Chapter 68
Chapter 68
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 68
Chapter Title: Thunderbolt
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Elena Haiderga had lived diligently a few years ago.
Whether it was that 'old' time or now, she lived alone in the mansion, but back then, Elena had a solid routine—going to bed at a set time and waking at a set time every day.
After passing those solitary days and a housemate moved into the mansion, she became even more faithful to her routine than when she lived alone, because life with her housemate was so enjoyable.
She liked waking in the morning and greeting each other. She enjoyed sharing breakfast together. Returning from the Magic Tower, having dinner, and on good days, sipping a light drink while chatting about trivial things...
“...”
Elena clung to the mind that had tried to drown itself on its own whim, a past already two years gone.
Recalling that time was horrific and agonizing for Elena. The more she thought about it, the more it dragged her endlessly down, making it even worse.
The throbbing headache intensified. If the earlier pain had been like needles occasionally pricking inside her brain, now it felt like a razor blade scraping across the surface of her brain.
The headache persisted. A hangover clinging from the alcohol she had poured down the previous night, combined with her unstable mental state. Elena clutched her disheveled hair and groaned, barely managing to lift her head.
The light streaming through the gap in the closed curtains was blindingly bright. To Elena now, that light brought only irritation and torment.
‘I can’t take it.’
She had left the curtains alone until now, but she couldn’t anymore. Anyway, the woman who used to barge into the living room, yank the curtains open, fling the windows wide, and nag was gone for good. With that thought, Elena steadied her breathing.
In the past.
Back when she wasn’t afraid of sleep but looked forward to tomorrow morning, she lived with the living room curtains flung wide open. She felt warmth from the light filling the room through the large windows, and freshness from the breeze seeping in when she opened them.
‘No.’
Throb. The headache worsened. Elena bit her lip and squeezed her eyes shut.
‘Don’t think about the old days.’
She resented her mind for dredging up the past on its own, even when she didn’t want to dwell on it.
“Don’t think, don’t think, don’t think...”
Elena gripped her throbbing head with both hands, repeating it like autosuggestion. The simple murmur was remarkably effective. After a while, the headache eased a bit, and the old memories stopped surfacing.
In the end, she had to immerse herself in something. She needed to divert her mind from conjuring up things she didn’t want to recall.
That was why falling asleep terrified her most.
She had tried forcing sleep with magic, but spells affecting the mind were tricky to handle and came with significant side effects.
No matter how much she put it off, the time to sleep eventually came. Lying on the bed or sofa, closing her eyes, waiting to drift off.
That was when her mind refused to obey. It wandered on its own, spawning anxiety and depression...
Likewise, mornings waking from sleep terrified her. The gap until her groggy mind fully sharpened. Even knowing clearly what needed doing today, the fear hit: I’ve woken up. Since I’ve woken, I’ll have to sleep again someday.
“Don’t think...”
For Elena now, that simple autosuggestion had become a ritual. Only after repeating it dozens of times did her mind feel ‘awake.’
Elena steadied her breathing once more and opened her eyes.
First, she wiggled her fingers toward the slightly parted curtains. The instantly formed spell circle triggered the magic. The gap remained, but no more light seeped in. As planned, the magic was applied directly to the window itself.
The now-unnecessary curtains flung open wide. The sun was already high outside, but the glass no longer reflected the outdoors. Instead, it was filled with murky darkness.
Elena stared blankly at it, then wiggled her fingers again. The darkness rippled faintly, and sparkling points dotted the skyward side. Roughly recreating a night sky like that somehow eased her mind a little.
Hwaaak...
Soft lighting illuminated the dark living room. Only then did Elena sigh deeply and rise from where she lay.
In this mood, she had to do something, and fortunately, tasks lay right before her eyes.
The carpet stained with spilled alcohol looked like blood had been spilled, but with one flick of her finger, the liquor rose in droplets, plop plop. Elena evaporated the gathered alcohol in midair and cast another spell on the carpet. It became fluffy as if brand new.
Next, she extended her fingers toward the liquor bottles scattered around the table.
She hadn’t enjoyed alcohol originally.
It started with accepting a glass at Orca’s urging, and afterward, she only drank a few at occasions where it was necessary.
Still, she always kept a few bottles at home. Even liquor she wouldn’t drink lifted her spirits just by being there.
When she had a housemate...
“Don’t think.”
Elena muttered again as she gathered the bottles in one spot.
There were many reasons she started drinking every day after her bodyguard left. Nothing to do when she got home. To divert her mind from unwanted thoughts. Because falling asleep was tormenting and frightening.
There were spells to stabilize an unstable mind, but after trying various ones, drinking proved better for creating things to do.
‘What a mess.’
