Chapter 44

Chapter 44
“Ice Crystal.”

Observing the enormous frozen barrier materialize before him, Alon released a heavy breath, his features remaining impassive.

‘What is happening?’

He was profoundly disoriented by the circumstances. From his viewpoint, it was justifiable: one moment he was overhearing a discussion at the central city tower, the next the entire structure shuddered violently, threatening to come down, compelling him to flee outside, where this spectacle met his eyes.

Furthermore, the events surpassed Alon’s comprehension.

‘Those two… It seems they utilized Abyssal Entities.’

Alon remembered the dense, shadowy power emanating from Malian and Kalman just before they attempted to murder Seolrang.

‘How?’

To his understanding, Abyssal Entities should not have emerged at this juncture. In the proper sequence of events, these artifacts began proliferating across the world only after two of the Five Great Sins had appeared.

Their function was straightforward: even an individual of modest strength could attain divine power by absorbing an Abyssal Entity. While the exact mechanics were never clarified, even in ‘Psychedelia’, a common theory suggested they were incorporated into the game solely for difficulty balancing.

Foes who employed Abyssal Entities invariably grew vastly more powerful.

Thus, although Alon wondered how Malian and Kalman had acquired them, he quickly set the question aside. The immediate priority was not the reason, but the method for surviving the present crisis.

Alon analyzed the circumstances with detached accuracy.

‘Remaining spell casts: zero.’

He had already expended three incantations to generate the frozen plain, one to strike down Malian when he threatened Seolrang, and one to shield himself from a potential assault. He could no longer wield magic.

That is, under normal conditions.

Gulp—

Without a second thought, Alon pulled the stopper from a vial at his hip and drank its contents. It was a supreme mana potion provided by Penia, the Blue Tower’s vice-tower master.

‘This will allow me to buy time with two additional spells, but the barrier will fall in 20 seconds.’

Having consumed the potion, Alon swiftly shifted his attention to the collapsed Seolrang. Having covertly prepared a spell for some time to remain undetected, he had already pieced together the general course of events.

When he looked at her, Seolrang’s gaze was hollow, full of desolation and a fierce, burning wrath. A shadowy energy seeped from her entire form.

Witnessing this, Alon promptly retrieved a second potion from his belt. It was a peerless elixir he had been given six months prior, when numerous gifts had flooded in for him.

“Drink this.”

Alon knelt, pressed the vial to Seolrang’s lips, and spoke softly.

“The only traitors here are those two, so don’t fret.”

“Is that… the truth?”

“Yes.”

He affirmed it plainly, though in reality, Alon himself did not know how many of the Golden Mane Tribe had aligned with Ralga.

Even if Seolrang was not one to ponder things deeply, a little reflection would reveal how little credibility Alon’s words held.

Still, he had lied because, at this critical moment, he urgently required her assistance.

‘We have one opportunity, and Seolrang must intercept their assaults until I complete my incantation.’

Alon’s magic required a long casting time. He was acutely aware of the folly of expecting his enemies to wait patiently. That is why Alon had deceived her—to spur Seolrang, who was sinking into hopelessness, into immediate action.

“Can you keep them at bay until I finish my spell?”

Alon had given Seolrang the entire high-grade potion. Though she wavered unsteadily, she rose to her feet and gave a firm nod.

“Yes.”

Even though the poison was not fully neutralized, there was no alternative. Alon resolved to trust Seolrang and commenced his spell preparation. Once the magic was ready, handling Kalman would not be a complex task.

Even though Kalman had absorbed an Abyssal Entity and grown stronger, the irony was that Alon would become even more powerful because Kalman had done so. He had imposed a restriction—a force capable of warping the world when confronting deities.

“Hoo—”

With a soft exhalation, Alon wove a hand seal. Instantly, the cold ice wall that had been shedding frost vanished without a trace.

“Ice Snow.”

As he spoke the next phrase, a whirlwind of frost spiraled around him, and assassins and members of the Golden Mane Tribe surged forward as if they had been anticipating this moment. There were dozens of them.

