The First to Notice
The first to notice it was Sasha. The location was close to the pleasure district. Second, she had been away from Ninya at the flower garden and was returning from handling work elsewhere. Third, it was simply because her talent was exceptional.
“Stop the carriage.”
“Yes? Understood.”
Sasha, riding in the moving carriage, opened the door with a hardened expression. It was faint, but she definitely sensed a wave of magic power. She frowned and focused her mind.
“This magic power……”
The wavelength was too distinct to be adventurers brawling. Moreover, scattering magic power far enough to reach this distance wouldn’t end with a day or two of confinement or a simple fine.
“Go back first.”
“Yes? But……”
“And tell Ninya……”
The source of the magic wave. It couldn’t be…….
“Tell her to contact the guards immediately. The location is……”
Sasha, who had been gauging the direction, furrowed her brow.
“The rat hole.”
“Y-yes!”
Sensing the gravity of the situation, the coachman answered at once and urgently whipped the horses into motion.
“……”
After confirming the direction once more, Sasha immediately raised her magic power. Blue light enveloped her as she kicked off the ground and sprinted forward.
* * *
“Aaaaaaaaagh!”
It burned. It burned so much!
Pain, rage, terror. In her fading consciousness, she reached toward the man before her.
“S-save…… me!”
“Hmm.”
Nine looked down at the transforming thing.
“The report said it succeeded, but the condition is worse than expected. There’s room for improvement. However……”
A clump of Nine’s magic power surged forth. The magic, gathered into droplets like tiny beads of water, slowly drifted toward the subject. The moment it drew close enough, the droplet burst with a soft pop.
“Excellent……!”
The experiment was a success! Nine’s lips twisted into a grin.
After more than a century, Purple’s long-cherished wish had finally borne fruit!
“To succeed in a minor branch like this—I never expected it, but this only proves humanity’s potential! As expected of people! Humans possess infinite possibility!”
His eyes burned with fanaticism as he stared at the creature, then he suddenly turned his head. He sensed a presence drawing nearer.
“Someone already? A knight? ……No, this is an isolated area. Still……”
Should he conceal himself? Or observe the test subject a little longer?
Nine pondered briefly. He didn’t think he needed to retreat against an average magic user, but if he couldn’t finish it quickly, the knights would…… No. If a noble arrived, the situation would change entirely.
“Not yet. It’s not time. The blade isn’t perfect. It needs more time to become sharper…… keener……”
It was still too incomplete to face those inhuman monsters. He needed a more decisive moment to prove they were not gods but mere beasts.
Therefore…….
“Shall I watch from hiding……?”
There was a risk of discovery even if he observed while concealed, but staying far enough away to see what this result could accomplish—he desperately wanted to witness that.
“Ugh…… uuuugh! Hic!”
The thing writhing on the floor could no longer be called human. Nine nodded as he watched it.
“I will at least witness your final moments, brother of Red Blood who carries true humanity! Your sacrifice is the signal flare announcing a new era for this world! From the age of gods, to the age of nobles. And now—the age of humans has finally arrived!”
Tears streamed from Nine’s eyes. He shouted with genuine fervor.
“Comrade! Farewell!”
With that cry, Nine’s body slowly faded into the darkness. Once he had completely vanished, the empty basement contained only the once-human creature now collapsed on the floor, beginning to twitch violently.
“U-uuuugh! Gnaw! Grrrrrrk-k-k-k!”
It was no longer human. It had become a monster.
* * *
-BOOM!
“Ugh?!”
The instant Sasha reached the destination, the deafening explosion and the sight of the entire building collapsing made her freeze. The narrow alley was instantly swallowed by a cloud of dust. Staring into the darkened space, she pushed her body reinforcement magic even further.
“What is this magic power?”
Beyond the ruined house, something waited. Her sharply honed senses caught it—something writhing, leaking faint traces of magic into its surroundings.
“……”
That magic. It felt repulsive. Instinctively, Sasha took one step back.
“Magic that feels bad?”
Magic was ultimately just magic. There was no such thing as good or bad sensations attached to it. The pressure from powerful magic, the ability to make things physically hot or cold—those existed, but magic itself carried no sensory quality. Even unique magic resembling the sea or the sun would only evoke personal emotions one might feel from the real sea or sun, and…….
-Twitch!
“Ugh!”
In reality, it was impossible for magic to make someone feel genuine disgust. Unless…….
Death. Corpses. Curses. Grudges…….
Perhaps there were those who studied such magic, and perhaps such power could evoke those emotions. But what was that?
