Chapter 173

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Translator: Ryuma

Chapter: 173

Chapter Title: Chapter 173

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Translator: Ryuma

Chapter: 173

Chapter Title: The First Archmage

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Kang Seol felt killing intent emanating from Bernoil, so overwhelming it seemed to seep deep into his very skin.

'Is... this even possible?'

This wasn't the kind of malice one would expect from a human. It felt more like something from a demonic beast or a devil.

'Did the Scales fall under mental domination? No, wait... then what the hell is this guy?'

The evil wearing Bernoil's form answered his question.

"My name is Ur. Have you... perhaps heard of me?"

Frannan tilted his head.

"Never."

"I see... Just how much time has passed, I wonder?"

"Spit it out. Who the hell are you, and what have you been up to?"

Bernoil's mouth split open in a grotesque grin.

"I am... the Root."

"The Root?"

Kang Seol and Frannan's faces paled simultaneously upon hearing those words.

Bernoil noticed they had caught on.

"Yes, those trees inside you all. The ones that originated from me."

Kang Seol was reeling inwardly in shock.

'He's talking about... the Ability Trees!'

Also known as skill trees.

Each person's tree took a unique shape, bearing fruit on its branches that granted supernatural abilities.

'So the Ability Trees weren't just something that naturally appeared?'

If that was the case, why had Kang Seol—who prided himself on knowing Pandea inside and out—never heard a thing about this?

The man named Ur spoke.

"I am the flame granted to humanity, the first Archmage."

"The first... Archmage? What's that supposed to mean?"

"...You don't know what magic arts are?"

"I know magic."

"Hmmm... Then it must have only reached the level of petty theft for you."

"Heh... Look, we don't give a damn if you're the first this or the Arch-whatever that. What we want to know is why you hijacked poor Bernoil's body."

Ur answered Frannan's question with surprising sincerity.

"I awoke from a long slumber. I sensed the chains binding me had grown slack, and soon my consciousness took root here."

"So you've been asleep all this time. And you stole the Scales' body to get revenge on whoever locked you away?"

"Indeed. But after sifting through this man's memories, I fell into great confusion."

"Bernoil's... memories?"

"Yes. Do your memories contain any mention of someone named Kron?"

The expedition party's faces hardened menacingly.

"Kron? Never heard of him."

"I see... So his memories were accurate after all. Kron... perished, then."

"Hey, whatever. If this Kron guy's gone, doesn't that settle it?"

"Revenge was my greatest driving force, but not my only one."

"Then what powers you now?"

Ur declared,

"Curiosity."

"Curiosity?"

"I will venture back into the world and absorb all knowledge of this new era."

"...And?"

Ur, in Bernoil's form, revealed his true colors.

"Using that knowledge, I will dominate all life."

"...You're insane."

"I will do it because I can."

But in that moment, Bernoil's mouth issued not Ur's voice, but that of Scales Bernoil himself.

"Frannan. Have you led all these people... here to find me?"

"Bernoil? Are you still holding on?"

"Don't worry about me. More importantly, this thing... must be stopped here."

A gentle voice utterly unlike anything before enveloped the expedition party—the true voice of Scales Bernoil.

"He is the worst of the worst, the most vile. I glimpsed a fragment of his inner world, but... it was nothing but endless darkness."

"You're giving me homework right up to the end, huh."

"...Perhaps the fact that it's you—not some other holy seat—standing here means there's still hope."

"......"

"Frannan, you're the only holy seat who's pursued magic as diligently as I have."

Frannan closed his eyes.

Memories of Bernoil teaching him flooded back.

-Balance permeates every teaching of the Scales. You must realize that.

"Scales, then I'll assume this ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠is our final farewell. Any last advice?"

"Go all out from the start. Like a true mage."

A faint smile...

Frannan grinned.

Bernoil, seeing it, said,

"From now on, do your utmost to... kill me."

"...With pleasure."

Fwosh!

Bernoil's voice vanished like a spark. Ur resurfaced.

"Annoying pests... Let me make you a proposal."

"A proposal?"

"To open a new world, will any of you join me?"

In that instant, options appeared before Kang Seol's eyes. A particularly headache-inducing set, unlike the usual.

Kang Seol scanned the expedition party's faces.

"......"

Their tense expressions made his heart pound.

Clank...

Kang Seol, the Iron Lion, and Frannan stepped to the front.

"No time to explain, so I'll hammer it straight into your heads."

Snap!

Zzzzt!

Like lightning, an intent transmitted into everyone's minds.

"Especially you, my disciple. Your role is crucial. I'll handle things here, so conserve your strength as much as possible."

Frannan's plan etched into their minds.

Kang Seol nodded.

"Understood."

Frannan smiled with trust and took a slight step forward.

"Hey, Mr. First-Whatever. Ever heard of evil spirits?"

"The dregs born from fused mana and malice. Nothing but trash, right?"

A voice leaked from the lantern in Kang Seol's hand.

【Pbbbt.】

"......"

Frannan chimed in.

"Exactly what I thought at first."

"...At first? Not anymore?"

"Everything exists for a reason. Evil spirits are no exception. Bernoil and I once had a huge falling out over my evil spirit research."

"Intriguing. And?"

"He disapproved of my studies. Evil spirits are dangerous, after all. But he couldn't deny their power. I promised him I'd stop there."

Frannan whistled a tune and pulled a pair of gloves from his pocket.

"Total lie, of course. I kept going. And I finally perfected it. Hey, Bernoil, if you're listening."

Frannan spread his palms wide.

Embedded in each palm's center was a closed eye.

"Say hello. This is Fangbite and Snorelord."

