Episode 1165
Episode 1165
Lee Han wanted to ask Saratan what was going on, but first, he had to deal with the immediate problem at hand.
Lee Han lifted his body higher with telekinesis and then slashed at the pursuing restraints with Lightning Transformation.
They paused momentarily, but the effect wasn't particularly strong. The restraints quickly regained their form and lunged forward again.
However, Lee Han had already anticipated this. He swapped positions using spatial teleportation magic.
"Saratan! Send the stone tablet over here!"
Lee Han channeled mana into his staff and hurled it forcefully. Saratan, as if understanding without needing an explanation, exerted his Authority to its fullest extent.
'If we can just get that stone tablet, the test will definitely be over!'
Desperate to deliver the stone tablet to his foul-tempered and wicked master, Saratan madly sprouted vines into the air.
It seemed that if Lee Han could just hold out a little longer, he could secure the tablet.
Right at that moment, a chilling premonition reverberated through his chest.
[The next magic will now be cast.]
"!!"
-No!
Saratan screamed.
Right now, Wardanaz had even thrown away his staff—what did they mean by "next magic"?!
And the worst part was that he hadn't been able to warn them about this beforehand.
Just imagining the tantrum his master would throw afterward was horrifying.
'To think there was a pattern where they cast another spell mid-restraint. Bakwantalana! Why are you doing things you never did before...'
Space trembled as the magic swept through the surroundings. Saratan squeezed his eyes shut. A sense of despair, as if everything was lost, surged in alongside the magic.
"Send the stone tablet."
-?!
Saratan was startled by the perfectly unharmed mage's voice.
Astonishingly, Lee Han was standing there completely unscathed. After catching the stone tablet Saratan had thrown, Lee Han picked up his staff again.
-What? What just happened? Wasn't the magic cast?
"It was cast, but luckily, it was a type I'm immune to. Things like <Bakwantalana's Scream> don't work on me, remember?"
-......
Saratan thought to himself:
'Wait... could we have passed this without all that fuss if we'd just stayed still?'
"Saratan."
-What is it?
"Earlier, when you explained, I don't recall you mentioning this kind of pattern."
-......
Except for rare cases like Catten, everyone else present had to do their best to endure.
'How on earth can you cut through that?'
If they'd had the leisure, the adventurers would have asked.
The sight of someone cleaving through the ruins' magic with a single sword defied all understanding.
Of course, even the mages of Einrogard couldn't explain it. There were still many aspects of magic that even mages didn't fully comprehend.
As the restraints continued to spread, the space to escape rapidly diminished. Even the Einrogard students, who had been carving paths through the air, soon found themselves cornered.
"Let a new path be forged!"
It was Garko who came to the students' aid.
As he tore open the blocked walls of the ruins and created new passages, the students and adventurers hurried inside. Garko transformed once more and followed behind.
"Ah, we left Senior Catten behind!"
"Is this really the time to worry about him?! Worry about yourself!"
"What exactly is this magic detecting?"
At someone's shout, Giselle fell into thought.
Though the situation was urgent with the magic relentlessly pursuing them, it was precisely in moments like these that calm judgment was needed.
'It's not the five senses.'
Earlier, some White Tiger Tower students had tried to deceive the pursuit with transformation magic like Garko, but it hadn't worked.
Even Garko, who had transformed anew, was still being chased by the magic.
'Could it be heat?'
There were many spells that operated by detecting heat.
"Ah!"
Beside her, Angrago, who had been running along the wall, slipped and fell. Giselle quickly cast a Frost Cloak on her friend.
Crackle!
"Argh! Moradi! Why did you wrap me in a freezing cloak?!"
"...Sorry about that!"
It seemed heat wasn't the answer after all.
The newly transformed Garko spun around as he spoke to Giselle.
"You're trying to figure out how they're tracking us. Good observation."
Though Angrago wouldn't agree after being dragged along, the two mages quickly exchanged opinions.
"It doesn't seem to be the five senses, and heat doesn't appear to be the method either."
"The clones transmitting information through Qingyan vision doesn't fit either. They're still pursuing us even after coming this far."
"I suspect they might be detecting and tracking souls."
"Souls! That's a sharp observation. As expected of Einrogard mages... This could also explain why the test took so long to begin."
"Please, for the love of—think of something, anything, soon!"
The adventurers running behind them panted heavily as they shouted.
While it was good that the mages were exchanging ideas, they seemed to have forgotten the current situation.
Do all mages above a certain level act like this?
'Oh no.'
Giselle felt slightly embarrassed.
Wardanaz might get away with such mistakes, but for her to make one...
"If we're talking about blocking soul detection..."
"There are Soul Frenzy Potions among the adventurers' supplies. Crude, but they might work as decoys."
"Isn't there a Transmutation Magic that can temporarily alter the form of a soul?"
"That's possible, but whether it can evade tracking..."
'I swear I'll never take another mage commission again!'
Just as the adventurers were cursing inwardly, the pursuing magic disappeared as if it had been a lie.
The captured White Tiger Tower students on the opposite side also stood up in bewilderment.
Garko cheered excitedly.
"We must have passed the test!"
"Y-yes. That must be it!"
"The magic inside was definitely Transmutation Magic!"
"Well... um..."
The students exchanged glances.
Frankly, it didn't seem likely that the magic left behind by Bakwantalana would be Transmutation Magic.
Why would a renowned Enchantment mage leave behind Transmutation Magic?
