Chapter 48: The Shape of Shadow
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 48: The Shape of Shadow
Ferda returned to the pitch-black room.
Instead of sleeping, he intended to continue his cultivation.
The mana cultivation method: Shape of Shadow.
If other mages were to rank it, it was a technique of 'High' difficulty. However, Ferda was a man who had already walked paths far more difficult and grueling than this. He could perform it as if it were no trouble at all.
All that was required was the movement of his Circles.
And finally, those Circles began to stir.
‘My mana reserves are woefully insufficient.’
Ferda knew ways to force it. If he had chosen that path, he could have reached the 5th Circle this very moment.
But he didn't. He knew all too well how dangerous it was to be consumed by emotion. Ferda remained wary of these feelings and struggled to find the right answer.
Eventually, he found it.
Ferda closed his eyes. He spread the flow of mana, concentrating it throughout his entire body. Then, he slowly tilted his focus and overturned everything.
Ferda’s mental image pressed down into the floor. His mind was projected into a world of shadows.
A flickering shadow cast by a candle flame swaying in a breeze. That shadow began to move on its own, slithering up Ferda’s body. The rising shadow met the red ring within Ferda’s Dantian.
‘Valdrova.’
Ferda’s mind began to visualize Valdrova’s form of its own accord. A mad painter lived inside his head. He painted the same image over and over on the canvas, yet never satisfied, he repeatedly destroyed his work.
He painted thousands of sheets and destroyed thousands more. This unfulfilled heart was not a simple thirst.
‘It was also what I wanted to discover when I reached the 3rd Circle.’
The question had vanished while he was busy stopping Valdrova’s rampage. But Ferda finally realized it. There was an unfilled void in the image of Valdrova he was painting.
In that void sat a single word.
‘Tomorrow.’
At that moment, the mad painter in his heart began to move. Unlike when he was possessed by rage, this time he was filled with fervor. He began to paint Valdrova’s image across a much wider canvas without hesitation.
‘Her tomorrow.’
Not just her tomorrow.
‘A tomorrow… where I am present.’
He filled the empty space with himself. The painting was completed as a single sentence.
‘I want to share tomorrow with her.’
The moment the sentence was finished, something incredible happened. The images created by his thin imagination began to come to life.
Ferda knew what this was.
‘Dongsim—the heart of a child.’
A dream a frail boy had dreamed a long, long time ago. The vaguely drawn image of a companion was overwritten by a beautiful woman with red hair and four horns.
It was a dream, and at the same time, an ecstasy.
Ecstasy is the pinnacle of emotion.
It moved.
His heart, growing uncontrollably, threw the Circles into a frenzy. If left alone, Ferda was destined to be destroyed.
So, Ferda concentrated. Because the future where the two of them were together had to be a reality, not a fantasy.
Ferda took the form of the spirit he had focused on and brought it to his Circles. At that moment, dozens of spectral hands began to gather the torrential mana and shape it.
‘It’s easy.’
It was on a different level from simply scooping it up with one hand. The effort he had put into creating the 1st and 2nd Circles felt much harder in comparison.
‘Too easy.’
Since he was surrounding and pressing down from all directions, there was no room for escape. The rotation moved as it should, and the shape was molded as intended.
In this way, it was overwritten with the form of a new shell.
Ferda had reached the 4th Circle.
Ferda opened his eyes. Shadows wriggled and moved, eventually transforming into the shape of hands.
It was the 3rd Tier magic, Shadow Hand.
No, it was on a different dimension from a standard Shadow Hand. This was no mere artificial construct created by magic. It was another part of his body that had been hidden inside Ferda.
Ferda adapted to it immediately.
‘The shadow is me.’
The hand branched out, and another hand was created. Those hands created yet more hands. They branched out endlessly in that manner.
The narrow room was filled with black hands.
‘And I am the shadow.’
The candle, unable to withstand the dense darkness, flickered out.
* * *
A guild.
A guild is a group that verifies the identity of its members and provides benefits. In exchange, it holds them accountable for their actions, controls them with rules, and demands unity for the sake of profit. Its essence is to protect their interests through a union.
However, the Serdes Magic Society was different in essence from such guilds.
Surveillance rather than verification.
Control rather than benefits.
That was the world mages lived in on the Serdes Continent.
Its founder was Erdes Roton. A war hero of the Twelve-Member Expedition that gathered to defeat the Demon King during the Dragon-Demon War, and the founder of the Magic Society.
Even now, 150 years later, she was still alive and active. A mage who had not relinquished the title of humanity’s strongest mage even to the current generation.
A collection of intellect. A living witness.
Though she possessed undeniable seniority, she looked younger than women in their prime.
“You must attend to your public duties.”
“I don’t want to!!”
She wasn't just young; she was throwing a tantrum like a child.
“I said I don’t want to work! Leave me alone!”
“Your public duties have been delayed for days. Look at this. They’re piled so high I can’t even see your face, President!”
“I piled them up because I didn’t want to see your face. Blue, you do it instead.”
