＜ 122. Remaining days (1) ＞
#122
“Come closer. First, let’s see how much the year has progressed.”
Ronan did that. Sekrit, who reached out a hand like a fern, touched his chest. The glaring eyes became more and more irritating. Ronan smirked at the appearance of not being able to adapt at all.
‘It’s amazing. Are you going to turn into a grandmother at night?’
She was a girl that no one could see. It was truly a terrible curse to turn a tired old man into a kid to play with. Secret, who had quietly closed his eyes, opened his mouth.
“Show yourself.”
A shrill voice rang out. At the same time, Secret’s mana spread through his body. Whoa! Dark red letters came out of Ronan’s back.
“···이 개새끼들.”
Ronan clenched his teeth when he saw the actualized curses. It was a sight I had not seen in a long time. The letters were wriggling as if alive and spinning around him.
However, something seemed to have reduced the amount of letters compared to when I first saw it. Secret’s eyes twinkled as if intrigued.
“Oh, my efforts were not in vain. The curse has definitely been weakened.”
“Of course it is. I went through that hardship.”
Ronan twisted his lips. It was unbelievable that all the hardships I had been through had taken place in just over half a year. Sekrit removed her hand from her chest and took out the chalk.
“Then let’s move on to the next step.”
Secret began to draw geometric magic circles back and forth in the study. It was a magic circle the size of which almost covered the floor of the study.
In many ways, it took longer than the last time. After a while, he reached out his hand, completing the magic circle.
“It’s over. Bring me the magic stone.”
“Here you go.”
Ronan handed the Dyinhar Manastone. Secret, who received the manastone, flinched for a moment. The mana wriggling beneath the black surface was incomparable to any catalysts he had ever seen.
“…you really did save it. Did you even receive it as a gift from the natives of Dinhar?”
“Well, it’s similar.”
“It’s scary because it doesn’t seem like a joke.”
Secret, who walked to the center of the study, put the magic stone on the floor. At that moment, a light was emitted following the pattern of the magic circle. Paah…! It was a sight reminiscent of flames rising along the oil.
“This time, I will materialize the curse you have to inflict.”
“Is it real?”
“okay. It is to measure the scale of the curse by unraveling and implementing it in a visual form. It’s the last step we go through before we enter the sea.”
Suddenly, Secret waved his fingers in the air. The shapes of the letters were crushed and began to gather in one place. As the materialization progressed, Secret’s expression gradually hardened.
“This···!”
The curse, which had repeatedly boiled and melted at will, stopped changing after about ten minutes. Ronan frowned. A huge mass of about 2m in diameter was floating in front of me.
“It looks like a dick.”
It was very unpleasant to see the stinging hornet. If you pulled out the devil’s heart or brain, it would look like this.
The amorphous cursed mass continued to writhe without a definite form. After being silent for a while, Secret let out a sigh.
“···Oh My God. It must have been like this.”
“Secret? it’s okay?”
“Yeah… the moment you compress that stuff and put it in your head, Haeju begins. From then on, as you know well, the body goes into a deep sleep and the mind wanders through the world of images…”
“Young, I’m not feeling well, but… damn, what can I do? Let’s get rid of it quickly.”
Ronan sighed as he turned his limbs back and forth. Time in the imaginary world flows differently from reality. I thought it was over in an instant last time, but in reality, looking at the full day, there is a high possibility that something similar will happen this time as well.
It was the right decision to throw it away during the vacation when time was relatively generous. Secret, who had been biting his nails all the time, opened his mouth.
“Ronan…it might be funny to come and say this now, but I have to say it.”
“What do you mean?”
“Are you sure you want to do that?”
For a moment, silence fell. Ronan, who was stunned, opened his mouth.
“Why have you been like this? The complexion is not good.”
“… Decades ago, a friend of mine took his own life. He was an astronomer who explored the sky above the sky. He had a good reputation and was well-educated, so there was no reason to commit suicide.”
Ronan tilted his head at the sudden sound. Sekrit’s face, staring intently at the curse, was as pale as the northern snowfields. A cold sweat was running down her pale cheeks.
