Chapter 49 : Chapter 49

Chapter 49: The Foolish and the Great (3)

Jeina, who was warming up by swinging her axe, froze as she saw Codis’s ankle in Artier’s hand.

“What, did you have all the fun by yourself?”

“I really wish I had fun.”

“Is that?!”

Bow was startled to see the bracelet on Artier’s arm.

Artier quietly nodded and said in a low voice.

“It’s the Fairy’s Eye. It was here.”

Artier scratched the back of his neck with a troubled expression.

Normally, he should have given this to Bow as promised, but there was a very minor problem.

‘If it was a stolen item, it would be one thing, but this makes it look like we’re taking an artifact that the elves possessed.’

Moreover, they were in a situation where they had rashly entered the lord’s castle and beaten up the lord.

Acting to take this could have a negative impact on the situation going forward.

“…….”

Fortunately, as if he had read Artier’s concerns, Bow sighed and turned his head.

“Let’s talk later.”

Artier, sending a grateful glance, looked at Codis.

The appearance he had shown at first was nowhere to be seen, and he looked so pitifully unconscious with his cheeks all swollen.

“Shall we head out now.”

“Wait a moment.”

It was Ropin who stopped the party as they were about to leave.

“There is still an unresolved mystery.”

“Yes?”

“Isn’t it strange? How was the lord able to command such bizarre monsters?”

At those words, everyone flinched for a moment and froze.

In fact, now that Artier heard it, there was one thing that was a mystery to him too.

‘Come to think of it, holy magic and other skills could be copied through the Fairy’s Eye, but…….’

A technique to control Hellmorphs?

As far as Artier knew, there was no one who knew such a thing.

In the first place, if such a technique were common, a future where humans were destroyed by Hellmorphs would not have existed.

“Moreover, the guardians of the World Tree were participating in this plan. It means that some of the elves, albeit a part of them, agreed with the lord’s plan.”

“What?”

Suddenly, Bow came right up to Ropin and stared at him intently.

“What does that mean? Explain properly. The elves I know would never tolerate something like this.”

“……Follow me.”

Ropin led the party somewhere.

Among the passages they had first passed through, there was one room whose entrance had collapsed.

When Ropin gently waved his staff, the rock that was blocking the door began to move to the side.

“Everyone, hold the surrounding air with telekinesis. The sleep poison might still be lingering.”

Only after everyone had properly held the air did Ropin move all the rocks away.

Then, a huge cavern that Ropin had deliberately blocked off revealed itself.

“What is this……”

“The elves are collapsed. Did you kill them?”

“I did not kill them. They are all just asleep.”

“I-is that a dragon?”

The collapsed elf mages around them were shocking enough, but soon, at Collie’s scream, everyone’s attention focused in that direction.

“……To think that it really existed.”

“Many history books defined dragons as mere fabricated beings. Was that not the case?”

As Gerard was muttering, Ropin approached the dragon and lightly tapped its head with his staff.

“To make such a solid sound from a mere scale, it seems it’s no ordinary being after all.”

“What are you trying to do?”

“When I first entered this place, I was introduced to this creature by the lord. And from that point on, I had a question. Is this really a dragon?”

A dragon was a monster from the Age of Myths that hadn’t appeared in 1,000 years.

But the corpse of such a being was in the basement of a remote lord’s castle?

It was bound to be suspicious.

Therefore, after putting the elf mages to sleep, the first thing Ropin checked was whether this being was indeed a dragon.

“……Surprisingly, this massive body is not some kind of manipulated flesh.”

“Then are you saying it’s really a dragon?”

“Unfortunately, I do not know. I am not a dragon expert. All I could confirm was that this being once breathed.”

Ropin said this and told everyone to gather around him.

“For an accurate confirmation, I plan to use a simple magic. Can you help me?”

Artier looked around at everyone.

Gerard and Collie were nodding, their curiosity piqued, and Jeina was a given.

Surprisingly, even Bow, who had been indifferent the whole time, readily agreed.

“Just explain what kind of magic it is.”

“It’s a magic that peeks into a corpse’s memory. More accurately, it’s to confirm the deceased’s last moments.”

Receiving mana from everyone, Ropin began to draw a simple magic circle at his feet.

“I will begin. Dead Consulting.”

[Ropin uses a skill.]

Dead Consulting (Lv.3): Peeks into the final moments of someone you did not kill directly. If the deceased permits, you can also share the emotions of that time.

Paaat!

A murky green light began to envelop the dragon, and Artier felt a momentary sense of lethargy wash over his entire body.

Barely enduring the dizzying sensation and looking around again, the surrounding space had completely changed.

***

The first scene began with a giant, radiant tree.

There were many ancient trees around it, but none of them could surpass even the small rootlets of this tree.

‘This is the World Tree.’

Even Artier had this thought the moment he saw it.

“Why have you come here, child of the forest?”

A strange voice was heard.

As Artier turned his head, he held his breath.

The dead dragon was glaring somewhere, its two eyes flashing.

“Guardian of the World Tree, I have come because I wish to have a conversation.”

Bowing with a faint smile was none other than Codis Hol.

“……You have not brought a delegate from the council. An unpermitted being cannot have a conversation.”

“There are circumstances. Could you not turn a blind eye just once?”

“I believe I said no.”

The dragon, called the Guardian, bared its teeth and glared at Codis.

It was a killing intent that made even Artier, who was not the target, feel a chill down his spine.

