Transmigrated as the Villainess Princess - Chapter 58

Chapter 58: Rebirth (5)

Ahcehera wandered through the dense wilderness, her arms laden with freshly gathered fruits.

The vibrant colors of the produce contrasted sharply with the solitude that weighed on her.

Despite the heaviness in her heart, she pushed aside her longing for companionship and focused on her mission.

Slowly unraveling the mystery of why she and Richard had been sent to Cazumi 0071, a seemingly forgotten planet at the edge of the Andromeda galaxy.

Her thoughts drifted back to the wormhole that had inexplicably appeared in the palace, pulling them into this uncharted world.

On the fifth day of her solitary journey, Ahcehera stumbled upon something extraordinary.

Hidden deep within the wilderness, partially obscured by moss and ancient vines, were markings carved into the ground, symbols that resonated with an eerie, ancient power.

Her breath hitched as she crouched to inspect them.

An ancient portal.

Her fingers traced the intricate lines, a mix of fascination and dread coursing through her. She recognized these patterns.

I thought the interstellar era would only confront challenges like radiation damaging the environment, or the scarcity of living resources and food.

Her lips curled into a faint, bitter smile as her thoughts continued.

I assumed we’d only be battling interstellar pirates or Zerg invasions.

She paused, her expression hardening.

But demonic energy… That’s something I never imagined we’d face. Not here. And not like this.

The markings pulsed faintly under her touch as if acknowledging her presence.

Ahcehera exhaled deeply, her mind wandering further.

I used to be a killer in my past life.

A demon hunter to be precise.

Her fingers lingered on a jagged line, her voice a whisper lost to the empty forest.

But I didn’t kill indiscriminately, I only targeted those who sold their souls to demons. Those who traded their humanity for desires, dreams, or goals too far out of reach.

She could still picture the names etched into the lists assigned to hunters like her, though now that life felt like a distant memory. Her hand balled into a fist.

But I’m only a princess now.

The thought felt alien. Her current identity didn’t match the person she had once been.

Ahcehera’s SSS-level mental power allowed her to stand out among her peers in this era, but it wasn’t enough to touch the spiritual realm.

Mental power could not combat demons, it could only influence the physical world.

The true strength needed to confront demonic forces was spiritual power, and that was something she no longer possessed.

She shook her head, focusing on the task at hand.

After finishing her examination of the portal, Ahcehera stepped back, her gaze steely.

In the hidden pocket dimension of Cresencia, she had stored a vial of precious blood, the kind needed for rituals such as this.

With a flick of her wrist, the vial appeared in her palm. She uncorked it and poured the crimson liquid onto the portal’s center.

The blood seeped into the carvings, snaking its way along the markings like veins coming to life.

The transformation was instantaneous.

The lines glowed faintly at first, but as the blood traced every curve and edge, the entire portal lit up, casting the forest in an ominous red hue.

It pulsed a heartbeat of ancient power, as if awakening from centuries of dormancy.

Ahcehera stepped back, her eyes narrowing as the air around her grew heavy, vibrating with energy.

The portal is alive.

Ahcehera stared at the glowing portal before her, its pulsating red light illuminating the dense forest.

Her heart thudded in rhythm with the portal’s eerie hum. She clutched the energy stones she had brought, their faint luminescence dancing across her palms.

“This must be the key,” she murmured, her voice resolute despite the weight of uncertainty.

With precise movements, she placed the energy stones into the designated slots on the portal’s surface.

The stones locked into place with a soft click, and the light from the portal flared, bathing the surroundings in a blinding crimson glow.

The air crackled with power, and a vortex of energy swirled in the center of the portal. Without hesitation, Ahcehera stepped forward.

The pull was instantaneous and overwhelming, as if the portal had seized her and yanked her through space and time.

Her body felt weightless, yet her mind raced as countless lights and shadows blurred past her.

When she landed, the transition was abrupt. The swirling chaos vanished, replaced by an ethereal stillness.

Ahcehera found herself in a vast, cavernous space.

What is this place?

The ground beneath her feet shimmered like liquid starlight, while above her, the ceiling arched into infinity, dotted with constellations that glowed faintly.

She felt as though she had stepped into the very fabric of the galaxy itself. At the center of the room floated a massive, holographic map of the galaxy.

Its intricate details shimmered with a life of their own, spiraling arms, clusters of stars, and blinking markers.

Her breath caught as she recognized the markers.

“This… This isn’t just a map,” she whispered, stepping closer. Her eyes darted across the glowing projections.

The markers represented portals, openings scattered across the galaxy. As her gaze swept over the map, a chill ran down her spine.

One marker pulsed near her kingdom’s palace. Another glowed at the academy.

Others blinked in critical locations she recognized, political strongholds, interstellar trade hubs, and regions of immense strategic importance.

“It’s a network…” she muttered, her voice trailing off as the realization hit her.

This wasn’t a simple portal. It was a massive wormhole network that connected key points across the galaxy, and possibly beyond.

Her fingers hovered over a projection of a portal, and as if reacting to her touch, the map shifted. A new dimension unfolded before her, displaying additional layers of connectivity.

“This isn’t just for traveling within the galaxy,” she murmured, her eyes widening. “It’s a bridge between dimensions.”

She scanned the map with growing unease. Most of the portals were dormant, their lights dim.

But a few flickered ominously, their glow tinged with the same crimson hue as the portal she had activated.

“Dimensional travel… It’s rare, but not impossible,” she whispered, recalling ancient texts and fragments of knowledge from her past life. “But why here? Why now?”