6. Residual Authority>
Sian moved without hesitation along the path that continued to appear before his eyes, but questions kept rising in his mind.
‘…
Is this the right way? Seriously?’
He had never failed by following his instincts before, so he was throwing himself forward without hesitation, but the farther he went, the more doubtful he became.
Far off in the distance, the Drakun were flying toward him with unstoppable momentum, yet his instincts kept shouting at him to head for the center of the Cloud Island.
‘No… How am I supposed to survive by going there…….’
No matter how he looked at it, it seemed like he was walking straight into his own grave, but Sian gritted his teeth and ran. It was already too late to flee outside, and for some reason he could not use spatial movement either. In that case, his only answer was to follow the path before him.
Ruuuuuumble!
Perhaps because he had caused so much chaos, lava was overflowing through the underground tunnels and everything was collapsing on all sides. It was not simply breaking apart; the entire Cloud Island itself was sinking.
‘Damn it… I suppose, one way or another, I’ve completed the mission splendidly…….’
Since Unkara had been wiped out entirely, the barrier would gradually weaken. But Sian had absolutely no intention of dying after finishing his role as a hero of justice, so he quickly hurled himself forward.
At last, Sian was able to see where the path before his eyes was leading him.
‘Is that it…….’
As the entire island began to sink, an enormous orb that seemed to have been located at the very center of the Cloud Island came into view. All the ground around it was crumbling and sinking, but the red orb remained floating in the air, scattering faint rays of light in every direction.
Looking at the red orb, which seemed to be over five meters in diameter and at first glance gave off no sensation at all, Sian let out a low groan.
‘That is…….’
Sian had never seen it before, but he understood its identity at once.
Aksarai’s Authority, said to have created the smoke-based barrier Akun-Kal.
There was no doubt that Authority was contained within that orb.
His path was endlessly shouting at him to enter it.
‘…
Into this suspicious place?’
No matter how many times his instincts had saved him, this felt excessive. From the outside, he could not sense any power from it, but up close, he could perceive the amount of power raging within.
It was truly an enormous amount. With this much, it felt as though one could tear apart dimensions, stitch them together, destroy them, and remake them anew. With that degree of force and Authority contained inside, it was no wonder it had created a barrier large enough to cover the continent and still have power to spare. He could understand why they had laughed when the priest of Lukra said he would destroy this in their stead.
Sian could not bring himself to leap in and hesitated for a moment, unable to believe that jumping inside that thing was the only way to survive.
But his time for worry did not last long. Even with Sian’s poor imagination, he could easily predict what would happen if he ran into those flying toward him from afar.
‘Damn it… There’s no way out of this…….’
It was not as if he had been walking down the road and unfairly treated like a thief; he had come to steal and been caught in the act, so he had nothing to say.
Watching the Drakun fly toward him while scattering terrifying momentum and killing intent, Sian squeezed his eyes shut and leaped into the red orb.
After jumping inside, Sian braced himself for any possible situation, but fortunately, nothing happened. The immense Authority filling the surroundings did not seem to be power meant for destruction, so even after Sian entered, it did not do anything inhuman like grind him apart with all its might or crush him flat.
Letting out a sigh of relief for now, Sian thanked the instincts that had saved him once again and looked around. The inside of the red orb was exactly as it appeared, composed of a space about five meters in diameter. If there was one unusual thing, it was that he could see the outside exactly as it was. The space, filled with a strange liquid, was certainly tinged red, but it did not obstruct his vision.
He could not hear the conversation they exchanged, but Sian was able to clearly watch the Drakun who had flown in from afar arrive in an instant.
The Drakun looked at one another with worried expressions, stared blankly at the red orb where he was hiding, and then, perhaps because they were in a hurry, quickly flew off in the direction they had come from.
Sian let out a sigh of relief. In truth, he had been worried about what would happen if they came inside too. If even one of them entered, he would have to fight for his life. If all of them entered, the result went without saying.
It was odd that Sian, who had absolutely nothing to do with this, had been able to enter, while the Drakun, the same race as Aksarai, could not come inside. Sian muttered to himself.
