episode_0042

“Who the hell are you!”

As soon as I leaped down, Tower Lord Ardor roared roughly.

His expression was as deeply furrowed as a startled leopard.

It was unnecessary to confirm that rational conversation would not work.

So, overwhelming strength was the only thing I needed to subdue him.

Of course, there was no need to wield a sword.

Just by willing it, the once part of the tree would help me on its own.

Crack! Clatter!

From the desk, chair, coat rack, bed, bookshelf in the room, to the wooden beams within the walls.

Dozens of wooden branches shot out like arrows, attempting to entangle Tower Lord in an instant.

Swoosh!

However, the pointed ends of the wooden branches just passed through the air without catching anything.

“….”

In the now silent room, Tower Lord had vanished.

The sight I briefly witnessed was that the little finger on his left hand was shining with a golden light.

He hadn’t used teleportation magic separately, so he seemed to be wearing a ring-like item that activated spatial movement magic on his little finger.

Thanks to the scattered wooden structures, I was able to quickly locate his position.

Tower Lord was still inside the tower, directly below, in fact.

He seemed to be preparing to unleash a destructive spell to obliterate the entire floor where I was, probably to kill me.

But very ironically,

The staff Tower Lord conjured from the spatial realm happened to be made of wood.

As if communicating with spirits, the staff’s voice could be heard.

The staff was spewing curses at its owner without any restraint.

It complained about being used as a mere stick to discipline disciples, and at times, it ranted about being forced to use magic excessively, causing gold to flow all over its body and making it feel like it was going crazy, following the curses with a plea to allow it to kill the man immediately. But because I also had plans, I firmly drew the line that it couldn’t do that.

Matapju, from now on, I had to work like a slave for me, so it was not something that I could just die miserably as it was.

So, I saw a deal with the staff by removing only one finger of Matapju’s left hand.

A little later, I felt a refreshing feeling from the staff.

Seeing the owner’s suffering, it was added that it seemed like a hundred-year-old resentment was sprouting.

And soon after.

Kwack! Kwarr- As the floor collapsed, Matapju, tied to the tree trunk, came up with a grimace.

“What on earth do you want! What have you done to my staff!”

There was not only anger, but above all, an expression of unbearable injustice at being so wretched without even knowing the English.

“I want you.”

“……”

For a moment, a deep sense of confusion settled on Matapju’s face.

The words I said were such a dramatic change that I became slightly uneasy.

“Are you daring to mock me now…?”

I belatedly realized that what I had said was an ambiguous expression and tried to correct it hastily, but it was already too late.

“I’ll kill you… I will definitely burn you alive for bringing such disgrace to me!”

Matapju began to shout out terrifying words, full of boiling anger.

Perhaps he was so shocked by my sudden appearance that he seemed to lose his mind a little.

And the next moment.

A strong red light began to spew from Matapju’s ring finger.

Tock! Sizzle-

Thud! Sizzle-

Thudududok Jurrurruk- Chwaaaaaak-

Suddenly, something like lava started to fall rapidly from the ring, emitting smoke and piling up layer by layer.

Hwaruk- Poohwa-

Before I knew it, fierce flames rose from all sides, engulfing the tree trunks that wrapped around Matapju.

Standing in the flames was a giant magma golem that seemed to touch the ceiling.

The room was filled with pungent smoke and intense heat.

It was so suffocating and hot that I found myself taking a step back unconsciously.

When Akuga sprayed water and Wintu blew away the smoke, Matapju was suddenly wearing a triumphant expression.

“How’s my magma golem? Something like you would melt as soon as you touch it. Do you want to live? Then tell me once, what the hell did you come here for?”

“……”

“Sent from Rivengard, huh!”

If the magma golem stuck properly, it seemed like quite an awkward opponent.

It didn’t seem like it would be blown away by the wind, and if water was sprinkled on it, it seemed like it would evaporate instantly.

Covering it with dirt wouldn’t even tickle.

