Chapter 53
Chapter 53
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Translator: crow
Chapter Title: The Name of the Magic: Love
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It was one of those days where my intuition just felt off. A bowl shattered on its own, then I stubbed my pinky toe on the table—hard enough to break the damn thing and force me to make a new one.
“Feeling’s not good.”
[When has it ever been? Aren’t you finally getting used to it?]
Undine perched on top of Lione’s head, scratching her belly vigorously. Still, it seemed like Lione’s Enoch-talk had tapered off a bit lately. Down from once every three minutes to once every ten. A solid third reduction.
The forest had gotten pretty quiet since that little brat left. The animals he used to torment had reclaimed their happiness, and the trees that kept splintering day after day were standing tall and sturdy again.
It must have been like this all those years Lione and I spent together in the forest, but the emptiness I felt was proof of just how big a presence that kid had. You don’t miss what’s there until it’s gone—even objects linger like that, let alone people.
Not that I’d been hoping for this.
“Enoch…!”
Lione, who’d been sitting there dazed, shot up from her seat, unleashing a surge of power I hadn’t seen in ages.
Every tree in the forest responded to her rage. An elf gripping a single sword slashed through space itself, and the tree trunks that had become her limbs tore at the severed gap.
The sight beyond was gruesome. Empty eye sockets peeked through the cracks in a shattered white mask. Long gashes around them were sword marks.
No wonder Lione’s eyes rolled back in fury. Undine thought quietly to herself.
‘The continent’s about to get flipped upside down.’
Of course, she’d be right in the thick of it. Rude little brat or not, he was our house brat. How dare some no-name nobody…!
[I’ll help you out, Lione.]
Had the kid ever mentioned hearing whispers of the “Forest Tyrant” in these woods? If so, time to show them what the being from the previous generation—called a tyrant—was really like.
*
Tough bastard. Impressive enough to make an onlooker marvel.
Kuuuung—! Wood-crack—!!
Seeing Lione this pissed while still in my right mind was a first. I’d only vaguely guessed at her strength before, but damn, not like this.
The guy who called himself Unknown couldn’t even fight back as he got pummeled. It was only natural—the opponent he could never beat was systematically ripping his limbs apart.
“G-Good…?”
Yonia tugged lightly at my sleeve. My rigid body finally loosened a bit.
“Yeah. Actually, not bad at all.”
Weird, though. Whenever I tried to look at Lione, it was like a fog settled in—her form blurred out. Just a light mist, enough to make her faintly visible, but nothing more. Peering closer made my head throb like it’d split.
Instinct told me: this was the gap in realms. A normal person would go mad just staring at her. That was Lione at full throttle… Couldn’t help but be awestruck.
“Looks like it’s wrapping up. Haa… Thank god. Thought we were in deep shit.”
I nodded at Yonia’s words.
“Figured some moderately strong guy would show, but this one’s way tougher than expected.”
“Wanna tell you to be more careful, but… honestly, Grandmasters popping up is unavoidable.”
“Yeah.”
Time to dispel Brain Deification soon. Problem was, doing so would kill me. With my heart replaced by the plasma ring, dropping the deification meant no heart left at all.
“Huh?”
Wait, isn’t this serious? I couldn’t sustain the plasma ring permanently yet.
As Enoch pondered gravely, a colossal woman of water materialized.
Undine’s true form. The same one from the monster wave. At her gesture, hundreds of thousands of tiny water spirits unleashed a barrage.
The Unknown, who’d been slicing and regenerating endlessly, turned into minced meat as expected. It still twitched a bit, which was gross, but Undine shoved it into a massive water orb, spun it, and diluted it away—erasing its existence clean.
[Enoch…!]
The moment she confirmed the bastard’s death, Lione rushed over. The massive form woven from tree trunks faded slowly, and the space she’d traversed began repairing itself lazily.
“W-What do we do…! Our Enoch…! Y-Your eyes—are they okay…!? Just hold on!”
Lione appeared before me like teleportation, inspecting my body frantically. She waved urgently, summoning a tiny spirit that floated over with a poof.
[Warmie… Why do you always end up hurt?]
Grumbling, Undine gathered a stream of healing water.
