Chapter 104
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 104
Chapter Title: Maron
-----------------------------------------------------------------
"My name is Maron."
He finally introduced himself.
"...I've heard of you."
"Oh? Then this'll make things easier."
He chuckled briefly and continued.
There was a peculiar leisure in that laugh.
Like the worldly contemplation only someone who had lived for ages could possess.
"You'll have to come with me."
"Where to?"
"My home."
"...Home?"
There were still people in the banquet hall—including those around me—who needed explanations... Was I really supposed to just leave in the middle of all this?
Well, the threats to them had been wiped out in an instant by the man standing before me.
"The forces of evil seem to be after you. Wouldn't staying put actually be more dangerous?"
Maron had a point.
It wasn't dangerous right now, but going back could make it dangerous for them.
"Hmm... I'll handle explaining things to the people left behind. Maybe relay it directly to the Emperor."
Whatever he said, a relaxed, nonchalant air flowed from him. As if everything coming out of his mouth was truly no big deal.
And could I really refuse such a powerful Transcendent who insisted I come along?
At least I could be grateful he was on Merin's side.
If he'd been some total stranger powerhouse, a demand like "come with me" would've seemed laughable.
"Shall we go?"
"Going's fine, but... my arm first."
"Oh right, you're hurt."
Maron didn't deliberate long.
He stepped even closer and reached out a hand.
"That'll get fixed once we arrive too."
"Huh?"
The moment his fingertips touched my shoulder, my vision flipped upside down.
The changed view was a landscape utterly unlike the forest entrance where I'd been standing.
'A cave?'
In an instant, I was somewhere completely different.
...What the hell was this? Spatial jump?
Anyway, was this his home?
Looking around, it definitely felt familiar.
Cave interiors all look pretty much the same... but I had a rough idea of where this was.
The place Merin had introduced as their hideout.
I'd been here once before.
How far away was this from where I'd been...?
While I panicked, Maron calmly walked ahead and spoke.
"Truth is, I don't have a proper place to call home. Hmm, if anything, nature itself is my home. That's how I see it anyway... but others never quite get it."
Sounds like something an elf would say. No, don't even elves build decent houses to live in?
Was he a fairy or something?
He had a mystical aura, sure, but his build was way too big to call him a fairy.
Above all, wasn't he the one who'd personally gathered human Transcendents?
Well, thinking of Gabina—she was half-dwarf too—so they probably weren't fixated on pure human bloodlines.
Clutching my broken arm, I followed behind him.
"Sounds like something an old-timer would say, huh?"
"Pretty much."
He smirked.
"The modern world has really changed. Honestly, I struggle to adapt. Especially to folks like you... becoming Transcendents in such an unbelievably short time. Well, you're a particularly unusual case even among them."
I'd heard similar gripes from Joat and Merin.
Joat had been complaining from our first meeting that Transcendents were popping up like weeds these days.
Seemed like a shared sentiment in their group.
Anyway... he'd definitely clocked that I'd become a Transcendent.
Not that it would've been strange if he hadn't. Sure, he'd appeared like teleporting out of nowhere, but Maron wasn't an idiot.
Seeing me flee from a Dragon Rank Transcendent would've made it obvious.
"Those trapped in the old era are getting weeded out one by one like this."
With their power, they didn't seem like they'd go down that easily...
Still, one thing was clear: he was a being who'd lived through truly ancient times.
His speech, his gaze, his demeanor—everything screamed it.
Walking further with Maron, the large table from my last visit came into view.
And the cluster of Transcendents surrounding it.
Familiar faces were among them.
Joat, Merin, Gabina.
Plus five more Transcendents.
'They all gathered here?'
As that thought crossed my mind, Maron approached them and spoke.
"Brought him."
"...Ivan?"
Merin reacted first.
"Yeah. Our hero."
"Huh?"
"Hero?"
"The hero?"
A rainbow of reactions erupted. Though all carried the same undercurrent of bafflement.
...Anyway, did Maron seriously believe I was the hero? What was his basis for such certainty?
Merin frowned first and asked.
"What're you talking about? The hero? This guy's a mage."
