57
057 ― Sorcerer
"Huu……."
He took a deep breath to calm his mind.
Falling from the 6th floor was certainly a disaster. Although he had experienced all kinds of crises in his life, this was the first crisis of this magnitude.
But didn't someone say that a crisis is an opportunity?
If he keeps his wits about him, he'll survive. Not only will he survive, but he might also gain many things. When would he ever come to a world so full of Magi like this?
'I heard that the 5th floor also has a lot of Magi, but most of it is monopolized by dragons.'
From what he heard, the 5th floor was also a world full of Magi like this place. However, the Magi there were monopolized by dragons.
In places famous for accumulated Magi like spirit veins, dragons invariably made their nests, so ordinary people couldn't steal Magi from those places.
In that sense, how about the Spirit Realm?
Like the 5th floor, it's full of Magi, but there are no dragons monopolizing it.
Of course, there are dragons in the Spirit Realm, too, and they probably claim one spirit vein each, but their numbers are small.
―The number of my kin existing in the Spirit Realm would be much smaller compared to the 5th floor, which is called the Dragon Star floor. Though this is just my speculation.
This was a story he had heard from Kalesian.
'Though he calls it speculation, it has credibility.'
In this world, Jin-woo could also gather all kinds of Magi. Perhaps he might be able to achieve the trinity that Kalesian spoke of in this place.
Though he wasn't sure what would change if that were achieved.
'First, let me gather all the wild strawberries.'
He picked all the wild strawberries he could see. When he tried one along the way, it burst in his mouth with a refreshing fruit juice that spread its fragrance all the way to his nasal cavity.
'This is crazy, I'm going to get addicted to this.'
It wasn't the forced addiction feeling from drugs or bad substances. It was purely because the taste and aroma were so good that he kept reaching for more.
Jin-woo, who almost thoughtlessly stuffed a whole bunch into his mouth, barely held back and drew out the Dragon Sword.
'What if I absorb it with the Dragon Sword?'
The Dragon Sword's attraction pulled in the Magi contained in the wild strawberries. The Magi absorbed into his body this way was slightly more than when consumed orally.
Though the difference was minimal, the Dragon Sword was definitely more efficient. But.
'They're so withered, though.'
The wild strawberries, after having all their Magi sucked out by the Dragon Sword, immediately withered. They looked somewhat like they had been dried in sunlight, but they were even more shriveled than that.
When he put one in his mouth and chewed it.
"Ugh, ptui ptui."
Sure enough, it had no taste. The texture was more terrible than block food, feeling like chewing wet sand clumped with water.
"Kkeung."
What should he do? Logically thinking, he should obviously be absorbed with the Dragon Sword. Though it was a small amount, he could obtain more Magi, so he couldn't give up for mere momentary pleasure.
But he was conflicted. The taste of the wild strawberries was so fantastic that it made him conflicted to this degree.
In the end.
"Haaa…… Still, the Dragon Sword is right."
Jin-woo held back tears and spread the Dragon Sword, sucking out all the Magi from the bunch of wild strawberries he had picked.
Along the way, there was also Magi being drawn from the mist and soil. However, such Magi were only absorbed for a little while before it all started passing through at some point.
'Is infinite absorption impossible?'
Was his body unable to accept it? Or perhaps his enlightenment was insufficient. Maybe his physical and mental vessels hadn't grown enough.
The wild strawberries were the same. The Magi that had been absorbed smoothly bit by bit suddenly started passing through transparently at some point and returned to its original place.
It also became impossible to absorb any more Magi from the wild strawberries.
'Maybe something like tolerance develops.'
Perhaps the amount that can be absorbed from the same existence is predetermined. Or there might be other reasons.
Various hypotheses came up, but they were all in the floor of speculation. Magi was a mystical energy by its very existence, so too little was known about it.
Anyway, he had obtained everything he could get from this place. He had gained some information, and the Magi in his heart had definitely increased, though by a small amount.
