Chapter 476
Chapter 476
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>Translator: Ryuma
>Chapter: 476
>Chapter Title: Before Dawn
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That's life.
You never know when it'll come or when it'll go.
...Kizystone's mind went blank at the overwhelming sight of the massive hand lunging toward him.
Burrowing into that empty head of his was a memory from his childhood.
- Ugh, you idiot! That's not how you use magic!
Sharon Earl, that son of a bitch.
Back then, he was just the young heir to the earlship, but there was no bigger asshole around.
His mother was the head chef of the earl's household.
His father was the captain of the knights.
Naturally, Kizystone spent a lot of time around Sharon Earl, though "around" was putting it mildly—it was more like being his lackey.
If he had to pick the most humiliating moment from his days as a lackey...
Yeah, there was that one time.
One day, the guy came up and said it.
- Your mom's cooking is killer. But she never cooks at home, right?
It stung.
- Why can't you speak up? Your dad's a knight for the Sharon Earl's house, the captain of the knights. Why can't you say it? Huh? You ashamed of your family?
It was infuriating.
Think about it.
'Mom's my mom, but...'
I couldn't eat the food my mom made, while this rude noble bastard gobbled it down every day.
And my dad's job...
'...Who could I brag about that to?'
Looking at the crowd of peers he hung around with back then...
The current Sharon Earl, the daughter of the earl's magic corps commander, the son of the earl's chief financial officer, the daughter from a friendly viscount family, and so on.
And not one of those brats bragging about their dads' jobs was any good.
But man, did they give him hell for it.
And that was just the start.
- Hey, fuck. Does this make sense? One month's tuition is half the territory's monthly budget? Even for a royal mage, this is...
He'd been specially hired on the magic corps commander's recommendation, but after the first lesson, the whining never stopped.
If it'd ended there, maybe he wouldn't hate the guy so much.
But no, out of nowhere:
- It's a waste of money, so you join too.
- ...?
He thought it was a joke.
But no, he dragged him into the lessons. As his lackey, he'd take notes instead, and when class ended...
- You listen too, and repeat it exactly. Got it?
- ...Pardon?
Was that even possible?
Kizystone was twelve at the time, groomed to be an administrator for the Sharon household.
His father the knight captain had shoved a sword in his hands, but he'd refused for the sake of his dreams, and now what?
Magic?
- This makes no sense...
- Do it. You're doing it. It's a waste otherwise. No excuses.
It was enough to make him lose his mind.
Magic wasn't something you could just do because someone told you to all of a sudden.
Of course not.
But he ordered it anyway.
- Pull an all-nighter.
- ...
- What? No core? You'll learn magic without one? Don't worry. I'll teach you. Theory? Just memorize it.
...It was insane.
That night, he went home crying to his parents.
Begging them to save him.
Realizing how serious it was, his parents reported it to the earl at the time, and unlike his son, the sensible and merciful earl scolded the boy harshly.
He thought that would be the end of it...
But nope.
- There, he's been punished. Happy now? Hurry up. We're behind schedule.
A week later, Sharon Earl waved him over with a bright smile.
...And that's how his magic lessons began.
Honestly, it was complicated.
Magic, of all things.
'They say half-assing it is worse than not learning at all...'
But deciding to become a mage full-time? The situation didn't allow for it.
Only a house like the Sharon Earls could afford lessons from the magic corps commander and renowned tutors.
So, he'd just play along.
Endure until the interest wore off, then tell his parents and ship off to some distant academy.
...But what was this?
- Huh?
A core formed.
Just from that idiot Sharon Earl's explanations, the moment he thought 'I have to' and focused, it formed.
And that wasn't the end.
- Huh?
He said "let there be light," and there was light.
It was basic illumination magic, but he just thought 'is it like this?' and tried, and it worked.
That's when he realized.
- Am I... a genius?
It was fun.
Because he was good at it, it got fun.
- Heh. Alright, watch this. I'll show you. Magic has always been...
- Always what?
- ...Huh, you're good. Yeah. Right. Sorry.
In half a year, he surpassed Sharon Earl, who'd been studying magic since childhood, and in five years, he stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the renowned bloodline members of great houses.
And he dreamed bigger.
- This damn earl's house... I'll escape it someday.
Once he became a renowned mage, he'd pay off all debts and be free.
That's what he'd vowed...
'...Why am I still stuck here again?'
Kizystone thought as death crept closer. His dazed mind felt like it had regressed to childhood.
How long did he think like that?
It came to him.
- ...Right, that was it.
- Your mom's cooking is killer. But she never cooks at home, right?
...After that day, Kizystone ate meals with Sharon Earl.
- Why can't you speak up? Your dad's a knight for the Sharon Earl's house, the captain of the knights. Why can't you say it? Huh? You ashamed of your family?
