It appeared...

'How the hell is that possible? 'Even if he wanted to believe it, Aiden's words did not make any sense. 'How can a path through the mine lead to another planet?'

"Could it be an underground cave?" Kaiser tried to find a convincing answer to Aiden's description.

However, Aiden shook his head. After pouring the potion on the wound, he wrapped it. "Then how can you explain the wind there?"

Kaiser was about to say something, but Aiden didn't give him a chance, "Even if there's an air vein connecting to the surface, there's no way to explain the red and blue moon of the sky."

'And from the sky, ESS confirmed that it was a new system of stars, different from both Earth and Planet Will.' But Aiden chose not to talk about it.

The frown on his face grew deeper, as Kaiser tried to contemplate all the points he had heard. It took a moment, but soon there was a smile on his face.

"Magic," he said, "Magic could have been the key."

"Magic?" Aiden's brows twitched a little, "How might the magic be so powerful that it could create the sky?"

"I have heard that there is an archmage in the North Continent that can control the weather," Kaiser talked about the rumour he had while trading with one of the northern merchants.

'The North Continent? But how could a human being be so powerful that he controls the weather himself? 'Aiden was at the same time confused and intrigued. But he didn't forget about the matter in his hand.

"Doing it inside the cave meant that it was an illusion ... but it didn't like one." Aiden wasn't sure that it was the same situation as when he was under the control of the elephant sloth, but...

[There is no trace of the tempering of memory]

'Yes, that's it.' Aiden was now sure that it wasn't an illusion, or that he was under someone's control, 'otherwise, ESS wouldn't have been with me.'

He couldn't give this logic to Kaiser again. He did not intend to expose the presence of the system.

"Even if you were in the illusion, you wouldn't have known." Kaiser pointed to his wound before he said, "and one of those dogs might have bitten you."

"Are you saying that the difference in time is also due to the illusion?"

Kaiser nodded to his questions. It was the only plausible explanation for him.

"Do you want to come with me?" Aiden refused to believe that he was hallucinating and his tone made it clear.

But the expected refusal of Kaiser did not come. It was just like he was thinking about it. It took a moment before he said, "We should."

"Huh!" Although Aiden had asked him to go there with a little resentment, he never thought Kaiser would have accepted it.

"I still think it was an underground cave or something, but even if it wasn't, there might be some remains of the ancient ruins. We should check it out," Kaiser said in a serious tone.

"But that's got to wait. For now, our main criteria are to mine the crystal." Kaiser said, "You should rest now. Recover your energy. If we have time after excavating the crystal, I will go with you."

Leaving his words, Kaiser went to the slaves. Even if the slaves did their work, their energy wasn't endless. On top of that, the most powerful person was Kaiser, and he had no intention of sitting around.

The work progressed much faster with his help. He did most of the breakings, and the slaves sorted it out.

**********

[1 day 7 hours until the time limit will expire.]

"We've got about 30 hours before we have to leave the mine," Aiden said to Kaiser. "Has the needed amount been excavated?"

Kaiser answered with a nod, "More than enough. They could just rest for a few hours as we looked at the place."

Aiden checked his stuff quickly. The blade, portions, a couple of wind crystals and a leather shirt made of an unknown beast. Though he had to strap it with a pair of ropes, Aiden still felt it was better than nothing.

"Are you ready now?" Kaiser couldn't help smiling at the serious Aiden.

Looking at Aiden's lax reaction, he frowned, "Listen to me. Don't engage with the enemy. Don't leave the cave. We'll just check the sky and the statue if it's clear and come back as soon as possible."

Kaiser nodded as they walked into the cave. Aiden braced for impact as the notification sounded.

[The mana concentration is increased by 72%]

[Mana circulation rate increased by 51%]

[Mana recovery rate: 4 mana/minute]

Aiden could feel the change in his body even without it. He looked at Kaiser to confirm that he was all right.

"We didn't even take more than a step, but ..." Looking behind Kaiser, he could still see the light from the cavern, "How could there be such an effect?" The smile that was left in him vanished. He was very serious right now.