Sian was startled by the sudden voice and looked around.
Bewildered by the voice echoing inside his head, Sian let out something close to a groan.
Sian was flustered by the voice in his head, but when that voice greeted him, he reflexively replied.
No matter how he looked at it, the only reason he could suddenly hear a voice he had not heard before seemed to be because he had entered this strange place, so Sian asked.
Then the voice echoed in his head again.
At that, Sian asked with an expression of incomprehension.
A voice filled with an utterly pathetic tone echoed through his head.
Sian began to have a rough idea of who the being inside his head was.
At that, the voice answered with a sigh.
Sian’s expression hardened. So this was the one whom the Lukra had been so wary of.
No, why was such a being speaking inside his head in the first place? And what did he mean by saying Sian had caused a major incident?
After sorting through various thoughts, Sian opened his mouth.
At that, Aksarai spoke in an extremely frustrated tone.
What do you mean?>
When Sian asked with a hardened expression, Aksarai also spoke in a grave tone.
In truth, it was not as though Sian had never thought of that. But because he had something he believed in, he had carried out this plan.
Even if the barrier disappeared, it did not mean they could simply come out. The reason he had tried to break the barrier was merely because if the Authority of the Mountain of Extremes weakened because of it, that geographical advantage would vanish.
At that, Aksarai spoke as if acknowledging his point.
At that moment, something began to flood into Sian’s mind like a surging tide. Sian slowly began to look over the scene.
☆ ☆ ☆
Thousands of years ago.
This land, where all sorts of different races, including the Drakun, lived mingled together.
Even at that time, the Drakun maintained a force far more powerful than other races. However, because they lived in the sky, they had little reason to become entangled with other races, so they maintained a peaceful state without conflict.
Then one day, Aksarai, who led the Drakun, saw something falling from the distant sky.
What is that?>
Aksarai sharpened his eyesight and examined the object falling from the sky in detail. Then he was able to confirm what it was.
A beautifully shining golden crystal, beautiful enough to stir one’s possessive desire.
The golden crystal flew at a fierce speed, pierced through the clouds where they lived, and descended far below, embedding itself in the place now called the Mountain of Extremes.
The speed of the golden crystal was tremendous, but it was not large, and perhaps because some strange power was at work, only a small pond formed atop the mountain peak. There was no great damage or anything of the sort.
Judging from its appearance, it was absolutely not an object created naturally. It had been carved with tremendous delicacy and beauty. Aksarai became interested in the golden crystal that had descended from the sky, but he could not know for what purpose it had arrived here, so for the moment he forbade the Drakun from approaching it and ordered them to watch from afar.
But Aksarai soon realized that he could not afford to merely watch at ease.
Zuuuuung!
Because the moment the golden crystal fell to the ground, it formed a strange domain centered on itself. Fortunately, that domain only enveloped the mountain where they had fallen and did not expand any farther. But as he watched the strange laws being rearranged within it, Aksarai frowned.
The weaker they were, the less they would be able to properly use their power inside that place. After the golden crystal fell, that place became land ruled by laws completely different from those of the continent where they lived.
And after the strange domain was established around the golden crystal, the crystal emitted light once more.
Seeing that sight, Aksarai furrowed his brow. From within the small crystal, strange beings were descending without end.
I’ve never seen them before.>
The crystal was not exactly small. But whether dozens or hundreds of such large beings could have been riding within it… that was absolutely not the case.
The beings, who gave off a strange feeling, stretched and twisted their bodies as if stiff, then soon began to move around within the domain. They seemed to be checking what kind of environment they had newly fallen into.
As if they were accustomed to living inside the domain, the beings frowned when they stepped beyond the domain centered on the crystal—that is, onto the planet where Aksarai and his kind had originally lived. It seemed the new environment did not suit their tastes very well.
Up to this point, there had been no particular problem. But seeing what the beings did next, Aksarai frowned.