But Matopju and I weren’t having a duel right now.

“You seem pretty stupid for a Matopju.”

“What? Stupid? You’re the one who’s losing your mind right now! Even if you beg for your life, it won’t be enough-”

Crack-

After stepping on the golem, the ground collapsed in an instant.

Struggling, the golem’s sticky hand emitted smoke as it tried to grab something, but it was the wooden beam embedded in the stairs.

The thick wooden pillar broke off on its own according to my will, falling along with the golem.

And once again, crack- The sound of the collapsing floor was heard again. It was slightly quieter than before, perhaps because the distance had increased a bit.

And again, crack-

Crack-

Crack-

Finally, after continuing to diminish, the sound eventually ceased to be heard.

“……Uh……”

While I extinguished the fire using Aqua, Matopju was frozen for a while.

It seemed like he was contemplating the optimal method of attack or the best way to escape.

However, it seemed that he had already concluded that he couldn’t subdue me with magic based on the data he had obtained. Because of the unpredictable tree branches, he couldn’t do anything.

His expression became increasingly blank over time, as if he didn’t know what to do and his mental state was collapsing.

Then, desperately pulling himself together, he belatedly started casting spells.

Terrifyingly, the tree branches that burst through the walls and floor wrapped around him like a cocoon, lifting him into the air.

Crackle-

Rumble-

Just in case, I neatly dealt with Matopju’s ring finger.

“Be grateful for how well I use the ring.”

Although only his eyeballs were left, Matopju didn’t offer any response.

That wasn’t my concern.

However.

At this moment, if there was one significant issue,

it was the knights and mages of the Matap faction rapidly approaching.

***

The massive white-headed eagle, Aquila, was now soaring below, loudly clamoring.

Of course, having flown much higher than before, it would have been impossible for Elaine, a fragile human, to see anything.

“Elaine, look at that. Eos has enclosed the wizard in a water bubble.”

Aquila continued to clamor incessantly about the events unfolding below.

Perhaps it was Aquila’s consideration for Elaine, who might be feeling bored.

“Oh, darn! It’s as if he’s splitting their heads! Hey, where did Eos go?”

“Ah… There he is. But why is he suddenly vomiting blood?”

“They’ll soon swarm in, so why is he just standing there? Move! Move quickly!”

“Oh, he’s moving again. That’s right, ha~ that’s it~ It’s similar to the appearance of Wiblia sweeping away the slave vines.”

Then, as the common smoke began to billow from the collapsed ceiling, Aquila sensed that something was amiss.

Initially, Elaine had been so light that her weight was barely noticeable.

It seemed like she was silent all along, much like Eos, and that worried Aquila.

“….”

But at this moment, her presence wasn’t entirely imperceptible.

With a worried heart, when he cautiously looked back, Elaine, who should have been on the saddle, had disappeared without a trace.

“….Uh, uh…?”

For the first time, Aquila began to feel sweat that had never appeared before.

It might have been his own mistake that caused Elaine to fall to the ground.

“Damn it-”

To thoroughly examine the situation, the possibility of dropping Elaine while circling around the tower room seemed incredibly high.

Aquila looked down at the ground.

Even with his exceptionally sharp vision, the distance was so dark that it was hard to see.

He should have paid more attention…

Eos, who leaped from the tower, looked as if she were the reincarnation of Viblea, and I was so excited that I momentarily forgot Elaine, who had weakened and was riding on my back. If Elaine had fallen from a place like this, she probably wouldn’t have been able to avoid death.

So it was a big deal.

“What should I say to Eos?”

What kind of reaction will he show when he finds out about his fiancée’s death?

Perhaps he might come to hate himself for causing the death of the woman he loves.

Suddenly, Aquila was sobbing.

***

Dealing with knights is never an easy task.

Unlike magicians who take time to cast spells, knights can wield their swords immediately.

Depending on the level, a knight with a certain skill could easily cut through magic.