-Twitch. Twitch!
“A monster……?”
The dust in the alley slowly settled, revealing a house reduced to rubble, a shattered floor, and what appeared to be a basement. Inside it swelled something that looked like a bloated mass of flesh.
“……Is that a monster?”
She had sparred with Ninya and received practical combat instruction from Chloe, Leoric Franz’s subordinate, but she still lacked real battle experience. When facing an unknown entity that possessed magic power, the greatest threat was its unpredictability.
-Swoosh!
Something shot out from the swollen mass. Sharp thorns erupted, stabbing toward Sasha.
“Ugh!”
Thanks to her reinforced body, she twisted instinctively and avoided a direct hit, but not completely. The thorn that grazed her arm left a small gash. After barely retreating, Sasha immediately tried to raise her magic power. Or rather, she attempted to.
-Wooooong!
“My…… my magic power……?”
The blue light rising from her body swelled, then began to shrink. This was…….
“The output is dropping? ……From the wound!”
Sasha’s eyes snapped to the small cut on her arm. It wasn’t a serious injury, just a minor bleed, yet magic power was visibly leaking from it and dissolving into the air. She was shaken by this bizarre phenomenon she had never encountered before.
“Glurk…… glrrrk!”
“Tch.”
While distracted by the wound, the creature rose again. The massive lump writhed and moved. Though her output had decreased, it wasn’t enough to hinder combat. She raised her magic once more and glared at the monster.
-Twitch!
The writhing mass of flesh swelled enormously again. The movement, as large as a carriage, was grotesque and nauseating. What burst from the bread-like bloated mass was…….
“An arm? A leg? No way…… a person?”
-THUD!
Something shot out from the mass in an instant and slammed against the ground. The speed was unnatural for its size. Sasha, who had anticipated it this time, quickly kicked off the ground and leaped backward.
-KWAANG!
The monster’s enormous body crashed exactly where she had stood. Seizing the opening, Sasha’s red eyes began to glow with vivid blue light.
“Haaaaat!”
Magic power gathered at her fingertips. She imagined a red flower petal laced with poison. The magic obeyed its master’s will.
-Hwaaaaaak!
The magic spreading through the air transformed into countless red petals. As if surrendering to the wind, they floated gracefully, beautifully embroidering the space like a shower of blossoms. The walls the petals brushed against were left with razor-sharp cuts. Every single petal was a lethal blade—both a shield that protected her and a storm of swords that would tear her enemy to shreds.
“Ugh!”
The magic consumption was far heavier than usual. Sasha frowned and flicked her wrist. The petals responded like a single living organism, surging toward the monster.
“Glrrk! Kkak-glrk!”
The creature writhed mindlessly once more, lunging toward her as if to pounce.
“Rip apart!”
She had read its movement. The mass of petals flew at the monster like a living serpent.
“……Huh?”
The petals were disappearing. Gradually. The closer they came to the monster, the more each petal crumbled into dust and vanished. The magic forming their shape was unraveling, unable to maintain form, melting into the air.
-KWAANG!
“Kuk!”
Flustered by her failing control, she somehow dodged, but she saw new thorns erupting from the mass of flesh that had closed the distance.
-Swoosh!
“Too slow……!”
…………Lord Leoric!
The thorn thrust right before her eyes. Staring at the spike that seemed ready to impale her, the last image that flashed through her mind was the face of the man she loved.
-Kiiiiiiing!
Light poured from the blue gem on Sasha’s necklace. A crimson glow.
* * *
In the dark alley, the tremendous roar and collapsing building finally alerted the few people still nearby. Fortunately, it was nighttime and the area was sparsely populated. The handful of remaining civilians quickly fled.
“R-run!”
-THUUUUD!
When the escapees looked back, another heavy impact rang out as the building continued to crumble.
“What on earth is happening……”
“W-we need to call the soldiers……”
This was clearly no ordinary brawl between adventurers. The terrified people were still debating whether to summon soldiers or knights when—
-Kiiiiiiing!
A piercing sound exploded outward from the alley.
“Aaaaaagh!”
“My ears! My eaaaaars!”
It was a sound too massive for human ears to endure. Even though they had retreated a safe distance thanks to regular evacuation drills designed to avoid getting caught in battles between magic users, even with both hands clamped over their ears, the sound drilled into their skulls. People collapsed, blood streaming from their ears. In a world where they couldn’t even hear their own screams, those who barely regained their senses turned their gaze toward the alley.
-----------------------!
A colossal mushroom cloud rose into the sky.