-Only an Archmage
Before my eyes, a kaleidoscopic world of every color flashed open and swept past.
It was what happened when I entered the traces of the infinite pentagon that Na Sanhaegyeong had left behind.
Pouring out waves of mana so as not to lose focus, I opened my golden vision wide and pierced through the spatial magic.
A gorgeous, dazzling world brushed past my eyes.
A pitch-black world dyed my vision.
Worlds of every incomprehensible hue appeared and vanished without end.
Each of them was a different dimension.
Only then did I realize what black mages did with spatial magic.
They borrowed the power of other dimensions.
They connected to countless other dimensions, borrowed their mana waves, and stole their resources.
Until now, mages had believed that black mages only borrowed power by making contracts with demon kings in the Demon Realm.
But that was not necessarily all there was to it.
If spatial magic was used properly, one could connect to any dimension. Energy, living beings—anything could be made to cross over.
Had Na Sanhaegyeong reached that level on her own?
Or had it been possible through the power Samir had bestowed upon her?
In any case, within the traces left behind by Na Sanhaegyeong’s spatial magic, there unfolded a dimension like a gathering place for splendid, radiant lifeforms.
“Mage!”
“Mage! Are you all right?”
Hearing voices calling me from far, far away, I snapped back to my senses and saw the three of them surrounding me with startled faces.
“I’m fine. Why? Was I acting strange?”
“No... You weren’t moving at all, so I thought maybe you’d been paralyzed.”
“I thought you’d lost consciousness.”
“No. I’m fine.”
After reassuring Cheon Danbi and Gil, I looked around.
My vision was dizzy for a moment, and I had to adjust it.
I drew back the golden sight that had been focused solely on a single point, looking only at the reverse space beyond spatial magic, and faced the reality around me.
The chimeras were no longer visible.
All of them had been sucked into the single point of compressed space and disappeared.
But the surrounding scenery—the air, the ground, the roads, and the buildings—was clean, as though nothing had happened at all.
Since I had compressed the surrounding space into the place where the red portal had been, everything around it must have been swept into that spot.
The ground, the wreckage of the destroyed buildings nearby, even the air and the gray energy had all been absorbed intact.
But space possessed its own restorative force.
The purpose of my will when I activated the spatial magic had been clear.
To wipe out the chimeras.
And so, after achieving that purpose, the spatial magic had restored the space there exactly as it had been before, as if copying the previous scenery.
The scenery stretched out naturally, connected to what lay in front, behind, left, and right, without the slightest sense of incongruity.
Other than the fact that all the chimeras had vanished and were no longer appearing, it seemed as if nothing had changed at all.
‘As expected, high-dimensional spatial magic is incredibly mysterious.’
It was magic that could not even be compared to making a temporary spatial pocket.
Even I, who had cast the magic myself, found it this wondrous, so it was only natural that those who had watched from the side were astonished.
“That was truly an incredible spell.”
“What on earth did you do, and how?”
“You used spatial magic, didn’t you? Where did the chimeras disappear to?”
The three of them bombarded me with questions.
“Hold on. Let me finish things first.”
I focused my mind and drew up all the mana I had left. Then I activated spatial magic once again.
It was the work of sending the space I had compressed into a single point to the dimension beyond the red portal.
‘O point of space, to the dimension beyond the portal!’
The red portal looked as if it had closed, but in truth, it had not closed completely.
That was why chimeras had been able to continue pouring out from it.
Once again, the red portal opened slightly.
For the briefest moment. Only long enough to swallow the single point of compressed space.
A red light rippled in the air, then soon vanished.
“It’s all over now.”
At my words, the three of them all let out a sigh at once. Even I found a sigh escaping me.
In my case, it was because I had used up all my mana, but I wondered why the three who had only been watching were doing the same, so I looked around.
“It’s really over now, right? You worked hard.”
“That was truly amazing.”
“Astonishing. But where does that red portal lead?”
Cheon Danbi and Gil were merely expressing their admiration, but Yu Jaeseon continued the question he had asked a moment ago.
“The red portal was one Na Sanhaegyeong opened, and it’s connected to another dimension. That’s where the chimeras kept coming from.”
“So that was it. She was bringing in lifeforms from another dimension?”
“They may be lifeforms from another dimension, or at the very least, things created in another dimension. I sent the chimeras back to where they came from using spatial magic.”
Na Sanhaegyeong had been sending the chimeras here through the portal, but I could not know whether those chimeras were lifeforms from another dimension, or whether she had created them herself using resources from another dimension.
Considering the immense pride Na Sanhaegyeong had taken in creating bizarre lifeforms, rather than merely being a medium, it was probably the latter.
“Another dimension? Not another country, but another dimension?”
Cheon Danbi asked, her eyes wide.
“It might be another country, in a way. It could even be connected to the Magic Tower. It depends on the black mage’s capability.”
