Book 1 Chapter 858

Kal looked at his reflection in the mirror and stroked his chin.

"Don't you think the future me looks quite handsome?"

Chelsea scrunched her brows at his words.

"What nonsense are you talking about?"

"No. I'm quite satisfied with my future appearance."

Seeing Kal smiling brightly, Chelsea crossed her arms and snorted.

"Even so, it's still you."

Kal looked at Chelsea with pity in his eyes at her somewhat sharp reaction.

"Chelsea. You don't need to react so negatively just because your future appearance is different from what you wanted…"

"I like my appearance!" Chelsea shouted, bristling.

Kal, with his hair neatly slicked back, was taller than his original self. His body was also sturdy, making him believable as a seasoned warrior rather than a mage. His face exuded experience.

Chelsea was also different. Her height alone was vastly different from her original appearance, where she was teased as 'shorty' by her rivals. Her slender and long limbs gave her a good figure. Her face, no longer that of a prim girl, had become that of a stunning beauty that anyone would admire. However, one part of her had not grown.

Seeing Kal continuously giving her pitying looks, Chelsea felt a surge of emotion and delivered a dropkick towards him.

*CRASH-!*

"Gah?!"

In an instant, Kal was sent flying like a branch caught in a storm.

Seeing that, Chelsea crossed her arms and gave him a look of disdain.

"I just kicked you lightly like usual, so why are you flying away like that?"

"Is what you usually do considered light?! And what do you mean by 'usual'! You put a lot of strength into that!" Kal said, provoked.

At his words, Chelsea tilted her head. Then, she opened her palm upwards and chanted a spell.

"Wind."

*KWA-GA-GA-GA-GA-GAK-!*

It was just a light wind spell, but it raged like a storm.

"Gyaaahhh?!"

Caught in the wind, Kal screamed and grabbed onto a nearby rock. Chelsea, looking down at her palm silently, clenched her fist, and the magic disappeared.

"Wow. What is this? My magic power has increased so much?"

It felt as if they had truly arrived in the future.

Seeing Chelsea’s surprised expression, Kal, clinging to the rock, struggled to get up.

"Your magic power has increased? By how much?"

"I cast this spell thinking I was just creating a light breeze, but if it has this much power… it's literally tremendous."

At Chelsea's words, Kal wore a puzzled expression and unleashed his magic power.

"Oooooooh!"

Kal’s face lit up with excitement.

"Why?"

"My magic power has also increased tremendously!"

Kal clenched his fist and unleashed his magic.

"I can do anything! I can't believe I'm this strong in magic!"

Kal's expression was genuinely happy. Kal's strengths were his keen eye for quickly assessing the battlefield and spotting enemy weaknesses, and his ability to formulate tactics that maximized his allies' strengths based on analyzing enemy attacks. He was literally an excellent supporter commander. In fact, Kal had proven his worth on the battlefield multiple times. The gods themselves had recognized him as a human worthy of the title of hero, so there was no room for doubt in his abilities. Kal himself was well aware of his capabilities. Even so, as a mage, he couldn't help but envy his classmates who could cast large-scale magic spells with abandon. To suddenly acquire an unimaginable amount of magic power in such a situation, it was understandable that he would be excited.

Seeing Kal so happy, Chelsea showed a hint of pity.

'It did increase… but it doesn't seem like it increased that much.'

It was enough magic power to cast one great magic spell at best. Leaving Kal to enjoy his pure joy for a while, Chelsea began to assess the current situation.

'By the way, what exactly is going on?'

An unknown, bright light. It was certain that they had been exposed to the magic of Fairy King Silod.

'Didn't Fairy Keya say the magic hadn't spread to this area yet?'

Yet, they had fallen under the Fairy King's magic.

'There's usually only one reason for a spell's range to suddenly expand.'

When the magic goes berserk. It was a bewildering thought, considering the caster was a mage who had lived for 5,000 years. A hint of anxiety flickered across Chelsea's face. But she quickly took a deep breath and maintained her composure.

'Fairies are particularly adept at illusion magic, being magical beasts, aren't they?'

Kieran, Leo’s sworn enemy, also often pranked the Lumern students with illusion magic. The sudden future appearances of herself and Kal.

'If so, this must be an illusion showing our future selves. Usually, such illusions show what we desire.'

That must be why Chelsea and Kal had become adults.

