The snowy mountain of Seriguen, one of the least important cities of Tianlong—a city located between two mountains at the edge of the continent. This was because the magical cold pressure was stronger in that place, something that only happened due to Tianlong's experiments in trying to create a natural defense zone. And exactly because of that, there hadn't been any civilians or guards in the city for at least a hundred years.
Enrico walked through that entire frozen area wearing cold-resistant clothes, having left the elves' dimension two hours ago. He could use his fire magic if he wanted to avoid feeling cold and wouldn't even spend much mana. He was simply dressed like that because he felt like wearing winter clothes in the cold—simple and practical.
[That was a good excuse]
'I'm good at making excuses'
To leave without raising suspicion or concern, Enrico revealed to the most important people that he knew about the future. Of course, those who already knew weren't surprised, but all the girls who didn't know yet wanted to ask about it, so he asked Virelle to explain and show them that future.
'They're going to watch that future today, so it's better for me to leave before they trap me'
[What an exaggeration]
What he said was a half-truth, which was why his excuse worked so well. The only real lie was about having lived that future. He mentioned that he would go to a true dungeon where only one person could enter and that he would prevent a disaster from happening. He didn't mention the villain or the biggest reward of that dungeon. He only said it would be an item he would use in the future—which wasn't entirely a lie, since he would obtain something useful.
"From what I remember, it's around here"
Looking in one direction, he saw some houses completely frozen, covered in pure ice that made it impossible to see inside. He only noticed them because some parts of the houses protruded from the ice. Approaching, he placed his hand on the surface and dragged it along the ice, trying to find a mana trace different from the rest floating in the air.
'As I thought, it's impossible for me to locate that specific mana'
[Of course, the only one who could do that would be someone with total affinity for ice magic]
'Even so, it might have worked if I used deep water magic, so I had to test it'
Now that he knew it wouldn't work, he simply activated his crimson eyes to the maximum. Every trace of mana in that ice became visible to him. Among so much mana information, one in particular caught his attention—one that was imperfect compared to the others in the air. It was so small and faint that even eighth-circle mages wouldn't be able to find it.
'Now to activate the door, I just need to increase the amount of mana'
Touching the ice with his finger, he began transferring his mana directly into it, using the base of his fire lines to guide it precisely where he wanted. When he removed his finger, a line of fire remained connected, still channeling his magic inside.
'Now I just need to wait for the mana to fill it. It will take the whole day because of the amount of my magic, but it will work'
This dungeon had appeared here only a few hours ago—at most two or three. He knew that because the original story mentioned the timing. That's why he rushed to get here, because even though that villain was only supposed to appear months later, he couldn't risk changes in the timeline causing her to arrive earlier.
"Lunaris"
His summon emerged from his palm. The small bat was now entirely red, constantly evolving and having entered a smaller form to complete its evolution. Even so, it was still useful because it could summon smaller bats that could watch the area.
"Release"
A dark glow came from Lunaris before it split into small bats. With speed, they flew away, spreading in multiple directions. At most, they could stay five hundred meters away from him and from each other—a good range for surveillance.
'I sense some Nartheis approaching, probably Ranvil level one'
[They must have sensed you]
'Well, this will serve to warm me up today—and maybe as good training'
Enrico began stretching while using his mana to strengthen his body. If he used his seventh-circle body, he could defeat them more easily, but he wanted to train a bit—especially since yesterday he had to deal with other important things. Like Elaris, Yumeha, and making plans for his friends to grow stronger during the two months he would be away.
"You'd better pay attention—they've arrived, and there are at least five"
With a calm gaze, he watched the Nartheis approaching him. The first to appear was a bear with bones embedded in its body and scars from cuts. The second was a completely white humanoid ice fox. The third had seven horns on its head and a large body as it walked slowly. The fourth was a small boy with black eyes and two ice marks on both cheeks. The last one was undoubtedly the most interesting—its body completely covered by a white cloak. Its face was entirely blank, with no trace that a face had ever existed. The first to speak was the small boy, with a curious look.
"A human? What is he doing here? Sir, can I kill him?"
"I don't mind—"
"Now that I think about it, that Nartheis was capturing some Nartheis"
The completely white being tilted its head when interrupted. The human in front of them didn't seem worried at all about being surrounded by Ranvil-level Nartheis.
[You're not thinking of offering these Nartheis to that thing—wait, what are you doing—]
'Relax. You know he can only leave here in a few months if I release him now.'
[I see. At least you won't let him do whatever he wants]
Enrico's eyes turned black, and the system itself took on a red form, with words impossible to understand appearing on the screen. Enrico stopped stretching and looked at his hand with a neutral expression. The Nartheis panther was controlling his body again.
'Warm up my body for me before I enter the dungeon'
'…Bastard, you won't even need this body inside that dungeon'