A dull longsword and a heartbroken villager

"This stone slab is the truth."

"I just don't know what you'll see inside, because it contains the entire 'past'."

“Every place, every detail, is recorded.”

“Xiaoxue can stay with me for now,” Bray said solemnly after taking a breath.

“Then this matter is settled.” Bray’s answer was not unexpected by Nick Boras.

Things involving the past and the future are always hard to refuse.

Otherwise, there wouldn't be so many books that fantasize about going back to the past and traveling to the future.

---

On the other hand, in the distant northern continent.

Inside the palace of Snowwind Keep, Dorothea sat on the throne, toying with a stone slab in her hand.

Below the throne, Rukia was kneeling.

The girl's light blue hair was cut short, making her look much more capable.

She seems to be much stronger than before, probably because she realized how weak she really was after the demon's invasion.

"Rukia, lift your head," Dorothea said lazily, resting her chin on her hand.

Lucia obeyed the Queen's command, slowly raised her head, and then saw the stone tablet in Dorothea's hand.

"I recently found something fun, do you want to try it?" Dorothea's voice was so enticing.

"Your Majesty..." Rukia's respectful expression turned into one of conflict.

"Okay, since you're not going to play."

“I’ll try it myself,” Dorothea said.

Please think it over...

Dorothea is a wonderful empress, with a normal personality, a kingly pride, and excellent governance.

Unfortunately, she has a hobby of collecting weapons, which has recently evolved into collecting "fun" things. "Thump thump thump." Strange sounds rang out as the wheels of a magic-powered vehicle turned.

Is this the sound a car wheel should make? Bray was mentally ranting.

However, despite his complaints, Bray still obediently drove the magic vehicle.

I never imagined I'd be driving a vehicle myself one day, but honestly, driving myself isn't as scary as being driven by someone else.

Not only am I not afraid, I'm even a little happy about it.

The person sitting in the back seat of the vehicle with their legs crossed was Dorothea.

"Crossing your legs will make them thicker." Bray saw Dorothea crossing her legs in the mirror.

“You said it before.” Dorothea glanced at Bray, who had said the same thing to her years ago.

"You have a great memory."

"You don't know how to chat, do you?" Dorothea sighed, somewhat speechless.

“Yes…” Bray, whose words had been so bluntly spoken, admitted in a low voice.

Even if Bray is slow on the uptake, he'll realize that he's bad at conversation.

But it's really hard to admit it to myself.

"Where is this?" Dorothea asked Bray, looking around.

"I don't know." Bray, who was currently speeding through the ruins of a city, shook his head helplessly.

This is a difficult question, and Bray can't answer it.

"Then why are we going this way?" Dorothea asked, resting her chin on her hand and looking at Bray, who was still driving.

"We were driving along when we realized we were already here," Bray sighed.

Since it was his first time driving, he was so engrossed in the ride that he didn't even look at his surroundings.

“But this place is really desolate.” Bray finally took in the surrounding scenery.

There wasn't a single intact house; numerous building fragments lay scattered across the streets, and never-before-seen plants grew in the cracks.

Rusty steel, bent at various angles, stands amidst the city's ruins.

“This used to be inhabited by orcs,” Dorothea said quietly.

Judging from the images of some of the statues, it is still possible to vaguely discern that this place was once a city of orcs.

"Hmm, probably." Bray squinted his right eye, feeling the wind rushing towards him.

In the ruins of this city, strong winds would blow from time to time, and Bray didn't know why.

Oh right, I seem to have forgotten to explain some very important things—

Why is Bray with Dorothea? And where are they?

These issues date back to a few days ago.

Incidentally, this was a few days ago in this world.

---

Several days ago in the world of stone slabs.

Bray, who had been thrown into the Slate World by Nick Boras, lay on a pile of rubble, staring intently at the sky.

The azure sky was much more beautiful than in Bray's time.

Bray would have preferred it if the surroundings weren't so desolate.

After Bray touched the stone slab, a door made of countless gears unfolded before him.

After passing through that gate, Bray found himself here.

Just as Nick Boras had told Bray beforehand, this is a virtual past.

However, this is not a game, so there are no system prompts.

So Bray didn't know what to do next or where to go after arriving here.

"It's really cool..." There's often a breeze here, making the surroundings always cool.

