59
059 — A Little Filled
"Do you know why Goblin sorcerers use flame sorcery?"
"No. I haven't really thought about the reason."
"It's because fire is our god. Fire lights up the night, cooks raw meat and dirty water to protect us from disease, and at the same time, it's also a symbol of fear itself."
Goblin society has a culture at the level of a primitive society. So it wasn't strange that they worshipped and revered fire as a god. Goblin sorcerers served as priests of the tribe, managing the tribe's fire, and at the same time, they were beings who prayed to the fire.
And.
"The primordial fire came down from the sky. Lightning struck from the sky, burning trees and creating fire. The sorcery used by Goblin sorcerers originates from that primordial fire. Therefore, if you trace it back, you eventually reach lightning."
To Jin-woo, who only knew swords, it sounded like a story grasping at clouds. Similar to listening to old tales, legends, or folklore. That didn't mean he didn't accept it. After all, the abilities Jin-woo had acquired were also far from common sense. He was just surprised by Kanok's proposal itself.
"You'd teach such an important secret technique so easily?"
According to Kanok's words, the God Greeting Sorcery symbolized their race's history and religion itself. He was surprised that Kanok readily offered to teach a secret technique that wouldn't be strange even if it were passed down from master to a single disciple.
"What could I not offer to my benefactor? Moreover, what my benefactor saved wasn't just my life."
"What do you mean?"
"I'm talking about my disciple, Keron. I persuaded him several times to abandon someone like me and leave this place. But he wouldn't listen. That child kept growing herbs and searching for methods to heal me until the end."
But no method worked. A being once consumed by Erosion could never escape.
"My benefactor saved that child's dream that was about to be broken. I'm truly a blessed Goblin. To have such a child as my disciple and to form a connection with my benefactor."
Kanok's voice was low and calm, pleasant to listen to. The fact that he was a Goblin was no problem at all. His body wasn't completely healed yet. Though the Erosion had been carved out, his skin remained discolored brown, and his body, emaciated from not eating properly, was unchanged. But his eyes were full of vigorous life, and one could tell he would never die in such a place.
"I've only ever held swords, so I don't know if I can learn sorcery, but I'll try my best to learn."
"You don't need to worry. Unlike magic, God Greeting Sorcery doesn't require complex knowledge or learning. Otherwise, how could young Goblins learn it?"
"That's true, too."
Come to think of it, Kanok had said his sorcery was the same type used by Goblin sorcerers. If it was sorcery that even Goblins with child-level intelligence could learn, it couldn't be as difficult and complex as magic. Then it might be worth trying to learn.
"Please take care of me."
"I'll teach you with all my heart and sincerity."
Watching Kanok bow his head, Jin-woo also bowed. However, he was sorry to say, but he didn't really think it would go well. There was no basis for this. He just couldn't really picture himself doing anything other than swinging a sword.
***
The herbal water that had been hitting Kanok's shoulder. That herbal water was made by Keron by putting all kinds of medicinal materials into a small cave lake above.
"Rakarga is more about innate talent than acquired knowledge. The results differ depending on how pure a soul you were born with."
"A pure soul..."
Now Jin-woo was soaking his body in that herbal lake.
"It's a lake created to remove Erosion. It didn't have much effect on Erosion itself, but it should be excellent for purifying general impurities."
They said ritual purification was necessary before learning sorcery. Jin-woo submerged his entire body in water imbued with such a strong medicinal scent that it stung his nose. It might be his imagination, but his skin seemed to tingle.
‘If I stay like this, all kinds of impurities will be washed away, right?’
Not only that, but Kanok was also holding a small bell he'd gotten from somewhere, muttering something. He said the herbal lake would purify the impurities dwelling in Jin-woo's body, and the bell's sorcery would confirm the cleanliness of his innate soul. At the words that he just needed to stay still, Jin-woo quietly soaked in the water.
Whether it was warmed by geothermal heat, the lake water was moderately warm, creating a perfect environment for rest.
'I have been too tense since coming to the 6th Floor.'
There had been many things to be tense about until now, but there had never been a time when he was this tightly wound. It was only because he had the stronghold called the white tower where Fermue was, and because he'd formed good relationships with the Goblins Kanok and Keron. Otherwise, he might have been driven to the wall by now.
He closed his eyes and looked back on the time that had passed. It was the perfect atmosphere for a sigh, but sleep didn't come. He quietly meditated and waited for his ritual purification to end.