"What do a couple of evil spirits matter?"

"After completing these two, I became..."

Frannan flashed a sinister smile.

"...stronger than Bernoil."

"......"

"This ritual activates when I explain the principle to the target and clap. Simple, right?"

Frannan glanced back at the party and nodded.

Fwosh!

Whoosh!

The party's formation instantly shifted to encircle Ur.

Thanks to Frannan's Attribute Lecture magic, they moved as one.

"These guys hate being woken up. They sleep like logs until something disturbs them—then they despise the first thing they see."

"...So?"

"Anyone they hate gets exposed to their gaze. Not just me, Fangbite, and Snorelord—everyone else's too. The more gazes on the target, the steadier their mana drains. And when their mana equals mine..."

Ur glared at Frannan.

"The target dies. Alright, morning call! Fangbite, Snorelord! Get to work, you lazy bastards!"

Clap!

The eyes in Frannan's palms snapped open.

【Who're you?】

【Who're you?】

They fixed on ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠Ur.

【You?】

【You?】

'For now, follow his words.'

Coco couldn't maneuver precisely anyway, so Kang Seol let it be and stuck to Frannan's plan.

The plan was simple.

'Don't let Ur out of your sight.'

Far cleaner than brawling him down.

Zzzing.

According to Frannan's intel, Bernoil's magic in life specialized in spatial control—especially source seals.

'He said eventually no one will be able to use abilities. For now, Carmelly and the pilgrims, maybe.'

Ur swung his hand.

Frannan countered.

"Haat!"

Shlrk...

"Five minutes left! Everyone, don't take your eyes off him!"

"Yes!"

Ur scoffed and cast again.

Whoooosh!

A sandstorm erupted abruptly at the fight's center.

Ur planned to evade their gazes inside it while preparing more spells.

"Nice idea!"

Frannan prepared another.

Whoooosh!

Frannan summoned an identical sandstorm. Twin vortices of the same size tangled together.

Kwaaaaa!

A ferocious gale whipped up, so fierce no one could keep their eyes open.

"Ugh... Can't open my eyes..."

"Frannan!"

"I'm fine! Keep watching!"

Ur laughed.

"Are you? I'm grateful, actually."

Then Coco lunged at Ur. Its feral instincts sensed a vulnerability.

Grrrraaawr!

"No! Coco!"

An incantation unlike normal speech poured from Ur's mouth.

〔Begone from my sight.〕

Zzzing!

'This feeling...'

-This is Word Magic. A bit of mana just drained.

It resembled the Word Magic from Alcatron's lighting devices.

But amplified to an incomparable degree.

Boom!

Kyeee!

Coco—a transcendent beast—flew back powerless, tumbling across the ground from the physical impact too.

'Freakin' monster...'

Drip...

Ur wasn't unscathed either. He wiped nosebleed and spoke.

"...This old man's body has limits. One more Word Magic? Whatever."

Ur grinned wickedly.

"Clever ploy, I see. Where?!"

Mana bolts surged from Ur's hand.

Pew! Pow!

Splorch...

Something slimy crashed before Ur after eating the bolts.

"Creation... When did you summon and hide that? Whose doing?"

"Hahaha! Disciple, they spotted it! Hide better next time!"

Kang Seol gritted his teeth.

Frannan's original plan relied on the party's eyes, but Ur's interference made it tougher.

Then Kang Seol's secretly released crows aided Frannan's ritual in place of the blinded party.

Frannan realized and countered by spawning another sandstorm, luring Ur to notice the crows late.

Frannan laughed. Kang Seol's ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠help had bought plenty of time.

"One minute left. You can't escape our eyes—you'll die soon!"

"How thoughtful."

Pop-pop-pop!

Kang Seol's crows flew unaffected through Ur's seal, paling his face.

"Hmph... Not ordinary, huh? Annoying..."

Screee!

Thud!

Splat...

One crow hit by the barrage exploded them all at once.

"Arghhh!"

Kang Seol screamed and staggered.

"There! You're first!"

Kreeeak!

A rock spear formed and shot at Kang Seol.

Those around him rushed forward without hesitation.

"Block it!"

"Grraaahh..."

Chiii...

Nearly ten people shielded him. The spear couldn't pierce.

"...I hate this about humans. It's their strength..."

Ur laughed bizarrely.

"...but also their weakness."

"What're you on about?"

"Mage, watch closely. Humans can't advance because they trust each other."

"...What?"

"I've analyzed your ability. An evil spirit attack like that... this frail body couldn't endure. But sever the mana link, and you can't use it for a while, right?"

"How did you...?"

"Because I'm about to become the Archmage. Time to end your futile resistance."

Ur uttered Word Magic.

One that could nullify all the party's efforts.

"Ah, no!"

"If we close our eyes..."

No one could resist. Not even Kang Seol.

'Damn it... No choice but to clash full-force...'

"Why...?"

Yet when everyone opened their eyes moments later, a bizarre sight unfolded.

Crunch!

Crack...

The evil spirits that escaped Frannan's palms had clamped onto Ur's body—everywhere but his head.

"Why go this far?"

Kang Seol turned to Frannan.

'How did the ritual activate?'

Everyone—including Frannan—had closed their eyes from the Word Magic. Yet it succeeded.

Kang Seol soon learned why.

"No way..."

One of Frannan's eyeballs floated midair.

Blood streamed from his closed eye socket.

"Because I'm a mage. Going all-out from the start is my creed."

"...I see. You didn't trust the others."

"I did. But I trusted myself more."

"...Right."

Krunch!

Fangbite and Snorelord tore into Ur's body.

"Theft on this level is pretty high-class, eh?"

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