Chapter 57
Chapter 57
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: Leobrant Brotherhood: Celestia (4)
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The library of "day," where no one existed—.
More precisely, in the "Night Library" that stood in opposition to the surface world, I quietly gazed at the bookshelves under the moonlight.
My eyes were fixed on one of the tomes in the Second Archive.
A magic that had once been checked out in the form of a pendant.
—"Tyrant Dragon."
An anomaly had occurred once more in the grimoire that controlled the pure white dragon.
"Has another change arisen in the library's grimoires?"
I slid the grimoire "Tyrant Dragon" from its shelf in the Second Archive.
To confirm the changes in the glowing tome.
A soft light dyed my hand as I held the grimoire.
"Now that I think about it, it was a magic that felt alien from the start compared to the other grimoires."
My impressions of the grimoire slipped from my lips.
The "Tyrant Dragon" now in my hands was the most anomalous magic among those in the Second Archive.
A spell that excelled in every aspect, nearly a perfect hexagon.
Even in the Second Archive, which prioritized balance for efficiency, it was the magic that displayed the most abnormal output.
The root of this issue lay in its foundation of "autonomous combat."
It wasn't a spell used once and done; it was designed to increase in performance proportional to its charge time.
"It was the magic I poured the most effort into recently..."
And now, that extraordinarily complex spell was undergoing "mutation" right in my grasp.
The cause was unknown.
An anomaly that hadn't occurred for centuries was now repeatedly invading the library's interior.
"......"
Rustle, rustle—.
As I flipped through the pages with the hand holding the grimoire, I began checking the changes in the magic of Peria.
With each page turned, the smeared incantations came into view.
The degree of mutation had clearly increased beyond what I'd seen before.
"It's progressing at an unusually rapid rate compared to the other grimoires."
The mutation in the Second Archive's tome, "Tyrant Dragon," had now spread to nearly half of the entire incantation.
It was mutating at an bizarrely fast pace compared to the other magics used by Clayton or Lua.
I gazed with complicated eyes at the indecipherable incantations.
The magic I had created was turning into something else.
Could I still call this magic my own creation?
Such doubts surfaced in my mind.
"Is it an environmental issue? Or a problem with the incantation itself? I'm not sure which is the cause."
Several possibilities flashed through my head.
The chance that contact with the outside had altered the grimoire.
Or that Peria's actions had accelerated the change.
Either way, there was no shortage of possibilities.
Ha—.
A scoff laced with complex emotions escaped my lips as I stared at the transforming grimoire.
"I might need to reclassify 'Tyrant Dragon' before long."
The Phantasmal Archive Celestia was alive.
And the tomes stored within the library, breathing life alongside it, were no different.
The library's grimoires were constantly evolving and growing.
It might not be long before the day came when I had to reclassify Tyrant Dragon with my own hands.
* * * * * *
Begerton Antares, technical advisor to the Polar Magical Research Society.
The researcher known as the "Doctor" was now surveying the surroundings with a smile tinged with regret.
A plain carriage had halted on the mountain path.
Scattered across the ground were materials so tantalizing that even the Doctor coveted them—ruined.
And those materials were, naturally, members of the Leobrant Brotherhood.
The elite execution squad, hailed as the brotherhood's finest, lay pathetically sprawled before the Doctor.
"This is just... If only they'd handled it a bit more carefully."
The Doctor clicked his tongue in regret as he looked around.
Was it the aftermath of a massive dragon's rampage?
There were scarcely any intact corpses at the scene.
The brotherhood members struck by "Tyrant Dragon" had been pulverized beyond recognition, bones and all.
This was all the handiwork of Peria Alferatz, the powerful young lady of the marquis's house, in an instant.
"Of course, facing a mass-interference spell head-on... it's no wonder they couldn't emerge unscathed......"
Muttering his regrets, the Doctor soon adjusted the magic in his monocle.
Click—.
His adjusted gaze slowly scanned the corpses at the scene.
To analyze the vital signs around him.
Most of the members had met gruesome ends, with not even traces left to identify.
They had been crushed in the merciless assault of Tyrant Dragon.
The one silver lining was that Korer Leobrant, who had led them, had preserved a relatively intact form.
For a reckless man who had resisted a dragon from myth alone, it was a rather dignified end.
"Did you get hurt badly in the fight? Does it hurt...?"
- Kyao, kyaooo!
As the Doctor faced the execution squad's demise, Peria Alferatz spoke up from his side in a worried tone.
The spike wound in the Doctor's abdomen throbbed.
Unfortunately, Peria wasn't fretting over the Doctor's injury.
It was the pure white dragon that had rampaged here moments ago—.
The wound inflicted on "Tyrant Dragon."
Under the jaw of Tyrant Dragon, which had revealed its true form to fight.
There lingered the mark Korer Leobrant had carved in his final desperate struggle.
The price of recklessly trying to swallow a swordsman wielding a mighty magic sword.
"If it hurts a lot, let me know! I'll help however I can!"
And that mark remained faintly even now, after it had reverted to the form of a baby dragon.
Stroke, stroke—.
Peria petted the head of the wounded baby dragon.
The baby dragon, whose wound was healing at a rapid pace, tilted its head and nestled into Peria's embrace.
- Kyaooo...?
"Thanks for putting on such a great show. Thanks to you, everyone made it out safe."
