Hunt (5)
I had planned from the start to dump the orcs on Professor Schud Rapens.
I couldn't let him see me harvesting the source Ulfrik had planted.
So at the last moment, I released the Sensory Distortion I'd cast on the orcs—
Special Spell 'Hallucination' Deployed
—and cast a spell to make myself look like an orc to them.
With the orcs' senses thoroughly fooled, I shoved them off on Professor Rapens to tie up his feet.
That let me ignore the fight and charge ahead.
[Not bad. He seemed pretty flustered.]
'If a few orcs rattle him that much, does he even qualify as a professor?'
[No, he's panicking because you're getting away.]
I could hear him yelling something from behind.
But pretending to be lost in the battle was enough.
The destination wasn't far anyway.
Opening my Transcendent Eye, I saw the mana flowing thick and vivid.
A massive energy source is nearby.
High probability of a large monster appearing.
Ulfrik's magic had controlled this forest for 500 years.
Now broken, exposing the source, it was corrupting nearby mana and stimulating the demon realm.
That could draw in large monsters.
'Probably around there?'
[Yeah, looks like it.]
Ulfrik had been awfully proud of demonizing this forest and layering control spells over it.
Summoning demon beasts—the Demon King's key forces—with human hands.
He thought it the pivotal key to turning an endless war.
At least the beasts could be conquered.
'But nothing changed.'
[Why drag up painful memories...]
The demonkin reinforced and refined the beasts before sending them to the front lines.
Ulfrik's disciples, myself included, could only despair.
The war dragged on in stalemate, eventually leading to the expedition toward the Demon King's Castle.
Hurrying my steps, I glanced back.
'Professor Rapens is still fighting, I bet.'
Soon, an unnaturally pristine clearing appeared.
This was where the magic source controlling Zone 1 lay buried.
A rock jutting slightly from the clearing's center.
I rushed over and pressed my palm to it.
New messages appeared.
An ancient magic source.
Damaged for unknown reasons; irreparable.
...As expected.
The very thing Ulfrik had buried 500 years ago.
I poured mana in forcefully and cast a spell.
Special Spell 'Levitation' Deployed
Rumble rumble rumble—
The ground trembled faintly as it began to rise bit by bit.
At a glance, it looked like a roughly hewn boulder.
But it was the mighty source powering the spells that controlled the demon realms scattered throughout this forest.
Catching my breath, I worked to keep it from crumbling further.
[If the Goddess of the Heavens really exists, she'd be shocked. Her dead son's tombstone popping up out of nowhere.]
Hierniorn muttered, eyeing the half-emerged rock.
Goddess of the Heavens.
I glanced skyward briefly before refocusing on the mana.
'Even if she exists, she's a hands-off type who never intervenes in mortal affairs. She'd just watch.'
The primordial goddess 'El'.
She never lent aid even as her creations waged desperate war against the demon hordes.
No reason to care.
Anyway, I successfully extracted the massive stone and set it down.
Etched on it in familiar script:
I, Ulfrik, plant 'Ro''s tombstone here and bestow the control spell. Let no one touch it.
Per the creation myth, countless children born of 'El' settled across the world, becoming life itself.
Among them, a few stood out.
The 'Ashin', who mingled with earthly humans by day but returned to their goddess in the heavens by night.
'Ro' was one such Ashin, warden of the heavenly prison.
That's why his tombstone made such a potent control magic source.
[As you know, using Ashin relics in magic is rare these days. Lost its roots.]
Hierniorn clicked his tongue.
I knew that too.
The world prized Ulfrik's relics over Ashin artifacts.
'Ulfrik spent five straight days lurking in putrid sewage to snag this tombstone, ambushing demonkin.'
Ridiculous.
Anyway, palm on the stone's surface, I began circulating mana.
To absorb the vital essence embedded within.
A human mage could convert it to mana, but handing it to a spirit yielded even greater benefits.
Not as pure as Fire Spirit Essence, but a huge boon for Hierniorn.
But I had to pause.
'Hiern, what's that?'
In the empty pit left by the stone.
Something glinted like a glass shard.
[Huh? A monocle? Wait. This feels familiar. No way...]
Hierniorn, peering into the pit, whipped around to me.
We recalled the same memory.
'Ulfrik's lost monocle?'
[Exactly. The one he babied until it vanished. Buried here?]
One of his relics.
Casually, I used Telekinesis to snag it.
But inspecting it closely made me flinch.
Artifact imbued with special knowledge.
Principles can be analyzed.
A strange prickling at my temples.
Complex equations filled my vision.
And etched into my mind: knowledge I'd never studied.
Acquired partial knowledge of monster control.
Ulfrik's insights into wielding monsters like his own.
Preserved in the monocle, now mine.
An unexpected windfall made me grin unwittingly.
