Episode 53 - The Darkness of Baron Talian's Tomb
The tomb of Baron Talian was pitch black. In movies or dramas, they blast the lights so bright during filming that you can't really gauge how deep the darkness gets without light. But the darkness Ian experienced in this real cave surpassed imagination. It was a perfect blackness, like losing your sight entirely. Pure darkness where nothing passing in front of your eyes registered at all—that was nature's true black.
"Ian! Shall we play together again?"
"Yeah, let's play, Ian!"
The Umbrakinesis mystery was the only one getting all hyper and excited. Ian recalled the time he'd followed Eredis into a cave. Back then, she'd been amazed that he'd heard the voice of darkness. It was shy, super standoffish around strangers, and rarely showed itself to others.
'What? Shy? Super standoffish?'
Ian clicked his tongue as he watched the darkness swirling around him like crazy. Then what the hell were these bony little gremlins?
Darkness was suspiciously fond of Ian. And it kept clinging to him, begging to play. Ian couldn't wrap his head around it. They'd never played together even once—why was it acting like they were besties?
"Ian! Lie down on the ground like usual!"
"Yeah! Snore like you do!"
"We'll copy whatever you do!"
"..."
Ian was dumbfounded as the darkness whispered. No way—the "playtime" these things meant wasn't... sleeping at night, was it? But from the sound of it, yeah, that was exactly it. While Ian slept, the darkness mimicked his snores, rolled around next to him, and had a grand old time "playing" with him(?). What was this, Team Hongchul without Hongchul? Playing with Ian-without-Ian?
The darkness happily swirled around Ian until Belenca lit the torch—then it bolted.
"Kyaaak! Light!"
"Nooo!!!"
Ian snapped irritably before he could stop himself as the darkness shrieked.
"Hey, Belenca. Can't you light the torch a little more gently? You're scaring off the darkness."
Belenca stared at him in disbelief.
"Speak in human terms. How the hell do you 'gently' light a torch?"
"Well..."
Ian tilted his head, and Belenca shook hers. Every now and then, he spouted total nonsense like this. Mages were mages, alright. Who knew what swam around in those heads.
"Ian, you don't need a light?"
"Nah. Honestly, no torch is more comfy."
The pitch blackness sealed them in on all sides, but Ian felt zero discomfort. Thanks to his Darkvision skill. Belenca found the sight pretty intriguing.
"For stealth against ambushes, traveling dark is better, but..."
Lucy cut in frantically, terrified Belenca might suggest dousing all the torches.
"Absolutely not!"
"Why? Ian can guide us."
"Because it's scary!"
Ambush was one thing—scary was scary. Scary! Scary! Scary! Scary...!
Lucy's voice echoed long and loud. She yelped and plopped down right there.
"Eek! Ian!"
"...?"
Ian eyed Lucy, who'd suddenly lost her shit. What was her deal now?
"S-something's down there!"
"? Probably. The grave robbers."
"Not them!"
Lucy's face went pale as she yelled.
"A monster!"
"???"
Monster! Monster! Monster...!
The echo rang out again, and Lucy clapped a hand over her mouth in horror. She dropped her voice to a whisper.
"You all heard that, right?"
"Yeah. Heard it."
"I did too, milady."
The medieval folk huddled, whispering about cave stuff they all knew. Ian caught on quick—they were freaking over the echo—but... seriously? They were seriously treating an echo like a big deal?
"It's a monster! Has to be!"
Lucy did her classic Lucy thing—thick-headed panic.
"I think... maybe a demon?"
"A demon?!"
The priest joined in the idiocy big-time. Wasn't he supposed to be educated? Guy studied scripture like mad—why this?
"This is the underworld proper. Demons from below popping up? Nothing strange about it."
The priest swiftly made the holy sign.
"Heaven's eyes don't reach here. Everyone, stay cautious."
...Scripture bias. Priests shoehorned everything into holy book interpretations. Underground? Must be demons. A curse of narrow knowledge.
Ian couldn't fathom the medieval meltdown over a mere echo. Ahh, no true enlightened thinker armed with reason over superstition? No one?
Then Belenca stepped up. Unlike these ignorant empire rubes, a knight from the eastern White Kingdom might know better...!
"Everyone's spooked 'cause it's your first cave, huh."
"B-Belenca? You know what that is?"
"Heard of it before. Not a monster or demon."
"Then...?"
Belenca declared confidently.
"A fairy."
"Fairy?"
"Yeah. Lives in caves, loves pranking folks. Mimics voices, they say."
The medieval crew broke into big grins and nodded vigorously.
"Ah! A fairy, huh~"
"Makes sense! Didn't feel vicious."
"Fairy... better than demon. Won't prank us, right?"
Hahaha! Mystery voice = fairy~
"..."
No, it's not a fairy, you lunatics.
Ian had no chance to explain. They'd already concluded: cave mystery voice = fairy mischief. Ahh, no horrific monster, no evil demon. Just a cute fairy. A world where no one got hurt...
Except Ian, who knew the truth.
He pondered. Yelling 'Actually, no fairies! It's just sound waves reflecting off curved walls—pure science!' What good would that do? 'What nonsense is that, Ian?' Cue dirty looks.
