Chapter 39

(Witch) Felicia’s Power

“…Wait, hold on a moment.”

Instinctively, I thrust out my right palm.
My other hand pressed against my forehead.

(In the past, His Highness Lian made contact with me…?)
He cast some kind of magic on me, and he was the one who placed the barrier on that room…?

I closed my eyes, sinking into deep thought.

“…”

In my mind, I imagined a light pop-pop-chime sound.

“No, no matter how you look at it, that’s absurd! I mean, to begin with, we don’t even know why I crossed time in the first place!”

I stood up abruptly.
The chair clattered loudly.

As I stood there, flustered, His Highness Lian began speaking with calm composure.

“The ability to cross time… let’s call it [Time Leap] for brevity. If we assume it’s your ability, it’s not such an outlandish idea.”

“But—Your Highness Lian, you live in the Lumos Empire. I’m a person from five hundred years ago. There’s no place where you and I could have crossed paths in the past!”

“If, from now on, I were to cross time with you and make contact with the past you… wouldn’t that resolve the question?”

“—”

His firm declaration made me catch my breath.
It was a completely unexpected idea.

(His Highness Lian… crossing time with me?)

To five hundred years ago, to the Kingdom of Tsoabella—
Stunned, he gave a troubled smile.

“My apologies. That was a bit too sudden. It’s a bad habit of mine. Once I form a hypothesis, I want to know immediately if it’s correct. I’m not trying to rush you for an answer.”

He paused, pressing a finger to his chin as if in thought.
Then, tilting his head, he looked at me.

“For now, let’s set aside the talk of time leaping. First, I’d like to investigate the reason and mechanism behind your time crossing, as well as the room you were in. We’ll proceed from there.”

He was likely being considerate, seeing how overwhelmed I was.
Indeed, I was in a state of utter chaos, so his kindness was a lifeline.

My eyes were probably spinning, and I might even be on the verge of a fever from overthinking.

Past and future. Parallel worlds.
Timelines. Time paradoxes.
Möbius strips, even the grandfather paradox—I was spiraling into all of it, so his thoughtfulness was immensely, immensely helpful.

My mind was a chaotic clearance sale of confusion.

Letting out a slow breath, I decided to switch gears decisively.

(…Alright!! I’ll think about it later.)

For now, I’d push the complicated issues to the back burner.

What I needed to focus on now—
Recalling the interior of the Tower of Grief, my room, a sudden question struck me, and I asked His Highness Lian.

“Your magic traces disappear after thirty minutes, right?”

“Yes.”

He nodded, and I pressed a finger to my lips.

“…Then, wouldn’t the magic traces in the room have already vanished?”

It hadn’t even been a full day since I woke, but thirty minutes had long passed.

Way, way past.
The magic traces would surely be gone by now.,

Realizing this belatedly and asking, His Highness Lian nodded as if just considering it, saying, “Ah.”
Then, in a calm voice, he continued.

“In that case—there’s likely no issue. Based on your account, Lady Felicia, there seems to be a significant time disparity between that room and the outside world. When you were secluded in the room for five days, five hundred years passed outside, correct?”

I nodded in response, and he continued with a “Then.”

“Roughly, one hour inside the room equates to 4.17 years outside. My magic traces linger for about thirty minutes, so—”

He held up two fingers.

“In outside time, that’s approximately two years. At the very least, my magic traces should remain inside for about two years.”

“I… see?”

If time flows differently inside and outside the room, thirty minutes inside would equate to two years outside… something like that?

But to calculate that on the spot, he must be good with numbers.

(He’s been interested in magical studies since childhood and studied diligently… so maybe he’s good at calculations too?)

With that thought, I asked further.

“So, you’re saying your magic traces should still be inside the Tower of Grief?”

“If I made contact with the past you, used magic, and the time-leaping magic wasn’t undone when you left the room, then yes. …That’s why your cooperation is essential.”

He paused, looking up at me directly.

“If the magic hasn’t been undone—one minute inside the room equates to twenty-five days and ten days outside, or roughly a month.”

He gave a wry smile, shrugging with a troubled expression.

“That makes investigation impossible. Staying inside would cause outside time to pass in an instant. Five minutes inside would be five months outside. It’s far too risky. …So, Lady Felicia, I need your power.”

Author’s Note:

As usual, I aimed for a completion at around 130,000 characters, but it’s looking impossible, so I’m giving up gracefully.

Your feedback is incredibly motivating.

Thank you for the reactions, bookmarks, and ratings. I’ll keep writing with all my effort!!