Chapter 84 – #19_Uninvited Guest (5)
#82
1.
“He didn’t sell you off in the end.”
Sophia spent about ten minutes explaining what had happened at the Border Town Inn.
How the Aquarius witch had schemed to kidnap Amelia.
How Siwoo, undeterred by the sailors’ treachery, had sent out a distress call, allowing Sophia to rescue her.
Of course, she kept quiet about the suspicions that Amelia might be sensitive to.
Even if there was no other way, she didn’t think there was a need to add to the confusion.
After all, the words ‘force majeure’ and ‘extenuating circumstances’ exist for a reason.
“……..”
Amelia listened to Sophia’s words and froze, stunned.
She barely managed to form one question and asked Sophia.
“Then why did you keep it a secret from me…?”
“I didn’t know the details back then, but I think he was worried you’d find out he was preparing to escape. But don’t think badly of him. He had the option to sell you off and run away. But he didn’t.”
In truth, Amelia wasn’t afraid of death.
The only reason Amelia lived was to carry on her teacher’s magic.
Even if it were to be cut short by an unforeseen accident, she might feel a brief moment of regret, and perhaps a bit of anger at the thought of her legacy falling into the wrong hands, but she wasn’t afraid of death itself.
She had been empty since her teacher had passed away.
Because she felt empty, she couldn’t bear the void, so she had forced the duty of magic research upon herself.
She was just carrying it like a habit, climbing the slope.
Siwoo would have been different.
Wouldn’t he have researched magic because he wanted to live and escape no matter what?
He, a mere human, had faced death to protect Amelia.
And for a witch he didn’t even like that much, even giving up his chance to escape.
It was a huge debt.
“………”
“Siwoo was so brave for you. And yet, you’re thinking of running away? Isn’t there anything you haven’t said yet?”
“Why, why… would he go that far…”
“Why don’t you ask him yourself? That’s the most certain way.”
Amelia stopped crying.
She didn’t have time to cry.
The compass in her heart, which had been spinning aimlessly, was now fiercely pointing in one direction.
To go back to him right away.
To offer a proper apology and thanks.
His face, which had felt so frightening until just now.
She wanted to see it.
“Heh… heh….”
A joy that bloomed like pollen in her heart, so new.
She had only thought she was hated.
She had only thought she was being rejected.
But the fact that Shin Siwoo wouldn’t hand Amelia over in that situation, didn’t that mean he valued her? That bold thought kept trying to lift the corners of her mouth.
That joy simultaneously made Amelia feel ashamed.
She felt that her selfish, narrow-minded, and childish words and actions were being compared to his actions.
“I… I want to apologize…”
“That’s a good idea.”
“I’ll… go to the modern world with you…”
“What?”
Sophia was startled.
This was the first time Amelia had ever mentioned going to the modern world for fun.
A person who has been trapped in their own world for a long time hesitates to step into a new world.
Whether it’s a new emotion or another experience.
In that sense, the modern world was a very strange and frightening place for Amelia.
She had ignored Sophia’s offers to play several times.
On the surface, she said she didn’t want to waste her research time on such useless games, but in Sophia’s eyes, the emotion Amelia held toward the modern world was closer to fear of the unknown.
“Because… I want to do what he wants, too.”
Amelia, who had been scared, shrinking, and always taking a step back.
How could one not smile at the sight of her taking her first step?
Sophia wore a proud smile.
“Thank you, Sophia.”
As if responding to that face, Amelia wiped the tears from her cheeks with her sleeve.
Although she had various connections with Amelia, this was the first time she had heard her say thank you.
But there was no time to hug her, pinch her cheeks, and say how cute she was.
“Go on.”
Sophia gently pushed her back.
Amelia nodded and opened the door to the small room wide.
One more step into a new world she didn’t know.
To walk forward.
2.
“What are you doing?”
Ea tilted her head, watching Siwoo absorb magic power.
She had already seen him use the Water Lizard Walk, so she wasn’t particularly surprised.
