Chapter 103
Chapter 103
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Translator: Ace
Chapter: 103
Chapter Title: The Adamantine Path (3)
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Amira, standing at the forefront, rallied the students.
“The academy must disclose the full details of this incident. Indicting Headmaster Alpheas is the only way to secure the future of our magic academy!”
“Hear, hear! Alpheas must resign! Hold a funeral for Shirone!”
Their shouts carried through the infirmary window, reaching the ears of Amy and the others. Just then, the door burst open and Seriel rushed in.
“Amy, we have a huge problem!”
“What’s going on? Why are they all suddenly acting like this?”
Amy's confusion was understandable. She thought the student council meeting was ending, but suddenly they had gathered, demanding a funeral for Shirone.
“The graduating class is plotting to formally accuse the headmaster. I thought we could at least protect Shirone, but that bastard Fermi stirred things up...”
Amy could picture the scene without having to see it. It was exactly what Fermi would do. It seemed the student council had ultimately decided to push for the headmaster's resignation. But she couldn't blame them for being heartless. If the head of the academy had a moral failing, moving on was better for the future.
Still, this was too extreme. That's why Fermi's actions were so infuriating. While the faculty's lukewarm response had triggered the student council's anger, it was Fermi who had lit the fuse.
“That rotten bastard. And after Shirone was the reason he's even alive.”
“What do we do now, Amy?”
Amy bit her nails and said.
“What else can we do? We have to hold out.”
Alpheas had said to watch over Shirone for the time being. The fact that he, the one ultimately responsible for this incident, had managed to persuade the other teachers was a miracle in itself.
Nade, who was looking out the window, turned and snapped at Iruki.
“Are you satisfied now? A whole mob of kids who think just like you has gathered out there. Shouldn't you be with them?”
“If you want, I can do just that.”
Iruki shot back, not backing down. The two had been awkward with each other ever since their fight that day.
Seriel frowned and said.
“Both of you, stop it. Fighting amongst ourselves won't solve anything. We need to work together right now.”
“Tch! You think this guy Iruki will work with us? He's a cold-blooded bastard.”
“I said stop. And Iruki, you need to watch yourself too. The situation has gotten really serious. A single word could sway public opinion, so stay here for now.”
“I wasn't planning on leaving anyway.”
Iruki buried his face on the table, lost in thought. It had already been five days since Shirone's death. This was taking much longer than he had anticipated.
‘If the student council has made its move, the faculty won't be able to hold out for much longer. About 48 hours left...’
The atmosphere in the infirmary grew cold. Everyone, worn down by the situation, was on edge.
Amy stroked Shirone's forehead. By all common sense, he should be considered dead. Was it even sane to keep clinging to hope in this situation?
‘Please, please come back, Shirone...’
Amy couldn't be certain Shirone would return. But now, five days after his heart had stopped, the realm of certainty was long past. From here on, it was a matter of faith.
* * *
The woman watched the red light emanating from Shirone's body. A principle that released high energy to vibrate particles could destroy any object.
“Shirone, don't do this. That magic is far too destructive. It doesn't suit your nature.”
“I don't want to fight either. But you intend to keep me bound here. I can't let that happen. I have to go back.”
“Do you think you can win against me?”
Shirone shook his head. It was how he truly felt. Even if they were beings of the same dimension, she possessed power so great she called herself a god. At the very least, she had to be on a higher level than Arcane.
Who was this woman? And where was this place?
Shirone stopped thinking. At the very least, this wasn't where he was supposed to be.
“Please tell me how to return to my own world.”
“Even if I told you, it would be impossible. It would be an act of sending you to your death once more.”
“Even so, I believe I have to try.”
The woman wasn't afraid of Shirone's magic. However, the power of his laser was not to be taken lightly. She had to prevent the destruction of this world, no matter what.
“Very well. I will let you have your way. But promise me this. If you fail to return to your world and come back here, you will then follow my will.”
“What is the way back?”
“I can concede no more. Will you still do it?”
He didn't know what terrifying ordeal awaited him for her to make such a threat, but Shirone's mind was unchanged.
“Alright. But I will never give up.”
“Your life is your own. Use it as you please.”
The woman created a glass orb in front of Shirone. A black darkness swirled inside it.
“Shirone. To return to your original world, you must reverse the process you took to get here.”
“I see.”
“It is not something to be taken lightly. It is the process of returning from a pure spirit to a human. A human is a collection of all sorts of unpleasant elements. If you cannot accept this, you will end up twisted into a strange existence that is neither human nor anything else.”
The woman was certain of Shirone's failure.
“The darkness you see now is a spot that pierces spacetime. It is commonly called a black hole. You can return to your original world through here.”
The glass orb vanished, and a vast darkness materialized in front of Shirone.
“What do I have to do?”
“It's simple. You enter it. It's a spot connected to your physical body.”
“Thank you. I won't forget this kindness.”
Shirone was sincere. Although he had been hijacked, without her, he wouldn't have even gotten the chance to return to his world.
“Don't thank me prematurely. I have absolutely no thought that you will succeed. If you wish to give up, you can just walk back this way.”
Would such a situation really arise? He felt he would rather die than turn back, but since he hadn't experienced it yet, Shirone didn't jump to conclusions.
“Then, I'll be going.”
