Chapter 65
Chapter 65
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: Death-Ground Fortune
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As they officially entered the Niam Mountains, he could feel the mana had grown incomparably dense compared to the outside.
The difference was so stark that if mana were humidity, it was like going from a dry desert straight into a swamp.
However, Lee Si-woo had no time to enjoy the refreshing afterglow of the highly pure mana.
Every minute, every second was a continuous state of tension.
Drip, drip, drip.
Droplets trickling down from the coniferous branches fell onto Lee Si-woo's head and shoulders.
Lee Si-woo, who had absentmindedly wiped his forehead with the back of his hand, flinched in surprise.
What he thought were water droplets were actually drops of blood, reeking of a disgusting, metallic stench.
When Lee Si-woo looked up, he saw countless corpses hanging from the coniferous branches, much like a leopard would hang its prey.
Seeing at least several dozen bodies, Lee Si-woo took a deep breath.
'Yahalong's decision to recruit a space school mage into the party was brilliant. No, perhaps it was because they had a space mage that he decided to enter the Niam Mountains in the first place.'
About an hour had passed since they entered the Niam Mountains.
Fortunately, aside from the initial watcher, the party had yet to encounter an enemy.
It was all thanks to Ben's concealment magic.
Yahalong gestured for the party to gather, then created a group chat on his smartphone and invited them.
It was a choice made to reduce noise as much as possible.
[Yahalong]: Is everyone in the chat? Good, then listen up. The most famous sign of an Elemental Stone's birth is the Seven-Colored Phenomenon. A rainbow-colored aura blossoms in the sky. In other words, when the Seven-Colored Phenomenon occurs, everyone in the mountains will be able to guess the Elemental Stone's location and appearance.
[Lee Si-woo]: A scramble for it will be unavoidable, then.
[Ben]: A scramble? It's too dangerous for us to get involved in such a chaotic mess with our current strength. Look around. People, whether they were 1st or 2nd Circle mages, are strung up on the branches like laundry.
[Pwan-Pwan]: Sir Yahalong. There are too many bodies. And all their wounds look like they've been eaten away by something... It's so creepy and ominous.
[Ben]: Don't tell me... a Beast Mage?
[Pwan-Pwan]: I don't think mages from other countries would have crossed the border, but considering the value of an Elemental Stone, we can't be too optimistic. There's always a chance.
[Yahalong]: Enough. Stop with the scary talk and calm down. You think I would have come into these mountains without a plan?
[Lee Si-woo]: Do you have something in mind?
[Yahalong]: It might be an overstatement to call it a plan, but I have a good reason to aim for the Elemental Stone in a place where strong guys are scattered about like pebbles on the road. Listen carefully. As you all know, my family is a prestigious one that has produced an elder for the Senior Magic Tower for generations. As such, I know of a few auspicious spots in the Niam Mountains.
[Ben]: An auspicious spot? You mean a place where the mana purity is especially high, even for the Niam Mountains, which is a mana nest? But I thought those places were mostly occupied by 2nd Circle masters...
[Yahalong]: Would I have even mentioned it if that were the case? Yes, you're right, the closer to the summit, the more auspicious the spot in the Niam Mountains. But the place I know is different. It's on the mountainside, manageable enough for a 2nd Circle beginner to occupy, yet it boasts mana purity greater than that of the summit. Well? Getting a feeling for it?
[Ben]: Mana purity denser than the summit? Hmm, if such a place exists, there's a high probability it's related to the Elemental Stone.
[Yahalong]: Exactly. That's why I suggested we come here. My grandfather always told me never to go in there, but... I was curious. Why such ruins exist in the mountains, and why the mana purity near them is so dense.
'Ruins? Heh, could he be talking about something similar to what's in the Magic Tower's basement?'
Just then, it wasn't the smartphone in Lee Si-woo's hand that rang, but the Barathrum in his breast pocket.
*Tiring.*
Perhaps because of the intra-cranial ringtone, one of Barathrum's tier functions, the sound was quite loud, yet the others didn't hear it, engrossed in their heated discussion in the chatroom.
Without worrying about them, Lee Si-woo confidently took out the Barathrum.
Thanks to its invisibility feature, he could check the message on the Barathrum's screen at ease. His pupils wavered.
