Chapter 138
Chapter 138
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 138
Chapter Title: The Five Pillars (15)
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"Gordon is 'water'."
Thud thud. The young mage girl perched on a broad rock kicked her legs lightly. Even as she spoke, she kept her face buried in her book, scribbling away without a care.
Kadim had no idea how to respond to her utterly random nonsense. So he gave the most predictable reaction.
"...What does that mean?"
The red-haired girl peeked over the top of her book and flashed a playful grin.
"I've been keeping notes on the traits of every mage I've met, sorted by their elemental affinities. It's crazy, but mages with the same primary element all have kinda similar personalities? It's like certain personalities resonate more strongly with particular mana qualities. So I came up with my own theory matching personalities to primary elements!"
Kadim let out a deflating chuckle. Personality-based elemental classification? Was this pseudoscience or pseudomagic?
"Anyway! According to my theory, Gordon's element is 'water.' Water types are kinda bland and listless, always going 'heh heh heh' and laughing things off, they sweat a lot, and they blend in just right without trying too hard..."
"...If you had to pick, wouldn't light suit him better? He's a priest of the god of light and order, after all."
"Nope! Light's totally different! That big ol' Elga bear is pure water, spot on!"
"..."
Honestly, Kadim couldn't care less if the theory held water. But her little critique of their companions piqued his interest, so he played along.
"Fine, say you're right. So what about Cyril?"
"Cyril sis is 'earth'! The hallmark of earth types is their quiet, steadfast devotion in their place. They're patient and understanding, never getting mad over trifles. But... when they do snap, it's like an earthquake—terrifyingly similar..."
"And Gale?"
"Gale's obviously 'light'! Light types have great leadership and a strong self-sacrificing streak. Lots of noble folks, but it can come off as arrogant if overdone. Our hero's not quite there, though."
"So what are you?"
"Me...? Oh, you already know my primary element. 'Fire,' 'fire'! Fire types are hot-tempered, stubborn, and aggressive... Hm? Huh... That's weird. Looks like there are exceptions that don't fit the theory..."
"No, this is making your theory sound more credible by the second."
"What!?"
Melissa tried to kick Kadim in retaliation but nearly tumbled off the rock. As the embarrassed mage sparked with magic in frustration, Kadim deftly shifted her attention.
"So what's mine, then?"
But this time, the answer didn't come easily.
"...Hmm."
Melissa narrowed her eyes, scanning her notes. When no fitting example turned up, she snapped the book shut. She lowered her eyelids, touched her thin lips, and sat still for a long while.
After an eternity of contemplation, the mage's lips finally parted.
"...Steel."
"..."
"You're... steel, Kadim."
Kadim's pupils flickered emptily. Melissa's tone shifted from her usual playfulness to the solemn gravity of an oracle.
"You've been tempered thousands of times in pain and despair, hammered tens of thousands through trials, yet you never break—instead, you grow harder and stronger. Even after a millennium, you'd never shatter, marching steadfastly on your path. And depending on how you're forged, you could become a blade that slaughters indiscriminately... or a sturdy shield protecting the precious..."
"...Interesting story."
His words said one thing, but Kadim's face showed no amusement. He cut the conversation short, gazed at the distant mountains, then excused himself for a quick look around.
Melissa watched the warrior's retreating back with a wry smile. Off on his own again. Breaking your promise once more. Thud thud—she stomped her feet as if in light complaint, then dropped her head.
"But... do you know that, Kadim?"
Her murmur faded like dying embers.
"To forge steel that won't break even after a millennium... you need a fire that never goes out by its side..."
*
Kadim's eyes snapped open in a daze.
Now he understood everything.
How to activate the secret passage. Why the 'pillars' were divided into five attributes. Who made the keys and the passage, and why they showed him these visions.
What Melissa had wanted to tell him.
The hero party's statues were positioned perfectly adjacent to the magic circle's slots. Kadim slotted the 'pillars' in without hesitation.
Pillar of Light in the hero's spot.
Pillar of Water in the priest's spot.
Pillar of Earth in the shrine maiden's spot.
Pillar of Fire in the mage's spot.
And finally... the Pillar of Steel in the warrior's spot.
Whumm, whumm, whumm, whumm, whumm—!
A blinding flash erupted from the magic circle. Red light swirled like the hem of a twilight robe, and the floor began descending like an elevator amid violent tremors.
Rumble rumble rumble...
Coltran, who had staggered, finally steadied himself.
"What...? Kadim, what in the world did you do? How did you match every pillar perfectly on the first try?"
Kadim lowered his gaze in silence before offering a simple explanation.
It was a test from the distant past, tied to the hero party that journeyed with the first Magic Tower Lord. Slot the attribute that best fit each member.
Questions poured in—who was the hero party? How did you know?—but Kadim said no more. Amid the grinding of stone on stone, the barbarian and elder fell silent for a moment.
Coltran broke the quiet. He stared at Kadim and clicked his tongue in admiration.
"...I've felt it since we met, but you're no ordinary talent. Assembling the 'five pillars' in seconds, knowing far more than any barbarian should... superhuman strength, wielding mysteries even mages struggle with..."
