◈ Episode 102. A Cold Victory

The ice cap melts.

A chill in the air.

Slowly, the pain is felt.

Senios could feel it in his gut.

‘In the end, this is impossible to overcome.’

What is the purpose of life?

If someone asked him.

Senios could answer that it was a test of strength.

It was a simple answer, even in retrospect.

Even as an old man.

I never thought I’d end up like this, unable to let go of my regrets.

‘But it wasn’t so bad, was it?’

Climax.

The relationship between the fire dragon, Karimzeva, and his own freezing magic was a toxic one.

At this moment, as you can see.

Tsk, tsk, tsk, tsk!

Senios’ arcane magic manifested.

Countless icicles fell from the sky.

Each icicle instantly freezes everything it touches.

Of all the magic that Senios can manifest.

The one with the highest lethality.

“Useless.”

Hmph!

However, the icicles did not reach Karimzeva.

Even an ice cap can’t freeze flames.

The icicles that met Karimzeva’s flames scattered into the air, scattering magic power.

“Hahaha…….”

Suddenly, Senios spat out a laugh.

Karimzeva was puzzled.

The uncontrollable surge of magic had subsided.

Even he could see that he wasn’t winning.

“Have you finally gotten it, Senios?”

why are you laughing

“Still, that was pretty good for your worst opponent, wasn’t it?”

“Excuse me?”

“I never intended to beat you in the first place. Karimzeva.”

Suddenly, Senios remembered the past.

Before his eyes were opened.

After he had entered the tower.

Until he was a senior mage.

-“My goal? To freeze the flames.”

Senios believed in freezing magic.

He thought his magic was the best, just like the senior mages now. But then the years passed. He opened his eyes properly. When he was able to see the limits of magic.

-“Limitations are inevitable.”

Senios had to admit.

All magic has its limits.

His freezing magic was no exception.

But.

“Isn’t it the task of life to overcome those limitations?”

Knowing the limits.

In the first place, Karimzeva, I never thought I could defeat him.

Even if I did think about dying with him.

Senios grinned.

“Fire and ice. If I can overcome the worst of them and draw. Wouldn’t posterity think more highly of me, Karimzeva? Wouldn’t you agree?”

Sounds like a draw.

“I see.”

Karimzeva sensed madness in Senios.

He clicked his tongue.

“What can you do when even your heart has stopped beating?”

“Hahaha, my heart is not beating. I’m controlling the speed at which it beats. Don’t you realize that? The quest for magic is an important one, Karimzeva. You seem to have neglected it in your quest for truth.”

“……!”

It wasn’t that my heart stopped.

You were controlling your beating speed?

At the meaningful words, Karimzeva looked around.

……No, he didn’t see anything unusual.

A thud.

The icy wings that surrounded Senios had long since melted.

Even the streams of water gushing from the ground had been reduced to vapor by his own fear. Yeah, if I had to pick one. I can feel a slight chill…….

“Wait, you can feel a chill?

It didn’t make sense.

Wasn’t he enveloping his body in flames?

Was it a physical illusion?

That’s what he thought.

“!”

It wasn’t.

Fuuk-!

White breath was indeed emanating from his mouth.

Karimzeva frowned.

“You’re faking it to the last. Senios.”

That was a bit of a pity.

Senios chuckled softly.

Whoa.

White breath emanated from the corners of his mouth as he laughed.

“You’re relentless. I, Senios of this ice cap is only for the Fire Dragon, Karimzeva. It’s a magic that was manifested only for you. Can’t you think of my sincerity?”

I’ve reached the peak of my powers.

When I devised this magic.

-“I am indeed gluttonous.”

Senios clicked his tongue at the thought.

-“Do you think I’ll ever have to use it?”

Senios entered the Tower in pursuit of Karimzeva.

But he had risen to the same level as Karimzeva, an elder mage.

He knew he could never defeat him, and yet he created such meaningless magic.

“But who knew,” he says, “that this day would come?”

So I didn’t even give it a name.

“If I had known, I would have given it a name.”

Karimzeva.

You made me.

The Magic Tower.

I realized that I had been deceiving the Tower Master.

So there was no hesitation.

Senios unleashed his final spell.

“What do you think is the nature of freezing magic?”

Whoosh!

An unbearable chill.

Offended, Karimzeva did not reply.

Senios, however, spoke immediately.

“Some say it’s beauty, the way the ice reflects the light, like a gemstone, but they’re wrong. For the essence of freezing magic is coldness.”

Whoosh!

Whoosh!

Karimzeva clenched and unclenched his stiffening hands.

His movements and breathing grew slower and slower.

“So much for listening.”

Karimzeva could no longer hold still.

Senios, he couldn’t tell what kind of magic he was manifesting.

It was impossible to tell.

