Memory (1)

Chelven easily subdued Soya. It was something Baek Yu-Seol had anticipated.

Their abilities were a perfect match against each other, and there were countless instances where Chelven had overwhelmingly defeated her in battles in Aether World Online.

Also, he knew that Chelven would notice his presence.

No matter how much he concealed his presence, it would be impossible to completely hide from a danger level 9 dark mage.

But...

"Are you the one behind Soya?"

This turn of events was something he had not expected at all. With a stiffened expression, he leapt forward to confront Chelven.

Even though his physical abilities had improved, he couldn't manipulate mana, so his knees might have shattered. Still, he delicately controlled his teleportation to make the best landing possible.

Thud!

Upon landing, he saw Soya, who was half-unconscious, with tears and snot flowing like a flood.

Ordinarily, one might feel pity for someone so utterly broken, especially considering she was originally quite beautiful... But strangely, he felt nothing of the sort.

Instead, he felt exhilarated and refreshed. Perhaps it was natural, since he had sent her to Chelven with this outcome in mind.

'You deserve to suffer a bit more.'

How dare she aim for Leafanel's heart, and worse yet, corrupt her noble soul—she was nothing but a trashy dark mage.

"Hmm. Up close, you look more like an ordinary high school student than I expected."

"That's right, I am a high school student."

"How boring. Did you come all the way here just to play dumb? This one's expression tells the truth, though."

Even in the state of extreme pain, Soya somehow managed to turn her gaze toward Baek Yu-Seol.

Her desperate eyes pleaded for life, and seemed to consider Baek Yu-Seol as a beacon of hope... But he had no intention of saving her.

Not that he had the ability to, anyway.

"Truly... So ordinary."

Chelven furrowed his brows.

As someone who had honed Reality Manipulation for hundreds of years, he could indirectly sense the dormant power within someone. No matter how much they tried to hide their energy.

Yet, strangely, he sensed no power whatsoever from Baek Yu-Seol.

He was nothing more than an ordinary person—neither more nor less.

Which made it all the more suspicious.

'Is it possible for a regular person to get into Stella Academy?'

Even if one assumed he was admitted to Stella Academy with a regular body, could he have single-handedly solved all the countless incidents that have occurred up until now with such an ordinary body?

'Something's off...'

Chelven's expression stiffened as he stomped on the ground. A branch snapped, and simultaneously, a shrill scream erupted from Soya's mouth.

"Argh..."

He had only broken a branch, but she was likely feeling the pain as if her wrist had been shattered.

He wasn't the type to derive pleasure from causing others pain, but the boy in front of him was so bothersome that he couldn't bring himself to deal with Soya's neck right away.

"You don't seem inclined to speak willingly. It can't be helped. This isn't really my style, but..."

Chelven clenched and unclenched his fists, drawing out the remaining dark magic to its fullest. A red shimmer surrounded him, distorting the flow of the air.

"I have no choice but to force you to speak."

It was clear that the one behind Soya and her attack on Chelven was Baek Yu-Seol.

If that was the case, it was reasonable to assume that the person who ordered the foolish Soya to steal the divine spirit's heart was the same individual.

It was a natural line of thought.

However, there was no way to deny it.

'This is troublesome...'

Circumstantially, Chelven's suspicion was reasonable, but Baek Yu-Seol had no grounds to refute it. He knew that it would be useless to clumsily argue, 'I didn't do it.'

'I didn't want to fight...'

One reason for this reluctance was that Chelven was strong enough to survive encounters with the strongest beings in the world. 

However, more than that, he was a character Baek Yu-Seol had been quite fond of while playing the original game despite the fact that he was a villain.

Now, however, Chelven wasn't just a character; he was a real person, so Baek Yu-Seol couldn't express those feelings...

Swoosh!

"Gasp!"

As Chelven stomped one leg on the ground and swung his arm, dark red magic whipped through the air like a lash.

There wasn't even a sound. 

The whip of magic traveled at several times the speed of sound and easily ignored air resistance.

Baek Yu-Seol felt a chilling sensation and quickly rolled to the side with a flash, narrowly dodging the attack. 

'Crazy...!'

He couldn't see it. 

He had barely evaded by flinging his body when his [Sixth Sense] barely sent out a warning, but he hadn't been able to discern the whip's exact path at all.

'So, a danger level 9 mage is truly on another level...!'

Earlier, Chelven's attack power was described as quite low, but that was an extreme example meant only for magic battles. 

Chelven had risen to the ranks of the danger level 9 with just the ability of Reality Manipulation, but his physical abilities themselves were also exceptionally powerful.

Until now, there had been no need for him to reveal his physical abilities, so no one had paid much attention. But now, with all his magic depleted and having to move directly, Chelven's true abilities were starting to reveal themselves.

Boom!!

As Chelven lightly pushed off and leaped, the ground caved in and collapsed. At the same time, Soya, who directly felt the pain of the earth tearing apart, screamed and rolled on the ground, but no one cared about her.

Slash!

