Chapter 28
Chapter 28
Chapter 28
I was repeatedly training in the deserted training grounds within my private dormitory.
“Sigh…”
[47/100 until guaranteed SSR-rank magic]
I’d noticed it before, but [Mana Dominator] consumed mana quite intensely. Even though my mana capacity had increased significantly after leveling up, it was still burdensome. I had never felt a shortage of mana when using normal magic. With low-level magic, my mana regenerated faster than it was consumed. Intermediate magic was similar. It consumed more mana compared to low-level magic, but I still had plenty to spare. Unless I was learning high-level magic or spamming intermediate magic, I wouldn’t normally experience mana shortage.
[Mana Dominator Lv. 2]
After 10 seconds had passed, I activated [Mana Dominator] again to create a spell.
[Lightning God]
The lightning-attribute wide-area annihilation magic of the SSR-rank character [White Cloud Hermit] extended beyond my private training grounds. The strike, which resembled the wrath of a god, illuminated the dark night. Just as I was admiring the power of an SSR-rank skill I hadn't seen in a while, a despair-inducing message appeared before my eyes.
[0/100 until guaranteed SSR-rank magic]
“You’re just as I expected, you bastards… I didn't have any expectations anyway.”
The stack was reset. If this was how it was going to be, leveling up would be useless.
Or was it all a matter of perspective?
If I could minimize the stack through this practice, I would have a significant advantage in future battles. Still, I needed at least 20 stacks to avoid mana issues, and considering cooldown and battle time, I should aim for at least 15.
“Should I take a break and try again…?”
“No, stop messing around and go to sleep.”
“…….”
I turned around at the sudden voice and saw Tia holding a pillow.
She was frowning, perhaps because she had just been in bed.
Or was she frowning because of me?
“You’ll wake everyone up. You’re not the only one living in this world, so let’s be reasonable, shall we?”
“Yes…”
A subtle pressure was hidden within her gentle voice. It was quite unsettling, like being caught playing computer games late at night by my dad. I tidied up the training grounds, pushing aside the nostalgic yet unpleasant feeling. After brushing off the dirt and dust from my body, I took off my outer clothes and entered my room.
“Oh, just in case… I forgot to mention something.”
Tia was sitting on my bed.
“…Headmaster, in case you didn’t know, this is my room.”
Seeing Tia dangling her legs and looking at me with half-closed eyes, a complaint involuntarily escaped my lips. Didn't she know what privacy was?
“Oh, sorry. I forgot to tell you.”
“How insincere.”
“Just think of it as your mom visiting in the middle of the night.”
“You don’t have a shred of maternal love.”
“…What did you just say?”
“Nothing.”
Tia shrugged and started explaining her business.
I wasn’t that angry, so I decided to let it go.
This dormitory belonged to Tia anyway. It didn't seem like she had searched my room, so I could overlook it.
“That magic earlier, you weren’t planning to use it on the students, were you?”
“Don’t worry, Headmaster.”
“I’ve never been more suspicious than when you tell me not to worry. Think carefully. The frail ones will die if they get hit by that.”
“Would I do that?”
Tia’s gaze was cold. She didn’t look like she trusted me. Her face was contorted, as if she had discovered something disgusting.
That hurt.
“Oh, by the way, Headmaster.”
“What?”
Tia, who was about to leave, sluggishly turned around. She still seemed half-asleep. I had to tell her about the [Death King].
“What is it?”
“…….”
I had learned from the previous incident that her personality was even worse than I thought. If I acted alone without reporting anything again, my head might literally be ripped off this time. She was literally above the law.
“…Nothing.”
But it didn't seem like the right time yet. If I reported Marie's scheming in advance, Tia would choose to expel her from Scientia with minimal mercy.
Of course, after the incident, it would be execution.
It wasn’t time yet.
I had a plan, but at this point, she would find expulsion more reasonable.
“Don't trail off like that, it ruins the mood. Did you really have to do that? I’m telling you not to stay up late because I'm irritated today.”
“N-no, it’s not that…”
Tia’s mood began to darken with anger. This wouldn’t do. I had to say something. Judging from the atmosphere, she might hit me if I stayed silent.
“…I saw a suspicious group nearby over the weekend.”
“Do I need to know that? You know I don't care about what happens outside.”
“Isn’t a suspicious group worth mentioning?”
