Book 5 Chapter 4

Episode 106

"Of course, that is, only if you have the courage to face severance."

When I returned 300 years later, the fairy-tale story of miraculously meeting a comrade from 300 years ago who had somehow survived did not come true.

Lemi Elibaden.

As the dragons said, people die.

What Yoshuhar cautiously suggested to me then was Lysta's corpse. Even just nodding required immense courage.

"If that is the case, follow me."

As I followed Yoshuhar out of the prayer room, Rein, who had taken a deep breath, asked.

"…How was it?"

Just asking that meaningless question made my throat feel tight.

Was it that he wanted to know a fragment of the reality Lysta had to endure, to prepare for the reality he would soon have to face?

Yoshuhar glanced back for a moment, then spoke in a voice soaked with sorrow.

"If you are asking about Lysta's days caring for you here, she acted brightly and cheerfully, as she always had."

"Is that so…?"

"However, there was no one who did not recognize the shadow of sorrow cast over that smile."

"How?"

"It was because she smiled too frequently. She was probably trying to hide her grief."

The underground sanctuary, that is, the catacombs, had its entrance sealed by a grand barrier, but when Yoshuhar placed his hand on it, dragon speech majestically emerged, and the veil of light slowly began to recede.

"The Mad Dragon, who pitied you, bestowed light upon that child's body, keeping it unchanged for 300 years… but perhaps for you, that might be a more cruel reunion."

Does that mean Lysta's body didn't decay and remained in the same state as 300 years ago?

Just as Yoshuhar worried, I was concerned whether I could truly endure it when I faced it.

At the same time, the reunion was so perplexing that something I had planned to ask when we met only occurred to me belatedly.

"Yoshuhar, can you also tell me about Turayna's end?"

They said Turayna retained her youthful beauty even in old age, didn't they? Did she also receive the Mad Dragon's blessing?

"Turayna…"

I naturally expected good news, but when Yoshuhar hesitated and answered like this, a trace of unease surged.

"As this Yoshuhar said earlier, I cannot answer that question."

No, it wasn't just a trace.

I should say it was the moment when a particular worry, which had repeatedly reared its head in a corner of my mind recently but had been forcibly suppressed, was clearly amplified.

"Could it be for the same reason you can't reveal the identities of the black mages?"

That very moment was the turning point.

In that brief instant, so many things happened one by one, more than my mind could comprehend.

Darkness, an overwhelming darkness with no discernible end, enveloped my vision, no, the world.

Then, powerful aftershocks rippled across the surface, strong enough to make it impossible to stand properly, and horrifying screams, as if tens of thousands of beasts were erupting simultaneously, tore through my eardrums.

'This can't be…'

My heart pounded frantically, and I automatically entered battle stance. This familiar aura, so thick in the air it made me gasp… is the Abyss.

Kkkkik…

…Kkigigik, kkkkik…

…Kkkkik… kkiik, kkigigik…

……………Kkkkik.

A high-frequency sound, like fingernails nervously scratching glass, made my ears feel like they would burst, and my entire body was drenched in cold sweat.

"Yoshuhar, this, this can't be… right?!"

Rin had heard that sound only once before. That sound meant only one thing.

It was the sound made during the last battle, when the Lizard Lord's seal was broken, and the world axis cracked. More precisely, it was the sound of a being beyond the seal forcibly gouging it open, creating a rift.

Yoshuhar, who couldn't possibly be unaware of the gravity of the situation, suddenly took on the form of a dragon with a powerful explosion of light, then spread his wings wide and flew out of the entrance.

"What in the world is this…?"

By the time I finally pushed through the gale of his wingbeats and rushed outside, madness unfolded before my eyes.

"Ha, ha, ahahahahah…!"

"He, he hehehehehe…!"

The guards, who had torn at their own faces until they were covered in blood, were erupting in insane laughter as if they had lost their minds.

And their eyes…

Both of their eyes…

were slowly turning dark blue. It was a familiar sight. It was the process of being consumed by the madness of the Abyss and turning into the undead.

"This is insane…"

This is impossible, this is impossible.

This is the Papal State.

It's the center of light spreading throughout the world, the headquarters of the Mad Dragon Orthodox Church, and the base of the Golden Dragon Legion…

Such a thing was happening in a place where it couldn't possibly happen.

"Pipi! Kasena!"

I gasped for breath, desperately searching for my companions, but the situation was desperate.

The concentration of the Abyss was so dense that dark blue currents drifted like a thick fog, gradually obstructing my vision.

"Pipi───!"

How many times did I shout until my voice broke?

Fortunately, thanks to the round fire barrier Pipi had created, I was able to find Kasena.

Inside the barrier, Kasena was painfully gasping for breath, and for a moment, extreme relief made me dizzy.

