◈ Episode 403. Equivalent Exchange (2)

[Blessing of the First World Tree].

The effect is tremendous, numbing the cold even at [『Absolute Zero』. But this time, it wasn’t just the chill, it was the visual stimulation.

My eyes were not opened to the sky, nor to the vastness of Antonium. The senses of a demon hunter heightened. I remembered the system message.

[Skill, ‘Natural Enemy’ is triggered].

North of Antonium.

Demonic energy from a distance.

It was even strangely familiar.

I did not hesitate.

“I will leave for a moment.”

Nash and Emilio.

I gave the two of them a grunt.

I immediately manifested a portal.

And there it was.

A rainy sky.

Heavy snow falling.

The owner of something I felt familiar.

Frost Dragon, Frostnax.

“Frostnax.”

The lineage of the World Tree.

I was a brother to all dragons and elves. But the impact is not as deep as it was during Eunaxus. That’s because I had some kind of hateful relationship with Frostnax.

Thousands of years old, at least.

But among dragons, it was Frostnax, the young one, the one who had just shed his hatchet, and so the natural response was to say.

“You are crying sadly.”

I say, gently, as if addressing a evil dragon.

“But there is no need to worry.”

But it’s not Frostnax I’m worried about, it’s our Holy War Alliance that’s charging at Frostnax. Including Nam Taemin, Hisagi, and Leonie, I think there are about twenty of us at most…….

The dragon is the king of all things.

At the same time, it is a anomaly existence.

This means that if it is not Anomaly, I don’t dare to face them.

Moreover, considering the monsters that have been demonized are becoming even stronger……. Considering that Frostnax is not mentally strong enough to show mercy like Eunaxus…….

Then, my gaze fell on the green haired woman.

‘Even if Bellier had joined us, it wouldn’t be enough.’

For a split second, I think of my best option.

Frostnax is more than I can handle, even with [Natural Enemy] triggered. Activate the skill, [Celestial Infant Solitude]. I’ll have to borrow the power of Grandfell in his prime to stand a chance.

However.

‘Is hunting really the best option, Hoyeol?’

As befits the King of All.

Dragons give great experience and loot.

I knew this from defeating Eunaxus.

But I didn’t like it one bit. There was no joy in leveling up to 50, no joy in reaching the cap, no joy in the Dragon Hearts, no joy in the new gear made from Dragon Skins.

I wonder if it’s the effect of Grandfell’s innocence.

Maybe it was the brotherly camaraderie under the blessing of the World Tree.

If not all of it, it was due to Lee Hoyeol’s pettiness.

I didn’t know.

But I do know this.

Everything happens for a reason.

So I approached Bellier. There must be a good reason why Marcelo, and no one else, had authorized Bellier to enter the Arcana.

The reason was obvious.

“I have a question for you, Senior Mage Bellier Yusia.”

“……!”

“The principles and methods of purifying evil fruits.”

I was the one who asked, not anyone else.

‘Wouldn’t it be dereliction of duty if the person who ordered it didn’t know?’

At my request, Bellier had been researching for months to purify the evil fruit. For some reason, she looked like she’d been struck.

“Chief Lee Hoyeol…….”

It was only when I turned to face Bellier that I realized.

Great Alliance.

How they could hold their own against Frostnax.

jjeojeojeog─

Bellier’s skin was slowly freezing.

The shallow knowledge of healing magic flows through my mind.

“High-level healing magic, 『Proof of Equivalent Exchange』.”

” …… You recognize it right away, don’t you?”

“It’s a magic that allows the caster of 『Proof of Equivalent Exchange』 to take all the damage from the target. Its absolute damage reduction effect is considerable, but it’s not very efficient at consuming magic.”

So that’s why she’s suffering from magic exhaustion.

Bellier was gasping for air.

I want to ask her how she’s doing, but my snout is cutting to the chase.

“I don’t think magical power is required during the purification process.”

“……Hoho, be sharp.”

“What do you need, Bellier.”

At this point, you might feel persistent.

But it is what it is.

On the Arcana continent, healing magic was not a universal.

Fire, lightning, water, transmutation…….