A moment ago, from the traces of the red portal, I had read a kaleidoscope of diverse dimensions, but that did not necessarily prove that the chimeras had come from another dimension.
It was merely within the realm of possibility.
The world of infinite possibilities that spatial magic could open.
And so I answered while leaving several possibilities open.
“In any case, I’m surprised. I had no idea you were this proficient in spatial magic as well, Mage Oudin. To think you could look beyond dimensions without making a contract with an existence from another dimension like black mages do.”
Yu Jaeseon was sincerely impressed.
As an analyst, he seemed to know more than I did, at least in theory, about the relationship between spatial magic and other dimensions, but he did not seem to know how to actually make use of it.
“I only glanced at it, that’s all. I still don’t know how to cross over to another dimension through a portal.”
“That’s something only an archmage can do.”
The moment I heard Yu Jaeseon’s answer, something else suddenly came to mind.
The fact that I had come to this world.
If I thought about it, the fact that I, who had believed myself dead, crossed over into this world could be called moving to another dimension, couldn’t it?
As soon as I thought that, an indescribably strange sensation swept over me.
It felt as though something I had forgotten for a long time was gently trying to awaken, shaking the very foundation of my existence.
As if wings were trying to sprout from my spine, a strange sensation crept up my back.
The feeling that there was something I had not yet remembered.
Of course, I had never forgotten the question itself.
How had I crossed over into this world?
But since it was not a problem I could solve right away, I had merely set it aside for the time being and focused on my life in this world.
And I had a purpose that pierced through this world.
It was the same now.
For the moment, I could not dig into that question. There was the situation before me to deal with.
And, naturally, the thought settled in me that if I truly became an archmage who could freely command spatial magic, the question would be answered.
“What’s wrong now? What is it?”
Cheon Danbi asked, peering into my face.
“No. It’s nothing.”
Had I frozen up again?
I shook my head and even deliberately gave Cheon Danbi a bright smile.
At that, Cheon Danbi returned the smile, then looked around and said,
“Then shall we move now? The chimeras are completely gone, and even the gray energy has disappeared, so I think we can leave this place.”
“That’s right. It would be best to move now. But it seems everyone has used up too much mana at the moment, so how about we return to headquarters first, rest for a while, and then continue the operation?”
Yu Jaeseon said.
It was a fair point. Everyone was quite exhausted right now.
But evening was already approaching.
The sun was still up, but with the weather so cloudy, it seemed likely to grow dark early.
It was obvious that once darkness fell, the operation would not be easy.
“That’s a good idea, but won’t it get dark very soon?”
“That’s true.”
“Let’s at least finish the reconnaissance first. How much of the northern district is left?”
“If we go a little farther from here, Chinatown ends. Then we’ll enter another neighborhood, and there haven’t been any reports of chimeras appearing there yet.”
“I see. Then shall we go that far first?”
“Yes. I’ll contact the situation room.”
We began walking. Yu Jaeseon also contacted the situation room as he walked.
The street was silent. There were no chimeras in sight, but there were no people either.
This was not an evacuated area, so everyone must have been hiding in their homes, yet there was not the slightest sign of them.
Were they all hiding that well?
Yu Jaeseon ended the communication after telling them to help evacuate the residents of this district.
“It seems we don’t need to go any farther up this way. Instead, we should head toward Incheon Station. They say chimeras are still appearing over there.”
“Ah, I see. They originally said chimeras were swarming in from the direction of Incheon Station, didn’t they? Then let’s go that way.”
Perhaps another red portal was open over there as well.
At the very least, it was clear that the operation was not yet over.
Just as we were about to turn around, Cheon Danbi stepped in front of us and opened her bag.
“Hold on! Let’s all replenish our energy before we go.”
The peddler’s bundle opened, and once again, potions and combat rations emerged.
No one refused; everyone drank potions and accepted combat rations.
Perhaps because our mana consumption had been so severe, this time, even after drinking the potion, it did not feel as though my strength immediately returned.
The unchanging weather played a part as well.
The gray energy in this district had more or less disappeared, but the damp air remained, and the sweltering heat had not abated.
It felt as though we would need to rest and cultivate for a while before our energy returned, and I wondered if we were forcing ourselves into an unnecessary march.
“Gil. Try cultivating even while walking.”
Though I could not let him rest right away, I wanted to help him recover even a little mana, so I said that to Gil.
“Ah, yes. I will.”
Not only Gil, but Cheon Danbi and Yu Jaeseon also understood my words and cultivated as they walked.
I could not do the same, since I had to detect and stay on guard.
The group quietly walked downward for a while.
It was when we were passing through an alley in a residential area.
My detection picked up gray energy.
“Wait! Zombies!”
Gil shouted.
I had thought he was cultivating as he walked, but it seemed he had stretched out his concentric circles at some point.
But zombies?