Chapter 267: The Mad Mage and the Broken Ones
Chapter 267: The Mad Mage and the Broken Ones
As if afraid it might shatter if he squeezed too tightly, Baek Hangyul carefully handed me the glowing sphere. I took it and held it up on my palm, examining it closely. It was simply a round, shining orb. And yet, for some reason, I had a good idea of what it was.
The staff Mavolo had brandished against me. The Ordo I had later kicked away. I had seen it stretch out from his hand like a staff, so it was bound to hold some kind of secret.
Was this in the first playthrough? It’s a bit hazy.
Tilting my head, I immediately activated my Third Eye.
『Ordo of Order』
(General Description: The Ordo of Order. This is the Key to the Magic City of Magia and proof of its master’s authority, once used by the great archmage of the ancient Hall Plain, Mavolo de Ailight. The sphere is the very essence of ancient magical knowledge, a culmination of all its history. One who is acknowledged as the Ordo’s master can be delegated all authority over Magia.)
(Detailed Description: 1. This is an exclusive item for Mage, Alchemist, and Priest classes. 2. There is a ritual to become its master. Upon successful completion of the ritual, the Ordo of Order will be bound to the user. (However, the binding is automatically released upon the user’s death.) 3. Increases the output of all the user’s magical attributes by 150%. (This includes divine spells.) 4. Increases the user’s mana recovery rate by 30%. 5. Can restore 100% of the user’s mana. This ability is exclusive to one who has earned the right to be its master and recharges every 7 days. 6. The Dispel spell can be used 3 times per day, based on the user’s Mana and Luck stats. Recharges daily. 7. Slightly increases basic magic resistance. 8. Allows the user to learn the latent ability, Silent Casting.)
“…”
Holy crap.
I stared blankly at the messages floating in the air before the focused gazes of the three others snapped me back to my senses. I maintained a nonchalant expression, but my heart was hammering against my ribs. I had to swallow hard to keep from laughing out loud. Forcing the corners of my mouth down, I handed the Ordo back to Baek Hangyul.
“Hanbyul. Where did you find this?”
“Well, I’m not sure where it came from. But when I was bringing you back, it just flew over to where the mage had fallen and hovered there. So I quickly…”
“Good job grabbing it. Put it away for now. We can analyze it once we get back to the city.”
“Okay.”
Objectively speaking, this expedition had already paid off and then some just by finding this one Ordo. But of course, it wasn’t over yet. I was certain that items I remembered from my past were still slumbering within Mavolo’s stronghold. The thought of taking all of them made me struggle to keep a huge grin from spreading across my face.
I calmly collected myself and waited for Ko Yeonju to return. About ten minutes after I’d checked the Ordo, I saw figures in the distance, striding over the fallen corpses on the ground. I knew who they were without even looking. Ko Yeonju, Ahn Hyun, and Lee Yoojung had finally finished scouting the area and were coming back.
Ko Yeonju’s expression was relatively composed, but Ahn Hyun and Lee Yoojung’s cheeks were puffed out in disappointment. The city had lost much of the grandeur it had possessed earlier. They must have been quite let down to see that the crystal windows we had passed on our way here were now tattered rags.
“Soohyun. You’re awake.”
“Hyung! You really scared us.”
“Oppa~! Are you okay? You’re not hurt?”
They soon reached us, their faces filled with relief upon seeing me awake as they asked after my well-being. Seeing them worry about my condition first and foremost filled a corner of my heart with gratitude. I nodded once or twice in response and spoke in a low voice.
“I’m a little weak, but not so much that I can’t move. Anyway, I heard you were scouting. What’s it like out there? Did you find any trace of the Rapids’ Edge Clan or the rescue team?”
Perhaps weary of my immediate jump to business, Ko Yeonju replied with a bitter smile.
“No. Not a trace. There was nothing. It felt like a desolate ghost town. We checked a few of the nearby buildings, but nothing registered on my senses.”
“Hmm. You haven’t crossed the bridge yet?”
“No. We figured it would take too long to go that far. We decided to wait for you to wake up first.”
“Okay. Understood.”
After my conversation with Ko Yeonju, I pushed myself up. As expected, a wave of dizziness washed over me, but I focused on keeping my balance and managed not to repeat the disgrace of falling over again. Ko Yeonju, having assessed my condition, once again suggested I rest, but I refused flatly. It was far more beneficial to wrap things up quickly and rest properly back in the city than to take a half-hearted break here.