"..."
"First off, I'm not saying this lightly. Heh heh... Never thought I'd make this offer to an Atalain, me, 'Frozen Heart' Coltran..."
Coltran took a deep breath and proposed that Kadim become his disciple.
A canyon-deep furrow creased Kadim's brow. He couldn't believe his ears. Coltran sank into his own world, rambling on.
"I thought myself a 'latent dragon' who could reach the ultimate mysteries upon awakening. But seeing you taught me humility. I'm no dragon—just a man, a bit superior, still needing successors to carry my will and aid."
"..."
"No Atalain has ever become a seeker of mysteries, but if I become lord of this tower, why not? With your talent, you'd join the Elder Council in 30 years. Until then, I'd support you fully..."
"...I have no idea what nonsense this is. I have zero interest in becoming a mage. Or shoving demon-and-human corpse sludge into my heart."
Coltran's eyes flew wide.
"How... how do you know that?"
"..."
"Who... who told you about the 'magic stone'?"
Alarm sharpened in his mind like a blade. Cold menace gleamed in the elder's eyes, but Kadim indifferently rolled his neck muscles.
"You didn't answer my earlier question fully, so I'll ask a few more."
"..."
"Do you know the Magic Tower Lord's weakness? Or the cause of demons rampaging in this world?"
The elder didn't reply.
He merely clenched his frail heart and snatched the staff plunged into the floor before him.
Clack—!
The staff yanked free from its hole. Already enchanted, no incantation was needed. Just channeling mana froze the endlessly flowing Pillar of Water solid.
Chains of ice surged toward the barbarian's feet like a riptide.
Crack crack crack crack—!
————Shatter shatter—!
The first wave of ice shattered under a casual kick. The next fared the same, but not the one after. Ice shards clung to his bronze skin like barnacles, thickening into a glacial sheet in seconds.
Kadim ended up trapped in layered ice. Coltran let out a chill laugh like wind through a winter gorge.
"Heh heh heh, heh heh heh... Damn, I should've realized when you spouted that nonsense about wanting records of the first Tower Lord's life. What rotten luck—every bastard I tried to take as a servant was a spy..."
"...True, that's why I wanted the records."
"Shut up... No more deceptions..."
Crack. His grip tightened on the Pillar of Water. Coltran shot a cold glare, then sneered.
"No, this works better. Back to the original plan. You've served your purpose as my hound; now just shut your mouth..."
"..."
"Tell me, barbarian. Who sent you to dig up Magic Tower secrets? The Elga Church? Deluta Synod? Galenta Synod? Northern warlords? Who dares rummage through the heart of mysteries?"
It was the Elga Church, but no need to say that. Kadim tensed his whole body. The glacier-hard ice cracked and shook loose.
"Enough foolishness, you fool!"
Crack crack crack—!
Coltran wasn't just shocked by the barbarian's superhuman strength. He wrung out his scant mana, piling on endless ice to bind him utterly.
But that desperate effort was futile.
Shatter shatter—!
Kadim headbutted the ice before him to pieces, then growled like a freed demon.
"...An old mage I met in Soltana handled house-sized metal chunks right in front of him but didn't grasp this simple fact. Looks like you don't either."
"What nonsense—"
"Even an axe to the back of the head kills you."
"...What? ...Wait!!"
A massive hand burst from the ice, just as Coltran realized the axe was missing. The weapon from behind flew back to its master's hand, smashing into the elder's occiput.
Splurch crunch—!
From the back of his skull to the left temple, the metal blade pulped one corner of the withered head into mush and splintered bone.
"...Guhk, guhk, guhk."
With over half his brain gone, Coltran could no longer form words. His remaining eye just pleaded: When did you hide that axe behind me?
Instead of answering that he'd wedged it in a wall crack while inspecting the reliefs, Kadim hurled the reclaimed axe again.
Whirr whirr splat crunch!
The last of his head exploded, his body tumbling from the impact. As before, even a master mage died without fanfare. Only faint blood trickled from the barely intact jawline.
Elder Council seat 3, inventor of the Eldra ritual, grandmaster of ice magic, 'Frozen Heart' Coltran—perished as mangled flesh buried in ice, neither dragon nor man.
Kadim shook off the clinging ice and retrieved his axe.
Pulling out the Pillar of Water had halted the passage. He snatched the watery staff from the elder's bony hand and slotted it back. The floor resumed descending.
Rumble rumble rumble...
Savoring the restored drop, Kadim glanced indifferently at the headless elder.
It was always going to end like this. He could never ally with mages. Their partnership was doomed from the start, both scheming to use the other. No guilt there.
Only one mage in the world could make him feel guilt.
Rumble rumble, thud—!
The descent stopped. The door opened, ominous presence flooding out.
Kadim steadied his breath and stepped through.
*
The Magic Tower's deepest layer: the first Tower Lord's tomb.
Stepping inside, Kadim faced it.
Darkness sharp and dense as thorny vines, blotting out his senses. And in the pitch black, the silhouette of someone standing motionless.
A visitor had arrived before him.