Chapter 225
Chapter 225
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 225
Chapter Title: 64. Inner World (4)
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9.
“El Pam!”
The moment he heard that cry, El Pam opened his eyes.
At the same time, he turned his head and saw his companions.
“Ugh.”
“My head feels like it’s splitting.”
His companions were coming to on the prepared beds.
“Thank goodness. Everyone’s safe.”
The journey through the inner world had come to an end.
Without a single sacrifice.
That alone was a remarkable achievement.
“Rest for now. Your heads will hurt. Most people can’t even stand for two days because of the headaches.”
That was why Supreme Commander Sigmund, who had been waiting, told El Pam to rest instead of asking questions.
But El Pam was different.
He immediately rose from the bed and stood up.
“H-How?”
Supreme Commander Sigmund was stunned by the sight.
Everyone who had returned from the inner world had suffered from severe aftereffects without exception.
Most couldn’t even lie still, let alone stand.
Of course, it was nothing to El Pam.
This kind of dizziness had been his daily routine before returning to the past.
And even if it hadn’t been routine, he had to stand.
‘There’s no time.’
El Pam had no time to rest.
So he spoke right away.
“We reached the 15th floor.”
“The 15th floor?”
Supreme Commander Sigmund was so shocked she didn’t even have time to compose herself.
“There, we found a treasure chest. And from it, we obtained a memory. Gelimer, it was a memory of him betraying Wingmaster Orca. And in that process, some entity killed Wingmaster Orca.”
Supreme Commander Sigmund’s expression was more shocked than ever at El Pam’s continued words.
She had grasped the circumstances to some extent.
If Wingmaster Orca had been taken out, it had to be someone from within.
And in Black Wing, the only one with the ability and caliber to do it was Gelimer.
“What entity?”
“I don’t know the details, but it seemed like an important existence to Wingmaster Orca.”
But not poison or some trick—it was pure power that brought down Wingmaster Orca?
That was an entirely different level.
And it didn’t end there.
“From their conversation, I learned this. Gelimer created a poison called Retioxin.”
“Retioxin? What kind of poison is that?”
“It’s a poison that turns you into an emotionless android the moment you’re infected.”
“Emotions?”
“Yes. You become no different from a machine that only obeys Gelimer’s commands.”
Supreme Commander Sigmund asked no more questions after that explanation.
The shock was too great for her to have the leisure to do so.
If El Pam’s words were true, Black Wing had acquired a weapon that could annihilate the Resistance.
On the other hand, El Pam was different.
‘Just as I expected.’
The existence of Retioxin was surprising, but from El Pam’s perspective, it was only his prediction becoming reality.
Now that he had confirmation, all that was left was to respond to it.
‘It’s a fearsome poison, but it has limitations.’
El Pam also knew this.
‘If it were a poison he could use freely, Gelimer would have used it long ago.’
Retioxin was impressive, but it required various conditions to use.
‘Poisons become harder to handle the stronger they are.’
Even if the conditions were met, El Pam knew.
‘If he wanted to use it, he would have by now. The fact that he hasn’t means there’s a reason.’
No matter what, Retioxin wouldn’t threaten the Resistance or the world right away.
Of course, “right away” meant it was a threat that would come eventually.
El Pam had no intention of ignoring this threat.
However, it wasn’t even entering his mind at the moment.
Because he had heard it.
- He has been preparing. Since 800 years ago, from that day. For all of this.
If the one Wingmaster Orca referred to as “he” was the Black Mage.
‘800 years ago.’
For the Black Mage, 800 years ago was that day.
‘The day the Six Heroes sealed the Black Mage.’
But the sealed Black Mage had been preparing since 800 years ago?
He didn’t know what he had prepared.
But one thing was clear.
‘The Six Heroes failed to seal the Black Mage.’
The Black Mage was alive now.
It was shocking.
So shocking that he couldn’t easily tell Supreme Commander Sigmund.
If he did, she might fall into despair.
Surprisingly, though, El Pam faced this shock without such a shaken gaze.
‘Just as I thought.’
El Pam had long suspected that the Black Mage might not have been sealed.
Especially after repeated conversations with Phantom the thief, that suspicion had grown close to certainty.
And now, with Wingmaster Orca’s memory, it was confirmed.
‘The worst case.’
Of course, it was far from a good certainty.
The Black Mage being alive was a nightmare for Maple World.
However, El Pam focused on one part here.
‘The Six Heroes sealed the Black Mage 800 years ago and fell asleep themselves. That’s the history everyone knows. But if the Black Mage wasn’t sealed…’
If the sealing had failed, then from the Black Mage’s perspective, a Maple World without the Six Heroes would be like a candle before a storm.
Yet instead of dominating that Maple World, the Black Mage hid his existence.
And for over 800 years since, he had been carrying out some plan.
‘The Black Mage is alive but can’t move freely. He’s been preparing for a long time for something. And that something is the Mystic Gates.’
It meant there was good reason for it.
‘My task hasn’t changed.’
Above all, the Black Mage being alive didn’t change what El Pam could do.
He couldn’t go hunt the Black Mage from here, could he?
In the end, El Pam’s adventure remained the same.
He would tackle the next Mystic Gate.
That was why.
