-Orora <— The EU where she's the problem
(Photo of a thesis on the Lost Era)
Because of this bastard, my workload has more than doubled, fuck.
ㄴYeah~ If you get into exploring ancient cities, it's 5x~.
ㄴ(OP) Ah… The fact that it's the Abyss, so there's nothing we can do, is seriously fucking annoying.
ㄴOrora's special trait) Is this important? (It's super important)
-Does anyone know anything about the Abyss?
Why aren't there any info posts? If someone posted one, wouldn't it instantly be a hit post?
ㄴLook it up yourself lol There's really almost nothing
ㄴThere's really nothing on the Abyss even in the Magic Tower
ㄴ(OP) Does the Navy not know either?
ㄴAlcoholisLife: Yeah, the Navy goes out to sea to catch pirates. They don't go into the Abyss. From the start, the vibe is that you die if you enter the Abyss.
Since Orora was focused on survival, she didn't visit the Gallery often.
That was why she didn't know that she was the eye of the massive storm called the 'Lost Era.'
The creatures, tools, buildings, and so on that Orora showed on her broadcast.
Everything that displayed the glory of the past was like coveted treasure to the people on the surface.
Orora, who had unintentionally become the eye of the storm, was currently…
Click.
"Hoo…"
Along with the sensation of a giant single eye brushing past her side.
A breath soaked in tension escaped.
Orora was currently moving through the city, avoiding the Cyclops's gaze.
***
Click.
The Cyclops's eye passed by the alley where I was hiding and moved elsewhere.
Soon, the Cyclops moved away from the vicinity.
…How did it come to this.
With a heart pounding so loudly that even the Cyclops could hear—the culprit behind all this.
I thought back to when I first entered the city.
"I'll explore the ancient city."
Back then, to keep the promise I'd made to the Magic Scholar, I'd decided to explore the ancient city.
It was something I would have put off for longer, but since I'd had the experience of defeating a Cyclops, I decided to give it a try.
Naturally, I avoided combat as much as possible.
Even though I'd defeated a Cyclops, I'd been left near-death.
But I'd learned that they were weak to intense light, so in an emergency, I could somehow escape.
With those thoughts, I headed to the Abyss city with only a faint sense of tension.
Shuffle. Shuffle.
The sound of stepping on the sandy floor was clear.
Imprinting that sound in my ears, I reviewed important details.
I was also recalling the sensation of blade-drawing arts, but this time was a little different.
Namely, I was recalling the sensation of magic.
[A gift request from Scholar of Truth has arrived.]
Yesterday evening, while preparing my bedding in the submersible, I received the gift.
Scholar of Truth had sent me a book with a note attached to the cover saying, 'Keep your promise!'
*Everything About the Seven-Attribute Magic. Author: Argentas*
Argentas—a name I had seen in the Gallery as the Lord of the Magic Tower.
And yet, a grimoire by such a person….
Judging by the book's thickness and title, it was clearly a difficult book.
'It was thick enough to use as a blunt weapon…'
If you hit someone with it, it would probably constitute aggravated assault.
Anyway, the depth of its contents was so profound that you could feel it after reading just a few lines.
Reading everything would take too long, so I memorized only the magic that would help with survival.
Magic, like swordsmanship, followed a flow.
For example, fire magic creates a rough and fast flow of mana.
Water magic creates a calm and wide flow.
To create these flows, you normally have to study to figure them out….
'But I could see it all.'
I could tell why a magic circle was shaped the way it was just by looking.
It was similar to how we naturally use Korean—not through tremendous study, but something that just comes to us.
Ordinary people say magic is as difficult as newly learning English.
So I was truly lucky to have a talent for it.
Lost in such thoughts, I soon arrived at the ancient city.
"Hoo… I can do this."
With a light breath, I steeled myself and stepped onto the road.
It was only a single step, but the atmosphere was completely different from the outskirts where the submersible was.
The curved city, old but still majestic, was like looking at a futuristic metropolis.
The streetlights faintly illuminating the city, occasionally flickering, added to its gloom.
Clomp. Clomp.
The sound of stepping on the well-paved floor—unlike sand—spread through the gloomy city.
Perhaps because it was the Abyss where there was almost no sound, my own noises felt even louder.
My thumping heart, my shallow exhales, even the sound of my clothes brushing.
Every sound I made grated on me.
"There's no way the Cyclops can hear, but it's still kinda sca—"
Creak.
The moment I tried to speak for the broadcast, a sound cut in. A terrible sound, scraping against the building.
At that sound, I instinctively hid behind the building.
"Hup…… Hoo…."
Though there was no way it could hear me, I breathed as lightly as possible.
The chat window was on fire, contrary to my heart.