“Wait.”
[Yeah?]
“Don’t heal the eyes.”
[What…?]
Undine glanced sideways at Lione, gauging her mood. Her face was stiff as hell, and even I got a little spooked.
“…Enoch? What do you mean?”
“Nah, just… feels like this is better.”
I’d dubbed it “brain eyes” on a whim, but damn, it was more useful than I thought. Like some fairy-tale evil eye? Seemed like I could see way more than with normal eyes.
Though the regular field of vision was kinda fucked. Couldn’t be helped.
“Enoch, please take better care of yourself…. No, wait—the wound on your eye, can I heal that at least?”
How could I say no to those pleading eyes? I nodded, and Undine swiftly mended the straight slash across my eye.
Enoch locked eyes with Lione, who gazed at him with sad eyes. Perfect timing—I had something to say. But as I opened my mouth, Lione spoke first.
“…Was I too hasty?”
Back when I’d be way stronger. At least when I hit Grandmaster—should I have let him out into the world only then?
Her words, delivered with eyes on the verge of tears, prompted me to grab both her cheeks firmly. The petite elf’s face fit perfectly in my hands. What to say? How to shape the feelings I wanted to convey?
No answer came no matter how I pondered, so I uttered the name people had slapped on me.
“I love you.”
“…Huh?”
“I love you, Lione.”
Beyond man and woman— I love Lione’s very existence. “Love” might feel too heavy or sticky for it, but it was the only word that came to mind.
I smiled softly, eyes meeting hers, and her cheeks flushed faintly. Soon, she reached out, wrapping her arms around my neck and pulling me tight—my face buried in her chest.
“Haa… Our Enoch’s all grown up.”
After a long while of petting, I lifted my head, and Lione smiled faintly.
“Sis loves you too. You know how I feel, right? So please, be careful with your body. It tears my heart apart.”
She seemed to take it in a slightly different sense of love, but whatever. I wasn’t expecting anything right now anyway.
That one phrase on my lips let me move forward. Affirming myself, voicing that affirmed self. The act was like incantation. The chant to manifest the magic called “me.”
Where do emotions come from? It clashed wildly with the energy conservation law Iris had skimmed over. Such intense feelings kept spawning endlessly—what preservation?
So I cast magic on myself through this emotion. The circulation of the ring replacing my heart. This emotion sustained it.
The magic would end when this emotion dried up. When I no longer thought of Lione, felt nothing facing her. If that day came, the ring acting as my heart would stop too. Didn’t matter.
I’d never learned to live without her anyway. Even if everything else vanished, this emotion would linger till the last moment.
So I named this time. An innocent eternity, stretching endlessly as long as I existed—as a mortal, daring to call it eternal.
Pathos.
That was the name of this magic.
*
The capital Leonat of the Labelion Kingdom. It was an open secret among those in the know: Haken Wert’s base was here.
Naturally, the king wanted it gone yesterday. But who was he kidding? If the kingdom clashed with Haken Wert, the kingdom would be on the back foot.
Not anymore, maybe.
“Good lord.”
Darkness fell over Leonat. Tree trunks brimming with horrific power enveloped the entire capital. What if one slammed down? No need to wonder.
Kwaaaaaang—!!!!
He was seeing it now.
The king stood on his terrace, staring blankly. What the hell had they done to piss off the Sword Empress this much? Were they brainless? Seriously, why?
Haken Wert’s base was getting obliterated. Something locust-like burst from the crumbling buildings, but locusts were locusts. One tree trunk blotting the sky speared down, leaving only a puddle of blood.
[Feeling good today.]
The elf who’d brought the catastrophe stood in the heavens, casually flicking her hand. Each time, lives vanished pointlessly.
[So I’ll show mercy.]
Mercy? That was mercy? The king ducked behind a pillar. No thanks to catching the Sword Empress’s eye.
Kwadududuk—!!
The king squeezed his eyes shut, clasping his hands in desperate prayer. One he’d never made in his life. Still, if the heavens would watch over this lamb…
‘Please, just don’t let it hit the palace.’
He meant it.
*
“So, you’re the current king, huh?”
Fucking heaven’s bastard.