< 108. Baeksuje (8) >
#108
“I have to do it for you. “No matter what it takes.”
“…What happened? “Your expression has been unusual since morning.”
“It’s nothing special, but I think we need to hurry up.”
Ronan twisted his lips. The events that happened last night were making him impatient. The Omega doppelganger, who changed his appearance into the one he hated, turned into himself from his previous life, not anyone else.
Blood flowing like sweat, a broken sword. The eyes became empty after losing everything, and the seven curses were consuming my body. The words the doppelganger was repeating lingered in my head.
– I couldn’t protect anything.
It was a pathetic complaint. The moment I heard those words, the sense of crisis that had become diluted by daily life regained its original color.
I had to build up my strength to prevent something like that from happening again. To do this, the curse that restricted growth had to be removed from the body. Three Crits, who had been blinking quietly, opened her mouth.
“This is really fascinating.”
“What?”
“I succeeded in interpreting one of your curses just a few days ago.”
“yes?”
Ronan’s eyes widened. The three Krits suddenly stood up and headed to her desk.
After rummaging through a pile of documents for a while, he took out a notebook. I was impressed by how thick it was, enough to be used as a pillow.
“This is the 52nd volume. “Even if I live another thousand years, I don’t think I’ll see a curse like this.”
Secret took a look at the notebook and put it on the bookshelf right next to it. One bookshelf was filled with notebooks like the one just before.
“They all wrote down the analysis of your curse. “It was only after going through that mess that I was able to design one solution.”
“Tell me in detail. “What can I do?”
“Do you remember the first time you did it? “When I unraveled the gold that was entangled in my eyes.”
“of course.”
Ronan nodded. It was an unforgettable experience. A method of healing that directly enters the world of imagery and removes the culprit of the curse.
In a world made up of memories, he saw his old hometown, his mother without memories, and his father seething in the form of a shadow. The feeling of cutting his father in his final moments was still vivid.
“okay. I will use that method again this time. “There’s just one problem.”
“what is that?”
“The curse I will give you this time is so strong that it cannot be compared to the first one. Just entering the world of imagery requires a huge amount of magical power and catalyst. As for the magical power, I think things will work out now that Jaradin has come to his senses…”
“The catalyst is the problem.”
Secret nodded heavily. Ronan shrugged his eyebrows.
“What do you need? “Is it very expensive?”
“It’s not that it’s expensive… it’s that there isn’t a lot of it. Have you ever heard of the place name Dainhar?”
“If you talk about Dainhar, it’s there. “A demonic landscape in the southwestern desert.”
It was a name I had heard well in my past life. Dainhar. Among the rough terrains scattered across the continent, it was one of the places known by the nickname “Magyeong” that could not be reached unless one had been seriously hit.
The harsh terrain surrounded by the desert, the damn monsters, and the natives who do not know how to treat outsiders have taken the lives of countless adventurers. Ronan, who was reflecting on information about Dainhar, opened his mouth.
“Ah, is it really that black rock that you need?”
“I guess it would be quick to explain since I know. okay. I need a magic stone from Dainhar. “No matter how hard we try to find a replacement, there is no catalyst like it.”
Secret sighed. He explained that among the materials used in experiments so far, the Dainhar mountain stone was the only one that showed potential as a catalyst.
“Normally, about three chunks a year come up on the Imperial Auction House or High Lemien. And as soon as it came up, it was sold at a price that was beyond imagination. Unfortunately, all I have is a fragment that I purchased a long time ago for experimentation.”
“That won’t work, will it?”
“yes. “I think it needs to be at least the size of a thumb to be used as a catalyst.”
Ronan nodded. It was definitely not something you could buy with a lot of money. The magic stone from Dainhar, which is worth its name, was the biggest culprit that caused people to crawl to that distant hell and die.
Not only did it contain much richer mana than the highest grade magic stone, but it also had special characteristics, so it was a material that could not be replaced. One in ten thousand. Only a very small number of adventurers with luck and skill were able to return alive from the magic world with the stone in their hands. A downcast Secret continued speaking.
