One Week Earlier,

Kashi dragged a fatigued, completely drained body to his cove beneath the dwarven palace. He leaned against the shut doors, mentally checking off all the items on his to-do list. Construction: check. Crafting: check. Agriculture: on hold. Water source: check. Plumbing: check. Security: check.

Whoo~ Rubbing his thumbs against his temple, Kashi began to appreciate the MCs in all those RPGs he played as a kid. He used to refer to them as glorified messenger boys, but now that he had a whole city to look after, he understood their plight. If he did not personally check on every facet of the city's construction, he could not help but feel something would go horribly wrong.

Well, of course, Kashi would not go as far as to help pick up some lady's chicken eggs. After all, there was only a very slight chance that chicken egg could spell the fate of an entire city. “Pfft. City-Shaking Egg.” Kashi chuckled at the absurd thought as he finally gathered enough strength to push himself off the door.

At the center of the room stood several easels of different sizes and rolled up canvases made from beast hides, which the dwarves had been ever so happy to gift the daeben.

Slightly to the side, silently sat a grand piano belonging to a certain songstress.

Kashi's eyes revealed a complicated look as his fingers brushed against the smooth surface. Today, the songstress would not be accompanying him, too busy dealing with the recovery efforts of the dwarfs and consoling the bereaved who had lost husbands, wives, and parents to the battle. ‘Well,’ Kashi thought to himself as he unfurled the largest canvas, ‘I’ll miss her calming music.’

"Hmm... I should find a way to register their auras to the door," Kashi muttered as he examined the large spread on the floor before him. He was not sure what beast skin the dwarfs used to make this five-by-four-meters canvas, but [Identify] revealed it to be a Level 115 Epic Canvas.

That information was enough for Kashi to know the canvas would meet his bold endeavor's basic requirements.

Kashi nodded with appreciation, then turned to the other canvasses. He unfurled over one hundred canvasses of different sizes—ranging from small portrait sizes just over thirty centimeters wide to two-meter long landscape canvases—and placed them on corresponding easels, which he then set in a formation around the largest canvas.

Taking a step back, Kashi admired the canvasses before him with a sharp glint of anticipation in his eyes.

Moment of truth.

This project would determine whether everything was for naught.

Rosario's Brush appeared in the Kashi’s hand as he took a step, not to the largest canvass as one would expect, but a tiny, inconspicuous thirty-centimeter portrait.

"All life is birthed from a seed," muttered Kashi, as the brush dancing in his palm. Without the need to worry about ink, the brush laid its first stroke on the paper. "Alright ... Let us give birth to a new world."

And so, with a few bold strokes began a week of endless paint, paint, and even more paint.

As if realizing the enormity of the daeben's ambition, the game did not bother Kashi with any prompts even as he completed one canvas after another. The daeben, when finished with a minor canvas, would switch to the main one and add in a little detail.

Without anyone to check on him, the daeben mindlessly slaved away at his task, only occasionally munching distractedly on some dry rations stored in his inventory for emergencies when his body protested.

Over time, the paintings began to take shape, the largest of which depicted a massive, lush green field with a castle-like mansion at its center.

The smaller paintings provided more detail into the world in the largest picture, detailing the castles' interior and exterior in excruciating detail, down to a few tiny cracks, or 'construction blemishes' to give the mansion a more realistic feeling.

These little paintings were so vividly detailed that just by looking at them, a person could quickly draw a mental map of what the world within the picture would look like if they lived within.

As of yet, there were oddly no living creatures in the painting aside from the trees and grass. This was because each time the daeben drew an animal, it would immediately erase itself off the picture like it was never there.

After several dozen tries, the daeben was finally able to populate the paintings with some animals—however, only those of the minute insect category.

Kashi would have been pissed off if he had any spare space in his brain for anger. But he did not, seeing as he spent way too much time remembering how a centipede looked.

Like this, an entire week passed in a flash, the daeben utterly oblivious to the passage of time.

On this day, Kashi knelt on the ground, frantically finishing up his final touches on the mainstay piece, his eyes bloodshot from lack of sleep. But the daeben either did not notice, or he did not care, letting out a triumphant roar as he made his final stroke on the Hopeful Maggot flag fluttering atop the building.

