“Is there really no other clue?” Just as both were lost in thought, Midir's gaze suddenly landed on the wall level with his eyes. There seemed to be a slight, unusual anomaly that caught his attention.
He walked quickly to the wall and gently wiped away a layer of frost covering the surface. As the frost vanished, he saw a flower in full bloom embedded within the crystal-like wall, as if frozen in time, forever preserved in its most brilliant state.
After thinking for only a moment, Midir made up his mind. He flattened his hand into a blade, focused a large amount of Power of Creation at his fingertips, and thrust it toward the wall.
Neutralized by the Power of Creation, his palm successfully pierced the hard stone wall. After some effort, he managed to dig out the crystal-encased flower along with a portion of the surrounding rock.
Aila was drawn over by his actions, staring blankly at the crystal-covered flower in his hand.
Through the thin layer of crystal, one could see the lily-like flower still in full bloom. Its entire body was an ethereal blue, looking breathtakingly beautiful under the surrounding fluorescent light.
“This flower... I think I’ve seen it somewhere before.” Aila gazed at it, her eyes shimmering with curiosity and the light of memory. “I think it was... back home? But I’m not entirely sure.”
“This color... isn't it a lot like your eyes?” Midir said subconsciously after glancing at her.
Hearing this, Aila couldn't help but show a surprised expression. Looking into his serious eyes, she didn't know what to say for a moment.
In the end, Midir was the one to snap out of it and break the awkward silence.
“Let’s see if anything else is hidden in these walls. Let's look together.” With that, he turned and began searching the other walls carefully.
However, their luck wasn't as good this time. Even after the two of them turned the small room upside down, they failed to find any more valuable clues.
Left with no choice, they had to temporarily set aside this unsolved mystery, leave the enigmatic room, and continue along the canyon.
As they walked, Midir fiddled with the blue lily in his hand.
The sense of familiarity that the room had evoked in him earlier had only been a fleeting moment, so brief that it felt somewhat surreal.
“Could it be that I’ve been here before? Or maybe...” He speculated silently but ultimately didn't voice his feelings.
The environment within the canyon remained almost unchanged. They didn't know how long they had been walking when they finally saw a different sight.
Ahead seemed to be the end of the rift valley. A trumpet-shaped opening appeared, and a massive Great White Wall towering into the sky blocked their path.
Unlike the starlit crystal walls on either side, this wall was a pure, flawless white, as if completely covered in snowflakes. It was a breathtaking sight.
The two reached its base and stared blankly at the Great White Wall that split the rift valley in two.
“I don't see an exit. Did we go the wrong way?” Aila quickly circled the white wall, carefully observing how it blended perfectly with the side walls without a single crack. This left her feeling somewhat frustrated.
She looked up; the top of the wall was as smooth as a mirror, without even a hint of unevenness. It didn't look like a natural creation at all.
While Aila wandered around exploring, Midir fell into deep thought. The appearance of this white wall was too unnatural, and he vaguely felt that something very important behind it was drawing him in.
“Aila, do you feel anything strange behind this wall?” He couldn't help but ask, trying to share this inexplicable sensation.
“No, I don't feel anything different at all. I can't even judge its material or thickness, and no particular sounds or scents are coming from inside,” Aila said, shaking her head as she detailed her findings.
“You don't have that feeling? But I keep thinking there’s something back there... Could it be...” At this point, Midir seemed to think of something. He stepped forward and pressed his hands, covered in a red glow, against the wall.
This time, his hands didn't sink in like they had with the crystal walls. Instead, the Power of Creation was silently absorbed into the surface upon contact with the pure white wall.
Just as he was fully focused on sensing everything, the surrounding crystal walls suddenly burst with brilliant light. Like activated neon lights, colorful streams of light flowed from the direction they had come, decorating the entire space like a dream.
“Wow! You have to admit, this is pretty beautiful! How did you do that?” Seeing the sudden streams of light, Aila’s beautiful blue eyes widened, and she shouted subconsciously.
But Midir was just as confused. The Power of Creation he released was still steadily seeping into the wall, providing him with no feedback at all.
Just as he thought it was a futile effort and prepared to stop, magenta outlines emerged where his hands were pressed.
Soon, the red outlines gradually grew larger, and a faint vibration traveled through his palms. It felt as if a heart were starting to beat inside the wall.
As the frequency of the vibrations increased, the outlines on the wall became even clearer. In Midir’s eyes, it appeared to be a massive magic formation, and its construction was surprisingly close to the methods he knew.
One had to realize that aside from the most basic parts of magic, every person's constructed magic formation would be more or less unique. Yet, the massive formation before him was ninety percent similar to his own, which was undoubtedly shocking.
The rhythm coming from his hands gave Midir the feeling of meeting an old friend, as if the wall were gently whispering something to him.
Aila also withdrew her gaze from the beautiful lights on the sides and looked at the red magic formation that had suddenly appeared.
Time passed second by second. Midir had already injected most of the Power of Creation from his body into the wall, but the formation only became more prominent without any sign of opening.
This feeling of endless giving without immediate reward made even a powerhouse like Midir feel exhausted.
Sweat seeped from his forehead and immediately condensed into ice particles in the biting cold, coating his face in a thin layer of frost.
Aila saw this and grew anxious, but she was powerless to help. She could only support him silently with a worried gaze, praying for a turning point.
After several more long minutes, just as Midir’s strength was nearly depleted, a low and clear “thump” came from deep within the wall, as if some seal had been quietly undone.
Immediately after, centered on where his hands touched, the white wall began to take on a crystalline luster, becoming transparent as if endowed with life.
At the same time, the once-prominent red magic formation began to rotate and shrink, eventually transforming into a slowly spinning portal.
The doorway glowed with a strange light, leading to an unknown destination, but Midir was certain there was no danger behind it. After calming his power slightly, he turned to Aila.
“Go on. You can go in first. It’ll be fine. I need to close this door from behind.”
Aila stared at the slightly exhausted Midir, a flash of heartache in her eyes. However, she quickly nodded, gave him a look of trust, and resolutely stepped into the unknown portal.
Once Aila had fully passed through, Midir slowly released his hands, cutting off the connection of Power of Creation with the wall.
Almost at the same instant, the spinning portal began to shrink rapidly.
He took a deep breath, adjusted his state, and then leaped into the gateway before it completely vanished.
With his entry, the vortex settled completely, and the wall returned to its pure, flawless white as if nothing had ever happened. Silence returned to the canyon, leaving only two rows of shallow footprints silently telling the tale of their presence.
Rate on N.U.
