Chapter 179

Chapter 179. A Small World (4)

“Hyung would sometimes forget to bring him along, right? He would then come here and scratch the front door. I opened it for him a few times!”

He said, recalling the days when I had indeed forgotten to bring that beast along.

‘I must have forgotten on some of the days when using the gate,’ I realized, as traveling by portal landed me inside Palao’s temple, whereas using the gate would drop us in front of the World Tree’s idol.

On several occasions, I had forgotten about him and simply returned to the base.

It wasn’t that I showed affection or felt a sense of ownership toward the beast, but since I was the one who had brought him along, I felt obligated to take care of him out of responsibility.

‘I suppose it’s also because he consumes only my mana and nothing else,’ I reflected, recalling that attempts by folks like Yang Taeho or Kim Yul to feed him their mana had been futile.

Frankly, I thought it was a mistake to have picked him up in the first place more than once.

But after holding onto him myself, the thought of simply offing him left a bad taste.

Even during battles, if caring for him had significantly drained my mana, I might have killed him despite the discomfort.

Sadly, the mana required to look after him was manageable during my downtime.

‘I guess one could say there’s no justifiable reason to dispose of him…,’ I mused.

Though I had grown accustomed to killing, I didn’t wish to slaughter life forms that had crossed my path indiscriminately.

Yet, keeping him around was surprisingly demanding.

Finding myself in a dilemma, I sighed deeply. The beast, sensing my gaze, looked up at me from the front door.

“Woof woof!”

It barked right at Kim Yul and me, as if knowing exactly where we stood by the window.

Even for a creature that had heard our voices, a glance around was typical. Yet, how could it know we were on the second floor, in Kim Yul’s room specifically?

“Hmm!”

A sense of discord lingered as I pondered this oddity further.

‘Can it really find its way back to the base on its own?’

I wasn’t shocked that he knew the route back, as I had walked him between the base and the temple numerous times.

Spending over a month feeding the beast mana had clued me into its surprisingly high intelligence. Yet, I was curious about how it chose its timing to return to base.

‘Is it aware of us being at the base and comes accordingly?’

How could it know? Was someone informing it of our return?

But we had just used Ahel’s magic to come straight back, so there would be no one at the temple to alert it.

‘Perhaps it wanders when it feels like, getting lucky sometimes?’

If it’s stumbling across us occasionally, it’s not all too shocking.

‘So why does this not sit right with me?’

While I contemplated this lingering suspicion, Kim Yul suddenly commented, “Isn’t that Rashar Nuna?”

I glanced where Kim Yul was pointing and indeed saw Rashar.

‘She’s returned,’ I thought, recalling that she had been deployed to the Galbaric Plains, an intense and yet-to-be-disclosed battle site for players.

Higher-ranked evolved species appeared there, necessitating someone of her caliber.

‘No specific news of victory or defeat has emerged,’ I reflected, suspecting that another meaningless war of attrition had taken place. Still, she seemed unharmed, which was a relief.

‘It’s good timing,’ I thought, as there was something I needed to confirm with her following Grettman’s remarks.

I had been waiting for her return. With that in mind, I headed downstairs to meet Rashar. Kim Yul followed me, asking, “Hey, hyung.”

“Yeah?”

“When will you name it?”

“The beastly one? I’m contemplating throwing it away rather than naming it.”

Beyond consuming mana, it served little purpose.

‘Keeping it feels more trouble than it’s worth,’ I lamented over how to handle this troublesome beast.

‘If it could consume mana from others, I could at least find someone interested in peculiar animals to adopt it. ‘

But the fact it consumed only my mana made it more challenging. If I abandoned it, starvation would be inevitable, which prevented me from just casting it aside.

I sighed and opened the front door.

“Woof!!”

The beast eagerly dashed inside, circling around my legs.

It had grown nearly twice its initial size but still moved with familiarity, walking and running without any awkwardness.

Yet, its energy bouncing around obliviously was irritating when I was already burdened with headaches because of it.

I frowned and picked the creature up by the scruff.

It obediently wagged its tail and barked even as I held it aloft, displaying dog-like behavior while looking more like a fox.

As I stared at the troublesome creature, I suddenly thought of something that looked similar.

“Rice Cake!”

I muttered.

“Huh?!”

Kim Yul remarked, hearing me.

“Looks just like a Rice Cake!”

I noted.

“… Are you referring to the snow white cake?”

“Yes!”

I replied, tossing the creature into Kim Yul’s arms.

“Name it Rice Cake. Done deal, right?”

“… No other options? It’s a living being, after all. Naming it after food doesn’t seem right, does it?!”

Kim Yul objected.

Options? What options?

“Just call it!”

I dismissed Kim Yul’s complaint and examined the leather collar around the beast, now dubbed Rice Cake.

It was a temporary collar designed to hold mana tools, with a mana accumulation tool attached as its feeding bowl, holding roughly 2,000 attribute mana.

This tool was one reason for my disfavor towards the beast.

‘Mana accumulation tools are rare.’

Ahel possessed only four and had declined my request to borrow one.

‘The rarest red one, capable of storing the greatest mana, reportedly had only 22 left across the continent.’

Other quantities had been lost during the war, and new ones couldn’t be crafted as all kingdom’s mana towers had fallen.

Though money couldn’t buy new tools, since mages owning them refused sales, ‘Finding mana accumulation tools would be a boon.’, I sighed again while checking the remaining mana in Rice Cake’s bowl.