A thick tree that was once part of the World Tree split into two and collapsed very easily, and Baek Yu-Seok, who had been standing there, vanished like an afterimage and reappeared about ten meters away.

'Now!'

Baek Yu-Seol used flash. It had only been a few seconds since Chelven figured out his unique ability, and he instantly spotted an opening.

'The delay between teleports is at most 0.3 seconds.'

To some, that might feel like an incredibly brief moment, but for a danger level 9 dark mage, it was more than enough time.

'Damn it...!'

However, Baek Yu-Seol had also expected that an attack would instantly come through the gap between his Flash.

But...

There was no way to counter it.

To use the next Flash, he had to precisely determine the location and measure the distance, then execute it with controlled precision. It was something impossible to do instantly with an ordinary human's concentration.

With no other options, Baek Yu-Seol expanded his flash to the fullest, aiming for an area with as few obstacles as possible, narrowly avoiding Chelven's attack, but in the process, his arm was scratched by a branch, causing an injury.

Drip!

A drop of blood fell. 

Baek Yu-Seol quickly jumped back, covering the wounded area to stop the bleeding. He couldn't use even a simple healing spell, so any injury sustained during battle was extremely critical.

'... Something's strange.'

Chelven's expression hardened. 

The fact that Baek Yu-Seol managed to evade his attacks several times showed he was quite skilled, but there was something awkward about him.

He seemed to have exceptional battle instincts, but his physical abilities didn't seem to match up.

'Well... It doesn't matter.'

Whatever the reason, if Baek Yu-Seol was in a weakened state, it was actually advantageous. 

Currently, contrary to his title 'absolute invincible,' Chelven was in a situation where he couldn't activate any of his traits or abilities.

'Right now, if I want to slash Chelven, I can!'

Swoosh!

Dodging dozens of dark magic whips that surged toward him, Baek Yu-Seol's gaze sharpened.

Avoiding the fight was impossible. 

No matter how much he had liked Chelven, in order to survive, he had no choice but to face him seriously.

'Can I win?'

He didn't know. 

But it was worth a try.

Tap!

Through consecutive flash, Baek Yu-Seol reached a branch and paused momentarily to catch his breath.

It was merely an action to recover the usage count of his Flash, but Chelven also had to retract his whip, creating a brief standoff.

'Stay focused.'

To close eyes in the middle of a battle to concentrate on something else is a reckless act. 

However, it was only for a fleeting moment. 

In the split second, less than 0.5 seconds, when Chelven retracted his whip to swing it again, Baek Yu-Seol closed his eyes and swiftly delved into his imaginary world.

[Blessing of the Pink Spring Moon]

How had he fought until now? 

Number of available flash: 3. 

Maximum teleport distance: 15 meters. 

These were the clear limitations engraved in his fragile body. 

But that was not all. 

His physical abilities were full of flaws.

The flash was fast enough that even a danger level 9 dark mage would miss his movements for a moment, but what about the speed at which he swung his sword?

'It's too slow.'

To their eyes, it must look like a slow-motion video captured by a high-speed camera. The motion of swinging his sword was as sluggish as a turtle, making it very easy to avoid his attacks, no matter how fast his teleportation was.

That said, it was impossible to immediately swing his sword faster. 

He had constantly trained and never neglected his practice, but ultimately, there was a limit to how fast he could improve. 

'I need to change my approach.'

He had thoroughly studied the manual of Ha Tae-Ryeong, the previous bearer of Mana Leakage Delay, who was said to have fought against ancient mages. 

As a swordsman with Mana Leakage Delay, he shared all the secrets for fighting against mages, but there was nothing written about 'fighting dark mages.'

For those with superior physical abilities compared to humans, mere swordsmanship was not enough to confront them. 

Even Ha Tae-Ryeong couldn't come up with a strategy against them.

'I have to create one myself.'

He had to think for himself. 

So far, he had managed somehow through luck, but that wouldn't work against Chelven.

But maybe he was lucky. 

Since Chelven's absolute abilities were completely deactivated, if Baek Yu-Seol's response was adequate, he might be able to land a critical hit.

'In that case, rather than trying to slash...'

Give up the idea of slashing and go for a thrust. 

'… I'll use the acceleration from Flash to charge straight forward.'

It was a simple strategy—so simple that all the previous deliberations seemed laughable. But would Baek Yu-Seol be so foolish as not to have considered this method until now?

He had attempted a thrust attack using flash only once. It was a long time ago... Back when the necromancer ambushed them in the early semester. 

When the necromancer was already severely wounded and near death, Baek Yu-Seol delivered a final blow by charging straight forward... And almost ended up with a critical injury himself. 

Why? 

Because it was equally easy for the opponent to mount a sharp counterattack if Baek Yu-Seol charged straight in. 

This was the reason he had always aimed for the enemy's side in his fights. 

Since Baek Yu-Seol, who had almost no defense, could be at risk himself due to this critical flaw, he had no choice but to engage in inconvenient battles.

'Focus. If I concentrate, I can do it.'

Baek Yu-Seol's mental world grew darker. His concentration surpassed human capabilities.

