A Hair's Breadth (3)
It was a shout that awakened Gre Mory amid despair.
"Protect her with your lives!"
……Good. The authority had nothing to do with the fear I felt.
I forcibly gathered my wits.
The hybrid power was still uncontrolled. If anything, that was a relief. Even as Gre Mory lost her will to fight, the players and monsters spared no effort to defend their queen at this very moment.
Roooaaar—!
At last, monsters from the Zero Mountains burst through the underbrush. Just as Akshan targeted Gre Mory, they charged at the demon hunters gunning for their queen.
Gre Mory's eyes flashed.
……A chance.
No matter how mad they were, they were ultimately human. They couldn't keep targeting me with claws at their own throats.
If I seized that opening, escaping here and biding my time for later would be easy enough…….
"!"
Of course, that was just naive delusion.
Squelch.
Akshan. Even if a blade pierced their hearts.
They were beings who never stopped the hunt with a demon before their eyes.
And a fact Gre Mory didn't know: the current Akshan were not human, but a [Legend].
Moon Glaive Bear. Even if savaged by vicious claws.
They uttered no screams, not even a whimper.
Silent to the end.
They stared only at their prey and never halted their actions.
The sight shook Gre Mory's spirit even further.
Yet reality hadn't abandoned Gre Mory just yet.
"Hey, snap out of it! Hey!"
"When did we even fall under a status effect……?"
"Fascination? Some advanced version of Charm?"
The awakening players stirred in confusion.
"……What the hell, those black-clothed guys. Which guild are they from?"
That negative sentiment, if only for an instant.
Became her strength. It pushed Gre Mory's judgment to its limits.
Gre Mory ground her teeth.
I can't end up thrown into hell like this.
She looked down at her body. Still beautiful. A flower blooming amid the muck of the Demon Realm.
No human,异族, or even elf from the Arcana Continent could rival her beauty.
With such towering self-esteem, why would she bother wearing someone else's skin? Possession? As if.
"Tch."
She touched her long, salmon-pink hair one last time.
Then made her decision. This wasn't the time for petty stubbornness.
I need a new body.
Possess a human amid the chaos.
Shake off the demon hunters' pursuit.
Gre Mory's gaze swept toward the slaves swarming under the authority.
Then one human caught her eye.
That one…… acceptable.
Rare black hair and features on the Arcana Continent.
Not lacking, but distinct. Flawless beauty, unmarred even by high aesthetic sense.
Gre Mory didn't hesitate. She immediately attempted possession on her target.
She seized the body effortlessly. And at once—
"……!"
Reality's knowledge and common sense flooded her mind.
Even the player's abilities.
Oh my, oh my.
Gre Mory, opening her eyes in the new body, thought:
To think abandoning my pride would taste this sweet.
Admiration was fleeting; she swallowed hard.
If she could just survive this place…….
……Revenge won't be a pipe dream!
Somewhere near the summit of the Zero Mountains.
I sat in an ornate chair. If you ask where this Renaissance-style seat came from amid the peaks…….
I'd answer that my architecture magic and Aesthetics know no bounds.
But the important thing isn't where I'm sitting.
Why.
How did it come to this.
In this place. In this pose!
Jessie Haynes and Mary’s grand mage lessons.
At some point, I became an observer.
To be precise, I started as an interpreter…….
Grasping the difference between magic and skills is no easy feat.
Twilight Magic? I figured communication would be impossible without me.
But contrary to my worries, I wasn't needed.
From a precarious peak, I brazenly overlooked Jessie and Mary.
Flowing silence. No voices for a while now, but the purple mana rippling around showed the lesson proceeded smoothly.
Anyway, thanks to that.
I could observe Twilight Magic as a spectator.
Unlike my timid plan to peek over shoulders.
I watched and learned with excessive boldness.
As expected, Grandfell's talent shone today too.
"Opportunities to probe the roots are rare."
His grandiose soliloquy was impressive as ever.
Even by the Mage Tower chief's lofty standards, Twilight Magic was remarkable.
Take Marcelo's theoretical magicology, hailed as the tower's greatest lately.
Because it unified them.
The tower's schools alone number dozens; he bound and systematized magic into one.
In that sense, Twilight Magic was…….
The root of all magic.
That metaphor fits.
Now I understood why Mary could intervene in my portal's structure—search, interference, manifestation—without grasping it fully.
I gazed at closed-eyed Jessie.
Can she do it?
Even basic magic took Jessie vast time and effort.
Yet through diligence, she alone among players—besides me—manifested magic.
Won't be easy.
Honestly, low expectations.
But that was presumptuous meddling.
How much time passed?
Purple Twilight Mana rippled from Jessie's body too.
I flinched.
……Even faster than me?
Definitely class quest influence. From witnessing Twilight Mana unseen even by Marcelo or seniors.
For Twilight, Jessie's learning was proven.
I spoke calmly.
"Considering it's the first day, not a bad result."
Anyone hearing would think I was the teacher.
Yet my own future worries me.
Thinking back to learning magic from NetTube…….
To handle Twilight Mana, I might need thesis-level works, who knows.
More importantly.
Per procedure.
Having downed the pre-arranged potion? My attention finally shifted elsewhere.
Did they find the hybrid demon?
Materialized Akshan demon hunters.
