NOVPUB—The first to sense the change were the trout leaping against the waterfall.
Flap, flap!
Suddenly, as if seized by convulsions, the trout all fainted at once.
Though they regained consciousness quickly, they began thrashing desperately, struggling even harder to leap past the waterfall.
They weren’t salmon, so why were they acting like this?
But this strange phenomenon wasn’t limited to the creatures in the water.
Flap, flap, flap!
Birds took flight in a frantic panic.
Deer, wild boars, even wolves and packs of wild dogs—every beast of the forest was fleeing in haste.
A wolf ran side by side with a deer and a pig, alongside rabbits and foxes, yet it didn’t even spare them a glance.
As if hunting was a waste of precious time.
A pack of wolves, predators by nature, suppressing their instincts to flee at full speed—it was an unsettling sight.
It was the same eerie phenomenon as when ants fled before an earthquake, an instinctual struggle for survival.
Rumble!
Then, massive black clouds gathered in the sky, and the deep roar of thunder shook within them.
It was as if the heavens themselves were enraged.
Even those unaware of the animals' abnormal behavior felt an inexplicable tension as they looked up at the sky.
Even if humans had dulled instincts compared to wild animals, they still possessed a primal sense.
"What’s going on?"
Something was about to happen.
Something ominous.
***
The previous day, the self-proclaimed senior maid had informed Ihan that the seal of the Great Evil Spirit was on the verge of breaking.
That was why Ihan had been pressing and berating the Mordred family—he had no time to leisurely search for the Evil Spirit’s location.
There were barely two days left before the seal shattered—there was no time to waste wandering around.
...And yet, despite knowing this better than anyone, the Mordred family did not seem panicked.
Rather than being complacent, it was as if they still believed there was plenty of time.
Thud.
"This is called the [Jewel Hourglass]."
"...An artifact?"
"Indeed. We obtained it at great cost, fully prepared for Mordred’s finances to take a hit."
"......."
"Do you notice anything unusual about it?"
"The powder is falling... kind of strangely slow?"
"Correct."
The large hourglass, filled with jewel dust instead of sand, had a complex, spiral-shaped structure.
At the very least, it should have taken a full minute longer than a standard hourglass to empty.
But right now, it wasn’t just slow.
Even after five minutes, the jewel dust had barely moved.
For a moment, Ihan wondered if it was broken.
But upon closer inspection, the fine movements of the dust proved otherwise.
And, ◈ Nоvеlіgһт ◈ (Continue reading) as expected—
"The Jewel Hourglass possesses a singular magic—it tells the exact time of a designated location. It measures a full 24 hours without a single margin of error."
"...But at this rate, even in three days, it won’t be empty."
"Then that means it is working correctly."
"Huh?"
"Did you not say that exactly five years have passed since we disappeared from the outside world?"
"I did."
"Then this hourglass is accurate."
"......."
"As expected of something so costly. It is telling us the precise time."
"Wait... are you saying—?"
It took Ihan a moment to fully grasp what those words meant.
But when he did—
"Is time slower in this space?"
"Not slower—distorted. Or perhaps... time doesn’t flow at all."
"......."
"Did you know? In the five years we have spent here, none of my family, nor the soldiers, have aged a single day. We are exactly as we were five years ago."
"......."
"A scholar from the academy once explained it. The numerous conflicting forces in this tomb create a complex reaction, resulting in a spatial distortion.
"In other words, this place is a prison of time."
"How long have you been stuck here?"
"I don’t know. I’ve long since stopped trying to remember."
"...Damn."
For the first time, Ihan understood why the soldiers and knights he had met seemed so strangely melancholic.
They had been trapped in a place where time itself was meaningless, relying on a single hourglass to measure the passage of their days.
Frankly, it was a miracle they were only depressed.
Anyone else would have gone mad.
So that’s why their knights are so skilled, and their weapons more advanced than even the royal army’s.
How had their weapons surpassed those of the kingdom’s military?
How had their knights, their soldiers, become so incredibly strong?
Now, he understood.
They hadn’t spent just five years in this place.
They may have spent twice, or even more time here.
Some might call it a stroke of luck, a miracle.
But Ihan saw it as nothing but a curse.
...Back in the army, he had often heard the phrase "The Ministry of Defense's clock moves slowly."
This translation is the intellectual property of Novelight.
But here, time didn’t just move slowly—it was trapped.
Not just a two-year service—decades.
With no leave.
No entertainment.
No distractions.
...This is hell.
Had their families not been held hostage, they would have long since deserted.
"So, that is why we are grateful to you. Thanks to the news you brought from the outside world, our soldiers have regained some of their spirit. It has been a long time since they felt even a spark of hope."