'…Is this truly what I desire?'

Chelsea, who had unconsciously touched her chest, shook off her thoughts.

'In any case, it's an illusion spell.'

Chelsea aspired to be a Battle Mage. And the Rwalyn family was a group distinct from the Mage Tower. If mages of the Mage Tower were scholars, then mages of the Rwalyn family were warriors. Compared to the Mage Tower, they were a group of mages who researched how to efficiently defeat enemies rather than magic research. However, even so, the fundamental nature of a mage as a seeker of truth remained unchanged. Although not as much as the Mage Tower mages, Rwalyn had also produced many outstanding magic researchers, and influenced by that, Chelsea’s exam scores at Lumern were top-tier. Her understanding of magic formulas was exceptionally deep for a young mage. Even from Chelsea's perspective, the principle behind this magic was unimaginable. A realistic illusion spell. It felt like entering the world of heroes.

'And we're sharing the same illusion.'

Unlike typical illusion magic where individuals fall into their own personal illusions, Kal and Chelsea were sharing the same one.

'That means others are also in this illusion.'

Thinking that far, Chelsea let out a hum and crossed her arms.

'Then is Leo oppa also in his future form?'

Chelsea, whose thoughts had briefly wandered in a different direction, shook her head vigorously.

'Perhaps Leo oppa and Melina-nim are also within this illusion. First of all, whoever it is, joining other parties is the priority.'

Having thought that far, Chelsea spoke to the delighted Kal.

"Kal. Do you know approximately where we are on the continent?"

At her words, Kal, who had been rejoicing for a while, nodded. He then opened an extra-dimensional space, reached in, and pulled out a world map and a crystal orb that looked like it had been perfectly cut in half.

"There we go."

Kal flattened the surrounding area with magic, spread out the map, and placed the flat side of the crescent-shaped crystal orb on it. He then moved to a spot where the sunlight shone well. The crystal orb, collecting sunlight, pointed to a location on the map.

"The eastern part of the continent."

"Eastern part?" Chelsea tilted her head.

Their party had been in the Illusion Forest in the central-northern part of the continent. But now they were in the east.

"Aren't we too far apart? Are the others also around here?"

"I'll try to find them. Let's see…" Kal took out three small vials from the extra-dimensional space. Each contained a small amount of red liquid. The vials were labeled with the names Ril, Sia, and Eliza. Kal removed the caps of the vials and dripped the liquid onto the crystal orb.

*Drip- drip-!*

The liquid seeped into the crystal orb and then pointed to the southern part of the continent.

"Huh? Senior Ril is in the south?"

Kal, with a slightly bewildered expression, then dripped the blood of Chen Sia and Eliza. And looking at the direction the map indicated, he showed an even more doubtful expression.

"Eliza and Sia are in the northern part of the continent… specifically, they are with the Hergin family."

"Was pulling out a little bit of our blood before we left for this reason?" Chelsea asked, looking amazed.

"Is it a new invention?"

"Yes. I was inspired by astrology. Blood contains a person's information. With this crystal made through alchemy, we can know a person's location. Strictly speaking, it's not exact, but we can know the approximate location."

"That's amazing! Do you have Leo oppa's blood too? If so, let's find him."

"Unfortunately, it loses its effect after a day."

"That's a shame." Even so, it was still an amazing item.

"Can you locate people even in a small area like this?"

"Currently, it's impossible. It's only possible on a continental scale. Well, if I interpret Dweno-nim's alchemy book and develop it further, it might be possible."

As Kal spoke, Chelsea let out an exclamation of admiration. Suddenly, a dark shadow covered the sky.

*KWA-GA-GA-GA-GA-GA-GA-!*

Along with it, a gust of wind swept through.

"What was that?"

"Melina-nim?"

Kal was startled, and Chelsea's eyes widened. The gust of wind that had just occurred was the result of a colossal being flying at high speed. And that colossal being was none other than a dragon. Its overall appearance was that of a silver dragon with silver scales. However, it had a very unique appearance, with black scales covering various parts of its body like patterns. Chelsea knew of a dragon with this form. It was Melina, who had inherited Lisinas's magic and possessed some of the characteristics of a black dragon. Melina, who had quickly passed overhead, suddenly changed direction in the sky. Then, she flew towards Chelsea and Kal.

