It was twelve hours later that I woke from my faint.
The next morning.
When I opened my eyes, I saw Hanna.
“How are you feeling?”
While I had been unconscious, Hanna seemed to have been nursing me.
My body was not as bad as I had expected.
The muscle pain was still severe, and fighting was impossible, but I could move.
[Consider yourself lucky. To use physical enhancement twice and end up only like this… Among mages, there were several who became half-paralyzed.]
[Wasn’t that because mages have frail bodies?]
[If only you couldn’t talk…]
Instead of refuting me, Soph just nitpicked for no reason.
Which meant I was right.
[I don’t know whether it’s because you have a lot of dark energy or because your body is good, but for having used physical enhancement twice, the aftereffects are not severe. But you do know that it was undoubtedly dangerous, don’t you?]
I knew very well that I had walked a tightrope over a cliff.
But it was also true that I had saved my life thanks to using physical enhancement magic.
Even now, my body trembled from the pain.
Even so, if I had to use it again in the future, I intended to.
Soph said nothing more.
Because to him, there was something more important right now than “physical enhancement magic.”
[Now, tell me. How did you use magic?]
As expected, Soph asked about the magic I had used.
I asked Soph in return.
[Was it really magic?]
What I had created was a weak electric current, just enough to make my body tingle.
Compared to the lightning magic Soph had used, it was not even worth mentioning.
[Is a worm that cannot even crawl comparing itself to a bird flying in the sky?]
Was I the worm, and Soph the bird?
[It was truly pathetic, but it was magic. Hurry and tell me how you used it.]
I was curious about that too.
I told Soph everything I had experienced.
From the ticklish sensation, to how I had imitated Soph using magic.
I even told him about the patterns and the unknown letters that had appeared in my head.
At my words, Soph was dumbfounded.
[...Good heavens. You copied the magic I used?]
[I’ve always been good at memorization.]
Math and physics had never been my thing, but I was confident in memorization.
My words only made the mage angrier.
[That is not the issue! It is not something you can do just by drawing the same magic circle and memorizing the formulae!
Depending on the situation and the energy you possess, you must construct and calculate it delicately—that is what magic circles and formulae are!]
The formulae and patterns looked complicated even to me, but I did not necessarily need to calculate them.
[It worked when I just went with my instincts.]
My senses told me how to change the patterns. The formulae were the same.
[That requires precise calculations. It is not something done by instinct. What you are saying is utterly absurd…]
[Maybe it’s because it was easy magic.]
[I am telling you, that is not the issue! This makes a mockery of all the suffering mages go through…]
Soph kept talking, but it was all more or less the same. I ignored him.
Instead, I flicked my finger.
Crackle.
A spark leapt between my fingers.
‘Then this must be magic, right? I’ve become able to use magic.’
I had spoken to Soph as if it were nothing special, but I could not help but feel excited myself.
To think I could learn magic, something I had completely given up on.
It might not be proper learning, but if I could use magic, I did not care what method it was.
‘Magic research can be left to mages.’
It seemed I would have to work harder at recovering Soph’s memories from now on.
If Soph found more magic, it was certain it would help me far more than before.
While I was talking with Soph, Hanna was watching me in silence.
“Doesn’t it seem strange? Me sitting here silently, staring into space like this?”
I asked Hanna.
Hanna also knew that when I was silent, I was doing something.
At my words, Hanna shook her head.
“No. I’m sure you have your reasons.”
I clicked my tongue softly at Hanna’s words.
Hanna trusted me to an almost strange degree.
And yet she had disobeyed my orders and followed me here.
It seemed I should ask her the reason now.
But before that, there was something I had to say first.
I bowed my head to her.
“Thank you. I survived thanks to you.”
Because of the magic that had suddenly manifested, if Hanna had not been there, I might have been in serious danger.
At my words, Hanna shook her head.
“No. I only did what I had to do.”
Her answer was not like someone her age.
Instead of thanking her further, I asked the question I had originally intended to ask.
“There’s something I want to ask. Why did you disobey my order and follow me? I’m not angry. I just want to know the reason.”
She had disobeyed my order and followed me all the way here. I could no longer pretend not to know and let it pass.
At my question, Hanna answered immediately.
“Oppa’s light called me. It said I had to be there.”
Again, it was a similar story.
The light she always spoke of.
It sounded like fanaticism or shamanistic faith, so until now I had pretended not to know and let it go every time.
But this time, I could not let it pass that way.
“Can you tell me in more detail?”
Fortunately, Hanna told me everything in response to my question.
Her difficult childhood, the light that had appeared before her, and how she had followed the light to overcome hardships.
She even told me that after coming to this star, she had come to see that light from me.
Her story sounded like that of a shaman who had received a spirit, and also like the testimony of a priest who had heard the voice of God.
It was not for nothing that people talked about shamans or fanaticism.
If it had been before I came to this star, I certainly would not have believed her words.
But on this star, unbelievable things happened every time.
Considering those things, her words were not lies.
As long as it did not interfere with the operation, I did not care whether she was a shaman or a fanatic.
The only problem was that the person she followed was me.
While I was listening and feeling troubled, Soph spoke.
[Is she a Star Maiden?]
Did Soph know something?
[A maiden?]
[It is a title given to leaders by those who worship the star itself as a god. Mages consider them people who have gained the power of foresight.]
The light she had seen was not some delusion. It was a kind of supernatural ability, like my senses.
A smile came to my lips on its own.
If that light helped her, that meant it would help the exploration team she belonged to as well.
I myself had already survived thanks to that light.
It did not matter whether she was a Star Maiden or someone with foresight.
She was simply an excellent team member who would be of help to me and the exploration team.
