Chapter 104
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 104
Chapter Title: Disciple
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To Aiden, the word 'escape' felt quite familiar.
He had spent his entire life in the prison that was the Imperial Palace, and the first thing he learned was how to flee from that horrific reality.
Or, to be precise, escape was the only option ever given to him.
No matter what he did, surveillance was always there, watching. The only thing permitted was reading books.
So, as a child, he had no choice but to immerse himself in the worlds within those books.
It was a forced escape, but Adrian was content with it.
Because in the books, none of the torments that plagued him existed.
Among them, the ones that captured Adrian's interest the most were tales of adventure.
Adventure!
The gripping trials that made his palms sweat, and the rewards from overcoming them—they were the sole catharsis for Aiden, who possessed nothing in reality.
And.
"...I'm jealous."
What he envied most was the existence of comrades who made those thrilling adventures possible.
Trials and rewards were mere imaginings from fictional worlds, but comrades? He had none at all.
In fact, those reliable companions from his fantasies only brought him bitter loneliness when he returned to reality.
"Could I ever have a meeting like this?"
He gazed out the window.
In the distance lay the knight order's training grounds.
Several squires were teaming up to charge at their instructor.
Their bold rush at an opponent they could never hope to defeat together looked just like a scene from the adventure log he had just read—utterly cool.
"Comrades..."
Would he... ever meet comrades he could truly trust?
To soothe his loneliness, Adrian picked up the adventure log once more.
It was his only refuge from the wretched reality.
And then, when Adrian finally set foot in the outside world for the first time, after time had passed.
What the outside world gave him was a cruel reality.
"What's your name?"
"Adrian... no, Aiden. It's Aiden."
"You look like nobility."
"I get that a lot. But I'm not. Nothing that noble."
"I see. You wanna be a mercenary, right? I'm leaving the village soon to become one myself. I could use a sturdy frontliner like you. Wanna come with us?"
"Really?"
It was a nightmare.
"Wh-what the hell is this?"
"Well, that's how it goes. Pretty boys like you fetch a good price as slaves."
"You... tricked me?"
"Tricked? Don't throw words around like that. We're gonna be mercenaries for real. We just needed some cash."
The betrayal hidden behind a kindly smile.
The day everything was taken from him, and he was thrown into a basement, bound head to toe.
What tormented Aiden most wasn't the future of being sold into slavery—it was the present reality.
The betrayal from those he first thought of as comrades.
But more painful than that sense of betrayal was the reality that 'comrades'—something he had yearned for his whole life—could be discarded so lightly.
So even after barely escaping that place, Aiden fled from reality.
Like a moth drawn to flame.
In search of comrades he could believe in and rely on.
He headed to the world of Blackout from the adventure logs.
"A newbie?"
"Y-yes! That's right."
"Tch. You're in for a rough ride. Follow me. I'll tell you about our mercenary corps first."
And there, he met a junior mage with a choker around her neck and her hair tied up high. It was Jun.
In a haze that turned his mind white, Aiden swung his sword.
It was fear, and a form of escape.
Something was lending him strength.
In exchange, that something demanded a price.
-If you want to save your comrades.
-Accept me.
It was a sensation he had never felt before.
Until now, his swordsmanship had been precise calculations driven by instinct.
But now was different.
Purely on instinct, ignoring the enemies' numbers and skills, he devoted himself solely to swinging his blade.
He didn't care what he had just cut or how the foes moved.
Just carve a path.
That single goal dominated him.
As his whitening mind filled with blood-red fireworks.
His vision gradually turned crimson, and just as a hazy sense of his own existence fading hit him.
Light of Life
Sacred golden light enveloped Aiden.
A holy power he had experienced once before wrapped around Aiden.
When was it?
'Black Forest...'
Starting from that memory, his fading sense of self returned.
"...Iden."
"...Aiden!"
His ears rang.
Enemies were before him.
As he moved to swing his sword like always.
Clang—!
"Aiden!!"
The sharp voice snapped him back to reality.
"Wh-what?"
When he came to his senses.
Maya stood blocking his path.
And his Moonlight Sword was locked against her crossed blades.
"What did I... just do...?"
"Hoo, you're back?"
Eleanor's weary voice came from behind.
"Lady Eleanor?"
"...Talk later. Look over there first."
Eleanor pointed, and there a massive mutant lay flipped over, holding a manhole cover.
"...Enemy!"
"Snap out of it!"
Maya shouted again.
"What?"
"It's not an enemy!"
"They're coming from behind! Get in quick!"
With no time to process, Eleanor hoisted Jun and shoved him into the open sewer entrance.
Maya followed Eleanor, and Aiden, bewildered, slipped into the sewer.
Then the mutant outside closed the manhole cover.
"Wh-what is that thing?"
"You don't remember?"
Aiden tilted his head at Eleanor's question as she carefully laid Jun down.
His memory was fuzzy.
"That mutant... it spoke to us."
"What do you...?"
"And you tried to cut it down out of nowhere."
"..."
"You... No, later. First things first."
Judging the immediate area secure, Eleanor pointed to the unconscious Jun.
"We need to save our captain first."
"Ah! Senior?"
"Gave him a potion on the run. Now we check his condition properly."
Silence fell after that.
Maya leaned against a wall, exhausted, while Aiden anxiously watched Eleanor treat Jun.
About ten minutes passed.
"Tch."
Eleanor clicked her tongue and stood.
"Lady Eleanor, Senior is...?"
"Stabilized the worst for now. That madman triggered magic while his mana was raging out of control."
"Ah..."
