Chapter 49
Chapter 49
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 49
Chapter Title: Chapter 18: What Happened That Night (4)
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Salom was a black sorcerer approaching 6th class.
He was proficient in curse magic and darkness magic, with senses sharp enough to handle general magic in harmony as well.
"How long do you plan to keep dodging?"
Jamie leaped around the corner to evade the successive explosions.
The pursuing darkness intertwined with lightning, staining the pristine white corridor black.
Not bad.
He was a cut above the duo Jamie had faced moments ago.
If he'd known this, he should have waited a bit longer and shattered the man's mind first.
Too late for regrets now.
The corpses of the black sorcerers exploded haphazardly.
Salom wielded his wand with the fluid grace of a maestro conducting an orchestra.
Various spells unfolded, chasing after Jamie.
That's how it should be.
For a black sorcerer to excel in only one field meant little. As sorcerers, they needed versatility across multiple disciplines.
Salom earned high marks for that.
But not perfect.
A streak of light sliced through the air.
Jamie deployed multiple shields behind him simultaneously.
The beam of light detonated on impact.
So predictable.
He seemed adept at multi-casting, but that was the extent of it.
There was no variation in the trajectories.
Every attack's path was foreseeable.
"Shield."
The incoming spells scraped against the walls before fizzling harmlessly against the shield.
"Ho."
Salom let out an impressed exclamation.
Jamie exhaled shortly and curled the corner of his mouth upward.
Seeing that expression, Salom's face hardened.
Jamie spoke.
"Not very diverse."
"What are you on about all of a sudden?"
"You've got some instinct, but lack experience? Everything's so one-note."
"...Are you talking about my magic?"
"Anyone else around here besides you? Or maybe you're referring to one of those corpses over there?"
Jamie spun exaggeratedly, scanning the surroundings with mockery.
Salom furrowed his brow. He raised his wand again, gathering mana.
"Predictable? Fine. Let's see you dodge this one too."
Black Bounce
Darkness sphere with extreme bounce
Darkness gathered at the wand's tip, condensing into a fist-sized orb.
Salom hurled the dark sphere to the floor, and it ricocheted wildly with tremendous elasticity.
"Try reading this one!"
Black Bounce—a darkness spell optimized for confined spaces.
Its unpredictable path made evasion or blocking exceedingly difficult.
Jamie snorted at the dark orb bouncing frantically off ceiling, floor, and walls.
"Child's play."
How disappointing.
Jamie lost the will to drag out the fight.
But Salom misinterpreted his change in demeanor and sneered.
"That's right! You can't dodge it! Because—"
Stiffen Muscle
Curse: Paralyzes entire body on contact
A curse spell was cast from Salom's empty hand.
"—you missed this!"
Stiffen Muscle—a curse that rigidified the entire body upon contact.
But this too was child's play.
Jamie opened his mouth with a face full of disappointment.
"That all you got?"
"What?"
Salom frowned as if he'd misheard.
Jamie enunciated clearly, as if to make sure it sank in.
"Is. That. All?"
"You're insane."
Salom shouted with disdain.
The curse would rob him of all bodily functions beyond mere stiffening.
With that intent, he amplified Stiffen Muscle's output.
Yet Jamie only wore a pitiful expression.
"Guess that really is all."
His repertoire amounted to parlor tricks.
That wouldn't do.
To survive even briefly before Jamie, he needed to struggle harder.
I was saving it for later...
He would let the man taste true terror.
Not mere fear of death.
But the boiling desire for survival from the depths, mingled with the wish for a less ignoble end.
Jamie smirked and extended his hand forward.
Clank-clank-clank—
Thick iron chains rattled noisily as they uncoiled.
A black, rusted iron gate rose from the empty floor.
Eerie purple mist seeped through the chain-wrapped gate, creating a chilling atmosphere.
Salom stared at the gate, speechless.
What was that? Its mere existence evoked terror. Yet it wasn't just fear he felt.
Awesome.
It looked like a discarded rusted gate, but the aura it emanated stirred an urge in Salom to possess it.
Black magic, yet transcending it.
No—that gate embodied the ideal power black magic should aspire to.