If it hadn't been for Pipi, Kasena would have met the same fate as the guards. It was not a concentration of the Abyss that an ordinary person could endure.

"Well done, Pipi. Keep protecting Kasena."

The Golden Dragon Legion, led by Yoshuhar and the cardinals, soared in countless numbers, enough to cover the sky, circling a single point.

Around the increasingly tearing rift in dimensions, a voice that was not of this world flowed out.

I didn't even have a moment to look up at it. The next moment, a dark blue light hissed, spreading like flames at my feet and covering the ground.

"──?!"

On the ground, rapidly being eroded by the Abyss, countless letters and mathematical formulas writhed like snakes.

A magic circle…?

And each time that light flickered, the tumor of the Abyss that had sprouted in the sky pulsed as if in resonance. I recognized it at once. This, then, was a dimensional array.

"Bell Querius."

My vision was dyed crimson, and a pure white flower with seven petals bloomed in my eyes, rotating beautifully.

Before the clan's secret art that interprets all phenomena of creation as mathematical equations, everything in the world shattered into numbers, conveying information so intense it felt like my brain was burning white.

I knelt on one knee, carefully examining the structure of the magic circle, and my eyes trembled.

'What is this…?'

Magic, sorcery, and black magic were intricately intertwined, and the level of combination was so overwhelming that it would not be an exaggeration to call it art.

┏ 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 ┓

ㆍ The runes used are a combination of Formulaic Rutischen, Chant-type Altigma, Forbidden Orvios, and Amplifying Delbeischertz, in a ratio of 2.2:2.1:3.7:2.0.

┗ 0 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 1 ┛

Moreover, the runes used were maliciously complexly intertwined, like some kind of cipher. As if taking out insurance to prevent anyone from decrypting it by inverse calculation.

This combination of runes was saying.

Even if you touch just one number incorrectly, your brain will be devoured by the Abyss. So don't dare to step forward.

"Ha…"

A tension like walking on thin ice, mixed with a youthful fighting spirit, erupted in a hollow laugh.

'Alright… I'll accept this challenge.'

I'll start by solving the vector equation of the vertical line that forms the 293rd mathematical formula.

I will inverse calculate the equation, expand it into its basic elements, then proceed with recombination.

Pop, the blood vessels in my eyes burst one by one, blood stung my pupils, and my vision blurred.

It's okay.

For now, it's okay.

At this point, unlike conventional mathematical equations, the key to victory is to change real roots into imaginary roots to negatively affect the magic circle's efficacy.

Trickle, blood streamed down both cheeks, met at my chin, formed droplets, and fell to the ground.

It's okay.

I can still do more.

While it's difficult to resolve things based on sorcery or black magic, twisting just the magical formulas based on Rutischen and Delbeischertz can inflict significant damage on such intricate high-order magic circles.

'Modifying the coordinates of the rift being created in the world axis is impossible at this point, so I'll modify the power. To minimize damage.'

It was a task requiring delicate concentration that could only be described as threading a needle through a thousand pinholes without a single mistake.

213, 269, 351, 421.

I separate, inverse calculate, and recombine the mathematical formulas from the puzzle-like magic circle, then reinsert them. With this, the 67th mathematical formula is also complete.

Now, is my remaining magic power roughly 2,000? I can still do about two more… It was then, as I gasped for breath and wiped the cold sweat from my forehead.

"Hmm?"

It was as if a voice, so welcome it made my chest ache, came from beyond the Abyss fog.

"There's still some foreign matter left."

Click… Along with the sharp sound of high heels striking marble, the familiar yet strange outline of a conical hat vaguely stirred beyond the fog.

No, this wasn't clear.

My vision had been blurred for a moment due to the recoil from overusing Bell Querius. Perhaps I had seen an illusion.

But my hearing was clear. I had definitely heard that voice before.

It seemed a little more seductive than the one in my memory, but it felt like I'd heard it so often I was sick of it… Whose voice was it, anyway?

"I will take care of it."

The error in memory swirling in my mind and the onslaught of such powerful magic it made my hair stand on end caused my concentration to waver for a moment, which was the root of the problem.

Chwarak, the sharp sound of a metal fan unfolding.

At that moment, hwaruk, with the sound of flames rising, an inexpressibly powerful Abyssal storm engulfed Rein.

"What…?"

A 2-star barrier couldn't even last a second?

As soon as I threw myself towards Kasena and Pipi and deployed a new barrier, the metal fan sharply cut through the air like a swinging scythe.

Then the storm first enveloped Rein and Kasena in a circle, then flung them far away. Ripping up the ground of their trajectory, shattering all the marble paving stones.

"…"

Valensidis, covering his nose with the unfolded fan and staring as if assessing the situation, addressed Turayna, the woman with the conical hat.

"The sense to deploy a barrier in that instant… it seems I missed him."

