Chapter 357: A Thousand-Year Promise, A Thousand-Year Wait (2)
Chapter 357: A Thousand-Year Promise, A Thousand-Year Wait (2)
“He’s gone.”
“…Yes. He really left.”
Immediately after Yandel threw himself into the distortion of time through the door opened by Cyclic Life.
Iris murmured blankly, and Elisha nodded with an even more exhausted expression.
Perhaps seeing her like that was too painful to bear, for Carla gently took Elisha’s hand and spoke.
“Elisha. For now…”
“I know, Carla. We have to do what we must. Because that’s what Yandel asked of us.”
Her voice was solemn. Inspired by her resolve, the others began to stand up one by one.
The air was thick with determination. Cyclic Life, who looked slightly weary from supplying a massive amount of life force to Yandel even at this moment, lightly reached out a hand.
“Are you leaving? Then I shall open the way for you.”
Another door appeared, facing the one Yandel had entered.
Solari watched it for a moment before whispering softly to Cyclic Life.
“…Please look after my husband.”
“Do not worry. I will do my absolute best, as if he were my own child.”
Though her expression remained tired, Cyclic Life nodded deeply as if to reassure her.
Solari nodded back and headed toward the exit of the sanctuary.
The others, sharing similar sentiments, gave a slight bow to Cyclic Life before stepping through the door in sequence.
Finally, Iris looked at the door Yandel had entered with a complicated expression… but eventually, she stepped forward with the rest.
Just as Yandel was doing, they were moving to continue their own battles in their respective places.
*
The interior of the time distortion was a bit different from what I had imagined.
I thought I’d be enduring it on those endless, infinite circular stairs I saw when I first came to the Sanctuary of Life…
“Oh?”
The space unfolding before my eyes was actually a vast landscape of the Great Forest. There was even a small cabin placed there for my comfort.
This was likely the result of the 'adjustments' Cyclic Life had mentioned.
From what I heard, in addition to this, she had set it so that while I would feel pain more vividly, I would remain in a state of Forced Awakening to ensure I never went mad.
I wouldn't feel hunger, and physiological functions like waste elimination or sleep were temporarily suspended.
Furthermore, she had even taken the precaution of ensuring that once I left this place, I would slowly forget what happened inside to prevent my current psyche from shattering.
It was a meticulous level of consideration. Perhaps because this was originally a trap designed to break the minds of enemies, she knew the dangers better than anyone.
With a smirk, I stepped inside the cabin. The interior was bleak, containing nothing but a single bed. She probably didn't have the luxury to worry about other furniture. Or perhaps there just wasn't enough time.
“Well, it’s not like I came here for a vacation, so it doesn’t matter.”
I nodded and sat upright on the moderately hard bed. Then, I slowly focused on my breathing and began to observe my inner self.
Wuuuung—
Though I had consumed a fair amount during the battle with Ugly Prosperity, my mana was rapidly recovering even now, thanks to the Endless Mana trait.
However, no matter how much I recovered, I couldn't exceed the limits of my vessel… my Magic stat of 28.
Stats become harder to increase the higher they go, and the jump in power with each point becomes exponential.
That’s why, barring special circumstances, one needs to reach the level of an Archmage to cross over to 29.
To gather mana beyond one's own capacity, proper preparation or sacrifice is required.
Since I had no time to prepare, sacrifice was the only option left.
Just in case, I tried to see if I could fill the remaining 20% of my Mana Core through mana breathing, but…
Whether it was true that one could neither gain enlightenment nor accumulate mana in distorted time, no matter how much I breathed, the mana wouldn't fill.
It felt as if the mana in the atmosphere, far from responding to me, was recoiling in horror and fleeing.
I guess there really is only one way.
“Whew.”
I let out a light sigh and prepared myself mentally.
Converting life force into mana is fundamentally an incredibly inefficient task.
Setting aside the pain involved in the process, the conversion rate is low, and the mana obtained this way is merely a one-time use that doesn't expand the vessel. If I were to stop even for a moment, all the mana I had forcibly gathered would vanish.
In other words, from this moment on, I had to keep converting without stopping, no matter what.
Normally, it’s an impossible task. No wonder the others tried so hard to talk me out of it.
Conscious of my body, which was overflowing with vitality unlike my stagnant mana, I focused my mind.
The Mana Road, now one with my veins, reacted to my will and began to draw life force into itself instead of mana.
“Gah…!”
It felt as if jagged shards of glass were rolling through my veins. My eyes flew open involuntarily, and my limbs began to tremble violently.
I wanted to collapse onto the floor and scream right this second, but…
I had to do it.
I had to succeed.
To defeat Ugly Prosperity, and to protect myself and my women, this was the only way.
The life force circulating through the Mana Road gradually transformed into mana, eventually heading toward the Mana Core along the path.
Normally, it should have accumulated in the Core, but now it couldn't. It simply hovered around my heart like smoke.
Yet, it was definitely mana under my control.
Feeling the energy that was still only a handful, I forced the corners of my trembling mouth upward.
“This is… doable.”
The words were full of bravado, but bravado was exactly what I needed right now.
