Chapter 138
Chapter 138
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 138
Chapter Title: Past, An Even More Distant Past (1)
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"...You're climbing the Kulakt Mountains?"
Eryahl blinked. He was flustered.
The warriors standing around him swallowed hard. It was rare to see the Grand Duke rattled. When something unusual happened, there was always a reason behind it.
"Yes, in three days."
Eryahl's gaze turned to the girl before him.
Her voice was calm. It sounded like she was talking about hiking a local hill. But the Kulakt Mountains were nothing like a neighborhood hill. Not in the slightest.
"Professor, do you know what kind of place Kulakt is?"
"I've heard it's the most treacherous range in the North, where the rugged peaks gather."
"Right. Add to that the phrase 'No one has crossed Kulakt's mid-slope in centuries.' Do you understand what that means?"
Eryahl narrowed his eyes.
"Climbing Kulakt is suicide."
It was blunt, but in Eryahl's mind, no better way to put it existed.
"Warriors love a challenge. Sometimes we risk our lives recklessly. But climbing Kulakt isn't a challenge."
It's just plain suicide.
"The blizzards enveloping Kulakt aren't just 'fierce'—that's too mild a word. Have you seen the sanctuary blizzards? Kulakt's are worse, Professor."
It's knowingly walking to your death.
That's what climbing Kulakt meant.
"Reckless. I have no choice but to try stopping you."
"I see."
The girl nodded at Eryahl's warning. She heard it, but showed no sign of heeding it.
"...You're still going to climb it."
"I have a reason I must."
"What's the reason?"
"Hard to say."
Her voice remained calm.
As Eryahl listened to the smooth tone flowing from the girl's lips, he narrowed his eyes.
Eryahl had seen many people.
Having seen countless humans, he could vaguely understand why the girl before him carried that attitude.
'She's already made up her mind.'
The girl's blue eyes were heavy.
A calm but not light voice. It was the demeanor of someone whose resolve was firm.
'No point in saying more...'
Some people easily reversed their decisions, but others didn't. And the girl before him clearly fell into the latter category.
"...Hoo."
Eryahl let out a sigh.
"No matter what I say, you're set on climbing Kulakt."
"I've decided."
"Fine. I don't know what's up there, but..."
Eryahl slowly raised his arm.
He extended his index finger, pointing at something.
"Remember just this one thing, Professor."
He was pointing at Lania's eyes.
Pointing at Lania's blue eyes, Eryahl spoke.
"No matter what you see, don't panic. Just accept it. That's what Kulakt is like."
What did that mean?
Lania didn't ask. She nodded slightly and stood.
"I'll keep that in mind."
2.
When it came to decisions, I was pretty quick to act. Three days after resolving to climb Kulakt, I spent those days busily.
"That's enough for today."
For three days, I trained Rak.
Starting when the sun hit midday, until sunset, I stayed by Rak's side guiding his training. Rak took to my teachings quickly.
"Like this?"
"Yes. First open your breathing, then shift it through your whole body. Don't rush—take it step by step."
Rak absorbed the lessons earnestly.
He always had. He knew no easy paths. No efficient shortcuts. He just stubbornly took in what was taught.
'It's kinda brute force, in a way...'
But Rak was a bit different.
He absorbed everything fast. He never rejected anything. That's why Rak grew much faster than I'd expected.
"Let's stop here today. You good?"
"Hm, I could go a bit more."
Twenty steps farther than our first training.
In the intensifying blizzard, Rak lasted about two hours max. He collapsed from exhaustion more than passing out. Incidents of him losing consciousness could now be counted on one hand.
"Good job."
In three days, Rak made solid progress.
Seemed like he'd gotten the hang of it, so now it was up to him. On the evening of the third day, after training and heading back, I quietly warned Rak.
"Watch out for the Sword Ghost."
"...You mean Sir Draka?"
Be wary of the Sword Ghost.
It was my gut feeling. A hunch without hard evidence, just pieced together... but my instincts were usually spot on.
"His eyes are off."
"The eyes?"
"Normally, the Sword Ghost doesn't wander with eyes wide open like that. Those bloodshot red eyes always hunt only heretics. Eyes full of hate. But... the Sword Ghost I saw in the North was different."
Yes, a little different.
"Not the eyes of madness."
I warned Rak.
"Eyes with purpose. Don't know what, but... he won't use normal means. So stay sharp."
I could handle most things, but I'd be away for a while. That's why I warned Rak. Just in case.
"Mm... Understood."
Rak nodded at my words.
He still looked confused. Hoping that expression never changed... I returned to White Night Castle and finished preparing to climb the snow mountain.
And so, the morning of departure dawned.
"Hoo."
I exhaled shortly and lifted my head.
Lifting my gaze, the snow-capped peak soared endlessly high into view. And that was just the tip of the iceberg.
Only half in sight.
The highest summit was shrouded in blizzard, invisible. And that was my destination. Kulakt's peak, wrapped in white storm.
'The answers are there.'
I took one step forward.
3.
Kulakt Mountains.
Rumors about it were endless.
Ghosts appear. Blizzards twist even the flow of time. Monsters lurk in the raging storms. Trials that broke even the hero called Unyielding from the previous generation, and so on.
Some were pure tall tales, others mixed with grains of truth. But some rumored facts were undeniably real.