'Snagging Ulfrik's artifacts comes with perks like this?'
Seemed my Transcendent Eye enabled the knowledge absorption.
Nothing like this in my past life.
[Oh ho! So you'll grow stronger every time you find one?]
'Yeah, theoretically.'
And more.
Deeper magic comprehension boosted my Origin of All Things progress massively.
Another surprise gain, better than most elixirs.
But caution was needed.
'I'm not just chasing an Allmaster's heels—I have to surpass him.'
Obsessing over his scattered insights was folly.
Blindly devouring his knowledge? Pathetic.
That's when Hierniorn shrieked.
[It's coming!]
'What?'
[Rapens wiped out the orcs and is charging this way!]
'Sounds like the professor's the monster.'
[You haven't absorbed the tombstone's essence yet! The power for me! Hurry!]
True.
Distracted by the monocle, I hadn't tapped 'Ro''s stone.
[Almost here!]
'Relax. It'll be quick.'
I stuffed Ulfrik's relic in my pocket and began absorbing the essence.
Buried so long, the stone had lost much power.
Absorption didn't take long.
'How to explain this to Professor Rapens? He's arriving faster than expected—no time to rebury it.'
[Say your inner child tempted you or something.]
What?
But our banter meant nothing.
Another guest arrived first.
[Wait. Tiberian! From that direction! Something's charging straight here?!]
"...Huh?"
Boom—!
A sudden explosion shredded part of the forest.
Out burst a giant ogre.
As massive as the forest's greatest trees.
Oh right—one thing I hadn't considered.
"Ah, just now, absorbing the tombstone and monocle's power..."
My Origin of All Things grew, amplifying my Lure spell.
And with Zone 1's control magic shattered, stronger beasts were emerging.
[Dodge!]
The charging ogre raised a fist the size of the tombstone.
But a perfect excuse popped into mind.
First things first: hunt.
"Kirian!"
Schud Rapens shook orc blood from his cloak and burst from the underbrush.
Then doubted his own eyes.
"An ogre...?"
A monster that should never appear in Zone 1.
But surveying the scene, it clicked.
That hulking boulder sitting brazenly on the ground—the culprit.
Damn. The control magic source is fully exposed, mana volatilizing. That's why higher-level beasts kept showing up...
In truth, Kirian had unearthed it, but from what Rapens saw, he could only infer as much.
Thoughts racing, Schud unleashed a spell.
Even a simple one, bolstered by incantation for power.
"Spread!"
Visual Impairment spell.
Binding the ogre from afar was tough.
Disrupt its sight first, hinder attacks on Kirian.
But the ogre's bulk danced oddly, dodging Schud's spell.
"...?"
No—closer look: not the ogre's intent.
Kirian snapped his fingers, wielding mana.
Whoosh!
At his gesture, rocks sharpened like javelins pierced the earth.
Summoning stone horns from below as weapons.
Tough against multiples, but solid for soloing a powerhouse.
'Even quick reflexes can't easily evade underground strikes.'
Schud froze mid-intervention.
Kirian's first volley missed.
But he swept his fingers again—more spears surged, pursuing the target...
Squelch!
Piercing the belly at last.
A gruesome sound of flesh parting.
Kirian stayed calm; his spells hounded relentlessly.
Glancing at Rapens, Kirian spoke.
"Sorry, Professor. I couldn't stand by while monsters destroyed the Holy Hero's traces. I heard Ulfrik's magic was inscribed here, so I acted alone..."
"Kirian, a direct hit from the ogre will shatter even my barriers. Focus on the fight now."
"...Yes, sir."
Kirian flicked his fingers—smaller blades targeted ankles and feet.
The ogre, braced for big hits, stumbled on the shift.
In that brief slowdown—
Whoosh whoosh whoosh!
Dozens of blades erupted from all sides, skewering the brute.
Precise vital strikes.
Time to finish.
"GRRROOOOAAARRR!"
The beast roared in fury, thrashing and slamming fists, but most stone blades pierced deep through thick hide.
Mobility sealed.
Kirian clenched his fist.
A razor blade shot vertically upward.
Crunch!
The ogre convulsed, then slumped.
Its jaw thoroughly pulverized.
No beast rises with a shattered brain.
Schud barely suppressed a twitching smile.
Unbelievable. A 13-year-old toying with and hunting an ogre solo...
He knew the talent was immense.
But not to this unimaginable degree.
Once-in-a-century, he'd thought.
Upgrade to once-in-a-millennium?
And rushing to protect the Allmaster's legacy? Admirable.
Nearly synonymous with safeguarding the academy's roots.
But acting solo? That needed correcting.
Schud steeled for a stern tone.
"Well done. But running off alone merits punishment, Kirian."
Yet the professor who turned wore a pleased smile—
[This guy's smiling?]
—and Hierniorn called it out perfectly.