One word that popped up when he entered the mansion: gigantic.
The halls were unnecessarily huge, enough for a giant to walk comfortably without having to worry about their size. How could a mansion be this huge? When Shun thought about it, the mansion didn't seem extraordinarily huge either. He frowned slightly.
"Are you confused why the inner layer and the outside don't seem to match?"
Shun looked at her, slightly surprised. She chuckled as she replied, "It was thanks to the technology the Regzedda family has developed. I'm not entirely sure about the details, but it tweaks with space."
"That's honestly incredible."
Then he was reminded of the technology in this world. It was quite far from what the Regzedda family had invented. There was too much disparity between the two.
"Is there a reason why your family hides such technology from the outside world?" he asked.
"My grandmother, my mother, my father, even my uncles—everyone said the same thing: the world isn't ready for such technology. It will bring more harm than it's worth.
"Furthermore, according to my family members, the technology the Regzedda has is child's play to other families."
"Other families?"
A machine that manipulated space was already amazing, yet it was called child's play by other families! How advanced were they? And who were they?
"Sorry, I'm as clueless as you are about other families. They said I'll learn about it when the time comes."
Shun grunted in acknowledgment. As they walked, they arrived at the guest room.
It was a spacious room with luxurious decorations: an owl statue made of gold on the wall, a chandelier hovering on the ceiling, and the floor covered with a soft, red carpet. Shun felt pity that they didn't take off their shoes when stepping on it.
Sitting on the sofa that surrounded a table, his butt sank as the sofa was incredibly soft. It was a divine experience.
"Do you live alone?" Shun asked.
"Yes. My family lives in the outside world. They didn't find the domain comfortable to live in."
Just as Shun was about to say something, she quickly said, "Now, let's get onto business. What do you want to know about the trial chamber, Shun?"
Shun pondered for a moment. "Can I bring someone else into the trial chamber?"
"That wouldn't be a problem."
"I see. Then how does the trial work? What should I expect?" Shun pondered.
"There are ten rounds. Each round is different from previous participants, but as long as you listen to the rules, you'll be okay."
"Listen?"
"There's an ancient being guarding the chamber, ensuring the energy source lands to those who deserve it. It will be the one that gives you the trials."
Shun grunted in acknowledgment before asking, "Can I die there?"
"No. If you fail a trial, you'll be ejected from the chamber and won't be able to participate it again."
Shun thought for a moment. Within the silence, she said, "If you think one dream coins aren't enough, I'm willing to increase it to fifteen."
Shun's body shuddered at the price that just shoved to his face. He managed to stay calm, however, as he said, "Fifteen, you said? You must be desperate."
"As much as I hate to admit it, yes. The energy source, or I'd like to call it the reactor is running low. We only have seven days before it ran out of juice. Once that occured, it wouldn't just be be the maze and the teleportation machine that will turn useless, but this spatial domain that has been preserving information across the millennia, and even eras before that will disappear and drift endlessly in the Chaos Realm."
"Chaos Realm?" Shun's interest piqued.
"It's a world where everything barely survived. Concepts ripped apart, time is nonexistent and space that's unstable. If you somehow get there through bad luck, you'll die in minutes."
"Your family seems to determine to preserve knowledge across millennia. Can I take a look?"
"Why?" Her expression turned cold.
"Nothing in particular. It's a simple curiosity. I would like to see the knowledge your family is so desperate to keep."
She looked at him in doubt. Noticing the situation wouldn't shift, Ladev opened his mouth. "Why not?"
She turned her gaze to him, annoyed. "Are you crazy? You know more than anyone how sacred—dangerous—the knowledge is. I can't put the world's peace in danger due to mere curiosity."
She looked at Shun and said, "If you don't want to participate in the trial, then you must leave."
Shun didn't say anything. He simply observed.
"Are you sure, Vili? He just asked if he can take a look. He might be the only one we can trust to get that reactor. What's the harm in showing it? I know it's important, but showing him some unimportant ancient records wouldn't hurt."
"No, I'd like to see something else."
Ladev looked at him curiously. "Oh? Please tell us. As long as it's not something dangerous, I'm sure Vili will show it."
Vili glared at Ladev. If looks could kill, then Ladev would have turned into meat paste.
"It'll be okay, Vili. I'm sure he's going to look for something that can't be found in the local library."
She thought for a moment. "I suppose you're right."
'I don't know what that means, but I feel like they're insulting me...' Shun thought inwardly.
He then cleared his throat, grabbing their attention. Vili said, "So, what do you want?"
"Do you have any records about a deity calling Himself Monarch God?"
"Monarch God?" She pinched her chin and looked at Shun with realization.
"It's you? But—it can't be!" She then dashed off the room.
"Hey, Vili! Wait!" Ladev hopped onto Shun's shoulder. "Chase her!"
"Yes!"
After taking turns and almost losing sight of her, he finally caught up to her as she stood before a double door. Shun approached her.
"Vili, what's going on?" asked Ladev.
Yet she didn't respond. Instead, she pushed the door slightly, spreading it open.
Shun looked inside. Aisles of books with towering shelves stretched infinitely far.
Vili took a step, and he followed. When he did, he noticed something in the sky.
A statue of someone being hung. Four chains from the heavens clung tightly to its limbs. It wore nothing but thin layered cloth over its important parts. What was strange was that the statue was missing its head.
"What's that?"
"That statue is built as a reminder not to be foolish with one's desire.
"To preserve knowledge the universe deemed unfit for humanity—that is what my ancestors tried to achieve. However, their ambition turned to dust when the gods saw them as dangerous. They sent Their avatars to destroy us, turning us into a lesson."
Shun listened attentively before grunting in acknowledgment.
"Do you know the first god that chose to turn us into a lesson, Ladev?" She stopped walking and turned around.
The entire room held its breath. Shun and Ladev could only hear their soft breathing. The air became noticeably heavy.
"It was Him, Monarch God."