“Commander Sigmund.”
“Yes?”
“I have a request.”
To Supreme Commander Sigmund, who had lost her senses from the immense shock, El Pam said.
“We’ll head out for the next raid right away.”
“Raid?”
“The inner world.”
“Ah!”
To bring back even more information.
It was at that moment.
As El Pam resolved once more to raid, a voice rang in his ear.
Crash!
The moment he turned his head at the sound, he could see it.
“H-Heinz’s mirror broke?”
10.
Heinz had said this when he gave them the mirror that allowed entry into Wingmaster Orca’s inner world.
“I’ve explored many inner worlds with this mirror until now, but I’ve never used it on someone of Wingmaster Orca’s caliber. So don’t push it too hard. You never know when something might go wrong.”
And now, that something had gone wrong.
Crash!
Heinz’s mirror shattered with a sharp sound.
As mentioned earlier, it had been foreshadowed.
‘N-No way!’
But everyone gathered there couldn’t help feeling greater dismay than ever at this foreseen event.
‘Of all times!’
With the fate of the Resistance—not to mention Maple World—hanging in the balance, for the mirror to break now?
That dismay turned everyone’s minds blank.
Everyone except one.
‘To break here, of all places.’
El Pam was different.
‘Bad luck.’
El Pam summed up the situation with those two words.
He didn’t attach any more meaning to it.
That was one of El Pam’s survival secrets. He didn’t cling to what was already over.
He wasn’t doing so now either. Clinging to the destroyed Heinz’s mirror wouldn’t produce any answers.
Instead, he needed to focus on the next step.
Time was pressing for El Pam. He didn’t even have time to worry or panic now.
“Commander Sigmund.”
So El Pam spoke to Supreme Commander Sigmund, who couldn’t snap out of her dismay easily.
“Inner world adventures are no longer possible. So if there’s a next mission, please tell me.”
Only then did Supreme Commander Sigmund finally come to her senses.
El Pam was right.
What needed to be done now wasn’t staring blankly at the shattered Heinz’s mirror.
“…We need to make a plan first.”
Revising future plans entirely based on the information they had!
In other words, there was no immediate task.
More precisely, planned tasks had to be halted.
Now that they knew Black Wing’s leader was Gelimer, and that mad scientist had an absurd poison called Retioxin and a powerhouse capable of taking down Wingmaster Orca, they needed countermeasures.
On top of that, they had to investigate what was happening in Maple World right now.
“We can’t tackle a blue-grade raid right away.”
“You’re right.”
In such a situation, raiding the accumulated blue-grade Mystic Gates was frankly impossible.
In other words, from El Pam’s perspective, there was no longer any reason to stay here in Edelstein.
He had already gained plenty.
He had figured out the identity of the core from Cliche of the Heavens and secured more items than desired.
‘Right now.’
And he had confirmed his companions’ strength.
‘We can tackle that place.’
Thanks to that, El Pam had conviction.
‘The 500-man Mystic Gate that appeared in the ancient ruins.’
Conviction that he could conquer what he had thought impossible until now!
In other words, that place absolutely had to be tackled.
It wasn’t just because it had amazing items.
‘If left alone, Victoria Island will burn.’
The monsters from there had inflicted incalculable damage on Victoria Island!
The hunts he needed to do from now on were of that sort.
‘I’ll handle it before the door opens.’
To reduce even a little the damage from that day of destruction that would come soon!
Of course, it wouldn’t be easy.
If it were, El Pam wouldn’t have considered conquering it impossible!
In any case, now was the opportunity.
‘Before it gets noisy.’
If word of that place spread, countless people would swarm it.
The worst scenario for El Pam.
So he had to move as quickly as possible.
Thus, El Pam said.
“Then I have a request.”
“A request?”
“Our party…”
It was then.
“Supreme Commander!”
A man rushed urgently into the place where they were, where Wingmaster Orca lay sleeping.
It was extremely rude and dangerous.
This was where no one other than Wingmaster Orca, the precious hostage, was held.
Normally, barging in like this would be impossible.
They’d be executed before they could.
In other words, the one who entered now was no ordinary person!
In fact, the one who appeared was none other than Cheki.
He, wearing a bear mask, came urgently and said.
“A major incident has occurred.”
“A major incident?”
“A blue-grade Mystic Gate has appeared at the ancient ruins Partem on Victoria Island.”
At Cheki’s words, Supreme Commander Sigmund intuited.
If he, of all people, came so urgently to report, it wasn’t an ordinary blue-grade.
“It’s a 500-man one.”
The highest difficulty of blue-grade Mystic Gates had appeared.
“Is that why?”
Even considering that, it was hard to understand why Cheki was so urgent.
But El Pam was different.
He knew why Cheki was making such a fuss.
“The boss monster there has been identified.”
“Boss monster?”
Because they knew the identity of the boss monster that appeared there.
“It’s Guardian Angel Slime.”
On the other hand, Supreme Commander Sigmund looked as if she’d never heard of it.
In truth, few knew that monster.
Only those who had devoured ancient texts like mad would know its name.
Cheki was the same.
“I don’t know the details either.”
Yet Cheki had come urgently for another reason.
“The problem is the item that comes from there: Fried’s Brooch.”