Rrrrrr-!

Karimzeva summoned flames.

He flapped wings of flame toward Senios.

And he saw.

“……What?!

An unbelievable sight.

The outstretched flames seemed so slow.

“What, has the passage of time slowed down?”

No, it wasn’t.

The gaping mouth of Senios hadn’t changed.

“A chill that freezes the senses, Karimzeva. By the time you realize it, your body and internal organs are already half frozen.”

Karimzeva didn’t believe it.

He hadn’t given himself time to manifest that much magic.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

But as if he wasn’t lying.

Neither the body nor the flames listened.

Karimzeva rolled his eyes.

“What kind of magic is this?”

Without even me noticing……?

And then, like himself.

She saw Senios exhaling a white puff of breath and realized.

“It’s …… breath!”

He had cooled the air I breathed in.

The air in the area was chilled without distinction.

His body is freezing as well.

How is he still able to talk at a normal pace?

“I told you, I’m not slowing down, I’m controlling it.”

A chill that freezes the senses.

du─geun─du─geun…….

Senios’s heart was beating in time with the frozen sensation.

Senios counted, looking at Karimzeva, who couldn’t even answer.

“One second.”

If he could outlast Karimzeva.

I can bury the fire dragon beneath the unmeltable ice cap.

‘Of course, regardless of the outcome, I’ll be frozen to death.’

Yes, as expected.

A draw at best.

‘Well, a draw for the life of a gluttonous old man.’

That’s not a bad trade, is it?

And it would be his atonement for the Magic Tower.

Senios smiled.

“It’s been a good life, even if it’s been gluttonous, isn’t it?”

But the fire dragon was not amused.

“I’m surprised you risked your life for this.”

“……!”

Karimzeva was still speaking.

His body must have been more than half frozen already.

A dazed Senios looked at Karimzeva.

Flames erupted from his mouth.

“But it is I who risked my life.”

……swallowed the flames.

So you thawed frozen flesh, melted organs.

Senios spat out a woolly laugh.

“Damn.”

They didn’t call him Fire Dragon for nothing.

Swallowing fire to melt frozen organs.

It’s a wonder he even thought to do that.

I can’t believe you’re still spitting out words after what you’ve done.

“You won’t even allow a draw.”

No matter what you do, you can’t overcome your limitations.

“F*ck.”

Slowly, my eyes close.

My senses are dulled.

Senios clenches his teeth.

Another angle.

The sound of shoes on frozen ground.

“Senios, your magic was excellent.”

A voice called out to him.

“But your interference was unfortunate.”

And a voice pointing at himself.

Senios could barely answer.

“……, is it?”

He didn’t have to look to know who it was.

Senios knew who the brash voice belonged to.

Yes, it was Chief Ho-Yeol.

“New concepts are needed to overcome limitations.”

He strode confidently to the front of Karimzeva.

Yes, I remembered seeing him from behind.

At a regular conference, pointing out a presentation by senior wizard Vanguard Tom.

His posture was as stiff as ever.

“Your assimilation of the essence of ice magic into cooling was excellent. But the interference process leaves something to be desired. If the object is to be cooled, how far must it be cooled, for abstract interference without limits, as you have done, can only lead to inefficient manifestations.”

Karimzeva’s spark flared.

“How dare this child speak.”

Isn’t it like he’s giving a lecture in front of himself?

A part of him wanted to set the insolent brat on fire right now.

My bodily senses were not yet in full control.

There was no way a body that had been frozen and burned could still be intact.

But.

‘Senios is practically finished.’

It’s just like dealing with a lone adventurer brat.

Even with a less-than-perfect body.

Karimzeva thought, and opened his mouth.

“I will surely kill you.”

But Ho-yeol’s lecture continued.

Karimzeva’s interruptions did not deter him.

Senios could see why.

‘You are taking care of the old man. okay.’

He knew his breath was running out.

That’s why he’s in such a hurry to finish.

Senios focused on Ho-Yeol’s words.

“If I had been more targeted in my interference, it would have been more effective, but even so. I wouldn’t have been able to overcome the incompatibility of magic. But if it’s not magic 『Anomaly』, it’s a different story.”

What do you mean by 『anomaly』……?

To grasp that concept immediately.

It was impossible even for the two elder mages.

That’s why you need a vision.

Of course, this was no Karimzeba who would stand idly by and watch.

“It’s …….

My senses returned.

I immediately sent the brat to…….

“In the process of interference, I add a [Anomaly] completely different from “magic”.”

Tsk, tsk, tsk!

“?!”

In an instant, Karimzeva’s body was frozen in place.

Karimzeva could feel it in his gut.

This is not the same as Senios’ magic.

‘I can’t resist……?!’

