Chapter 425. Variable, and Variable (3) (1/2)

The carriages raced to their destination at full speed.

The speed of Horuses trained for military use far surpassed the speed of normal Horuses that pulled ordinary carriages.

Of course, having run day and night, they tottered from fatigue by the time they passed Haramark. However, the speed of the expedition team did not slow down thanks to King Prihi preparing them a new set of carriages.

The team immediately got on the new carriages and set off toward Delphinion Duchy.

The atmosphere inside the carriages had been silent ever since they left Scheherazade.

“Yes, father. Yes. I’ll be fine. Don’t worry….”

Only Teresa’s voice could be heard as she quietly whispered to her communication crystal.

Prihi had not come out to see them off. Knowing the importance of this operation, he must not have wanted to delay the team by talking with Teresa or lower the morale with a tear-jerking show.

Teresa also knew this and called her father herself.

Seol Jihu watched Teresa as she cracked a smile every now and then while talking with her father.

His parents did not even know about Paradise’s existence, but that didn’t mean he didn’t have a father figure in Paradise.

Seol Jihu pulled out his own communication crystal and infused his mana into it after much thought.

—Representative?

“Hey, Kim Hannah, can you put Master Jang on the line?”

—Yes, hold on.

Kim Hannah disappeared from the communication crystal, and soon, a familiar face appeared in it.

A heavy silence flowed between the two of them. Seol Jihu stayed silent despite asking Kim Hannah to call Jang Maldong, and Jang Maldong also waited silently.

It was because they had a tacit understanding between them.

Looking back, Seol Jihu never had a comfortable fight against the Parasites.

Perhaps this wasn’t so surprising given the vast difference in their force, but Seol Jihu had always fought desperate uphill battles. With heaven-swallowing tsunamis threatening him periodically, his life, ever since he entered Paradise, had been a series of challenges.

However, Seol Jihu overcame such hopelessness each time, and by achieving what everyone said was impossible, he managed to overturn disadvantageous battles not once, but several times.

And now, humanity was facing a storm that was bigger and fiercer than ever before.

In a situation where all signs were pointing to hopelessness, he overcame despair and stood up with his spear.

To prevent the Parasite Queen’s revival, he chose to fight, risking his life as always.

…Right, nothing had changed.

The reason Seol Jihu called Jang Maldong despite this… was because he had a feeling that this might be the last time he could see his face and hear his voice.

Though the operation certainly had a hope of success, charging into the heart of enemy territory was undoubtedly a very dangerous undertaking.

“…Master.”

By the time Teresa finished talking with Prihi and hung up, Seol Jihu broke the long silence.

“There’s something I want to talk to you about.”

—Go ahead.

Jang Maldong replied calmly.

Seol Jihu took out a transparent, cube-shaped crystal from his Dimensional Pocket.

—That’s….

“The Harmonia Magic Square. I showed it to you once before.”

Sinisterly dark energy was swirling inside the transparent crystal.

Jang Maldong’s eyes narrowed.

“By any chance…”

—No.

Jang Maldong cut Seol Jihu off before he could say anything.

—I said it before, and I will say it again. You must never use that thing. Did I not tell you to throw it away?

Jang Maldong continued solemnly.

—Of course, I know what you want to say. That the seven gods must have had a reason for giving it to you.

“….”

—I agree with that logic, but you have to consider the difference between your current state and how you were back then.

Seol Jihu was a Level 5 during the Special Tutorial, but he was a Level 7 now. It wasn’t a simple difference in levels as he was now in a completely new realm.

The current Seol Jihu was strong enough to thrash an Army Commander like Vulgar Chastity, who was weak in close combat.

—You would have gained a powerful strength if you had used the Harmonia Magic Square back then, but after going through the trials in the Path of the Soul, you obtained an even stronger power.

“Yes.”

—What’s important is that these two powers have different directions of growth.

The power that the Harmonia Magic Square granted its user came from the reverse flow effect.

Although Seol Jihu could not remember it, he had used the power of reverse flow effect once before during the Arden Valley War.