Kashi stretched as he rose to his feet, groaning as several bones creaked in complaint. The daeben stared at the collection of paintings, brow raised as he waited for the prompt he was expecting. When nothing happened, the daeben began tapping his arms, brows furrowed with worry.

It would be more than frustrating if he spent the entire week in vain, but when, even after ten minutes, nothing happened, the daeben had to admit he had failed this endeavor.

Kashi groaned inwardly as he tiredly stumbled over to the grand piano. He took a seat on the little bench, about to rest his head against the keyboard cover when a prompt interrupted him.

User Has Cleared Danger Zone.

Beginning Creation of New Dimension.

Cancel Procedure?

Y/N

Kashi stared at the prompt with disbelief, fatigue instantly fleeing far from his eyes. He swiftly answered, "NO!"

Sub-Dimension Has Been Activated.

Painting Quality Satisfies Minimum Requirements

Grade of Final Painting will be Displayed Upon Completion

BOOOOM!

"Uack!" Kashi cried out as a massive force slapped him hard across the hall. He crashed against the earth, tumbling uncontrollably for several meters before he could barely regain control of his body. The daeben recovered to a crouch, gaze wary with shock as he stared at the portal that had appeared within the largest portrait. It was the forceful creation of this portal that blasted him across the room.

Before Kashi could come to grips with the new development, a massive suction force burst out from the portal, seemingly with the intent to absorb everything in the world. Kashi winced, his body losing strength as the portal forcibly absorbed every single drop of mana in his cells.

Rocks crumbled from the ceiling above, residual mana in the earth itself not spared by the insatiable portal. It did not end there as the falling rocks crumbled to dust particles that were then absorbed by the portal.

Kashi, whose feet began sliding across the earth, quickly stabbed a handful of arrows into the ground to stabilize himself.

Only by doing this was Kashi able to resist the portal's pull. Kashi could not rejoice anytime soon, as with a loud bang, the doors to the cove were forcefully pulled wide open.

The portal needed far more mana than the enclosed space could provide.

Although Kashi was worried about the consequences of the portal's forceful absorption of mana from the underground city, he could not afford to loosen his grip for even a split second, or he too would become dimension chow.

The absorption lasted for the longest twenty seconds of the daeben's life, then came to an abrupt end. As if to display its fullness, a loud surge of wind burst out the portal and blasted the daeben to the ground once more.

Kashi struggled to his knees, eyes glowing as the now glowing master painting began to absorb its smaller constituents into itself, size steadily growing with each one added. Before he could further marvel on this spectacle, multitudes of rushed footsteps drew his attention to the dwarfs and Maggots who warily observed the glowing painting from the doorway.

A small, indiscernible glint flashed in Kashi's eyes as Lunette stepped out of the crowd, brows furrowed with numerous questions. "Kashi, what is that?" She cradled a contentedly sleeping Kira in cub form against her bosom with her left hand, right hand, shakily pointing at the painting.

"Oh, that?" Kashi said with a grin as he rose to his feet, thumb jabbing at the painting over his shoulder. He was about to give a response when a prompt gave him pause. Staring at the prompt with disbelief, he did not know from where it arose, but a sudden desire to gloat overwhelmed him. "Nothing much, really. Just a brand new dimension I created."

It took the crowd a second to digest what he just said. But once they did, they all screamed in unison.

"WHAT!?"

Congratulations, You Have Created Your First Divine Piece

Takahara (Sub-Dimension)

Within this Painting lies a world brought forth by the artist's desire for a world without war and hatred. His calming intent can be felt within each blade of grass and gentle tug of the wind.

Artistic Value: 10,000

Sub-Dimension: With an Artistic Value of 5000, this painting can contain a viable, living world of 1000 sq.km.

Sub Paintings can be made to act as keys to this world.

Current Dimensional Artist Level Restricts Number of Keys to Five.

(GuildBound): Only Members of the Hopeful Maggots, or Those Accompanied by a Maggot May Access This World.

+300 Art

+1,250,000XP

Your Level Has Risen!

Dimensional Artist [ Lv.1 → Lv.2 ]

Painting Mastery [ Expert Lv.1 → Lv.2 ]

Kashi grinned at the prompt, immensely pleased with the increase in both his Painting Mastery and Dimensional Artist Skills. It seemed that he could quickly skip past painting level if he created more divine pieces.

