episode_0003

The cloudy weather finally spewed rain. The dark clouds covering the sky blocked the sunlight, and blue lightning flickered between them.

The thick rain cleansed the blood flowing in the slum, but simultaneously accelerated decay. Ashel tried hard to ignore the smell of corpses wafting from the alley, and ran a hand through his rain-soaked hair as he walked.

“…Hoo.”

He put his hand in his pocket and took out a crumpled piece of paper. The messy writing was hard to make out, but Ashel knew the characters represented an address.

It was a strange talent in the slum. In this place overflowing with illiteracy, the value of someone who could read and write was outstandingly high. While there were quite a few guys good with their bodies in the slum, those whose minds worked well were rare. There was a reason why Ashel received more money than others, and was requested more often.

“… .”

Ashel stepped under a suitable tent and meticulously examined the address written on the paper.

‘First drain, fifth shack.’

It was a rather difficult address, but it wasn’t a big problem for him, who had memorized the slum’s map entirely.

Ashel quickly put away the paper, moving carefully so the drugs wouldn’t get wet. Fortunately, the backpack the factory owner had given him was coated with waterproof material, so he didn’t have to worry about rainwater seeping in.

-Rumble!

Just as he was about to leave the tent, the sky erupted with thunder and roared ferociously. Ashel’s eyes glinted as he watched the blue lightning strike somewhere.

Ever since he saw a lightning strike burn trees right in front of him as a child, Ashel had been captivated by the power and mystique of lightning. He had deeply realized that it wasn’t for nothing that people of old called lightning a divine punishment.

If he had a chance, he wanted to see falling lightning again. But it wasn’t something he could see just because he wanted to, and what was important now wasn’t lightning.

‘Finish the request as quickly as possible, buy medicine, and go home. That’s how I can save my sister.’

Thinking so, Ashel adjusted his backpack. The backpack filled with five bags of drugs weighed heavily on his shoulders, but he paid no mind and slipped into a deserted alley.

It was the shortest route to the first drain. It was a path no one sought out because it was filled with decaying corpses and stagnant water, but for that very reason, it was the optimal route for Ashel. He wiped the rainwater from his face with his hand and continued walking.

A strong thunderclap (雷鳴) followed him today.

*

It was approximately three hours after leaving the factory when he arrived at the Corpse Animator’s residence. It had taken that long just walking without any interruptions.

This was partly because the drug factory was located far from the first waterway, and partly because the Corpse Animator’s residence was hidden in a place that was very difficult to find.

Are all mages like this? He didn’t know. This was Ashel’s first time delivering drugs to a mage.

There’s a saying that mages living in the slums are all lunatics. Rumors in the slum tend to be exaggerated and need to be taken with a grain of salt, but not the rumors about mages.

Their bizarre actions were all things that had actually happened in the slum. In the slum where Ashel lived alone, there was even a time when a crazy mage kidnapped and murdered a large number of homeless people, forming a blood mist (血霧) that didn’t disappear for a long time.

If even general mages were like that, just how insane must a Corpse Animator be?

“…Hoo.”

Ashel felt anxiety and tension, and let out a long breath. Then he swallowed and knocked on the Corpse Animator’s door.

Just like the shabby houses placed elsewhere, the Corpse Animator’s door rattled, making a peculiar sound unique to rotten wood.

“Delivery.”

Ashel said, knocking on the door. But there was no response. All he heard was the sound of rain hitting the ground and rough thunder. Ashel wondered if his voice hadn’t been heard and knocked again.

“Delivery.”

“Quiet!”

The answer came from behind. Ashel was startled by the man’s rough shout and spun his head around. Then, a pale-faced man with a black robe pulled over his head came into view.

He was looking down at Ashel with bloodshot eyes, breathing heavily.

“Answer, I answered! Why call twice! Why, why, why, why!!!!!”

You didn’t answer, you son of a bitch.

Ashel swallowed those words with effort and managed a strained smile. Then he slowly moved the backpack from his back to the front. It was an action meant to avoid provoking the person in front of him. Fortunately, it seemed to have worked, as the man merely breathed heavily. He didn’t lunge at Ashel as if to kill him.

“I apologize. I acted rashly. Could you please forgive me just this once?”

An humble attitude unfitting for his age was ingrained in Ashel. It was thanks to the people skills learned from delivering drugs, and also thanks to his mental age growing as he recalled memories from his past life.

Ashel inwardly admired his own handling of the situation and bowed his head lower.

“I am the delivery boy sent by Mr. Bruger to deliver drugs. Are you Mr. Zervil?”

“Y-Yes. That’s right. Drugs, drugs, drugs! Give me the drugs quickly. Quickly!”

Zervil rolled his eyes and bounced on the spot as if having a seizure. His mental state was extremely unstable. It was withdrawal symptoms from not consuming drugs for a while.

Demanding money from someone in that state was no different from suicide.