“How can I do it? And my name is Lu.”
“You won’t die just because things are a little delayed. If you’re so annoyed, tell them to come talk to my face.”
“But you won’t open the door!”
“I open it just fine if someone challenges me to a duel, don’t I?”
“What madman in this world would fight you, President?”
She was a war hero of the Dragon-Demon War and humanity’s strongest mage. In a world where the win rate is abysmal if there is a gap in Circles, there was theoretically no one who could defeat her.
“That’s exactly the problem. They say they’ve staked their lives on it, but when I ask, ‘Do you want to die?’ they just say, ‘I want to live!’ and scurry away. They have no grit, no grit at all.”
“You turned the last person who staked their life into a cripple!”
“I just failed to control my strength a bit. I reached an amicable settlement with the party involved, didn't I?”
She brushed it off as if it were nothing. All the secretary could do was sigh and hand over the documents he had brought.
“This is the list of attendees for the Grand Council. Please check it.”
Not that it matters if you don't, Lu muttered under his breath.
With a flick of Erdes’s finger, the list flew into her hand.
“I see a lot of old fogies I know. If they’ve reached that age, they should just hand things over to their sons. How long do they plan on hogging their seats?”
“Indeed.”
The secretary’s eyes gazed intently at Erdes.
“Look away before I pluck your eyes out. If you don’t, eh?”
Erdes’s gaze, which had been scanning rapidly, suddenly stopped at one spot.
“Is there a problem?”
“I thought I misread it.”
She repeated the word several times.
“But I didn’t misread it. Blue, you bastard, are you not doing your job properly?”
“Pardon?”
He was flustered by the sudden verbal abuse. She pointed to a name on the list.
“The surname of this man here is written as Valdrova, isn't it?”
“Ah, that is indeed the name of the Red Dragon Valdrova. It’s not a typo on my part, nor is it a mistake by the organizers.”
“You swear you’re not lying?”
“Yes. There are records as well.”
Erdes shrugged her shoulders to shake off the embarrassment.
“That terrifying dragon is doing something strange. So, is he Valdrova’s Spawn?”
“Uh… did you not know?”
Erdes smiled brightly, but a cold shadow fell over her face.
“What is it that I don’t know? The fact that I’m a dim-witted lady who doesn't know the ways of the world? Or the fact that your head might fly off today?”
“Gasp! No, that’s not it! I had no intention of belittling or mocking you, President! This is purely…”
“The main point.”
“Right, so, he is the fiancé of the Red Dragon Valdrova.”
“Fiancé?”
Immature as Erdes was, she knew what being Valdrova’s fiancé meant.
“For real?”
“Pardon?”
“Is it legit?”
“Uh, yes. It’s legit.”
“How fascinating. No one usually goes there unless they want to be executed… Give me the records on this man, Ferda.”
“Ah, one moment!”
The secretary placed both hands on his temples and chanted a spell.
“Search: Ferda Valdrova.”
At that moment, bundles of paper squeezed through the gap under the office door and stacked neatly in front of the secretary. Having finished the spell, the secretary handed the papers to Erdes.
“H-here they are!”
Her eyes quickly scanned the documents.
“Let’s see… the third son of House Rosnova… hmm…”
Erdes’s gaze became quite calm. As her eyes moved further down the page, her expression grew serious.
“Blue.”
“Yes.”
“When does the Grand Council start?”
Lu’s eyes widened.
“It starts in five days, but… are you actually planning to go?”
“I was going to skip it because I thought they’d just talk about boring stuff, but I think it might not be a bad idea to go.”
Erdes’s lips curled as she stared at Ferda’s portrait.
“Besides, I should at least be able to see this stupidly handsome face, shouldn't I?”
“Your attendance alone would be significant, wouldn't it? It might be a bit late, but I’ll prepare a carriage right away…”
“No, there’s no need for that.”
Erdes circled her finger in the air. A circular portal, similar to the trajectory she had drawn, appeared in the void.
“Why do something so tedious when there’s a simple way?”
The 5th Tier magic, Teleport Door.
She had implemented the difficult spell simply, without an incantation or a magic circle. For any other mage, it would have been a miraculous moment they might never see in their lifetime.
However, for Lu, there was more anxiety than wonder.
“So, Lu. I’m going to go do my public duties.”
“Pardon?”
“Keep a good eye on things while I’m gone. And don’t forget to feed the cats!”
“Wait, President! Just a moment!”
“I’m off~!”
The President waved nonchalantly and threw herself into the Teleport Door.
“If you’re going to take a portal, you could have finished your backlogged work first!! Aaaagh!!”
The portal closed, rendering Lu’s scream meaningless.
* * *
Ten days before the Grand Council.
Ferda finished his preparations to head to the central continent. He had to leave now to reach Blancaros’s territory in time.
‘Traditions are quite useless.’
The higher one’s status, the more one was expected to possess. Among those things was time; having leisure was considered a virtue of the nobility.
