*Rumble.*
The light that had blown away the corpse’s upper half created a large hole in one wall of the stone chamber.
Dust and stone fragments poured from the ceiling and walls.
No trace now remained of the stone chamber that had once been beautiful.
The corpse’s remaining remains rotted away rapidly.
[It was maintaining its form with corrupted energy.]
Sopeu spoke in a calm voice.
“Is that even possible?”
That it had maintained its form until now meant corrupted energy had been continuously consumed.
Tens of thousands of years had already passed; it was a ridiculous tale.
[……Of course it’s ridiculous.]
Contrary to expectations, Sopeu agreed with me.
It was puzzling, but Sopeu’s darkening mood made it difficult to ask again.
Anyway, I had fought my dead comrade once more.
There was no way I could feel good about that.
After the corpse melted away as though the surrounding walls had melted, only a staff and a bracelet remained in its place.
“Are these the relics that were said to be corrupted?”
[We drew out the Demon King’s power together with Japeumel. Thanks to that, we survived and were able to seal the Demon King.]
They were an ornate staff and a magnificent bracelet.
I couldn’t help but tilt my head at the staff and bracelet.
“That’s strange. I don’t feel that terrible energy from them now.”
It wasn’t just the relics from which the Demon King’s energy had disappeared.
The terrible energy that had filled the stone chamber had vanished completely now.
As if such energy had never existed from the beginning, the chamber was clean.
As I looked around with surprised eyes, I heard Sopeu groan.
[……So that’s how it was.]
“Do you know something this time too?”
[It’s still only a guess.]
Though he called it a guess, he no longer seemed intent on hiding anything.
“Please tell me even if it’s just a guess.”
[That energy must have been sent by the Demon King. When he corrupted Japeumel, he must have established a connection to himself. Just as the seal here weakened, the Demon King’s seal must have weakened as well, providing enough power for the corpse to move.]
“So in the end, does that mean the Demon King’s seal will break too?”
I had heard unwelcome news, but I couldn’t even sigh.
When I had heard talk of the Demon King, I had thought things might turn out this way.
I had thought so from the beginning—either I or Sopeu definitely carried misfortune.
[Not immediately. If it were, the Demon King would have no reason to do something this bothersome.]
I nodded at Sopeu’s words.
If it wasn’t immediate, it didn’t matter.
“Then it doesn’t matter. If it’s not urgent, let’s think about it later.”
It might be avoidance, but I had no intention of digging into unnecessary matters.
Rather than worrying about a Demon King who might break free at any time, it was better to focus on my growth and collecting black stones.
Since the Demon King’s energy had disappeared, these relics could be used.
I picked up the staff and bracelet.
[Japeumel’s staff strengthens magic. Mainly, it enhances wind-element magic.]
At Sopeu’s words, I thought of someone who used similar magic.
A woman who didn’t scruple over means to achieve her ends.
However, I was troubled over whether I should give this staff to Catherine.
It was difficult to decide right now.
I decided to think about it after meeting Catherine.
Delaying the decision, I examined the bracelet.
“What ability does this bracelet have?”
I channeled energy into the bracelet.
*Shwaaa!*
A hologram appeared before my eyes.
Inside the large, semi-transparent hologram, a large map was visible.
[The functions are still alive.]
“Is this a map?”
[Its basic function is a map, but…… it’s closer to an ID and a key. You might call it the Tower Master’s identification card.]
“If it’s an ID, isn’t it useless now that the owner is dead?”
[The authentication would have been released. Tens of thousands of years have passed since the owner died, so it must have reset. You should be able to use it without issue. However, I don’t know if it’ll be of any use now.]
Taking that to mean it didn’t matter, I tried the bracelet on my wrist.
*Click.*
It was rather large, but once on my arm, it adjusted to fit perfectly.
*Whir.*
The bracelet trembled as energy flowed into it.
“It’s taking more energy.”
[It’s performing a new authentication. Since there’s no ego like me inside, you’ll have to figure out how to use it yourself.]
“I wasn’t expecting anything.”
Still, I felt like I could tell whether the authentication had succeeded and how to use it.
Moving the map within the hologram, as well as adding or removing information, was something I could do immediately.
Perhaps because it was a map from tens of thousands of years ago, it was very different from the current world.
Mountain ranges were drawn in white instead of gray, and much of the plains were colored green. Rivers and streams crossed the green plains.
It was a map lush with greenery, like those seen on Earth.
While examining the map, I came across something odd.
As I kept adding to the list, several locations on the map began to sparkle.
Without a manual, I couldn’t tell what they meant.
It wasn’t a problem. The person to tell me was right beside me.
I asked Sopeu.
“What are these sparkling things?”
When I pointed to the sparkling locations inside the hologram, Sopeu answered in a surprised voice.
[These…… are Magic Towers. So some Magic Towers still survived.]
“You mean the building with the study I saw in your memories?”
[It’s where mages reside. If I were to put it in Earth terms, I suppose you’d call them branches of a Mage Association……]
Sopeu clicked his tongue, as if displeased with the analogy.
In the end, it meant they were buildings where mages gathered.
I examined the map closely.
There were four sparkling locations.
One of them was nearby.
“One is close.”
[Once we leave here, we head to that tower.]
“You called it a tower, didn’t you? It would have been above ground; would the facilities still be intact?”
[The surface portion must have collapsed. But there are facilities underground as well. The fact that there’s a signal means there are surviving facilities.]
“What is there in the Magic Tower’s underground that we have to go see?”
I had spent a lot of time chasing monsters and traversing these ruins.
Since the scouting results weren’t bad, it was about time to head back.
It seemed better to just return.
I heard Sopeu speak.
[It’s a mages’ tower. Of course there’s a spatial movement device underground.]