"Time's flow twists inside Kulakt."
Originally a rumor, but spoken by a hero who'd climbed it in the past, turning it fact.
"I spent ten days in Kulakt. But outside, only two days had passed."
Unyielding had said that.
The haggard Unyielding muttered, eyes downcast.
"Never... never want to climb it again."
"That serious, huh."
Recalling the anecdote, Raniel muttered.
She was climbing through the snowstorm. With each step, sticky blood splattered onto the snow.
'Not just empty rumors.'
Raniel shook her hand lightly.
Picking off the frozen blood hardened over her gloves, she glanced back.
"Hm."
Monsters lay buried in the snow.
Some headless, others bent double at the waist. Quite the grotesque scene.
There were monsters.
Unusual species not seen outside, but still just singular types.
'Compared to the monstrosities that madwoman churned out...'
The apostate's synthesized beasts, cherry-picking strengths from each.
To Raniel, who'd faced hordes of them... the snow mountain beasts were no big deal.
"Doesn't even feel that cold."
The blizzard couldn't pierce the mana cloaking her skin.
No matter how she thought, nothing yet worthy of terrifying the previous generation's hero, Unyielding.
'Finding the path will be tricky.'
Blizzard obscured vision. Each step sank deep into snow. Hard to see ahead, so had to watch footing carefully.
'Without this, it'd be rough.'
Raniel looked at what she held.
The apostate's arm. Creepy to carry, but... the alien mana emanating from it pointed the way precisely.
'Like there's a made path.'
Snap.
Mid-stride, Raniel flicked her fingers.
The instantly cast spell scorched over the snow. Flames melted snow for a while before ground showed.
"...Real."
Melted snow revealed floor.
Not bare ground. Small tiles laid out. Raniel looked up. Tiles led to a cliff.
A sheer cliff face.
Staring at it, Raniel extended both arms. She released spells stocked in her forearms. Ashen mana coalesced into chains.
Chains.
Shot chains stabbed the cliff.
Raniel kicked off lightly, yanked chains, and leaped. Thud, landing on a ledge, leaped again.
Thump!
She slid onto the cliff top. Snowflakes scattered. Her footprints stretched long in the snow. Landing atop, Raniel paused.
"......"
She narrowed her eyes.
Mana flow was warped. Sensitive to mana, Raniel noticed.
'...Mixed.'
Something was stirring the ambient mana.
Raniel instinctively looked skyward. Sun, midday before cliff, now setting beyond mountains. Sunset.
"Time's flow twists inside Kulakt."
She got what that meant.
"Hoo."
As Raniel exhaled and moved to step— her head whipped around. No presence felt, but someone stood there.
"...Unyielding?"
The hero called Unyielding.
The one active just before Kyle, long dead now.
'Why's he here?'
Never seen his face.
But from countless records, Raniel recognized him instantly. Felt like seeing a ghost.
"Why are you..."
-Clack, clack.
Raniel tried speaking, no response. Unyielding chattered teeth, body shivering. Something off. Raniel narrowed eyes.
-Where the hell am I supposed to go! Prophecy, if you're gonna prophecy, make it clearer...!
Standing right beside, ignoring her completely. Like muttering to himself.
'Something's wrong.'
Raniel reached for Unyielding.
Hand passed through. Then she realized.
"...Ha."
She let out a hollow laugh.
'Mana flow twisted, time distorted... and ghosts appear.'
Truth amid tall tales.
Not baseless rumors. Seeing Unyielding's specter wandering the snow mountain, Raniel muttered.
"...Residual image."
Reason unknown.
Clear: the jumbled mana held echoes of past visitors.
-Hic, heuk!
Raniel looked around.
Not just Unyielding haunting the snow mountain. Some chased by something, others bloodied trudging through, some swallowed by blizzard.
All past events.
Narrowing eyes, no mana from them. Just echoes.
'Fuzzy.'
Even to high mana sensitivity Raniel, blurry echoes. To most, just mana clumps.
'That's the ghosts.'
Ghosts in Kulakt Mountains. That was the rumor’s truth.
Raniel closed eyes. Concentrated mana in pupils, opened again. Everything sharpened.
Step.
She walked.
Following apostate arm's direction. Pace quickened. Raniel felt she knew what that ancient elf sought, why sent here.
Thud.
Raniel stopped.
Blizzard still raged. But amid it, something unhidden.
"So."
Raniel shifted gaze.
To where apostate arm pointed.
"That's why you told me to come here."
A straight path.
Path shown by strange mana.
A man already walking it. From past, even more distant past.
"Kardi."
Kardi.
The ancient elf who'd introduced himself thus.
-......
He slowly turned.
Coincidence, or heard her voice? Unknown. But different from Kardi Raniel knew.
Not usual silver hair.
Closer to ash-gray locks.
-Is that so.
Hair color differed, but yellowish beast eyes same. Piercing eyes looked at Raniel.
-You've come chasing me.
No, not Raniel precisely.
Raniel looked back.
A specter floated there.
-Skeval.
Being Raniel knew well.
Ancient lich Skeval's specter hovered there.
Author's Note
Thanks to those steadily depositing into the Skull Group's regular savings.
Someday, when Skeval's 『true body』 appears... you'll get your maturity payout...!