...After that day, the viscount's daughter who'd looked down on him wasn't allowed foot in the Sharon house anymore.
And that wasn't all.
- Your little sister might as well be mine.
He handled his little sister's marriage.
- Rest easy.
He stood in for his worthless son at his father's deathbed.
Consideration where it didn't belong.
...He was right.
A good guy does one bad thing and becomes an asshole; a bad guy does one good thing and turns out to be a good guy deep down.
That's why the affection had built up.
Next year, he'd really escape this damn earl's house. Next year, next year, next year...
And now it was today.
"Ah."
Kizystone let out a short sigh.
'He said he'd turn it back.'
His vision went dark.
Thud.
The ground shook.
...That's when the voice came.
"'Ah'? What 'ah'? Get your head straight!"
"..."
Kizystone blinked. Aster set down the Kizystone he'd snatched at the last second and yelled.
"Seriously, we're so close!"
He meant it.
They say it all the time.
The darkest hour is just before dawn.
Hope?
Who knows.
From the looks of it, those damn wraiths had sharpened their blades plenty.
Just seeing how the attack with half the Reverse Heaven fragment's power had been effortlessly blocked told him enough. That giant was their ace to devour Reverse Heaven. He didn't know how it was possible, but even Reverse Heaven's power wasn't effective against that giant.
So how could he be sure of the end?
Isn't it obvious?
Time was on their side. Even grand mages die without food eventually. They could last longer than normals, but not forever.
Hell, just running away wouldn't be a bad option.
But pulling out a card this strong—and one that cost them dearly—meant...
'...They're just as cornered.'
Whether time was running out for them, or they couldn't handle us without it.
Either way, one thing was clear.
"This one."
Aster muttered.
"Just get past this, you thick-headed bastards."
Reverse Heaven fragment or whatever.
First, survive, you idiots!
...Aster wanted to live.
* * *
The air shifted.
The crowd, overwhelmed by Haedal's presence, sensed the crisis of 'death' and switched to combat stance.
Haedal just smiled at them.
[How amusing. Then, stop me.]
This target's Kahazar.
But this time, the other grand mages didn't sit idle.
Shwaaah—!
Golden sand snatching at Kahazar.
Haedal let out a chuckle. Pathetic. One gesture and they'd be scattered flesh. But they were too nimble to crush outright. So what to do?
[Squash them all at once—!]
Flash—!
Boom, baboom—exploding light erupted everywhere, invading the space. Light of destruction.
Before the light that erased all, the grand mages felt the insurmountable wall. But their will didn't break.
They entered Transcendence.
And took in the light filling every direction. Nowhere to dodge. Death was certain. But they struggled.
They raised barriers. To the limit. Layer upon layer. In basic terms, barriers were addition and subtraction. Simple. But now, the grand mages had to repeat that addition and subtraction until their brains burst.
And so...
Once, they blocked the light.
"Hah, heok..."
Kizystone gasped, having lost his left arm. Blood trickled from his philtrum. But he survived. That was all that mattered.
Even then, magic lights flashed in the air.
'Monsters.'
To Kizystone, Haedal and the other grand mages were monsters all the same. He was heaving just from surviving that light he should've died in, yet they lingered in Transcendence, unleashing spells.
Did that make sense?
'...It must, since they do it.'
Kizystone entered Transcendence again. He couldn't stop here.
Compared to that giant, their only edge was Transcendence... the advantage of time.
They had to struggle for near-eternal time in an instant for the giant.
Even if it was meaningless thrashing.
And so.
...The tug-of-war with death began.
Magic lights flashed everywhere, and just as those colorful blasts erased the world's light, white eraser-like light invaded the space.
Some vomited blood.
Some lost consciousness.
Even the sturdy grand mages wavered, their wills flickering. At this point, maybe it'd be better to die easy.
It wasn't weakness.
The time was that agonizing.
Call it fortunate.
[Stop.]
The Word was absolute, but it couldn't bind them all.
Flash—!
The light was more despairing than ever, but somehow they blocked it. The problem was the spatial severance.
Slash—!
Even in Transcendence, space split like a master knight's strike. Barriers couldn't stop it. Space itself was cut. Only one way to counter.
Clang, claclaclang—!
Pour mana in to warp the severance.
To pour that much, two or three grand mages had to focus.
The grand mages gladly lent hands for each other.
To the extreme of extremes...
The grand mages' mental strength was pushed endlessly to the precipice. All entered selfless trance.
...But.
[Aaah, aaaaaaah—!]
A roar from the abyss depths. From Haedal's maw, countless souls' screams echoed.
When those screams carried the 'Reverse Heaven fragment' and...
...the power of unknown flesh.
The grand mages realized.
There were beings beyond human power.
It was despair.