Book 7 Chapter 19
Episode 168
Nariaduke, The Three Wheels (三輪) of Time.
The power bestowed by the Queen of Time is the Present (現在).
The absolute being who controlled time and space, commonly referred to as the Present, let out a furious scream that sounded as if it would tear a mortal's eardrums.
"Shariaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa… Queen, Your Majesty… Ru Rudum has, this, this…!"
Even the option of spreading wings and flying into the sky seemed impossible due to the pressure of the pillar of light still pressing down on the ground from the firmament.
The ground exposed to the explosive cold began to freeze, and the ice, which had already frozen the entire pit, began to spread towards them.
Milone thought they had to escape. Until the freezing momentum, which had even frozen the ground of the Red Mountains imbued with geothermal heat, gradually weakened.
"As expected… I… wasn't enough…"
The caster, Valencidis, murmured the reason in a sigh-filled voice.
Indeed, it wasn't enough to use the spell of a miko who had lived for 300 years as a legend herself.
For one, the theory of the spell was perfectly admirable.
A grand reversal spell that forcibly twisted and wove together the flow of divine energy throughout the Red Mountains, converting it into extreme bitter cold.
"Blue comes from indigo, but is bluer than indigo," as they say; it was a realm beyond the Great Reversal Spell of Juyeosogye Dae-ban.
'But it's not enough.'
It couldn't be helped; Valencidis utterly lacked the perception, experience, magic power, and divine power to perfectly handle such vast knowledge.
If it had been completely successful, it could have been trapped forever in absolute zero ice…
As magic power and divine power are depleted and strength slowly weakens, there is no hope now.
"Shu (power), A (give), Paris (vibrant)."
Then, a great language that reigned as power itself, rather than mere sound, echoed in a charming voice.
Dragon Tongue (龍言).
Among the creatures of light existing on this land, only dragons could imbue language with absolute power.
The dragon tongue recited now was by no means a high-grade dragon tongue, but it was more than enough to supplement the magic power and divine power that were just a bit lacking.
"Aki, you…?"
As Miria murmured, feeling slight confusion, the power of the seal grew dazzlingly strong, and the absolute being's scream also intensified.
And just as Milone had thought earlier, the ice that had engulfed the ground began to spread across the entire area in an instant.
The vortex of absolute bitter cold, which froze everything existing in this world in its original form, even turned pouring raindrops into hail.
"With this, is it all over?"
Miria and Milone, watching the frost storm, could only exchange hollow laughs that came with the release of tension.
The design was so perfect that it encompassed an area so vast that Nariaduke's spatio-temporal control could not reach it.
Even if time were deleted, even if space were warped, an absolute zero storm awaited at the end of any escape.
Before the time came to use the next ability, his body would be completely frozen…
The moment that thought was about to form in their minds, Milone hastily jumped backward, carrying the two people and the hatchling.
"No…"
Everyone's eyes trembled.
Because a vortex of noxious energy was raging in the space where they had been standing just moments before.
"It's impossible…"
Milone, who had escaped from there half a beat late, let out a sharp scream in excruciating pain as her legs rotted, decayed, and melted away.
"Hee, heehee, hee hahahahahahahahaha…!"
Amidst that scream, the shadow of a nightmare loomed over their heads.
In the backlighting of the frost storm, tearing off shards of ice that covered his entire body and letting out a roar, was none other than…
Archmage Lynn.
No, it was Nariaduke.
"Yes, those eyes… Asas, for you lowly beings who cannot escape the vortex of karma… those terrified eyes suit you exquisitely… Hee hee hahahahahaha…!"
Endless despair, fear, and madness encroached upon their entire bodies and minds.
Milone desperately smashed her lower armor with her fist, dislocated the knee joint beneath it, and then completely severed the muscles, flesh, and tendons.
Miria, intent on confronting the broken Calonama fellow, put Aki down and stepped forward in place of the two incapacitated individuals, panting madly.
At that moment, Valencidis analyzed the situation blankly.
'That ice, the ice he's tearing off, isn't the ice from Tourayne's Grand Reversal Spell.'
Yes, that was exactly it.