"Mostly sealed the ruptured vessels, but... the biggest issue is his heart. The circle's unstable; I can't touch it."
"..."
"So, I've bought us time... Let's hear what that guy's got to say."
"Pardon?"
Eleanor's gaze had already shifted beyond Aiden's shoulder.
Maya, leaning on the wall, placed a hand on her waist.
All three stared into the dark sewer tunnel.
"Uh... is the situation still pretty bad?"
A voice echoed from the darkness.
Light filtering through the manhole's hole gradually illuminated the figure emerging from the shadows.
"Haha. You all look pretty grim. Makes sense, given the circumstances, right?"
The hulking mutant that had closed the manhole cover earlier.
It addressed the group in a voice slender for its size.
"Confusing, huh? I'm confused too. Never imagined running into folks besides me down here."
"...Self-intros first, maybe. We're the White Whale Mercenary Corps. This guy's our captain."
"White Whale Mercenary Corps? First I've heard. Whoops. Name's... Mershar. Self-proclaimed alchemist and... artifact craftsman."
"Artifact craftsman?"
"Hard to buy in this form, I get it. Ahem. I was quite the looker originally?"
"You're really human?"
Eleanor eyed him suspiciously, and the man waved calmingly.
"Ahem! Hold on. I'll prove it."
Something suddenly protruded from the mutant's massive hand.
A mana cylinder embedded in mutants' bodies.
He uncapped and inhaled it, and change came swiftly.
Overinflated muscles deflated, dripping like slime.
From the huge frame emerged a man wearing a monocle.
Worn clothes like long untended, a small briefcase in one hand.
His gray hair stuck out messily.
"See? Told you, human."
"...For real."
"Then why were you here in that form?"
"Dodging those things ain't easy. That form keeps 'em from attacking first. But I got questions too. Your captain—what's his deal?"
Aiden shot back sharply at the man's question.
"Why do you ask?"
"That bracelet on your captain's wrist. Belonged to my master. He had it till he vanished. Why's it on him?"
"...?"
No one in the group understood.
It made sense.
The dimensional bracelet on Jun's wrist was crafted by 'Grant King' Shylock.
All they knew was that Jun had obtained it by chance.
In truth, Mershar was shocked to see other humans in the city besides himself.
"People besides me seeking this place? No way!"
Fellow alchemy enthusiasts, maybe?
Joy welled up naturally.
Since losing his home, the Mage Tower, he'd lived in hiding alone—perhaps he just craved company.
But Mershar wasn't naive enough to approach blindly.
Unlike him with modest ambitions, Blackout explorers could kill for treasure.
So he watched first.
"Huh?"
Then Mershar focused on their leader, the mage-like man’s wrist.
Dimensional bracelet.
His master's sub-space bracelet from long ago.
So when they were in danger, Mershar had to intervene.
Dimensional bracelets were bound artifacts.
Couldn't be used even if the owner died.
Having it meant his master, Shylock, gave it personally.
Time passed.
Fortunately, Jun regained consciousness soon after.
Jun and Mershar were both astonished.
Jun at meeting Shylock's disciple Mershar here.
Mershar at learning his master was still alive.
"So... you met our old man?"
Jun, having recovered somewhat, nodded at Mershar's question.
"Heard he left Black Forest Fortress looking for you. Didn't hear anything?"
"Ah... I've been in hiding these past few years. No outside contact."
Mershar gazed at Jun and the group anew, marveling.
"Still, wild. Dragged here by some freak accident."
"Your face says it's more complicated than that."
"Just a bit miffed? Disaster for you, but I've been trying to get here for years."
It was understandable.
After Zenkhar Mage Tower fell, Mershar had hidden to evade pursuit.
"Anyway, glad to meet. Never dreamed I'd hear my master was alive here."
Jun felt the same.
He'd only guessed Shylock might be here; actually meeting was unimaginable.
"But... you've looked off since earlier. Something wrong?"
Jun pondered Mershar's concerned question.
Shylock's disciple, a familiar NPC from the game.
But spilling his troubles to a mage wasn't easy.
'No, right now even a cat's paw would help.'
Mershar wasn't a top mage, but his knowledge spanned what few could match.
Unable to use his circle, a burden on the group, Jun boldly explained to Mershar.
"My circle's a bit off. Pushed attribute magic too hard escaping."
"Oh, saw it from afar. Lightning everywhere—your doing, huh? Overheat?"
"Not quite."
"Mind elaborating? Might need your power to get out."
"Not complicated."
Resolved, Jun explained simply.
"Attribute suddenly infused my circle. Backlash caused issues."
"Hmm...? Rare case."
As expected, Mershar knew something.
"Sounds non-voluntary. Forced attribute embed? Fire attribute?"
"Sharp."
"Saw the lightning turn red. Messy."
Jun waited quietly for more.
"Infusing attributes into circles is a dream for most mages."
"Sure is."
Jun knew from Mage Tower life and this body's memories.
"But I don't see it positively. Helps with one attribute, but others become useless?"
Mershar called it 'severing infinite futures yourself.'
Jun nodded.
He had no intention of settling for one.
"Not saying voluntary embedders are wrong. It's the results. Hard to cast other magics."
Jun's exact case.
"Happens I studied this. Theory complete, but no practical way."
"What? No cure now?"
Eleanor interjected quietly; Mershar shook his head.
"Here, there is. But it's theoretical—problem."
Mershar's face turned serious as he addressed Jun.
"Decision's on you, leader."
Jun met his gaze steadily.
"To survive, anything goes. Let's hear it."