NOVEL ONLINE FREE Chapter 28
Chapter 28
—–CROW—–
I was repeatedly training in the secluded training grounds of my private dormitory.
“Sigh…”
[47/100 until guaranteed SSR-rank magic]
I’d noticed it before, but [Mana Dominator] consumed mana quite intensely. Even though my mana capacity had increased significantly with the level up, it was still burdensome.
I had never felt a shortage when using regular magic. With basic magic, my mana regenerated faster than it was consumed. Intermediate magic was similar. It consumed more mana compared to basic magic, but there was still plenty to spare.
I probably wouldn’t have felt a mana shortage through normal means unless I was learning advanced magic or spamming intermediate spells.
[Mana Dominator Lv. 2]
After a 10-second interval, I activated [Mana Dominator] again to generate a spell.
[Azure Lightning God]
The SSR-rank character [White Cloud Recluse]’s lightning-attribute wide-area annihilation magic extended beyond my private training grounds, reaching the outside. The strike, resembling divine wrath, illuminated the dark night. Just as I was admiring the might of an SSR-rank skill after so long, a despairing string of characters appeared before my eyes.
[0/100 until guaranteed SSR-rank magic]
“You sons of bitches… I didn’t expect anything less.”
The stack had reset. If this kept happening, leveling up would be useless. Well, everything depended on perspective, right? If I could minimize the stack through this practice, I could gain a significant advantage in future battles. Still, to avoid mana shortages, I needed to keep it at least at 20, and considering cooldown and combat time, at least 15.
“Should I take a break and try again…?”
“No, cut the crap and get some sleep. It’s nighttime.”
“…”
I turned around at the sudden voice to see Tia, holding a pillow. She was frowning deeply, likely having just been in bed. Or maybe she was frowning because of me.
“You’ll wake everyone up. You’re not the only one living in this world, so let’s keep it down, okay?”
“Yes…”
Her gentle voice carried a strange sense of pressure. It felt incredibly awkward, like getting caught playing computer games late at night by my dad. Pushing aside the familiar yet uncomfortable, nostalgic feeling, I tidied up the training grounds. After dusting myself off and taking off my outer clothes, I entered my room.
“Ah, just in case you’re wondering…”
Tia was sitting on my bed.
“…Headmaster, in case you didn’t know, this is *my* room.”
Seeing Tia dangling her legs and looking at me with half-lidded eyes, I couldn’t help but complain. Did she not understand the concept of privacy?
“Oh, sorry. I forgot to mention.”
“How inconsiderate.”
“Just think of it as your mom checking in on you in the middle of the night.”
“You don’t have a shred of maternal love.”
“…What did you just say?”
“I didn’t say anything.”
Tia shrugged and began to explain her reason for being there. I wasn’t particularly angry, so I decided to let it go. This dormitory belonged to Tia anyway. She didn’t seem to have rummaged through my things, so it was fine.
“That magic from earlier, you’re not going to use it on the students, are you?”
“Don’t worry, Headmaster.”
“I’ve never been more suspicious than when you tell me not to worry. Think carefully. Fragile kids will die if they get hit by that.”
“Would I ever do such a thing?”
Tia’s gaze was cold. She didn’t look like she trusted me at all. Her face was contorted as if she had discovered something repulsive. That hurt.
“Oh, by the way, Headmaster.”
“What.”
Tia, who had been about to leave, sluggishly turned around. She still seemed half-asleep. I needed to tell her about the [Hades King].
“What is it?”
“…”
I had already learned from the previous incident that her personality was even worse than I thought. If I acted rashly again without reporting anything, I might literally lose my head this time. She was literally above the law.
“…It’s nothing.”
But it didn’t seem like the right time yet. If I reported Marie’s scheme in advance, Tia would, at the very least, expel her from Scientia. Of course, if the incident actually occurred, it would be execution. It wasn’t time yet. I had a plan, but at this point, she would consider expulsion more reasonable.
“Don’t trail off like that; it ruins the mood. Did you really have to do that? Now I can’t sleep because I’m uneasy.”
“Ah, no, that’s not it…”
Tia’s demeanor began to shift towards anger. This wouldn’t do. I had to say something. Judging by the atmosphere, she would hit me if I stayed silent.
“…I saw a suspicious group nearby over the weekend.”
“Do I need to know that? You know I don’t care about the outside.”
“Isn’t a suspicious group worth mentioning?”