[A Death-Ground Fortune has arrived. Would you like to read it?]
'A Death-Ground Fortune... Damn it, it seems I've really walked into a death trap.'
This was a fortune that hadn't appeared even when he fought a fierce battle against Yuryung, an opponent a level above him, in the selection match.
But for a Death-Ground Fortune to arrive now, when his Mineralization ability had reached the Platinum stage?
There was clearly a danger nearby that he couldn't handle.
『An ancient one has sought the mountain, so you die if you go to the old site, and you die if you don't. You are safe under the blue umbrella, but you will die if the ancient one finds you. It is dangerous if you take off the blue umbrella, but you will live if you find a place where the sun shines. There are two ways to live. Appeal to the ancient one's heart, or take off the umbrella and ask for the sunlight.』
'...What is this? What in the world is it saying?'
Lee Si-woo felt his breath catch in his throat.
Unlike past fortunes, which were intuitive and relatively easy to interpret, this one was so esoteric he couldn't make heads or tails of it.
The only part he could understand was 'the old site.'
'Nine times out of ten, the old site must refer to the ruins. But I'll die whether I go or not? What kind of messed-up situation is this?'
Lee Si-woo pressed his throbbing temples with his fingers.
Then, he suddenly lifted his head and looked up at the sky.
The phrase from the fortune about asking for sunlight had come to mind.
Although the sunlight was faint, obscured by the coniferous branches and leaves, since it was still daytime, patches of sun were filtering through here and there.
'How foolish, it's a metaphorical expression, it can't be real sunlight. I must be desperate to be thinking such things... Hmm?'
Lee Si-woo, who had been chuckling at his own pathetic state, suddenly raised his eyebrows.
The sky, glimpsed through the gaps in the coniferous branches.
He saw a blue barrier stretching wide across it.
'A blue umbrella? Umbrella? Put on, take off... Could it be, the barrier?'
The thought that flashed through his mind quickly turned into conviction.
Looking back at the patterns of the fortunes he'd received, they were mostly intuitive metaphors.
He wasn't sure if this feeling was right, but the fortunes had been kind, almost to the point where he felt the Death-Ground Fortune was being considerate of him.
Therefore, unless there was a good reason or a change, it was highly likely to be the same this time.
'So far, the fortunes have never been twisted in a way that was difficult for me to interpret. So... if this one is difficult, it's probably because I haven't yet obtained the hints to connect the dots. Yes, the blue umbrella. Like the barrier.'
What the fortune was trying to say was clear.
Inside the barrier, he was safe from most dangers, but he would die if spotted by the 'ancient one.'
'Safe inside the barrier, but the ancient one is dangerous? I think I get it. The ancient one is a 2nd Circle mage. A formidable enemy I can't handle.'
That's why the fortune hinted at taking off the umbrella. In other words, to destroy the barrier.
If the barrier were to break, mages of the 3rd Circle and above would pour into the mountains, making the 'ancient one' no longer a threat.
The only problem was that it was like calling a tiger to avoid a wolf.
'Then what's the sunlight? A place? A person? Ugh, and what does it mean to appeal to their heart? Am I supposed to cling to their leg and beg for my life? Ha, I have no idea. Alright, let's put it aside for now. I don't have enough information to interpret it yet.'
Putting aside the interpretation of things he couldn't yet understand, only one topic remained.
Whether to go to the old site or not.
However, unfortunately, given his circumstances, this was not something he could choose.
*Thump.*
Yahalong, standing next to him with a deep frown, lightly tapped Lee Si-woo's shoulder with his palm.
He then pointed his index finger at the smartphone screen, as if telling him to focus on the chat meeting.
Lee Si-woo bowed his head in apology and quickly skimmed the chat log.
Seeing that the meeting had concluded with the decision to head to the ruins, regardless of his own opinion, Lee Si-woo gave a bitter smile.
It seemed he would have to go to the ruins, for better or for worse.
* * *
"I do not understand you, Master Jin. You usually try so hard to protect Sir Lee Si-woo, yet at times it feels as though you're itching to push him into a deadly situation."
Jin, who had been sitting on the sofa, eating snacks and chuckling while watching an entertainment show, answered while sucking the crumbs off his index finger.
"You think I'm pushing my brother into a deadly situation?"
