Chapter 90 31. Obelisk of Origin (2)
The Obelisk of Origin (2)
Episode 91
『The Obelisk of Origin』
A colossal tower piercing through the overcast sky.
In the game, it had merely been a stone tower shrouded in mist, but now it looked like a peerless work of art that could never exist again in this world.
Whoooosh—
The obelisk exhaled a pearlescent mist as though breathing.
The floor, stretching endlessly like an ocean to support the obelisk, was quite literally the color of the abyss.
A sapphire-like altar was densely engraved with translucent patterns.
Every single one of these markings—covering not just the floor but even the distant obelisk without a single gap—formed part of an intricate magical system.
A supremely advanced magic, as if trying to convey something.
Though Tirpe's eyesight wasn't sharp enough to discern the magical engravings on the obelisk itself.
"W-what in the..."
Just the patterns on the floor alone were enough to leave Tirpe utterly stunned.
Even I, who could barely decipher a fraction of the magic, could tell at a glance that these engravings touched upon the principles of the world itself.
Even for a regressor who had experienced all manner of the Tower's mysteries, the enigma of the 「Obelisk」 seemed to be an overwhelming shock.
-...What kind of magic is this...? Even in the Tower's hidden realms or secret ruins... I've never seen such high-dimensional spellwork...
Tirpe, despite her deep knowledge of magic, couldn't comprehend the floor's inscriptions at all.
Compulsively, she traced the patterns with her palm, scrutinizing them. Yet, her eyes only grew more clouded with disbelief—she understood none of it.
-...H-how could anyone stabilize a spell of this scale in the Outer Dimension's environment...? Contrary to my husband's words... could there truly be a god...?
Her expression darkened, as if she had finally succumbed to despair.
I watched Tirpe for a moment before sighing.
Unable to stand it any longer, I tugged on the chains of her 「Semi-Spirit Form」, activating the Tortoise Shell Binding Art.
"Hgk—?!"
Tirpe jolted in shock as her crotch, anus, and breasts were perversely constricted. Then, with teary eyes, she shot me a faintly resentful look.
"It's not like you can decipher it right now anyway. We don't have time to linger here. Clinging to something impossible is just a waste of time. You'd be better off looking for clues elsewhere."
With that, I followed Maltaira, who had already started walking ahead. Tirpe, still reluctant to abandon the inscriptions, eventually gave up and trailed after me.
Fwoosh—
Maltaira's already pale body flickered faintly, distorting. Frankly, just being in this area seemed to be taking a toll on her.
"Hey. You okay?"
[...If I seem... okay... then that's fortunate...]
"......No, you look like you're about to disappear."
[The desire... to disappear... is growing stronger...]
Tirpe, who had been following behind, flinched and hunched her shoulders.
"Eh... Th-that can't be allowed, right? ...Y-you've guided us this far... shouldn't you turn back now...?"
[...You two... focus only on returning to Earth... This is a trial... I must overcome...]
"......"
A sanctuary where Wanderers sought their origins to awaken.
It seemed Maltaira, too, had something to find here.
We walked endlessly along the altar, which stretched like a ridgeline. Not knowing when we would reach the end, that colossal monument.
Hours passed as we tread upon the mystical patterns on the floor.
Yet, there was no sense that we were getting any closer to the Obelisk.
Doubts began creeping in—would we ever reach it?
Finally, after several more hours of walking, nausea welled up inside me.
Sweeping the pearlescent mist aside with my hand, I couldn't hold back my frustration and shouted.
"Damn it, it's a mirage! What the hell?! We're not getting any closer. Are we supposed to cross a whole damn continent or something?"
Even my voice lost its direction, echoing hollowly in the mist. The emptiness inside me only grew louder.
'Goddammit.'
The Obelisk remained unchanged at the edge of my vision, near the horizon.
Still, this was ridiculous. The sensation of walking in circles was unnerving.
Even 「Read」 wasn't functioning properly, shrouded by the iridescent mist.
So I couldn't make sense of the situation at all.
The only thing I knew for certain was that this place held mysteries surpassing even the 「Lord of Corpses」.
'Damn it, in the game, you could just walk right up to it...'
I bit my lip in agitation. The means to return to Earth were right in front of me, yet they dangled like a mirage, taunting me—it made my blood boil.
...No, perhaps I was more deeply corrupted by the Outer Dimension than I thought.
Wandering aimlessly through the mist, my thoughts grew increasingly frantic.
Just then.
Squeeze.
Tirpe, eyes tightly shut like a frightened small animal, clung tightly to my arm. The fallen angel's cold body temperature seeped into my forearm, and for some reason, I began to calm down, little by little.
