Chapter 71 – Destruction, Coming (1)

The rain and wind became stronger. The second-year students heading toward the Storm Shrine each showed signs of discomfort and adjusted the lapels of their robes.
Rick, who was going ahead, asked Peter, the leader. Apparently, the flow of mana felt in the air was unusual.

“Are we going on like this? It seems like today isn’t a good day…”
“Yes, we have to proceed according to schedule so that all students can experience a nightmare before training.”

At those words, another student, Ralph, complained.

“But it’s dangerous! Liv, you think so too, right?”
“Me? I am…”

Rumbling——!!

The group stopped for a moment at the sound of loud thunder. Peter also said with a stern expression as he checked the ki counter in his hand.

“Then let’s go to the front of the shrine first and observe the situation. “If the gate is unstable, I will contact the tower owner through communication.”
“Yes…”

For a while, the four people climbed the sloping hill in silence. A small altar located at the edge of a cliff. And a black hole with its mouth open in front of it. The clouds and fog swirling around, like dust and ice particles being dragged to a planet, created gusts that were difficult to withstand.
Liv shivered involuntarily at the unpleasant black color reminiscent of the bottomless pit. Peter had the students wait in front of the altar.

“It’s dangerous if you fall, so don’t look down. Don’t even reach out to the gate carelessly. Ah, why is this not working again…”

The ground was so high that you could easily fall down. While Peter was tapping on the communication crystal, the other students were looking at the view of Vatudis down the hill.
The heavy rain pouring down over a wide area with no end in sight beyond the open gray plain was a spectacle in itself.

“How many levels do you have to be to use this as magic?”
“Well. “Isn’t it about the 7th level?”
“Like that?”
“It is said that 〈 Grand Canal 〉, created by Terra Ernesten, is ranked 10th, and it rained this much for three days. And on all continents. “If we only consider the Batudis region, it would be at least 7th place.”
“Hmm, I see… ?”
“Liv, what do you think?”

Leaving behind Rick and Ralph, who were discussing magic as a natural phenomenon, Liv continued to look beyond the gate.
When I looked closely, I saw a scene inside the black hole. The image of my hometown, Greenwood Forest, which I was very familiar with when I was young.

“Ah, it’s finally done… ! Top owner. “Can I allow the students to enter now?”

A fascinating purple-green past. In those mysterious colors, Liv caught a glimpse of the face of a person she could no longer meet.

‘Ah… ‘Budge?’

The moment she took a step without realizing it, her body was pulled by an unknown force.

Tuk.

“Taplord?”
“Live?”

When her two friends and Peter looked up, the only thing left where Liv had been standing was her bag she had brought with her.

***

“Do you understand now?”

I remembered.

The sky was dark red, as if blood was falling. I was digging hard in the dark.
She was not afraid of being discovered by other demons and wandered through the mountains.

Without even having time to wipe away the blood and sweat all over my body. Continue to the pit.

“Cough… ! I see…”

Blood flowed from the corner of the mouth. Following the wizard’s almost instinctive thinking, she continued to apply magic to her heart, but the man’s bare hand, which had already broken his collar bone, could have ended Dominic’s life at any time.

“I was digging the ground…”
“…”
“It’s not to find the teacher, but to find the body…” … Cough! To ask… Hehe.”
“Because it’s instinct.”

He seemed to already know everything as he brushed away the rain-soaked black hair that pierced his eyes. Before he could ask how he had noticed something he didn’t even know about, he opened his mouth first.

“Dominic. I don’t think you created this demon statue. “You may have changed its appearance using illusion magic, but you must have received it from someone else.”
“… “Why?”
“Because Cheolgyeon’s note said that these were discovered all the way from Edanbury.”

Edanbury. Since the end of the war, Dominic has never been to the North Sea controlled by Rochear.
Consciousness becoming increasingly blurred, limbs trembling while floating in the air. He said as blood poured out of his throat.

“There is not much time left, so think carefully. “Who did you get it from?”

From whom, from whom did I receive so many demonic tokens? Has anyone heard that with these, Master might be able to come back to life?

The excellent wizard looked back on his memories, but was unable to pinpoint anything. I have met so many people.
Among them, it was too much to single out a person who was suspected of being a demon clan liaison——

“Ah.”

At that time, a single, deathly word escaped me. Perhaps…

“I don’t know. “I can’t be specific.”
“What? Hey, think seriously. “If I try to find it alone, I won’t find the answer.”
“One person… It wasn’t. The person who brought up the story about the new statue to me…”
“There were so many? “Don’t worry about this.”
“No, that’s not it…”

It wasn’t just one appearance. As he said those words, the man’s expression quickly hardened.

“Fuck.”

And he muttered quietly.

“As expected, I didn’t look back.”
“Who on earth… ?”
“There is. The bastard who made me keep using this damn magic. “She was the only one who couldn’t identify the body.”

I thought it was destroyed in a bonfire. With those words, the hand that was stuck on his chest was withdrawn and his body leaned forward.
Dominic fell into a pit filled with cold rainwater and knew that his life was in danger.

“Good job.”
“…”
“Do you have anything to say?”

Testament. Words I wanted to hear but couldn’t, and so I couldn’t let go of my regret.
Now his turn has come.

“Master…”

As he shed tears over the blood and rain, he recalled what his teacher had said:

— We must always beware of illusions, Dominic.
— Don’t be caught up in wild dreams. An image is a light that shines on you, but if you get close to it, you will get burned.

“An unsightly disciple… Forgiveness…”

Looking down at the lifeless Dominic, Lewis took his wet cigarette out of his pocket.

“It’ll be warm there.”

And just as he was about to leave, an urgent cry was heard from the communication crystal in Dominic’s arms, which had turned to ashes.