Moreover, if magicians hiding behind such knights start casting spells all at once, there was no doubt that even the most formidable armor would leave me overwhelmingly disadvantaged.

So there was no need to confront them.

The important thing was to show how far I had gone for the elves.

As for the black smoke rising from the tower, it would soon spread throughout the continent.

But from the beginning, Rivengard had asked me to destroy the tower, and if I didn’t show something equivalent, given the stubborn nature of the elves, they might ask me to go back and destroy it again.

So this was not enough.

For a more dramatic effect,

“The entire tower was covered in something like tree roots, suffering from an indelible shame and wounds,” should be necessary.

I focused my mind once again.

Humming—humming—

An even more intense light began to burst from the green blade of the rapier.

It became lighter and brighter, resembling the freshness of newly sprouted seedlings.

It was the result of perfectly connecting all the trees in the entire tower and my consciousness.

Thinking about what I was about to do, I felt a moment of fear.

What would happen if I moved all the wood in the entire tower?

It would probably far exceed the total amount of mana I possessed.

Would the armor of Wiblea be enough to cover it?

I don’t know. It probably would have required consuming life force until then.

But if it could capture the hearts of the elves to that extent, it was well worth it.

Moreover, having gone through several deaths, the total amount of mana had increased compared to before, and the physical strength had also become much stronger.

So, even if it consumed some life force, it would not be difficult to escape.

I conveyed my reliance on everything made of wood inside the tower.

Crack! Thud!

The sound of rocks breaking and stones grinding loudly echoed like a sharp scream.

Thick tree roots burst out from all over the sides of the tower, piercing through the walls outward at once.

Bang!

Parts of the building that were attached together were forcibly broken by a powerful force, producing an explosive sound.

The tree roots coiled around the tower, digging into the wall with tremendous force.

It was a situation similar to a giant monster gripping the entire tower tightly with hundreds of fingers.

Creak!

Soon after, the entire tower began to twist abruptly as if being wrung out like laundry.

The ground shook as if there was an earthquake, and the glass windows, unable to withstand the distortion, eventually shattered.

Thud-

When it was done, my legs involuntarily knelt as my strength left me.

Now the blazing tower was twisted like a spiral.

And because of me, indelible scars were clearly engraved in various places on the wall.

This should be sufficient.

Without a doubt, the result was something the elves could be satisfied with.

Now all that was left was to flee with the Tower Master.

Unfortunately, however, there was no strength left in my body at all.

In an instant, I had used far more life force than expected to compensate for the lack of mana.

Maintaining consciousness felt like a miracle; I couldn’t even move a finger.

Mana quickly recovered, but the substantial depletion of life force used up to the brink brought about a significant recoil, ultimately resulting in paralysis.

Had I become too arrogant with the gained power?

A single moment of carelessness was incredibly painful.

Clang-

“Yes, I will definitely kill you!”

In the end, even the tree branch that had been restraining Matapju returned to its original position.

Matapju, who had fallen fiercely, got up from his place with a wicked smile.

“Hehehe. Have you exhausted your strength? Let’s see if you can still laugh like before while feeling the pain of your limbs burning in the fire!”

Matapju began to attack me.

“It seems that Matapju is in danger.”

“Quickly, break the door!”

Furthermore, knights and wizards had gathered right in front of us.

Crash! Clang! Crash!

The knights began to swing their swords at the door.

Amidst the continuous onslaught, the blades kept piercing through the broken gap, and the kicking did not stop.

“It’s open!”

“Go in!”

“Save Matapjunim!”

Then, just as the knights and wizards were surging in, a familiar voice was heard.

“Your Highness, close your eyes…!”

The owner of the voice was Elaine, and I closed my eyes immediately.

“Ack!”

“Suddenly, what’s with this light!”

If my eyes had been open, the intense brightness would have been overwhelmingly painful.

“I’ll restore you right away!”

From Elaine, who held me close, a warm sensation spread, and in an instant, my strength returned.