Chapter 44: Seolrang (6)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 44: Seolrang (6)
“Ice Crystal.”
As he confirmed the massive wall of ice forming in front of him, Alon let out a heavy sigh behind his expressionless mask.
What on earth is going on?
He was deeply confused by the situation.
From Alon’s perspective, he had simply gone to the tower in the center of the city to listen to a report. Then, the entire cavern had suddenly shaken as if it were about to collapse. When he rushed out, this was the sight that greeted him.
And that wasn't the only thing that defied Alon’s understanding.
Those two... they definitely used Abyss Body.
Alon recalled the thick, ink-black mana radiating from the bodies of Malliam and Kalman, who had been trying to kill Seolrang just moments ago.
How?
As far as he knew, the Abyss Body was not supposed to appear at this point in time. According to the original story's timeline, it was something that only began to spread across the world after at least two of the Five Great Sins had manifested.
The effect of the substance was to grant the subject who absorbed it a literal, albeit weak, ‘Divinity.’
Since the exact principle behind it was never explained even in Psychedelia, there were many theories that the Abyss Body was simply a plot device used to balance the game's difficulty. This was because enemies who used the Abyss Body became overwhelmingly stronger than before.
Alon wondered why Malliam and Kalman possessed such a thing, but he quickly cleared his mind.
The most important thing right now wasn't the 'why,' but overcoming the current situation.
Alon assessed the situation coldly.
Remaining spell casts: zero.
He had already manifested three spells to create the Land of Severe Cold, used one to shoot down Malliam when he tried to harm Seolrang, and just used another to protect himself from potential attacks. Alon could no longer cast any more magic.
Normally, that is.
Gulp—
Without hesitation, Alon uncorked a bottle at his waist and drank it.
It was the Highest-grade Mana Potion given to him by Penia, the Vice Tower Master of the Blue Magic Tower.
With this, I can cast one more spell. If I stall for time, I might manage two, but the barrier will vanish in twenty seconds.
After draining the potion, he immediately turned his gaze toward the fallen Seolrang.
Because he had been secretly preparing his magic for a while to avoid detection, he had overheard the general gist of what had happened.
“…….”
The look in Seolrang’s eyes as he glanced down at her was filled with emptiness, despondency, and intense rage.
Seeing the gloomy aura radiating from her entire body, Alon pulled another potion from his belt. It was a highest-grade potion he had received among the many gifts sent to him six months ago.
“Drink.”
Alon lowered himself and whispered as he pressed the potion to Seolrang’s lips.
“Don’t worry. Those guys are the only ones who betrayed you.”
“Is that... really true?”
“Yes.”
He answered clearly, but in truth, Alon didn't know exactly how many of the Golden Mane Tribe had sided with Ralga.
Furthermore, no matter how thoughtlessly Seolrang lived her life, she would likely realize with just a moment's reflection that his words lacked credibility.
The reason he told the lie anyway was that he desperately needed her help right now.
I have one chance. Seolrang needs to block their attacks until I finish preparing the spell.
Alon’s magic took a long time to cast. He knew all too well how foolish it was to expect his enemies to wait for him. Thus, he lied to get the grieving Seolrang moving immediately.
“Can you hold off the enemies until the incantation is complete?”
At Alon’s question, having fed her the entire highest-grade potion, Seolrang stood up steadily despite a slight stagger and nodded.
“Yes.”
Even with the highest-grade potion, the poison didn't seem fully diluted yet, but there was no other way. Alon decided to trust Seolrang and prepare his magic.
Once the spell was ready, dealing with Kalman wouldn't be difficult.
Kalman had certainly grown stronger after absorbing the Abyss Body, but ironically, Alon could become even stronger because Kalman had absorbed it.
He had placed a Constraint upon himself.
A Constraint that granted him the power to twist the world when facing a god.
“Phew—”
The moment Alon let out a light breath and formed a seal with his hands...
The cold ice wall that had been scattering frost just moments ago vanished as if it had never existed.
“Ice Snow.”
He then recited the phrase.
As frost began to swirl violently around him, the assassins and the Golden Mane Tribe members lunged forward as if they had been waiting for this moment.
There were dozens of them.
However.