“Pfft. As if.” Kashi dismissed the thought just as quickly as it sprouted. First, each level required more than double the previous level’s XP points. Also, inspiration worthy of creating a dimensional piece that would break past the Grand Piece level would not spring out of his head like mushrooms.

Nah, the more viable method would be to steadily make Fine Piece small dimensions, steadily raising his XP until the next inspiration hit.

Kashi's smile stiffened somewhat, though, as he glanced at the name of the painting. Takahara.

Kiri-no-Sato, Village of the Mist.

Even if someone took a sledgehammer to his head, he would not believe this was a simple coincidence. He could almost feel the smoldering heat burning from Suzuki's eyes. The daeben could only shake his head. It seemed Shouyou was thoroughly enjoying himself at Suuzuki's expense.

Takahara was a lovely little village that overlooked the Hatenashi Mountain range. On one of the very few occasions that he took time off work, Suzuki's father had taken the entire family there for a retreat.

The vacation only lasted for about a week, but even though Suzuki was only six at the time, it was a memory that was far too strong.

This was because in no other time in Suzuki's life could he recall his mother looking so beautiful, so happy, content even.

That little resort, where Suzuki’s parents held each of his hands warmly yet firmly as they walked parts of the Kumano Kudo pilgrimage route. The peaceful expression on his mother's face. His father's small, almost shy smile.

Kashi shook his head to clear his thoughts. It seemed Suzuki and Shouyou were due a chat sometime soon.

"Kashi?"

Lunette's voice carrying a tinge of worry pulled the daeben out of his reverie. He closed the window as he looked up to the songstress with a smile.

"Yeah?"

Lunette hesitated but asked, "Are you okay?"

Kashi's brow rose. "Sure, I didn't eat that much this past week, but I don't I look that bad?"

"Ah, no." Lunette murmured. "Your eye..." She said, pointing at his right eye.

"Hmm? Did I get some paint in there?" Kashi raised his hand to his eye to brush off whatever was there. However, he was surprised to find the eye moist, a clear, colorless liquid in his hand. "Must have kept my eyes open too long," he remarked with a light shrug. "It's nothing."

"Oh, in that case," Lunette, evidently relieved, let out sparkles from her eyes as she regarded the painting floating overhead. "What was that about a dimension?"

"Hehe..." With an almost smug grin, Kashi explained the world's properties inside the painting, from its size to its stability and capacity to sustain life. The plants within were proof of that.

Lunette and the eyes of those behind her were set ablaze with shock and awe. They stared at Kashi like he was a monster within the skin of a human. What kind of invincible ability was this!?

Creating a world out of nothing?

Who could even imagine the applications of such an ability? This meant he could quickly escape from any situation by merely retreating into this world of his! That was a layer of security most would kill for!

Any wielder of such a world would have much more confidence in attacking any dungeon, able to just vanish without a trace should he encounter any danger.

Kashi could understand the thoughts running through their minds, but he shook his head inwardly. That perverted Shouyou would never give out something so completely broken. There were two significant restrictions to this ability that made what these people imagined somewhat unrealistic.

The first restriction was that Kashi would always exit the painting from the same location he entered unless he walked to a different exit point he made from another picture.

The second restriction was perhaps the most severe. After transfer, the painting used as a key would remain in the real world. Should the image then be destroyed, that gateway would also be destroyed.

Kashi would also suffer a penalty that blocked him from creating a replacement for an in-game month. So, it wasn't like he could just jump in and out willy-nilly. He could only do so after ensuring the surroundings were safe enough for the gate pass to survive.

The good news was that enriched by the Dimensional Energies, the paintings were much stronger than the level of material used to make them. For example, the Lv. 150 hide used for the primary dimension was strong enough to tank at least a Level 200 Samurai's direct hit, as well as boasting very high resistance to elemental attacks.

So at the very least, Kashi did not have to worry that the entire dimension would be destroyed because someone accidentally spilled coffee on the painting.

Still, it would be prudent to store it in a safe place. The gate passes were good enough for the world to use.