“···Actually, it was because of this problem that I didn’t contact them even after I found out about it. Could you possibly wait a little longer? “I will definitely find another catalyst.”
“That’s Okay. “I’ll just get it.”
“huh?”
Ronan said calmly. Secret, who was standing dumbfounded, narrowed his eyes.
“Are you serious…?”
“yes. I would appreciate it if you could continue your research just in case. Anyway, as long as you have a magic stone from Dainhar, you can do it right away, right? “Is there anything else you need?”
“···That’s it for now.”
“all right. “I will try my best, so don’t worry, just wait.”
Ronan tapped Secret’s shoulder. I could even feel confidence in his confident gestures. In a way, it was natural. In fact, Ronan had been to Dain Har once in her previous life.
‘I never thought I’d go to that damn place again.’
Ronan frowned as he recalled the memory. It wasn’t a very pleasant experience for her. Even for him, who traversed the crossroads of life and death like eating, Dainhar was a terrible place.
‘It’ll be better than last time.’
Still, since it was my second time, it was going to be much better than my first time. The only problem was the time it took, but due to Dainhar’s location, club activities could not handle it.
‘I guess I’ll have to leave as soon as summer vacation starts.’
The good news was that summer vacation was not far away. Ronan, who had been devising a plan for a moment, nodded.
There was a lot to prepare for in many ways, but I thought it would work out somehow. Ronan, who had finished his business, gave a farewell handshake.
“Thank you, Secret. “It’s a long-awaited festival, so let’s go out and enjoy it.”
“Now that I think about it, today was Unemployment Day. “A doppelganger is coming?”
“yes. If you get a chance, be sure to go and see it. “Because I caught it really hard.”
“Hmm? “Catching it?”
“There is such a thing. See you next time.”
With those last words, Ronan left Separaccio. Jarudin dozed off and saw him off.
After simply adjusting his clothes, Ronan headed straight to the main gate of the Gallerion Pavilion. He was trying to keep a promise he made to someone last night.
****
The morning air was cool. A warm halo of light surrounded the campus. I couldn’t believe that this was the place where such an uproar took place last night.
“It’s so peaceful that it’s unfair.”
Ronan, who was looking around, laughed. The street, which should have been quiet, was filled with students in school uniform. They were all people who gave up their morning sleep to enjoy the unemployed.
Before long, a familiar outline came into view. In front of the huge main gate, a tall girl was waiting for someone wearing a crisply ironed school uniform. Ronan shouted, waving her arms wildly.
“senior! I’m here.”
“Ah, Ronan.”
Adeshan spotted Ronan and smiled softly. The contrast between pure white skin and black hair was beautiful.
The two people who met went straight to Phileon Plaza. It was to see the opening ceremony of the Baeksu Festival and the most famous event, the Grand Parade of Unemployed Persons. Ronan, who was examining her complexion, opened her mouth.
“How are you feeling?”
“Yes. I’m completely better now. thank you.”
“I am grateful. Thanks to you, a fight that could have gotten messy ended in an instant. “Wow, you should have seen the look on that bastard’s face when the poisonous needle was inserted.”
Ronan chuckled. In fact, he performed well, even though Ade Shan was the main player in the victory in last night’s battle. Controlling a manticore while in a dazed state and inserting a poisonous needle into it was not something that just anyone could do. They were walking side by side on the main street.
“Hey… can I ask you something?”
“What is it?”
Ronan tilted his head. After hesitating for a moment, Ade Shan opened her mouth with difficulty.
“Well, yesterday… wasn’t it heavy?”
“yes?”
“No, when I was carried on my back. “I’m taller than men.”
“What, were you up at that time?”
“hot···!”
Adeshan, who realized his mistake late, covered his mouth. Her pure white ears turned bright red. After a moment of silence, she stuttered.
“I guess I was mistaken. Now that I think about it, that can’t be possible. Was I asleep? On and on until I open my eyes this morning. huh. “I guess I got confused with another day.”
