Chapter 44: Just chill out, Duke Voulstridge

The remaining broken mana lamps flickered weakly. Across the floor, pieces of wood from the destroyed bookshelf and table were scattered.

Pieces of wood from the destroyed table were scattered across the floor.

The crack had completely disappeared, and nothing was left.

There was no light, no mana, and no traces of the ice girl, Arielle.

Duke Voulstridge stood up and looked at me. He was now calm and went back to the serious Lord that everybody knew.

"You must bring her back."

The Duke’s voice was calm but spoke with authority. I knew that Duke Voulstridge was not a man who easily showed emotion.

But now, something had still not changed and was still visible in his eyes.

It was fear, real fear.

"My Lord," I slowly raised both my hands, "I need to tell you something."

"Hmm." The Duke waited.

"Your daughter didn’t just teleport." I pointed toward the empty space. "She was pulled through the crack opening."

The Duke chuckled. "Isn’t it obvious?"

I frowned, realizing my stupidity.

Duke Voulstridge’s eyes narrowed at me. "Are you planning to continue your stupidity or bring my daughter back?"

Stupidity? Okay. That hurts.

I crossed my arms and thought for a moment.

"Both," I said, staring directly into the Duke’s eyes.

He took a deep breath. "Sigh. Fine. Just do everything you can."

I simply nodded and started to walk toward the center of the room where Arielle had disappeared.

Most people wouldn’t be able to notice, but the floor still held traces of Arielle’s mana. Thanks to Locksmith’s Eye, I was able to see the faint thread of mana.

I kneeled and placed my finger against the floor. The thin mana thread moved away from my fingertips.

I tried to connect my golden mana to Arielle’s mana thread, but nothing happened.

I breathed slowly and tried again.

But no reaction, still nothing.

I frowned due to disappointment.

The Duke came closer. "What is it?"

I looked up. "The crack’s path is gone. Arielle didn’t manage to leave a stable connection behind."

The Duke’s expression darkened.

"Explain," he said in a cold tone.

I stood up and continued. "We all know that normal teleportation leaves stable traces for ten minutes before becoming completely untraceable."

"And then?"

I breathed out and continued. "There are no mana traces left here. Whatever took your daughter didn’t use normal teleportation."

The Duke remained silent before he spoke.

"Now tell me, Silvester, what is inside your pouch."

I gulped and felt the objects inside my magic pouch. The three Spatial Crystals were still vibrating, but not violently anymore.

"Can we talk about it later? We still need to-"

"Don’t make me say it twice, Silvester," he said as ice crystals started to build up on his fist.

I sighed and raised both hands. "Fine! Fine. Chill out."

The Duke’s eyes narrowed as I opened the pouch and pulled out the wooden box.

I opened it slowly, and the Space Crystals rested inside.

"Where... where did you get those?!" Duke Voulstridge stared.

"It’s a long story." I smiled weakly.

He might be thinking that a child just went wild and went illegal.

The Duke took one step forward.

"Do you know what would happen if the Royal Guards found out?!" The Duke’s voice raised, and he took a step closer.

"I know," I said casually.

The Duke’s jaw tightened, and his look screamed danger. "Who gave them to you?!"

"Like I said, it’s a long story," I said, closing the box.

I quickly raised a hand when sharp ice materialized in front of me.

"Woah! Calm down! Before you threaten me, My Lord, I would like to remind you that your daughter is missing."

The Duke stopped, and the ice shards vanished.

That was close.

"The crystals reacted when the crack opened," the Duke whispered, staring at the box. "Can they trace her?"

I didn’t answer immediately.

Maybe? But I needed to understand why they reacted. From what I knew, Space Crystals were discovered centuries ago when a spatial mage cast a spell near an unknown crystal.

And the reaction was normal.

However, Arielle’s mana caused all three crystals to go wild at the same time.

It only meant that her mana had a strong connection to space, possibly stronger than I expected.

"I need a private room. A secured one," I said, keeping the box inside the magic pouch.

"You are standing inside my estate, kid. It’s private."

I slowly nodded. "If you say so."

"Follow me." The Duke turned toward the door and walked out.

Before leaving, I looked at the same empty space one more time.

Before leaving, I looked at the empty space one more time.

Ice girl. Where did you go?

The Duke didn’t take me toward the main hall. Instead, he led me through several quiet corridors where I had never been.

The estate seemed different now. Before, servants were moving through the halls, elite guards were standing near wooden doors, and maids were carrying food and supplies.

Now, the right wing was uncrowded and quiet.

I followed him in silence as only the sound of our boots echoed across the corridors.

Finally, we reached a large door at the end of the hallway.

The Duke stopped, so I did too. He was just standing in front of a door. It was a black iron door, with no design and no knob.

His right hand touched the door, a thin blue symbol appeared, and an invisible lock opened.

Click.

My eyes immediately narrowed at the mechanism. It wasn’t a normal lock because there was no visible keyhole.

Instead, the symbol acted as an identification system.

’Interesting,’ I thought. From my previous life, identification systems run by codes were common, but witnessing one in this world was fascinating.

I never thought something like this existed here.

The door recognized the Duke’s mana and slowly opened.

The room revealed itself.

It was a library. Shelves filled the massive room from floor to ceiling.

There were thousands of books, and several ladders moved along metal rails. Mana lamps were floating above the reading tables.

It was peaceful and absolutely beautiful.

I slowly stepped inside while the Duke watched me closely.

"You like it?" the Duke said while his eyes roamed around.

I walked toward the nearest shelf and slowly touched some books.

"Shut up. I’m having a moment."