Chapter 36 – Life and Magic (8)

Life and Magic (8)

“Stay still. I’ll try to make it as painless as possible.”

The papers nearby begin to cling to the body. Wrists with four layers, ankles with six, and the rest of the body covered in papers. Perhaps controlling the papers with magic, the surroundings are filled with swarms of paper cutting through the air. It was a scene worthy of being called a sea of paper. Indeed, this otherworld is fascinating. It would have been more interesting if they weren’t flying at me.

“I would have been better off staying with the Demon King’s army, Aeon!!!”

I take a step back. Increasing distance in a fight with a mage is madness, but it’s clear this guy can’t launch a big spell. Given the location, any wide-area spell would be too damaging to herself as well.

The holy sword swings forward once and then half again. Any other attack is meaningless. So I have to finish everything within that. Running away seems impossible anyway. I need to imprint the situation as advantageous for Aeon as much as possible and wait for the right moment to seize the opportunity. If possible, aim for a decisive victory in a short-term battle.

“Just once, I’ll only draw it out once, so don’t resist if you don’t want to get hurt.”

“That one time you’re talking about, it’s going to be 50 years, isn’t it?”

But the opponent won’t be taken down so easily. Looks like I have to fight after all. I had resolved to use killing and opening the letter as a last resort. It’s only been a few days and it’s come to this already. This is why I hate promises.

I draw the holy sword.

“If you come any closer, I won’t be able to handle it.”

The holy sword, emitting a brilliant light, seemed ready to project firepower at any moment. In contrast, Aeon had not taken any preparatory stance.

And so, I swung down the holy sword first. And was defeated, pathetically, without being able to do anything. Because all the papers nearby had covered my body.

“If you had just handed it over willingly, I wouldn’t have had to use this.”

She pulls something out of her pocket. It was a syringe, with a large button embedded on the side. I didn’t know its proper use, but it seemed that if it were shoved into my body, I wouldn’t be able to lead a normal life.

“Hey, hey, hey, if you stick that in, I’ll die.”
“So what?”

I tried to resist as much as I could, flailing my whole body, but with layers of paper stuck to me, I couldn’t move properly.

“Stay still, damn it!”

Nevertheless, it seemed to have an effect as she was losing strength controlling the papers.

If it were the original Aeon, I could have been turned to ash in an instant… but now, it’s a peculiar situation. She can’t handle a potential test subject that might prove useful roughly. Otherwise, there would be no reason to restrain me with papers instead of attacking directly with magic.

She approaches. Slowly and with focus. To shove that bright blue syringe needle into my throat.

I couldn’t resist. My whole body was tied up, and moving in that state would be monstrous.

However, at this moment, I could be considered monstrous enough to be called a freak. Whether the restraints were weak or I had become stronger, I was able to move. I could move awkwardly without being too affected by the restraints. Just a little bit.

I wonder if the vessel left by my master had any significance.

Well, it doesn’t matter now.

Aeon is approaching. Now, the distance is just about 1 meter.
I can’t swing the holy sword. The same goes for the dagger. There was no proper means of attack available.

Therefore, I entrusted my body to the technique that the vessel was about to use.
Fist King Technique, Emitting Force.
A technique that concentrates magic at the fist and releases it all at once. Its power is tremendous.
…if the user’s magic power is sufficient.

Which means, if I use it, it’s merely for intimidation.

But Aeon, who mistakenly thought I had vast magic power, dodged in a panic, and thanks to that, I was able to save my life once.

“Phew, ah~ I thought that strike would send a limb flying, what a pity right?”

I barely managed to regain my posture. Being tied up is indeed bothersome.
I’ll have to be more careful next time.

Aeon clipped the syringe back into her pocket.
…That syringe she intended to use on me. If she uses that.

“You, unlike Troka, I’ll have to suck you dry without leaving anything behind.”

She still hasn’t come to her senses, it seems.

Troka, that bastard.
A pitiful fool.

Aeon began to take her stance.
I gave her a beaming smile. At the same time, I slipped my right hand into my bosom. The target is the dagger, the purpose is to throw it.

“Seeing that you still haven’t come to your senses…, I guess I have to use my full power… now!”

I opened my Mind’s Eye and threw the dagger.
Unfortunately, the dagger’s trajectory was altered by just a sheet of paper and it ended up stuck in the wall.
Well, it was enough to distract her gaze. It would have been better if it had luckily stuck in her forehead.

With my remaining left hand, I swung the holy sword. A diagonal slash from below to above.

Naturally, it was parried.
This is why non-combat personnel shouldn’t be put into combat. They lack the skill.

-Kwaang!

Paper scraps flew around.
With Mind’s Eye, I saw through Aeon. The vast amount of magic power, the high concentration of magic power gathered in her hand. And… the strange traces left on the syringe button.

The next attack is coming. I’ll finish the fight before that.

The second strike of the holy sword.
This time a diagonal slash from above to below. I couldn’t bring it down all the way. The blade disappeared before it could reach her torso.
But that’s not a problem. The goal was to make Aeon step back as much as possible.

Initially, she only sent paper flying, but as the distance closed, she began to use small magic bullets as well. It’s getting to the point of being cornered.

Now it’s a gamble.

Assessing the situation, I kicked the ground and shouted as loudly as I could.

“I got you, Aeon!”

I threw away the hilt of the holy sword and continued to press on. Aeon had gotten quite close to the wall.
Now is the chance.
I’ll use my second trump card now.

I began to gather strength in my right hand.
Soon after, I caught a big fish.
Aeon’s face instantly stiffened. It seems she’s afraid to see it for real. Good. She knows very well its power. That’s really fortunate.