“You did well. But when you see that light, tell me too.”
“Yes!”
At my words, Hanna smiled brightly and nodded.
She seemed truly happy that I had believed her.
While we talked, the pain subsided quite a bit.
I rose from my seat and picked up my staff.
With the spearhead gone, the staff looked like nothing more than a rod.
I took the black stone out of my pocket.
A black stone with purple light flowing through it.
[This can be used as a spearhead too, right?]
[I do not know why you keep trying to turn everything into a spearhead. You could simply use it as a staff.]
Soph grumbled, but I needed a spear.
In truth, a gun would have been better.
But since I had no gun, I at least had to carry a spear.
No matter what Soph said, I could not wander around a star where monsters roamed without a weapon.
[Anyway, there’s no problem, right?]
[Of course there is a problem. That black stone has been altered so Akzar can use it. If you are to use it, a mage must use the facilities to refine it.]
There was a mage here, and there were also facilities to fix the black stone.
[Then there’s no problem.]
[You ought to know how troublesome that is.]
Soph grumbled, but it was not as if I would be the one doing it anyway.
[If I use this black stone, I’ll become stronger, right?]
[It should be able to charge more than twice as much. The charging speed will be faster as well.]
In the end, it meant I would become stronger.
I had killed a stronger monster, so there was no way the reward would be bad.
[However, you must be careful when using magic that draws on the black stone’s original energy—what you call your “super finishing move.” There have been mages whose magic backflowed because they used this black stone carelessly. It is a black stone modified by Akzar. You should be cautious too.]
Even Soph, who was saying it, did not believe I would be cautious.
Naturally.
When my life was on the line, not using magic because I was worried about side effects?
That was nonsense.
Soph sighed and continued.
[In any case, we must use that black stone. Only by using that black stone can I track the location of the control entity.]
At Soph’s words, my expression hardened.
To capture just one scout, we had needed to use the entire power of the terraforming ruin.
And now, a control entity that controlled those scouts.
I could not even begin to guess how I was supposed to deal with it.
I sighed at the hopeless situation and said to Hanna,
“Let’s head back for now. Everyone must be worried.”
First, we went down underground and reprocessed the black stone using the lathe.
After that, I mounted the new black stone on my staff.
Now the spear had a spearhead with a purplish hue.
After remaking my weapon, I left the ruin with Hanna.
At the ruin, a large hole had been torn open where the entrance had been.
And seeing the wrecked lobby, the ruin now looked half in ruins.
Outside the ruin, it was still calm.
It was not because Soph had turned off the defensive magic.
We had forced energy into the black stone and even modified a new black stone.
The protective magic, the sandstorm, needed more time to activate.
And right now, the protective magic was not necessary.
[Tens of thousands of years have passed since then. There should not be many scouts left, so the scouts will not come back this way.]
After hearing Soph’s firm assurance, I left the desert region with Hanna.
The desert region had become even wider than before.
I could not tell whether it was because too much energy had been drained or because time had passed.
After seeing the desert that had grown far larger, Soph said nothing for a long while.
On our way back to the base, we met Carlo.
“Thank goodness. You were alive.”
While I had been unconscious, the exploration team members seemed to have arrived at the base.
They had delivered the news, so Carlo had rushed over first to check the situation.
From him, I was able to hear that the team members, Huiwon, and Staff Sergeant Kim were all safe.
Since they had moved at night, I had been worried.
It was truly a relief that they had arrived safely.
After meeting Carlo, we headed to the base together.
The base we arrived at around lunchtime was clearly different from when we had left.
The barrier wall was already complete.
They had moved the materials prepared in advance to the site, and extraordinary people had thrown themselves into the work.
Even so, I had not expected the barrier wall to be completed this quickly.
“Captain Hyun and the team member are both safe!”
The people keeping watch atop the wall saw us and shouted.
At that sound, the central gate of the wall opened wide, and people came running out through it.
The first to run over were Tom, Master Sergeant Woo, the two team members, Huiwon, and Staff Sergeant Kim.
I was not sure whether a patient should be moving like that, but Huiwon looked better than I had expected.
People rejoiced as they looked at Hanna and me.
Behind them, more people poured out.
It was David and the people of the base.
Among them was someone I was glad to see.
“I’m back! I heard you caused quite a stir while I was gone!”
Margreta had returned.
She waved at me when she saw me.
Beside her were people I had never seen before.
Three people who looked like researchers, and two Asians who looked Chinese.
All of them had unpleasant expressions as they looked at me.
For some reason, it seemed they did not like me.
Still, without paying that any mind, I said to Margreta,
“I have a present.”
A present I had deliberately brought from the ruin.
It was a present even people who had just come to this star would be glad to see.
I took a box out of my backpack and pulled out what was inside.
A tremendous-sized present fell to the ground.
Thud.
Dust billowed up.
People stared blankly at the present I had taken out.
What I had placed on the ground was a gigantic tentacled monster, several tentacles dangling from it.
What I had taken out was the corpse of an Akzar scout.
Even now, an energy close to killing intent surged from the corpse.
Its enormous body and the thick tentacles draped over the barrier wall still seemed as if they were moving.
“Good heavens. What is this…”
The people on top of the wall stumbled backward while avoiding the tentacles, and the others covered their mouths and swallowed their screams.
Everyone was terrified at the sight of the corpse.
The newcomers were the same.
Their mouths hung open as they stared at the monster.
I raised my hand and pointed at the corpse.
To the terrified people, I introduced the monster I had brought.
“This is the reason we built the barrier wall, and the enemy we will be facing.”
Now it was time for the others to learn about the Akzar monsters as well.