“Then we have to go.”
I immediately changed my mind.
If there was a spatial movement device, I had to go.
If it was operational, returning would be convenient, and it would help when I came back later with the team members.
With the destination decided, it was time to move.
Holding my spear and the staff, I went to retrieve the backpack I had thrown aside.
Fortunately, the box was intact, but the backpack was too damaged to use further.
The clothes were the same.
It was a stroke of luck that I had brought one spare set of each.
After placing the staff in the box, I discarded my old clothes and backpack and changed into new ones from the box.
Shouldering the new backpack, I left the stone chamber.
The First Emperor’s chamber was now nothing but ruins that could hardly be called ruins.
***
A magic monster ran through the passage, chasing the human who had descended underground.
Midway, the energy filling the ruins vanished, but the monster did not stop.
The command of the mother entity—the controller—was absolute.
*Pat-pat-pat!*
Paying no attention to the reliefs covering the walls, the monster moving its six legs continuously spotted the human standing in the passage.
Behind the human lay the scout monster that had gone ahead.
Though only one was visible, the scout monsters that had gone ahead of it were not alone.
It meant the other monsters had fallen deeper inside.
The monster moved its hand.
It was to cast magic.
The human could be seen moving as well.
Though he appeared to be a mage, the human moved his hands without a staff.
A human drawing circles with both hands.
It was a strange sight, but the monster cast its magic.
*Fwoosh.*
Flames swept through the tunnel.
There was nowhere to avoid. A human should not be able to withstand such flames.
But the human did not die.
He wasn’t even there.
*Tap.*
Right in front of it, the human had placed a hand on its stomach.
‘Spatial movement?’
The monster recalled the human’s space-leaping magic, but immediately dismissed the thought.
Because humans couldn’t use spatial movement without an object.
Anyway, the human had approached right up to its nose.
The monster immediately cast a spell.
It built a defensive magic circle inside its body so that it could block any magic used against it.
At that moment.
*Whoooom.*
An explosion erupted from the human’s hand.
Along with the hand, the hide vibrated.
Flesh and blood shook together.
*Splooosh!*
The monster’s stomach burst open.
It looked at the human, spouting white blood.
The monster couldn’t understand.
Magic had unfolded from the human’s hand, yet the defensive magic inside its body hadn’t activated.
Until the human extracted the black stone, the monster did not lose its bewildered expression.
*Thud.*
The monster collapsed.
***
The collapsed monster wore a strange expression.
“Their expressions keep getting more varied. Soon there will be monsters making expressions like humans.”
[Is the expression the problem? There are ones capable of conversation.]
Sopeu said something strange.
“Huh?”
I asked again, but Sopeu changed the subject.
[More importantly, what is that?]
He must have meant he wouldn’t tell me, so I humored him.
I told him about the magic I had just used.
“I gather wind and make it explode.”
Magic that pulls the surrounding wind and air into the hand and detonates it in one blow.
It was something I had modified in my own way, using Sopeu’s memories and the magic I saw while fighting the corpse.
Wind magic was difficult to use because it utilized air that couldn’t be touched by hand.
Fortunately, I had found a way after observing Japeumel.
If it was difficult to gather wind and air in the hand, one simply had to move the hand.
I moved both hands to pull in air and wind.
Moving both hands looked like Tai Chi, but the effect was outstanding.
I had gathered the air in this way and detonated it against the monster’s stomach.
The air I detonated caused the monster’s hide to vibrate and shook its insides.
It wasn’t magic that burst the monster’s stomach, but vibration.
I had matched the vibration frequency to the monster’s interior, which I had sensed, and the effect was better than expected.
[You’ve created another strange thing.]
“It’s the desperate struggle of a mage who can only use makeshift methods. I was thinking of naming the incantation ‘Gut-Penetrating Fist’ or ‘Void-Striking Palm’.”
[Don’t give magic strange names.]
“Aren’t the effects similar?”
At my words, Sopeu closed his mouth.
He too knew that I wasn’t wrong.
A mage’s incantation was necessary to construct the image of the magic when completing a spell.
The best words were those that could express the image one had in mind.
In that sense, martial art names were quite fitting.
Joking with Sopeu like that, I placed the black stone and the monster corpse into the box.
Since I had confirmed that even magic monsters wouldn’t pose a problem, there was nothing left to fear inside here.
[There will be ones waiting outside.]
“That doesn’t matter either. I have Sopeu.”
There was a controller and those surrounding the ruins, but as long as we didn’t fight, there would be no issue.
I gripped my spear and ran again.
The entrance was not far.
As expected, outside the ruins, monsters surrounded the area.
Defensive-type monsters that hadn’t been able to enter were encircling the area, and among them, magic monsters and scout monsters prepared their magic and tentacles.
The controller too had raised all its pillar-like tentacles and was waiting for me to come out.
I could feel the monsters’ momentum just by sensing them.
But I wasn’t worried.
I increased my speed further.
And the moment I exited the entrance, attacks poured toward the entrance.
Magic flew and tentacles shot.
The monsters stood packed so tightly there was nowhere to dodge.
But it didn’t matter.
Sopeu chanted.
[Gravity Reversal.]
My body shot up toward the sky.
*Whoosh!*
The tentacles and magic passed beneath my feet.
The ruins and monsters grew smaller and smaller.
Seeing me soaring into the sky, the magic monsters tried to follow.
I moved my hands.
Wind and air gathered in my hands.
I put my hands behind me and detonated the air.
*Boom!*
My body was shot in the opposite direction from the exploding wind.
As Sopeu and I used magic together, the energy rapidly decreased.
But it didn’t matter.
At this speed, I could easily shake off the magic monsters.
I flew quickly toward the Magic Tower the bracelet had indicated.
Magic Tower (2)