Chapter 78: Growth
TL: Potato-tan
Proofreader: Asianpotato
Not many people noticed the white line that shot from south of the territory and pierced the red sphere at lightning speed.
An elf, with pointed ears and nearly black-green hair, was among the few who dared to run across the rooftops. The elf with pointy ears and almost black-green hair had just leapt to the next roof when he witnessed the beam and ended up slipping off the roof spectacularly.
The roof, along with the wooden crates piled underneath it, gave out a thunderous crash. Remeron, covered in dust, jumped up and looked towards the sky. Phel came to him with a look of exasperation.
“What now? You even fall off the roof when there’s nothing there.”
“You guys didn’t see that just now?”
“What?”
“That thing!”
“What thing?”
Remeron hit his chest in frustration. Phel looked at Remeron with equal frustration. Kai looked around indifferently and said,
“If you have something to say, say it quickly. If not, we should head to where that ominous energy was.”
“Ack! That white line just crossed the sky! You didn’t see it? Was I the only one? What the heck?”
Phel and Kai, who had been running on the ground, hadn’t seen it. However, they didn’t ignore Remeron. Remeron’s arrows played an important role in hunting the remaining vampires and monsters running amok in the territory.
Phel asked,
“A white beam, huh? What did it feel like?”
Remeron shook his head.
“No, it was too far away to get a feel for it. But the place where the beam hit. . . it was strange.”
“What was it?”
“There was this red sphere floating in the sky. I think that was the source of the ominous energy we felt.”
“Red sphere?”
The three of them looked around and climbed the tallest building they could find. And they confirmed that what Remeron said was true. On the northwestern outskirts of the territory, which was still quite a distance away, something was floating in the sky. However, the color was different.
“It’s black now, isn’t it?”
“. . . That’s right. I’m sure it was as red as blood before.”
Remeron also had a puzzled expression. Kai then said,
“The ominous energy we were feeling until now has disappeared.”
The two elves belatedly realized this. The black sphere floating far away in the sky was so magnificent that it made them forget about their priorities. Remeron said,
“Did that white beam do something just now?”
“That’s probably the case. It’s hard to tell because it’s so far away.”
“We have no choice but to go.”
They started running again. And soon, they reached the outskirts. The agile elf and the orc, with their great strength, were fast.
The black sphere had vanished by the time they arrived. Instead, they saw a group surrounding something black.
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Runebas was also one of those who witnessed the white beam. Lord Ramon Errandis, his soldiers, and the wizards were much closer to the sphere.
While the Lord and the knights were suffering damage from the attacks bouncing off the red sphere, and while the other wizards were healing the injured soldiers, Runebas was looking at the sphere without doing anything.
That’s why he was able to see the white beam pierce the red sphere from a distance. He could recognize the enormous concentration of mana in that beam. And that is pure mana.
With a startled expression, Runebas turned his head to look at where the beam had come from. Because it was so far away, it was hard to tell who had shot it.
However, Runebas could tell who, among the wizards and mana users he had met recently, possessed mana like that beam.
A girl with white hair had the appearance of a young girl, but the body of a mature woman. It was almost impossible to grow that fast, no matter how mysterious the magic was.
Runebas was aware of a particular race that possessed the rare magic known as transformation. Dragons.
Dragons, whose length exceeded tens of meters and whose wingspans exceeded several meters, would certainly have great difficulty approaching other races.
How many intelligent beings would approach a giant reptile? It would be difficult for anyone other than a suicidal or mentally deranged person.
As masters of magic, dragons knew how to change their bodies, so they took on the appearance of intelligent beings that walked on the ground. That was how magic approached.
At that moment, something strange happened to the red sphere. The others noticed it, too. Its color changed, and it started to shrink.
Even when they saw it with their own eyes, it was hard to believe that the sphere, which had been over 20 meters in diameter, was gradually shrinking.
Lord Ramon Errandis approached.
“What is going on? Master Runebas, do you have any idea?”
Runebas didn’t want to say it, but he grimaced and said it, knowing that he was the only one who could say it here.
“I don’t know either, my Lord.”
The Lord looked around. It was quiet. The only sounds were the occasional groans of the injured. The wizards were casting healing spells, but they had to be weaker than divine power. The church’s holy water proved to be ineffective.
The Lord sighed. It was because of the priests of the Acarsus Church. The priests were essential for dealing with devils. That’s why the Lord and the knights broke down the church door, which was still tightly shut before the red sphere appeared, and entered.
The priests were hiding in the basement of the church. They were hiding, endlessly singing hymns, praying, and bowing to the statue.
“Justice, justice, justice, justice.”
They were individuals who solely expressed their desire for justice. However, their appearance betrayed no signs of justice.
The Lord’s face contorted as he smelled the sweet, pungent scent coming from their bodies. The scent of Rivenso herb. In small amounts, this herb served as an anesthetic, but excessive use led to hallucinations.
The priests, who were bowing without rest, had glazed eyes. Drugs. The bishop and his priests, who had lacked divine power from the beginning, had entrusted their minds and bodies to drugs. Among them was the young priest, who had turned Kai away.
No matter how strong Edmond was as a vampire, the priests who couldn’t resist the charm were proof of how indulgent their religious life had been.
The Lord left the church with a heavy heart, ordering the soldiers to tie them up and look for holy water. He couldn’t help but sigh.
The price of not paying attention to the territory’s interior for too long was harsh. The Lord drank a bottle of holy water that a knight had brought. It was almost like plain water.
He would send a formal letter of protest to the Grand Church about the priests later, but he didn’t think he would get any real compensation.