After muttering something, Bray stood up and stretched.

Lying on the ground with a broadsword on your back is actually quite uncomfortable; you only need to lie there for a few minutes.

Although Bree could occasionally see a few birds flying overhead, he never saw any human presence.

Bray placed the longsword on the ground, then spun it forcefully—finally pointing the tip in a certain direction.

He didn't know if it was east or north, but since his sword was pointing the way, he might as well keep going.

It was desolate, but other than that, Bray had no other thoughts.

"Civilization destroyed..." Bray frowned, even though such an ending was already tragic.

But Bray felt something was off, maybe because it wasn't as cruel as he'd imagined?

Just as Bray was deep in thought, a deafening, strange noise rang out.

"Thump thump thump!" Accompanying the sound was a magic vehicle.

The figure driving the magic vehicle had long white hair that cascaded down her shoulders.

The vehicle was driving straight toward the mine, seemingly without any intention of slowing down.

Bray obediently moved aside; he didn't want to get hit by a car.

After all, the means of transportation are in a bad state in every sense.

"Sizzle—" A screeching sound of friction rang out as the wheels left dark tracks on the dusty, cracked brick ground.

The magic wagon stopped right in front of Bray.

"Breaklas." A pleasant female voice reached Breklas's ears; the voice of the person in the car sounded somewhat familiar to him.

When Bray met the other person's eyes, he understood why the voice sounded so familiar.

Isn't this the Elf Queen of the Northern Continent? So there was someone exactly like her in the past.

No, could it be that Dorothea is actually an ancient monster who has lived for an entire era?

What he saw now was Dorothea from the past! Terrifying, chilling to the bone.

Brechte's brain circuits were constantly at work.

"Could it be that you got here using a stone slab like me?" Dorothea asked the stunned Bray.

"Stone slab?" Bray paused, his eyebrows unconsciously rising.

“Back to the stone tablet of the past?” Bray tried to say.

"It seems I guessed right." Dorothea was a little surprised.

She never imagined that she would enter this "past" world with Bray.

The odds were incredibly small, but it actually happened.

Although it appears that Bray just entered this world, rather than at the same time.

The possibility of running into an acquaintance was enough to surprise Dorothea.

Dorothea increasingly felt that the "ownership" sign on the ring was too domineering.

Is it destined that all those who uphold the precepts will be bound together? If that's not domineering, then what would be considered domineering?

"This vehicle is..." Bray pointed to the magic vehicle Dorothea was riding and asked curiously.

“You’re new to this world, right? I’ve been here for a day,” Dorothea explained.

"Then yesterday I found a magic vehicle in the ruins."

"It's been slightly repaired and is still usable."

"Repair, repair?" Bray was shocked. This empress could repair such things.

"Isn't this a perfectly normal thing?" Dorothea didn't find it strange at all.

Although her favorite thing is weapons, she also has a fascination with related items such as instruments and artifacts.

"Won't people gossip about something like the Queen's Association?" Bray quipped.

"No one can say what I like about my hobbies," Dorothea said coldly.

"Alright, since we've run into each other, let's go together." With that, Dorothea got out of the car and sat in the back seat.

"Huh?" Bray asked, puzzled.

"You drive," Dorothea said casually after settling into a comfortable position.

"..."

This happened a few days ago.

The magic vehicle sped along the road, leaving a trail of afterimages.

Bray and Dorothea are still in the ruins of this orc city.

The city was much bigger than he had imagined. Bray estimated that even after driving for so long, he hadn't covered half of the city.

The cities of the Second Era seem to be enormous; even the capital of the Will Empire pales in comparison to this ruin.

"Why hasn't the sun set yet?" Dorothea squinted her azure eyes, gazing at the sun high in the sky.

"Don't you find it dazzling?" Bray asked in surprise when he noticed Dorothea looking directly into the sunlight.

Looking directly into the sunlight is very harmful to the eyes, and Bray felt it was necessary to remind the Queen.

“No, this light is within acceptable limits,” Dorothea said casually.

She's not a normal Black Iron type; she just looks directly at the sun, which isn't anything special.

"We've been walking for about five hours."

“And when I met you, it was around noon,” Dorothea said to Bray.

Dorothea and Bree had been driving for a full five hours.