“Form.”
Though her body wavered, Seolrang began to strike down every single enemy that rushed at them. Watching her, Alon uttered the next Phrase.
He closed his eyes and recalled the words spoken by that unrecognizable entity from before.
‘I know not of those who call themselves mages yet have lost the great legacy of the past, but the essence of magic belongs to the "Magus"—those who manifest the laws designated upon this world.’
‘The mana arrays, the Phrases, and even the names. All exist to manifest those laws. Only when all these elements are properly arranged according to the principle—’
‘—can it truly be called "Magic."’
“Fame of Snow Mountain—”
Following Alon’s words, a round sphere formed between his middle and ring fingers and began to freeze.
It wasn't just freezing.
Each 'point' of the array he had constructed to manifest the magic began to bloom into individual buds based on a hexagonal plate, like snowflakes blossoming.
‘It seems you only know a few Phrases, but you must use the "Sentence" as well. While a Phrase can twist a law, a Sentence is the key that opens the door to a specific gate leading to the laws designated in this world.’
‘Well, in truth, the mages of this era haven't entirely lost the names. They have simply been excessively abbreviated and unified, causing the original words to be lost.’
‘In this age, I suppose they call this by some pathetic name like... "Ice Spear."’
“Inevitability of the Blind.”
The buds that had sprouted began to bloom.
Before long, the sphere at Alon’s fingertips was no longer a simple orb but a massive crystal of snow.
Cr-crack—!
In the center of that crystal, a spear of such beautiful form that anyone would be captivated by it manifested before him.
And then.
‘But that magic’s original name was never something like "Ice Spear"—’
“Ice Crystal Flower Spear.”
‘Ice Crystal Flower Spear—that is the true name of the spell those moronic mages have forgotten.’
Opening his eyes after whispering the name, Alon could see it.
He saw Kalman, wearing ink-black gauntlets and looking at him with an expression of utter dismay, and Seolrang, who was desperately holding him back.
Watching them, Alon firmly gripped the seal he had been holding, completing the manifestation of the magic.
In the sweltering cavern, a snowfield arrived.
* * *
Rian stared at the magic Alon had unleashed.
Usually, no matter what magic appeared, her mind would race through countless simulations and recall various pieces of knowledge to dissect it. Now, her mind had come to a complete halt.
She could only stare blankly.
Everything in the path of the spear Alon had fired was frozen solid.
Whether it was the ground, the air—
...or Kalman, whose heart had been pierced through by a direct hit from that spear.
Everything was frozen.
Faced with that abnormal, and therefore beautiful, sight, the mages, including Rian, could not tear their eyes away.
“This is impossible...”
“Is that... a mage...?”
The mercenaries, who had been filled with despair just moments ago, all looked at Alon while muttering in awe.
Their eyes were filled with boundless respect and reverence.
It was only natural.
The desperate situation had been dramatically overturned by the being standing right before them.
Thus, even as Seolrang, who had escaped the range of the magic by a hair’s breadth, was looking at Alon.
Suddenly, it moved.
“Ah—!”
Ironically, the first person to notice that it—or more accurately, Ralga, who everyone thought had been knocked down by Seolrang—was moving, was a certain mercenary watching the scene.
“Die—!”
With his right arm shattered, Ralga lunged forward, raising the poisoned dagger that had put Seolrang in danger earlier.
As a member of the Golden Mane Tribe whose empowerment from the Essence shared by Seolrang had not yet been revoked, he moved with lightning speed. He appeared close to Seolrang at the very moment she was most off-guard.
“!”
Seolrang, who thought everything was over, realized she couldn't defend in time and tried to throw her body backward, but it was too late.
Her body was already covered in wounds from holding off Kalman and the charging bandits.
Still suffering from the lingering effects of the poison, she could only watch as Ralga’s dagger was about to plunge into her heart.
Ralga’s face twisted with ecstatic joy.
If I just kill her, I can seize ownership of the Essence and escape! I can start over, start over again!
With that thought, he put even more strength into the dagger he held.
“!?”
However, Ralga’s dagger failed to pierce Seolrang’s heart.
Silver threads...!?
The reason was that Alon, who had seen Ralga lunge just like the mercenary had, instinctively reached out and pulled Seolrang’s body back.