Kashi grinned. "Hey, Lunette, want to take a trip with me?"

Lunette's cheeks reddened at the direct request. "Where to?"

"The Guild's leaders haven't been together in the same room since its inception," Kashi said with a glint in his eyes as Takahara disappeared from view into his soul space. "I think it's time we rectify that. Give me some time to contact Leila and Miote to set up a meeting, and we'll be off. This dimension thing just made a thousand things we wish to do many times easier." Kashi chuckled confidently. "If nobody else, Miote will definitely see the value in these."

"Ah, a meeting, of course!" Lunette exclaimed, a little too excitedly, inwardly scolding herself for expecting more. "Yes, this breakthrough is very important... yes." Damn. Even she was unconvinced by her voice.

"Good," Kashi, oblivious to the songstress' feelings, looked over her head to General Absalon, who silently contemplated the numerous military applications of such a dimension space. "Absalon-san, get the rest and meet us at Rine's Bar."

Before Absalon could process the meaning of Kashi’s words, the daeben suddenly lifted Lunette in a princess-carry.

The magnificent grin in Kashi’s eyes exposed his excitement as he dashed out of the hall with a speed that only about ten percent of those present could follow with their eyes. The daeben zoomed past all of the Underground Citadel, then burst out of the castle aboveground, not stopping until he reached Drixlia's post.

With one deft motion, Kashi jumped onto the stallion's back, placing the stunned songstress ahead of him. Kira, who had been forcefully awoken by the sudden acceleration, glared at the daeben. "What are you doing!?"

"Time to level up," Kashi laughed as he took out a portrait from his inventory. "Teleport." Those who managed to chase after the daeben could only watch as the trio was enveloped in a bright glow then disappeared entirely from view, carried off to heaven-knows-where.

Although Absalon was stunned by the daeben's actions, his recovery was swift. Within moments, he picked out the select few who would accompany him to Meilfour. He contacted Syèl, who had gone missing for the past week.

Fortunately, Syèl promised he would be at Rine's Bar within a week.

Absalon then relayed some orders to his lieutenants to ensure everything ran smoothly in his absence before climbing atop his stallion and riding south for Meilfour.

Riding alongside the general, Shadow looked to the horizon, mildly surprised by how relaxed he felt despite the distance between him and his sister. Maybe it was because of Kashi, but he did not feel worried at all.

Probably, in this world, right next to the daeben was the safest place she could be. With a slight smile, Shadow spurred his stallion into a light jog

Diralis, Merriheim.

Ever since Olgar's departure to battle, Diralis, Olgar's region's stronghold town, carried a silent, almost tranquil demeanor. Without fear for any threat, the soldiers left behind spent their days lounging and taking a break from the tension and stress ever-abundant in Olgar's presence.

Even with this lackadaisical attitude, any passing adventurer or traveler would have been shocked to find the stronghold in its current state.

It was eerily quiet that one could hear the roaches' shuffling legs. A deathly silence hung over the stronghold, making it seem almost devoid of life. But undoubtedly, soldiers patrolled on the streets and the ramparts. They were just so rigid and lifeless that they seemed more like dolls than humans.

A mertian, listlessly gazing into the horizon, suddenly jerked, eyes widening with unconcealed joy as he spotted movement coming from the south. The archer, chosen as a lookout because of his unique eyes, squinted as streams of mana channeled into his eyes.

Immediately, he could see over a kilometer away like it was right next to him. His eyes widened with excitement as he spotted the woman at the head of a company of avespas furiously kicking up dust as they charged.

The mertian, with a snide grin on his face, immediately signaled the gatekeeper, whose eyes gleamed with excitement. "Hehehe..." the lookout snickered, eyes flickering with a vicious light as they glared towards the heart of the town. "Lady Orthana's here. Let's see how long you can strut about."

The gates were raised without any further delay, allowing Orthana's company to zip through without too much fanfare. The mage was not in a good mood as she did not spare a glance at anyone on the street.

Orthana dashed straight for Olgar's mansion.

If hatred did not blind Orthana, she might have noticed the townspeople's odd behavior. But she was so mad that she could barely make out the difference between night and day, let alone the state of the resident's expressions.