But then.
"This... How could this be..."
Kanok, who had been chanting sorcery or something like念 (thoughts), suddenly opened his eyes wide in surprise. Thinking there might be some bad result, Jin-woo frowned.
"What's wrong? Is there something bad?"
"Ah, no. It's the opposite. I can't feel even a speck of impurity from my benefactor's soul. Looking at how clean the lake is, your body must be the same."
Rather, he seemed surprised because it was too clean. There was something he could guess about his body. It was the golden apple he'd eaten in the 3rd Floor not long ago. At that time, his body and mind had been completely purified once by the wave-like golden tide. Probably because of that, there were no impurities left to purify here.
But the soul part was unexpected.
"Being clean means it's good, right?"
"Of course... No, rather, it's an impossible thing. No soul in the world could be this clean. This isn't so much pure white as it is bleached."
"...? What do you mean?"
"I'm saying it's unnatural."
That... Didn't sound very good.
"It might have something to do with my benefactor's ability that carved out the Erosion."
"Now that you mention it, I've absorbed the energy of Erosion several times until now, but my soul remained the same."
He hadn't given it much thought until now, but thinking about it, it was strange. How many times had he absorbed the black flames that were Erosion itself? From the very first time he carved out Shadow's flames at the movie theater to just recently when he split the flames that were eating away at Kanok. The black flames Jin-woo had carved out amounted to at least a truckload. But even after absorbing all of that, Jin-woo's soul remained blue.
"Any soul has at least a speck of impurity. Even the demigods who have territories in this Spirit Realm are no exception. Not to mention when it comes to the Lords. But such a pure white soul... I've never even heard of such a thing."
"..."
Kanok's words about it being unnatural bothered him. He had roughly thought that being fine even after absorbing black flames was an ability similar to purification. But purification originally meant removing impurities and returning to a natural state. Being so clean as to be unnatural felt a bit different from calling it purification.
"Would being that clean cause problems? If not now, then later?"
"I'm sorry. As I said, this is the first time I've seen something like this, so I can't make hasty judgments."
That made sense, too. Jin-woo's thoughts became complicated, but it wasn't something he could figure out by worrying about it.
"Then for learning sorcery?"
"That would be the best. Heaven is more drawn to clean souls."
"Then let's proceed for now."
He had no choice but to think about what would happen later, later. Jin-woo got up from the herbal lake that had already lost its effect and dried his body.
A little later.
In front of a large tree outside the cave, Jin-woo was struggling and rubbing his fingers together.
"For something that's supposed to be the best, it's not going very well."
"Th-that's right. Normally, a flame about the size of a candle should appear at this level."
Kanok was also confused by the results that differed from expectations. God Greeting Sorcery is easier to learn for beings born with cleaner souls. In that sense, he thought Jin-woo would quickly create fire and call down lightning. Unexpectedly, there was no reaction at all.
'It's not that I don't feel anything.'
He circulated Magi as Kanok described. He delicately controlled the path, speed, and even density. At the same time, he was told to think of a blackened tree. Think of the tree and recall the flames that burned that tree. Go further back to recall the lightning that created those flames, and extend his consciousness further back to the sky that sent down the lightning. He was told that the sorcery called Rakarga could be learned that way.
But something wasn't working.
"Maybe I really don't have talent for this."
"No matter how little talent one has, if this much Magi is put in, at least a small flame should appear. Moreover, with a soul as clean as my benefactor's, it wouldn't be strange if lightning struck immediately."
But why wasn't it working? The baseless premonition he'd felt earlier suddenly came to mind. That he couldn't imagine himself not holding a sword. Maybe sorcery really wasn't suited to his aptitude.
Just as he was thinking that.
'Then should I try holding a sword?'
What if he used a sword instead of fingers like Kanok or Keron?
'Bulkar said the sword he forged had a strong affinity with lightning.'
Jin-woo took out the Sky Sword from his inventory. The sword was in a scabbard that was a divine artifact brought from the temple, and because of that, the energy of Erosion was rippling around it.
"Benefactor. That is..."
"Just in case, please step back a bit."
Kanok, who had suffered terribly from being consumed by Erosion, instinctively trembled with fear. He couldn't tell him 'our scabbard doesn't bite' or something like that, so he told him to keep his distance. There was no guarantee it really wouldn't bite anyway.