“Have I ever given a piggyback ride to a senior?”
“Uh, wasn’t there? Then I guess I got confused with a dream. huh. “It happens often.”
“Adeshan, you’re not sick yet, are you?”
Ronan asked worriedly. The usual firearms were not visible in her gibberish appearance. She answered Adeshan in a rather uplifting tone.
“Well, then…! I’m completely fine. don’t worry.”
“Hmm… I don’t think so. Let me know if it still hurts. “I’ll take you to the health room.”
“Gwae, I heard it’s okay.”
Adeshan was unable to meet Ronan’s eyes. Even with a knife at her throat, she couldn’t speak. The fact that I was awake from the moment I was piggybacked. She chewed her lip as she remembered what happened last night.
‘Idiot, you almost got caught yesterday…!’
My mistake was to just stay still because my back was wide and warm. She remembered what the alpha doppelganger turned into when her eyes met hers.
It was the car that made Adeshan drool and worry. Ronan, who had been staring at her quietly, shrugged her shoulders.
“Well, if it’s okay, that’s fine.”
“Yes. I was really mistaken. don’t mind.”
Adeshan breathed a sigh of relief. At that time, loud cheers erupted from the direction of the plaza. Ronan turned her head and suddenly grabbed her hand.
“Ok, I guess it’s started. “Let’s hurry a little.”
“Ro, Ronan? “The hand…!”
“Why are you doing this again after you caught it yesterday? “I know the shortcut, so follow me.”
Ronan and Adeshan crossed the campus holding hands. When the two arrived at the main square, the grand parade was already in full swing. All kinds of sounds were echoing across the sky in the great plaza filled with people and animals.
“Crazy, they brought a real manticore.”
“Aaaah, there’s a Salamander over there too!”
“Is it Professor Varen who is in the lead?”
ridge···! ridge···! The magnificent sound of drums was echoing at slow intervals. Under the blue sky, all the fantastic species and monsters displayed at Baeksu Festival were marching in a line.
Faculty members stood between the procession and the students, acting as safety guards. Adeshan covered his mouth in admiration at the truly unique scenery he had never seen before.
“Wow… that’s amazing. “It’s a lot more than what I saw in the tent.”
“It’s awesome.”
Ronan nodded in agreement. I felt like my hard work last night wasn’t in vain.
Varen, who served as the conductor, was beating a huge drum at the front of the procession. Because he was a member of a race, he seemed to play the roles of almost a hundred humans at the same time. Just behind him, a manticore was walking majestically, with its poisonous sting sticking out at Aarondale.
“Khuuuuuuu!”
“Waaaa!!”
As the manticore roared magnificently, all the students cheered. Ronan chuckled, pointing her finger at her manti core.
“How about taking control one more time and creating a Baeksuje that you will never forget? This time, I’m going to stab Varen in the buttocks with the poisonous needle.”
“Yes? “Is that so?”
“I’m sorry, Senpai. “Don’t do that.”
“I’m kidding.”
The two people made eye contact and giggled. Suddenly, Ronan’s eyes landed on the Kidokan instructor who played the role of a security guard.
For some reason, the werewolf wearing armor instead of a shabby shirt looked quite decent. Suddenly Ronan snapped her fingers in the air.
“By the way, is there somewhere to go on the weekend after the festival?”
“There’s nothing in particular… why?”
“Then why don’t you go somewhere with me? “I took all the others, but the senior didn’t go.”
“···huh?”
Adeshan tilted his head. Suddenly, Ronan, who was rummaging through her inner pocket, pulled out a shiny metal card.
The plaque made of platinum had the emblem of the Grancia family engraved on it. A bill of exchange that could be used throughout the continent simultaneously became a pass to any place.
“I heard that it was rebuilt a while ago… I’m looking forward to it.”
There were only about 15 days left until summer vacation. In order to go to Dainhar and use it, you had to submit a request now.
It was time to go create the second weapon.