No,
『"Outer Dimension Circuit (Rare)" is absorbing the Obelisk's Records.』
She was primarily absorbing the Records that clung to me. Whether the task was taking a considerable toll on her or not, her complexion had grown noticeably pale.
Only then did Tirpe glance furtively at my expression and murmur cautiously.
"...A-Are you... calmer now...?"
Her sharp yet defeated eyes betrayed an anxiety caused by me. As someone who had never shown much outward disturbance before, my current state must have struck Tirpe with an even greater sense of unease.
『Skill "Mind of the Strange Sage" activates.』
I used the skill to settle the discomfort in my mind, frayed by the gap between the game and reality.
I had just shown an unseemly side of myself to a woman whose mental state was already unstable.
"Sorry. I got carried away without realizing it. ...I'm fine now."
A worry I had concealed beneath a veneer of confidence—one I hadn't revealed until now.
The fear of never being able to return to Earth had grown stronger with the Obelisk right before my eyes.
Tirpe, who had been stealing uneasy glances at my face, whispered softly.
"...F-For a moment... you looked like you might disappear."
"Huh?"
Her dark-circled eyes trembled as though she had seen something.
"...I-I don't know if I should say this, but just for a second... N-No, never mind."
Tirpe turned her head and swallowed her words, but they reached me all the same.
—...Like a Wanderer...
...She thought I looked like a Wanderer?
I had been steadily creating meaning through the act of creating life, hadn't I?
『Park Si-hyun's Race — Human』
I... am still human.
I haven't lost my way yet.
My purpose—to return to Earth—was clearer than ever.
"B-But your complexion does seem a little better than before..."
Tirpe hugged my arm even tighter, pressing her ample chest closer. She forced a smile, as if trying to appear cheerful despite her sickly face. Perhaps because of her naturally severe expression, the smile came off awkward.
But precisely because it was such a strained smile, it made my heart ache all the more.
Her true feelings, too...
—...I'm already too late, but I hope at least you don't lose your way.
Her murmured words pierced my chest painfully—just then.
Whoosh!
A sudden burst of light erupted beneath our feet.
"!"
The patterns on the ground began to glow with a myriad of dazzling hues.
Oooom—!
It was as if power had been supplied to the floor's engravings.
While frozen in place, light shot upward like stage lighting, illuminating even the space above us.
The radiant patterns, now alive, lifted from the ground and began revolving around us as though they had a will of their own.
"!"
Even Maltaira, now semi-transparent, couldn't hide her shock as she was bathed in the light.
[...Stasis... does not... work...]
A magical radiance even her powers couldn't halt.
The geometric patterns blazed with even fiercer light.
The overwhelming brilliance distorted everything before my eyes.
My vision, flooded with light, momentarily failed—and when I blinked belatedly...
"Hah...?"
All I could do was let out a hollow laugh.
No matter where I looked, endless smooth surfaces stretched like cliffs.
Even the faintly etched geometric patterns upon them.
Whoooosh—
Before my eyes, the 「Obelisk of Origin」 pierced through the sky of high mist.
Winds ceaselessly streamed along the sides of the massive monolith. Even beyond my line of sight, there was no sign of the winds ever stopping.
...Somehow, we now stood before the 「Obelisk of Origin」.
[...This is... impossible.]
Even the usually composed Maltaira was flustered.
Her shock was so palpable that even I found it unexpected.
[...Not even... for a single moment... could I resist...]
Maltaira, whose very essence was defined by her cold, unshakable 「Stasis」, trembled, her luminous eyes flickering uncontrollably.
Before the Obelisk's power—which had transported us effortlessly—her defining ability had been rendered utterly useless.
No wonder it came as such a massive shock to her, a Wanderer whose sense of self was already tenuous.
In this <Tower Journey>, there had never been a case where an active 「ability」 failed completely.
'What the hell happened to the 「Obelisk of Origin」 from the game?'
Still dazed, I tilted my head back to gaze up at the colossal 「Obelisk of Origin」. No matter where I looked, the monolith stretched endlessly, like a world unto itself.
Its surface bore no rough, natural texture—instead, it was as smooth as polished diamond, flawless in its geometry.
"...Abilities don't work...? What in the world...?"
Even Tirpe was lost in thought as she craned her neck to look upward, but the top of the Obelisk remained unseen.
Given its sheer size, our limited field of vision couldn't possibly encompass it all.
This wasn't just a monument or a ruin—to small beings like us, it was a wall that obscured most of the world.
[I... I... I... am...]
Maltaira's voice crackled like broken static, as if some part of her had malfunctioned.
She seemed to have fallen into deep panic over the fact that her powers had been completely nullified.
Suppressing a sigh, I walked over to her.