But around that time, Siwoo’s consciousness was already erasing the existence of the terrifying exile.
His consciousness was plunging into the depths of the unconscious, as if being sucked into quicksand.
The empty black space appeared before Siwoo’s eyes once again.
The magic he had newly received from the gnosis egg he had obtained by hunting the homunculus.
The ‘Law of Shadows’ that erodes and interferes with magic circles, ultimately leading to collapse.
The shadow structure, which had become a new construct, greeted Siwoo and began to spin fiercely, creating a magnificent nebula shape.
He had only taken one step, but the distance between the two had instantly narrowed.
This was ‘Ain’, the world of consciousness and concepts.
It was a space of freedom where physical dimensions were not a constraint.
-Wooooooom!
From the Law of Shadows right in front of him, a humming vibration could be heard.
It sounded like a reproachful voice asking why he had come so late, and Siwoo couldn’t help but smile wryly.
“I had to have the time.”
If he had known this would happen, he would have made time even if he didn’t have it to build up his proficiency.
“Help me out a little.”
There was no way magic could have a self, but the shadow began to wrap around his outstretched hand as if shaking it.
Siwoo took control of the shadow from the magic circle.
No, the expression ‘took control’ was a bit wrong.
This power was supposed to follow Siwoo’s command.
It had only now come completely under his control.
The shadow that covered his entire body began to flow like a snake.
It moved freely, as if he were controlling a newly grown arm, following Siwoo’s will.
However.
This wouldn’t be enough.
His opponent was an exile who boasted of being an equal match for Amelia.
If he was going to buy time, he needed more thorough preparation.
What came to Siwoo’s mind was armor and a spear.
He shaped the shadow like dough, putting it on his body and creating two spears.
At the same time, Siwoo’s consciousness returned to reality.
“Oh my?”
It felt like he had wasted a few minutes in Ain, but in reality, only about a second had passed.
Ea covered her mouth as if surprised, her eyes wide.
The shadow that had suddenly sprouted from Siwoo’s body had transformed into armor to fight against the enemy.
There was no light-reflecting gloss or fancy patterns that were common in fantasy games.
Just black armor that absorbed the moonlight, gauntlets covering both hands, and two straight spears.
“Hoo…”
As Siwoo inhaled, the shadow that extended from his back covered his head, creating the shape of a sleek helmet.
It felt natural, as if he had been doing it for a long time, and he even felt a strange sense of familiarity.
A miracle that allowed him to use completely new magic without any special training.
This was the product of the ‘gnosis egg’ that forcibly expanded human perception.
“Did you like RPG games?”
“It was a bad game to begin with, but it’s been five years, so it’s probably really ruined now.”
Ea’s outward impression was about that much, but inwardly, she was very surprised.
She was so unconcerned with Siwoo’s blunt reply that she didn’t pay any attention to it.
It wasn’t entirely impossible for a slave to use magic.
However, the shadow that rippled like fine metal powder or smoke on the armor that covered his entire body.
That was not simply a ‘phenomenon’ manifested by magic.
Each tiny particle was a very, very small magic formula.
Even if she was an exile, as long as her essence was that of a witch, she was interested in magic she had never seen before.
“I was only interested in your body before… but now I’m interested in you yourself. I’ll take you and use you for research too.”
Looking at the ribbons fluttering like seaweed in the sea, Siwoo spoke to the twins.
“Jump back right now.”
“What?”
And he immediately threw one of the two spears at Ea, and at the same time, he shot the other one toward the barrier behind him.
-Swish!
It wasn’t thrown with arm strength.
He used magic power to give kinetic energy to the shadow itself.
As a result, the spear accelerated without any warning.
First, as soon as the spear that flew a short distance touched the water bottle’s barrier, a wave spread instantly.
The shadow, which had spread like paint, as if melting into the delicate barrier, caused the entire water bottle to surge greatly for a moment.
-Swaaaaaaash!
Meanwhile, Ea looked at the other spear flying toward her with indifferent eyes.
“How foolish.”
