Chapter 50 Part1 (1/2)
<chapter 50.=”” the=”” battle=”” against=”” seagald=”” -=”” 1=””>
”So is there anyone here who can tell me what happened in detail?”
The battle was over. While the Pauls were collecting the loot, Lee s.h.i.+n Woo gathered the commanders in one spot and held a discussion. He may be able to gain some info from the Anti-Skulls' bones, but it wouldn't be the same as hearing it from those who actually fought against Seagald himself.
[Excuse me...]
”Huh? Ah, sure.”
Lee s.h.i.+n Woo looked at s.h.i.+no Rendu, who had carefully raised his hand, and smiled bitterly. His gaze wasn't directed at him, but at Seira, who was a bit behind Lee s.h.i.+n Woo. s.h.i.+no's hands shook and his gaze wavered. He resembled a drug abuser, so it was kind of frightening.
[Could I please... talk with her a little bit?]
”...s.h.i.+no Rendu. It's been a while. I see you were following Lee s.h.i.+n Woo all this time.”
[Y-Yeah. That means...]
Now that he thought about it, s.h.i.+no Rendu one-sidedly loved Seira in the past! He'd forgotten all about it because it hadn't mattered; he never imagined that they'd both become undead and meet each other again.
The others seemingly noticed the peculiar mood and tilted their heads. Whereas Seira just shrugged her shoulders.
[Seira... No, Retadane. Why are you...?]
”Everyone who's died has their own story to tell. In any case, I died; I came to an understanding with Lee s.h.i.+n Woo and formed a contract with him. Right now, I'm working alongside him. That's all.”
Lee s.h.i.+n Woo had disclosed his ident.i.ty as a hero to the Pauls some time ago. s.h.i.+no Rendu knew this as well.
The fact that he was qualified to be a hero would only serve as a positive for the Pauls; they would never see it as a detriment. s.h.i.+no Rendu was the same. It didn't matter that Lee s.h.i.+n Woo was once his junior.
[T-Then, we'll be able to fight together from now on.]
”...Yes, so long as you don't betray Lee s.h.i.+n Woo.”
[Of course! I'm so happy that I could meet you again...]
”s.h.i.+no Rendu, I'd rather you not give me any unwanted attention.”
[Ah...]
Lee s.h.i.+n Woo heard and instinctively turned around. Some really sad stuff would be happening now. He decided not to listen to this. Yeah, after all, he had so much more to do!
”So, those who fought against Seagald... Ah, that's right. Ellata.”
[t.i.tan.]
No matter how many times he said it, they refused to believe that he wasn't a t.i.tan; Ellata took one knee before Lee s.h.i.+n Woo.
Lee s.h.i.+n Woo had healed her right after the battle, so her body and armor were fully repaired. However, she, as well as all those who'd fought and lost against Seagald, all sported sour expressions.
[I discovered him because I was at the vanguard. His appearance was sudden and intense.]
”How did he appear? He probably wasn't hiding here before. Did you sense s.p.a.ce element mana? You should remember that mana that covered the Giants' Domain.”
[No, it wasn't. It was completely different. It was a shadow... A fire's shadow.]
”...What?”
[Please excuse my rudeness, but may I touch you, t.i.tan?]
”Of course.”
Once he consented, Ellata carefully extended her pinky finger. Lee s.h.i.+n Woo gripped her pinky and closed his eyes. The two were linked together through the darkness element, and Ellata's memories were directly transmitted to Lee s.h.i.+n Woo. Now, Lee s.h.i.+n Woo understand what she meant by a 'fire's shadow'.
'One of them suddenly burned themselves, creating this flame, and a shadow formed from within it. 'Fire's shadow' is indeed an apt description of it. Seagald showed up with this. He immediately killed a level 7 Giant who attempted to stop him; that was only the beginning. He then cajoled Ellata, Arogan, and the Pauls with those flames... And then, he faded into the darkness and disappeared.'
He had a rough idea as to what had happened through Ellata's memories. However, he didn't have enough information to be absolutely sure yet. If it were as she said, then... his face stiffened and he said.
”Ellata, have you collected the bones of the burned Anti-Skull soldier? No, there were probably some other troops with the same 'mission' as him. Bring me the officers' bones first.”
[Understood!]
Fortunately, they were able to gather the burned Anti-Skull soldier's bone. Lee s.h.i.+n Woo immediately absorbed it, and clearly heard Seagald's instructions.
[Call me if something unexpected happens. You sacrifice yourself to the flame and create a fire's shadow. And it is through this shadow that I can come over to you. That is our link.]
Lee s.h.i.+n Woo was briefly silent. He realized what Seagald meant, as well as how he was temporarily summoned.
”...Man, I can't put up with this any longer.”
”s.h.i.+n Woo!?”
”No, not yet. Let's look through a few more. Bone Reinforcement!”
He was already sure of it, but he absorbed the other officers' bones regardless just in case he was misunderstanding something. However, Seagald had given the other officers the same instructions; he couldn't find a single artifact on their bodies, so he sighed and accepted the truth.
The b.a.s.t.a.r.d didn't use spatial magic or a unique artifact. It was more of an intuitive and logical power; it was none other than an innate element. A power that differed from Annihilation Flame at that!
”This a.s.shole had two innate elements. Man, he really fooled me. So he was taking it easy during our fight, huh... He's really starting to resemble me more and more.”