“Are they capable of interfering here? Or are they related to the ‘yet’ you mentioned before?”
“That’s… right?”
Come to think of it, Parade was a group somewhat connected to the 'Outer Beings.’ They were probably the masterminds behind the shattered sky.
“Something like that.”
“…….”
As soon as I finished speaking, Tia’s gaze turned sharp, completely different from before. Her vertically slit pupils glowed as if burning, and her two horns emitted heat. I could feel her anger. The pressure was suffocating.
“Oz, as you know, I don’t intend to spare anyone who messes with my things in my territory.”
“Yes, I know.”
“If it were outside my territory, I wouldn't care, but to dare do that within my territory is a challenge to my authority. Do you understand?”
“I understand.”
I didn’t know if it was a dragon trait or because of ‘that thing’ she was hiding, but Tia didn’t like anyone running wild in her territory.
“Tell me clearly. Are those bastards connected to the previous incident?”
Tia wasn’t interested in anything that happened outside her territory. Unless it was a world-threatening issue, she wouldn't interfere in human affairs. But conversely, she reacted with extreme hostility to anything that happened within her territory. She was determined to protect her territory for some reason.
“Those guys are… to put it simply, the group that unleashed the ‘yet’ you mentioned into the world.”
“Then I’ll have to kill them all. What are their characteristics?”
“You’ll probably recognize them immediately if you see them. Their inside and outside are completely different. If I had to pick a physical characteristic, it would be the masks they wear.”
“Really?”
Tia tilted her head. It would have been a cute gesture for a child, but the pressure was so overwhelming that I was momentarily speechless.
“Is that so?”
Tia replied as if committing it to memory, then turned around. But she didn’t seem to be planning to wait. She was going to look for them right now. Crack— A leathery wing sprouted from her back with a chilling sound.
“Wait a second…”
A moment later, the dragon soared into the sky. And the ceiling of my dormitory disappeared.
“I got one ceiling fixed, and another one disappeared…”
I would be sleeping under the stars tonight. How sentimental.
“…She’ll fix it tomorrow, right?”
I believed she would.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Tia soared into the sky above the imperial city and looked around. Of course, she wasn’t fully revealing her true form. That would make things unnecessarily complicated.
“Where are you…”
Tia’s mana spread out subtly, and her eyes began to classify every living being she saw. There were many who harbored murderous intent. Assassins, waiting for their target to leave Scientia, were always lurking. Tia didn't bother eliminating them and didn’t care about what happened outside the academy, so she left them alone.
‘Should I clean them up this time?’
They were getting in the way of her search for the targets Oz mentioned. For that reason alone, Tia started contemplating the lives of the assassins gathered nearby.
‘No…’
But Tia shook her head. She didn’t want to handle things that way.
“Then…”
Tia raised her arm and extended it towards the void. There was nothing in her hand. There was no mana, so it didn't seem like she was about to use magic. But then, something began to appear above her hand. The object was transparent, but it seemed to have some refractive index, creating a distortion in the air.
“Open.”
Tia grasped the object and twisted it as if unlocking a lock.
It was one of the five Keys that existed in the world.
[Key of the Seeker]
Mana was spread widely throughout the world. But no one knew where it originated from. Some said it occurred naturally, others said living beings were born with it.
But it was different.
The [Dragon Emperor] knew it wasn’t like that.
Mana flowed from a single source. A miraculous creation of God definitely existed. And the Key Tia possessed was the key to opening that door.
“Heart of Azure and White.”
An immense amount of mana began pouring out from the tip of the Key. Tia periodically scattered this mana throughout the world, replenishing the depleted mana. That was the role of the [Dragon Emperor], one of the Key Persons. She didn't forgive those who ran. She didn't forgive those who hid. Her mana was mixed into everything in the world, and she was one of the pillars supporting the world.
“Found you.”
The vast mana encompassing the entire Empire finally located its target.
“What…?”
Tia was momentarily taken aback. The target began to move as if trying to escape, having noticed her pursuit. This was normally impossible. No one could be aware of the air they were constantly breathing.
But it didn't matter. No matter how much they ran, once captured, they couldn’t escape Tia’s grasp. Tia immediately flew towards the target. She wouldn’t let them escape. She wouldn’t stop until she uncovered the identity of the ‘yet’ Oz had mentioned. She wouldn’t tolerate any threat to her, even if it was a child.
“…?!”