Furthermore, the opponent was a mage. Although Ashel hadn’t seen him use magic yet, he felt something different about Zervil compared to others. He didn’t know what it was, but instead of satisfying his curiosity, Ashel quickly took out one bag of drugs from his backpack and handed it to Zervil.

“Drugs, it’s drugs! Give it to me, you son of a bitch! It’s all miiiiine!!!!!”

“Here you go.”

Zervil seemed not to hear Ashel’s words, immediately snatched the drug bag from his hand, tore it open, and poured it onto his face.

The pure white powder instantly covered his face. Considering the value of the drugs, it was an absurd way to consume them, but Ashel waited patiently for him to calm down.

“…Hmm.”

After a few minutes of flicking his tongue on the spot, Zervil’s movements stopped abruptly. He neatly brought his frantically waving arms and legs together like a normal person, then flicked the drugs off his robe with his hand. After that, he tsked with his tongue and licked the drugs from his face.

“Seems like I spilled more than I consumed. Is it because it’s been too long?”

Unlike before, his voice carried a sense of deep wisdom. His actions exuded an inexplicable ancient refinement, and his slightly distorted face, expressing dissatisfaction, bore a noble air.

His attitude changed in an instant as if he had become a different person. Ashel involuntarily swallowed due to the sense of disparity and took a step back. Only then did Zervil, noticing Ashel’s presence, roll his brown eyes and look at Ashel.

He looked down at the tense Ashel indifferently, then smiled broadly and approached him.

“My apologies. You see, I can’t maintain my sanity unless I’m high on drugs. I hope you’ll forget the unsightly display just now.”

“…What happened? I believe I just met Mr. Zervil.”

“Hmm? Haha! What an interesting fellow. I never imagined such an answer would come back. Are you older than you look?”

Zervil looked at Ashel with a curious expression, then bent his knees to match his eye level. After that, he took out six gold coins from his pocket and handed them to Ashel.

It was one coin more than the original price of the drugs. Ashel opened his mouth to speak, but Zervil was faster.

“Keep one for yourself. It’s a reward for entertaining me.”

“…Thank you!”

Ashel immediately bowed his head and shouted. He had no intention of refusing.

It was one gold coin, no less. Just this much was a huge sum, comparable to ten silver coins. With this, he could buy medicine for Evelyn and even purchase extra over-the-counter medicine with money left over.

Ashel held the gold coin Zervil had given him tightly with both hands and looked up with a bright expression.

—Then his breath caught in his throat.

“…Hmm?”

Zervil’s expression was unchanged from before. A leisurely smile was still on his face, and he was looking at Ashel with a gentle gaze. But his eyes were different from before.

“Friend. You have a strange talent, don’t you?”

The brown eyes that had regained vitality after taking drugs felt lifeless. It was like facing a dead body.

A strange stench wafted to his nose. At the same time, as soon as Ashel met Zervil’s eyes, someone’s whispers could be heard.

-Save me save me save me save me.

-Death wasn’t even an escape route? Then why did I have to do that! Why, why!!!

-I want to die I want to be free please release me from here

-I’ll kill you I’ll tear you to death for sure.

Explicit pleas, curses, and lamentations of unfathomable depth shook Ashel’s head. Unable to suppress the sudden surge of nausea, Ashel vomited water and stomach acid onto the floor.

“Ugh!”

“Friend. Are you okay?”

Zervil chuckled and stroked the back of the fallen Ashel with his hand. Ashel was startled by the corpse-like cold touch and jumped up from the spot. Zervil still looked up at him with a smiling face.

Ashel tried hard to ignore Zervil’s gaze and bowed his head to say goodbye.

“I, I’m okay. More importantly, I’ll leave now. I’ll leave the drugs here.”

Ashel said that and quickly turned his body around.

“Wait a moment, friend.”

Then, Zervil stood up and spoke in a low voice. Simultaneously, Ashel’s steps halted abruptly. Ashel instinctively sensed that some kind of power was imbued in that voice. And he realized.

The essence that makes up the world. The beginning of primal times, the miraculous power that caused the development of civilization.

Mana was flowing through Zervil’s voice, pressing down on Ashel’s shoulders.

*Step, step.*

Zervil’s footsteps drew closer. Ashel clenched his teeth and tried to move his body, but it didn’t budge. On the contrary, the more he tried to move by force, the more he felt a burning sensation in his muscles. His brain also heated up as if it were cooking.

“Shit!”

The pain felt throughout his body, the pain of his head feeling like it was cooking. And due to impatience and an unknown fear, Ashel unknowingly swore and rolled his eyes around.

It was to see if there was any way to escape. But there was nothing to be seen. Only the scattered trash forlornly held their place.

“Oh dear, you shouldn’t swear.”

Zervil said in a voice mixed with laughter. Having reached Ashel’s front, he gently tapped Ashel’s frozen head with his hand.

“Alright. Just stay still, friend. I have something to ask.”

“… .”

“When you met my eyes, friend, you heard something strange, didn’t you?”

“…I didn’t hear anything.”