ㄴScholar of Truth: Wow, you would've been caught if you messed up just now, right?
ㄴHealingisViolence: …Why am I trembling just watching? Is it because the streamer is too weak?
ㄴAlcoholisLife: Uwak, is that an Abyss creature? Definitely a form you can't see on the surface.
Click.
A giant eye passed by where I had been.
Now, holding my breath and waiting, one thought circled in my head.
I want to go back.
I don't know if I want to go home or back to the submersible.
No, it's probably both.
I poked my head out to look around; the Cyclops was gone.
Once confirmed, I immediately headed toward another building at a quick pace.
Most buildings were closed, making it difficult to enter.
I wandered around looking for buildings with open doors.
Here and there, heart-attack-inducing Cyclopses popped out, nearly getting me killed on the street.
Still, the tower raid was proceeding relatively smoothly.
The tallest skyscraper in the city.
I had considered heading toward the center where it was located, but.
"…Why are there so many?"
The number of Cyclopses increased exponentially as I went toward the center.
Seeing that scene from afar, I immediately turned around.
No matter how I thought about it, I couldn't win against a mob.
The moment I shook my head and turned around.
Whir.
A sudden engine sound.
And the source of that sound was—
"Huh…? Huh. No, why is this…."
The building I had been using for cover.
The building emitting the engine sound soon.
Thud! Thud!
Released a light incomparable to streetlights.
Before I could even think why the building activated or what I had done—
Click.
Click.Click.Click.Click.Click.Click.
Dozens of blade-like eyes on the mana-emitting building looked.
ㄴHealingisViolence: It's over.
Crack! Crunch! Slash!
Dozens of slashes flew straight toward me.
I roll, I run, the floor caves in.
Spurt!
"Hup…!"
A wave of countless slashes flew toward me.
Ignoring the flowing blood as best I could, I turned into an alley.
Crack-clack!!
Countless marks appeared where I had been.
Still, a slight gap had formed.
I ran, buying time for the Cyclops horde to turn the corner.
A place to catch my breath, a place where I could survive.
As I was heading straight back to the submersible, I looked ahead and quickly turned.
Two Cyclopses were blocking the path.
The odds of winning if I fought were higher than against the horde approaching from behind.
But if I was delayed, I would die.
I wasn't crazy enough to gamble on that.
I had no choice but to turn elsewhere.
Because it was a silent city, the sound was even clearer.
The wave of slashes chasing after me.
It was even getting closer.
My head spun furiously.
My senses to perceive my surroundings shot up sharply, and my eyes couldn't stay still for a moment.
"Please…!"
My calves hurt like they would burst, but I couldn't stop.
I just ran.
But.
Swoosh-swoosh!!
The sound of the slash wave only grew louder.
In that moment of extreme tension.
Whir.
A mechanical arm was waving from an open door.
A gesture as if telling me to come in.
It's a trap.
Rationally thinking, that was obviously a trap.
But…
The sound of the slashes had reached right behind me.
The moment the Cyclops horde turned the corner, I would be torn to pieces.
Ignoring my screaming reason, I went straight through the door.
The moment I entered, the mechanical arm closed the door.
The sound of slashes disappeared and silence fell.
"Hoo hoo…."
I leaned against the door and caught my rough breath.
A few minutes passed like that.
Whir,
I saw it waving its hand in front of me.
Tank-like caterpillar tracks attached below.
Mechanical arms like those seen in factories placed atop it.
And an overall black color.
It was a machine.
The kind of machine you would see in a factory.
Having seen similar things on Earth, I wasn't too surprised.
The chat was different.
ㄴScholar of Truth: ?? What is this? An inanimate object with an ego?
ㄴGradSchoolChooseWisely: Gaaack!! What the hell is this now!!!
ㄴAlcoholisLife: I'll say it now. Even dwarves can't make that. Don't ask them to make one for you.
Taking in the chat flooding at an unbelievable speed, as if only high-level users were posting.
I looked at the mechanical arm robot.
On the robot's mechanical arm was written an unidentified set of characters.
But for some reason, I felt like I could read them.
"Your name is 'Absoluzion'?"
Whir. Whir.
The machine moved its hand up and down as if affirming my words.
Machine—no. Absoluzion was trying to do something.
The mechanical arm that had paused for a moment pulled something from its hand.
A green light—mana—flickered from the inanimate object.
From the center of the four-pronged mechanical hand, an object made of mana formed.
The next moment, it fell into my hand.
Whir.
"…You're telling me to use the scanner?"
Absoluzion extended its hand with the scanner.
Half-doubting that action, I activated the scanner.
The scanner emitted a brief green light.
And converted the small object's information into something I could read.
-Map of Sector N023.
It was the moment I gained a friend in the Abyss.