Twin Reincarnation: Epics Of The Worldline-Chapter 286 Fortress in the sky

[OP: ]

There was one safest place to store every single historic artifact, relic, piece of past, or anything that was of immense significance, value, or importance that all supreme powers of all the continents trusted since their inception...

A sky fortress located tens of meters above the ground level, situated in the M̐dya ocean in the middle of all four continents, a structure made by ancient giants that were said to once roamed this world.

A place that was not only absurdly difficult to reach but the entire place was filled with monsters of a level that surpassed common sense, monsters that were only found on this particular island.

The impenetrable fortress was an understatement for this place.

It was a kind of artificial dungeon that would be difficult to breach for the divinities themselves.

It was a sky island...

"Hey, have you heard about the robbery at the S̱ḥines? They say the elemental diamonds that were stolen were all worth a decade of the empire’s revenue."

"No, jeez. That’s the old news already. Haven’t you heard about the group of thieves who are going around robbing every place that was believed to be impenetrable?

Not just S̱ḥines, they have already robbed the main branches of Lũe

Vincton, Ṛattex, Lincolns, and even some stuff from the empire’s treasury has vanished overnight.

Rumor has it this particular group is going to steal all the precious things from all around the world."

High above the vast ocean that stretches between the four continents of this world, a mythical sky island defies the laws of gravity.

It floats in the heavens like a celestial haven, an ethereal realm untouched by the constraints of the terrestrial below. Clouds cradle it, casting a soft light. The island boasts lush landscapes and vibrant flora, a colorful spectacle against the sky.

At its core, a massive fortress, carved from celestial stones, gleams with an otherworldly glow. Towering structures adorned with intricate carvings reach into the heavens, connected by iridescent, magical crystal bridges—a mesmerizing network in the sky.

There are walls surrounding this structure, made of a red stone that no human knows the origin of.

The fortress is guarded by humanoid creatures, there is a boss-like monster in the center of this fortress, and only by the permission of this ancient being can one access the storage room.

The entire island, lurking with dangers, is a small place filled with invaluable things from the central powers of this world.

The absolute beings themselves trust the authorities of this place.

Their stuff and the stuff their ancestors left behind all stayed in this place, and it is believed to be a very difficult task to just visit this place, much less illegally infiltrate it and steal the things stored there.

"They first started appearing in the western continent, wreaked havoc all over the continent starting empire, and now... they are in the east.

Ju Hao Parlor was just the start. Mark my words... they are going to continue until they clean everything."

[Ainzcradel].

That’s what they called the fortress, and there were only three ways to reach that island located so high up in the sky.

The first and most obvious one of them was obviously a direct flight from the ground; however, there were few creatures in the world that flew on the same level as this island.

And, due to the aerial defense system of the island nicknamed (Hexagonal Dome) rumored to be strong enough to withstand even an elder dragon’s wrath, no creature could ever enter that place directly from the air. Which only left two possible ways to enter this place.

The first of it, obviously, was through direct teleportation to this island, however, since the island itself was continuously moving across a vast area, one would have to first pinpoint its current position for the method to work.

And, if one was teleporting to this island directly, they had to be Lucky enough not to fall into a place with the monsters or would have to be strong enough to defeat the monsters filling the island.

Teleportation directly inside the fortress was impossible as it was designed as a (Artificial dungeon) by the system so, no power could directly enter it.

Lastly, the third way one could enter this island ’Safely’ was through a certain relic of the past that was in possession of the (Global Magic Council) called [Space-time Gate].

That was the only way the people used to reach the island’s safest location where no creature was permitted, the sole safe area where humans and their friends from different kinds had ever survived without any casualties...

"No! No, damn it! It’s gone...! They took it as well!"

"What the hell was everyone doing?! And what about the magic traps?!"

"The entire defensive system collapsed, sir! We do not know what happened! It was all too sudden! And then there were those insects! That strange smell as well!"

"What the hell are you talking about, fucking piece of shit?! Do you even know what they stole, fuck?!"

"We are dead... we are so dead now..."