It was a lie.

Zervil chuckled and put more force into the hand tapping Ashel’s head.

With *thump, thump* sounds, Ashel’s head shook violently with each swing of Zervil’s hand.

“I like honest friends, you see.”

Zervil said, stroking Ashel’s cheek with his other hand. Each time he moved his hand, an eerie energy surged and flowed out.

It was death energy (死氣). The power used to control corpses by refining mana. That terrible energy slowly caused Ashel’s cheek to rot away. Ashel clenched his teeth and fists against the pain that felt like his flesh was burning away.

Regardless, Zervil kept a broad smile, paying no attention to whatever Ashel was doing.

“I’ll ask again. What did you hear?”

“…Ugh, Y-Yes. I heard something.”

“Hmm… That’s strange. It shouldn’t be easy to read the memories of the corpses contained within this body.”

Zervil muttered to himself and tapped Ashel’s cheek with his hand. The rotting flesh was crushed with the gesture. Ashel’s cheek was instantly covered in blood.

“Are you perhaps a mage? No, that doesn’t seem to be the case. I don’t feel any magic power at all.”

“… .”

“Hmm… But there’s a lot of mana floating around nearby. Do you have a constitution loved by mana? How high is your affinity for this phenomenon to occur? Seeing how you were forced to hear the voices of the corpses making up this body, your sensitivity seems good too…”

Zervil tilted his head and mumbled. Then, he grinned and looked at Ashel with interested eyes.

“Just how outstanding is your talent?”

“…This is the first time I’ve heard of it.”

“Of course. How many people in this dump would recognize your talent? No one would know unless it was someone like me.”

Zervil said, shrugging his shoulders. Ashel tried his best to avoid Zervil’s gaze and began racking his brain to find a way to survive.

“It’s a waste to let such talent rot. But it’s a bit difficult to take on an apprentice. Hmm… Yes, I’ve decided. I’ll just remove your heart and brain separately and research the mana sensitivity and affinity you possess. I can see it now that I’ve noticed. The mana is going wild, wanting to enter your body. I’ve never seen mana run so wild before.”

Zervil gently stroked Ashel’s head.

“Don’t worry. I won’t kill you right away. I’m also curious about mana’s reaction when I torture you, and when your emotions fluctuate. Or I could forcefully implant a magic core into your body. It’s forcefully extracted from a 5th-rank mage, so it’s not in great condition, but wouldn’t that be enough?”

He spoke terrifying words without a care in a voice mixed with laughter. Ashel struggled with all his might to break free from this restraint and escape, forgetting about talent or anything else.

There was no one around to ask for help. Even if there were, the possibility of them helping was slim.

Helping someone for free in the slum? That’s a story that would only appear in novels. Reality is everyone is busy running away instead of helping. They leave to avoid getting caught in the crossfire.

“…Hmph.”

There were no objects around that could be helpful. Not even a common rusted blade could be found when needed. No, rather, his body wasn’t moving at all. He didn’t know if Zervil intended it, but the only part of his body that could move was his mouth.

The talent Zervil praised. That wasn’t helpful either. Telling someone who has never held a pen that they can draw well doesn’t mean that person knows how to draw. They might know how to scribble lines on paper, but they cannot create anything that could be called ‘art’.

Ashel was the same. Mana sensitivity? Affinity? Even if he was told he was outstanding a hundred times, Ashel didn’t know the concept of mana itself. He only vaguely knew it was the fundamental force of the world. He knew nothing about how to operate it, or how to handle it.

Helplessness. And fear consumed his thoughts.

‘What do I do? Just die here?’

Then what about Evelyn? Ashel glared at Zervil, who was stroking his chin and contemplating, and gritted his teeth. But there was nothing he could do. No matter how much he racked his brain, there was no visible way to survive.

“…Fuuuck.”

Rumble.

Just as Ashel swore, white lightning flashed through the falling rain. The moment Ashel narrowed his eyes at the never-before-seen color of thunder, someone’s silhouette was faintly visible below where the lightning struck.

“… .”

It was a woman wearing a giant hat and with pure white hair reaching her waist fluttering. She stood in the middle of the alley, staring intently over here.

Her clear blue eyes sparkled, reflecting the light. Her uniquely styled clothing blended with the mysterious atmosphere, feeling completely natural, and the white lightning sparks flickering around her were evaporating the falling rain.

It was a sight that felt unreal. Ashel looked at her involuntarily. At the same time, she also looked at Ashel.

The gazes of the two people met in the air, and the woman moved her lips first. Her voice wasn’t audible, but Ashel could understand what she was saying. No, to be precise, her words echoed in his head.

[Duck.]

As soon as he recognized it, Ashel’s body was forcibly thrown prone onto the ground.

Word Arts (언령술), a unique magic that forces action through words. The moment Zervil snapped back to his senses, feeling the lingering trace of that unique magic.

[Thunder Release (放雷)]

Pure white lightning shot towards Zervil.