But—

“Shape.”

Despite her unsteadiness, Seolrang began repelling the oncoming enemies, and as Alon watched her, he uttered his next phrase. He then shut his eyes and recollected the words spoken by that formless being earlier.

‘You may have forfeited the grand legacy of antiquity, but those who comprehend magic understand that its core principle is that a ‘Magus’ is one who enforces the laws of this world.’

‘The structure of the magic, the incantations, even the names—all exist to enact those laws. Only when every component is correctly aligned in harmony with those principles can—‘

‘It be deemed magic.’

“Fame of the Snowy Mountain.”

As Alon spoke, a spherical shape materialized between his middle and ring fingers and solidified into ice. But it did not merely freeze; each distinct point of the magical array he had prepared blossomed like a snowflake, with every hexagonal plate serving as the origin of a singular flower.

‘It appears you only know a few words, but you must also employ sentences. Words can bend the laws, but sentences are the instruments that unlock certain doors approaching the world’s fundamental principles.’

‘Well, it’s not as if modern magicians have entirely lost the names. They have merely been excessively simplified and standardized, discarding the original lexicon in the process.’

‘These days, they likely call it something absurd like “Ice Spear.”’

“Blind Man’s Inevitability.”

The blooming flowers unfurled completely. The sphere at Alon’s fingertips was no longer a simple orb but an immense, crystalline snowflake.

Crack—

At the heart of that snowflake, an exquisitely formed spear took shape before him.

And then—

‘But originally, that magic was not called something as idiotic as “Ice Spear.”’

“Ice Crystal Halberd.”

‘That is the true name, forgotten by those foolish magicians.’

After speaking quietly, Alon opened his eyes. He saw Kalman, his dark gauntlets menacing, glaring at him in vexation, and Seolrang desperately holding him back.

Seeing this, Alon firmly clenched the seal he had been forming and completed the spell.

Into the sweltering chamber, a blizzard descended.

***

Liyan witnessed Alon’s magic manifest. The mind that typically performed innumerable simulations to deconstruct any spell employed had now ground to a halt.

She could only stare, transfixed.

Everything in the trajectory of the spear Alon had launched was frozen solid. Be it the ground, the air, or—

…Kalman, his heart impaled by the lance of ice.

All was frozen.

The aberrant, yet stunningly beautiful scene held Liyan and the other magicians spellbound.

“This is… incredible…”

“Is that… a magician…?”

The mercenaries, who had been drowning in despair moments before, all whispered in reverence as they looked upon Alon. Their eyes were filled with limitless admiration and awe.

It was only natural.

The hopeless predicament had been utterly transformed by the being standing before them.

At that moment, even Seolrang, who had barely escaped the spell’s area, was gazing at Alon.

Abruptly, ‘it’ stirred.

“Ah-!”

Ironically, the first to notice the movement—specifically, Ralga, whom they believed had been defeated by Seolrang—was a mercenary observing the scene.

“Die!”

Ralga, his right arm destroyed, lifted the envenomed dagger that had earlier endangered Seolrang and lunged at her. He was still empowered by the ability Seolrang had bestowed, as the authority of the Golden Mane Tribe had not been rescinded. Moving with blinding speed, he closed the distance to Seolrang just as her vigilance lapsed.

“!”

Seolrang, believing it was over, tried to recoil, but it was already too late. Her body was already marred with wounds from blocking Kalman and the attacking rogues. The poison still circulated within her, leaving her no option but to witness Ralga’s dagger homing in on her heart.

Ralga’s face brightened with triumph as he thought, ‘If I can just kill her, I can seize control of the Essence and escape! I can begin anew!’

With that thought, he tightened his grip on the dagger. But—

“!?”

Ralga’s dagger did not pierce Seolrang’s heart.

‘What—!?’

The reason was that Alon, like the mercenary, had instinctively perceived Ralga’s charge and yanked Seolrang’s body backward in the nick of time.