If Senios’s magic had merely caused the body’s senses to fail, this felt like it had actually stopped. Even the flow of magic seemed to have stopped……!

“What have you done to me……!”

It was beyond comprehension.

A spell that stopped even the flow of magic?

Karimzeva rolled his eyes.

‘There must be a clue to overcoming this spell in the words.’

Just as he had seen through Senios’ magic.

However, no matter how much I look back on Ho-yeol’s words.

There was only one conclusion.

“Yes. That’s what it is, a [『Anomaly』].”

It’s not magic, it’s a 『Anomaly』.

“It’s a manifestation of anomaly that cools the target of interference to a specific goal, absolute zero.”

Absolute zero.

It was unclear what that meant.

One thing was certain.

Senios spoke up.

“Absolute Zero, let’s call it by its magical name. It has a nice resonance.”

In his blurring vision.

Senios lifted his head.

‘I was worried for nothing, I see.’

Chief Lee.

Wasn’t he the man Marcelo recognized?

Senios knew how Marcelo had recommended him.

So he had no more regrets.

“It’s not the freezing magic that’s lacking, it’s me.”

As you can see, Ho-Yeol’s manifestation was a bit of a surprise.

The flames weren’t enough, and you froze the dragon in place.

Senios continued.

“You’ll do better than me.”

It was the first and last of the Gluttonous Elder’s bitterness.

“Nevertheless, I will ask you to take care of the tower. Chief Lee.”

He smiled and added a final word.

“My last lecture in this life could not have been better.”

.

.

.

Senios was dead.

Karimzeva looked at Ho-Yeol.

“……How could I?

He still didn’t understand.

The magic he felt was nothing compared to Senios’, let alone his own.

His doubts wouldn’t go away. Come to think of it, it never made sense to begin with.

“He was unharmed by my flames.”

No, as if that weren’t bad enough, he was dealing with a demon. Karimzeva knew what demons were like.

Anyone who comes into contact with them, no matter how strong, is drained of their mental strength.

‘It shouldn’t be possible to be whole.’

Just as the elder mages had done to themselves.

But Ho-Yeol was unaffected.

No, beyond that, he was nonchalant.

To the point of talking nonstop about the structure of magic.

“Wait.”

For a moment, Karimzeva felt uncomfortable.

“How did he recognize the possessed Akampatam?”

Unless he was a demon worshipper like himself.

Recognizing a demon possessed by something is a near-impossible task.

And his magic power is ridiculously low for a mage……. A thought flashed through his mind.

“……Are you a demon hunter?”

Another angle─

The words made Ho Yeol turn around and look at him.

Karimzeva was certain.

That’s right, this guy is a demon hunter.

Karimzeva rolled his eyes.

‘Maybe…….

Maybe I can escape.

From this damned magic. No, from this thing called anomaly.

Karimzeva opened his mouth.

“Demon hunter. All I want is to witness the real truth. Demons are merely a means to an end. You know, don’t you, that what the continent of Arcana needs is the real truth!”

Yes, if you’re a demon hunter, and no one else.

You can only understand the real truth.

Karimzeva thought so and said.

But.

“……Why?

Ho Yeol’s expression didn’t change at all.

There was a chill in his cold gaze.

‘If you’re a demon hunter.’

Considering Akshan’s end.

He could never react like that.

Karimzeva opened his mouth in disbelief.

“Is it possible that you do not know the true about of the ……Holy War?”

.

.

.

The Holy War.

Well, what is it.

Did it happen back when Arcana was a game?

Whatever it is, it’s an event I don’t recognize.

There have been years and years of gaps in my life.

Karimzeva stammered.

“If you release me, I will tell you everything. I swear by the name of Karimzeva, the Fire Dragon, that you, a demon hunter, will understand what I mean!”

I could feel it in my gut.

Holy war, that is, a demon hunter.

And it must have something to do with Akshan, yes.

But I did not answer.

In this moment, to me.

To Grandfell, Karimzeva was the demonl.

I told you.

I didn’t talk to the prey.

Real truth is bullshit. What kind of bullshit truth says you have to resurrect the demon king on top of wrecking the world. Of course, there was no reason to stop at a crap like a tower.

Holy War.

The moment the word left Karimzeva’s mouth.

A message popped up.

[Class Quest: Extermination of Akkshan]

Yes.

So I immediately manifested magic.

No, I manifested [『Anomaly』].

Absolute Zero.

A temperature so extreme that even molecules stop moving.

“I am… … !!”

Immediately, Karimzeva froze with an ugly expression.

He froze with an ugly expression.

At the same time, a message popped up.

[Broken Dimensional Rift: ה You have cleared the rift].

─Dispose of the escaped demon worshipper. (Success)

Stop the resurrection of the high-level Demon King. (Success)

*

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tl/note: F for Senios