And so—
"It’s time to pay the price."
Whoosh.
"Take this. You will need it to reach the Great Evil Spirit—that pest."
"...I don’t have any change for this."
Ihan caught the hourglass and furrowed his brows.
It was far too valuable a thing to be given away in exchange for just delivering a few letters.
But Margrave Cain shook his head.
"If anything, we are the ones who are lacking. This is all we have to offer."
"Are you sure about this? You’ll need it to keep track of time."
"It doesn’t matter anymore. If what you say is true, then the Great Evil Spirit’s seal will break soon. No matter how valuable an artifact may be, it will be useless by then."
"Are you... really okay with this?"
It was a question heavy with meaning.
They must have been desperate to be the ones to slay the Great Evil Spirit themselves—so were they really willing to hand over the very item that would allow someone to reach it?
"We have no choice. If we leave this place unattended, the monsters will overrun the surface in an instant."
"...Then what was your original plan to deal with the Great Evil Spirit?"
"My father and a handful of knights were planning to form an expedition force."
"That sounds like elderly abuse."
"It was his decision. Who am I to stop him?"
Cain let out a bitter smile.
It was clear that there had been many arguments about that expedition.
And in the end, the old knight had won.
"They say no parent can win against their child, but I suppose in this case, no child can win against their parent."
"A sad truth for the weak."
But now, the situation had changed.
Here stood a man who wanted to fight the Great Evil Spirit.
A man who might even be stronger than the old knight.
Not just a powerful warrior—but a knight who carried great pride.
And so—
"We’ve only known each other for less than half a day, and yet... it’s strange. I feel like I can trust you."
"I don’t feel the same way at all."
"Haha."
"Well, I’ll take what I can get."
"Leaving already?"
"I always arrive thirty minutes early to appointments."
"How diligent."
"......."
"...I wish you good fortune."
"You too."
That was the end of their conversation.
Perhaps this was the last time they would ever see each other.
Yet despite that, their words were devoid of sentimentality.
Perhaps it was just in their nature to be dry and direct.
Or maybe... they were simply strange.
But one thing was certain.
There was trust between them.
Even though they had barely known each other for half a day, men like them didn’t need time to form bonds—
Only sincerity.
And in that sense, while they may not have been friends, they were something close.
Which was why, even with their differences in status and age, they seemed like old comrades.
And then—
Boom!
"—L-Lord! Forgive me for my lack of decorum, but—!"
"......Calm yourself. What is it?"
"A-A report from the scouting unit! A monster wave is expected in three hours!"
"...What?"
Margrave Cain’s expression hardened.
It hadn’t even been half a day since the last wave had ended.
And yet, another wave was already incoming?
Even if the Great Evil Spirit was summoning monsters, the knights had been slaughtering them just as quickly.
There was no way they should have been regenerating at this rate.
Which was why Cain was struggling to believe it.
But the report wasn’t over yet.
"A-And furthermore—"
The scout’s face twisted as he continued.
"—The estimated numbers are... Twelve thousand small-class monsters, sixty thousand mid-class monsters, and twenty thousand large-class monsters. In total, we estimate two hundred thousand monsters have been summoned...."
"......."
Even the soldier delivering the report hesitated, as if he himself couldn’t comprehend the sheer scale of what he was saying.
Cain, meanwhile, had lost all trace of composure.
Two hundred thousand.
That was an army.
A force comparable to a nation’s entire military might.
The warriors of Mordred were fearless even against ten thousand monsters.
But against twenty times that number?
Even they could only stand there, momentarily stunned.
But—
"A-And one more thing."
The scout’s voice trembled.
"They also confirmed... the being leading the two hundred thousand monsters."
"...No."
"Yes. It’s him."
Crack.
The soldier clenched his teeth in fury.
It was an act of disrespect.
But his hatred ran so deep that he could no longer restrain himself.
"—The pest."
"The Great Evil Spirit has broken free, my lord."
"......."
For a moment, Cain’s face became unreadable.
Like a man drowning beneath a monstrous wave, struggling to stay afloat.
But he was not the kind of ruler who would falter in front of his subordinates.
He had always been the type to stand tall, no matter the circumstances.
So, though he barely managed to suppress his emotions—
His clenched fist betrayed the turmoil within.
And then—
"Good."
Cain flinched.
His head snapped toward the source of the voice.
And he saw it.
"That saves me the trouble of going to him."
"......Hah."
It wasn’t just confidence in that voice.
There was audacity.
Cain found himself laughing dryly without even realizing it.
...Because somehow, even he felt a little less tense.
