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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Mod7
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A weekend with no plans.
Sepia stared out the window, then turned her attention to the grimoire on her desk.
The Lemegeton.
The grimoire she had obtained from Atlan, the Dragon’s Nest.
Most of its pages were blank.
She didn’t know what it did. But she knew she was its owner.
Her name was inscribed on the first page.
And today,
She had discovered something new. An inscription on the second page.
“The Paragraph of Truth.” Sepia dipped her quill in ink and began to write.
―So, what does the “Paragraph of Truth” do?
The way to communicate with the grimoire was to write in it. Sepia had been puzzled when her name had appeared on the first page.
She hadn’t written it. That day, she had decided to experiment.
She wanted to learn new magic. She wanted to become stronger, to keep up with Ethan.
She had been reading the grimoire when she came across a sentence she didn’t understand. She underlined it and wrote a question mark.
The grimoire absorbed the ink and replied with an exclamation mark. The underline vanished.
―Who are you?
―I am the greatest, most powerful grimoire, the keeper of the world’s secrets, the Lemegeton.
It had replied to her question. It seemed to have a high opinion of itself.
―Are you a cursed artifact?
―The world is cursed. Do you think I would be spared?
Another cryptic response. Sepia frowned, wondering if she should just burn the damn thing.
―If you keep spouting nonsense, I’ll burn you.
―I cannot be burned.
―Then I’ll tear you to pieces and throw you into the sea.
―……
Sepia was a woman of action. She didn’t want to be the owner of a useless, pretentious grimoire.
―I mean it.
―Duly noted.
It seemed to have become more compliant.
―Tell me about yourself. Where did you come from? How do I know you won’t harm me or the world, like a cursed sword?
―I have existed since the dawn of time. I choose my owner.
Another cryptic response.
It seemed like the grimoire had chosen Sepia as its owner. And those who weren’t chosen couldn’t even learn magic from it.
‘It could be lying. I don’t trust it. But Calciater wouldn’t have given it to me if it was dangerous. Or she would have at least warned me.’
But it was better to be safe than sorry. Sepia continued to communicate with the Lemegeton, but she didn’t fully trust it.
It seemed useless, aside from its ability to answer her questions.
She picked up her quill again, intending to ask about the “Paragraph of Truth.”
―What is this page for?
―It will answer three questions truthfully. Secrets of the world, secrets of others, your past… anything. But only three questions.
She had so many questions.
Would she marry Ethan? When would they share their first kiss? What was Ethan’s lost memory?
‘Ugh… they’re all about Ethan…’
She felt embarrassed. She started to write, then stopped. Only three questions.
‘I should save them for later…’
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In the basement.
Kanion stared at the bloodstains on his hands. He had washed them repeatedly, but the stench of blood lingered.
Lunia was dead.
The blade had pierced her back, exiting through her stomach. He had woken up to find her dead.
“It’s over. Everything is over…”
He had killed her. It wasn’t a duel. He had panicked and tried to cover it up.
But…
There were dozens of staff members at the hotel. And someone must have seen Lunia leaving the dormitory.
‘Can I hide this and continue attending the academy?’
He wasn’t even sure if he could continue attending the academy. His left arm was still stiff and painful. He’d be lucky if he didn’t fail his classes.
‘Should I confess?’
He might avoid execution thanks to his family’s connections, but he had already disgraced the Amos family name.
“My father would suggest I commit suicide.”
And if he refused? His family might kill him. He would have to run away, living as a fugitive.
There would be a bounty on his head.
And bounty hunters would come after him.
He might die from poisoned food. Falling asleep might be the last thing he ever did.
“It’s all because of that bastard.”
Ethan.
Ethan! Ethan! Ethan…! He gritted his teeth, the name a curse on his lips. He wanted to kill him.
He wanted to kill everyone Ethan cared about.
Tia, Sepia, Tesha, Arthur, Anya… everyone.
A dark rage consumed him. He needed an outlet for his hatred and anger.
‘I shouldn’t have brought her to a hotel…’
He had always chosen hotels because he didn’t want to leave any traces behind.
A sharp pain shot through his left shoulder.
Kanion gasped, clutching his shoulder. He looked at the magic circle drawn on the basement floor.
It was a summoning circle for a dark spirit.
‘I’ll get my revenge. I’ll kill him and all his friends.’
He had nothing left to lose. He picked up a dagger.
Drops of blood fell onto the magic circle.
