A gigantic hand appeared.
It exuded a magical power far beyond anything I could compare to.
That power poured down on me.
The enormous hand stretched out toward me, its fingers spreading wide.
Looking at those fingertips sent a chill down my spine.
The hand was a cluster of countless fingers, writhing as they clung to the palm, reaching toward me.
If I were caught, my soul would be ripped apart—just as it had before.
Clenching the key in my hand tightly, I steeled myself.
If it didn’t react, I would have to flee.
Several mirror beetles hovered nearby, flashing light-filled images of text and drawings at the hand.
But it didn’t respond.
It only continued to approach hungrily, intent on capturing me.
Even when I used my magic to communicate, the power was absorbed by its fingers and vanished without a trace.
The creature obeyed only its instincts, lunging at me without hesitation.
I had already suspected as much when I first saw it.
A strange magic radiated from its fingers, beginning to entangle me.
The cluster of fingers tightened its grip as if preparing to devour me whole.
And then, in that moment, a line was drawn.
A slash cut through space itself, severing the reaching fingers.
Cassian stood in front of me, her black hair swaying lightly.
She raised her sword and faced the creature.
Though its fingers regenerated instantly, it hesitated.
Cassian swung her sword again, creating another line that cleanly sliced through the regenerating fingers.
She glanced at me with a sly smile.
“Well? As expected, it’s not responding, is it?”
She turned back to the creature, her lips curling into a mischievous grin.
The fingers had regenerated again, but this time, the creature hesitated, seeming unsure.
‘Has it gained a sliver of reason?’
I sent a signal to the mirror beetles.
They flashed once more, conveying a message of peace.
But the hesitation was brief.
The creature ignored my signal and lunged again.
Cassian intercepted it.
“This one’s a lost cause. Let’s retreat for now.”
I spread my magic.
The mirror beetles received the signal and returned to my side.
I channeled magic into the key in my hand, pressing it against the air.
A portal formed as the key glowed.
Sensing an escape route, the creature went berserk, hurling itself toward us.
But the barrier surrounding the portal stopped it, slamming it to the ground.
I tossed a piece of paper toward it, watching as it drifted down nearby.
“If you regain your senses later, take a look at that. If you act the same way next time, I’ll consider you a lost cause.”
The creature twitched and began to rise.
I turned away and stepped through the portal.
Cassian followed close behind.
***
Beyond the portal, silence reigned.
A vast hall surrounded us, lined with countless doors.
This was the sixth floor’s treasure vault.
I glanced back at the door we had just exited.
Inscribed above it, in what looked like a professor’s scribbled handwriting, were the words:
[Room 2 – Roughly, a collection of things that eat people.]
The door was once again tightly sealed, locked away.
No doubt, the hand was still thrashing behind it.
“What a shame. That one used to have a bit of reason before. Oh, right! If we feed it, it might regain its senses. Should we try?”
Cassian beamed, her eyes sparkling with an unfamiliar liveliness.
She suddenly clung to me.
I caught her easily, but her expression shifted, looking slightly startled.
“Uh, um… Could you not grab me like that, please? This is still my body, after all…”
Before I could respond, her face changed again, a mischievous grin replacing her hesitation—one that Mira often wore.
She pressed even closer, wrapping herself around me.
“Hmm, weren’t you supposed to entrust your body to me while in the treasure vault? That was the deal, wasn’t it? Hehe, now that things are like this, why don’t we fully enjoy the moment?”
She winked playfully.
“Evron, what do you think? This body isn’t so bad, is it?”
She puffed out her chest with a smug smile.
I stepped back, shaking my head.
There was no time for games.
“Enough joking. We have work to do. Time is short.”
I glanced at her body.
A faint tremor ran through it.
Blocking that massive hand must have taken a toll.
The waiting dolls poured magic into her, helping her recover.
The work wasn’t over yet.
We had to move.
I recorded the encounter in the mirror beetle.
The creature had been manageable, but hostile.
It earned a rank of Level 2, hostile entity.
Next time, we could finalize its classification.
Cassian—no, the spirit within her, Mira—smirked as she read my notes.
“Hmm, now I’m curious. Have you written anything about me in there?”
I nodded, showing her the record.
[Sixth Floor, Room 2 – Mist Heart, Level 3, Friendly Entity.]
“Level 3 is the highest for now. That’s the ceiling I set for the sixth floor. I’ve been using you as a reference to rank the treasures.”
“Oh? I like that.”
She smiled in satisfaction.
With her still hanging onto my arm, I turned back to the door.
We had to enter again before the hand realized.
