Chapter 82: Gale (1) (1/2)

Bound by Rohakan’s large hand, Epherene stared blankly at the subsequent bombing, the fragmented buildings, and the horrors of the explosions’ aftermath as they walked past them.

“Why…”

“Don’t ask why. It’s crazy things done by crazy people.”

Rumble!

Rohakan applied magic on a collapsing statue, seemingly trying to prevent its fall using [Psychokinesis], but it didn’t work as efficiently as Deculein’s.

“Oh, my. I can’t even do it as neat as he did.”

Smirking, he quickly cleansed the area with his own magic.

Snap—!

At the snap of his fingers, the falling debris swiftly disintegrated into tiny fragments. The deflagrations were then extinguished, and the flames sublimated to the sky.

“What was that just now?”

“I call it [Elementalization]. Melting the processed material into the most one-dimensional element. You probably won’t find it in textbooks.”

“Wow.”

Epherene closed her eyes in admiration, and when she opened them, she found herself already out of town.

“… Where are we? Did we just teleport?”

They now stood on a hill. The square, which turned into a horrific crime scene while the festival was underway, was now at a far-away distance. A quiet hut was also near them.

He smiled and took a deep breath.

“It’s been a while since I’ve shown my magic in front of a young talent.”

He said, releasing more mana. In his hand was the Fragment of the World Tree, a staff she had seen before.

Boom—!

Rohakan hit the ground with it, casting the grand magic [Flow of Purification]. The magical shockwaves it generated reached all the way to the hot spring area, cleaning up the excess mana in the square.

“I’ve done enough. I believe they can take care of the rest.”

“Yes, yes. Then I’ll go now—”

“Using grand magic made me hungry. Don’t you want to have some meat? I hunted one last night.”

“… Meat?” She asked suspiciously.

*****

Chomp—!

Piece by piece, Epherene devoured the meat in her hands, finding each bite delicious. It wasn’t as luxurious as a Roahawk, but she thought it wouldn’t be bad to try something new.

“This is amazing. It’s enough to satisfy my picky palate…”

“I know you can eat all kinds of things.”

Even as he answered, Rohakan ceaselessly busied himself with his own matters, frantically moving from place to place in his narrow hut.

“What do you mean? I can’t do that.”

“Where did your friend go, though? The one with you before.”

“… Oh. She’s not feeling well, so she’s resting.” Epherene smiled bitterly. Sylvia overworked herself during the final exams, causing her exhaustion to finally take its toll on her. From what she heard, she didn’t sleep or eat at all throughout the finals.

“Have you been living here all this time? How come you haven’t been caught yet?”

“Well, this hut is far from ordinary. I wouldn’t be able to keep my freedom in my possession during the past decades otherwise. Think of it as a ship.”

“A ship?”

“Yeah. You guys also call it “The 9th Series” or “Specialized Magic.” I think they define it as a wizard’s signature that combines all of their disposition, personality, and talent.”

Signature magic. The ultimate achievement that all wizards desired.

Epherene only blinked.

Albeit, she moved her mouth as well to chew on the meat.

“Here. Look.”

Rohakan closed the hut’s door then pulled a lever installed near the fireplace in a way that made it look like a decoration.

Boom-!

She flinched when she felt her surroundings vibrate, but she didn’t stop eating her food. Chuckling, he opened the door again.

“… Huh?”

As she looked past the doorway, her jaw dropped open.

Before her widened eyes were a desert, its sand stretching to the horizon and mixing with the scorching wind. Her lips dried up after just 10 seconds of staring at the scenery.

Softly, he asked, “What do you think? It’s uncanny, right?”

“This…”

Epherene grabbed him by the collar.

“T-Take me back!”

“Hahaha.”

“D-Don’t laugh, hurry up, you kidnapper!”

Bump—Bong—Bong—

She clumsily shook the large criminal’s body.

“Do it!”

“Hahahaha.”

“Take me back!”

“Don’t worry. I will. You might get scolded by Deculein if I don’t.”

“… What? Why would he do that?”

“Hmm? Weren’t the two of you Deculein’s disciples?”

She frowned.

“Nonsense. More importantly, where the hell are we?”

“We’re at the Kahal Desert in the eastern part of the continent. Despite this place’s absurd climate, there are several demon-blooded people’s villages here.”

“You mean the instigators of today’s terrorism?”

He let out a bitter smile. Without answering her question, he continued.

“Their annihilation will soon begin, and so will the intensification of the oppression over the minorities. That tormenting gale will be far stronger than the desert wind that you feel now. What do you think of that?”

“Why are you asking me that? I’m a wizard, not a politician.”

“I need someone who will succeed me soon.”

“Succeed you?”

Rohakan’s slanted gaze reached Epherene, his eyes seemingly overflowing with sorrow.

“Yes. When you reach a certain level as a wizard, you are powerful enough to learn of your own death. That being said, I don’t have much time left in this world.”

“… Then you should tell Professor Deculein to do it.”

“Do you think that man will listen to me?”