Tia abruptly spun her body. It was an interception. But it wasn't an ordinary attack. It was magic with power equivalent to at least high-level.
‘This quickly?’
Judging from the speed of the magic deployment, the enemy was at least an elder-level mage. Ordinary magic wouldn’t even scratch her, but she was currently disguised in a human shell, not her dragon form. Advanced-level magic, depending on the user, could inflict damage.
“How dare…!”
Tia was enraged by the magic continuously flying towards her. The speed of its deployment was surprising, but it was pathetic and ridiculous. Above all, Tia’s body began to expand in midair at their audacity to disregard her.
“Kraaaaaaaaa—!!!!!!”
The dragon cast a shadow over the world. The advanced-level magic that had been flying towards her began to disappear harmlessly, like moths drawn to a flame. Boom! But at that moment, a bright light, as if reversing the dark night, leaked out, and Tia’s neck snapped back. It was top-tier lightning magic. Just like before, the deployment speed was astonishingly fast.
‘This magic is definitely…?’
It was magic she had seen recently. Tia momentarily pondered the question as she slowly raised her head. Even top-tier magic couldn't stop her once she revealed her true form. Her eyes blazed with fury. Tia spread her wings.
And…
Ziiiiiiiiiiiiiiip—!
With a sound like ripping space, Tia’s body instantly appeared where the enemy had gathered.
“…….”
It was a group that looked like clowns. Despite their masked faces, their exuding murderous intent was more blatant than any bare face, a twisted group. Oz was right. The moment she saw them, she understood that this was the group he had mentioned.
‘Are those really humans…?’
It was disgusting just to look at them. Tia had expected at least undead from the underworld or demons. They had an unnatural aura that humans couldn't possess. But those reflected in Tia’s dragon eyes were definitely human.
“We seem to have gotten too close.”
From the center of the murderous clowns, a man with black hair and sky-blue eyes, his face hidden behind a mask, walked out leisurely. Tia felt a sense of familiarity, as if she had met him recently.
But this was clearly different.
The essence was different. It had to be. It must be.
“Who are you…?”
Tia asked in a dumbfounded voice. He was more special than anything else present. He felt distinctly special, yet the same as the others. It was unsettling.
“Dear Dragon Emperor, we had no intention of intruding into your territory. This kind of encounter is not pleasant for us either.”
“But you brought something strange into my territory.”
“Well… haha, I can’t deny that.”
The man shrugged as if troubled. It was a relaxed gesture. And Tia didn't overlook that composure. If the opponent was relaxed, there was no reason to just stand by and watch. She preferred violence over conversation.
Conversation was for the weak.
Crack—!
Tia’s massive arm swung towards the man. But he didn't turn into a lump of flesh. There was a wall. A transparent wall, cracked like glass, as if space itself was severed. Tia momentarily looked up at the sky.
“Dragon Emperor, I hope you understand that I am not your enemy.”
“Don’t make me laugh…!”
Tia took a deep breath, seeing the man uttering words similar to someone else’s. The wall separating her and the man wasn’t that sturdy. Wasn’t it already cracked from a single punch?
“Using my breath is a bit much. I was hoping for a bit more conversation, but let's save it for next time.”
Tia, who had been inhaling, widened her eyes in shock at the man's next action. The man reached out towards the void with an arrogant and controlled movement.
“Open.”
A gesture as if opening a door in the void, a very familiar action that Tia had repeated countless times over hundreds of years. A Key was opening a door.
“Mirror of the Other Side.”
Crack—!
With those words, the glass wall separating Tia and the group shattered, and they disappeared.
“Huh…”
Tia stared blankly at the spot where they had vanished, then raised her hand to her cheek. A faint pain. Blood was trickling down. There was a scratch on her body, the pinnacle of life. It was a humiliation she hadn't felt in hundreds of years.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
[Erosion Rate 30%]
When I opened my eyes after sleeping in a house without a ceiling, the first thing I saw was the [Erosion Rate] at its limit, and the cold, damp touch of rain.
“It’s raining.”
My body and mind were cold, and I felt grimy. I felt so pathetic and miserable that I almost
wanted to cry.
“Sob…”
I couldn't tell if I was crying or if it was just the rain.
This incident made me realize how fortunate I had been. As a modern person, I had never slept in the rain like this, and I felt so miserable that I just wanted to sob.
“This is unbearable, really…”
I had never felt so pathetic.