Looking at him, Aiden might as well gloat. It was his problem, too. 'ESS, check the concentration at every minute.'

"Isn't it colder?"

"This could also be the mana effect," Aiden said as they moved further into the darkness.

Just like last time, this was an uneventful journey. Other than the continuous increase in mana concentration, there wasn't much problem.

[The mana concentration is increased by 97%]

[Mana circulation rate is 37% higher than normal.]

[Mana recovery rate: 3 mana/minute]

As the repeated notification appeared once again, it jumped out the shadow. It was very swift, but Aiden was much faster.

[The host has activated innate skill [Light Foot]]

As long as his mana was not suppressed as in that mysterious land, its effect was unmistakable. Even before they could see the actual form Aiden had cut it in half.

Kaiser was also transformed into a bear. He was quick to check his back, and he turned back after he found that there was no enemy.

"It's just a three-eyed dog." Kaiser, realizing something, said, "Perhaps it was the one who had bitten you the last time."

Aiden had no intention of arguing with him as he continued to lead the way. But then the change has happened.

"Is it just me or is the pressure reduced?" Kaiser asked, "Did something like this happen yesterday?"

[The mana concentration is increased by 57%]

[Mana circulation rate increased by 62%]

[Mana recovery rate: 5 mana/minute]

"What?" He couldn't remember any such instances. Aiden couldn't help but frown as he increased his speed. No matter what he wanted, the pressure continued to reduce as they progressed. And they were forced to stop.

"What is this?" Kaiser moved to the end of the cave. But Aiden could not explain what he saw in front of him.

"This is a wall. No, this is the end of the cave." Kaiser smiled at Aiden and said, "We found the end of the cave."

"What is this?" Aiden asked the same question, but the tone was different.

The crystals were still there, sprouting from all sides, leaving the same strip of land in the middle, but that was the only resemblance.

The suffocating pressures that almost forced him to kneel were not there. The high mana concentration that stopped the circulation of mana inside his body was not there either.

And there was no open meadow or wooden statue. Unable to believe what he saw, Aiden touched the end wall.

What was amazing was that there was no crystal on it, but there was no way to prove that it was made recently.

"Was I hallucinating?" Aiden asked.

"Higher mana concentration may have led to hallucinations. It's not the first time I've heard of it." Kaiser put his hand on Aiden's back and said, "It's good that nothing has happened to you."

Seeing the stubbornness in his eyes, Kaiser sighed, "Aiden, we should go back first. It's been almost two hours since we left. We should return."

Until the end, Aiden had failed to believe it, but there was nothing he could do about it. As Kaiser walked back along the path they had come, Aiden turned around with a sigh, and then...

All the hair on his body was standing, and his back was wet with sweat. "What was that?" Aiden drew his blade as he turned to look at the end of the cave. He was ready to face the enemy, but ...

"What are you doing?" Kaiser took hold of his shoulders, startled him even more, "Aiden, are you hallucinating again?"

Aiden was not sure of that either. He felt something staring at him, and the feeling was far more ferocious than the sloths. But he turned back to see that there was nothing.

"Didn't you feel it?" Aiden asked, even if he knew the answer as he looked at the empty wall.

"What do you feel?" Kaiser shook his head, tightening his shoulder, "Aiden, we should leave. The mana is affecting your brain."

"Mana?!" Aiden couldn't help but look at the crystal-encrusted roof, to be sure. And there was nothing there. Aiden didn't know how to feel, but all he could do now was go back to the cave, so he did.

The confused Aiden led the way, and Kaiser followed. ESS did not notify him of the mana concentration, and Kaiser did not speak. So the journey was silent until Aiden's ear picked up a sound.

It's the sound of wings. Kaiser didn't hear it, so he was surprised when Aiden suddenly started to run into the cavern.

However, as he closed in, he realized that it was a smell he didn't expect, "Is that the smell of blood?"

Aiden, on the other hand, did not reply as he charged inside the cavern.