“But the disciples testified that he suddenly went crazy. We could find the cause in his will. There was only one line written on it. [We are dust]”
“dust?”
“After discussions with colleagues, a conclusion was reached. I think I realized even a little bit of the extent of that universe that I had only recognized as ‘existing’. Seeing the unbearable truth, madness came to me…”
Secret, who looked up at the ceiling for a moment, washed his face dry. He opened his mouth to face Ronan.
“Ronan, I just came to understand him.”
“You think I’m going to fail.”
“To be honest, it is. This time, I think we are doing something reckless.”
Sekrit bowed her head and acknowledged her negligence. Until now, I was unaware of the Haeju method because I was only thinking of the theory and simplified experimentation. The power of the curse that was materialized was far exceeding the expectations of Secret.
“That’s dangerous. Even if it succeeds, I cannot guarantee how long it will take.”
“I can’t say for sure, is it because it’s been a few days?”
“Once twisted, a year is ridiculous. There are people who have been wandering around the world of images for over ten years.”
“Damn it, ten years?”
Ronan’s brow wrinkled. Since it is a stronger curse, I thought it might take longer than when I first did it, but this has gone too far. Secret said.
“Ronan. As an educator who has to pursue an initiative, this is not to say, but you are strong enough now. Even if he grows up like this, he will surely become a swordsman who will leave a mark in the history of the empire. Is it worth doing that while taking such a risk?”
Secret raised his voice. Although she looked like a slender girl, her unique sense of intimidation was still there. Ronan’s eyes narrowed narrowly.
‘Worth it.’
It wasn’t a very unreasonable statement. Looking at the achievements so far, there is much room for growth compared to the past life. As time went on, even if only her body grew, she was confident that Ahayute would be slaughtered in an instant.
‘Shake. I wouldn’t have done it if there was only one bastard.’
However, the level that Ronan had to reach was not just that. The number of giants descending with tearing the sky could not even be estimated.
I suddenly remembered the day I met an Omega Doppelganger. His mortal bones, eroded by the curse and dying, were indescribably filthy.
I had to get rid of those tumors in my body to be able to overcome the limit. Ronan nodded without hesitation.
“yes.”
“Fu…then it can’t be helped.”
widely! Secret sighed and snapped his fingers again. As the light of the magic circle went out, the curse that had materialized was scattered like smoke.
“I will do my best to stabilize the procedure. It seems like it will take a few days, so please clean up your surroundings in the meantime.”
****
The rest of the period passed quickly. The opening ceremony was held in the plaza where the vacation ceremony was held. Kratir’s face, reciting clichéd tales, was charred as if he had gone on a vacation.
“I hope you had a meaningful vacation. I hope you have a healthy and vigorous new semester as well. Hmmm… Summer is over now.”
The rising sky was an indication that the momentum of summer had waned. In the past few days, the cool breeze has brightened the students’ faces.
Ronan headed to the club building as soon as the opening ceremony was over. The returning students were busily running around the campus. The vacant street returned to turmoil.
In his right hand was a large trunk bag. Ronan, who was whistling, murmured as he looked up at the feathery clouds.
“Three days.”
It was the remaining period until the preparation of Secret’s rite. I couldn’t sleep properly after that day because my mind was busy. I had to rush around and do what I could. Ronan grunted as he suddenly remembered his words.
“Even so. What is the unlucky perimeter cleanup, perimeter cleanup?”
It was like a line left for someone who was going to die. Of course, it was a word that was heard as a greeting at the time when he was served as a punitive soldier. Because it was a place where battles with no guarantee of life and death were fought every day.
‘Well, it’s a good thing.’
It was a pity that he could not finish the work quickly, but Ronan decided to think positively as much as possible. He knew better than anyone the misery of those who died suddenly without leaving a will. There was nothing bad about building defenses assuming even the worst case scenario.
Ronan, who was walking while thinking about various things, came to the club building. I was still nearby, but I heard a loud noise.
The door opened with a friendly fricative sound. Ronan’s expression distorted at the unexpected sight. Marya and Braum, each doing push-ups with Asher and Ophelia on their backs, caught my eye.
“Cutie! Did you not eat a single meal during vacation? Why is it so light?”