Turayna glared at Valensidis with distrust for a moment, then, biting a pipe shaped like a fire dragon, she briefly commanded.

"Go and finish him off properly."

"Yes."

And Turayna moved deeper into the Papal State as if entering her own courtyard. There was no human who could stop her.

For anyone who managed to escape the swamp of madness and tried to resist, however feebly, their body was enveloped by the smoke Turayna exhaled, and their limbs were torn apart and scattered across the Papal State's floor.

Stepping into the premises, expressionlessly trampling the scattered bloodstains, Turayna's gaze turned towards the entrance to the underground catacombs.

'I thought I'd have quite a bit of trouble dispelling the barrier…'

Whether all the cardinals were absent, or because of the rift in the world axis, the barrier had vanished without a trace.

The reason didn't matter.

If only she could enter there, if she could meet him, that would be enough. The cigarette smoke permeating Turayna's lungs felt heavier than usual.

"I'll save you now, Master."

* * *

Later, that global upheaval, recorded as the 'Black Spot Outbreak,' was so clear that it could even be seen from <Delaiten>.

"Could that be…"

Madelia, seeing the world covered in sinister clouds and shaking, hastily donned her robes and called for her soldiers.

"We're going to the Papal State immediately. Call every available troop."

It was not only <Delaiten>, but the sound of dimensions tearing echoed across the entire continent, so it was natural that everyone's attention was immediately focused.

"What is that?"

Be it Leoren, the Arch-Star, who was about to take a nap lying on a roof, or Doran Slade, who was leading his special forces subordinates towards <Haraldoniki>.

"…"

And even to the valiant woman, covered head to toe in the blood of an 'Ancient One' she had just defeated, that dark spot was clearly visible.

Her name was Frisbia, equipped with ultra-advanced mechanical gear all over her body.

She was the first among the eleven Platinum-ranked adventurers, said to be the strongest, and as her small, girl-like stature suggested, she was a Dwarf (兒人; Dwarf).

Inside her optical helmet, Frisbia's mouth twisted slightly.

"Hmph, so it's finally started south of the barrier."

And that day, an emergency letter was delivered to all available forces.

Starting with the Five Imperial Warriors (皇下四武星) recognized by the Emperor as the Empire's strongest, down to the Platinum adventurers, the strongest among adventurers…

It was the declaration of a martial law edict.

* * *

When I regained consciousness, or rather, opened my eyes, there was a stench of decaying greenery all around.

The magic that had encircled my body slowly faded. I had clearly deployed defensive magic… What was it? There was no damage to the barrier.

How could this have happened? There were two answers. Either it was a hallucinatory magic for intimidation, or the opponent had no intention of harming me in the first place…

"They flung me far…"

And Rein knew the answer.

I embarrassingly regulated my breathing and carried Kasena on my back. Having been flung to the forest area north of the city, I could see the catastrophe that had struck the Papal State at a glance.

Everything alive… was a hellish scene, weeping in agony.

"Emergency, emergency, emergency!"

Just then, Pipi, who had been flying in the sky, alertly surveying the surroundings, hastily descended. Simultaneously, a formidable magic approached, constricting my lungs.

'Damn it… as expected, he wasn't even using half of his full power normally.'

Bearing an overwhelming poisonous aura that decayed everything around him, the one who appeared before my eyes was none other than Student Council President Valensidis.

Though it was questionable whether he still needed such a title.

As my breath trembled sharply, a massive wave of black magic, comparable to a 5-star spell, was condensing in Valensidis's hand.

"So you're finally showing your true colors, you bastard."

I considered putting Kasena down because I had to fight with all my strength, but that guy is more skilled than me when it comes to 'fighting.'

Or rather, should I call him vicious?

At that very moment, he would seize Kasena as a weakness and easily take me down. It's the worst possible situation, with my mobility halved, but I can't put Kasena down.

'I can't even form hand seals, so I can't deploy an inner world barrier…'

No, to begin with, I've used up most of my magic power with Bell Querius, so I don't even have the magic to deploy an inner world. I need to find a way to survive somehow.

"Hey, why aren't you saying anything?"

But he didn't answer.

That very gap between his actions and attitude was intolerably irritating.

"Answer me."

"…"

"Answer me, damn it! Why! Why?! You could have killed me just now, but you spared me? Why did you throw me here?!"

Before long, a ferocious darkness capable of devouring everything in the vicinity rose above Valensidis's palm.

Bell Querius.

Just as I was frantically deploying my inner world in crimson, Valensidis suddenly looked up at the sky.

"Neither you nor I can defy the great flow of natural order, at least not now."

"…"

"But we can judge what is right and wrong. And what choices to make. With our own free will."

And the next moment, as Valensidis extended his hand towards me, a wave of darkness exploded from it.