However—
As a result, Alon’s body, which had naturally leaned forward, was struck by Ralga’s horizontally swung dagger.
“Cough—!”
He coughed up blood.
To anyone watching, it was dark, dead blood.
And immediately after Ralga’s head was crushed by Seolrang’s rage-filled foot—his final gambit having failed—
“Count!”
Evan’s voice rang out.
* * *
In conclusion, nothing had happened to Alon.
...Of course, a knife had been thrust toward his side, but considering that, truly nothing had happened.
The reason was that while Ralga’s dagger had indeed been aimed at Alon’s torso, it had only grazed him by the narrowest of margins, merely tearing his clothes.
In other words, he wasn't wounded.
As for why Alon had coughed up blood despite not being hit by the dagger, it was purely due to mana depletion.
Even though he had secured enough mana to fire at least one more spell, the moment he used the magic, it had consumed so much mana that it went beyond simple depletion and caused internal damage to his body.
...The power is certainly beyond expectations... but I’ll definitely need something to supplement my lacking mana.
Alon clutched his uncomfortable stomach despite having drunk the highest-grade potion and looked back at the receding ruins.
He hadn't been able to see the eastern slate, but since an ambush had occurred, they had decided to withdraw from the ruins for the day.
For a while, Alon watched the ruins grow distant.
“…….”
Eventually, he turned his head toward Seolrang, who was staring intently at him.
If things had gone according to his original plan, Alon should have been comforting her right now.
Knowing that she was destined to become one of the Five Great Sins in the future, he didn't want her harboring any dark thoughts.
However, contrary to Alon’s concerns, there was no trace of negative emotions like anger or hatred in Seolrang’s eyes. Just as he was beginning to wonder why...
“Mentor.”
“What is it?”
“Can I ask you something?”
“What?”
Seolrang asked her question.
“Earlier, when Kalman attacked... why didn't you dodge?”
“…….”
When Kalman attacked?
Alon thought for a moment and then remembered. He recalled the gauntlet that had come right up to his nose while he was casting the Ice Crystal Flower Spear.
...It wasn't that I didn't dodge, it was that I couldn't.
He thought this briefly, but since saying that wouldn't sound very good, he gave this answer instead.
“Because I trusted you.”
“...Me?”
“Yes. I told you it was possible, didn't I?”
In truth, it was more like "Please do something about this!!" than trust, though.
At his sugar-coated answer, Seolrang’s eyes suddenly took on a slight glint as she asked again.
“Then, why did you save me when Ralga tried to kill me?”
“...Why?”
Alon couldn't find a proper reason.
...Isn't it stranger to just stand by when a child you've sponsored for a long time—not even an enemy—is about to die right in front of you? ...To be honest, I never expected the dagger to reach me, though.
Alon pondered this just like the previous question, and this time he spoke his mind.
“...Does there need to be a reason?”
“No reason?”
“You don't need a reason to save family.”
To him, Seolrang was like a daughter he had fed and raised for over five years, so the answer came naturally.
Ah.
But he soon realized he had made a mistake.
Based on his observations over the past few days, Seolrang seemed to place a very special meaning on the word 'family.'
Alon cautiously looked up.
“But, Mentor... isn't family. Family is... blood kin.”
He nodded, about to agree with Seolrang’s murmur.
“But... I want to become family with Mentor.”
“…….”
At Seolrang’s following words, Alon felt a very warm sensation once again.
Was this how it felt for someone who hadn't been recognized as a father to finally be acknowledged after several years?
Of course, it wasn't something he had experienced personally.
Just as Alon was about to nod with satisfaction rather than simple agreement...
“But—”
In an instant, Seolrang moved and climbed on top of Alon.
With her hips resting on Alon’s thighs and both hands on his shoulders, her eyes had become incredibly bright.
To the bewildered Alon, who was stunned by the sudden turn of events, she spoke.
“We can't become family like this. I'm a Golden Mane and Mentor is a human. So—”
Seolrang spoke with a smile.
“Let’s get married!”
“……???”
...Alon’s brain ceased to function.
Conversely, Seolrang’s tail was wagging more vigorously than ever before.