“Can they interfere here? Or are they the ones you mentioned before, the ‘not yet’ guys?”
“That’s… right.”
Come to think of it,
“Similar.”
“…”
As soon as I finished speaking, Tia’s demeanor changed drastically, and she glared at me. Her vertically slit pupils blazed, and her two horns emitted heat. I could feel her anger. The pressure was suffocating.
“Oz, you should know that I don’t intend to spare anyone who messes with my things within my territory.”
“Yes, I know.”
“I wouldn’t care if it was outside my territory, but daring to do that within my domain is a challenge to my authority. Do you understand?”
“I understand.”
Whether it was a dragon’s characteristic or because of the ‘it’ she was hiding, Tia didn’t like anyone running rampant in her territory.
“Tell me clearly. Are they connected to the previous incident?”
Tia wasn’t interested in anything that happened outside her territory. She didn’t interfere in human affairs unless it was a world-threatening issue. However, when it came to matters within her territory, she reacted with excessive hostility. For some reason, she was determined to protect her domain.
“Those guys… To put it simply, they’re the group that unleashed the ‘not yet’ into the world.”
“Then they all must die. What are their characteristics?”
“You’ll probably recognize them immediately when you see them. Their outward appearance and inner nature are vastly different. If I had to pick a physical trait, it would be that they wear masks.”
“Really?”
Tia tilted her head. It would have been a cute gesture in her child form, but the overwhelming pressure was so intense that I was momentarily speechless.
“Is that so?”
Tia responded as if committing it to memory and then turned around. But she didn’t seem to intend to wait. She looked ready to go find them right away.
*Crack*
With a chilling sound, membrane-covered wings sprouted from her back.
“Wait a second…”
A moment later, the dragon took flight.
And the ceiling of my dormitory vanished.
“I got one ceiling, and lost another…”
I would be sleeping under the stars tonight. How sentimental.
“…She’ll fix it tomorrow, right?”
I believed so.
* * *
Tia soared above the Empire, surveying her surroundings. She wasn’t fully revealing her true form, of course. That would only complicate matters unnecessarily.
“Where are you…”
Tia’s mana subtly spread out, and her eyes began to categorize every living creature within her sight. There were many who harbored murderous intent. Assassins, waiting for their target student to leave Scientia, were always lurking around. Tia didn’t feel the need to eliminate them and didn’t care about what happened outside the academy, so she left them alone.
‘Should I clean them up this time?’
They were getting in the way of finding the targets Oz had mentioned. For that reason alone, Tia began to contemplate the life and death of the assassins gathered nearby.
‘No…’
But Tia shook her head. She didn’t want to handle things that way.
“Then…”
Tia raised her arm and extended it towards the empty air. There was nothing in her hand. There was no mana, so it didn’t seem like she was about to cast a spell. But soon, something began to appear above her hand. The object was transparent, but it seemed to have some refractive index, as it created a distortion in the air.
“Open.”
Tia grasped the object and twisted it as if unlocking a lock. It was one of the five keys that existed in the world.
[The Seeker’s Key]
Mana was widely dispersed throughout the world. But no one knew where it originated. Some said it occurred naturally; others believed living beings were born with it. But it was different. The [Dragon Emperor] knew better.
Mana flowed from a single source. A miraculous creation of God surely existed. And the key Tia possessed was the key to opening that door.
“Azure Heart.”
Immense mana began to pour out from the tip of the key. Tia periodically dispersed this mana throughout the world, replenishing the depleted supply. That was the role of the [Dragon Emperor], one of the Key Persons. She didn’t tolerate escape. She didn’t tolerate hiding. The mana she dispersed was mixed into everything in the world, and she was one of the pillars supporting the world.
“Found you.”
The vast mana encompassing the entire Empire finally located its target.
“What…?”
Tia was momentarily taken aback. The target, seemingly aware of her pursuit, began to move as if trying to escape. This was normally impossible. No one could be conscious of the air they were constantly breathing. But it didn’t matter. No matter how much they ran, once captured, they couldn’t escape Tia’s grasp. Tia immediately flew towards the target. She had no intention of letting them go. She wouldn’t stop until she uncovered the identity of the ‘not yet’ Oz had spoken of. She wouldn’t leave anyone alone, not even a child, if they posed a threat to her.
“…?!”
Tia abruptly spun her body. An interception. But this wasn’t an ordinary attack. It was a powerful spell, at least of advanced level.
‘This quickly?’
