Chapter 193

THE BACK-ALLEY MAGE’S RETURN – CHAPTER 193

CHAPTER 193. But… What Could That Be?

Following the spirit’s solitary remark, everyone present shifted their attention toward Aster.

“A secret? My friend, you’re keeping a secret?”

“Demian, everyone harbors things they don’t say. A person like Aster undoubtedly has even more.”

“Hmm, a hidden matter….”

Demian’s eyes flashed with curiosity. Chenbi disregarded the comment as if it were trivial. Even Mycelln joined in—

Under the weight of those varying looks, an uncomfortable quiet enveloped the area.

‘A blighted grimoire?’

Given the current situation, if he presumed it to be Yeokcheon, would that be jumping to conclusions too quickly?

Right as that thought crossed Aster’s mind—

“Ahem, ahem. Moving past that, my ethereal companion. It is likely time we commenced our true discussion. What exactly did you wish to inquire about?”

Detecting an odd shift in Aster’s demeanor, Mycelln smoothly shifted the direction of the conversation.

With that, the dialogue between Mycelln and the spirit truly began.

Aster observed with focused, narrowed eyes, and through doing so, he picked up on a few specific details.

First.

[In- inquire? Want to inquire?]

“Indeed. Didn’t you state that you would be the one asking the questions?”

[D- did I? It slips my mind.]

This spirit is utterly dense.

It was glaringly obvious that its initial decree of “Question, I first” was merely a tactic to grab control of the interaction.

Yet, failing to manage even a basic level of conversational recovery meant it was either completely naive… or just plain foolish.

Aster was fully convinced it was the latter option.

Second.

Mycelln proved to be far more unyielding than one might have anticipated.

“In that case, would you permit me to ask instead?”

[In- inquire.]

“To begin, I shall speak. You are the ones who summoned us here—so what was the reason for treating us as adversaries? Setting aside the manipulation of the paths, what is the truth behind Infernal? I require a straightforward explanation regarding that situation.”

[…….]

To be perfectly candid, this caught even Aster off guard.

They had yet to determine if this entity harbored goodwill or malice.

Ordinarily, this was the sort of query you would wrap in polite phrasing, testing the waters before delivering—yet he was striking straight to the core without hesitation?

And he didn’t stop there.

Once Mycelln initiated his approach, he became practically icy.

“No response? Then we are left with no choice but to assume our assistance is not desired. Would that be an accurate assessment?”

[…….]

“Ah, so you have no desire to communicate? Very well. We shall take our departure from these ruins using this path.”

Naturally, it was a bluff.

Mycelln possessed no actual knowledge of how to exit the subterranean structures at this point.

However, the spirit lacked that awareness. It could only shudder, its illumination flickering so violently that it became a pitiful sight to behold.

The moment he witnessed this reaction, Mycelln understood the entity’s fundamental disposition.

‘A timid, easily cowed spirit.’

Of course, his display wasn’t merely to chastise the creature.

Rather… yes. He couldn’t be certain of the spirit’s true motives upon arrival, but if left to its own devices, it would be utterly exploited by others.

…By whom, everyone in the group could deduce without a single word being uttered.

Therefore, taking the lead in the dialogue was intended to shatter the spirit’s initial bravado while simultaneously preventing a secondary conflict—an effort to pave the path for a structured debate.

As the spirit, completely intimidated, caused its spark to twitch repeatedly—

That was the moment Aster chose to intervene.

“Why do you remain silent? We ended up in such a difficult—”

“Sunbae.”

“…Eh?”

Mycelln rotated his head at Aster’s abrupt intervention—and when their gazes locked, he recoiled slightly without meaning to.

‘What is that expression….’

How could someone look that incredibly mild?

While Mycelln struggled to mask his astonishment, Aster merely offered a slow, side-to-side shake of his head while keeping his eyes fixed on him.

“If you cease your pressure now, I believe our spirit companion has taken the lesson to heart.”

“…Beg pardon?”

“You are being far too intense. Admittedly, we were blindsided and endured quite an ordeal, but didn’t the spirit possess complications it simply couldn’t avoid? Just like you might?”

[Th- that is correct. Forcing you to wander, my apologies. However, Infernal is not of our doing. We harbor great dread toward Infernal as well.]

“You catch the meaning now, don’t you? It claims it was not responsible.”

“No, hold on—.”

Mycelln blinked rapidly, looking completely bewildered by Aster’s entirely unexpected stance.

It was entirely logical for him to react that way.

The display unfolding before them was simply too bizarre to comprehend, even with visual confirmation.

It felt akin to witnessing a predatory reptile presenting the gentle gaze of an innocent lamb. No—perhaps a wild scavenger adopting the eyes of a small prey animal was a more fitting comparison.

Regardless of the impression, Aster stepped toward the trembling entity and offered a soft expression.