By reversing the flow of mana, it allowed him to gain explosive strength for a limited time. As a result, his body became tattered to the point it was deemed irrecoverable.

—I know you said it was temporarily controllable, but that also means you will lose control the moment you cross a line. And all this is based on your former state.

It might have been a different story if he used it before he built up and solidified his foundations. But at a point where his growth was nearing completion from having climbed up one step at a time, suddenly accepting a reverse flow energy would only destroy everything he had built up so far.

That was what Jang Maldong was worried about.

Moreover, as he had seen what happened to Seol Jihu’s body after the Arden Valley War, he could only reject the usage of such a dangerous item.

—Jihu, you are already complete to a certain degree. You might be able to temporarily gain a powerful strength rivaling that of a god by accepting that darkness, but the only thing waiting for you will be death.

“….”

—Even if you somehow survive, the newly introduced energy won’t disappear from your body. That means you’ll end up with a body that can’t fight.

Seol Jihu smacked his lips. He remembered how Black Seol Jihu said he should forget about learning Berserk if he wanted to use the Harmonia Magic Square. Black Seol Jihu had even refused to teach him Thousand Thunder.

The two teachers who had guided him to his current state were both vehemently advising against using the Harmonia Magic Square.

—So please, don’t use that thing! No, throw it away now!

Moreover, he couldn’t bring himself to say no when Jang Maldong was practically begging him.

“…Okay.”

Seol Jihu sighed and then feigned a smile.

“Don’t worry about it.”

—…Alright.

Jang Maldong still looked uneasy but did not say anything else.

“I’ll be back soon, then.”

—Take care of yourself.

Seol Jihu said goodbye like he was going for a stroll at a nearby park, and Jang Maldong replied calmly as he always did.

The call hung up.

Seol Jihu put the communication crystal in his pocket. Just as he was about to put Harmonia Magic Square back into the Dimensional Pocket…

“Why aren’t you throwing it away?”

He flinched at the sudden question.

Teresa was staring intently at the cube that was halfway inside the Dimensional Pocket.

“You’re not planning on using that thing… are you?”

She asked carefully.

It wasn’t just Teresa.

Baek Haeju, Seo Yuhui, Eun Yuri, Chung Chohong, Phi Sora… He couldn’t figure out why only female members were riding in his carriage, but they were all staring at him with the same doubtful look.

Well, given how quiet things were, it wasn’t surprising for them to have overheard his conversation with Jang Maldong.

“Jihu, give it to me. I will hold onto it.”

Seo Yuhui reached out.

Slightly taken aback, Seol Jihu blocked her hand.

“No, I’ll hold onto it.”

“What? Did you forget what Grandpa said just now?”

“Hey, just throw that thing away. What’s the point in keeping it? It sounded useless anyway.”

Phi Sora and Chohong voiced their complaints.

“Ssp!”

Eun Yuri glared at him and breathed sharply as if to say she would scold him if he did not listen.

Seol shook his head, chuckling at the idea that such a puny glare would force him to change his mind.

“You never know….”

“What was that?”

Chohong raised her eyebrows.

“I’m not saying I’ll use it. I can give it to someone else.”

“Then give it to me. Now. That’s fine, right?”

“I’m thinking of giving it Hugo, actually.”

“…Chet, as if I’d believe that.”

Chohong grumbled and turned away.

Seo Yuhui continued to reach for the cube with an untrusting face, but she couldn’t break through Seol Jihu’s defense. Her worry-ridden look didn’t disappear even when he promised he would not use it.

Baek Haeju also kept her eyes fixed on Seol Jihu’s Dimensional Pocket.

It wasn’t until Seol Jihu showed himself talking to Hugo when the carriages stopped to give the Horuses a quick break that their gazes fell off.

Hugo said it would be hard to use it during the expedition and that he would consider using it after the matter, grabbing Seol Jihu’s hands, and thanking him.

Just like that, the carriages set off to the Delphinion Duchy once again.

*

The expedition team got over the first hump without a hitch.