Once already covered by the ice shards of Juyeosogye Dae-ban, even if it were frozen by Tourayne's Grand Reversal Spell, only the surface of Juyeosogye Dae-ban would freeze.
"Raios, you men and women worthy of receiving the gift of truth, I will make you loyal retainers of the king."
Inside Juyeosogye Dae-ban, that fellow either deleted time or warped space to get up here…
"But that woman and the dragon's remains, who disturb the karma of kings, Nariaduke shall claim their flesh right here and now!"
Was there a mistake in Tourayne's calculations?
No.
It's only natural that Tourayne couldn't have imagined Nariaduke endlessly using Juyeosogye Dae-ban with Lynn's body.
'It's all, all my fault.'
Although its power was supplemented by the hatchling, the problem was that it was cast incompletely from the very beginning.
'I blew the last chance to defeat him…'
There was a chance to seize victory at first, but due to a lack of power, it couldn't be completely frozen repeatedly, so even without Juyeosogye Dae-ban, he would have eventually escaped from there.
Failed. It's over.
Even if other Faequiries, the Papacy, or water dragons stepped forward, it would be after they themselves were dead or undead… That's what they thought at that moment.
"Holy Light Perceives Light as Good (聖光視光爲善), Then Divides Light and Darkness (遂分光暗)."
The tremor of that divine power.
Hidden amidst the frost storm and the vortex of noxious energy, the power of Creation awakens from the silently flickering edges of the mental barrier.
The noble language gained light in sequence, then quickly rose into a fierce blaze.
In the beginning, holy light created heaven and earth; and the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of holy light moved upon the face of the waters. And holy light said, Let there be light: and there was light. And holy light saw the light, that it was good: and holy light divided the light from the darkness.
Simultaneously, a cage of flame made of strings of characters solidly unfolded around Nariaduke, who was about to seize Miria's neck.
"Hmm?"
Milone, who had regenerated her legs with dragon's blood serum and immediately pulled Miria back, paused for a moment.
'That is…'
Valencidis also had to witness the sight as if dumbfounded.
'Could the reason for asking for time…?'
For the first time, something akin to fear appeared in Nariaduke's third eye.
"This terrifyingly powerful force is…"
But soon it turned into a smile, and spreading his wings, he soared high into the sky.
"Ro ho tabekeris! With a cage as full of holes as this, you think you can imprison Nariaduke… no?"
He had soared into the sky, even deleting the time when 'the cage of flame was unfolding around him,' but what had happened?
"I can't escape…?"
Had his three pairs of wings been burned black by the power of the flames that pursued him into the sky?
Nariaduke, having lost his overwhelming flight ability, crashed ungracefully onto the frozen ground, scattering ice shards everywhere.
Soon, a voice full of pain and doubt burst out.
"Why, why is this happening… Rohotas, why isn't that power of regeneration, that power activating…!"
The Changmyeong Psalm, which adorned the beginning of the Seven Psalms of Creation, was famous for being particularly powerful among the seven psalms.
That was also the reason why only four miko in history, including Friede and Tourayne, could wield that power.
That passage, imbued with the power of the Creator God, binds everything that has been touched by Creation and everything that has not, returning it to its pre-Creation state.
In short, it severs the bonds connecting spirit and matter and banishes them to an era where there was nothing but void.
- Although its power had become so weakened, by being transferred to a scroll and recited by humans, that it couldn't even compare to the Creator God's original power…
As he recited the divine words, the red-eyed young man recalled a distant past. The scene of memories, beautiful and shining brighter than stars, when he was with everyone.
- "That divine majesty never vanished, I tell you. Isn't it amazing to see it firsthand? You realize how great this Lady Friede is for using it, right?"
Since regaining his memories, the warm hands from a distant past that supported him whenever he was about to collapse.
- "Can I use it too?"
- "You'd have to learn sorcery for that, wouldn't you? Heheheh, why don't you abandon someone like Lynn and come to Lady Friede? This Fire Dragon Miko will specially treat you to a full course of witch training. Opportunities like this don't come around often."
- "Th-that's a no!"
- "Lingchi, Lingchi, Lingchi."
Now, I can't go back into that story.