Even now, it was the case. The living room was a wreck. Back when she had her housemate and Ha-ryeong...
“Don’t think.”
High-tier warriors or mages’ bodies didn’t intoxicate easily, but without consciously suppressing it, they could get drunk as much as they wanted.
Elena liked the moment when drinking made her mind grow hazy, anxiety and depression fading bit by bit.
‘Today... what to do?’
The living room cleaning was done. No more tasks left. Magic research? Reading?
‘Go out?’
Alone? Where to? Regrettably, Elena didn’t have many friends. In Lutran now, the only ones she could call ‘close’ were her master Orca and senior Reishi.
But she didn’t want to. It wasn’t discomfort with them, but Elena’s personality was like this by nature. Used to being alone, comfortable alone. Yet now, the solitude born from the twisted ‘alone’ she once enjoyed was breaking her.
‘Alone...’
Eat out? Stroll? Go to the theater for a show. Alone? Or drink alone starting now... As she toyed with such thoughts, twirling and tugging her tangled hair with her fingers.
In the end, she decided to head to the Derusia Magic Tower.
-Aren’t you pushing too hard?
Words from Reishi yesterday.
-Working hard is good, but you look so precarious right now. So Elena, promise me. Take one day a week off. Just lounge at home and play. Got it?
-You’ve already been staying at the Tower for days, right? Hmm, not that it’s wrong. When I’m focused, I hate even going home, so I stay at the Tower too. You drinking there? Whatever, it’s your room. You’re not causing a drunken rampage.
-But Elena, go home today and rest properly. Draw a warm bath with pretty-colored, fragrant bath salts, eat a delicious dinner, sleep soundly. Or want to have dinner with me?
Full of consideration.
She hadn’t refused. Yesterday, they ate dinner at Reishi’s favorite restaurant, had a few light drinks, and she came home.
What did they talk about... A bit of gossip about how ornery the master was lately. Lots about the magic she was researching.
-It was fun.
-Elena, don’t come to the Tower tomorrow. Rest at home. Okay?
‘That’s because you don’t know me, senior.’
Doing nothing and resting at home was the most agonizing thing for Elena. She yanked out the twisted lock of hair with a snap and headed to the bathroom.
After bathing and drying her hair and body with magic, she roughly combed her hair. Snap, plop. Dry strands broke with every brush stroke.
Her untrimmed bangs covered her face. Elena roughly swept them aside and stood before the mirror.
Hair reaching her thighs. Pallid skin like a patient’s. Dark circles. A body so gaunt her ribs showed. Elena stared blankly at herself and let out a hollow chuckle.
“Like a corpse.”
She dressed, draped a robe over, and pulled the hood low.
Outside the mansion, the sun blazed brightly.
Elena hated the current season.
Hot, sticky, humid, sunlight too bright.
She hated summer, which reminded her of two years ago.
*
Past noon, but mages lived by different clocks from others.
To Elena, this was still morning shortly after waking, but to some mage, it might be a night fighting sleep, or to another, lunchtime to sate hunger pangs.
The first floor of the Magic Tower was where mages living varied times gathered to chat and exchange.
They used respectful titles like senior or junior to keep proper distance. Closer, they used names with sister, bro, etc.
For Elena, titles besides ‘senior’ didn’t exist.
“So...”
The usual chatter cut off abruptly.
Entering through the door, Elena tilted her head at the sudden silence. The first-floor scene she arrived to alone was the same yet different from usual. The other mages peeking at Elena—now called Thunderbolt, changed from old days—had been doing it for days, but today it was intense.
“What?”
She usually brushed it off, but today her mood was especially foul. And it was worse than usual. Chattering away in this wide-open first-floor lounge until moments ago, then clamping mouths shut and glancing her way the instant she entered—that was too rude.
Chewing a long, tasteless, meal-substitute cracker that was dry and flavorless, Elena furrowed her brows and glared at the lounge mages.
“Were you badmouthing me? Why stop mid-conversation and eye me like that?”
Most mages in the lounge were lower tier than Elena.
Elena was no longer the young kid in the Derusia Magic Tower. So she had no need to speak deferentially.
Among the lounge mages, some were older and entered the Tower before her—but Elena didn’t consider them seniors. What was there to flaunt besides time? Why treat such as seniors?
“Were you really badmouthing me? Instead of wasting time on that, study more magic...”
“Don’t get ahead of yourself?”
Arist, rising from the crowded table, spoke.
“Oh, Arist ‘senior’? Still at the Tower?”
Elena’s lips twisted. Arist Benharman, stuck at fourth tier for years, unable to reach fifth. She was no longer someone Elena called ‘senior.’