The beings returned to the crystal and took small jewels out from within it. Then they began to scatter them loosely toward the southern direction of what was now the Mountain of Extremes.
The change occurred not long after, and Aksarai was able to watch that change from beginning to end.
He did not know it then, but those beings were the Lukra.
The small jewels the Lukra scattered showed no change after falling to the ground. But soon, a transformation began.
Centered on the jewels, the surrounding atmosphere, soil, water, and the like were fiercely sucked in. Then, slowly gathering around the jewels, they began to form a single shape.
The gathered material changed, creating powerful claws and muscles, sturdy skin, and sharp teeth. On the head, a single horn, small but seemingly very hard, was formed. Blood began to flow through the completed body, energy began to circulate within it, and ferocity took root.
Before long, the small jewel had splendidly transformed into a small beast, looking around in every direction and roaring savagely. However, perhaps because it could not disobey the orders of the Lukra who had scattered the jewel, it remained very docile before them.
Because there were an enormous number of jewels, the beasts formed by gathering materials from the surroundings reached no less than thousands, tens of thousands, in an instant.
But Aksarai clicked his tongue as he watched.
From his perspective, it was only natural. They had numbers, but the pets with a single horn on their heads were far too weak.
But the Lukra’s actions were not yet over. They went back to the crystal and brought out another race from within.
Aksarai, watching this, clicked his tongue once more.
If they had looked a little easier to handle, and if they had not been hiding only within that thing called a domain, Aksarai would have immediately gathered the Drakun and gone to wipe out the fellows there.
But for creatures brought around by such powerful beings, the beasts and the race that had just appeared were far too weak.
Aksarai could not understand it, but he calmly watched the spectacle.
Perhaps the Lukra had not yet adapted to the environment, or perhaps the new environment displeased them, for they did not easily step outside the domain. But the creatures generated around the jewel and the races that came out of the crystal were different.
The small beasts generated around the jewel seemed extremely lively and full of energy, perhaps because they had been made using the materials of this place. In any case, those beasts spread steadily southward through the present Extreme Mountain, surveying and scouting in every direction, while the monkey-like creatures born from the crystal slowly descended toward the southern part of the continent under the beasts’ protection.
Aksarai, watching this, tilted his head.
And in those places, the monkey creatures settled down. The monkey creatures were pathetically weak, but their reproductive ability was so powerful that they filled the areas the beasts had cleared and increased their numbers in an instant.
In the midst of that, another fact could be confirmed as well. The small beasts that had initially possessed one horn grew stronger by devouring other races, or by steadily consuming the passage of time. At first, all of them had one horn, but gradually they increased the number of their horns—two, three, four… little by little.
After that, Aksarai was able to understand what those fellows had brought the monkey-like creatures around for.
Of course, they were such feeble creatures that eating them did not make the beasts stronger. However, since the beast creatures were fundamentally in the form of living beings, regardless of their strength, if they could not eat, they would all starve to death. Strangely enough, perhaps to foster their ferocity, they could not sustain themselves by eating things like grass or minerals. Only meat.
Those monkey-like creatures called Ro were, in the end, a food race brought around solely in preparation for when the beasts grew hungry.When the “Ro” picked up and ate anything they could find, expanded their influence, and increased their numbers, the “Na” would quietly go over, catch and eat them, and fill their bellies. Such cycles repeated over the years. And during those years, the small beasts they had raised by scattering jewels grew so large that it became embarrassing to call them small anymore.
Had Aksarai simply sat by and watched all of this? Of course not.
The Drakun and the Lukra had already been clashing for a long time. After seeing the suspicious things they were doing upon descending, Aksarai judged that he could not possibly leave them alone, and for that reason he had maintained continuous confrontation with them.
But these creatures called Lukra were truly not to be underestimated. That Grang
-ra fellow who swung the golden sword was as ignorant as they came, yet so strong that he was nearly Aksarai’s equal. As they fought, dying and living again and again, both he and Grang
-ra continued to grow stronger. If that fellow had peculiar traits, then he too possessed the power of omniscience.
