Chapter 196: Usage (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 196: Usage (2)
To Duke Merkillan, Elves were beings of both mystery and dread.
It was only natural.
The relationship between the United Kingdoms and the Nonhuman Alliance was poor, to the point where there was almost no exchange between them.
Since he naturally had no opportunities to see an Elf, they were mysterious to him.
‘An Elf’s lifespan is ten times that of a human, and a High Elf’s is… twenty times longer—’
At the same time, he feared them because of what he had read in ancient texts.
Despite having an appearance clearly similar to humans, they were beings who lived for ages that seemed almost eternal in comparison.
He had read that because they were granted such long lives, the strength of an individual Elf also far exceeded that of a human.
But that wasn't all.
‘I feel like… I can’t breathe—’
A tightening pain gripped his chest. Duke Merkillan let out a ragged breath involuntarily as he stared at the Elves before him.
There was a group of them, clearly more than ten. Every single one of them was exuding a powerful killing intent, pressing down on Duke Merkillan and Kurak.
It was as if they were ready to kill them at any moment.
However.
“Hahaha! You pointy-ears are as prickly as ever!”
Kurak acted as if the killing intent was nothing, letting out a boisterous laugh from beneath his helmet.
“I will not say it twice. Do not approach the Primordial Elf.”
The Elf, Draim, issued another chilling warning.
Seeing the clear light of fanaticism in Draim's eyes, Kurak smirked, his lips twisting.
‘As I thought, there’s no doubt. He really is the Grand Master.’
Of course, from the moment he first saw Marquis Palatio, he had suspected to some extent that he was the Primordial Elf—no, the Grand Master.
Starting from the Black Leaves attached to him, that ‘Black Thing’ behind the Marquis’s back was something no ordinary human could possibly carry around.
On top of that, the unmistakable Divinity he felt when they met face-to-face today made it impossible to doubt the fact that he was the Grand Master any longer.
The only question was why the Marquis himself subtly denied being the Grand Master.
That part was somewhat bothersome, but…
‘Well, does the reason even matter?’
Kurak glanced over the Elves before him, once again confirming that his intuition was correct.
If the Marquis weren't the Primordial Elf—the Grand Master—there was no way these Elves would act like this.
Having reached his conclusion, Kurak spoke bluntly.
“Sorry, but that’s impossible. I’m a man who moves on orders, you see.”
“If you approach again, it won’t end with just words.”
“Heh—and do you have the power to back that up?”
“It would be a different story if all of us attacked at once.”
“Hmph. You’re being awfully bloodthirsty just because we had a little chat.”
“Think about what your race did to Him before you say that.”
It was blatant hostility.
However, Kurak simply shrugged.
“Well—do as you please. I have no desire to fight you right now.”
He turned his back as if ignoring the Elves.
“Let’s go.”
“…In this situation?”
“Are you staying, then?”
“No, the Elves—”
“Don’t worry. Those pointy-ears are a bit stiff, but they’re a race that understands honor.”
Despite the Duke’s concerns, Kurak walked away without hesitation.
“W-Wait—”
Duke Merkillan immediately followed, terrified of being left behind.
He was inwardly anxious that a conflict would break out, but just as Kurak said, he saw that while the Elves didn't lower their guard, they didn't attack either.
And in that moment.
“Oh.”
The group of Elves vanished instantly, as if they had never been there.
“I believe that was enough for you to grasp the situation without further explanation. What do you think?”
Kurak’s voice reached his ears.
“…Then, are you saying Marquis Palatio is the Primordial Elf?”
A brief silence followed.
“To be precise, he is the Grand Master. Well, that’s what the pointy-ears call him.”
At Kurak’s confirmation, Duke Merkillan could only gape in a daze.
‘Marquis Palatio is… a real god?’
He was struck with shock at the unbelievable truth(?).
* * *
About a week had passed since Kurak and Duke Merkillan left.
Alon had spent that time resting. It was all thanks to his excellent worker, Alexion.
In the past, whenever he returned from a trip, he had to wrestle with paperwork for at least a month. Now, the capable Alexion handled it all.
Thanks to that, Alon only spent a short time in the morning giving final approval to documents. The rest of his time was spent either resting or immersing himself in magic research with Penia.
Though, the time spent on magic research was overwhelmingly longer than his actual rest.
“Whew.”
Alon leaned back in his chair and let out a small sigh.
Penia, who had been observing Alon’s magic until a moment ago, scribbled something down diligently and nodded.
“Hmm, I think we’ve found up to five Hand Seals now.”
“I see.”
[Kyu?]
What Alon had been researching until now was the linked Hand Seals to properly handle Blackie.
Over the past week, they had found two more Hand Seals that could be linked.
“That was faster than I expected.”
“As you know from last time, once we figure out the molecular structure corresponding to the linked Hand Seal, we can find them right away.”
“True.”
When Alon stroked his head, Blackie let out a pleasant kyu-reung sound and rubbed his head against Alon’s hand even more.
“Ah, by the way, I’ve looked into ‘Status’ a bit as well.”
“Did you find anything?”
“Well, yes, I did.”
When he resumed his magic training, Alon had asked Penia if this Divinity could also be incorporated into magic. Since then, research into Status had been progressing alongside his magic studies.
“Is it good information?”
“Half and half.”
