I began to descend the stairs as the curtain of sand parted to let me through. The stairs, made of an unknown material, were firm under my feet. With each step, my footsteps echoed. I had spoken with the Mirage-Walking Princess on the ninetieth floor. Below that was the eighty-ninth floor—my holy ground.0

Stepping inside the Garden of Withered Flowers, I saw the Death King Clan vassals who took on the role of gardeners. They were moving about in neat suits made by Ivansia tailors with water silk woven by the mermaids of the Aegim Empire. The gardeners held scissors, shovels, watering cans, or other tools for tending the garden. When I saw Sylvia walking toward me with garden shears, I quickly crouched behind a rock.0

—Death King, what are you doing?0

The princess stared at me weirdly. I awkwardly scratched the back of my head.0

—Well, I acted all cool and cut my hair before I went up to the ninetieth floor. It’s a bit embarrassing to run into them now. They’ll ask me why I came down already.2

I paused and closed my mouth.0

—Uh… hmm? My voice is…0

What came out of my mouth was a faint whisper. No, it was more like the voice...0