"Yes. The moment you passed the information about the signs of the Elemental Stone's birth to the twelve Magic Towers, the mountains became a warzone."
Jin giggled and crossed his legs. As he leaned his head carelessly against the sofa, his long hair, like a waterfall of white snow, cascaded down.
Eyes like white pearls.
Perhaps because they held no trace of emotion, his eyes, more like jewels than pupils, stared intently at Umbra.
"Keep talking."
"...No one knows how many 2nd Circle mages have flowed into the Niam Mountains. In that situation, even the powerhouses from other Magic Towers are gathering nearby. If the barrier breaks, mages of the 5th Circle or higher—no, even the 6th Circle mages, the beings who stand at the pinnacle of the Outlands Continent, might step in."
To the question of how Lee Si-woo could possibly survive in a place teeming with such powerful individuals, Jin answered nonchalantly, as if it were someone else's problem.
"I suppose so."
"Why did you do it? If you wanted Sir Lee Si-woo to have the Elemental Stone... wouldn't it have been better to just subtly hint it to him instead of leaking the information?"
After a moment of silence, Jin spoke with a faint sigh.
"Have you ever heard of the Black Night?"
"The Black Night, I've heard the name. An organization that operates in the shadows of the Infinite World..."
"The Main Dimension is largely divided into three worlds. The Outlands Continent, the land of the obsolete. The Central Continent, the land of the rulers. And finally, the Infinite World, the land of the monopolizers."
"The land of the monopolizers..."
"In the Infinite World, new continents and seas are born every minute, every second. And the ones who are first to claim the resources held by these new lands and seas are the Black Night and the Dawn."
"The Dawn? I may have heard of the Black Night, but this is the first I'm hearing of them."
"That's to be expected. They're a secret society that opposes the Black Night. Well, to say they 'oppose' them might be a stretch, as they're on a completely different level... Nevertheless, it's no exaggeration to say they're far ahead of the known powers of the Central Continent."
Umbra tilted his head.
He was a specter of the Graves Family, one of those who received and handled the family's information faster than anyone.
On the other hand, Jin had grown up like a sheltered flower in the Graves Family for a long time, so it would be normal for him to be unfamiliar with the outside world.
Yet for such a person to know so much detail about the Black Night and the Dawn, organizations that even Umbra was unfamiliar with?
This was very strange.
"Anyway, as long as a powerful force like the Black Night is after the Elemental Stone, it would be impossible to obtain it without shaking up the board. That's why I leaked the information to draw in outside forces. No matter how arrogant the Black Night is, as long as they're on a business trip to the Outlands Continent, they have to be wary of the established powers here."
"Umm, if such people are after the Elemental Stone, wouldn't it have been better to just give up on it?"
"No. Others might, but my brother cannot and must not back down against the Black Night."
If the Black Night were to find out that Lee Si-woo was the master of the Barathrum, they would mobilize all their resources to kill him.
And that was a definite future that would come to pass no matter how careful Jin and Lee Si-woo were.
For now, Jin was desperately holding them off, but one of the rulers of the Black Night and one of the Five Divine Seeds, 'Horus,' would eventually find Lee Si-woo.
Jin's eyes flashed with a cold light as he spoke.
"The Black Night's goal is the eradication of humanity."
Umbra retorted, as if to ask what kind of absurd nonsense that was.
"Eradication of humanity? Heh, is such a thing even possible?"
"It's impossible. Even now, countless humans are flowing into the Main Dimension through tickets. But it's not like there's no way. Well, you don't need to know."
Umbra's expression turned strange. He seemed a little hurt by the words "you don't need to know."
Whether he knew how Umbra felt or not, Jin continued with what he had to say.
"That's why my brother has to get the Elemental Stone. As a human, he's bound to clash with them sooner or later, and in a situation like this, it's best to snatch away everything the Black Night wants. Especially if it's the Elemental Stone."
Those who didn't know believed the Elemental Stone merely enhanced the power of elemental school magic, but Jin knew its true purpose.
And he also knew that only by obtaining it could Lee Si-woo grow strong enough to face the Black Night in the future.
'Brother, I'm sorry. For pushing you into a deadly situation. But... I still believe. No matter how dangerous that place is, you'll get everything you want and come back alive and well.'