“Oh, no. ate···!”
read from n̲o̲b̲l̲e̲m̲t̲l̲.̲c̲o̲m̲
Marya asked worriedly. Asher, whose face was blushing, shook her head. Ophelia, who was sitting on Braum with a dry expression on her face, stabbed him in the back with her index finger.“Braum… I’m going to lose this way…”
“Heh heh! Hey, wait! There are still signs of a reversal!”
Contemplating Braum speeded up. Seeing the sight of a truly asshole, Ronan smirked. He opened his mouth as he placed the trunk he was carrying on the bar table.
“What are you doing? You idiots.”
“uh? Ronan!”
The two stopped doing push-ups. Ronan looked over the faces of the members and nodded. As I said before, everyone was gathered except for Schlieffen.
“It’s all here. How have you been?”
“I saw it yesterday, and I was reminded… Ah, I brought the money from the sale of magic stones.”
read from n̲o̲b̲l̲e̲m̲t̲l̲.̲c̲o̲m̲
Marya, wiping her sweat off her sleeve, pointed to a corner of the building. About ten luxurious boxes were stacked one after another. At that moment, Braum, who was holding his breath, burst out into a roaring laugh.“Wah-ha-ha, of course! By the way, Ronan was surprised. To give you such a big present at the end of the vacation!”
His gaze rested on the shield leaning against the wall. Ronan shrugged his eyebrows.
“Oh, did you get it today?”
“It was yesterday, to be exact. The Werewolf Blacksmith delivered it to us!”
It was a good shield to pretend to be. The large rectangular great shield that was large enough to completely cover the body seemed to be able to block the dragon’s flames with a little lie.
“I don’t know what to thank. Can I really use such a treasure?”
“You’re making weird noises. It was given to me to use, but of course I should get it.”
“Thank you too…”
Ophelia also bowed her head. In her hand was a white wand, as if carved out of a bone. It may be because Ophelia was originally strong, but the magic that surged was unusual.
“It seems that all magic… is twice as strong. There must have been a place like that in the basement of the system…”
“Is it better than what your kind made?”
“Yeah… a lot. It would be rude to compare.”
“I’m glad.”
Ronan nodded. Both Ophelia’s wand and Braum’s shield were made by the master craftsmen of Gran Cappadocia. As soon as he heard Sekrit tell him to clean up the surroundings, he set his arms around the two of them.
“Okay then, everyone, come here. I have an important announcement.”
“Notice?”
The crew members gathered around. Ronan opened the trunk. Click. As soon as the lock was released, contents that no one expected were revealed. Everyone except for Ophelia’s eyes widened.
“Hey, this is…!”
“I borrowed it from my sister Nabirose. Everyone put one on their wrist.”
Inside the cushion-wrapped trunk were five thin black bracelets. It was a magic tool used during the intermediate evaluation of Nabi Rose.
A space-based magic tool that automatically transfers the body if it is likely to die or suffer an injury that is difficult to heal. Ronan continued explaining, leaving the bewildered members behind.
“I think I may be away for a long time. It can be as short as a few days, but as long as it can take years.”
“···What are you talking about? School starts now, but you suddenly leave your seat?”
“How many years?”
“I’ll explain the details while doing it. From bracelets to tea.”
Ronan’s expression was more serious than ever. The members wore bracelets one by one without knowing English. At that moment, Ronan pulled the hilt. Shoo! As the tip of La Mancha’s sword was about to touch Braum’s neck, his shape distorted and disappeared.
“Hey, what is this…!”
“Heh heh heh!”
Asher was about to start screaming. Kudang Tang! Braum, who had disappeared with a loud noise, rolled down the stairs. He looked around without even knowing what had happened to him. Ronan continued.
“Did you see it? never die We’ve made this building the place to survive, so you can attack as much as you want.”
“Gee, what are you doing now?”
“I want to show off my skills. Can I really leave my seat?”
Finally, Ronan with the bracelet stood up. The members of the crew shuddered at the sudden rise of life over his shoulders. It was like he had become a different person. Ronan groaned lowly, scanning their faces one by one.
“Follow me.”
