Located far from urban areas in the eastern outskirts of Babel, a giant artificial mountain stood alone without any buildings in its vicinity besides the massive observatory built near its peak. 0

It was a place that had been established to research Celestial Magic and to observe transformations of the sky through mana. Boasting world-class technological prowess befitting Babel, professors and students, as well as researchers from outside Babel, all frequently visited.2

And overlooking the entire observatory was the summit of the mountain, which a girl with braided hair, Lea, was currently struggling to climb toward.0

“Huff … huff… ugh…”0

As a student of Babel, she too could easily climb a mountain of this height. However, she was gasping for breath at the moment because the environment of the artificial mountain had been tailored to enhance astronomical observation efficiency, thus making the climb dozens of times more difficult.0

“This is… so… exhausting… ugh…”0

The oxygen concentration was set so low that it felt like the atmosphere was sucking the oxygen out of her, and when she tried to use magic, the abnormal mana density crushed her entire body. It was a hellish environment that made Lea, who was experiencing it for the first time, dizzy.0

In contrast, Se-Hoon just casually followed behind her, looking at her pitiful sight.0

“Didn’t you say there was no need to worry because you come here often?”0

“I didn’t… know this place… would be like this… ugh…”0

Barely managing to reply, Lea gasped for breath with her hands on her knees. At the sight, Se-Hoon glanced...0