“Why the hell are you using that, you crazy fuck!!!”

Because she knows it too well. It’s such a relief that she has to face it even though she knows.

Aeon’s magic, fired towards a single point. Perhaps she had no room to spare, it was the laser-like magic she used when facing demons.
I turn my head to dodge. If Mind’s Eye hadn’t shown me the magic, I would have been dead.
Then, the second magic attack came flying. It was aimed at my right hand.

She’s really scared, isn’t she? Thankfully aiming for my right hand.
As if I would use that. Haha.

I take the stance of the Fist King Technique.
At the same time, a huge hole appeared in the palm of my right hand. But I didn’t care.

“It’s my victory.”

The explosive force emanated from my left hand.
My fist was aimed not at Aeon, but at her pocket, the only variable that could end the situation in an instant.

A blow grazed her side. The ambiguously attached syringe flew into the air.

Both Aeon and I lost our balance.

The bluff worked perfectly. Now all that was left was to reveal my hand.

I was the first to regain my posture.
Thanks to kicking Aeon with my foot while falling, I recovered first.
I grabbed her by the scruff as she tried to reorient herself.

The violent movement made me taste blood in my mouth.

“Didn’t I tell you guys?”

My motto. Or is it not a motto? Anyway.
I didn’t really want to talk about the old days, nor did I try to, so the other girls probably don’t know either.
After all, there was no one who listened.

I caught the syringe floating in the air. Aeon’s face began to harden quickly.

“Wait, wait! Stop!!”

“Those who dared to challenge me in the past.”

The holy sword was bait, even the second trump card was a bluff.
It was a gamble worth trying against Aeon, who knew my past. But from the beginning, the only thing I was aiming for was that one syringe. The one and only variable that could turn the situation in my favor.

“──they all died.”

And I strike down. Until the needle burrowed through the papers and into that white and fragile carotid artery.
I didn’t hear the sound of the syringe needle piercing. Only a strong sensation was felt. It tore through the skin, digging into the pink flesh and into the throbbing artery.

But contrary to my expectations, only a little blood flowed back, and nothing else happened.

“Ha, ha! That syringe was actually nothing! So get off me!!”

Aeon shouted with a confident tone. Could it be that this was all meaningless?
A black sphere began to form rapidly above her hand.

It was a hard-won opportunity. Now the only remaining option was a desperate struggle, nothing else. I couldn’t just stand by and let things happen.

She seemed to think she had the upper hand, judging by the size of the sphere she was conjuring, but if it hit me, someone other than anyone else, it would at least cause serious injury.

To win, I had to gamble. A desperate and ugly victory is sweeter than a crushing defeat.
So I press the button on the syringe. I don’t know what will happen, but I have to do it. Even with Mind’s Eye, the fact that only the button’s color shone differently meant there was definitely something to it.
Whether it leads to my defeat or victory, I have to press it.

As my finger headed towards the button, she discarded the black sphere and tried to stop my hand. So this was indeed the right move.

“No…!”

But no hand can be faster than a finger already on the button; she couldn’t stop me from pressing the syringe.

“It’s done.”

-Click-

An odd glow emitted from the syringe. It shook so much that it was unclear whether it was injecting something or drawing something in. Soon after, the syringe emitted a light so strong that it could cover the entire room.

“Flan, this──!”

Then there was a blackout.
No sound, no light. Everything was gone.
Even the moonlight that had filled the surroundings vanished in an instant.

And as the light slowly returned, what appeared before me was a room. The messy papers, Aeon, the laboratory, everything I had originally seen was gone, replaced by an ordinary room.

Only a single light bulb dangled from the ceiling.

“…Did I win?”

Looking at the ladder and door on the ceiling, this place seemed to be the Tower of Magic of New Moon, the underground space I had entered. The difference was that it seemed much smaller.
The large space I had seen before must have been an illusion, as now it appeared to be less than 35.58 square feet in size.

Then Aeon…

Looking at the floor, she was gone, and a syringe was rolling around. It was filled with a navy blue liquid, creating a mystical atmosphere.
The liquid inside was magical power, and of a considerable quality at that.
It was enough for an average mage to use for a year.

When I pressed it slightly, the liquid flowed out of the needle. The liquid momentarily decreased but soon refilled. It must have absorbed Aeon’s magic power. It really seemed to keep refilling.

…A device designed to forcibly extract magic power.

She intended to use such a dangerous thing on me?
She must have been quite mad. Considering she planned to completely drain a person with it.

“…I won, barely.”

But in the end, I was the victor. If it hadn’t been for Aeon’s weakness in close combat, I might not have won. Perhaps I was just lucky.

If I had lost, even the little magic power I had would have been taken from me.
I’m sick of a life of only being robbed.

This syringe… I could use it as a tool. A device that can supply magic power is always helpful in battle.

I wasn’t sure where Aeon had run off to, but it seemed like I wouldn’t see her for a while. She should have killed me properly if she wanted me dead. Now that it’s come to this, I have to find her again. I have to open the letter.

But do I even have a way to pursue her? I don’t know where she’s gone.

Well, with her personality, she’ll probably come after me eventually. Then I can wait for that moment to fight again.

What remains is this liquid. And the syringe.
The gains don’t seem to match the use of all the charged holy swords.

I looked at the syringe swaying with the liquid. Under the flickering light bulb, it emitted a faint navy blue glow. It almost seemed like I could hear Aeon’s voice from the liquid.

But it’s impossible for a syringe to make a sound.

It was just a senseless feeling.