On top of that, whenever they seemed about to lose, they swiftly retreated into the domain centered around their golden crystal and hid there, which drove him utterly mad.
For now, it was still a stalemate, but Aksarai instinctively knew. These fellows were waiting for something and endlessly putting off a decisive battle. Even when there had been several situations in which they could have seized victory, they merely strengthened their defense around the domain.
And Aksarai knew what that something was as well.
At the same time, after fighting the Lukra for a long period, Aksarai also understood why they brought around such strange races. The Lukra possessed power of immeasurable strength, but perhaps because of the characteristics of their race, their numbers were not many.
No matter how strong they were, if their numbers continued to decrease every time they fought, they would eventually go extinct. Moreover, arriving at a new settlement and failing to adapt to the environment was also a major problem.
That was why they had begun bringing around the mass-produced combat race, the “Na,” which they could procure and use locally. The problem was that, for a mass-produced race, if given time, they became far too strong.
At this, Aksarai made a decision.If he left them as they were, and if those beasts steadily grew stronger, this balance would eventually break one day. Realizing this, Aksarai came to the present Cloud Island and erected a barrier. By erecting the barrier, until Broxian later appeared and the stalemate was broken, the state of the Lukra and the Drakun formed an extremely firm equilibrium.
The functions of the barrier were all exactly as the Lukra had described. After all, it was a barrier he had made in order to deal with the Lukra efficiently.
However, the Lukra had not told Sian about the single most important function.☆ ☆ ☆
-Sian Continent, and the Harijan were ultimately races the Lukra had come and released onto this land thousands of years ago.
Moreover, if this was true, then he had caused a major disaster this time.
Signals? I never received anything like that.>Then Aksarai said,<…….>Only then did Sian realize where the warning instinct that had continuously flowed from within his body had come from.
Compared to what his instincts had been warning him of, this matter had proceeded far too easily. The cry of his instincts had not been trying to tell him that this place was dangerous, but that he must not break the barrier here.‘No wonder it felt so easy…….’Sian spoke in a voice full of disbelief.
Since when have you been inside my body?>Sian asked with a stiff expression. As far as he had heard, Aksarai’s Accessors had their bodies taken over by Aksarai the moment they became Alpha. Since such a being said it was inside his body, there was no way his expression could be good.
Seeing Sian like that, Aksarai gave a faint laugh and sent his voice again.
The Lukra said that when Aksarai’s Accessors become Alpha… their bodies are consumed by you.>At that, Aksarai snorted.
I’m not?>At that, Aksarai laughed with an expression of disbelief.
—smaller than the soul shard possessed by the one called Radra.><…….>Aksarai laughed as he watched Sian’s dumbfounded expression.
The path to becoming stronger.
The path to winning.
Aksarai answered in an incredulous voice.
Then Aksarai’s voice came to him.
But because of those few things, Sian had nearly died every single time. And from what he was hearing, it was not that he had simply been unluckily entangled. Things he could have somehow avoided had been linked and linked again until he was thrown right into the middle of them.
While he was spending time like this, the barrier would be steadily peeling away, and once it was completely gone, the Lukra would control the Harijan, including Dragona, and strike Drakun. Even if Sian had become stronger, he was absolutely not strong enough to face Dragona, Liona, and Crona at the same time and balance the forces.
Sian sighed as he looked at the flippant Aksarai.
After hearing Aksarai’s explanation, he was bewildered.<…You’re saying what’s here is your blood?>Aksarai’s voice came again.
However, he felt deeply uneasy about readily accepting the words of the suspicious existence in his head, so he could neither do this nor that.
At that moment, the liquid that had filled the crimson space began to surge. The liquid, which had started out rippling gently, soon spun more and more violently, and before long, it was whirling around Sian at a ferocious speed.
Soon, the blood that had been wrapping itself around his entire body began to seep into him little by little. The process of absorption was not clamorous, nor did any dazzling light flash forth. Rather, it proceeded very quietly, and slowly.