He held the scabbard that emanated Erosion energy in his left hand and gripped the handle of the Sky Sword, which Bulkar had personally wrapped with leather, in his right hand. He recalled the image Kanok had taught him, starting from a burned tree and eventually rising to the sky, and circulated his Magi.
Spark—
There was a faint reaction between the sword and scabbard. It was at the level of static electricity so small it was barely visible, but there was definitely a reaction. This was a phenomenon that wouldn't occur, no matter how much he tried with his hands. Jin-woo's intuition shouted that now was the moment.
Crackle crackle!
The moment he drew the sword from the scabbard, the characteristic sound of electricity, like tearing paper, was heard. Without killing the momentum of drawing the sword, he struck down toward the tree.
Kraaaash!
Simultaneously with the single flash strike, a thick bolt of lightning fell toward the tree. After the strong aftermath passed, the scene that appeared was amazing. The tree, split in two by the sword, had become black charcoal and was burning brightly.
'To do something like this with a sword...'
When he received the Sky Sword from Bulkar, he had thought he would someday learn an ability that matched the sword. But seeing it directly was even more surprising. Simply cutting itself was just a matter of sending out sword energy, but the current lightning made larger-scale attacks possible.
[A fragment of a past life comes to mind.]
Then, as always, a message of ability awakening appeared. The current ability was a Goblin sorcerer's sorcery, but did this ability also exist in his past life? He thought so, but what came to mind was something completely different.
[The striking thunder is also part of the garden.]
'Garden...'
That word brought back memories of Ireland. The memory that awakened then. His past life self in a small garden. That garden actually wasn't small at all. His past life self thought it was small, but to Jin-woo, it wasn't. It was a world and nature in itself, and therefore a place where all kinds of phenomena and life forms circulated. The lightning striking from the sky was also part of that.
"Am-amazing, benefactor. Lightning of this magnitude is not easy even for me..."
Kanok approached with a surprised expression, looking around. The tree directly hit by the Sky Sword's single flash was in a state no different from ashes, and the blackened traces radiated around it. A power that even Kanok, the master of the sorcery, couldn't produce without taking time to concentrate. Jin-woo had displayed it simply by drawing his sword and striking down.
"You have innate talent, but your understanding of and affinity with lightning is considerable."
"This sword is made from Sky Steel."
"The sword's material alone doesn't amplify the power to this extent."
Kanok shook his head at Jin-woo's words. While it was true that Sky Steel had good compatibility with Rakarga, that alone couldn't produce this level of impact. He said this was Jin-woo's own innate talent.
'I guess the fragment that just came to mind was this.'
He realized that the words about striking thunder also being part of the garden referred to this. That's why he had the understanding and affinity that would surprise Kanok. From the herbal lake to the fragment just now. It had been a day with much to think about.
But.
'I've gained a good weapon.'
For now, he was satisfied with having gained an excellent ability. It was the greatest harvest from the 6th Floor.
***
Keron returned the next day. He brought a lot of food for his master, but unfortunately, he said he hadn't found the blue portal yet.
"Keureuk, keureuk."
"He says he'll set out again tomorrow morning. Benefactor, please don't worry and rest here."
Keron earnestly said he would repay the favor and that he would find the blue portal no matter what. There was no need to decline. Since he was offered to explore the dangerous 6th Floor, he was just grateful.
'I can't really just be idle either.'
If he also searched separately, that alone would double the efficiency. When he conveyed this thought to Kanok, he handed over a talisman made of tattered cloth.
"If Keron finds a portal, I'll contact you through that talisman. Benefactor, please move as you wish."
"Thank you."
Teaching sorcery, finding portals, and even this consideration. He conveyed his gratitude in many ways before Jin-woo left Kanok's cave behind.
'First, let's return to the tower.'
Let's go back to the stronghold, reorganize, and set out to explore in another direction. Since Keron would search in this direction from the tower as a reference point, he could search on the opposite side. Searching that way, they should be able to find the blue portal quickly.
Leaving the cave, Jin-woo began the journey back to the white tower. With the map he'd drawn, he could easily return. He took out the map and pen. The white tower was drawn in the center of the map, and the path extending to this place was also drawn. He had drawn a cave shape and two simply drawn Goblin faces there, too.
<White tower> <Goblin sorcerer's Cave>
Two locations were marked in the center of the map. They were very small marks compared to the entire paper, but it felt like he had filled it a little.