- Kyao!
"Yes, exactly! You were so cool today!"
The Doctor's gaze quietly turned to Peria.
Blink, blink—.
In the Doctor's dazed vision as he stared at the baby dragon, there were no signs of bloodstains or bleeding.
Instead, it was absorbing ambient mana at an absurd rate, repairing its own wounds.
A feat impossible for the Doctor himself, of course.
The dragon before him was akin to living magic.
"Miss Peria. Shouldn't you be more worried about this human over that dragon?"
The Doctor asked her, intending to point out the obvious—that she ought to worry about him more.
However, Peria's cold response was all he received.
"Huh? But Doctor, you come out fine even if you're stabbed by spears or swords...?"
"Hmm—."
The Doctor stroked his chin at her words.
What on earth did she think he was?
It seemed the young lady before him mistook him for some immortal being or the like—.
He was merely a normal human with four transplanted hearts and the ability to breathe underwater.
"Well, explaining that would be complicated, so let's drop it. I hurt just the same if a sword pierces my heart."
"......Got it, I'll keep that in mind."
"You're not listening to a word I say. Anyway, it should be about time for that friend of ours to show up......"
In the end, the Doctor gave up persuading the cool-headed noble girl.
Instead, he turned toward the one person he could call his sole confidant.
As if responding to his expectation, footsteps soon approached busily.
Thud, thud—.
The Doctor smiled upon hearing the familiar footfalls.
"......What the hell. What happened here?"
From the forest with its steep slopes.
A voice rang out from someone wearing thick leather boots.
Rustle—.
Parting the dense underbrush appeared a comrade from the same organization as Begerton Antares.
"We were preparing because a VIP was coming, and now you've gone and stirred up trouble again?"
"Perfect timing, Raintas!"
The Doctor welcomed the mercenary with a sword at his waist, Raintas, in a cheerful voice.
Tsk—.
Raintas turned away with a fed-up look and nodded toward Peria, who cradled the white dragon.
His own way of showing respect to the "VIP" the Doctor had been awaiting.
At that, the Doctor protested toward Raintas with an aggrieved expression.
"Stirred up trouble? Nonsense! I simply fell into a trap set by the brotherhood's execution squad, and Miss Peria here heroically rescued me as she passed by."
"Execution squad? Wait... this is Korer Leobrant."
Listening to the Doctor, Raintas's eyes widened in surprise upon spotting something.
—Korer Leobrant.
Spotting the brotherhood's number two, Raintas prodded the fallen Korer with his foot to check his condition.
"This girl did this...?"
"And that's not all. She took down all twenty of his brotherhood followers too."
"......"
"Perfect, since I was planning to haul this one to the lab anyway, and my dear friend Raintas shows up. Help me carry him, will you?"
The Doctor smiled and requested Raintas's aid in transporting the corpse.
However, Raintas ignored him, staring down at Korer with a serious face.
Hmm—.
Raintas's contemplative gaze alternated between Peria hugging the white dragon and Korer.
Then, in a fairly astonished voice, he addressed Peria.
"Miss, you're even more impressive than I thought. One of these guys alone I could've handled, but the full execution squad? That would've been a headache."
"Huh? Is that so?"
"The brotherhood scum are all parasites clinging to Isaac, but the execution squad's the nastiest of the back-alley trash."
"......"
"They're infamous for their brutality and using any means necessary. Always hauling around bundles of nasty poisons and powerful magic tools."
Thud, thud—.
Raintas kicked the dead Korer's body.
Korer, who had met his end at Tyrant Dragon's hands, didn't so much as twitch.
"Well, they got bloated thanks to the Seven Corners, but at their core, they're still black-market scum relying on magic swords."
Having passed judgment on Korer, Raintas finally lifted his foot from the corpse.
The Doctor's mood had soured watching Raintas trample his experimental subject.
Rustle.
Raintas showed a small courtesy toward the Doctor's specimen.
"We just need to haul this to the lab, right?"
Only then did the Doctor relax, flashing a satisfied smile.
"Of course, Raintas. A specimen like the brotherhood's number two will surely yield excellent results."
"Got it. We'll do that."
"Too many brothers to feed, it seems... But even so, there's a line in the world that must be upheld. Let's rehabilitate him into a 'good person' back at the lab."
Heh heh—.
Raintas shook his head at the Doctor's creepy scheme spilling from his lips.
Just as Raintas reached to grab Korer.
Thud, roll—.
His eyes fell on a sword tumbling across the ground.
"This is......"
"Looks like the magic sword Korer Leobrant wielded."
A magic sword inscribed with countless runes.
One of the treasures held by the Leobrant Brotherhood.
"What do you plan to do with this sword?"
Raintas, eyeing the magic sword, asked the Doctor about its disposal.
After a moment's contemplation, the Doctor replied.
"That, we'll gift to someone else."
"A gift? You okay with that?"
"Yes, quite. There's someone who'll love it. You'll agree, won't you, Miss?"
The Doctor's gaze turned to Peria.
Perhaps grasping his intent.
She nodded promptly in agreement.
"Yes, that's fine."
"Well, if the parties involved are okay with it... handle it yourselves."
The discussion on the magic sword's fate ended there.
Raintas grabbed Korer.
The commotion had passed; now it was time to return to the hideout.