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Iserin began to descend the stairs while channeling her power, trying to avoid any sensors or traps that might be set up on the steps.

Upon reaching the end of the stairs, she was confronted by a massive iron door. A glance told her that this hefty door could withstand even a bomb explosion; it also had a pad attached to it.

‘The door…’

[ Don’t worry. If you channel your power, you’ll find out the password. ]

‘Okay…’

Following Grimoire’s advice, Iserin channeled her power. Immediately, she began to see the remnants of human presence glowing on the pad before her eyes, sparkling in sequence as if she were playing a rhythm game.

Iserin pressed the numbers indicated by her power.

Beep.

With a booming sound, the door opened, revealing a passage that looked completely different from the darkened landscape above—an eerie tunnel reminiscent of a cave.

The ceiling, adorned with short stalactites, hung overhead, and the humid air filled her lungs. Somewhere, dripping water echoed with a consistent plop-plop sound.

An unidentified, eyeless insect scuttled across the floor while transparent shrimp swam in the pool of water collected on one side of the passage. Moss clung to the cave walls, and under the lighting, unfamiliar weeds had just begun to sprout. Among the leaves of the weeds, a caterpillar hung, munching carefully on the scarce food, while a moth, about the size of a human head, flitted around the lights, occasionally perching nearby to rest.

[ Adorable contractor. There are no traps here, but CCTV exists, so you mustn’t stop channeling your power. ]

‘Got it.’

Iserin walked through the creepy cave, ensuring that she wasn’t captured by the CCTV.

How long did she walk?

The naturally occurring cave turned into a modern research facility, revealing itself at last.

The ceiling, walls, and floor were all made of smooth, pristine white material, welcoming her.

Could it be that the cave was so distinctly separate? There were no insects or moss, so common in the cave, anywhere along the passage of the modern research facility, as if a barrier preventing them from entering existed.

Iserin wondered about the reasoning behind this and turned to Grimoire, signaling silently for an answer.

However, Grimoire didn’t provide a clear response to her question.

[ You will know the answer if you go back and read the paper titled “Considerations on Pest Control Using Magnetic Induction.” ]

Instead, she simply gave Iserin another task, meant to hasten her return.

‘…That’s unfair.’

[ It’s nice to hear secrets from others, but discovering them yourself is even better. That effort enhances the value of the secret. ]

Grimoire said. If she had simply told her the answer right away, Iserin would have just thought, “I see,” and moved on. However, exploring and rummaging through the paper later would allow her to acquire knowledge and deepen her understanding related to it.

This way, in the future, she could easily and profoundly understand secrets tied to such knowledge.

The way Grimoire acted felt like a devoted tutor teaching a student or a parent who cared for their child’s education.

‘Okay.’

Iserin, exasperated by the nagging, appeared just as any child would at that age.

And so, Iserin and Grimoire walked down the corridor amicably, as if it were their own home.

It felt like they were visiting a country house after a long time.

After walking and walking,

[ This is it. ]

They arrived at the destination, the place containing ‘something’ that Yesuhwa had desired before her regression.

It was a location holding some object made of energy refined from the facility.

‘Wow. It looks like a secret base from a movie…’

Iserin’s eyes widened in amazement at the vista before her.

Before her was a scene that reminded her of the villain’s secret research facility from a superhero movie that Iarin had dragged her into watching recently.

A space formed by a massive hall.

Pipes branched out in every direction from a gigantic glass container at the center.

At the ends of those pipes were unknown machines and experimental tables, while drawers filled with substances used for experiments lined the walls tightly. Throughout the hall, single-person ladders were parked, presumably for taking items out of the drawers, and small desks with wheels were littered with coffee and energy drinks likely consumed by the researchers.

‘Coffee and energy drinks… They must have been placed there not long ago. Did the school take a break together…?’

[ That’s not entirely wrong. But the real reason is likely due to a swarm of ants that infested the school. The ants, that gnawed at papers and experimental materials indiscriminately, would have become a problem if they got in here, so it seems they decided to take a break until they could find the source and deal with pest control. ]

‘Those ants… were pretty scary.’

Iserin nodded at Grimoire’s words.

Surely, nothing could have been more frightening for the researchers than losing their papers and materials.

That’s why they would’ve been forced into a break.

…Hmm.

It might not have been forced after all.

Since they said they were giving a sweet rest called a break, it might have been something they reluctantly accepted…

Iserin pondered while gazing at the glass container in the center of the hall.

Inside the glass container floated a single pearl.

Is it a culture solution?

Or a preservative for storage?

‘It feels like energy in that liquid.’

As she approached, she felt energy emanating from the glass container. No, the energy thrummed not from the glass container itself but from the liquid inside it.

It felt reminiscent of a mana battery or a liquid elixir.

‘Seems like it’s neither Qi nor…?’

However, curiously, the energy felt peculiar and didn’t seem like the typical energy-laden liquids one might see. Nor was it mana or Qi, perhaps a mix of everything… or perhaps energy in a form yet to take on a specific shape.

That strange feeling.

‘Æther?’

It felt akin to the energy ‘Æther’ that alchemists use, but while it gives off a sense that it could change anything, it also appeared to resist change, striving to maintain its form, making it challenging to express as simply Æther.

‘Qi?’

It’s not the energy that can be drawn from nature either.

The refined internal energy that enters the body isn’t it either.

‘Mana?’

It’s not the mana that sorcerers often use, either.

What should she call it?

What exactly would this be named?

Iserin peered curiously into the glass container.

Then, unable to contain her curiosity, her eyes sparkled as she started to search around using her power for materials related to this energy, attempting to find its name.

『 Chaos Essence. 』

A name that can be interpreted in various ways.

It could mean the essence of chaos from myths, or it could literally refer to the foundation of disorder.

Iserin’s eyes lit up upon seeing this term.

‘It seems impressive… I feel like Asha would like it…’

[ There are probably others who would like it besides just that bunny or Danbi. ]

‘Yeah. My younger sister… that foolish Iarin would likely like it too…!’

[ Most certainly. She has interest in things like heroes and robots, things that boys would typically enjoy. ]

‘Right.’

Iserin nodded at Grimoire’s remark and turned her gaze back to the glass container.

‘Chaos Essence… and the pearl within that Chaos Essence.’

[ Yes. You came here to acquire that. ]

Grimoire said as she looked at Iserin.

[ That’s called the ‘Fox Sphere.’ ]

 

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