“You must have experienced profound terror. Is that not so?”

[Th- that is so. The elderly human is frightening.]

“There is no need for anxiety now. Do not weep. Recover your composure, and express your thoughts clearly, delivering each phrase deliberately. You possess the capacity for that, correct?”

[I- I am capable. I am intelligent.]

The entity seemed to regain its spirits under this wave of reassurance.

[The protector is benevolent.]

“Is that so? Should you enter into an alliance, you will find I am more benevolent still.”

[…An alliance?]

“Ah, but that topic is of secondary importance at this moment. For now, shouldn’t we untangle whatever misapprehension has arisen? Would you care to explain the situation to us, serenely and at your own pace?”

[Indeed! A misapprehension! It must be rectified!]

As Mycelln observed the interaction, completely devoid of speech, it was at that exact juncture that the edge of Aster’s mouth began to curve upward.

“Now, you surely wouldn’t keep the truth from me—”

“Hush. Our companion is preparing to speak. We ought to grant our full attention.”

Aster offered a warm expression, the snare already set in place. At this point, the burden lay on the entity to take the offering.

In any case, the spirit—burning with a sense of being wronged—gained confidence from Aster’s supportive words and set about detailing their circumstances.

To summarize, yes, they were indeed the culprits behind the group’s disorientation, but they possessed no command over Infernal.

They, too, lived in constant terror of Infernal.

It proceeded to provide earnest replies to Aster’s various inquiries, and once the entire explanation concluded, the companions gathered tightly to analyze the data.

To begin, the primary realization was this.

“So the entities weren’t actually harboring malicious intent directed at us from the start.”

Granted, there had been flashes of hostility earlier. However, the three companions excluding Aster chose to view those past actions as water under the bridge.

Had they been the masters commanding Infernal, they wouldn’t have offered such an unprompted confession—the extent of the spirits’ misdeeds was limited to rearranging the pathways.

Following that point.

“Then the issue remains how we can go about liberating the spirits….”

Upon receiving the conceptual Mental Image from the spirits through the use of Fury, Mycelln proceeded to replicate that internal visualization onto a sheet of parchment, sketching it out.

Had he possessed a personally bound spirit of his own, he might have grasped the Mental Image firsthand, but lacking that connection, he relied on Fury instead.

Regardless, the current layout of the subterranean complex materialized on the parchment: a massive central rotunda, enveloped by a chaotic network of interconnected chambers.

“To start, this main rotunda is the location where the spirits are contained. Is that an accurate depiction?”

[…….]

“Is it correct?”

[It is correct, protector.]

Mycelln offered a brief look at the creature as if he found its selective cooperation absurd, then proceeded to ink distinct marks over several specific chambers on the map.

He placed four distinct marks in total.

“In order to shatter the boundary keeping the spirits confined, our objective must be to obliterate the four anchoring mechanisms positioned in these areas. Am I reading this right? Aster, you should present the question instead.”

“Is that the correct interpretation?”

[It is correct, protector.]

Receiving the affirmation from the entity, Mycelln gave a firm nod.

“Smashing the anchoring mechanisms shouldn’t present an immense physical challenge… which means a complication exists?”

“There is a complication?”

[It is correct, protector.]

The entity—shining brightly as it spun circles around Aster’s form—abruptly lost its energy, drifting downward until it rested directly atop one of the marked zones.

Its explanation manifested immediately after.

[The anchoring mechanisms, we are powerless to destroy. Furthermore, terrifying automated sentinels watch over them.]

“Could those automated sentinels happen to be….”

[Correct, Infernal.]

Indeed. That represented the true obstacle.

Infernal.

According to the details provided by the spirit, the Infernal stationed within these ancient halls was not, in reality, a conventional “spirit,” but rather an advanced “spirit golem.”

A specialized counter-measure constructed during an epoch teeming with specialized spellcasters, designed specifically to engage and neutralize spirit mages.

‘In that case… was the moniker Infernal, which drifted down into contemporary history, originally a title meant for this specific spirit golem?’

He lacked the means to verify that historical detail, but—

At any rate, based on the spirit’s testimony, these ancient grounds were patrolled by a total of five distinct Infernal units.

One of those units—

‘The entity we previously engaged.’

That was the primary Infernal: the active unit that initialed its awakening protocol to eliminate intruders upon their initial entry.

Meanwhile, the remaining four Infernal units reposed in stasis within the respective rooms housing the anchoring mechanisms, dedicated solely to protecting those specific points.

This implied that while the core concept of dismantling the boundary was straightforward, the actual execution of the task would be anything but simple.

“Hmm… this presents a significant hurdle.”

[…!]

Hearing Aster’s casual observation, the entity trembled and increased the intensity of its luminescence.