“I have no choice then.”

But Codis himself was smiling as if nothing was wrong.

It was an impossible feat.

The Codis that Artier remembered was an idiot who couldn't withstand such killing intent.

“Isn’t that right?”

Codis said, glancing behind him.

Sreuk…….

Then, someone walked out from behind Codis.

Wearing a uniquely shaped robe of grayish color with bright embroidery, the figure's appearance could not be identified at all from the outside.

“What?!”

Artier could feel the Guardian's emotion, filled with surprise.

It seemed that even the dragon had not been aware that Codis was accompanied by someone.

“To bring an outsider to the Primordial Tree!”

“It is a pity that you are so foolish. This too is the will of the World Tree.”

“I am the delegate and will of the World Tree!”

“You are mistaken. Because this person who has appeared before you is the new delegate of the World Tree.”

“……You baaastard!”

The Guardian, filled with rage, charged at Codis, and the surroundings gradually grew dark as cracks began to form in the space.

Amidst the increasingly stuttering memories, Artier could see the Guardian of the World Tree fighting fiercely with the unidentified outsider.

Crash!

The moment the stuttering memories completely stopped, the space shattered into pieces, and Artier found himself back in the original place.

“What was that. Weren’t we supposed to be able to see until the moment of death?”

Bow asked back with an annoyed expression, but Ropin’s face was set hard.

“This dragon has been dead for too long. That’s why the magic didn’t work properly.”

Still, they had learned something.

“The lord had an accomplice.”

“I saw it too. They looked really terrifying, didn't they?”

“They were wearing a robe, how could you tell?”

When Collie asked, Jeina shrugged her shoulders.

“It’s just a feeling, you know? A bit chilling, should I say?”

“I really dislike relying on meaningless hunches… but this time, I agree.”

Bow said.

He pointed at the dragon before them and said.

“Does someone who took this down alone look weak to you?”

“…….”

In history books, dragons are generally described not as demonic beasts but as calamities.

They are treated as disasters that humanity cannot cope with, like floods or earthquakes.

But to think there was a being that could stand against it.

“It was probably that guy who gave the lord the ability to control Hellmorphs. If so, the answer is… obvious.”

A being associated with Hellmorphs.

That was the only way to think about it.

“Ingenious……. These are no ordinary demonic beasts.”

Ropin shook his head with a firm expression.

It wasn't that there were no demonic beasts that used schemes and strategies, but this was already beyond that level.

“This should be seen as another race of non-humans.”

“Are you saying those monsters are similar to us?”

“That was not my meaning. But from now on, when we humans face Hellmorphs, we must think of it as facing other humans.”

Ropin, looking at Bow, pointed at the dragon and said.

“Do you feel it? A unique magical wavelength is being felt from the corpse. It’s in a state of being enchanted. But as for what kind of magic, even I do not know at the moment.”

“Hmm.”

“Hmm……? Is this magic?”

Collie, who was looking at the dragon, asked back with a bewildered expression.

“The mana is clumped together, but it’s twisted in a mess. No, the structure itself is different. Can this even be called magic?”

“Yes, I can feel it, albeit faintly. The fact that this never-before-seen form of mana is causing an unusual phenomenon.”

Hearing those words, Artier also stared at the dragon.

Then, he could feel an alien mana, not the dragon’s, faintly swirling around its outer part, albeit dimly.

But as Collie said, this mana was certainly bizarre.

If the mana Artier had felt until now was like hazy smoke, the mana Artier was seeing now was like a sticky ooze.

“It is presumed to be magic used by the beings called Hellmorphs. But for now, there is no way to know what kind of magic this is. A situation that requires careful analysis, but we lack both time and space.”

If even the Holy Mage Ropin didn’t know, it meant that not even a Grand Magus could grasp the magic imbued in this corpse at a glance.

“But I have a guess. The ones over there probably know the answer.”

Ropin’s eyes were fixed on the fallen elven guardian soldiers.

He pointed to one elven guardian soldier and handed the party a rope.

“It’s a rope enchanted with Dispel. If we tie him with this, he won’t be able to resist with magic.”

“Are you planning to interrogate him?”

“No, I have neither the right nor the power for that. But we can’t have a fight break out before a conversation can even begin, can we.”

“I’ll help.”

With Gerard’s help, once the guardian soldier’s hands were firmly bound, Ropin lightly tapped his head with his staff.

Then, small particles of light scattered over the guardian soldier’s head, and soon, the guardian soldier opened his eyes.

“Keuk…….”

“Are you awake, guardian soldier.”

The guardian soldier was disoriented at first.

His head kept nodding off, as if waking from a long sleep.

“Hey, wake up.”

Smack!

“Keok!”

Only after the fed-up Bow slapped him across the cheek could they have a proper conversation.

“Damn it, do you think you’ll get away with this! The World Tree Council will hunt you down forever!”

“It seems he hasn’t been hit enough.”

“Bow, leave it to me.”

Ropin held back Bow, who was clenching his fist once more, and raised his staff.

“Anti-Trauma.”

[Ropin uses a skill.]

Anti-Trauma (Lv.1): Removes negative effects that interfere with the target’s mind.

“Aargh!”

The moment the bright light caressed the guardian soldier’s head, he screamed and thrashed about.

“As I thought, his mind was being manipulated.”

A moment later, the guardian soldier, who was sweating profusely, was looking at them with completely different eyes than before.

“W-what in the world have I done…….”

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