As Alon straightened his posture, Penia hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“First of all, this thing called Status is similar to mana, but the feeling is different.”
“In what way?”
“For example, mana eventually changes into different magic depending on how mages arrange and utilize the molecular structures, right?”
“Right.”
“But the Divinity you showed me isn't like that. It feels more like your Phrases or Sentences.”
“Like Phrases or Sentences?”
“Yes.”
Penia placed her index finger on her chin as if deep in thought.
“The Phrases you use twist mana, and the Sentences twist magic itself, right? Like some kind of law.”
“Hmm.”
“This Divinity feels similar. But if I had to point out a difference… it feels ‘absolute.’”
“…Absolute?”
“Yes. The Sentences you use cause changes in magic, but this is… broader, I suppose. In short, it’s like an Absolute Law. Something that remains unshaken no matter the situation.”
“What do you think it would be like if used alongside magic?”
“Well, as for the ability of the Divinity you showed me… I’m sorry, but I don’t know yet. I haven't even grasped exactly what kind of phenomenon it is.”
“I see.”
Alon felt a slight pang of disappointment.
“But if we can utilize such an Absolute Law alongside magic, I think we could create some truly nonsensical spells.”
“For example?”
“This is just a thought, but if the Absolute Law was something like ‘Immutability,’ we could create a fire that never goes out, things like that.”
“Oh….”
“In short, I think it’s definitely worth researching.”
“As expected, you’re impressive.”
At Alon’s praise, Penia shrugged with an expression that said, ‘Hmph, who do you think I am?’ but then she let out a small gasp.
“But just in case, I think you should be careful about using Divinity inside Exam Questions or Strange Gates.”
“Why is that?”
“As you know, Exam Questions are basically created by irregular mana phenomena—very irregular ones at that. It’s mana itself interfering with space-time.”
“…Is it a problem to use Divinity there?”
“Normal magic is fine, but if you use a power with an Absolute Law like Divinity in such a place, I don’t think it would be very good. Hmm—”
Muttering that she was just guessing, Penia added as if she had just remembered.
“The already unbalanced space-time might distort even more severely, causing you to drop into some strange place? Or, the magic might fail to manifest and you’d get caught in an explosion. I think it would be one of those two.”
“I’ll have to be careful.”
Either way, it seemed best to avoid experiencing it.
Later, while they were wrapping up their research and chatting, Alon brought up a topic that had suddenly crossed his mind.
“Come to think of it, isn't it almost time for the Magic Society to be held?”
“That is correct!”
Penia answered immediately, as if she had been waiting for him to mention the Magic Society. A smile already played on her lips, and a strange greed flickered in her cat-like eyes.
“Then we should participate this time. When should we leave?”
“In about a week from now would be perfect…!”
“Let’s do that.”
Leaving behind the fired-up Penia, Alon stepped out of the 2nd Office and took out the Feet Running Through the Past.
Originally, he had wanted to use it the day he returned, but he couldn't.
Ridiculously enough, he had realized too late that if he didn't use the Feet Running Through the Past immediately after filling it with mana, the mana would slowly evaporate.
Having refilled the evaporated mana, Alon was finally able to use the Feet Running Through the Past.
Soon, the scenery changed.
“You’ve come.”
Alon faced Kailas within the ruined world.
“I assume you’ve done everything I instructed before?”
Kailas checked with him immediately upon meeting. Alon nodded and then asked.
“That aside. Before we begin training, there’s something I’d like to ask. Is that alright?”
“What is it?”
“It’s about Formulas and Divinity.”
“…Formulas and Divinity?”
In response to Kailas’s question, Alon told him about what had happened in Greinif, the land of the Elves.
From the story of Defying Heaven to the fact that he could only use the Green Divinity among several others.
Kailas, who had listened calmly to the entire story, frowned.
“I can understand the Formulas, but why are you asking me about Divinity? You should know how I became a god. There’s nothing I can tell you even if you ask.”
“Hmm, I see. I asked just in case, but is there nothing that comes to mind?”
Kailas pondered for a moment before answering.
“As I said, my knowledge of Divinity is shallow. Most of what I know is just hearsay. However, if I were to give you a guess, it would be best to visit the Symbols.”
“…Symbols?”
“Yes. You said you have a hunch where the faith for one of the five Divinities gathered, right?”
“I do.”
“Then go to the Symbol of that Divinity.”
As Alon looked puzzled, Kailas added.
“A god’s power ultimately comes from faith. And that faith flows into you through a Symbol. If you can just find that Symbol, it won’t be that difficult to awaken your dormant Divinity.”
“Awakening just by finding the Symbol?”
“Yes. Symbols are incredibly important to a god. And if my guess is correct—you will be able to wield another Divinity.”
Being able to wield another Divinity, huh.
Soon, a look of doubt appeared on Alon’s face.
It didn't seem like he had awakened the Green Divinity—the Divinity of the Primordial Elf—by specifically finding a Symbol.
But that doubt was short-lived. He changed his mind.
‘If the World Tree is the Symbol of the Primordial Elf, then it’s not impossible to understand.’
In fact, the Green Divinity had reacted when he was inside the World Tree.
Therefore.
‘…I’ll have to pay a visit to the Thunder Snake Tribe.’
Alon decided on his next destination, to be visited immediately after the Magic Society.