We had to move quickly, slipping past unnoticed.
A faint mist rose from her body, flickering softly.
It wasn’t enough to emit power freely, but it would be enough to evade the hand’s senses.
“Let’s go back in. We have three more treasures to check.”
I glanced at the list inscribed on the door.
We had examined seven so far.
Only one had been remotely communicative.
The rest had forced us into constant battles.
Maybe this time would be different.
The next treasure was ‘The Eye That Hung Upon the Stars.’
It might actually understand us.
Lifting the key, I watched as it glowed brightly, seemingly enjoying the process of opening and closing doors.
I inserted the key.
The barrier around the door faded, and it slowly creaked open, revealing what lay beyond.
***
As I had hoped, it could communicate—though persuasion was necessary.
The surrounding air shimmered with gray magic, remnants of the wraiths that had been cut down.
Cassian had slain about a hundred of them to reach the eye’s core.
The enormous eye, like a vast lake, stared at us.
At first, it ignored my signals, continuously attacking.
Which made sense.
To it, I was nothing more than an ant waving its antennae.
‘Why would it respond?’
If Mira hadn’t restrained it, it would have crushed me without hesitation.
I handed it a piece of paper before stepping back outside.
Cassian stumbled slightly.
Her body needed rest.
The dolls quickly surrounded her, pouring in restorative magic.
The eye had been powerful.
Mira signaled that she could hold out for only two minutes before reaching her limit.
I recorded it as a Level 3 entity, on the verge of surpassing that rank.
Two treasures remained.
One had ignored every signal, attacking relentlessly.
We had no choice but to flee.
The other had been relatively amicable.
It had clicked its teeth, possibly in an attempt at speech.
I had left a map for it, just as I had for the others.
The plan was to gather all interested treasures and conduct discussions in one go.
After resting, we followed the map’s coordinates.
Three treasures awaited us—a long tongue, a massive eye, and a necklace of fanged teeth.
Just as I had predicted, these were the ones who had shown some willingness to communicate.
“Thank you all for coming. I appreciate your cooperation.”
I bowed slightly.
They pulsed with magic, signaling something incomprehensible.
I released a few mirror beetles, sending them to hover near the treasures.
“These little ones will help. If you channel magic into them, they’ll interpret your will into simple text. The same applies in reverse.”
My words were reflected in the mirror worms and expressed in writing.
It became a kind of reversal, transmitted back to them.
They, too, began leaving messages within it with awkward gestures.
[Eye Hanging from a Star]: “This? Is this correct?”
[Tongue of Unknown Origin]: “dldirlwhgektjdrhdwjr”
[Tooth Necklace]: “What an excellent means of communication. This is truly astonishing. I’ve been frustrated all this time, unable to speak, but with this, I can communicate freely. Oh, I see it can do more than just writing.”
(A neatly arranged drawing of teeth, resembling a smile)
(A depiction of teeth clacking together)
“Like this, for example. Oh, I really like this. Are there other functions? Oh, this too? Amazing. I love it.”
I smirked.
That Tooth Necklace adapted remarkably quickly.
It was pouring out an immense amount of text like a downpour.
The newly opened message board for the treasures was rapidly filling up with its words.
“We are gathering those who can communicate like this to create a structured system for interaction. Please wait; soon, other areas will be connected as well. Many treasures will gather here.”
[Tooth Necklace]: “Oh, communication? I was already dreading the thought of being stuck with these frustrating companions, but what a great opportunity! Thank you very much. But… is that all?”
The Tooth Necklace began clacking wildly.
A sharp, refined magic emanated from within it.
I shook my head calmly.
“Of course not. Do you think I gave you this just for conversation? Rather, I have a proposal for you.”
I smiled lightly as I spoke.
I could feel their focus turning toward me.
“Don’t you want to escape this stifling chamber and see the world once more? I can provide that opportunity.”
At my words, they grew excited, releasing a flood of magic.
The mirror worms struggled to process the meaning of their magic properly.
Instead, they began breaking down under its pressure.
I hurriedly waved my hands to stop them.
“You must not destroy the mirror worms. I put great effort into making them. Please handle them with care. No embedding consciousness into them, and no devouring them.”
At my warning, they calmed down a little.
The mirror worms trembled slightly as they began to restore their damaged parts.
I was glad I had embedded various defensive enchantments in them just in case something like this happened.
“Writing on them is fine. However, if I determine that anything negatively affects the message board or the worms, I will immediately sever the connection and imprison you in the warehouse permanently. Please keep that in mind.”
