Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: Mage Tower - 6
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“Ugh... Ah...!”
With a deafening crash, Leonardo rose from the coffin fashioned from books.
He'd faced dream demons, black mages, and even been dosed with hallucinogens and sleeping drugs so often that Leo had developed resistances along with a whole arsenal of countermeasures.
Beyond the method he'd used in the dream, he still had three or four more up his sleeve. They were just too risky to use casually.
By normal standards, the Sage was right—it was a test that should have taken well over five minutes.
In the dream, he'd completely forgotten the Sage's existence and even his memories of the test itself.
Without his experience from the regression, even Leonardo might not have escaped the dream.
The Sage glanced at the others still lying around nearby.
At the mention of the reward, Leonardo looked around for the trial's prize.
<Where's the inheritance...?>
Leonardo looked down at his hand. Gripped in it was a necklace linked by silver chains. The gem at its center looked like an eye's iris, thanks to the black mass within.
Why hadn't such pointless consideration shown up in the first trial? It was a mystery that centuries of research wouldn't solve.
“...Ugh... Huh...?”
Ameri rose from her coffin in a zombie-like stagger. The pain of her chronic illness still showed plainly on her body, the healing not fully taken effect yet.
And upon graduation, she'd become a transcendent being. Assuming she graduated, that is.
“Huh...?! Did we succeed?!”
Rubbing her dark circles, she stared at the necklace in Leo's hand.
“Yeah, we got lucky.”
“That's the 'Necklace of Truth and Facts'!!”
He already knew that. He'd aimed for it precisely because of what it was.
“Shall we test it out?”
“Is that okay...? Like with this ring...”
Ameri held up the ring interfering with her love life.
“It should be fine. Feels different from that one.”
The Sage's casual clothes and leisure ring weren't eternal curse items.
One of its healing functions had just manifested extremely.
It would take at least a year for all that to heal. Assuming she wore it and lived healthily.
“...How is it? Any effects?”
“Hold on.”
Leonardo fastened the necklace around his neck and first looked at the user himself, the Sage.
<Let's see...>
<Ah...>
The most important test subject vanished. He wanted to stomp the ground in frustration, but had no choice but to try it on someone else.
“Ameri.”
“Yes?”
“How are you feeling right now? Okay?”
As the Sage pointed out, Leo realized his question was flawed. Still, it was worth asking once, just in case.
“Yes, I'm fine.”
Ziiing
Suddenly, red light scattered from the necklace in multiple directions. It was a flash that rivaled fireworks or the sun.
The Sage nodded pityingly at the poor Mage Tower slave.
“Um... Is this normal?”
“Seems like it. Clear reaction.”
“...Well, that's a relief, then...”
Ameri glanced worriedly at Ariasfil.
“Lady Ariasfil still isn't waking up. And there was that strong light earlier too...”
Just as she said—Ariasfil lay utterly still, deep in sleep.
<What's going on? Why isn't she waking?>
The trailing words sounded ominous.
<...No way, right?>
Ameri grabbed Ariasfil and shook her, but the girl just wore a creepy smile and didn't wake.
“...What do we do? Shake harder...?”
Hearing that, Leo shook his head urgently and pulled Ameri away from Ariasfil.
<Why make something so dangerous?>
Surprisingly, the Sage wasn't lying.
If you failed or someone else succeeded first, a massive door would appear in the dream.
It blatantly said 'Test over, come out,' so you'd realize it was a dream and escape easily.
That's how Ameri had escaped.
<Then why isn't Aria coming out?>
<Aria's no fool. Dream versus reality aren't even comparable.>
Unfortunately, reality was a cesspool just like that.
<...So what do we do? Can't we just wait?>
Leonardo agreed. Having suffered nightmares and illusions often, he understood the advice.
<...Is there no way to wake her?>
The Sage nodded reluctantly and explained the method.
<We have to try. I have resistance to this magic.>
Leonardo steeled himself and called to Ameri.
“Ameri, I need a favor.”
“...R-Really, this will work...?”
She asked worriedly, hands on Leo's and Ariasfil's heads.
