far exceeding the scale of any other players’ islands they had studied in their reports.

Normally, according to the records, islands owned by Rank 2 players averaged around 500 square meters—roughly the space to park fifty standard cars side by side. But this island, just the one they were standing on, appeared roughly three times that size. And that was only part of it. Looking further ahead, they could see another identical island, separated by a stretch of transparent, divine, endless sea.

Though the atmosphere differed slightly, its scale matched the first perfectly. Combined, the two islands amounted to an area roughly 6 times larger than the typical holdings of other players.

Of course, the difference was not only in size.

They quickly compared the atmospheres with what they knew of the most famous players’ Sanctuaries.

Selina White’s Sanctuary was blanketed in snow, an intensely cold environment shaped by her evolution steps with ice- and cold-type Sparks.

Victor Bates’ was darker, filled with a metallic tang in the air.

Eren Jager’s covered with rocky terrain under a bright, open sky.

Adyr’s islands could be described in two contrasting moods, subtly distinct from one another. The island they were currently standing on resembled sunrise, bathed in a soft, warm light that was comforting without being overly hot.

The other, across the water, evoked sunset—cooler, darker, and noticeably less verdant.

As the two women absorbed the details around them, taking in the surreal atmosphere, a voice called from behind.

"Prepare yourselves. Soon, I will summon you to meet the King."

When they turned, they saw a human-shaped form of transparent energy, its face entirely featureless, staring at them with an unearthly presence.

For a brief instant, the form’s incomprehensible presence stirred fear, but they nodded calmly, having recognized it as Adyr’s energy form.

But the tension did not ease in the slightest; if anything, it only intensified.

They were not merely entering the Beyond—they were about to meet someone. Someone whose status was that of a King.

They knew that in this world, the King did not sit at the very top of the hierarchy, yet even so, his presence ranked just below Practitioners, commanding authority equal to—or surpassing—that of any City Manager from Earth.

"Ms. Arden, do you think we’ll be fine?" Isolde asked meekly, her body trembling slightly with pure anxiety.

They were only researchers, not diplomats, and this was a meeting far beyond anything they were accustomed to.

Veyla Arden did not answer her assistant. Her gaze remained fixed on the energy form before them.

She knew that the meeting and conversation would unfold entirely according to Adyr’s standing and authority within the kingdom and that the King’s treatment of his guests would reflect that.

Yet, assuming Adyr had to still be considered a stranger by the kingdom despite his status as a Practitioner, she could not be entirely certain how things would proceed.

"Do not worry." Adyr’s voice resonated through the entire island, echoing across the Twilight Land as if proving he alone commanded this dimension. "Forget the difference in status and see them as your equals. Do only what you do best."

His words offered little explanation, yet his presence alone instilled a strange calm, a readiness that no reassurances could have conveyed.