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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Silverriver
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The Icicle Field Agnes had conjured hadn’t yet reached its full potential. It couldn’t even fill this small chamber.
Still, when she mastered it, she would be able to create her own icy palace on any battlefield, reigning supreme.
“Good work.”
I approached the panting Agnes and fed her an elixir. She shook her head, but she was too weak to resist, so I forced her to take it.
“Haah…”
After consuming the elixir, she finally took a proper breath. The surrounding ice began to melt.
The elixir I gave her was only worth ten days of lifespan. One of the five I always carried for emergencies.
I had gained 210 days here, so this small expenditure was insignificant.
“Can you walk?”
“Yes…”
She spoke weakly, but she seemed capable of movement. She cautiously approached the sword embedded in the ground.
A sword that remained unfrozen within the Icicle Field, radiating its own chilling aura. She stared at the sword for a moment…
Grasp
…then gripped the hilt and pulled it free. As expected, the sword slid out without resistance.
She examined the blade before taking hold of it properly.
Lenox’s sword seemed to have accepted Agnes. If I had tried to wield it, it probably would have given me frostbite.
With that thought, I slung her arm around my neck and supported her as we walked.
“You don’t have to help me.”
“Your legs are still shaking. Just stay still.”
“….”
Why was she so needlessly proud? I clicked my tongue silently and looked ahead.
The smallest door we’d encountered in the dungeon so far. Beyond this door was the end.
Agnes stared at the door for a moment, then spoke.
“Whose soul did Lenox bind to the Skeleton Warrior? Magic Swordsmen weren’t common in that era.”
A good question. The answer lay beyond this door.
I didn’t answer, simply opening the door. With a creak, a small chamber came into view.
A Spirit Orb radiating a chilling aura. A book untouched by the passage of time. And between them, a woman sat in mid-air.
The woman spoke.
“…Who are you?”
I knew, of course. And Agnes likely knew as well, but she probably asked as if she didn’t know.
The Magic Swordsman, Lenox, spread her arms wide. Just as described in the novel.
“How are you still alive? Aren’t you from hundreds of years ago?”
Agnes asked, her eyes wide as if in surprise.
So they were acquainted. That explained why the dungeon was located in the forest near Iliad Academy.
At Lenox’s words, Agnes turned to look at me, her expression questioning how I had discovered this place.
She was giving away unnecessary information. I supported Agnes and moved forward.
“According to your will, you were certain no one would surpass your talent. Is that correct?”
Well, being a Magic Swordsman sure is tough.
Lenox stood up from her mid-air seat. Two? There seemed to be some misunderstanding. I had no intention of becoming a Magic Swordsman.
Agnes, who had been listening quietly, spoke.
“Then the trials we faced…”
Lenox reached for the Spirit Orb. Her hand passed through it, intangible as a ghost.
“The sword, the ability, the character of those with potential. Little one, you believe I created the Skeleton Warrior using someone else’s soul, don’t you?”
“If not, then who was that Skeleton Warrior?”
Lenox pointed at herself confidently. Even in the novel, I was dumbfounded when I read that.
How much more so for Agnes?
“What?!”
Lenox spoke nonchalantly, but it was hardly a trivial matter. It meant she had split her own soul and bound a part of it to a skeleton.
“Is that even possible?”
A swordsman and a mage. It must have been the combined efforts of Lenox, possessing overwhelming power in both, and Iliad.
“So, what is the theme of this room?”
I asked in place of the stunned Agnes. I just wanted to leave this place as quickly as possible.
The Spirit Orb on the pedestal looked incredibly tempting.
“Wouldn’t it be strange not to?”
Even without the novel’s description, it was easy to guess. The knights had emphasized the ‘spar,’ and we had learned about ‘actual combat’ through the Skeleton.
So what was the theme of this room?
Lenox scratched her head and said,
The sword Agnes held. The weapon Lenox had wielded in life, perfectly suited for ice magic.
Agnes pondered Lenox’s question for a moment, then replied,
“Jeolyeong (絶影 – Shadowless). I’ll call it Jeolyeong.”
At Agnes’s naming, Lenox burst out laughing and waved her hand, gesturing for us to leave.
I carefully collected the Spirit Orb and the book. The book contained Lenox’s knowledge, necessary for a Magic Swordsman, so I would give it to Agnes.
I would consume the Spirit Orb later.
Or so I thought.
As Agnes left, and just as I was about to follow, Lenox approached and whispered in my ear,
“What are you talking about?”
There was no feigning ignorance. Lenox knew I wasn’t the original owner of this body.
A witch, not a Magic Swordsman. Just how much did she know?
“What do you suggest I do?”
“You’re saying this knowing my condition?”
I gulped. If she knew I hadn’t read the will, she knew almost everything.
But to give the Spirit Orb to Agnes? I hesitated, but I could always take it back later.
I cautiously nodded. Lenox stepped back, satisfied, then asked,
“Is that advice, or a request?”
A junior? I stared at Lenox, wide-eyed.
But she simply put a finger to her lips, shushing me.
And so, I left Lenox’s chamber.
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“Here.”
“Why are you giving this to me?”
I immediately handed her the Spirit Orb. The Millennium Ice Essence.
An entire year’s worth. If I consumed it, I would gain a year and 210 days of lifespan.
But I gave it to Agnes.
“And prepare for battle. From now on, it’s real combat.”
The one trapped in this dungeon. I didn’t know exactly who it was. It was never mentioned in the novel.
But it was someone Iliad and Lenox considered dangerous enough to be locked away in this dungeon. And that someone was interested in me.
At my warning, Agnes tightened her grip on Jeolyeong. I drew my sword and consumed all my remaining elixirs.
Confirming my lifespan had increased to 250 days, I moved forward. The atmosphere grew colder and more ominous as we approached the entrance.
The chilling aura reached its peak as we arrived at the Trial of Combat chamber.
“Holy shit.”
What was this energy? This was insane. My skin crawled.
The dungeon was barely illuminated, as if on the verge of being swallowed by darkness. The statues stood motionless, emitting a faint light.
And beyond them, near the passage we had first entered, a monster lurked.
A massive creature, slithering across the ground, its tongue flicking in and out. A wyrm that had failed to become a dragon, despite a thousand years of training.
And now, it had become a malevolent being.
The Black Blood Wyrm.
Hiss!
That monstrous creature blocked our path.
“Lenox, you crazy bastard!”
I cursed the name of the deceased. Anyone else would have scolded me for cursing the dead, but Agnes was the only one here.
And what the hell, I deserved to curse a little.
Crash!
The wall crumbled. The creature’s red eyes, with their slit pupils, fixed on me.
The wall completely disintegrated under the force of its movements, creating a large, open space. A space for it to move freely.
The cave should have collapsed, but it remained intact, likely due to some magic Lenox had cast.
‘Lenox must have placed some kind of enchantment.’
This wasn’t the time for such thoughts. How was I going to deal with this damned snake?
“Agnes!”
“Yes!”
I shouted over the roar caused by the Black Blood Wyrm’s movement. Agnes…
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