Chapter 433: Proof of Existence (21)
Chapter 433: Proof of Existence (21)
Little was known about mana.
Though countless individuals dedicated themselves to its study, it remained a power whose very source was shrouded in mystery. It would inevitably take a long time before all its secrets were laid bare.
However, there was one truth that had been felt throughout the long course of history.
Mana is a perilous power.
It is dangerous enough in its raw, unrefined state, but there is a specific moment when it becomes most lethal.
That is when someone attains mastery over this unknown force.
The world referred to such a state as a 'High Expert' or an 'Archmage.'
Across the entire continent, there were only about twenty such monsters. These were the individuals who could truly be said to stand at the threshold of becoming a 'Master.'
The man currently unleashing his full power before me was one of those very 'monsters.'
A storm of light and heat bleached my five senses white.
It wasn't just my vision. My hearing and sense of touch were being dominated by that overwhelming violence. A roar and heat that allowed for not even the slightest gap shook my retinas as they surged forward.
It felt as if I were facing a torrential flood of lightning.
Instinctively, I raised my sword. Silver aura began to gather around the straight line of the blade.
Immediately after, a bombardment of lightning struck my entire body.
The sound of my teeth grinding together, nearly shattering, echoed in my head. I almost blacked out for a second, but I managed to seize my consciousness, and my body stood firm on the ground once more.
Crackling electrical charges let out a threatening hiss. Occasional sparks of current caused my muscles to contract, sending jolts of pain through me. Nevertheless, I held my ground.
That was the important part.
The fact that I hadn't been pushed back yet.
Even though my eyes had long since become bloodshot, the arm holding my sword was trembling violently, and groans were leaking through my clenched teeth.
For now, I could endure it once.
As I struggled to even open my eyes against the flashing electrical discharge, Reynold spoke in a voice that was unusually heated.
"It’s a bit early to start whimpering... I’ve still got plenty more left!"
My eardrums were practically being seared by the sound of the crackling electricity. Surely, I shouldn't have had the mental leeway to listen to any other noise.
Strangely, however, only Reynold’s voice came through clearly.
Perhaps it was a survival instinct. My life was currently hanging by a thread, and to survive, I couldn't afford to miss even the most trivial piece of information.
I decided to simply close my eyes.
Even after my eyelids shut, the white-hot vision left orange afterimages. Only after the world was dyed in pitch black did I realize what Reynold was doing.
Whir.
Spheres of highly concentrated mana were tracing circles in the air.
Following those trajectories, spears of lightning appeared one by one. There were dozens—no, were there even more?
No matter how much I focused my hearing, I couldn't hear the sound of any chanting.
Just how was he doing this?
A strong sense of doubt welled up, but I had no luxury to ponder. I simply poured all my mana into the blade.
The silver aura flared up into an even more ferocious flame.
By the time the flickering flames condensed into something as solid as metal, hundreds of death stars were floating in the sky. The mana contained in each one was terrifying.
A direct hit wouldn't end with just a blackout or an injury.
It would be certain death.
I had asked him to face me with everything he had, but I didn't expect him to actually use lethal force.
I had no choice but to respond with my full power as well.
A horizontal slash delivered with every ounce of my strength pushed back the stagnant front line in an instant.
And then, the world split in half.
A galaxy of silver carved through the darkness-shrouded atmosphere. Pure white stardust scattered like fragments. All of it was the residue of shattered mana.
My vision cleared up to a refreshing degree. I could even lock eyes with Reynold in the distance, who was pointing his jet-black rod at me.
I curled the corners of my mouth into a smirk as a greeting.
He wouldn't be able to see it because of the mask anyway, but since our gazes met, I could only hope the language of the heart would translate.
Soon, a shout burst from my lips.
"Are you trying to kill me?!"
"I told you... this is an execution!"
At that moment, a torrential rain of lightning began to pour from the sky.
It was then that the aura, which had been wavering like mist, coalesced once more. Every time my sword struck a lightning spear, a series of clangs rang out. Most of them were the screams of my own blade.
The sword vibrated violently, transmitting faint currents into my arm.
No matter how well I handled the 'Binding,' it was impossible to cope with this much volume. Furthermore, the lightning spears weren't even aimed solely at me.
Thud, thud, thud.
The lightning spears that grazed past me easily pierced the ground. The spears, which sank in as effortlessly as an awl piercing pudding, began to glow with a white-hot light.
It was obvious what that meant.
I didn't even hear the explosion.
It was a blast that occurred at point-blank range. Only a high-pitched ringing echoed in my ears. I momentarily lost my senses and tried to push myself up from the ground, but my knees buckled, and I sank back into the mud.