"Fuck fuck fuck fuck... fuck! Fuck! Why the hell did it have to be the key?! Those fucking bastards wouldn’t even know the worth of that thing!"

"The President’s going to kill us... we are dead now."

The safety zone of theirs, as they were aware of, was the place where the most dangerous creature of that island resided, a place any creature feared to even think of entering.

And they had only ever managed to survive there thanks to the creature’s ignorance of them small creatures... something they were always grateful for as this ignorance was the only reason they were able to use this island, and the fortress, as their world’s strongest locker.

The Adventurer’s Association, Global Magic Council, the Alliance of all central powers of the four continents, and WTF, or the World Technography Federation are the authorities that have been in charge of this island since centuries ago when it was discovered.

Their elected representatives take the items judged to be important enough to be in this safe space on a certain day every year through the gate relic.

They then pass through the safe path that had the least monster activities, defeat the monsters together, and reach a certain gate of the fortress.

"It was west, then east, and now they have entered the south... but that is it.

They are too dumb if they think they can follow the same tactics this time as well.

They are strong, have smart people among them, and yes no one knows a thing about their identities but, they are wrong if they think they can-"

"Sir! Sir! We have received reports there is a breach in the royal treasury! The pattern is the same as what was described in the-"

"What the hell?! They have only looted a single place till now! How the hell are they already robbing the treasury?!"

"We don’t know that, sir! The reports directly came from CBS headquarters! There were even casualties this time!"

"What?! People died?!"

"Yes sir! The reports even said the captain of the royal guards was eaten alive by some unknown insects!"

"What?! No fucking way! That’s the captain of the royal guards we are talking about! A veteran swordmaster!"

"The... the reports are detailed and... they have the recordings as well... here. Check them yourself."

"What?! Give that here!"

The fort was an artificial dungeon so to reach the core area where all the treasures were stored, one would have to defeat all of the grand guards, the sub-bosses, and the supreme general in the center, a (Level-510) <SS> rank (Ancient guardian’s soul). An enemy that even the absolute powers of the world lost against.

There was no way to defeat a foe of that kind, there was no way to even stand in the presence of that thing for mortals like them.

It was an unfathomable enemy. 𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

Perhaps, that was the very reason the worldly powers thought the area under it would be the safest place to store their possessions.

-Click.

-Dhum!

{ "Target #A3 down. Task: retrieving the key has been completed." }

{ "Move to the point B6, J." }

The authorities of old times, with the help of the Headmaster, had created a special passage that went right from outside the fortress gates to the center of the fortress or the boss room.

They used spatial magic and a unique amalgamation of various powers and resources to create this certain path.

There was only one door connected to their end of the path, and there were only four keys that one must possess in order to access this door.

{ "No.7 reporting. The escape route has been cleared." }

{ "K. The item has been retrieved." }

{ "Q. Traces have been removed. There are no variables in sight." }

{ "No.2, escape successful." }

...

The four keys were guarded by certain powers in places that were practically impossible to even find. Places that had powers and systems so complex even the best of the best thieves of this world that knew about these places would get goosebumps at the thought of going anywhere near them.

Entering these places meant death for any mortal being. They were thought to be nothing less than impenetrable fortresses.

{ "Concluding report: Item retrieval successful." }

{( "Good work." )}

-Oooooooooooooooong!

Until a few months ago, no one in this world would have even thought of going anywhere near these places, or have any thought of entering that deadly fortress.

There was no way any sane person would ever think of something like that... or at least, that’s what everyone thought.

"Did you hear? They did it with the north as well."

"Yeah... the entire world knows about them now. It is absurd however many times I hear this."

"The way they do their things, the way they kill, the way they get everything... there are even rumors they are aiming for Ainzcradel."

"What...? That’s not true... is it?"

"Shhhh. Come closer."

"..."

"I’ve heard tales of eerie insects coming out of the mouths of people, a poison that kills someone immediately after a single breath, of the magic technology unparalleled to what we know... there are talks of eastern grandmasters being part of this group as well. And they are after something."

Until they appeared out of nowhere, there was peace in this world.

"Ainzcradel..."

But after their first robbery in the capital of the Barnacle empire... everything changed.