< 96. Shoot for the dawn (9) >
#96
The darkness of dawn was thick. In the sky where even the moon had set only starlight like crumbs remained twinkling. The soft sound of waves coming from the dawn sea was rustling in the cool night air.
Lights were on on most floors of the Dawn Magic Tower which had experienced a great commotion last night. Erzsebet who was walking through the garden of the Magic Tower sighed heavily.
“In the end I couldn’t sleep at all….”
A tired voice came out between dry lips. Her once white face was covered with dark shadows. It was because she couldn’t sleep because she was thinking about the events of last night.
‘What on earth is going on?’
Everything was full of questions. So much happened in four short days.
The culprit in the attempted shooting down of the airship was Sion Sinibane de Grancia the third daughter of the Grancia family. She who almost burned down her library was acquitted by the decision of Aun Pilar the tower owner’s assistant manager.
At the time I thought it was all a plan planned by Grancia but when I thought about her I realized that there were definitely a lot of strange things. Shion was too young and weak and above all there was no reason for the Lady of the Master Gate to do something like that herself.
She said ‘I can’t believe books are manipulating people….’
Ronan’s strange words also bothered her. It was a completely unintelligible sound but one thing was certain. Something about her that she did not know was happening in the Magic Tower.
‘Anyway where has everyone gone?’
Erzébet who suddenly sensed her confusion tilted her head. The tower owner’s assistant manager and librarian suddenly disappeared. Ronan also disappeared somewhere without saying a good night.
“…Let’s get some sleep for now.”
No matter how hard she tried to guess she had no clue. Eventually Ergébet who sensed her drowsiness first finished her long walk. It was the moment she turned her steps toward her magic tower.
Kwaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!
“Kaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa?!”
A sound like hundreds of thunderbolts roaring at the same time rang out. Hergé Bet turned her head in the direction of the sound. A pillar of flame almost as thick as the Magic Tower was rising from the northwest of the garden.
“What…!”
Hergé Bet took a step back from her. The intense heat could be felt even here. Within a few seconds the pillar of flame that was threatening to pierce her star died down.
Qarring! As if replacing him a torrent of fire and mana began to burst out. It was like a small volcano erupting. Wizards who sensed something strange came out in droves.
“Oh my god!”
“This is the direction where the world’s forbidden library is buried!”
“Isn’t it the other tower owner’s fire? “Where are the librarian and top mage?!”
The wizards were thrown into confusion by an unexpected lightning strike. However the intensity of the flames was not strong enough to give them room to scream.
Kuaaaaang! The wizards’ senses returned to the sight of the pillar of fire rising again. They ran towards the center of the explosion as if they had made a promise.
“We must stop this fire from spreading first!”
If the fire spread to the garden or the magic tower a disaster would occur. Erzébet who belatedly came to her senses levitated her own body with her telekinesis. Her eyes widened as she arrived at the scene.
“oh my god…!”
It seemed as if a passage leading to hell had been opened. A destructive flame of a scale never seen before was rising from a hole in the middle of the garden. The tangled and overflowing flames were divided into two colors.
One side was a clear vermilion color reminiscent of a summer sunset and the other side was a sticky heavy dark red color as if it had been scooped up from lava flowing from the ground.
It was the dark red flame that gained the upper hand. The evil fire demon was devouring scarlet fire and increasing in size.
The wizards who came out in their pajamas were doing their best to prevent the fire from spreading. The mana shield surrounding the fire pit was melting and regenerating rapidly.
“I can’t stop it…! This is almost like the 8th circle…!”
“Still hold on!”
Everyone was struggling but the fire was so strong that it seemed like they wouldn’t be able to hold out for long. At that time a familiar face caught Erzsebet’s eyes. She was a very short girl with dark blue hair.
“Grancia?”
“Iike…!”
The suspect in the attempted assassination case was Sion Sinibane de Grancia. She was busy chanting defensive spells among the wizards working on evolution. The wizards who were supposed to act as protectors could not be seen as they had all jumped into the evolution process.
‘What help!’
Hergé Bet narrowed her brows. Quagwagwang! Suddenly with a huge explosion dozens of fireballs reminiscent of volcanic bombs shot up into the air and began falling in a parabola.
Erzsebet’s face turned white as she read one of the orbits. The fireball was falling exactly on Zion’s head. The wizards who were putting all their effort into setting up a shield only noticed the existence of the fireball right before the collision.
“Damn it avoid everyone!”
“Lady Grancia be careful!”