I stretched deeply and turned my gaze toward the bridge. It was the second objective I’d set, but we’d managed to take care of the boss before even crossing it. As I moved to the front, I saw the clan members automatically falling into formation.
Watching them form up, I was about to say, “Alright, let’s go get our reward,” but I paused for a moment and changed my words.
“We might be too late.”
“Pardon?”
“I mean the Users who entered this place before us… In any case, let’s move out. I don’t sense any particular danger nearby, so moving quickly would be best.”
With that, I began the march for our rescue and exploration mission at a brisk pace.
We crossed the bridge in no time and proceeded straight down a wide, open boulevard. There was a subtle but definite difference in the scenery before and after the bridge. However, my target wasn't any of the drab buildings around us. I was aiming for one thing only: the towering castle that stood tall in the distance.
Mana elixirs, weapons, classes… I can get my hands on all of Mavolo’s research. Hayeon and Vivian will love this. Man, I’m excited.
In the first playthrough, when Mavolo was defeated, I’d heard that many clans had participated, so the rewards for each were small. But we now had the right to monopolize it all. This was why I had been so determined to bring the clan members here. Magia was nothing less than a treasure vault, filled with countless riches that had slumbered for 300 long years.
Various buildings lined the boulevard leading to the castle. They weren't plain structures but were filled with the distinct tastes of mages. Still, the buildings on this side of the bridge weren't in complete ruins. As the distant castle grew larger, I could feel that the level of destruction was gradually lessening. Of course, the eerie atmosphere remained, but the proof was in the slowly relaxing expressions of my clanmates and the budding excitement in the air.
In any case, by walking straight ahead without so much as a glance at the other buildings under the pretext of rescuing the Users, we arrived at our destination faster than expected.
“Phew. We finally made it to the castle. But do you really think there are Users here?”
“That fiend definitely said so. He said he’d imprisoned some of them. If that’s the case, it’s highly likely they’re being held in his main base, the castle.”
I gave Ko Yeonju a suitable answer as I looked up at the castle before us. The term ‘old castle’ fit it perfectly. Its exterior still retained some of its former glory, showing a faint, lingering dignity. But that was all.
The bricks of the castle walls were a murky, dark color, and I could see loose joints everywhere that looked like they would crumble with a solid kick. Some places even had holes punched right through them. The overall structure was intact, but it exuded the atmosphere of a dead castle.
“Eh… This is a castle? It looks like a total dump.”
“Hey, Lee Yoojung. We’re here to rescue people. Why would you say that?”
“You idiot. What are you talking about? Who said I wasn’t going to rescue them? Are you just going to save them and go back?”
“It was a joke, a joke. I just meant we shouldn’t get our hopes up.”
Would they have had such a conversation if their own comrades had been captured inside? It was a sad state of affairs when I recalled how they were during their first Rite of Passage, but I didn't stop their chatter. In a way, this could be seen as part of the process of adapting to the Hall Plain.
Listening to their quiet conversation, I stepped into the desolate castle. The main gate was wide open, so there was no trouble getting inside.
*
Unlike the scenery outside, the castle’s interior was relatively well-kept. Relatively, of course.
Upon entering, I saw statues of mages on either side, holding their staffs in stylish poses. The statues were mostly made of marble, but something glittered in their eyes and at the tips of their staffs. They were jewels.
I’ll have to pry all those out on my way out.
Since I planned to search every nook and cranny of the castle and strip it bare anyway, I decided to be as patient as possible about the rewards. After entering, we walked down a long corridor, glancing at the portraits of unknown people hanging on the walls.
Soon, we arrived in a hall with a vast, open space. There were beautiful decorations on the ceiling, a staircase that curved up to the second floor in a gentle U-shape, and square windows that, though stained with age, were still neatly in place.
But the most overwhelming feature was the massive fireplace directly in front of us. It stood about two meters high and one meter wide, its interior pitch-black.
Now, to the basement.
Most of the clan members were looking up at the second floor. The interior structure led from the second floor to the third, and from the third to the fourth. I considered going up the stairs, just in case things were different from my memories, but then I turned to look at Ko Yeonju.
“Ko Yeonju, have you tried using Sensing?”
“I did as soon as we came in. But I’m not sensing any reaction from the first or second floors. Well, we’d have to go up to know for sure.”
“Then where do you think the captured Users might be?”