Yet Elena always called her ‘senior.’ Not out of respect. She knew it boiled Arist’s emotions each time, so she deliberately used it to needle her.
“I’m always impressed seeing you, senior. Wasting day after day clinging to the illusion of nonexistent talent—something I could never do.”
Arist’s face twisted at the snide remark. Clutching her luxurious purple robe, she glared at Elena. Elena’s lips twisted further at the sharp gaze.
Arist’s well-groomed beauty. Polished nails painted, vibrant red lipstick, makeup, flashy earrings, necklace, bracelets, rings.
The sight poured oil on Elena’s irritation.
“If no talent, at least pour more time into effort. Ah, now I get why you don’t return to the Benharman family. Planning to find a man in Lutran?”
“A man?”
Arist’s mouth twitched. She crumpled the paper in her hand and flung it at Elena. But the thrown paper halted midair, not reaching her.
“What? Want to fight?”
“No way. As if I could beat the esteemed Thunderbolt?”
Arist snorted and extended her fingers. To unfurl the stopped newspaper before Elena.
“...”
She tried, but the crumpled paper wouldn’t open. It stayed frozen before Elena. Arist’s eyes quivered faintly. She poured more soulforce into her mana, but the airborne paper didn’t budge.
“What’s wrong?”
Elena asked with a twisted smile. Arist gritted her teeth, sweat dripping. Unlike Arist concentrating hard, Elena’s face showed no strain.
“Now it’s getting good.”
Only after sweat smeared her makeup did Elena release her power. The taut tension snapped back; Arist gasped, staggering.
Fortunately, she didn’t collapse unseemly into her seat, but humiliation flushed her face red. Forcing steady breaths, she glared at Elena.
“Curious what we were talking about before you came?”
A sneer drew over her humiliated, twisted face. Thinking of the face she’d see now, the insult endured felt cheap.
“See for yourself.”
The still-crumpled newspaper slowly unfurled. Elena glanced at it, wondering what it was.
[Orsia’s Sword Dragon Slays Chaos Cult Bishop.]
That was the front-page headline.
Elena was dumbfounded. Orsia’s Sword Dragon? Never met, but heard plenty. Grandson of the Sword Emperor, top among later-generation warriors. A different world from Elena, but same age, so often mentioned together.
Some paired them just because he was male and she female. Hearing nonsense about soulmates from someone she’d never met made her nauseous, but the world was full of fools spouting drivel.
“What the...”
She had no idea what this was about. Why show her this paper, how it related to the earlier silence and glances.
“What we’re...”
Elena’s face hardened as she scanned the article.
[...Thus the Sword Dragon fought the bishop alongside the Demonic Cult’s Young Leader, Thunder Cloud, and Dark Flame...]
[‘Thunder Cloud’ is the figure who suddenly drew attention in Lutran’s Full Moon Play and Fist Wolf duel...]
[Thunder Cloud’s real name is Yuri, recently a Black Dao underworld fighter...]
[Per the Orsia family’s statement, Thunder Cloud played a decisive role in slaying the Chaos bishop, his skill acknowledged by the Sword Dragon as a comrade.]
[Sources also say Thunder Cloud is childhood friend with Elena Haiderga, the ‘Golden Lily’—most famous among young mages lately.]
[Sword Dragon, Thunder Cloud, Golden Lily. Emergence of same-generation young masters heralds turbulent times...]
[Mentioned Dark Flame is Thunder Cloud’s comrade, previously known as Golden Lily’s bodyguard, a female expert.]
[Assassin from Killing Guard Sect, her name and deeds not widely known, but as Thunder Cloud’s ally, sure to rise alongside him.]
[Currently, Thunder Cloud and Dark Flame stay at Orsia family by Sword Dragon’s invite, Sword Emperor also heaping praise on the two later-gen...]
Below the jumble, something about the Demonic Cult’s Young Leader, but Elena’s eyes didn’t register it.
—Pzzt!
Lightning arced in midair, turning the newspaper to charred ash. The current didn’t vanish after.
Pzzzt, pzzt...!
Currents roiled around the pale-faced Elena. Since reaching fifth tier, emotions hadn’t sparked currents, but now her feelings surged beyond her control.
-I’ll go look for Yuri.
A few months ago.
Words Ha-ryeong said the day before leaving echoed in her head.
-Will you come with me to find Yuri?
Don’t think. Though Elena’s plea mixed with the voice circling her mind, the thoughts wouldn’t stop.
-Miss.
-Won’t you regret it?
-Maybe Yuri isn’t expecting you to come find him either.
No longer scraped by a razor, it felt like her brain was being stabbed and sliced repeatedly.
‘Don’t think.’
Elena tore at her hair with her hand, gasping for breath.