Both Friede and Tourayne are dead.
Now it's time to put an end to the story with that guy. Though it's too late.
- "Master, please sleep in your bed. You'll catch a cold."
As if violently severing the echoes of memory, the power of Creation was unleashed from the spot where he recited his last sacred prayer, spilling blood.
"Arise, Manifest Brilliance (彰明)."
All divine words encircling the edge of the mental barrier emitted light. The power of the Changmyeong Psalm, containing the story of Creation, reached something beyond providence.
Like a flute playing, the rising characters, flowing with a clear melody, connected and wove together, resonating as a gentle hymn.
When that hymn ended, the characters had combined into chains of flame imbued with the beauty of Creation.
"And Incinerate (焚滅)."
As soon as the command was given, it bound the body of the former Archmage, who had just torn off his burning wings and was rising in fury.
"No…?!"
Absolute power was refracted, and a ripple occurred in the power of immortality.
The absolute being felt fear.
He felt fear at the absolute power that did not twist time or space, but instead, the chains gradually tightened deeply around his body and soul, burning away, one by one, the karmic links that connected his soul to this dimension.
"This, this, it can't be… Kerhas, such, such karma, such, such a thing arising in the karma held by that person────!"
The dazzling light of Creation, the heat of Creation, too brilliant to even look at. A majestic and noble radiance, unlike a flash that would burn out the retina, like dawn.
In that explosion of light, the flame of Creation completely incinerated the young body and annihilated the supernatural power created out of fear of death.
And, through that gap of fear, the old soul that had seeped into the body was banished to the other side of Creation within a fiery dragon's ascent.
"────Argne, Argne, Gaplaten, AnRidal, Queen of Time, of Eternity, Your Majesty… This, this wasn't the karma that person, that person had decreed, Nuaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa────!"
That flame annihilated all impurities (不淨) that had covered the mountain range and soared to the edge of the sky.
As if trying to fill the void of a cosmic being that had clearly existed in this dimension, an incredibly fierce storm swept through the mountain range.
The turbulent flames, which burned brilliantly even within that storm, scattered into countless flakes of snow of flame (雪) the next moment, settling warmly upon the mountain range.
That snow carefully began to restore the providence of Creation that had been corrupted by the abyss.
Flowers bloomed from the dark blue, rotting earth, and new shoots sprouted from dying trees.
A sacred silence settled over the mountain range.
And the four moons hanging on the western peaks illuminated the heavens and earth warmly, shedding tear-like pillars of light through the scattering dark clouds.
"Lynn, Lynn, Lynn."
Pipi flew to the old boy's shoulder when his knees buckled from the backlash of wielding the power of Creation, far surpassing the limits of mortality.
"It's not Lynn."
Leaning his cheek against Pipi's head, the red-haired young man watched the power of his mental image scatter into countless fiery fragments and shook his head with a sad smile.
"Lynn is no more. Because he died here, now."
If he had died that day, in that place, Kies would have cried silently. Friede would have put a hand on his shoulder, a pipe in her mouth.
Tourayne might have held my body and sobbed, and Rista might have comforted Tourayne while also crying herself. But the story would have definitively ended there.
Lynn should have died that way back then. Not clinging to life in a pathetic manner, but dying amidst everyone's tears.
- "That person truly was magnificent. They taught me magic for free when I had nothing… just as I'm doing for you now."
A voice that shouldn't have been heard was heard.
Not the Tourayne who had grown weary of waiting, buried in longing, and fallen into the abyss, but the voice of the Tourayne who, on that day, buried Lynn in her heart with tears, and became a great Archmage, a sage, a grand sage, leading countless disciples to the horizon of truth.
It was a hallucination that couldn't be heard, a phantom dream that couldn't be realized… but just dreaming it made all the strength leave his body with a sad smile, and he collapsed.
'Tourayne…'
Like the curtain falling on a play, a dark veil completely enveloped his vision and consciousness.
The last memory that flashed before his eyes before his consciousness broke was, on that distant summer day, him and Tourayne goofing around about trivial things…
And in the illusion of his whole body being sucked into viscous mud, everything… into the darkness…
'With this, farewell…'