But that did not mean the process was easy. In truth, Sian was gritting his teeth and focusing his entire mind against the immense power burrowing into every part of his body. ‘Damn it… there really isn’t a single easy thing in this world…….’ Even though it was an energy favorable to him, it was this difficult. If it had been hostile, and if the fragment of Aksarai’s soul had not been inside his body, his body would have been crushed in an instant.
And Aksarai, who had been helping Sian as he concentrated with all his might, muttered inside Sian’s head.
☆ ☆ ☆
For now, the barrier was still holding. But the Cloud Island, which had been spewing smoke newly endowed with authority in order to maintain the barrier, had been completely destroyed.
With this, the result was obvious. The same thing as before would happen. After the barrier had been completed, the Rukra had fallen into the trap they themselves had created, unable to go this way or that.
But now, the situation had completely changed. They would bring the beasts they had raised and invade this place without hesitation.
☆ ☆ ☆
Moreover, he had clearly confirmed that the Drakun had flown toward the Cloud Island. If he had attacked the Drakun then, he could have bought time for Sian, but he had no intention of doing so whatsoever. He had sent him there to die in the first place, so why would he buy him time? If that many of them attacked him, he surely would have died as well.
Although, having lost control over them, he had been unable to stop them from eating one another instead of eating the “Ro” prepared as feed, that had actually produced a better result. There were not many sixth-grade “Na,” but they had obtained three seventh-grade individuals. Individuals of that level would be a tremendous help in dealing with the Drakun. Besides, was not the one that had accomplished this task also an individual that came from the “Ro”? In many ways, it was a great gain.
Now that the key of the Golden Crystal had disappeared, they could no longer go to another dwelling place. They had to live only here. Since this was the place where they would continue to live, they could not leave dangerous competitors like the Drakun alive.
The priest of Rukra, Katun-hal, waited impatiently for those clouds to clear completely and for control over the flourishing “Na” to return to him. The moment their control returned, there would be no need to wait any longer. He would immediately sweep away those Drakun.
☆ ☆ ☆
“…
What is this?”
Kon-rad frowned slightly at the strange sensation that had suddenly come over him.
At that moment, a familiar yet unfamiliar window appeared before his eyes. [A message has arrived.] [Ah, can you hear me? No, “can you see me” would be more accurate. Where did this bizarre, half-baked system get grafted from… onto my beautiful access system?]
“…
Who are you?”
Kon-rad tensed and spoke when a window called
“…….” [You should understand at once, if I go this far. Am I not the one you are connected to?]
“…
Aksarai? How… I am not even an Alpha yet…….”
Kon-rad was flustered. He had never even dreamed that a situation would come where he would converse with a being called Aksarai.
Whether Kon-rad was flustered or not, messages continued to arrive. [You fool, now is not the time to be surprised. If you stay there, all of you will die.]
“What… what are you talking about all of a sudden?”
Kon-rad let out a bewildered voice as Aksarai suddenly sent him a message and threatened that they were all going to die now. [Well… it’s nothing much. You know about the Rukra and the Drakun, don’t you? In a little while, war will break out. The Rukra will probably invade the Drakun’s territory… which means the place where you lot are clustered together and living will become a battlefield. And if that happens, you will naturally be annihilated. You will probably die just from being caught up in it.]
“This is…….”
If the words of the being called Aksarai were correct, the human race would be wiped out in an instant. Even if neither side deliberately attacked them, the aftermath of the battle between the two would shatter the continent. Naturally, that included those living upon it. [Hurry and evacuate all the humans to the place you call Ra-Sian. At least that place should be safe.]
“That is impossible.” [What? Did you not develop that spatial movement or whatever you call it? You can go with that.]
At that, Kon-rad shook his head.
“There are far too many humans for that. Is the war perhaps still a few years away?” [By your calendar… about a month? Hm… that is certainly not enough time for you.]
“…
Damn it… nowhere near enough.”
When Kon-rad ground his teeth, Aksarai offered the next best option. [Then, in your words… go hide in the corner as far away as possible from that Mountain of Extremes. It should be much better than being near it.]