[Tooth Necklace]: “Of course, of course! Who would do such a foolish thing?”
Reading that, my pupils twitched slightly.
Mira watched the creature with amusement, while the Tooth Necklace averted its gaze from hers.
They continued their conversation, and I responded with a smile.
Even so, a cold sweat ran down my back.
These treasures were still releasing their magic toward me.
That tongue, in particular, was even drooling, dissolving the floor beneath it.
There was no doubt—they were feeling an intense hunger for me.
However, they did not recklessly attack.
Part of it was because of Mira by my side, and part of it was because they had grown interested in what I had to say.
The tongue was classified as Rank 1, the necklace as Rank 2, and the eye as Rank 3.
For now, they were all categorized as indeterminate entities.
Since they thrived on consuming life, their exact nature was difficult to determine.
A sinister aura rippled through the magic pooled on the floor.
I took a subtle half-step back and checked the mirror worms.
They had left vague signs of affirmation.
It seemed that I had successfully taken the first step.
I lightly brushed my fingers over the key in my hand.
Now that my goal was accomplished, it was time to leave.
I had no desire to linger in front of them for too long.
“Then, I will visit again next time. If you need anything, use the worms to contact me. If it’s monsters you’re looking for, I may be able to provide them. After all, isn’t it nice to help each other out?”
[Tooth Necklace]: “Can you not take us out? Like the one beside you? That would be wonderful.”
The necklace clacked its teeth.
At its words, Mira covered her mouth and laughed.
“Oh-ho, you should have seized the opportunity first. You and I are in entirely different positions now. Look at this body—isn’t it beautiful?”
She spun around once, showing herself off proudly.
The treasures released an even stronger wave of magic at the sight.
I pulled her closer and bowed my head toward them.
“The professor has strictly forbidden taking out any other treasures. I would love to help, but unfortunately, that is beyond my power. Now, I will take my leave.”
With that, I left the room.
I could open doors anywhere, but there was no need to show them that.
They remained where they were, examining the mirror worms.
Meanwhile, we stepped out of their sight, opened a door, and exited the chamber.
***
The sixth floor was still eerily peaceful.
My tense body slowly began to relax.
I slumped onto the ground with a heavy sigh.
Mira climbed onto my back lightly.
“That went quite well.”
I nodded.
It was our first visit, yet we had achieved an unexpected success.
Mira had a good reason for strongly recommending this plan.
I hadn’t expected so many treasures to be capable of conversation.
“I wonder why they were so frenzied last time. We can communicate so well now.”
Mira chuckled softly at my words.
She stretched out her hand and placed it over my chest.
“Because their intelligence was dormant. They never had the opportunity to awaken it. Last time, they were too intoxicated by your scent, Evron.”
Hearing that, I felt a bitter taste rise in my mouth.
The scent of the soul—she always spoke of it.
Yet, I still had no grasp of what exactly it entailed.
I fiddled with the key in my hand.
Still, as long as I had this, there was no need to worry.
Its protection was formidable, even shielding me from the connections of the Shadow Tree to a certain extent.
If those creatures tried to invade my core through the mirror worms, I simply had to sever the connection.
There would be some damage, but I would not die.
“Well then, since today’s task is done, I suppose it’s time to return to my confined body.”
Mira stood up and approached the doll her original body was housed in.
It lay motionless on the bed as if asleep.
She placed a hand over its chest.
A thick fog began to emerge from Cassian’s body, flowing seamlessly into the doll.
The doll’s eyes slowly opened.
At the same time, Cassian collapsed onto the floor.
The teddy bear waiting nearby caught her.
“Mph!” She let out a small yelp.
Even that light impact seemed to cause her considerable pain.
It was understandable—dealing with treasures was no easy task.
It was something beyond her limits.
Still, Cassian looked satisfied.
She raised her trembling hand and waved it around, seemingly replicating Mira’s movements.
Then, she looked at Mira.
“Sister, this is fun.”
Mira gently patted her head while adjusting Cassian’s posture.
“Just like this. But be careful—using your body this way will wear it out quickly.”
Guided by Mira, Cassian twisted her arm in an unnatural direction.
When she swung it, a powerful shockwave resonated through the air.
A force beyond human limits was contained within that motion.
Mira never moved like a human when facing treasures.
‘What could I call it?’ It was as if she squeezed every ounce of life out of Cassian’s body.
Her blood, muscles, and flesh—everything was twisted solely to execute a single sword strike.
It was an inhuman, almost grotesque movement.
She treated the body as a disposable tool.
But thanks to that, she could stand against the treasures.