However—

Because of this, Alon’s own body slid forward into the path of Ralga’s sweeping blade.

“Guh!”

Blood gushed from his mouth.

It was thick, blackened blood, a certain indicator of a mortal wound. And as Ralga stood there, stunned by his failure, Seolrang, overflowing with fury, crushed his skull under her foot.

“Count!”

Evan’s voice cried out.

***

In the end, Alon was not truly injured.

Certainly, a blade had pierced his side, yet it had, surprisingly, inflicted no substantial harm.

This was because Ralga’s dagger had indeed made contact with Alon’s body, but only just—it merely shredded his clothing.

In other words, Alon was unhurt.

So why had he vomited blood? That was solely a consequence of mana depletion.

Although he possessed sufficient mana for one more spell, the incantation consumed so much power that it drained him past mere exhaustion, resulting in internal injury.

‘…The potency surpassed my predictions, but I will require something to compensate for the missing mana,’ he thought, pressing a hand to his unsettled stomach as he watched the retreating ruins. He had not seen the eastern tablet, but since the ambush had occurred, they had elected to depart the ruins for the day.

After observing the ruins fade into the distance for a time, Alon turned his head toward Seolrang, who was gazing intently at him.

Had events followed his initial plan, he would now be consoling her. After all, knowing she would one day become one of the Five Great Sins, he could not afford to let her nurture any resentment.

Yet, to his surprise, Seolrang’s eyes displayed no trace of adverse emotions like fury or hatred, which piqued his curiosity.

“Master.”

“Yes?”

“May I ask you something?”

“What is it?”

Seolrang posed her question.

“When Kalman attacked earlier, why didn’t you evade?”

“…”

‘When Kalman attacked?’ Alon reflected for a moment, then recalled Kalman’s gauntlets coming perilously close when he invoked the Ice Crystal Halberd.

‘…It wasn’t that I didn’t evade—I was unable to.’

Though that was the truth, Alon deemed it an unsatisfactory answer, so instead, he replied,

“Because I trusted you.”

“…You trusted ‘me’?”

“Yes, you said it was possible, didn’t you?”

‘To be honest, it felt more like I was pleading, ‘Please make it work!!’…’

As Alon offered his carefully phrased response, a faint light kindled in Seolrang’s eyes, and she inquired further,

“Then, why did you save me when Ralga tried to kill me?”

“…Why?”

Alon could not conjure an appropriate justification.

‘Would it not have been bizarre to not save a long-standing ally from death right before my eyes? Besides, I did not anticipate the dagger reaching me.’

Just as with the prior question, Alon hesitated, but this time he chose to answer truthfully.

“…Do I need a reason?”

“There is no reason?”

“You don’t require a reason to save family.”

To him, Seolrang had already felt like a daughter he had raised for over five years, so his reply emerged naturally.

‘Ah.’

But then he swiftly recognized his error.

After spending considerable time with her, he had observed that Seolrang seemed to attach profound significance to the notion of family.

And so, as Alon subtly averted his gaze from her—

“But Master… you are not family. Family is connected by blood,” Seolrang murmured, and Alon nodded in acknowledgment.

“Still, I wish… to be family with you.”

At her next words, Alon felt a profound warmth within.

It was akin to the sensation one might experience after years of effort finally earning paternal recognition. Not that he had personally undergone that, but just as Alon was about to nod in contentment—

“But—”

Seolrang abruptly moved and climbed atop Alon.

With her hands on his shoulders and her waist settled on his thighs, her eyes were gleaming brilliantly.

Alon, bewildered by the sudden development, could only stare as Seolrang, now smiling, declared,

“In this state, we cannot become family. I am from the Golden Mane Tribe, and you are human. So—”

Her smile broadened as she continued,

“Let’s get married!”

“…???”

Alon’s thoughts solidified into ice.

Meanwhile, Seolrang’s tail was swaying more joyfully than it ever had before.