By now, I had mastered the vast majority of magic in the Magic Tower.

I’ve even mastered the highest level of magic.

『His innate magical talent was such that he could mimic most magic just by looking at it. Furthermore, the potential of the body is comparable.』

Yes, thanks to an extraordinary talent.

To the point where I could be said to have mastered it just by reading magic books.

I could use it freely.

However, the reason why I had only mastered healing magic to a mid-level was simple. Healing magic was a fairly honest form of magic.

‘In order to restore something, a price must be paid.’

In most cases, the manifestor’s power was the price.

And that was why I’d asked Bellier a question. What would you offer as an equivalent exchange to purify the Evil Fruit, Bellier, when you’re drained of your magic?

“First of all, I would need to perform『The Ultimate of Healing Magic』”

Speaking of drama, the name is grandiose.

But the principle was simple.

The manifestor’s body becomes an offering for the exchange of healing magic equivalents.

In other words, one’s life would be sacrificed in exchange for semi-permanent healing magic.

Bellier smiled.

“Leras Till, after manifesting the ultimate in healing magic, she turned into a glowing sphere. They say her sphere is still being stored somewhere in the Magic Tower to this day……. My end will be a little better than that, at least I’ll be able to see the outside.”

You were really going to risk your life, Bellier.

“I see your determination.”

I’m not surprised.

This isn’t the first time Bellier has vowed to risk her life, is it?

Why, I recall when we entered the Arcana to break Marcelo’s curse. Bellier said she would follow me.

‘Because Arcana was a land of destruction then.’

Not to exaggerate, but I had died and returned, hadn’t I?

I was speaking in that sense.

Why, someone who has died before can die better.

“However, I will not allow it.”

I was no longer co-chief, I was the only chief. There will be no elder mages, and the strict rules of the tower mean that everyone under Marcelo must do as I say.

Bellier asks, puzzled.

“What do you mean I can’t……? If you’re worried about my safety, don’t be, I’ve already made up my mind from the moment I entered the Arcana Continent.”

Should I just be honest?

I have a title that has a very deceptive effect: The Last Adventurer.

In Arcana, it was called the power of resurrection, the ability to die and not be killed.

So even if I were to manifest the ultimate in healing magic, it would only take me 24 hours in real time to set foot on the Arcana continent again.

Time is gold to Grandfell, but it’s not more valuable than life.

Sure, the penalty for dying is a large drop in experience, but even taking that into account, nothing is more important than life.

‘I will explain it very kindly, this snout.’

But I knew Grandfell’s way with words better than anyone.

As I suspected.

The words that flowed from the snout were concise.

“Frostnax, and then who?”

“……yes?”

“Bellier, who is next on your list.”

How chilling to hear.

“Cleodia, adept mage.”

“……!!!”

My words ripple through Bellier’s green pupils.

Yeah, it must have been crazy.

An exchange of equivalents, a sacrificial act of healing magic to cleanse Frostnax of the evil fruit. Frostnax was only the second evil dragon.

It meant that every time one rampaged, someone else had to pay with their life. Tears formed in the corners of Bellier’s eyes as he remembered Cleodia’s face.

“……I didn’t!”

Bellier struggled to continue.

Unfortunately, there’s no respite.

Frostnax is rampaging harder.

I open my mouth to speak, zipping up Dawn’s jacket.

“I’ll do it.”

“……What do you mean?”

“It’s enough that you’ve shown your intentions.”

I asked again.

“The ultimate in healing magic. Would you care to explain its manifestation, Bellier?”

“No! Even if it were your command, I cannot obey it. Chief Lee Hoyeol has a job to do, not only for the sake of the Arcana Continent, but also for the sake of the adventurer world……!”

……, so I might as well explain it to you from the beginning.

Even if I’m the patriarch of a great fallen family.

Where’s the stubbornness in that?

I replied, this time in Grandfell style.

“Don’t doubt your intuition, Bellier.”

“……My intuition?”

“You have already witnessed it.”

Yes, me, alive and well on the Arcana continent.

Of course, I wasn’t whole.

Physically, maybe.