***

— We’re in big trouble, tower owner! One student is in Baldur’s nightmare… !
— The interior cannot be checked! Warnings about abnormal phenomena continue to come in from the observatory!

Weeeeenn——!!
Weeeeenn——!!
Weeeeenn——!!

Just as I thought it was finally over, a siren sound that was louder than any before sounded.
As I took out the communication crystal from my robe, the name of the student who fell through the gate reached my ears.

Sophomore, Liv Labre.

“Crazy…”

When I thought about it, the situation didn’t get any better even if I ended up dealing with this guy. Isn’t the magic prepared so far to turn fantasy into reality already in operation?
I hurriedly ran towards the hill sticking out at the end of the horizon that the communication fix said.
As I approached through the pouring rain, a wizard who appeared to be a member of the Pecda Magic Tower saw me and shouted.

“Who are you? What about Tapju!?”
“I made a big mess of it and searched it.”
“Yes?”
“Can’t you stop that?”

As I photographed the birth of the nebula alone, I pointed to the black hole that was sucking in the surrounding fog. If things continued like this, I really didn’t know what would come out inside.

“It’s out of control. And there is no way to stop Baldur’s nightmare in the first place!”

Well. My thoughts are different.
The reason why the nightmare had been destroyed by force until now was because it was impossible to destroy the phenomenon itself where 〈 The End of Magic 〉 appeared as Baldur’s nightmare.
On the other hand, the thing in front of you is the sum total of nightmares wandering throughout Vatudis. There was a high possibility that it would break easily even if you touched it.

However, in front of the gate, the bag that Liv had dropped caught my eye, so I was unable to use my unique magic in haste.
What happens to her if the nightmare disappears altogether?

“Can’t you get the person inside out?”
“There is a high possibility that we will all be sucked in, so no one has been there so far except the tower owner…” …”
“Ha…”

In the end, there was only one way.

“Hey.”

I said, throwing a communication crystal at the wizard who seemed to have yet to grasp the situation.

“Evacuate all the children in the Magic Tower.”
“Yes?”
“Because you never know what might pop out of there. “Get as far away as possible.”
“How about you?”

Of course.

“I have to go and get him.”

***

When I came to my senses, I found myself walking in the forest. However, the bare trees and the dark red sky that looked as if lava was pouring on it were different from the hometown of her childhood that Liv remembered.

“Wow… !”

A disgusting smell, along with ash, was blown by the hot wind. This was her first time smelling a smell, and she sat down and started gagging.
All that comes out is less than a handful of gastric juice. It didn’t fit at all with what she had heard from her friend. It was a sensation too vivid to be a fantasy.
Someone spoke to her as she stood up, holding on to the burnt wood with one hand.

“What, there were survivors?”

Seeing the boy come down to the ground trampling on the blackened fallen leaves, Liv reflexively took out her staff.
Long fingernails that could not be considered human, and half her face’s skin discolored darkly, as if she had been burned.
And, a small horn sprouted from the left side of her head.

Enemy of mankind.

“Demons… !”
“It’s a shame that they still call us, the saints who live for humanity, that. “Are you from Seongguk?”
“It’s us… ?”
“Just follow me. “Because it’s dangerous here.”

Without knowing what was happening, Liv followed her boy through the forest. Every pit was filled with the corpses of monsters she had never seen before.
Demonic beasts, humans, and demons. I only encountered one living creature, but I encountered countless dead people while traveling for only a few tens of minutes.
It was just a dream, an illusion, she told herself. However, the ominous word ‘fantasy murder’ kept appearing in her mind.

What if I can’t go back? No, where is the way out in the first place?
Is this really an illusion? There’s not a single word that says it’s this real…

Pop.

She hurriedly raised her head at the sound of a branch breaking and bumped into the back of the boy who stopped her just in time. She was about to turn a corner on a winding mountain.

“What… ?”
“I need to check at this point. “Where are you from?”
“I am a member of Parenzia Academy…”

Phew!

Uh?

Liv looked down at the boy’s long nails digging into her breasts. He immediately pulled out his hand and wiped the blood from his fingers.

“Hmm, Parencia. Well, it’s a relatively safe land, but there are probably some guys coming from there. “If you meet someone from your neighborhood later, go say hello.”
“Call… Rock! Now, what… ?”
“It’s a simple check. Although their outfit is suspicious, they don’t seem to be doppelgängers… “It will be quite powerful.”

He held out a normal human hand, different from the one that stabbed Liv below the heart.

〈Black Magic: Cell Regeneration ⌜Regeneration⌟〉

The blood gushing out of the small hole eventually stopped. The boy turned his magic hand and offered to shake his hand.

“My name is Kundra. “Among the 108 Ravier Leagues, the 2nd organization, the scout battalion ‘Skirmisher’, is a unit under the direct command of the Penheim royal family.”
“Skirmisher… ?”
“Okay. A half-human, half-demon and a traitor to the demon race. “I’ve heard of it.”

Only then did Liv realize where he was now. She was caught by Kundra’s hand and as she turned the corner, an unbelievable sight unfolded before her eyes.

“Oh, I didn’t ask your name. I understand. “Most of the people here are going to die soon anyway, so they don’t speak clearly.”
“Here, this place couldn’t be…” …”
“Okay.”

Taesan Mountain is so high that it reaches the clouds, and endless mountain ranges line both sides.
There were countless military flags piled on top of it, most of them broken and burnt, but still waving.
Watchtowers installed here and there and beacons with black smoke rising. A variety of familiars and telegraph lines floating in the sky.

A knight’s horse eating grass that is still green. A mercenary who takes off his armor and repairs the castle walls. There was even a wizard examining the burned area that had just passed by.

“Welcome to humanity’s last line of defense!”

The place where Baldur’s nightmare led her was the Ravier Mountains, in the middle of her great war.