“Iiiike…yes?”
Shion who had been concentrating her mind belatedly raised her head. A black-red flame sphere filled her vision. Her hair was curled from the heat.
“uh?”
It was not a distance that could be avoided. It was the moment when her short life was about to come to an end. Her hemispherical mana shield spread out of nowhere covering the heads of her and her wizards. Quaaaang! The fireball that hit the shield exploded and a loud noise rang out.
“What are you doing so recklessly?”
“Uh sister…?”
“Didn’t Grancia teach you to stay away from her if you don’t think she will be of help?”
Shion opened her tightly closed eyes. Hergé Bett was chanting her incantation his arms around her shoulders. The eyes of the wizards who had saved their lives widened.
“Ah Lady Acalusia!”
“How should I repay this favor…!”
“It’s noisy. Idiots who can’t even protect a child properly. “You all owe me.”
Erzsebet shot sharply. The wizards fell silent. She said releasing her shield and extending her hand towards her fire pit.
“I’ll join you.”
Purple energy spread from her fingertips. The inspired wizards took their stance again. Suddenly a loud cry echoed throughout the Magic Tower.
“Everyone evacuate!”
It was a familiar voice. Hergé Bet turned her head. A huge firebird with a wingspan of perhaps 10 meters was flying across the western night sky. Dozens of formidably huge flaming birds of prey were following behind them. Erzsebet’s eyes widened.
“Aun Pilar…!”
“Evacuate everyone except the minimum number of people!”
It looked like the sun was rising in the west. It was the Prominence Bird a magical symbol of flower and bird Aun Pillar. The firebirds and birds of prey who reached the magic tower in an instant threw themselves into the fire pit.
Grumble! The shape of the fireball distorted and the flames visibly died down. Soon a firebird engulfed in dark red flames soared into the air. Erzsebet who noticed that he was absorbing fire exclaimed in admiration.
“also…!”
It was a more significant achievement than the efforts of all other wizards. It was the moment when Aun Pillar who had shaken off the fire while circling in the air descended into the fire pit again.
Good luck! Suddenly a flash of fire appeared high in the sky. Soon the fire died down and two human figures were revealed.
A boy whose body was on fire was falling clutching the neck of an old man. Erzsebet recognized the boy’s face and screamed.
“Lord Ronan?!”
【Damn you let go of this!】
At the same time an eerie bellow echoed across the sky. Erzsebet froze. His legs became weak and his breathing became difficult as if he had encountered a wild animal.
“Huh…!”
It wasn’t much different from other wizards. Screams and explosions were coming from everywhere. It was a side effect of the magic being chanted failing or mana flowing back.
“What is that?”
“Hey!”
I have never felt such evil magic before. Sion who had been clinging to Erzsebet from earlier was crying while holding her hand.
【shit!】
It was the moment when Ronan and the old man were about to clash on the ground. Flames flashed again and the two figures disappeared. Only then did the pressure that had been weighing on my shoulders disappear and I was able to breathe.
“Aaaah!”
Eventually Sion burst into tears and buried her face in Erzébet’s stomach. Embarrassed Erzsebet hesitated and backed away.
“Oh don’t cry…! “What if the nobleman cries?”
“Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu!”
“Stop it stop!”
Erzsebet consoled Sion forgetting that she was Grancia. Erzebet who had been patting Sion on the back for a while looked at the spot where Ronan had disappeared and muttered.
“What are you fighting again this time…?”
****
【You fool! If you don’t let go you will burn to death!】
“It’s still worth holding on.”
Ronan’s body was engulfed in flames. Seeing the basically fire-resistant school uniform burning it seemed like a fairly strong flame but perhaps because they were concentrating on the battle it wasn’t very hot. Vajra shouted.
【You…what on earth are you!】
After receiving her wounds Ba Jura was rampaging even more fiercely. The powerful magic being fired indiscriminately was proving his power. Quagwang! The Flame Buster fired at Ronan missed and evaporated the nearby forest.
【Get away!】
“If it were you would you let go?”
They were engaging in an ugly brawl teleporting countless times. Vajra tried every means possible to shake off Ronan but Ronan never let him go.
‘This kid is also at his limit.’
The longer I held it the more clearly I felt it. Vajra was weakening. The fire was getting lukewarm and the rocks were receding.
Good luck! At that time the pillar of fire enveloped the bodies of the two people again. Ronan laughed when he saw the changed background. The black night sea was rippling at my feet far away.
‘It’s an opportunity.’