My suit was torn, my shirt was stained with blood, and I looked like shit.

But.

“……!”

She remembered.

Bellier frowns.

Then, with a serious face, she asks.

” …… Does Chief also have the power of resurrection?”

I don’t answer.

‘It’s close, but it’s not technically resurrection.’

I had no choice but to answer honestly this time, since the Arcanians had mistaken the death penalty for the power of resurrection in the first place.

The time difference between the real world and the Arcana continent.

Let’s see, 24 hours in the real world is four days in Arcana.

I finished my calculations and added

“I’ll see you in four days.”

*

-“You have already witnessed it.”

An image flashed through her mind.

It was Hoyeol’s blood-soaked clothing.

Bellier was an expert.

She could tell the extent of an injury just by looking at the amount of blood. Moreover, she knew Hoyeol’s character: he was not the kind of man who would be drenched in another’s blood, regardless of the reason.

‘……He was truly mortally wounded.’

But when he returned to reality, his body was still intact. Bellier considered it a miracle. It was something she couldn’t explain, something that could never happen again.

Which made the words he was saying now all the more incomprehensible.

“……Four days later?”

……What does that mean?

The aftermath of magic exhaustion.

Either that, or Hoyeol’s words were too difficult to understand.

Bellier leaned back against the tree.

She’s lost her consciousness.

.

.

. .

[The ‘warmth’ fades from you].

A flashing message.

Perhaps Senior Bellier has reached her limit.

Hisagi looked at the situation coldly.

‘But we didn’t do any real damage.’

It was different Frostnax and Eunaxus.

For one thing, it had intact wings.

Its speed was such that even Nam Taemin, who had activated [Frenzy], couldn’t keep up.

It was impossible to keep up.

‘stretch.’

Nevertheless, Nam Taemin climbed onto Frostnax’s tail.

He plunged his greatsword into it and clung to it with all his might.

But, as he said.

‘It’s just a stretch.’

[An uncontrollable chill is creeping in.]

jjeojeojeojeog─

“Whoosh.”

Even the breath he exhales freezes.

Even those of us who are far away can’t withstand its chill. If it weren’t for the effects of the wildness, I wouldn’t be surprised if he collapsed immediately.

But Hisagi doesn’t back down.

“Bumping into walls……. I’m sick of it now.”

Frustrated with hitting a wall?

It had happened to him more than once.

He didn’t want to get used to it anymore.

He didn’t want to kneel in front of a wall.

It was time to admit the gap.

“For us, it’s called the Demon World……. we have a goal.”

kkuug.

He gripped the spear.

Aimed it at Frostnax.

Magic spear techniques, javelin throwing.

Hisagi gritted his teeth, preparing for the final blow.

“You’ve certainly grown up.”

“……!”

The voice of the Commander in Chief called out.

The reason why it was the voice of the Commander in Chief and not Hoyeol’s voice was simple. At this moment, Hoyeol was looking at the battlefield through the eyes of the Commander-in-Chief.

The meaning of the words is simple.

“Then, from now on, it’s training.”

“……!”

“Remember. My guidance will not be kind.”

That the Holy War Alliance is now at full strength.

*

To manifest the ultimate in healing magic.

You said no power was needed.

Until you run out of it, that is.

I was going to take on Frostnax.

‘From now on, I must capitalize on every opportunity I am given.

Let’s see.

‘It’s been a while since we battled in the Dragon Shrine, hasn’t it?’

I’m warning you, it won’t be the same.

I, Lee Hoyeol.

I’ve been trying pretty hard to get back.

Swords, magic, and anomaly…….

Nothing will be as light as it was then.

How can this be more moody than that?

“Let’s create the right environment before we start the tutoring.”

I lifted a finger to my mouth.

“Be quiet first, Hatchetling.”

“Krrr……!”

Thud.

And the Dragon Cry shattered.

Immediately, the place was as quiet as a dead rat.

This time, I added.

“There is also discipline planned for you.”

“……?”

“There is nothing to be sad about anymore.”

It’s not wrong, but it’s a way of speaking that can lead to misunderstanding.

“Newborn Chick Frostnax.”

“……?!!”