"Is there a law saying mages can't be heroes?"
"But he has to pull the sword..."
"Where's that sword, then?"
"...No clue. We've been looking for it this whole time."
That sword was in my consciousness, sure.
Since they hadn't seen its true form, had they concluded the hero didn't necessarily need to prove it with the sword?
No, not them.
Maron.
"I get the feeling the forces of evil already know too. They were gunning for this guy."
"Gunning for him?"
Merin widened her eyes in shock.
A deflated voice escaped her.
"Good thing you went looking, Maron. He almost died right there..."
"He was already escaping on his own just fine."
"...What?"
"Looked like he'd already finished the first awakening."
"What!"
Merin shot to her feet. Her reaction went beyond surprise—straight to shock.
Not just Merin; even Joat's stoic face flickered with astonishment.
"You, you... It's barely been any time since you hit 7th Hierarchy!"
Merin embodied utter disbelief. No wonder—she'd trained alongside me to raise our hierarchies.
She figured it hadn't been long since 7th, so my Transcendent reveal hitting like this was understandable.
...To get found out like this.
"He's really the hero?"
"A mage hero?"
The eight Transcendents excluding Maron radiated fluster.
Their gazes turned to me, laced with doubt, curiosity, and more.
But I was too busy calculating what came next to mind their stares.
My Transcendent status had been exposed unexpectedly.
To them... a tad early, but still within acceptable bounds.
I'd planned to reveal it gradually after the banquet anyway, timing it so others would think I'd just become one.
Spilling it to these folks—who had no ties to civilians—wouldn't change much. They weren't linked to my chat group members or anything.
The issue was that this human Transcendent crew would try dragging me into their fold the instant I became one.
That's why I'd hidden it—to buy time.
The moment I declared I wouldn't join, relations would end. No reserve ally status, no camaraderie—just total strangers.
But getting mistaken for the hero... that wasn't in any plan.
The buzz dragged on for a while before Gabina reined it in.
"What's the point of us bickering like this? Even Maron can't be certain. Without a way to verify it ourselves, all this chatter's meaningless."
They'd already checked, though.
I'd gripped the sword myself.
It hadn't budged an inch. That thing was ridiculously heavy...
After my broken arm was treated, I stood before them again.
Each Transcendent's gaze quietly bored into me.
This was oppressively awkward.
"You said you were being chased?"
"Yes."
"Did those guys really figure it out first?"
They believed I was the hero right now. Or more precisely, with no way to confirm, they were going with that for the moment.
Lack of confirmation methods was terrifying.
Suddenly, the bald male Transcendent addressed Maron.
"But with no way to check right now, why bring him here?"
Merin cut in sharply in Maron's place.
"He's being hunted by the forces of evil—just leave him be?"
"Ah, well... fair point."
Merin stepped forward, her expression hardened.
"We have to protect him."
The bald man nodded.
"...Just in case, yeah, protection makes sense."
"If they think he's really the hero, who knows what they'll pull? Can't be just one or two of us... Better if we all stand by here."
Suddenly, I was being treated like a kid needing round-the-clock babysitting.
"What about the elves?"
"Priorities. They're swamped lately too."
"No clue what those guys are thinking. Flipping every stone searching for something."
One nameless Transcendent twisted his lips in a smirk.
"Strutting around like the northern lands are already theirs."
"That's our opportunity. When they're slacking off like it's their world."
Opportunity?
I secretly perked up at the out-of-nowhere elf talk.
Priorities, opportunity, complacency... What were they scheming?
"We should scout first. All of us holing up here might be overkill protection. Could mean missing a shot to land a fatal blow on the elves."
I wanted more details on that, but Maron turned to me and said.
"For now, wouldn't staying here be best? Tell us if you need anything. We have ample reason to help you. Even if you're not the hero."
"I... was planning to set off on a journey."
"A journey? In this situation?!"
Merin, mid-conversation with the others, barreled over with a hysterical reaction.
I knew it was dangerous.
But paradoxically, to counter them, I needed to grow stronger. And travel was the way.
Besides, I had a separate favor to ask these guys.