"It's Black Magic."
"......"
"......"
Not only the Einrogard students but even Garko was too shocked to speak.
"Y-you're joking, right? Wardanaz?"
"Don't tell me Wardanaz is from a Black Magic school...!"
"Shut up, you idiot."
Lee Han clamped a hand over his friend's mouth.
Garko was already shocked enough—no need to add unnecessary misunderstandings.
"He's also affiliated with the Transmutation Magic school, Mr. Garko."
"Ah... yes. I know. You're also part of the Enchantment Magic school, Summoning Magic school, Divination Magic school, and so on, right?"
'Master Alsicle...!'
Lee Han inwardly cried out Alsicle's name.
Of course he'd bragged about all that—there was no way he wouldn't have. Lee Han spoke as if making excuses.
"I'm not particularly close with the Enchantment Magic professor. Haha."
"I-I see. But... Black Magic, you said?"
"Yes."
The name inscribed on the stone tablet was <Bakwantalana's Purgatory>. It was definitely an undiscovered spell.
They'd need to study the formulas and incantations carved into the tablet to know exactly what kind of magic it was, but one thing was certain—it was Black Magic.
Just the name alone reeked of Black Magic...
"To the successor who has found their way to this tablet, I bequeath this Black Magic."
"This spell was perfected in my later years as the culmination of my research."
"Though I have studied many schools of magic throughout my life, it is this Black Magic that has inspired the most awe in my recent studies."
Such notes were written both before and upon the stone tablet.
Saratan suddenly chimed in.
-So Bakwantalana completed this in his later years! That's why I missed the pattern! No wonder...
"Be quiet."
"To think Bakwantalana's final magic would be Black Magic... I thought for sure it would be Transmutation Magic."
Garko was uncharacteristically deflated. It was hard to believe this was the same mage who'd bravely charged into the depths of an unknown ruin.
The concerned adventurers tried to console him.
"Magician. Of course, it must feel futile that the opportunity recorded in the books has slipped away, but this isn't the only chance you'll have, is it?"
"That's right! Surely you'll find what you're looking for in other ruins!"
"...You're absolutely right."
Garko pulled himself together.
A true mage should never give up so easily just because of a few failures.
"We'll count on you in the next ruins as well."
"......"
"...Uh, well, about that..."
The adventurers immediately showed reluctance.
Once this commission was over, they planned to head to the warmest part of the southern Empire and rest for half a year.
Especially somewhere without mages around!
Feeling oddly guilty, Lee Han tried to console them.
"It's a shame we couldn't find evidence that Bakwantalana was a transmutation mage, but it's not all bad. If he was versatile enough to research black magic as well, he must have delved deeply into transmutation magic too."
"?"
Giselle, standing nearby, tilted her head slightly in confusion.
Versatile enough to research black magic too?
What did that even mean?
'Isn't that an insult?'
Fortunately, there were no students from the black magic faction present.
"Your kind words are truly appreciated. The mages of Einrogard are admirable not just for their skills but also for their character."
"Why make such a fuss... Should I tell you our family name?"
The White Tiger Tower students, though bashful, didn't seem particularly displeased.
Stepping on the toes of the friends who had approached with Giselle, Lee Han asked again,
"If you're interested in deciphering this stele together—"
"Ah. No, no. Really, unless it's transmutation magic, I'm not interested. And after this, I have to head straight to a mage gathering in the North."
"A gathering of transmutation mages?"
"There are transmutation mages, and—ah! Black mages too. They'll be very pleased to hear this news."
Lee Han nodded absentmindedly.
He wasn't particularly surprised to hear about a mage gathering in the North.
The Empire was full of mages, and they held all sorts of gatherings and conferences, big and small, every day.
There was no reason for Lee Han to be shocked or interested just because a few black mages were holding a gathering nearby.
Besides, this time, they were here on a commission from the Moradi family...
'If it's a gathering with transmutation mages in the North, is it just a small social meetup?'
Jidorf, the head of the Moradi family and effectively the spiritual leader of the northern knights, surveyed the assembled black mages with a solemn expression.
The origins of the black mages gathered here were quite illustrious.
Kallarogard, the magic academy rumored to possess the darkest black magic in the Empire.
The Descendants of Ahrag, steadfastly upholding the traditions of the magic tower founded by the great black mage Ahrag.
Contrary to the prejudice that most black mage groups were eccentric and abnormal, the Obsidian Magic Tower was well-run and wielded influence within the Empire.
And the most bizarre group among those gathered here—the Legion of Oondorgu, composed entirely of undead.
"We have heard the esteemed opinions of the mages gathered here. However..."
"However? No, Family Head! We must seal off the North immediately and scour every inch to uncover the cause of these anomalies!"
"W-We don't think we need to go that far, but we do believe the search should be expanded."
The reason the black mages had come was precisely because of the recent disturbances in the North.
While any commotion in the Empire likely had magical roots, the black mages suspected that this particular disturbance was deeply tied to black magic.
And they were prepared to endure any extreme measures to uncover it.
Of course, that was the black mages' perspective. To Jidorf, who represented the knights, it was an absurdly radical proposition.
"We'll need to give it more thought."
"Family Head! If you'd just listen a little longer, you'd change your mind!"
"I doubt that. Ah. Guests from Einrogard have arrived. I must attend to them personally, so I'll take my leave."
The black mages fumed as the family head slipped away like an eel.
What was so difficult about sealing off the North?!