In-group trait: reads the room. Outcast trait: fact-obsessed.
If Ian were a smooth social butterfly, he'd laugh along: 'Haha, that prankster fairy~!' But Ian was a reincarnated engineering major. Science was serious business. Echo = fairy?! Argh! Couldn't stand it!
If he could drag these ignorant medieval norms up to early modern reason, Ian vowed to gleefully play outcast and sacrifice himself.
"Actually..."
Ian opened his mouth, everyone turning to him. Right then—
"...?"
Ian heard giggling in Maronius right by his ear. A familiar voice. The wind's.
Ian's jaw dropped. Quick science recap: sound is vibration traveling through air as medium. Middle school basics.
'If that's the wind's voice...?'
The one amplifying echoes via air... calling it the Aerokinesis mystery wasn't wrong...!
Mind-shattering shock hit Ian. Modern common sense cracking apart. Right—this was a fantasy world, not modern Korea. Clinging to science? Bad idea.
"Ian? What just happened?"
"You know something about that weird echo?"
Ian realized: sound was just vibrations rippling air, but in this medieval fantasy...
The wind's mystery spread it!
"That voice isn't a fairy..."
Ian muttered.
"It's a phenomenon from the wind's mystery."
"Oh..."
"Wind's mystery?"
Aerokinesis – Sound Manipulation
Controls sound by manipulating air vibrations.
Ian immediately hailed the wind's mystery.
"Wind, voices, no transmission!"
"Don't spread your voice?"
"Why us?"
"Fun!"
"Ah! Wanna prank with us?"
"Dunno what, but sounds fun! Let's do it!"
Controlling the wind's mystery to suppress sound spread, Ian bellowed.
"Wooo-yahoo!"
"..."
"..."
The medievals jumped. The echo that'd boomed before... nothing!
"Whoa... for real?"
"Wind's mystery, confirmed."
Mystery voice = wind's mystery~ Way easier than waves and mediums.
"Fairy explanation isn't totally off. Wind's often depicted as a prankster fairy."
Ian smiled sweetly. The medievals nodded in deep satisfaction. Yep. Eye-level for medievals. Ian had leveled up to medieval-proof explanations.
Despite being told to wait outside, one bird had stubbornly followed Ian in. Oberon, of course.
"Caw! Master!"
"I caught a weird bug for you~!"
Oberon proudly presented a bug. A common grasshopper. Totally out of place deep in an underground tomb. Grassless spot, grasshopper?
"Mage planted it, probably."
Ian instantly pegged the bug's owner as a mage.
"Everyone, heads up. Enemy's close."
Ian warned the group. Effect immediate.
Someone chanted at them in mage tongue!
"Earth, quake!"
⟨ Geokinesis ⟩
'Maronius language?'
Familiar as breathing now. Only one type shouted Maronius aloud: mages.
Hearing the enemy's spell, Ian countered instantly.
"Earth, do not quake!"
⟨ Geokinesis ⟩
The ground settled as Ian yelled. Enemy tried again.
"Earth, quake!"
"Earth, do not quake!"
⟨ Geokinesis ⟩
A few back-and-forths, and the earth got pissed.
Ian chuckled gracefully and apologized.
"I apologize for disturbing you."
Earth connection severed. No Geokinesis here for a while. In another sense, he'd neutralized enemy earth magic.
Soon, the mage and grave robbers emerged. The mage was an elderly man with a sour scowl at Ian.
"Handsome handling of magic. Geokinesis practitioner?"
"Learned it, yeah... but who're you?"
The old man grimaced.
"Ingrian Kate. Mage residing in Drenhime."
Ingrian? Ian had no clue.
"You?"
"Ian Eredis. Some call me Raven."
"Eredis?"
Ingrian startled.
"The pyromancer Eredis?"
"If you mean my master's specialty is Pyrokinesis... yes."
Ingrian eyed Ian seriously. Knew Eredis had a disciple, but meeting here...!
Then Mud Baron poked Ingrian's back.
"Old timer. Not chickening out now, right?"
"..."
Truth: a bit tempted. Ingrian figured just spectate the magic sword. But since the pursuer was an acquaintance's disciple, betrayal was viable. Mud Baron differed. Unlike protected Ingrian, capture meant death. Betraying under his glare? Dumb.
Ingrian yelled.
"Eredis's disciple, Ian! Sorry, but Baron Talian's treasure is ours!"
Ian glanced at Lucy.
"That's their stance, Lucy?"
Lucy's face hardened.
"Can't allow it."
Ingrian clocked her as Baron Talian. No room for talks. Desperate, he chanted to suppress Ian.
"Wind, heed my call..."
⟨ Aerokinesis ⟩
Higher-level persuasion to block Ian. But Ian anticipated.
"Belenca!"
Black-armored knight shot toward Ingrian like an arrow.
"Bite!"
Mages shone brightest with close-range warrior backup(?). Robbers lunged to shield Ingrian, but Belenca bulldozed them.
"Gahhh!"
Ian grinned watching Belenca blitz the front line in a blink. Decent mage, that old guy... but even top mages were toast without cast time? As a mage himself, Ian knew the weaknesses cold.