The woman narrowed her eyes as if sleepy and said.
“Have a good trip.”
Shirone took his first step into the sphere. The feeling was similar to when he first entered the spot. As expected, Shirone couldn't find an exit. No matter how much he walked, nothing changed.
Shirone glanced back without thinking and was startled. The woman was still looking at him with her sleepy eyes. Time was not flowing. He was trapped in an event horizon, something that only occurs in extreme gravity.
‘I can't escape. It's absolutely impossible to get out of here.’
Shirone finally understood the woman's words. In a place where not even time could escape, there was nothing he could do.
Being smart, he was quick to face reality. Shirone turned around, feeling miserable. He had to go back to her. Wasn't it better to live where there was at least another person than to be trapped in darkness for eternity?
‘Wait. Maybe...’
Shirone suddenly stopped in his tracks. At the event horizon, time is eternally captured. But he had the ability to generate time. It was his Photonization magic.
Near-sublight, sublight, light speed, superluminal.
There were four speeds classified by photon mages. By Shirone's calculations, he needed a speed faster than light—superluminal speed—to pass through the event horizon.
‘Superluminal… Is it even possible?’
Shirone's level was, at best, near-sublight. With the God Particle, he might be able to reach sublight speed, but that was still far from superluminal.
‘Let's think.’
Now that he had a method, time was not an issue. After a long period of contemplation, the look in his eyes changed. He could do it. Without a physical body, it might be possible to achieve superluminal speed.
‘Immortal Function.’
One cannot travel the vast universe even at the speed of light. But the speed of infinite expansion is instantaneous. Perhaps the Immortal Function was the key to reaching superluminal speed.
In any case, returning home was the priority. Shirone took a deep breath and, while casting his Photonization magic, unleashed the Immortal Function.
The effect was immediate. The tremors of acceleration to near-sublight, sublight, and then light speed were transmitted with enough force to collapse his Spirit Zone.
“Ughhhhh...!”
And yet, he couldn't reach superluminal speed. As long as he couldn't comprehend being faster than time with his mind, casting the magic through sheer understanding was impossible. The only thing left was the complete release of the Immortal Function. It was an unknown realm where he might be annihilated again, but without hesitation, he expanded his consciousness to the whole.
The form that comprised Shirone burst apart, disintegrating into fine particles. Finally, something faster than light crossed the event horizon and began to race toward the light.
‘It worked!’
Shirone was still maintaining his consciousness. Even with the Immortal Function fully released, no particle would scatter within the black hole. Far in the distance, he could see the exit. His physical body was waiting there.
‘I'm coming! I'm finally coming!’
Then, his speed suddenly began to decrease. Particles of unknown meaning started clinging to Shirone's own. Through combination, these particles created meaning, acting like voices and confusing Shirone's mind.
-Consume. Consume. Consume. Consume. Consume. Consume. Consume. Consume.
-Reproduce. Reproduce. Reproduce. Reproduce. Reproduce. Reproduce. Reproduce. Reproduce.
As Shirone grew heavier, he saw the exit receding into the distance. The particles intertwined in complex ways, and their simple meanings evolved into higher-level ones.
-Ah, to be born. To be the lowest of beings.
-I don't want to die. The life of a mortal.
Shirone realized this was the process of becoming human that the woman had spoken of. An existence thrown into the world, bearing both desire and fear.
Perhaps all humans heard these voices while in their mother's womb?
“I won't lose! I will return, no matter what!”
-To where? There is nowhere that welcomes you.
“To the world where I belong! To the place where my friends are waiting!”
-They will kill you. They will interfere with your consumption and reproduction. All that awaits you is the clash of desires, a painful struggle, and the inevitable journey to death.
“Aaaaargh! I can't hear anything! No words can stop me!”
Shirone shouted desperately. But as the combination progressed, the drifting sounds grew louder.
In the end, a human was an existence made of countless sounds. Like a solo buried by a chorus, Shirone ultimately lost his own voice.
-Consume. Consume. Consume. Consume. Consume. Consume. Consume. Consume.
-Reproduce. Reproduce. Reproduce. Reproduce. Reproduce. Reproduce. Reproduce. Reproduce.
* * *
Day seven of Shirone's death.
The student council was still staging its protest. To be precise, it was the radical faction that followed Amira.
In opposition, the conservative students were blockading the entrance, preventing anyone from coming or going. The centrist faction also split, and in the end, the total number of protestors doubled.
Most of the student body was gathered in front of the building, and with the protests continuing day and night, the friends protecting Shirone were on the verge of a nervous breakdown.
“Hold the funeral for Shirone!”
“Proceed! Proceed!”
“Alpheas must face the judgment of the Magic Association!”
“Face it! Face it!”
Seriel covered her ears. The sound wasn't loud with the window closed, but she couldn't bear to listen anymore.
“Aren't they going too far? Why are they so hell-bent on getting rid of Shirone?”
At Seriel's words, Amy, who had been dozing with her face buried in an auxiliary bed, lifted her head.
“Those kids have their own reasons, I guess. The ones who always disliked Shirone probably joined in too.”
“Is it Shirone's fault he's talented? It's their own narrow-mindedness.”
“That's just how people are. If there are people who acknowledge Shirone, it's only natural there are also those who reject him.”