“…
That is what we’ll have to do, since there is no time……. By the way, why are you helping us?”
Kon-rad asked the question that had been bothering him for some time. By common sense, there was no reason for Aksarai to help him.
At that, Aksarai’s message arrived. [Well… a child named Sian was worried about you lot. Think of it as a service. And what is so difficult about telling you to run away?]
“…
Sian?”
Kon-rad narrowed his brow and asked again. How did this Aksarai know Sian? As if he had guessed Kon-rad’s thoughts, Aksarai’s message arrived once more. [Even if you have many questions, you will come to know in time. We will be having many conversations from now on anyway.]
☆ ☆ ☆
Crack!
The sphere that had been filled with crimson liquid had, at some point, turned transparent without leaving even a single drop of blood behind. And Sian, who had been floating in the air inside it, had remained utterly still with his eyes closed as though meditating, until at a certain moment he snapped his eyes open.
“Phew…….”
Sian felt that he had completely absorbed the authority, loosened his body, and stepped out of the transparent sphere. The surrounding islands had already been completely destroyed, and all the smoke that had enclosed the area on every side had been blown away, so in every direction there was only a vast open sea with nowhere to set foot.
But Sian remained suspended in the air, slowly loosening his body, checking its condition, and carefully trying to move one part at a time.
“From the looks of it… I don’t think I got scammed…….”
Power was boiling over throughout his entire body. To the point that he wondered if it was all right to become this strong so easily. [Scammed? Have you lived your whole life being deceived, you young human whelp? You like it, don’t you?]
“…
You didn’t disappear?”
When the voice flowed through his head, Sian replied with a sullen expression.
At that, Aksarai nodded. [Well, your strength has grown tremendously. There is room enough for a fragment of my soul to settle in. Do not worry. I will not be here forever.]
“If you succeed in that… resurrection thing, will this voice disappear too?”
Sian asked out of curiosity. From what he had heard, this man’s goal seemed to be to obtain a new body. [Yes. So if you do not want to live with me for the rest of your life, you should work harder to help with my resurrection. Frankly, you have received quite a lot from me already.]
“Haah…….”
Sian, who had been sighing, suddenly thrust his hand out and shouted.
“Explosive Compression!” […….]
Nothing happened at all, to the point that his boldly extended hand grew awkward.
Seeing Sian suddenly putting on a show, Aksarai muttered inside his head. [What are you doing?]
At that, Sian asked back with a sullen expression.
“Didn’t I get scammed?”
Aksarai asked, his tone filled with incredulity. [Scammed how?]
“Well… weren’t your titles rather splendid? Ruler of Supernatural Abilities, Possessor of the Authority of Omniscience… things like that.” [Kh… those are nostalgic names. There was a time when I was called such.]
“Then why can’t I use things like that after absorbing your power?”
Sian, who had once seen Lorval firing off supernatural abilities in all directions, had been expecting that if he absorbed Aksarai’s power, he too might be able to fight in such a splendid fashion. Yet after absorbing the power, he showed not even the faintest sign of manifesting supernatural abilities, so he asked because he found it strange.
At that, Aksarai shouted inside his head as if dumbfounded. [Would you look at this shameless thug… It should be enough that you became stronger, yet you are trying to get everything for free. Did I not tell you earlier? You have absolutely no talent in anything else. Do not even dream of it. Besides, what you tried to use was not a supernatural ability but a miracle. At least there is some possibility with supernatural abilities. Miracles are impossible with your brain.]
“Damn it… what an unfair world…….”
At that, Aksarai grumbled. [What is unfair is your talent. I have never seen anyone become that strong at your age. Even that utter delinquent Broxian could not reach the tips of your toes when he was your age.]
At those words, Sian also made an awkward expression before turning the topic elsewhere.
“Well… anyway, did anything happen? First, how much time has passed?”
Sian had been focusing his entire mind on controlling the power, so he had no idea how the outside world was turning.
Hearing that, Aksarai began to tell him what he had investigated through Kon-rad, whom he had been connected to until now.