[Derived Skill from the Blessing of Pink Spring Moon: Mentalist Activated.]

Thus, 0.5 seconds passed.

[Flash]

Slash!

"... Hmm!"

Chelven swung his whip toward Baek Yu-Seol, who had his eyes closed and his head tilted back in midair, but as Baek Yu-Seol instantly vanished from sight, Chelven frowned.

"What a nuisance. Can't you do anything instead of running away?" 

Slowly turning his gaze, he saw Baek Yu-Seol reappear about ten meters away, watching from there.

'What's this?'

Something felt different. 

There was an unusual aura emanating from Baek Yu-Seol. It felt as if he was letting go of even the slightest flow of the breeze.

Chelven had a gut feeling. 

'I'm not sure, but it seems like he's regaining his former power.'

He couldn't let that happen.

"Hmph!"

As Chelven spread his arms downward and swung his whip, it spread wide on both sides like large, dark crimson palms.

He was already exhausted from facing two class 9 mages simultaneously, and dealing with Soya, who was half-witch and possessed the ability of Reality Manipulation as well, had drained all his stamina.

Although he had tried to conserve mana as much as possible, now that his opponent was serious, he needed to show his own seriousness as well.

Even if he were to die here today using all his strength, he would have no regrets if he did his best.

He had always… thought this way.

'My body has reached its limit now.'

This might be the very last attack.

Drip!

Blood trickled down from Chelven's lips. His internal organs were twisting from forcibly drawing up dark mana from deep within. The pain was so excruciating that an ordinary person couldn't even begin to imagine it, but Chelven paid it no mind.

He focused all his attention solely on the enemy in front of him, just one person. He concentrated every bit of his mind on the arrogant young boy pointing a sword at him and swung his dark palms.

…Whoosh!

Leaves swayed in the autumn breeze, slowly falling to the ground.

As if nothing had happened, the gentle wind drifted past, brushing against the cheeks of the two men.

"... Ugh!"

Chelven spat out a mouthful of blood and slowly lowered his head. He looked down at the silver magic sword that had pierced through his chest.

'I let my guard down...'

His senses had dulled. It was partly because he was exhausted and weakened, but also because, for so many years, the earth loved and protected him, making it unnecessary for him to sharpen his senses, which had since dulled.

But perhaps because an old soldier never truly dies...

"Damn it…"

Baek Yu-Seol lost his sword and slowly backed away and then slumped down as his back hit a tree.

'I should have concentrated a bit more...'

He thought he had certainly detected all the attacks charging at him head-on. 

However, the opponent had also figured that out and bent the attack fluidly, targeting even the slightest gaps.

'This is… really going to kill me...'

The dark magic blade that had pierced through his waist was a fatal wound.

He might die in a short while.

In contrast, how effective was his attack?

Clatter!

As Baek Yu-Seol mana infusion disappeared, the sword slipped out from Chelven's chest and fell to the ground.

Although blood was flowing from his chest… It wasn't a fatal wound. 

At the moment when the sword aimed for his heart, Chelven released his mana to twist its trajectory.

It was an unbelievable reaction speed and combat sense, but now was not the time to admire it. After all, this was an enemy he had to face with his life on the line.

"...That's unfortunate."

Chelven gathered all the remaining dark mana to heal the wound in his chest. Normally, it would have healed in an instant, but now even stopping the bleeding was a struggle.

"Consider it an honor. You're the first one to wound my chest since that man."

Although he was currently in a weakened state, shouldn't a mage feel a sense of pride for nearly inflicting a fatal wound on a man with the title of Absolute Invincible? 

Of course, Baek Yu-Seol, who wasn't a magical warrior, felt no pride whatsoever.

He just thought.

'I should have thrust it in a bit faster.'

He felt he should have used flash just a bit quicker. He should have focused a bit more to evade. 

If he had just a little more experience... He could have avoided such a ridiculous attack.

'I need to finish this.'

Chelven staggered toward Baek Yu-Seol, but his expression hardened as he sensed a chilling presence from afar. 

Quickly turning his head, he found a woman with violet wings far off in the sky. 

'The Elf King... Has she regained her strength already?'

Had she witnessed this situation? As he saw Florin rushing in with terrifying speed, Chelven lowered his head. It would be good to finish off Baek Yu-Seol now, but if he did, it would be too late.

'... I need to leave.'

It wasn't to prolong this pitiful life of his any longer.

Chelven lifted the unconscious Soya, who was lying on the ground, crying and sniffling. 

If he were to die here, he wouldn't be able to properly deal with her.

Walking away with Soya slung over his shoulder, Chelven turned back for a final look at Baek Yu-Seol. 

As he held his abdomen with his eyes closed, Baek Yu-Seol was completely defenseless, yet Chelven felt no urge to kill him. 

It was because he couldn't sense any evil in Baek Yu-Seol's eyes. 

It was almost bizarrely pure and noble, given that he was supposedly the one who had controlled Soya and caused chaos with the World Tree. 

'It's fine to let him live for now.'

Finally, Chelven's body merged with the earth and disappeared from sight.