To Ferda, who had experienced the future, it was laughable. Once Mana Cars became common, such leisurely culture had vanished. Instead, nobles began to crave even faster means of transportation.
“Regent, may I enter?”
It was Jed, not Ruri. As a member of Valdrova Castle, he was wearing a red formal uniform. It was mandated that the vassals of the Archduchy of Valdrova dress that way.
“Sir Arwen and the soldiers sent by Count Consilus have just arrived.”
“I see.”
“We’ve finished preparing the carriage as well. All you need to do is board… Huh?”
Jed scanned Ferda’s body as if puzzled.
“Is there a problem?”
“It’s not exactly a problem, but… are you going wearing that?”
Ferda’s clothes were plain as could be. Nobles were beings who strove to shine in any way possible. Thus, it was basic to have threads spun from jewels to make them glow. Among them, the most common gold thread was a must.
Even when he entered the Imperial Palace, Ferda had been wearing red clothes with gold thread. But now, he wore red on a black background. Furthermore, the luster was only at the level of moderately starched fabric. Compared to other nobles, it was far too modest.
“I never liked the color gold to begin with.”
“Who in the world hates gold?”
Jed reacted as if it were absurd. He scanned Ferda’s clothes and gave his own assessment.
“Without that, you look about the same as me.”
“Good. It reduces the chance of some ignorant assassin targeting me.”
“I’m too handsome for a body double, so I don’t think they’ll target me instead.”
Jed flashed a smile full of narcissism. Ferda ignored him and picked up an object from the table.
“Take this.”
The distance was too far to hand it over, so just as Jed was about to step forward, something incredible happened.
Ssssh—.
A shadow stretched out from Ferda’s hand, grabbed the object, and carried it over to Jed. Jed was quite flustered by the shadow hand but tried not to show it.
“What is this?”
“The item I promised.”
At the mention of a promise, Jed checked the contents.
“Ferda Valdrova, consort, representative, and Regent of Valdrova, acting on behalf of Valdrova, one of the Great 12 Dragons and Ruler of Power and Fire, hereby appoints Jed Swallow as the King’s Sword and the People’s Shield…”
He didn't need to read the tongue-twisting contents to the end to realize what it was.
“A knight’s appointment letter?”
Jed looked up, his eyes wide.
“…Is this for real?”
“Would it be fake? That was the promise we made when you joined, wasn't it?”
“Well, you said you’d help me enter high society, but I didn't expect to be knighted right away.”
Becoming a knight was the stepping stone to nobility. Therefore, unless one came from a long line of knights or achieved notable military feats, it was nearly impossible.
“Is it okay for me to receive this now?”
“There’s no need to worry. Your skills were sufficiently proven in the Imperial warehouse.”
“No, it’s not that…”
Jed waved his hand dismissively.
“Aren't these things usually supposed to have a grand banquet?”
“…”
“Inviting women, singing songs, drinking wine… skipping such an important part is a bit…”
Ferda stared intently at Jed, who was gesturing as if tilting a glass. Should he take it back?
“Just focus on your mission, ‘Sir’ Jed.”
“Tsk. Understood, Regent.”
My party…
Muttering to himself, he left the room.
“I should get ready quickly as well.”
Normally, he would have received Ruri’s assistance, but there was no longer a need for that.
Ssssh—.
Something like a black mist stretched out from Ferda’s sleeves and chest. The mist shaped itself into eight strands of hands and began to attend to Ferda. They fastened his buttons and straightened his clothes, creating a near-perfect appearance.
‘As expected, reaching the 4th Circle makes things manageable.’
Currently, he was unskilled, so he used them for simple tasks like this, but these hands were Ferda’s arms. Once he became accustomed to them, he could use them to cast magic circles and catch opponents off guard. The talent still remained within Ferda; all that was left was practice and experience.
“Shall we go?”
The sound of Ferda’s boots echoed down the hallway. When he reached the gate of the inner castle alone, many soldiers were gathered below.
“Show your respect!”
Arwen’s voice rang out loudly. The soldiers moved in perfect unison and knelt. Even with just that one movement, one could tell how they had been tempered by rigorous training.
“Arwen Wolfheart, with a unit of thirty men, reporting for escort duty!”
“Reporting for duty!”
The knights shouted. Ferda scanned each of them and nodded.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
“Yes! To your positions!”
Arwen mounted his horse, and the soldiers formed a defensive square for the escort. Beside Arwen, Jed was also mounted. Though he had been a knight for less than a day, he looked the part, fitting for a dashing rogue who had supposedly made many women cry.
Ferda turned his gaze toward the carriage. Waiting there were the red carriage and the maid, Ruri. She held the door with her usual businesslike expression.
“Please board.”
“Right.”
Just as Ferda left the castle and was about to board the carriage, he felt a gaze and glanced up at the castle.
The balcony of the inner castle overlooked the gate. There was no one there.
It was only natural. What had he been expecting?
“Lord Ferda?”
“Let’s go.”
Ferda took his seat, and the carriage began to move.
The long ten-day journey passed in the blink of an eye.