[H- however, the sentinels stationed at the anchors do not possess supreme power! At this current moment, they are diminished!]

That statement held truth.

The specialized phenomenon known as the fairy’s war dance… naturally, the spirit lacked the vocabulary to use the phrase “fairy’s war dance,” but the concept remained identical.

The underlying reason the spirits were capable of manifesting a fairy’s war dance was due to the current phase wherein the boundary experienced a temporary reduction in strength—and during this specific interval, the defensive capabilities of the Infernal sentinels dropped correspondingly.

Ostensibly, this systemic dip occurred to divert energy toward maintaining the core boundary.

“Tsk, even with that advantage, it won’t be a walk in the park.”

[…!]

Disregarding the entity that continued to quiver nervously, Aster reached up to scratch his head.

Because regardless of whether their combat metrics were elevated or reduced, the reality remained that they were required to neutralize four separate Infernal units to dissolve the boundary.

Furthermore—was it truly capped at four?

‘One specific unit retains the capability to navigate the entire complex autonomously. That remains a variable.’

Should their coordination falter, they could find themselves contesting two Infernal units simultaneously.

To be fair, the physical act of destroying the anchoring mechanisms wasn’t a complex feat.

Regardless of Infernal’s sheer defensive output, its operational velocity couldn’t match Aster’s swiftness.

Securing a definitive victory over the machine was highly improbable due to its innate self-repair functions, but merely targeting and shattering the stationary anchors was entirely within his capabilities.

Yet the primary dilemma stemmed from…

‘…….’

Aster’s gaze shifted over to rest upon Chenbi.

Indeed. Chenbi remained his greatest source of anxiety.

Sunbae Mycelln and Demian possessed the tactical awareness to evade incoming strikes through some means, but Chenbi lacked that specific level of martial refinement.

‘…To be perfectly honest, I harbor concerns for all three of them.’

Sunbae Mycelln likely believed he was doing an adequate job of masking his physical condition, but his current internal energy was far from optimal. The identical assessment applied to Demian as well.

As Aster’s internal analysis continued to deepen, the spirit elevated the pitch of its voice, adopting an almost begging tone.

[P- protector, we implore you!]

Hearing that frantic sound, Aster pulled his drifting focus back to the immediate reality.

He then evaluated the unstable, flickering illumination of the spirit.

In truth… yes. Mycelln, Demian, and Chenbi did not represent the ultimate point of contention.

‘…I can simply instruct the three of them to retreat toward the peripheral boundaries of the complex.’

Granted, now that the defensive systems of Infernal had been triggered, the outer zones offered no absolute security either. However, given that Aster himself intended to operate directly within the central hub, the Infernal units would logically prioritize him as the primary target over the trio stationed at the perimeter.

Thus, initiating the intervention wasn’t an insurmountable task…

Even so, after absorbing the narrative detailed by the spirit, a specific detail refused to leave his mind.

“Listen, my companion.”

[C- companion? I am deemed a companion to the protector?]

The entity appeared strangely impacted by the word choice.

Setting that reaction aside, Aster finally articulated the core inquiry he had harbored throughout the entirety of their exchange.

None of his peers seemed to possess this specific curiosity, but from the commencement of the talk to its current state, this singular thought dominated Aster’s mind.

“Lending my aid is not an issue, but you must provide an answer to this query.”

[Inquire! I am your companion!]

The spirit radiated a sudden surge of excitement. However, that high energy proved to be short-lived.

“What is the true nature of this location? Reviewing our conversation, I realize I have never received an explicit explanation regarding that detail.”

[…!]

Throughout their dialogue, Aster had repeatedly picked up on a peculiar undertone in the spirit’s phrasing.

We observed. Protector, solitary. Yet, three additional entities arrived. Discrepancy from the observation. Therefore, categorized as an element of jeopardy.

Initially, he had parsed that statement as, “We anticipated Aster arriving alone, but three companions accompanied him, which caught us off guard.”

As for the phrase “element of jeopardy”… certainly, given that their imprisonment was engineered by humanity, it was logical for them to maintain a deeply defensive mindset.

Yet the longer he analyzed the semantics, the more unnatural the implications felt.

“The sheer certainty with which you labeled me as the ‘Protector’… combined with your recurring utilization of the phrase ‘observed.’ No matter how I evaluate those choices, it strikes me as anomalous.”

Furthermore, hadn’t the spirit made an explicit reference to it moments before?

“A blighted grimoire.”

Reaching that logical conclusion, Aster fixed his gaze upon the spirit, a subtle, sharp grin manifesting across his features.

Perhaps it was the intensity of that specific look. A heavy, quiet atmosphere descended upon the room, and the spirit shuddered visibly as it endured his look.

“There exists… an undocumented element within these walls. Am I correct?”

But… what could that element possibly be?