I say it every time I use [Legend], but emphasis never suffices.
A [Legend]'s strength depends on how widely it echoes.
Obviously inferior to the originals.
Hell’s Akshan seniors never paused demon hunting there; their strength is natural.
And those demons? Arcane evils and upper demon kings—immense.
The Akshan seniors who sealed Omen too. Their tenacity overwhelmed even it.
No need to compare to seniors; materialized Akshan Legend couldn't be weak objectively.
In reality and Arcana Continent, Akshan got poor treatment.
Of course, better than total forgotten past…….
"The predator-prey bond brooks no defiance."
Well, to Grandfell, all demons were the same anyway.
His usual reaction.
But unlike loose lips, unease lingered.
I knew. The hybrid demon's power she showed.
Bewitching monsters wasn't enough; an aura undetected by [Natural Enemy].
Not facing her myself, maybe overcautious, but still worrying.
Of course, this pride's complexity.
Basic: can't show on face. Tolerates no sway by mere demons, failing procedure. Even assessing mid-procedure forbidden.
"We'll end here for today, Miss Jessie Haynes."
Ultimately, I focused intently till Mary finished.
Then brazenly rose from the Renaissance chair.
"Then, same time tomorrow."
Short words left, I stepped away.
First task set. Check the vibrating smartphone.
Nam Cheolmin's message greeted me.
Summary of the flustered message: simple.
Akshan demon hunters appeared in Zero Mountains.
Clashing with players.
Nam Cheolmin might not know, but I wasn't surprised.
Obviously mid-Exorcism Ritual.
Makes sense to mistake. Demon hunter attacks mid-ritual harm only demons.
No player damage.
Plus.
Why else demon hunters scorned as trash class?
Without Natural Enemy, weaker than any class.
Even vs players, total defeat.
Especially materialized [Legend] demon hunters.
Let's see.
Next message.
As expected, top analyst.
Like live relay.
Vivid enough to picture from reading.
Bzzz—!
The relay ongoing.
Nam Cheolmin shocked, understandably.
But no worry.
System message floated.
Materialization is released.
Immediate response.
Hard to explain in words.
Anyway, head there.
I pocketed the phone, drew up mana.
First, sort the situation.
Zero Mountains unwittingly a mess.
Only I can clean up.
Recap events.
Players lured by hybrid demon blocked demon hunters.
The presumed hybrid "queen" suddenly vanished.
Demon hunters, monsters, players tangled in ongoing battle.
Fallen demon hunters vanished without corpses.
Fortunate: all players freed from status effects…….
Looks wrapped up, but.
Not over. High-level monsters from highlands remain.
Clear before threatening low-level players.
Missed for now.
A hybrid demon that big? Didn't expect easy hunt.
No need to fret though.
Just gained info, unlike before.
"A hasty retreat. Futile effort."
Akshan's steadfast guardian, Tempest.
Tracking primordial evil before? Easily trails hybrid demon from lingering aura.
Now, to resolve…….
Dinner schedule tight too.
Hurry.
Enter portal. Vision shifted; clamor greeted me.
Players and monsters mixed, shouting.
"What the hell happened?!"
"If you're snapped out of it, gear up first! Looks like Akshan saved us. Don't waste their sacrifice!"
"……Akshan saved us? So the status message was demon work? Crazy, then why no memories……."
"Damn, mountain wolf pack!!"
Indeed, felt the demon's rampage. Total chaos.
But no issue.
I drew up mana.
As ever.
No "moderate" in Grandfell's dictionary.
What I prepared: Twilight Magic just observed and learned.
By the way, head complicated manifesting magic? First since player awakening?
Feels the stubbornness.
Not my fit after all.
Twilight descendant. And Twilight-linked quest line holder.
Only grand archmage class manifests Twilight Magic.
But Grandfell's stubbornness ordinary?
Hummm— Purple mana faintly rose before me.
Stubborn settings upfront, yet pulled it off again.
Message appeared.
The First World Tree's Blessing rejects the Twilight Curse.
Twilight Curse. Debuff rejected, effect unknown, but why it appeared? Guessable.
Warning for ill-fitting garb.
With [First World Tree's Blessing] active, care?
I haughtily declared.
"Dare not presume to wield me."
Soliloquy to debuff.
How could listeners guess?
Players spotting me startled.
"L-L-Lee Hoyeol!"
"Don't wield……? You foresaw the cause? No, wait, did you move Akshan?!"
"J-Just awesome."
……My shock brief too.
Zing— Purple magic blanketed the area.
Twilight Mana: search, pure mana interference manifested.
Unfamiliar Twilight Magic use.
"!"
Effect certain.
No [Natural Enemy] active.
Yet magic alone subdued over a hundred monsters instantly.
Level has increased.
Stubborn level rose, but no joy.
Obviously? Let a demon escape.
Grandfell's mood intolerable.
Before loose lips in anger.
Hurry summon Tempest, start tracking.
But with this crowd…….
Say "Tempest Over the Horizon" aloud……?
Mid my brief agony.
Sorry for the intrusion, my lord. Urgent matter to report.
Sudden telepathy pierced my mind. Marcelo's voice.
Like Nam Cheolmin, rare.
Conversely, that urgent.
Marcelo added without ado.
See? Skips preamble for good reason.
A demon has come to the Mage Tower of its own accord.