“Hmph. Well, if you’re asking for my opinion as the Shadow Queen…”
Ko Yeonju paused and lifted her foot high into the air. Then she stomped it down hard as she continued.
Thud!
“Right now, I can feel mana permeating straight down. The inn I used to run back in Mule had a basement I built in a similar way. I’d bet my life that there’s a door somewhere in this castle that leads to a basement, and that’s where the Users are.”
“I see. I think so, too. Then the key is to find the door to the basement.”
“Hoho. I was right, wasn’t I? Now, then…”
“Now then, what?”
When I retorted sharply, Ko Yeonju burst into a fit of giggles. I sighed and crossed the center of the hall.
I increased the density of my mana and sent Sensing out in a fan-shaped sweep. Starting calmly from behind, I felt the presence of the clan members following at a slow pace.
In truth, I already knew where the door to the basement was. But if I just walked into the castle and found everything as if I already knew, I would surely draw suspicious looks. That’s why I had given Ko Yeonju a little hint. It was a bit frustrating, but as the saying goes, you should look before you leap, so I decided to think of it as a confirmation process. As my Sensing slowly swept around and brushed past the fireplace, I felt something out of place, just as I’d expected.
“There’s something suspicious about the inside of the fireplace.”
“It is an odd size, that’s for sure.”
After staring at the fireplace for a moment, I stepped right inside. It was so large that I could enter without any difficulty. The only issue was the old, musty smell that stung my nose, but it was more or less bearable.
“—. —. —. Light.”
The quick-witted Kim Hanbyul chanted the Light spell on her own without needing to be told. A fist-sized sphere of light she manifested floated into the space.
“…”
As expected, the inside of the fireplace was unnecessarily deep. The light drifted about five meters in before stopping at a certain point, brightly illuminating the surroundings. And…
“Huh? What’s that? There’s something inside.”
“Looks like a door. Wow… there’s a door inside a fireplace.”
Inside the fireplace, we discovered a single, heavy iron door, firmly shut.
“An iron door in a fireplace. This smells fishy.”
“Let’s hurry. The rescue is our priority.”
Urging the clan members on, I quickly stood before the door. As I examined it closely, I realized it wasn’t locked. Ahn Hyun peeked his head out from beside me and whispered.
“Hyung, do you think this is the door to the basement?”
“There’s a high probability.”
“Oh, then in here…”
“Let’s open it and see. But just in case, everyone get in formation and draw your weapons. And Hanbyul, can you maintain the Light spell?”
I waited a moment for the clan members to make their preparations. Once I confirmed they were ready, I reached for the round doorknob.
Creeeak!
The unpleasant sound of scraping iron hinges filled the air. But the tightly shut iron door was slowly opening. The moment I pulled the handle all the way, a long, dark blue staircase leading down was revealed before our eyes.
Bingo.
The Light spell went in first, illuminating the stairs. As the interior brightened slightly, I could see that the staircase was longer than I’d thought. I told the clan members gasping behind me to be careful not to slip, then I slowly began to descend.
*
A strange, fragrant scent filled the staircase, and an indescribably unpleasant air weighed heavily on the atmosphere. About twenty minutes had passed since we started down the stairs. Even though we had descended one step at a time with caution, the underground staircase seemed to stretch on for a surprisingly long time.
But I had a gut feeling that the stairs would end soon. The fragrant scent flowing into my nostrils was growing stronger. No, this was no longer a fragrance. It was a stench—a complex mixture of the reek of blood, the smell of semen, body odor, and other fluids. As the smell intensified, I finally stopped channeling mana to enhance my sense of smell.
It was then that the sphere of light, which had been descending ahead, stopped as if it had hit something. I, leading at the very front, saw this and halted my descent. Looking carefully around the light, I could see a large, black-painted wooden door before it.
“…”
All was silent. The battle was over, but a different kind of tension began to fill the air. I prepared myself to draw the Sun and Moon Divine Sword at any moment and closed the distance to the wooden door. As I stopped right in front of it, I saw an inscription written at about my eye level.
It was written in an ancient language, but I had some knowledge in that field. As I was quietly deciphering the characters, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned to see Ko Yeonju silently putting a finger to her lips and then poking towards the inside three or four times. It was a signal that she sensed a reaction from within. I nodded and quietly drew the Sun and Moon Divine Sword.
Just before I opened the door to enter, I read the inscription on the door one more time.
‘Let us remember that day. Let us cast aside emotion and become as beasts.’