The room grew dark.
He rubbed his eyes. It wasn’t his imagination. Darkness was spreading, consuming everything.
Kanion, with his high spirit affinity, recognized the presence immediately. It was a dark spirit.
‘I’ve successfully summoned a dark spirit. And with this much mana…’
It was at least a high-level dark spirit. Perhaps even a Spirit King.
―You have summoned me.
The spirit’s voice echoed through the basement. A pair of crimson eyes stared at him from the darkness.
‘With this power… I can get my revenge.’
Kanion laughed. Dark spirits could manipulate matter. They could even inflict physical harm.
“I am Kanion Amos, your summoner. State your name and show respect.”
―I am Vergos, the Dark Spirit King.
The crimson eyes narrowed into crescent moons.
“I will form a contract with you, Vergos, Dark Spirit King!”
A figure made of ice materialized behind Kanion. It was Gartea, his high-level Water and Ice spirit.
―Master, it’s a dark spirit. Unlike elemental spirits, it consumes not only mana, but also the soul.
Gartea’s voice echoed in his mind.
“Silence, Gartea. I didn’t summon you.”
The spirit fell silent.
“Vergos! I will form a contract with you!”
Vergos smirked.
“The contract is complete.”
A chilling voice replied. Darkness enveloped Kanion like a snake, his mind reeling.
Then, he felt a surge of power coursing through his veins.
Darkness swirled behind him.
A jet-black darkness consumed his left arm. When the darkness receded, his left arm was larger and thicker than before.
His hand was large enough to crush a skull.
But the arm was a sickly black, as though it were necrotic. Kanion laughed maniacally.
His laughter echoed through the basement.
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The undead army wasn’t just for combat. They were also useful for gathering materials.
“Collect all the Adamantium from the guardians’ shields.”
“As you command.”
They obeyed instantly, without question or complaint.
They used their daggers to pry the Adamantium fragments from the shields. They also collected the bronze armor.
I wanted to equip them with the armor, to create a proper undead knight order, but the armor was too damaged.
I had to destroy the guardians completely to stop them. But I could still sell the materials. I stored them in my shadow.
I would split the profits with Reus and Arthur.
“This tiny piece of Adamantium blocked my mana?”
Arthur examined the Adamantium fragment, which was about the size of his thumbnail, a puzzled look on his face.
Adamantium.
One of the three rarest metals, along with Orichalcum and Arken Steel.
Orichalcum was light, soft, and an excellent conductor of mana. Adamantium, on the other hand, was heavy, hard, and could nullify magic.
That’s why they were called the “mage’s metal” and the “warrior’s metal,” respectively.
There was even a saying: “Make your shield from Adamantium, and your staff from Orichalcum.”
Arthur seemed shocked that such a small, dark-colored metal fragment had been able to block his mana.
“Even though the fragments were small, there were many of them, so the effect was amplified. And they weren’t using mana or demonic energy. They were designed to be immune to both.”
So, the guardians themselves couldn’t use mana or demonic energy, but they were also highly resistant to it.
Arthur blinked, still puzzled.
“Even with the advancements in magic engineering, I’ve never heard of an enemy that’s immune to mana.”
“It must be an ancient weapon.”
It was an ancient weapon.
It was a lost technology. They would be unstoppable if they could create an army of them.
They had been created by a genius dwarf, according to the lore.
But Arthur had a way to defeat them. He could use his golden mana.
Blue mana was blocked, but golden mana worked. It was pure protagonist privilege.
We divided the Adamantium among ourselves and continued our exploration. We passed several pillars that looked like they belonged in the Parthenon.
As it grew dark, we decided to set up camp. A campfire crackled merrily, sparks flying up towards the purple sky.
We ate bread and meat from Arthur’s inventory. I assigned the undead to keep watch.
“Ethan… are you… Odysseus?”
Reus asked, poking the fire. He seemed to think I was Odysseus.
The cunning Odysseus of Greek legend. But I had to play dumb.
“Who’s Odysseus?”
“…It’s nothing.”
He stood up and pulled a sleeping bag out of his spatial pocket. I also retrieved a sleeping bag from my shadow.
The purple sky stretched above us, devoid of stars. It was a desolate sight.
I closed my eyes.
The next day, after two more battles, we reached a massive stone gate.
A long wall, like the Berlin Wall, stretched across the landscape on either side of the gate.
It was the entrance to the boss stage.
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