Chapter 132: Unbroken Will

Blood.

Corpses.

Weapons.

These are the only things that littered the battlefield. Due to the overwhelming power of the boy on top of the corpse mountain, it formed a blood river that has a depth of a toe.

Splash-!

Splash-!

The armored men rushed on top of the mountain, feeling the wet and iron blood on their boots. They were unfazed as they stared at the young boy with their dazed eyes—a result of this laboratory's experimentation towards them.

They swung their longswords consecutively, forming a crescent-shaped [Aura Blades] of different elements. As a response to this, the boy utilized his technique to form a tornado purely made of [Aura Blades], which acted as a barrier that shredded those to nothingness.

The men didn't have any visibility of the boy, and only when their artificially-implanted danger senses tingled did they react.

Unfortunately, it is too late.

Sou-!

The boy threw the small dagger on his left, creating a sonic boom as it approached the armored men. It shone with a black light, imbuing it with different kinds of weapon intents. The heaviness of a hammer, the piercing power of a rapier, the sharpness of a sword, and the speed of an arrow is imbued into it.

Splat-! Splat-! Splat-!

Three heads popped like a balloon before their bodies plopped down to the corpse mountain, adding more bodies to it. The remaining men finally reacted by forming a hastily made defensive formation that looked like the tip of an arrowhead.

Bam-!

The dagger shone while it sped through the formation, blasting every men that made contact away; their fates are unknown. Only after four layers of the defense were broken did it stop before disintegrating into particles.

Then, they looked at the direction of the boy from before, but they didn't see anything.

Zoom-!

Their bones creaked as they responded to the thick malice, his killing intent, that spread to their ranks. Weakened by it, the boy made his move—one by one, he slaughtered them.

All of this happened under the watchful eyes of two people.

"This... It's you?"

Strangely enough, Mami didn't feel anything as she watched this bloody massacre. After all, how would she be able to react if her mind is already broken?

Her doubts are the only thing that made her alive.

She stared at the perfect figure not far away from her. Besides his hair having a tinge of black, she never saw any resemblances from Shiro.

"Ahem. Even I found it hard to believe when I first saw this..." He paused for a while before continuing, "That's right, this is me. Thanks to something bad, fate forced upon this hell hole into my life. Guess how old I am at this time?"

"...Twelve?" She replied with a bit of uncertainty.

"Six. Six years old..."

Hearing this, she got shocked before more doubts plagued her. For instance, what happened for him to be like this? How did he survive it? Most importantly...

"How... How did you accept this?"

Since Shiro stood right in front of her, this meant that he'd gone through this already, and that he accepted it. Because if he didn't, she knew that he would've died already—either by his or his enemies' hands.

Chuckling, he replied, "I didn't."

"You didn't..?"

"Well... I am not fond with fate and its machinations; they're b*llsh*t. So... I defied it. By fighting continuously and not forfeiting my life, I gained more power."

Hearing this, she understood a part of it. Perhaps, a part of her felt anger and indignation in this fate of hers that this thought did come across her mind. Sadly, she isn't strong enough to realize it.

Mami lost everything after the accident and lived a meaningless purpose for the rest of her life. She thought before that living her life now is better than dying. But, now that she knew her impending bad end, it isn't like this anymore. Knowing that she'll just suffer until the end, dying seemed like a better option right now.

"Did you succeed?" She asked.

Shiro smiled at her and said, "Succeed? I did. I went through hell countless times literally and succeeded."

He added:

"A friend of mine once said this:

Life is a pilgrimage in which we stockpile suffering

However, it is by no means a tale of death and partings

I met many amazing people, discovered my hope, and gathered all my strength to defy fate. I did suffer much, yes, but life also has many other things to offer. Of course, it is not as simple as that, but you can get the gist, right?"

By the time he's finished speaking, Mami fell silent as she stared at him.

Shiro realized that he just said something similar to a protagonist, but he didn't feel embarrassed or anything like that. This simply came from his true feelings, so what's wrong with saying something from it?

Meanwhile, Mami's previously chaotic thoughts came to a halt. Her suicidal thoughts ceased when she realized something.

'Is it worth fighting?'

'Is it worth it to suffer for so long just to see a bit of hope?'

'I am aware that I'm not as strong as him, but...'

She looked at the figure of a boy below, his eyes gleaming with determination—his will to see through the end of everything. Then, she stared at the current Shiro's eyes, showing her the depth within it.

While she couldn't comprehend everything from it, she's sure of one thing. Shiro... he's someone who wouldn't yield to his opponents.

Like a massive sun in the starry sky, she couldn't help but be mesmerized by his presence.

'Can I... Can I be as bright as him?'

Crack-!

Like an illusion, her extremely dark psyche changed in an instant. Her dark feelings vanished as she arrived at her own conclusion, to the answer she didn't expect that would ignite her will to live, nay, fight once more.

All because of a single man.

Beep-! Beep-!

[Hidden Quest Complete! Help Tomoe Mami from her own [Unbroken Will] ! Reward Settlement...]

[Hidden QUEST Complete! Fully save Tomoe Mami from her destiny! Reward Settlement...]

Two different prompts that came from his system and Chat Group popped up, though Shiro paid it no heed as he swiped it to the sidelines. Right now, he's amazed at what he saw.

Unlike her previous dead eyes that looks like she gave up, it now came off as lively yet determined; her brightness overshadowed her dark self as she saw her ideal white—the future that she wants to have. Albeit unclear, she knew that she'll be happier by then.

"I want to live."

A strong voice resounded in this realm created by their minds. Mami's had matured more compared to her in the past. This time, she'll be living her own purpose; her own life which is not made up of lies.

Hearing that, Shiro heaved a sigh of relief which didn't escape from her eyes. She thought, 'He's that concerned to me?'

"To be honest, I would've kept you alive while healing your broken mind gradually had you not succeeded in one-go."

"Is that so?" She replied.

"Yep. You're very strong, Mami-chan." Shiro said with a smile that genuinely appreciated her strong will. Given enough time, she would gain the corresponding power with her current mentality.

Outwardly, she smiled back in response to him, but her mind became chaotic instead. Her heart (mentally) began beating faster as she got flustered by him. Coupled with the fact that she felt relief and satisfaction after that praise, she's currently on cloud nine.

Still, she didn't forget the other thing that she wanted to ask just now.

Keeping a straight face, she asked, "Are you still accepting students..?"

"Ah?"

Unfortunately, Shiro couldn't see through her inner feelings because of her strong will that should've reached a very high level. He could've done so if he exerts more of his mental power in his [Six Eyes], but he respects others and their secrets.

Unless it's a stranger or an enemy, he maintained this basic approach.

"You want to become my student?"

"Is it possible?"

"Well, yes..."

Beep-!

[Hidden Quest Completed! Have 10 students. Reward Settlement...]

[Mentorship System has been unlocked!]

This day, he gained a unique student that would follow him wherever he goes...

*****

Fact #82: Zelretch, the wielder of Second True Magic and the multiversal troll, is actually a student of King Solomon himself! This is canon, and it is confirmed when Type/Moon released the manuscript this August 2022. Meaning, Zelretch is alive for at least 1,000 years... On top of it, he helped with the establishment of the Mage Association, as well as the modern magecraft itself.

(Solomon created "magecraft", making it possible for ordinary humans to do miracles without connections to gods. Hence, his King of Magecraft title.)