They had reached the sky above the Dawn Sea. Kwasik! Ronan tilted his head back and headbutted Vajra’s nose. Vajra groaned at the unexpected blow.
【Keuuk!】
“Stop bothering your poor old man and come out.”
Her hooked nose broke and blood poured out of her. Ronan delivered a series of headbutts. bang! bang! The movement magic was cut off and the fall continued.
‘Put it in the water like this.’
Basically paper becomes unusable when it gets wet. Moreover there was a high possibility that the magic used by Vajra would be useless underwater. Anyway all I had to do was throw it in and retrieve what looked like a drowned body.
【Don’t be funny!】
The distance from the surface was about 5m. Vajra suddenly spread his arms and pretended to pull something up.
Rumbling…! Suddenly a palm-shaped reef rose up towards them. Ronan’s eyes widened. The two people fell and collided on the stone floor.
“Ugh!”
It was a reef larger than an average sailing ship. Ronan fell from his back and rolled around on the floor. Fortunately the impact was not too great due to the low altitude but he missed Bajura.
“Where the fuck are you running…”
It was the moment when Ronan hurriedly got up. Quang! A huge whale made of flames fell on his head causing an explosion. Five spears from the rock rose in succession crossing and piercing the spot where Ronan was.
【Die!】
Finally the hand-shaped reef they were stepping on grabbed Ronan. Kwasik! Flames rose through the gaps between the hands and at the same time a crushing sound rang out.
【Gasp….】
Bajura landed on the reef and fell to one knee. His body felt distinctly heavier. He coughed up black blood again and muttered in disbelief.
【Why…is this happening…】
The wounds on the body had not healed at all. He had lived for countless years and experienced all kinds of things but this was the first time something like this had happened. He was experiencing for the first time what mortals call ‘excessive bleeding’.
【You need to recover quickly. It’s dangerous…】
Her wounds had to be healed by swallowing mana-rich creatures. It was the car he was preparing to head to the Dawn Magic Tower again.
Whirling! A corner of the reef exploded with a sound like hundreds of people whistling at the same time. Vajra’s eyes widened at the sight of Ronan sticking out where his middle finger was.
【how…!】
“As expected I have become weaker.”
La Mancha dyed red was sprinkling light from his hand. Aside from the burns he suffered while moving there were no other injuries on Ronan’s body.
“Let’s finish this quickly.”
Ronan who had taken his stance rushed straight towards Bajura. He seemed to be in shock frozen and motionless.
Hiss! It was the moment when Ronan slashed Vajra’s temple with the hilt of his sword. A gloomy voice echoed over the sea.
【That’s why you’re a kid.】
“what?”
The hilt of the sword passed right through Vajra’s head. His image dispersed like smoke. He was turned into by Ronan who belatedly realized it was a hallucination. Vajra’s hand appeared out of thin air and grabbed his head.
“Ugh!”
【It was long. It was really dangerous. If I keep going like this I might lose.】
“You bastard…!”
【But history remembers only the final winners. I will use your body well.】
Before Ronan could say anything Vajra chanted a spell. His body in the form of a black book emerged from Lardan’s chest.
At the same time Vajra’s consciousness which was in the tower’s body was transferred to Ronan’s body. His eyes began to turn pitch black. A bizarre moan was coming out from between Ronan’s parted lips.
“Ugh…Ugh…poop toilet paper…bastard…!”
【Do not resist. It will get easier soon.】
Vajra sneered. Although the resistance was strong since it had already succeeded in eroding the body it was only a matter of time before it swallowed the body. Now all it had to do was find a place in the heart. Bajura suddenly felt a sense of strangeness and tilted her head.
【Hmm?】
It was an unpleasant feeling. It was something different from other bodies. Something immeasurably powerful was already in place.
【This is…?】
He was an evil and terrible being that could not even be compared to himself. They all took on the appearance of black shadows. One by one the coiled shadows began to approach Vajra.
【Why is something like this inside my body… Don’t come close…!】
But the shadows didn’t stop. One of them bit Vajra. Vajra who felt the burning pain sucked in a breath.
【Huh!】
Then the rest of the shadows rushed in. Vajra’s consciousness was swallowed up in darkness. A blood-curdling scream echoed in Ronan’s head.
【Kaaaaaaaa!】
“It’s not a very nice house to live in is it?”
Ronan laughed stroking his saltwater-soaked hair. His eyes which had been dyed black were regaining their original color. The book the main body of Vajra was shaking and burning.