Salom couldn't fathom his own thoughts. He was utterly captivated. Owning it would propel him to far greater heights.
He reached out, and Jamie, seeing this, quietly spoke.
"Open."
Bang!
The chains snapped.
The rusted door creaked open with a horrific wail.
Wind blew from within. A wind carrying death enveloped Salom.
"Ah..."
Only then did Salom sense something was wrong—but it was far too late.
"Azad. Raiza."
Two purple afterimages rode the wind into existence.
Two men.
They appeared human. Indistinguishable from humans at a glance.
But Salom, with over a decade of black magic mastery, instinctively knew.
Not human.
No warmth, no vitality, no breath.
Lacking all essentials of life.
Undead.
But how could undead retain such perfect human form?
He'd never studied necromancy deeply, but he'd never heard or seen such undead. If they existed, the black sorcerer world would know.
Then—
The scarred-faced undead spoke.
"That's what you get for daydreaming."
A dagger flashed.
Salom reacted, but too slowly.
"Kuh!"
His left shoulder was slashed.
As he faltered, the other undead plunged a dagger into his chest.
"Gah!"
Two blades snapped him back to reality through agony.
I've been out of it this whole time!
Since seeing the gate, his mind had fogged, like a vast mist shrouded his thoughts.
The gate must carry a curse that disoriented the mind just by looking.
"Trash like you undead—two at most!"
A necromancer? Surprising, but their skill was half his own.
Wherever he got such refined undead, if they only did melee, they were no match.
Jamie chuckled at that.
"Two?"
Salom felt arms grabbing him from behind.
Lifeless arms.
Not just one.
"Gaaak!"
Horrific pain tore through his thigh. Looking down, someone was biting into it.
A black sorcerer from the school.
And not just them.
Undead had multiplied around him.
Crude skeletons and zombies armed haphazardly.
Leading them: the two initial undead attackers.
Undead soldiers from the Gate of Defying Heaven.
"Grraaah..."
"Gek, geeeek."
More undead rose.
They hadn't emerged from the gate.
These were corpses newly awakened by the Gate's power at their master's call.
All black sorcerers from Gav's school.
"Kill."
"N-no!"
He didn't want to die like this.
Not as undead fodder!
"J-just kill me outright!"
Torn apart by corpses, becoming one himself.
Salom dreaded that above all. But their master had no intention of granting wishes.
"Squirm in agony. Dying like that won't be so bad."
"Kaaaaaaaagh!"
Harrowing screams.
Flesh torn by teeth, blades piercing meat.
Bones crunching audibly.
Jamie watched impassively.
Salom's screams faded.
He was dying slowly.
Until even his ragged breaths ceased.
"Dead."
The sated undead gazed at Jamie like beasts awaiting orders.
Jamie commanded them to stand by, then approached Vena.
She'd lost consciousness to Salom's attack, but her vitals seemed fine. He purged the binding darkness completely and shook her shoulder.
"Wake up."
"Mmm..."
He tapped her cheek; she stirred like she was sleep-talking.
Jamie shook her harder.
"Sleep more..."
"You little—wake up!"
Jamie conjured water from thin air and dumped it on her face.
"Pfft-hah!"
Cold water worked wonders.
Vena bolted upright, looking around in panic. She spotted Jamie staring at her pitifully.
"Wh-what happened?"
"Never mind."
Too bothersome to explain.
Jamie turned toward Salom's corpse.
"S-Salom..."
Vena murmured in a trembling voice, hand over her mouth.
Salom was a mangled corpse, tears streaming from empty sockets. Yet the undead showed no sign of stopping.
"Enough."
At Jamie's command, they finally withdrew from Salom.
A brief silence fell.
Vena spoke first.
"...Is it over?"
Jamie didn't answer.
He just stared at Salom's body.
"Um..."
As Vena tried again—
Bubble bubble—!!
Salom's corpse began to boil.
Vena yelped and stepped back.
Jamie muttered at the sight.
"He's here."
Red blood bubbled like foam, reshaping into human form.
Vena grew dizzy from the grotesque scene.
The bubbles subsided, and a figure stepped forward.
"Now this is more like it."
A gravelly old voice.