And he had a handful of intact wild strawberries left. Somehow, this made him happiest.
'This is it.'
Eating the small wild strawberries one by one sparingly, Jin-woo continued his exploration.
In doing so, he discovered a thin stream crossing the meadow. Jin-woo approached the stream with a pleased expression.
Of course, he didn't forget to spread his Ki Sense to detect blue flames.
'I can't repeat past mistakes.'
When he first entered the Primeval Forest, he was blinded by sweet fruits and fresh fish and forgot to be on guard at some point.
Because of that, he didn't notice until an Elf approached close range. Of course, considering his skills at that time, it wouldn't have mattered even if he had been on guard…….
Anyway, mindset is important. The current Jin-woo didn't stop detecting blue flames for even a single moment.
'Let's see, are there fish here too?'
The water in the stream was so clear it was transparent, reflecting the bottom as it was. However, there were no swimming fish. Feeling slightly disappointed, Jin-woo scooped up some water to drink, and the water tasted couldn't be more refreshing.
Choosing upstream between downstream and upstream, Jin-woo walked along the waterway. After walking a bit, he saw a large tree growing.
Peach-like fruits were hanging on that tree.
'They're real peaches, aren't they?'
When he picked and ate one, they weren't peach-like things but real peaches.
Naturally, they had the same rich and fantastic taste as the wild strawberries. As a bonus, they also replenished Magi.
'Is this really a paradise?'
From what he'd seen so far, it was heaven itself. Like with the wild strawberries, he absorbed the Magi from the peaches with the Dragon Sword first, then took only the remaining amount.
Unfortunately, there weren't many peaches left that way. Should he eat them sparingly…….
'The sun still has far to go before setting.'
The sun hadn't even reached its zenith yet. He had come out early in the morning, and it wasn't even close to lunchtime.
Today, he planned to explore for just one day and return to the tower at night.
'Finding the stream is a big harvest.'
Jin-woo took out paper and scribbled a drawing, mapping the path he had taken starting from the tower.
For the time being, he planned to explore all directions around the tower on a daily basis and draw them as maps.
'If I return before sunset, I can walk for about 3 more hours.'
Roughly calculating backward, he had about that much time.
While walking for quite a while longer, Jin-woo discovered something curious.
'A field?'
Rather than curious, would it be right to say it was dangerous?
It was clearly a field that had been tended by someone's hands.
'An herb field?'
Rather than growing grains, the field wasn't cultivating anything like that. From the entire field, he could feel dense medicinal scents and refreshing fragrances that stung his nose.
Though they were all plants he'd never seen before, he somehow got the feeling it was an herb field.
'……Let's avoid it.'
Warning bells rang in his head. He didn't know who was cultivating this field, but there would be nothing good about meeting them.
An entity that lived settled in one place in this Spirit Realm, cultivating fields. Wasn't it obviously full of danger?
Just as he was about to flee, Jin-woo's Ki Sense detected a blue flame approaching at high speed.
It was approaching at an incredibly fast speed, and moreover, it wasn't running on legs but moving by striking through space.
'Spatial movement?'
Using magic that only S-rank Grand Mages could use on Earth as easily as breathing, that entity approached.
He had seen Fermue use it in the White Tower, but that was possible because she was an entity half-integrated with the tower.
This was the first time he saw it used on bare ground like this.
Feeling a strong sense of crisis, Jin-woo tried to get away from the field, but the opponent had already approached in an instant.
"Keruk!"
It was a Goblin. Holding a hoe in one hand and carrying a wicker basket on its back. An entity that looked like nothing but an herb gatherer, no matter how you looked at it.
While surprised that what appeared using spatial movement was a single Goblin, Jin-woo couldn't let his guard down.
Pajik! Pajijijik!
This was because when the Goblin rubbed its fingers together and flicked them, a large bolt of lightning fell from the sky.
'Crazy!'