“Yes. Telepathy magic should connect to the unconscious dream state too.”
Telepathy, a 4th-circle spell mainly for info transfer and communication.
But tweak the ritual as the Sage advised, and it could reach the dream unconscious.
“Modifying it like this might work, but... Leonardo, you could get hurt. And I'm not great at telepathy anyway...”
“It's fine. I'll handle that part.”
“B-But...”
Ameri couldn't help hesitating. With her heavy guilt complex and gentle nature, such a burdensome role was hard to accept.
“Sorry for asking this of you.”
Leonardo bowed to Ameri.
“But please. I can't lose Aria like this again.”
Was it just knightly duty? The tenacity of her former second-place pursuer? Or the boy's sin who couldn't bear watching a girl die?
One thing was certain.
“Got it. I'll do my best.”
Ameri reaffirmed her resolve and spread the magic circles on both hands. Slowly attuning the double-cast telepathy, she said,
“Here we go. Please succeed.”
Once the spell attuned, Leonardo's eyes closed.
...
......
..........
The chirp of mountain birds rang out.
Leo's closed eyes trembled and slowly opened.
“...Where...?”
Success. Despite her self-doubt, the telepathy attunement was clean— even his pre-connection memories remained intact.
“...Now, to find... Aria...”
Clang!!
The moment he sought her, a shockwave echoed. The sound of clashing swords—like when he and Aria dueled.
“...No way...”
Leo dashed toward the dueling sounds.
Clang!!
“Ugh!”
At the clash site stood two knights in black and white. The one dominating was beyond Leonardo's expectations.
“What's wrong? No power in your hips!!”
Delivering a barrage was Leo himself.
Struggling to block was Aria.
“...Enough... I can't... anymore...”
He had the strength to beat Aria now, but not overwhelm her like this.
It wasn't empty words—a heartfelt truth grounded in reality.
'...Why... why am I... getting pushed back...?'
Incomprehensible. She'd always been aloof and proud.
To him, Aria was that existence—and that's why he'd made it this far.
Clang!!
“Hah...!”
In that instant, Aria's sword flew into the air.
Seeing that scene, one thought struck Leonardo.
'...It's like me...'
Similar to when he'd faced the dream demon.
That demon showed despairing nightmares instead of sweet dreams.
The cunning devil knew immersion was stronger that way.
People sink deeper into despair than hope.
'...Because I won...'
The dream Leo kept dreaming was endless defeat to Aria—a string of unnatural events, but the deeply carved pain of despair made him forget it was a dream.
Without his suicide escape, it might have been eternal.
Inferiority was an emotion easy to provoke and amplify.
'Because I won that duel...'
Ariasfil must have firmly believed herself a genius. It was true, and her previous life proved it.
'But... not anymore. Now...'
He'd shattered that belief and pride.
Just to win.
Separate from her character, it catalyzed inferiority.
A genius undefeated until then felt humiliation for the first time.
'...I was the cause...'
He felt nauseous at himself for not noticing.
He thought he understood such psychology best... yet the closest one missed it...
“...Not too late yet. Right now...!”
As Leo leaped in, another Leonardo held a blade to her throat.
“I win, right?”
“Yeah... I lost...”
Humiliating defeat etched deep in her expression.
“Then...”
Suddenly, the fake Leo tossed his sword away.
'...What...? Why suddenly..?'
Then he grabbed her wrists.
“Wait... what are you... Leo...! Ah...!”
Like a beast, he pinned her down, binding her body. He mounted between her waist and hips, making escape ever harder.
“Le...! Leo...! Th-This...! What...!”
“Why? Don't want to?”
What didn't she want? He didn't want to imagine. It couldn't be that.
“...N-Not... that I hate it... but this is like... we should... date... first... Ah...!”
The fake nipped her nape gently, igniting her senses hotly. The hot tongue's touch with each word was overly stimulating for a pure girl.
“Winners get to choose. Baby.”
“...B-Baby...?! Hah...!”
Aria gradually sank under the false beast, shedding layers of hidden instinct.
'Fuck... insane...'
That was the real one's reaction to the twist.