The surroundings were already a total mess.
The deserted road was riddled with craters. The once-solid ground had long since been blown apart and overturned, turning into soft soil.
This had all happened in just a few seconds.
Is this the power of an Archmage? I fixed my blurry vision straight ahead.
There stood Reynold, his face solemn.
He asked in a heavy voice.
"Do you want to keep going?"
It was the same line I had used to provoke him.
Heh. A faint laugh escaped my lips. Anyone could see that my skills were not yet a match for an Archmage.
Just as a mage standing before the threshold of a Master was called an 'Archmage,' swordsmen also had the title of 'High Expert.' If an 'Expert' was someone who could bloom their aura and handle it freely, a 'High Expert' was a being on an entirely different level.
Regrettably, I had not yet reached that realm.
But someday, my path would lead there. Even now, I could see the entrance to that path, almost within reach.
I grit my teeth and forced myself up. I stumbled, but I could still endure.
"......Of course I do."
"Don't resent me even if you die."
A triple-layered spell was already waiting for me.
Spheres of lightning in the sky, a wave of lightning approaching from the front, and a boiling net of lightning rising from the ground.
The intention was clear.
He intended to snare me with the net, bind my sword with the wave, and then strike me down with the spheres. It was rare to see a mental world show its hand so kindly.
The implication was also clear.
He likely believed I wouldn't be able to break through this anyway.
I took a deep breath and leveled my sword's point. The lightning assault resumed at that moment.
Boom! The launched tsunami of lightning slammed into my blade like a cannonball. Amidst the ground that was sizzling and boiling, I slammed the hand axe I had been carrying at my waist into the earth.
Then, pressing down on the hand axe with the sole of my foot, I began to disperse my aura.
Will this work?
Aura is normally transmitted from the heart through the arms and hands into a weapon. I had never tried any other method until now. But inwardly, I believed it was possible.
Because spreading aura throughout the entire body was a basic requirement for a swordsman.
However, there was another point I was more worried about.
I intended to operate two types of aura. 'Binding' with the sword, and 'Unbinding' with the hand axe.
It was an absurd idea. I had never heard of anyone handling aura in such a manner.
Nevertheless, there was one reason I was making such a reckless attempt.
'Binding' and 'Unbinding' were originally a single secret art. I was merely using them separately by my own choice. Furthermore, the source of 'Binding' and 'Unbinding' was the Great Witch, who was said to have seen the end of the magical path.
She surely would have taken dual casting into account.
And it didn't take long to find out if my belief was correct.
"What...!"
I heard Reynold’s bewildered voice. It was because, against the boiling net of electrical discharge, silver aura was carving through the ground and radiating light.
My brain was spinning. The mana flowing through my meridian points ran wild, causing pain. Even so, even so, I was smiling.
It works.
Crash! The earth split and the ground exploded. The silver aura, spreading like mist, caused the lightning net to vanish in an instant.
The hand axe, which had popped up from the recoil of the explosion, was caught in my free hand.
Without hesitation, I threw it. The spinning hand axe scattered silver mist as it began to strike the lightning spheres in rapid succession.
Clang, clang, clang!
With sharp clashing sounds, the lightning spheres burst one by one. Particles of mana dyed in gold drifted down like fireflies.
Only then did the wave of lightning that had been heating my blade show a crack.
It seemed Reynold’s bewilderment was reflected directly in his magic. For me, it was an opportunity I couldn't miss.
Skreeee! The edge of my sword dug into the cylinder made of lightning.
I had already used too much mana. It was impossible to erase this wave of mana all at once like before.
But what if I just cut through it?
While the sword blocked the tsunami of lightning, my body moved to the side. And as I grit my teeth and kicked off the ground, the blade sliced horizontally through the cylindrical mana.
Sprint, sprint, sprint!
My vision, focused with a single-minded purpose, gradually narrowed. My breathing became heavy, and before long, it felt as if the time of the world had stopped.
In a world dyed in black and white, I alone was sprinting.
After running just a few steps as if leaping, Reynold was suddenly right before my eyes.
All I had to do was swing my sword, and it would be over.
At the moment I was certain of victory.
Spin. The jet-black rod floated into the air. And immediately after.
Two of the lightning spheres that had been drifting in the sky plummeted down.
Right between me and Reynold.
Boom! My body, which had been racing forward without limits, was finally thrown backward. Reynold wasn't free from the impact either, as he too had to roll across the ground.
Time began to flow once more.