A thick lightning bolt reminiscent of Lightning Emperor Reinhardt's lightning fell toward Jin-woo.
***
He had heard many stories about Goblin sorcerers.
Goblins themselves weren't much. They were entities that even E-rank Hunters, comparable to 2nd floor skeletons, could catch.
However, if Goblins formed a tribe, depending on its size, even B-rank or A-rank Hunters couldn't ignore them.
One reason was the presence or absence of a chieftain, and another was.
'Sorcerer!'
The existence of sorcerers is frequently found at the tribal level.
Goblin sorcerers would drive allied Goblins into frenzy, multiplying the group's combat power, and they themselves would shoot powerful fireballs to provide firepower.
A Goblin tribe composed of a chieftain, a sorcerer, and multiple Goblins was said to be a place even B-rank Hunters couldn't easily approach.
However, that herb gatherer-like sorcerer was alone. There was no tribe nearby.
It was just.
'I've never heard of Goblin sorcerers even casting lightning.'
Its individual power was just stronger than imagination.
Jin-woo swung sword energy to offset the falling lightning. To be precise, he detected the precursor before the lightning fell and cut through that spot.
However, the war of attrition was clearly disadvantageous, because while Jin-woo could only shoot one sword energy per sword swing, several bolts of lightning were falling simultaneously.
"Kyaaaaaak!"
That herb gatherer Goblin's fingers. The static electricity generated by rubbing its fingers spread through the Spirit Realm's mist and guided lightning above Jin-woo's head.
The simple mechanism had excellent speed and firepower beyond compare. Was this just the power of a Goblin sorcerer?
It was surprising. Were all creatures living in the Spirit Realm this strong?
However, at the same time, he had this thought too.
'This is Manageable?'
It was more Manageable than expected.
The sorcerer's lightning was certainly fast and powerful enough to remind him of the Lightning Emperor. But the sorcerer itself was weaker than that.
Though the lightning-summoning sorcery itself was powerful, it seemed to have too little combat experience. Its attacks were always linear and easy to predict.
They say that in battles between masters, even toe movements contain meaning and psychology, but the sorcerer's movements were distinctly easy to read. From the start, always rubbing its fingers before summoning lightning was a clearly readable movement.
"Kerok!?"
Taking advantage of a gap in its movements, Jin-woo approached it in one step. At this close distance, it wouldn't be able to summon lightning easily.
Jin-woo thrust his sword, and the Goblin opened a spatial rift to pull something out. It was a staff made of old oak wood.
The staff, which looked very old, seemed harder than expected and appeared to block Jin-woo's sword. But that hope was brief—it inevitably broke in two and fell to the ground.
"Kukeuk!"
Throwing away the useless staff, the Goblin leaped toward the field.
Had it realized it couldn't match Jin-woo? It fled, somehow scraping together precious medicinal materials.
'I can't let it escape.'
Having fought once, he had to see it through to the end somehow. If he let it escape now and it gathered allies to attack later, it would be troublesome.
Jin-woo quickly chased after the creature, escaping through spatial movement.
It seemed that while it could move by striking through space, it couldn't travel long distances at once. Following the creature's form that disappeared and reappeared, Jin-woo kicked off the ground.
Though it wasn't a forest, this place too had soil and grass growing on the ground. It was a place where the Elf footwork he had learned while watching Mari could fully demonstrate its worth.
'A cave?'
The place where the sorcerer fled to was in front of a cave.
Having arrived there, it no longer ran away. Though it seemed to have enough strength to flee further, it stopped and showed fighting spirit toward Jin-woo like a hedgehog.
"Kyaa! Kyaaaaa!"
Why did it stop at this place after running away so well?
Jin-woo could guess the reason after detecting the flames felt from inside the cave.
'Black flames.'
Black flames were felt inside the cave. But those flames had a form he had never seen before.
They weren't completely black, nor were they completely blue.
Blue flames were…… Yes, as if being devoured, black flames were clinging to them.