Ramon Errandis wondered why he had excavated dungeons and ruins and attempted to reclaim the territory’s outskirts.
It was to grow crops and stockpile food at a time when monsters were becoming more and more ferocious, and to raise soldiers with that food. In such chaotic times, only strength became the currency for peace.
In the Lord’s field of vision, which had finished contemplating, he saw people running towards him on the road in the territory like before. They were the task force that had left to hunt down the vampires, who had spread out across the territory and sucked blood.
The wizard Deborah, the Captain of the Guard Jensen Otbal, Kai, Remeron, Phel, Aellasis, Evelyn, and Jirach, all on horseback, were present.
They looked at the black sphere, which was clearly shrinking and descending.
It was now an oblong shape, about 2 meters long. It seemed to be just the right size for a person to fit inside.
The black, oval object landed quietly on the ground. That was all. It didn’t break like an egg to reveal what was inside. The people were confused.
“What the heck is that?”
“Didn’t you talk about an ancient monarch from 800 years ago, Remeron?”
“Yes, but . . . . . .logically speaking, if he had fully awakened by now, wouldn’t he have already torn that thing open and come out to kill us? It’s so quiet right now.”
“That’s Russell.”
At the last word, the people looked back. Aellasis got off her horse with difficulty and approached. Having used up her mana, she had returned to being a young girl. Aellasis stood in front of the black oval, feeling regretful about her smaller breasts and shorter legs, but still wiggling her legs.
Remeron was surprised by her smaller appearance and the flow of mana he felt from her. It was similar to the beam he had witnessed from the roof.
‘Could that girl have been the one who shot that beam just now?’
With sparkling eyes, Runebas looked at Aellasis and the black solids.
“This is Russell?”
Evelyn had also walked over and carefully caressed the solid. She couldn’t see anything inside.
Lord Ramon Errandis said,
“What about the other vampires?”
Jensen Otbal saluted and said,
“Thanks to Deborah-nim here, we’ve killed all of them. There are no more monsters left in the territory.”
“Thank you, Master Deborah.”
“You’re welcome, my Lord.”
Ramon Errandis looked at Jirach. Jirach could detect the vampires remaining in the territory, so it was a gesture to confirm if there were any vampires left. Jirach nodded his head in affirmation. The Lord let out a sigh of relief.
Then, the only problem left was the unidentified black oval. The beautiful girl with white hair said it was Russell, but he had no way of knowing if it was true.
“How do you know that, young lady?”
Runebas asked Aellasis. Aellasis’s lips quivered before she spoke.
“. . . . . .I just know.”
After receiving Russell’s mana, she couldn’t say that she had awakened from the egg and could identify her guardian as a dragon. Russell had judged that it was dangerous to reveal his identity until she gained enough strength, and Aellasis had agreed with that judgment.
Runebas narrowed his eyes.
“My Lord. Just to be safe, I think it would be better to put that in the dungeon and seal it. I can’t tell if he is that man or an ancient vampire who has killed warriors and stockpiled his strength.”
“What are you talking about?”
Jirach stepped forward and shouted.
“That’s my master, Russell-nim. My blood knows it.”
“So, there was still a vampire left in the territory.”
Runebas said it with a cold face and voice, then raised his hand. Jirach stepped back as Runebas was about to cast a spell with his fingers.
The others were flustered and couldn’t follow the situation. Then, the Lord raised his hand.
“Master Runebas. I understand your concerns. A wizard is one who prepares. However, this Jirach has helped us hunt down and kill vampires until now, and he serves Russell. I don’t think he would lie to us now.”
And without giving Runebas a chance to say anything, he ordered the soldiers to move the black solid. It was heavy, but they were able to lift it withthe help of several soldiers.
Runebas bit his lip and glared at it. The black is solid. Aellasis. The white beam,
There was nothing that didn’t stimulate the curiosity of a wizard. However, it was clear that the Lord was more favorable to Russell, who had saved his territory.
It’s fine. A wizard is someone who both prepares and waits.
The night sky was now clearly a blue water color. An orange streak of light approached the territory from the east.
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Russell became aware of his own condition.
He was floating in a black universe. He couldn’t feel gravity at all. Therefore, he was unable to discern whether he was in a standing or a lying position.
Why was he here? He recalled what had happened last.
He had won the battle against the powerful vampire, Iscalia, and devoured her space. He had also swung his sword. The space shattered, but Russell was in a new space again.
Russell didn’t know where this place was, but he didn’t think it was threatening. The warmth was akin to immersing oneself in warm water. It felt like this was what it would be like to be in his mother’s arms.
He slowly looked inside himself. He felt his mana, completely depleted, rising rapidly.
The battle with Iscalia had been fierce, and his heightened spirit and body had absorbed and converted the world’s mana.
He felt himself getting stronger. It didn’t just mean that the quality and amount of his mana had increased.
The battle with Iscalia was unlike any one he had ever fought before. He had seen a new horizon of magic.
She was able to create a new dimension by projecting her own imagination, and she was able to wield the laws she set only in that place. Even Russell couldn’t have guaranteed victory if it hadn’t been for the dragon’s breath that Aellasis had breathed from outside.
However, in the end, he was the one who won. And in that battle, Russell realized his new potential. The darkness had engulfed Iscalia’s space.
Abyss. The space that had also embraced Russell was akin to a frigid, dense, and challenging-to-breathe universe. ‘Would I be able to summon that abyss again?’
Russell continued to look within himself and tried to awaken the sensation from that time. However, it just felt like flogging a dead horse.
Then Russell noticed a presence in the space where there had been nothing. It was something familiar, so he opened his eyes.
“Hello?”
A black-haired girl was standing before Russell.
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