Recalling the Head Professor’s unique ego, Epherene nodded.

Haughty, arrogant, noble, and possessed by self-righteous dignity.

“Well, to be fair, he listens to no one. Even if God tells him to do it, I don’t think he will if he doesn’t want to. No, I’m certain he won’t.”

“Hahaha! You’re right.”

Rohakan laughed as he closed the door, then picked up a magic pouch in the corner of the room with [Psychokinesis].

“Now. In this pouch are ‘elixirs,’ a ‘magic training book’ I wrote, and many others that I’m certain will help you.”

“… So?”

She already seemed to have set her own expectations.

“I’ll give this to you and your friend.”

“… What? Why? That’s suspicious.”

Her doubt was just for formality. Epherene’s eyes were already fixed on the magic pouch.

He chuckled.

“There will come a point in your career as a wizard where you’ll start finding it easy to decipher other people. Of course, it only works for simple people like you. I will never understand those as complex and reserved as Deculein.”

“What? Sylvia is far from simple.”

“No. That one is probably simpler than you. Anyway, will you take it?”

His words made her ponder.

A Black Beast and known as the world’s worst criminal, Rohakan…

Seemed to be a good old man.

“Half belongs to you, and half belongs to your friend. I even wrote your name tag.”

“…”

Deeply thinking about it, she glanced at him as she grabbed the pouch.

“Okay.”

“Good. Now that you’ve taken it, I’ll leave Deculein to you. I’ll come back later and ask you a favor.”

“Huh? I don’t know what favor you’ll be asking, but why are you entrusting Deculein to us?”

“Well~ you probably don’t know yet, but I can see a little bit of the future. At most, two weeks or a month is my limit.” He smiled nonchalantly.

“Bullshit! I-I mean, you’re lying! How can you see the future?”

But his words were more than enough to astonish Epherene.

“You don’t have to be surprised. It serves as proof of a short life. The closer a wizard is to their end, the more they learn of the truth.”

Creak—

Rohakan pulled the lever again. The desert landscape had disappeared.

“I have now two or three years left in me at most. Even if I fall, many wizards in this world will have key roles, and whether you like it or not, Deculein, that bastard, will be one of them.”

“That’s funny.”

“Right. But bear this in mind. He could be both a pillar of growth or the beginning of ruin.”

“Both are huge problems for me. What kind of future did you see? Can’t you come back after seeing it in more detail again?”

“Hahaha. I also want to, but it’s not something I can just look at as I please.”

He opened the door to the hut again, revealing a familiar square.

The flow of time seemed strange. The sky was already dark, and the surroundings had grown quiet, seemingly signifying that the terrorist attack incident had been cleared up.

Epherene looked up blankly at Rohakan.

“… You look like a real wizard.”

“I get that a lot. I see Demakan the same way you see me.”

Archmage Demakan. With Rohakan being this powerful already, how much more could he be?

He looked at the moon in the sky for a moment, then looked at Rohakan again. No, she looked where Rohakan previously was, only to find that he and his hut had already disappeared.

“Epherene.”

Not long after, a cold voice called her name, startling her.

It was all too familiar, but that was exactly why it terrified her.

“P-Professor…?”

Deculein’s fierce eyes were staring down at her.

“You met Rohakan.”

His words made her heart pound so hard that she thought it would explode.

“N-No.”

“What did he say?”

Her mouth felt dry, and her anxiety was shooting through her threshold. It was as if dark pressure was squeezing her body.

“Epherene.”

He called her name once more.

“Answer me.”

“… It’s a secret!”

Closing her eyes as she shouted, she resisted his intimidation.

“…”

The punishment she was waiting for didn’t come. However, the magic pouch she held slowly moved to Deculein’s hand.

“… U-Um! P-Please, give it back!”

She grew restless like a dog that had lost its treat as he looked into it calmly.

Gulp—

‘He will take it from me. He will confiscate everything.’

“Take it.”

“… Huh?”

When her heart was about to shatter, he returned the pouch to her. The atmosphere around him was still dark and overbearing, but he neither reprimanded her nor confiscated it.

“You disappeared without a word.”

“… Yes?”

“I was looking for you.”

Of course, his face and voice were still cold, but his words told her he was worried.

Epherene, who wasn’t used to it, noticed a potion in his hand that had the name tag [Deculein] attached to it.

Rohakan, that old man, deliberately dropped her off near Deculein.

“Go to the police station. Your friends are waiting for you.”

Epherene stared blankly at his back as he walked away.

* * *

Sylvia slept for so long in her room she felt like a hibernating bear. With her were her familiar and the panda.

Tak-! Tak-!

However, for quite some time now, she kept hearing strange noises coming from her window.

It was 4:30 in the morning.

Tak-! Tak-!

She tried to ignore it, but she eventually grew annoyed with it as it persisted.

‘What fearless bastard dares…’

Tak-! Tak-!

Sylvia impatiently pulled up the curtains, finding Epherene about to throw a small pebble. The intruder smiled brightly.