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The Institute’s Mission
*Boom!* A powerful explosion resounded in the space-time tunnel. Hundreds of monsters failed to evade the powerful spell and were blown into pieces.
Headmistress Evelyn panted heavily. Even for her, using high-level spells repeatedly was very tiring. The current she had already used up most of her mana.
At that moment, the ground below her trembled. The headmistress’s expression changed and she quickly jumped aside. The next instant, a giant earthworm-like creature erupted from the ground and opened its mouth to devour her.
But before the worm could reach her, a flash of light lit up the space-time tunnel.
*Swing!* A sharp metallic sound was heard.
The next instant, the worm was cut into pieces and fell to the ground.
“Uff…” I took a deep breath and wiped my sweat. The earthworm-like monster was the last creature in the space-time tunnel. With it dead, the battle had ended.
Our surroundings were filled with grotesque corpses. Some of them were burned, others frozen, some had been cut into pieces, and others beheaded with a smooth sword strike. The corpses numbered in the tens of thousands.
We had spent more than two hours fighting the horde of monsters. To be honest, this was the most tiring fight I have had from the moment I reincarnated.
I looked at the headmistress and collapsed to the ground. My injuries had not healed yet, so I was a bit tired. Sleeping on the ground for a bit was not bad.
The headmistress cared a little bit more about her image, though. She sat cross-legged on the ground to recover her mana.
After resting for half an hour, she opened her eyes.
“How are you, Claus?” She asked.
“I have had better.” I answered with a wry smile and stood up. I then looked at my shirt that had been splashed with monsters’ blood and took it off.
“You… What are you doing?!” The headmistress shouted suddenly. I looked at her in surprise. “Changing my clothes, obviously.”
“I’m here!”
“… It’s just my shirt. What is the problem? Could it be… Have you never seen a naked man before?”
The headmistress’s face flushed. She looked at me with an enraged expression and turned away.
I put on a teasing smile before shrugging. I then finished changing my shirt calmly.
“I’m done.” I told her. Headmistress Evelyn snorted in displeasure, but her cheeks were slightly red.
I never expected that she was so innocent. I knew she had never married, but I thought she had experience with the opposite sex. After all, she had grabbed my hand before, on more than one occasion, and never showed any sign of embarrassment, so I thought she was used to it.
But seeing her current reaction, I could not help but smirk.
Well, the contrast between the dignified headmistress and the shy headmistress is pretty enticing.
Anyway, now was not the time for it.
“Will you explain to me what is happening now?” I asked.
Headmistress Evelyn looked at me and sighed. “We are inside a portal leading to another world. This portal first appeared hundreds of years ago, when the empire was just formed. From it emerged thousands of bloodthirsty monsters.
“The emperor of back then, together with his retainers, realized the danger of the portal. The emperor formed an army of one hundred thousand men and killed all the beasts coming out from the portal. Then, he led his army inside the portal with the goal of destroying the source of the beasts.
“However, the portal led the emperor to another world. Different from our world, that world was filled with miasma and savage monsters. The army of one hundred thousand was reduced to just ten thousand in less than one week.
“The emperor realized the danger of the other world and brought the remaining soldiers back. He then tried to destroy the portal, but not even the strongest mages and martial artists were enough.
“Without more options, he chose the second-best option, to seal the portal.
“However, although the portal to another world was filled with deadly dangers able to destroy the world, it also had many riches and opportunities. Inside the portal, the laws of the universe are in disorder, so it’s easier to comprehend them. Also, many rare resources and strange fruits with incredible effects can be found in the other world. Even the beasts that we killed just now, if we harvest each one of them, we can get a great number of magic stones and beast resources.
“Knowing that, the first emperor understood that if many people know about the portal, some of them would be tempted by greed, breaking the seal and bringing great danger to this world. So, he used a powerful magic to move the portal underground. Then, he got his most loyal retainer to guard the portal secretly.
“When the emperor died, he brought the location of the portal to his tomb. Nobody besides his most loyal retainer knew the location of the portal. His first retainer was the first headmaster of the imperial academy.
“Then, the first headmaster died and he passed his secret and mission to his successor. With the generations, each headmaster has been tasked with protecting the seal and stopping the other world’s creatures from invading this world. It’s our greatest mission.
“However, the creatures attacking the seal had been becoming stronger and stronger with the years, and the time between each attack had become much shorter. Currently, the seals are under attack once each month.
“That was the reason I brought you here.” Headmistress Evelyn explained.
I fell silent for a moment before answering. “So you hope that I help you.”
“Yes. You are beyond the twelfth-layer, so your strength is enough. I observed your actions in the last two days and you look like someone righteous, so I think you will not leak the secret.
“Besides, helping us with the seal is good for you too. You must have noticed already, but the mana here is many times denser than in the outside world, and it’s much easier to gain enlightenment of the laws. In fact, this place is one of the reasons that I broke through to the thirteenth layer at such a young age.”
I nodded. She is right. Space-time tunnels like this are very useful to cultivate. Cultivating here can be many times easier than in the outside world.
“… Are you not afraid that I’ll break the seals due to greed?”
The headmistress fell silent for a while before sighing. “To be honest, I’m afraid the seal will be unable to endure for long to this rate. Even if you destroy the seals, the disaster will only ocurr a bit earlier.”
“… I’m sure that the empire will lend a hand if they know about the situation.”
“No. If they know about the location of the portal, they’ll try to march to the other world without hesitation. You probably don’t know, but the imperial family and the nobles have been searching for the location of the portal for many years. They think that the other world can have the secrets to eternal life.”
I nodded my head. Evelyn was right. Even if the empire helps to control the situation at the start, their greed will probably end causing a disaster.
After all, human greed has caused too much destruction throughout the years.
The headmistress stared right into my eyes and opened her lips. “What is your answer?”
I fell silent for a brief while. “… Okay, I agree.”
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