Judging by the speed of the spell’s deployment, the enemy was at least an elder-level mage. Most magic wouldn’t even scratch her, but she was currently in human form, not her dragon form. Depending on the user, even advanced magic could inflict damage.
“How dare…!”
Tia was enraged by the magic continuously flying towards her. While the speed of the spell’s deployment was surprising, it was pathetic and laughable. Above all, Tia’s body began to expand in mid-air, fueled by their seemingly dismissive actions.
“Graaah—!!!!!!”
The dragon cast a shadow over the world. The advanced magic spells that had been flying towards her began to disappear harmlessly, like moths drawn to a flame.
*Boom!*
But at that moment, a bright light, as if inverting the dark night, leaked out, and Tia’s neck snapped back. A lightning-attribute spell of the highest level. Just like before, its deployment speed was astonishingly fast.
‘This magic is definitely…?’
She had seen this magic recently. Tia briefly pondered the question as she slowly brought her head back up. Even if it was a highest-level spell, once she revealed her true form, nothing could stop her. Her eyes blazed with fury. Tia spread her wings.
And…
*Zreeeeeeech—!*
With a sound like ripping space, Tia’s body instantly appeared at the location where the enemy group had gathered.
“…”
They were a group resembling clowns. A twisted group whose murderous intent, despite their masked faces, was more evident than any bare face. Oz was right. The moment she saw them, she understood that *this* was the group he had spoken of.
‘Are those really humans…?’
Just looking at them was repulsive. Tia had expected at least the undead of the underworld or demons. They possessed an unnatural quality that humans couldn’t replicate. But the beings reflected in Tia’s dragon eyes were undoubtedly human.
“It seems we’ve gotten too close.”
From the midst of the murderous clowns, a man with black hair and sky-blue eyes, wearing a mask, leisurely walked out. Tia felt a sense of familiarity with him, as if they had met recently. But this was clearly different. The essence was different. It had to be.
“Who are you…?”
Tia asked in a bewildered voice. He was more special than anything else present. He felt distinctly special, yet simultaneously the same as the others. Unnatural.
“Dear Dragon Emperor, we had no intention of intruding upon your territory. This kind of encounter is not to our liking either.”
“But you brought something strange into my territory, didn’t you?”
“Well… Haha, I can’t deny that.”
The man shrugged as if troubled. He acted somewhat nonchalantly. And Tia didn’t overlook that nonchalance. If the opponent was relaxed, there was no reason to just observe. She preferred violent solutions over conversation. Conversation was for the weak.
*Crack!*
Tia’s massive arm swung towards the man. But he wasn’t turned into a meat patty. There was a wall. A transparent wall, cracked like glass, as if space itself had been severed. Tia momentarily looked up at the sky.
“Dragon Emperor, I would appreciate it if you understood that I am not your enemy.”
“Don’t be ridiculous…!”
Seeing the man speak words similar to someone else’s, Tia took a deep breath. The wall separating her and the man wasn’t that sturdy. The proof was in the cracks created by a single punch from her.
“A breath attack is a bit much, isn’t it? I was hoping to have a longer conversation, but let’s save it for next time.”
Tia, who had been inhaling, widened her eyes in shock at the man’s next action. With arrogant and controlled movements, the man reached out towards the empty air.
“Open.”
A gesture as if opening a door in the air, an action incredibly familiar to Tia, one she had repeated countless times over hundreds of years. A key was opening a door.
“Mirror of the Reverse Side.”
*Crack—!*
With those words, the glass-like wall separating Tia and the group shattered, and their figures vanished.
“Huh…”
Tia stared blankly at the spot where they had disappeared, then raised a hand to her cheek. A faint pain registered. Blood was trickling down. There was a scratch on her body, the pinnacle of living beings. It was a humiliation she hadn’t felt in hundreds of years.
* * *
[Erosion Blade 30%]
After falling asleep under a roofless house and waking up again, the first things I saw were the [Erosion Blade] gauge, filled to its limit, and the cold, damp touch of rain.
“It’s raining.”
My body and heart were cold, and I felt uneasy. Life felt so sad and difficult that I felt like crying.
“Sob…”
I couldn’t tell if I was crying or if it was just the rain. This experience made me realize how blessed my life had been. As a modern person, I had never fallen asleep in the rain like this, and the overwhelming sadness made me want to sob.
“I can’t do this anymore…”
I had never felt so miserable.
—–CROW—–
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