"What? You spotted us flying by so quickly?" Kal said in surprise, and Chelsea nodded.

"What do you think Melina-nim is? She's the strongest hero alive!"

Not just any hero, but the king of the dragon race, the strongest species. It wouldn't be difficult for her to detect their presence. Melina, who had flown in front of the two, returned to the form of a small girl with a bright light.

*Thud-!*

Landing on the ground, Melina looked puzzled.

"Chelsea? Kal? Why are you two, who should be in the Arhi Kingdom and Hergin Territory, here?"

"Huh? It’s been ages since vacation ended?" Kal tilted his head at Melina's words.

At his words, Melina paused.

"Everyone. How old are you?"

At her question, Kal and Chelsea realized the discrepancy and fell silent.

"I'm eternally youthful." Kal gave a thumbs-up. He acted like his usual self, cunningly. This was the same as his actions in the world of heroes. The first principle of conquering the world of heroes was to block outside information as much as possible. This was an action taken because this illusion felt similar to the world of heroes.

Melina's eyes widened at Kal's words.

"My goodness! How did you two get into this illusion?"

"Huh? Is it really Melina-nim?" At Melina's attitude, the two, realizing she was real and not an illusion, looked surprised.

Kal explained the situation.

"I see. That's amazing, Kal. To quickly form a party with just that information and come to support."

"Haha. Well, it's what I have to do." Kal gave a slightly shy smile as he looked at Melina, who was genuinely admiring him.

"Melina-nim, what exactly is this illusion spell?" Chelsea asked with a puzzled expression.

Melina replied, "According to Leo-nim, this illusion spell twists space-time."

"Twists space-time?"

"Yes. Apparently, it shows the illusion that each person desires."

"Then why are we sharing the same illusion?"

"Well. I haven't fully grasped the magic yet, so this is just a guess… but perhaps it's because we are looking towards the future?"

"The future?"

"Yes. It's said that because space-time is twisted, one can see visions of the past or the present. However, despite being caught in this magic multiple times, I've never seen the past or present. Only visions of the future." Melina continued after giving Chelsea and Kal time to process her words. "Leo-nim said that's because I desire the future."

"Ah. I sort of understand."

"I don't understand." Chelsea nodded, while Kal scratched his head.

"To break this illusion, we must find the 'key' hidden within the illusion. Only then can we enter Fairy Land."

At his words, Kal asked with a puzzled expression, "Are you looking for that key, Melina-nim?"

Melina hesitated at his question.

"Why?"

"Actually, this illusion spell is different from the illusion spells I've encountered so far."

"Yes?"

"When I was caught in the illusion spell, I didn't properly recognize it as an illusion spell. It was like having a sweet dream."

"But you recognize it now, don't you?"

"Yes. It means the illusion spell itself has malfunctioned."

At those words, Chelsea and Kal's faces turned serious. Given the circumstances, the magic was going berserk. It was evidence that something was wrong with the caster's body.

"Crucially."

"Crucially?"

"Originally, Leo-nim was not affected by this magic. But it seems he is currently affected by it."

Melina was in the Arhi Kingdom. But no matter how much she searched, Leo was nowhere to be found within the Arhi Kingdom. This was the first time something like this had happened while encountering Silod's illusion. Melina took out a necklace with a red gem from her pocket.

"This is something Leo-nim entrusted to me. It's an item that allows me to know Leo-nim's location." It was an item she had made because, as someone who traveled all over the continent, she needed to know Leo's exact location.

"So, you were heading in the direction this necklace points?" Chelsea said, and Melina nodded.

"Then let's hurry and find Leo oppa."

Melina nodded at Chelsea's words. Then, she reverted to her dragon form.

-Both of you, ride on me.

At her words, Chelsea and Kal climbed onto Melina's back.

*WHOOSH-!*

Melina soared into the sky. As they flew high into the sky, Kal asked.

"By the way, Melina-nim, you said this illusion shows one of the possibilities of what might happen in the future?"

-Yes, that's right.

"……"

Kal sent Chelsea a look of pity. At that look, Chelsea smiled wryly, grabbed Kal by the scruff of his neck, and lifted him.

"Do you want to dive from here?"

"Hey! If you fall from here, you'll die!"

"I know. You'll die."

"Chelsea-nui! I was wrong! Please spare me!"

Kal's desperate scream echoed through the sky.