*
As I spent several hours focusing on the mana conversion, I suddenly felt a sense of dissonance in my body.
Pain is also a type of stimulus. Therefore, if one continues to feel it, they should eventually grow accustomed to it.
“Ugh… hhh…”
But I could not get used to the pain, as the price for my awakening.
The sensation of glass shards tearing me apart from the inside remained, and the pressure squeezing my heart didn't weaken in the slightest.
*
Perhaps a week had passed. There was a cycle of day and night here, but I wasn't sure of the exact time since I didn't have the luxury to pay attention to it.
Anyway, after about a week, the pain intensified.
In addition to the sensation of my insides being shredded by glass, a new sensation was added—as if I were being slowly sliced from my extremities toward my core.
The reason was simple.
In the meantime, I had developed a knack for it, and my conversion speed and efficiency had improved.
It was only natural that the pain would increase as more life force was converted into mana.
Still, this much was bearable.
*
I was wrong. How could anyone 'bear' the feeling of their lungs burning as if they were swallowing fire with every breath, or their entire body being sawn apart?
I simply became terrified of the fact that my mind remained perfectly clear amidst all this agony.
Of course, I didn't stop.
*
I used Origin Regression.
Actually, I hadn't intended to use Dragonification until the very end.
In my dragon-kin state, all my abilities would rise, making it much easier to endure, but it’s impossible to maintain it forever.
I was afraid of the backlash when I eventually returned to my original form… but it was so difficult that I ended up using it.
Since it’s come to this, I have no choice but to maintain it as long as possible.
*
I almost lost consciousness.
The backlash that came with deactivating Dragonification was more severe than I thought.
However, thanks to the Forced Awakening, I didn't actually pass out. It just felt like I was clutching a single rope in the midst of my fading consciousness.
But because I held onto that rope tightly, I was able to keep the mana conversion from stopping midway.
I’ve gathered a bit more than twice my maximum mana by now; it would be a waste to let it all blow away.
I vowed never to use Dragonification again, no matter how hard it got.
*
How much time had passed?
Before I knew it, the converted mana had grown to an enormous amount.
The smoke that used to hover around my heart now filled my entire body and then some, to the point where a handful would leak out of my nose and mouth every time I exhaled.
Of course, the smoke that leaked out didn't just disappear; it lingered around me.
But it wasn't enough. At this rate, I could only cast Punishment about a dozen times.
No one dies from being pricked by a needle a dozen times.
Ugly Prosperity would be the same.
*
I couldn't be more grateful for the Excellent Memory trait.
Whenever things got hard, I would always steel my will by picturing the faces of my women. Thanks to Excellent Memory, I could remember them perfectly no matter how much time passed.
Yes.
What did it matter if every moment was agonizing enough to kill me?
As long as these memories remained, I could die a thousand times over.
*
Just because there was a cabin didn't mean I stayed cooped up inside.
I often wandered through the forest because receiving other stimuli helped me forget the pain, even if only for a moment.
Then one day. For some reason, the Great Forest reflected in my vision felt smaller than usual.
So, I climbed a suitable tree to take a proper look.
“Ah.”
It really had shrunk.
The forest that had stretched out endlessly was turning into a desert starting from the edges.
It meant that the power Cyclic Life was pouring into this space was decreasing.
The battle outside must have intensified.
The overflowing mana enveloped my body like a mist, but it still wasn't enough.
*
The forest had completely vanished. The cabin and the bed, where I had been able to lie down somewhat comfortably, had also crumbled into dust.
Fortunately, the life force Cyclic Life provided remained the same, but that was all.
There was nothing left here.
Perhaps that’s why, for the first time in a long while, the thought that this was 'hard' crossed my mind.
*
I walked and walked aimlessly through the desert.
Because sitting still was even harder.
By now, the mana had accumulated to an immeasurable degree, but it still wasn't enough to bring down Ugly Prosperity.
How much longer did I have to do this?
I realized one thing during this time: Cyclic Life’s awakening effect only kept me from going mad; it didn't do anything else.
…To be honest, I was a bit exhausted.
*
I want to see the others.
I thought that as I looked up at the sky, which was now perpetually dim and dark, as if there was no longer enough power to maintain day and night.
I had endured by replaying the memories I could still vividly recall over and over, but I was at my limit.
I didn't know how many years had passed here, but it must have been much longer than the time I had spent since falling into the Eurelia Continent.
However, no matter how much I was buried in time stained with pain.
My longing did not fade; it only grew more intense.
*
I lay still and looked up at the sky.
Now, even moving was difficult. It wasn't that my body was tired, but rather that my heart was so weary I lacked the strength to do so.
I just stared blankly at the sky, counting the stars.
No, there was no way stars could remain in a gray sky where even the darkness of night had collapsed.
What I was counting were the memories of the past.
The faces of my women, their warmth, their voices, their touch… and the promise we made at the end.
Each time I recalled them, a memory became a star, decorating the empty sky. Using those stars as comfort, I endured another day.
When it became hard to bear again, I reached into the past once more to count a new star.
How many times did I repeat the process of new stars appearing in the sky?
The sky that had been empty was now filled with starlight.
I carefully reached out and grasped the longing.
It was time to go out.