His staff's ruby-encrusted cobra eyes gleamed menacingly.
"All my children are dead."
A sorrowful tone, undercut by a repulsive smile.
The old man greeted Jamie curtly.
"Pleased to meet you. I'm Gav, master of this place."
Gav smiled at the encircling undead.
From his former black sorcerer minions to more distinctive ones—quite the variety.
The rusted iron gate was a treasure among treasures for any black sorcerer.
"Impressive necromantic prowess."
Wherever he'd acquired it, it was awe-inspiring just to behold.
"The appearance is fake, right? Or some congenital defect?"
No black sorcerer of that caliber could truly be a child. Either a twisted hobbyist or afflicted by a growth-stunting illness.
Either way, he'd effortlessly felled even Salom.
Realm seems similar to Salom's, but...
Similar realm didn't mean equal skill.
It depended on spells mastered, proficiency, and experience.
Gav acknowledged Salom's talent, but his inexperience was a glaring flaw. The gap must have been vast.
Above all, mastery of that gate. Even the finest weapon faltered in novice hands.
I want it.
Gav was a profoundly greedy old man.
His school's black sorcerers had been wiped out—a painful loss, though he'd viewed most as mere tools.
But acquiring this man—and the gate—would grant advanced necromancy to boot.
"Mind if I make a proposal?"
"Proposal?"
Jamie cocked his head skeptically.
"Nothing major. Join me? We could seize quite a bit together."
Jamie stared silently.
Gav took it as interest and elaborated.
"I have plans. Tricky now, but success means devouring a nation effortlessly. Too much for one man, so I was grooming Salom. Then you killed him."
"So I should take responsibility?"
"Hardly. I'd not call it a proposal then. Just join my project."
"Details?"
"Heh. Asking for the moon before shaking hands."
Gav grinned slyly.
A plan to claim a nation.
Tempting to some, but Jamie felt zero interest.
"Pass."
"Pity."
Gav feigned disappointment, though his instant reply belied it.
Then Vena, who'd been listening quietly, spoke up.
"Um... Why did you order everyone to bring me here?"
Gav turned to her.
A pleased smile creased his wrinkled face.
"Excellent."
He appraised her like merchandise, ignoring the question.
"So this is your awakened state. Remarkable vitality."
"Ch-Chairman?"
"Splendid. Truly splendid."
Gav avoided her eyes.
Vena unleashed her pent-up rage.
"Why didn't you ever stop them when I suffered? Why just watch? You said it'd be fine! So why... why?!"
"..."
"Were you... trying to kill me?"
"I never intended to kill you."
Gav answered at last.
He smiled kindly, stepping toward her. Vena recoiled.
Gav halted.
Instead, he prodded her wounds nonchalantly from afar.
"All for completion. To eradicate your innate temperament. See? You've awakened just as I desired."
"...What?"
"You lost confidence amid pain and torment, always timid. I was thrilled at how deeply it took root."
"Huh?"
"Success in obliterating your Valkyrie birthright! Just needed awakening! I anticipated it so. And now you stand before me, exactly as envisioned. Vena, I'm so proud!"
Vena couldn't comprehend a word.
Valkyrie? Eradicating her innateness? All part of his scheme?
Isolating her from the start, inflicting pain and fear to strip her agency.
That horrific plan?
"Ah... Aaaaaagh!"
Vena clutched her head and collapsed.
"Perfect."
Gav smiled contentedly.
Jamie looked down at her.
She trembled like an aspen. Realizing it was all one man's design must horrify her.
He glanced at Gav.
Approaching to reclaim his creation.
"Well now."
Jamie let out a hollow laugh.
What was evil?
Perhaps it accompanied purity.
Like Gav now.
Amusing. Jamie suddenly wanted to shatter someone's emotions too.
"Trash who couldn't even reach 7th class."
Thud—
Gav halted mid-step toward Vena.
He glared at Jamie with bulging eyes.
"What did you just say...?"
"At your age, still at that level? I'd have drowned myself."
"What did you say?!"
Jamie laughed at the enraged Gav.
Predictable sore spot for an old coot like him.
"Drown yourself, you worm."
Jamie burst into delighted laughter.