The ribbon tentacles that had been writhing behind her as if to protect her rushed forward.
It was the activation of an autonomous defense to intercept the magic that threatened its master.
The ribbons, which stretched out smoothly without any special instructions, snatched the shadow spear in the air as if wrapping around it.
-Crackling!
The ribbons that were torn apart as they blocked the spear looked like the leaves of an orchid eaten by a swarm of locusts.
But Ea was not at all flustered.
When she saw the waveform of the magic power, she could easily guess that it was a type that directly interfered with the magic formula.
The more delicate the magic, the more likely it was to induce a fatal flaw and short-circuit it.
“Your efforts are commendable, but pathetic.”
The shadow spear, which had lost speed every time it tore through a ribbon, was eventually stopped in its reckless advance.
The shadow magic, wrapped in dozens of layers of ribbons, lost its structure and scattered on the spot.
“What are you going to do with that little magic power?”
Although the Law of Shadows had an advantage in compatibility over most magic, that was only when it was at an intermediate level.
The solution was simple.
Just like Siwoo had done, she could just overwhelm it with massive magic power.
There was no way that Ea, a high-ranking witch, wouldn’t have noticed such a simple solution.
“Assistant…”
“………”
Siwoo looked at Ea, who had stopped the attack without any effort.
And when he glanced behind his shoulder, he saw the barrier, which was also intact.
The moment the spear pierced it, it rippled for a moment like the surface of water when a drop of water fell, but it was repaired at the same time as a gap that could fit a finger appeared.
The time it took for the barrier to self-repair was much faster than the speed at which the shadow broke the barrier.
He hadn’t had high expectations.
Siwoo knew his place.
But at the very least, he had hoped to buy enough time for the twins to escape…
As if sensing Siwoo’s intentions, Ea made another offer at the perfect timing.
“But since it was fun, I’ll give you a chance.”
A golden opportunity to buy time.
“Assistant, don’t give up, we’ll help too.”
“That’s right. We can win if we work together.”
“Please wait a moment.”
Siwoo stepped forward to stop the twins from trying to chant, as they had realized that trembling wouldn’t solve anything.
“I would be grateful if you would.”
Judging from her confident attitude, Ea Sadalmelik was definitely a strong opponent.
All of her actions were based on the premise that she could subdue Amelia head-on.
Even if it was just arrogance or a delusion, it was definitely not a level that Siwoo or the twins could match.
“Since we have time anyway, that’s good. Let’s see how many of your limbs are left by the time Marigold comes back.”
Leeway.
He had to make the most of the carelessness that she could afford because she thought of Siwoo and the twins as fish in a water bottle.
“I’ll do it instead!”
Odile grabbed Siwoo’s arm from behind and stepped forward.
Ea snorted at the sight.
“I don’t even want to see the disgusting Gemini magic. After all, isn’t it just a degraded version of the rude twins? What I’m curious about is the slave’s magic.”
While Odile was unable to retort, Siwoo grabbed her shoulder and persuaded her.
He was grateful for her concern, but he couldn’t overlook the fact that this opportunity was entirely dependent on Ea’s whim.
“Odile, not now.”
“But Assistant, you were like this last time too…! I’ll protect you this time…!”
“We have to follow what that witch wants. That’s the only chance.”
“Assistant…”
Odile hugged Siwoo’s waist tightly, her eyes welling up with tears.
Siwoo stroked Odile’s head and said.
“Let’s make sure we survive this time, too.”
“…If we survive, I’ll give you a discount on my face again.”
Siwoo, who had gently pushed Odile back after she had said something that sounded like a joke with a serious face, stepped onto Ea’s experimental table.
“Is the cliché melodrama over?”
Siwoo nodded.
Under the helmet, his determined eyes glared at Ea.
“Then, shall we take a step?”
Ea’s hand drew a horizontal line.
As if responding to her command, one of the ribbons twisted in the air.
The ribbon, which had accumulated elasticity to its limit, drew a spiral trajectory and covered Siwoo like a viper.