Only upon reaching Olgar's mansion did a deeper frown etch itself onto the mage's forehead. Orthana came to an abrupt halt, glaring at the female chetah standing at the gates to Olgar's compound. "What are you doing here?"

"Orthana," Asha greeted expressionlessly. "I never thought you would work with someone like Olgar. You know how he treated my people."

Orthana's expression stiffened.

Treated...

'—ed.'

This suffix was just too important.

It meant that the chetah already knew of the fate that had befallen the previous warlord. The halben's expression turned extremely ugly. When she thought about how she had just suffered and humiliated at the dwarfs' hands and the fact that there had been felur in that battle, she realized that Asha must have played a significant role.

Orthana’s eyes flared with immense hatred. "I see. You already know. So what of it? Do you think you can do something about it with your meager strength?"

Asha tapped the hilt of her sword. "Indeed, with my strength, it would be a challenge to fight you alone." But, she then folded her arms. "Luckily, I shall not be the one to judge you today."

"Judge me?" Orthana threw back her head with maniacal laughter. "Do you believe there is anyone in this country capable of judging me!? Bring him before me! Let me see his face!"

"Hello, Sheri."

Orthana suddenly felt a chill run down her spine as she looked beyond the chetah to the man who strode out of the compound with confident steps.

The new arrival was a devastatingly handsome mertian sporting a broad, muscular build that put most bodybuilders to shame. Slight shades of gray in his temples and full, yet trimmed beard, belied his age and added a tint of rugged beauty to a man whose entire frame seemed to be chiseled out from ancient bronze.

Orthana's frown deepened even further as she glared at the lazily smiling middle-aged man. "Brock. Long time no see. I thought you said you would never leave your territory?"

"I did not plan to," Brock admitted with an easy smile. "Our friend here was quite persuasive, however. I could not bring myself to turn her down."

Orthana glared at Asha, but noticing her lack of response, turned back to the issue at hand. "What now, Brock?"

"For old times sake, I will let you go," Brock calmly stated. "But you must give up your claim as warlord and accede your territory to Merriheim. Only then will I be sure you will not bring back the flames of war to this land."

"HAHAHAHA!!!" Orthana burst out in laughter that did not reach rage-filled eyes. "Brock, all these years in seclusion must have eroded your brain if you think I will ever agree to that." Her staff lit up with brilliant lights as she crazily poured all her mana into her most powerful spell. "Let's see how str—"

"Ah, I was hoping you would say that," Brock interrupted. With a wave of his hand, he muttered, "Onyx."

BOOM!

Dust and earth suddenly burst hundreds of meters into the sky, causing rains of sand and stone to fall on the spectators watching. However, the spectators ignored the bits of rock and sand as they stared disbelievingly at the might stone serpent whose body stretched dozens of meters upwards. Even more shocking, it was clear a good portion of its body was still below the earth.

"Lady Orthana!"

A soldier's desperate cry snapped the onlookers out of their shock. They stared at the spot where Orthana and her company once stood, only to see that the snake's body occupied that entire space.

Staring at the stone snake, the spectators could not help but suck in a cold breath, their hearts chilled by the reality before them.

Brock watched with a complacent gaze as the snake slithered back below ground, leaving a huge gaping hole where Orthana's company once stood. Shaking his head, he muttered, "I always warned her not to rely so much on her summons and train her body some more. Olgar would have sensed that coming a mile away." With a shake of his head, he sighed. "Children just refuse to listen to adults." He turned to Asha, whose gaze still held nothing in them despite the shocking event that just occurred.

"You are carrying far too much on your shoulders, child," Brock lamented with a sigh. Patting the young chetah's shoulders, he advised, "You should learn to have a little fun. Life is too short to spend it forever suffering." Upon noticing Asha's stiff expression, he chuckled and scratched his beard. "Well, if this daeben is all you make him out to be, you will not have much to carry shortly. By then, you will be forced to find something new in your life. Maybe even settle down and have a few cubs."

"Uncle Brock!" Asha shouted, voice laden with killing intent.

"Works every time." The middle-aged man laughed as he stroked his beard. He measured the chetah's heated gaze then came to a decision. "Alright, lead the way. I would like to see this daeben for myself."

For the first time, Asha's eyes shone with unmistakable delight. "Yes!"