Panting, I clutched my chest. It hurt so much. I wondered if I had ever sprinted at such full speed before.
Reynold also staggered as he stood up.
A faint groan was leaking from his mouth.
"Just now, what was that...?"
My questioning gaze turned toward Reynold. He looked incredibly surprised.
"For a moment, it felt as if time had stopped... No, that's impossible."
Just like that, Reynold dismissed the topic he had brought up himself. After shaking his head a few times, he regained his composure before long.
Blue flames were flickering in his eyes again. If anything, the wavelength of light was even more intense than before.
"Impressive. I acknowledge your skill. You're worthy of taking Elsie."
"Then, huff... is it over now?"
At my question, squeezed out with fragmented breaths, Reynold swallowed a hollow laugh as if it were absurd.
"Ha, you get to have all the fun and just end it? And only you at that... Listen here, nephew-in-law."
Thump. I felt as if I heard an impact from somewhere.
But since no shockwave actually occurred anywhere, my eyes blankly scanned the surroundings. Subsequently, the atmosphere began to vibrate with a low hum.
The mana of the entire world was being sucked into one place.
Only then did I notice the center of it and silently looked up at Reynold.
The flames burning in his eyes had grown uncontrollably fierce.
"I have not yet reached the end of the Truth. But I have seen its edge... At that time, what kind of emotion do you think I felt?"
My body, swaying as if it would collapse at any moment, forced itself upright.
A gale began to blow wildly. The magic hadn't even been cast yet, but the omen alone was already an act of violence.
The Archmage’s cloak fluttered messily.
"It was fear."
And then, confessions followed as if spat out.
"It was despair, and a sense of helplessness... Before those great laws, how insignificant and lacking is a human being? I struggled with all my might, but I only fell into an endless abyss."
The magic circles lined up behind the mage began to rotate again with light. Faster, and even faster.
Until the crackling electrical discharge became blindingly intense.
The level was different.
I could only tremble. This was the full power of one who had seen a fragment of the Truth.
"So I ran away... because it felt like my very existence would vanish forever into the sea of Truth. In the end, I failed to prove myself."
At the same time, the mage flicked the jet-black rod he was holding.
Crash!
A shattering sound that shouldn't have been audible rang out. My eyes blankly looked up at the sky.
The night sky was collapsing.
Through the cracks in the sky, which were splitting like glass, crackling electrical charges were invading. As if they intended to devour the entire ink-black world.
What on earth existed beyond that?
Infinite lightning?
Either way, it was clear that Reynold was giving it his all. Because there was no other way to explain this miracle.
Through my qi sense, which was more open than ever before in my life, a certain scent caught the tip of my nose.
The Dark Cult.
For some reason, I thought of that name. Though I soon forgot it, overwhelmed by the sight before me.
The Archmage asked like a judge pronouncing a death sentence.
"Now, shall you witness my pathetic struggle?"
Dry saliva went down my throat with a gulp.
I shouldn't look.
I will surely die. This magic must possess an overwhelming power that I couldn't even hope to match.
The sky itself was collapsing.
There was no way a mere creature living beneath it could resist.
And yet, and yet, why.
Why did I want to see what lay beyond so badly? The scenery that would be revealed behind the collapsed sky.
I wanted to see it so desperately. So, I couldn't even choose an answer.
As if he had expected as much, the Archmage nodded slightly.
"Then engrave it clearly into your eyes... I can only show it for a very brief moment, but if it's you right now..."
It was right then.
Whack! A cheerful hitting sound suddenly rang out.
My eyes blankly turned toward the source. There, Reynold’s figure was tilting over.
My thoughts came to a halt for a moment. I had no idea what was happening.
Behind the Archmage, who had fallen face-first onto the ground, a black-haired girl huffing for breath was revealed.
Her golden eyes were shining even in the darkness. The shovel held in her panting hands was particularly noticeable.
Only then did a dumbfounded "Ah" escape my lips. I vaguely understood what had happened.
The girl, her body trembling, let out a roar.
"Hey, you... you crazy old man! Wh-who do you think you're trying to kill?! How dare you... to my brother... Die, die, die... DIEEE!"
Thwack, thwack.
The blade of the shovel struck the unconscious middle-aged man's body a couple more times. In the meantime, the gale had ceased, and the cracks in the sky had vanished.
I had no choice but to let out a hollow smile.
Indeed, an angry younger sister was invincible.
Furthermore, the guest who had suddenly appeared wasn't just Lia.
A strange shadow could be seen behind Lia. A young man wearing glasses, looking troubled.
It seemed I would have to hear the full story. Of course, strictly as an older brother.