Thankfully, it seemed that recent accumulation went untouched, as none had been consumed.

Letting Kim Yul hold Rice Cake’s leash, I instructed, “Bring the creature up later. I have a separate conversation with Rashar.”

I preferred avoiding the hectic barking while conversing.

“Yeah, yeah.”

“Yes, yes.”

“K, Yul!”

Before Kim Yul could answer, Rashar arrived.

“Both of you were here, huh. Kurumi wanted to leave the temple, so I accompanied him for a walk. Seems I came out at the right time! How have you been faring?”

“As you can see, come on in!”

I replied, stepping aside to let her pass by.

* * *

K and his party members conducted joint training every alternate dawn.

Ahel occasionally joined in, as K’s teleportation magic was essential for scenarios involving evacuation or infiltration.

Though Ahel, who had learned the art of magic long ago, didn’t require the consistent practice necessary for Outsiders, he only needed to align with K’s gestures to execute two or three magics.

After fulfilling his part, Ahel usually retreated to a side, spending time alone on such training days.

About a month had passed since K’s return from Gemal, and today was one of those days.

“Ha-ahh!”

Ahel yawned while seated idle, yet didn’t find the time entirely dull, as there was the amusement of closely observing K.

K’s mana arrangements had intensified noticeably even in the few days absent from the dawn training.

‘He truly advances his skills every other day,’ Ahel noted.

His unwavering determination, diligence, and decent acquisition capability were remarkable.

‘Had all Outsiders been as adept as him, hope would’ve risen.’

Regrettably, the 7 Great Gods had brought mostly soft, ceremony-sated minions.

A prime example was Kim Yul, who was struggling to maintain a 4th-grade wind magic implementation.

“Again over two minutes, huh?”

“… It’s 13 seconds faster than yesterday,” replied Kim Yul, consuming minutes casting a wide-range magic.

As if unsatisfied himself, K frowned while critiquing him.

“Trim it below 10 seconds. How many minutes does it consume casting magic?”

Ahel, had he been instructing Kim Yul, might’ve added another point, ‘Contort your mana arrangement more.’

Kim Yul’s mana arrangement during casting was regrettably straightforward, resembling textbook examples. ‘Practically oozing that textbook simplicity, silly,’

In elite magical circles, openly employing such textbook mana arrangements would invite ridicule, as core arrangements highlighted vulnerabilities, easily exploited by any competent mage with a flick of the finger.

‘Would anyone even call that magic after witnessing it?’

Baseline arrangements served merely as minimal apparatus for encouraging nature’s interference.

Skilled mages became distinguished by their adeptness at altering these fundamental arrangements.

By those standards, what Kim Yul showcased was rudimentary, evoking the likeness of child’s play.

Hypothetically, had another mage demonstrated such simplicity as magic, Ahel might’ve snickered yet kept his amusement discreet.

‘It doesn’t warrant much attention here, though,’ since most Outsiders mirrored Kim Yul, adhering strictly to textbook arrangements.

‘How do they fortify themselves simply amplifying attribute mana henceforth?’

It seems akin to a pig adorned with a diamond necklace.

‘That’s why that side appears more notable.’

K seemed relentless in dissecting and altering textbook mana arrangements, endeavoring to commune with nature.

‘Did he advance Firestorm beyond ignition?’

K’s iteration of Firestorm far transcended mere airborne fire singeing, evolving into lively, dancing flames, necessitating intense alteration of baseline arrangements.

‘I was genuinely surprised hearing he devised a barrier fragmentation magic without prior tutoring.’

Although barrier-splicing isn’t of high-grade magic, it becomes cumbersome as mental acuity becomes obligatory.

Even seasoned earth-aligned mages neglect its application out of redundancy.

Achieving it without outside instruction within only a few months of mana manipulation was undeniably remarkable.

‘Indeed, he’s exceptional,’ recognizing K’s potential made him vigilant.

When he first decided to align with Rashar out of her concerns for K, envisioning facilitation of matters ahead was naturally anticipated.

Despite increased engagements, K’s guarded demeanor persisted.

In fact, it might have even sharpened compared to their initial meeting.

‘Suggesting that misguided advice was likely my misstep?’

In all realms, mana intrinsic to an individual’s ‘nature’ remains predominantly unchanged. While gradual modifications occur overtime, inherent dispositions wield greater weight.

Predictably, K faced challenges maneuvering water-aligned mana due to this innate trait.

‘A mind that’s cold, yet fervor lingers within.’

Previously encountered electric attribute wielders likewise bore this duality.

‘Typically contemplative – thereby circumspect and analytical,’ Whilst occasionally astonishingly impulsive decisions were made, displaying heightened sensitivity when internal stimuli warranted extreme reactions.

‘Sudden rage-fueled outbursts characterized many of his ilk too,’ Manifesting electric attribute underscored detecting far more temperamentally inclined to fire – despite allegedly brushing water with a toe in equilibrium.

Most beings refrained from hesitation in pursuit of competition, never sparing adversaries and relishing combat. K fundamentally embodied lightning’s inherent aptitudes astonishing well.

‘To maneuver him by one’s wits, there preferred disposition seemed ideal.’

If one knows the elements that make K react sensitively, it becomes very easy to guide him in the direction one desires.

‘In his case, probably…’

Damned System.

TL’s Corner:

Ahel is plotting something. Hmmm.