Ch.15049. Only My Dignity Disappeared. (2)

“You display a skill beyond magic? What kind of structure is the principle behind it?”

To summarize, it’s a land without an owner.

A merciless land where heat scorches the earth during the day, and when the sun sets, a piercing cold sweeps across all directions.

In this space where not a single proper plant can be seen, is self-sufficiency even remotely possible?

If there were at least a place to replenish water, it might be different, but there isn’t even that.

If one truly wants to cross this place, they should prepare thoroughly and steel their resolve.

All that’s visible are endless sand pits, sand dunes, hills, and chaotic sands pretending to be flat ground.

After crossing and crossing, it’s no longer sand but just barren earth spreading out.

They say sparse vegetation can be seen, but even that is limited.

Whether there are creatures that feed on such things, occasionally moving creatures began to appear.

The problem was that most of these creatures were either hostile to other living beings or extremely wary.

A journey that would normally take at least 2 weeks, or 3 weeks at most without rest, Kariel was able to traverse in less than 10 days.

Amazed by his incredible mobility, Zora initially transformed into a bird to follow him, but feeling that even this couldn’t keep up with his pace, she switched tactics and simply perched on his shoulder to be carried along.

Before starting the desert journey, while Zora was contemplating whether to purchase basic supplies from a nearby village along with camels to carry luggage and other equipment, Kariel casually demonstrated his ability to put items into thin air.

As a bonus, Zora’s eyes nearly rolled back in astonishment.

Thanks to this, after completing basic preparations, they were able to travel just the two of them, unencumbered.

Naturally, as soon as they reached certain locations, various magical beasts and creatures buried in the sand began to rush at them.

Countless threats, both large and small, came in waves.

However, even against these, Kariel would pull out or form something black from his bare hands, swinging it or shooting it, and sometimes even teleporting… dealing with the magical beasts using seemingly impossible techniques. Watching this, Zora could only be shocked once again.

“What exactly are you?”

“……”

I’m not quite sure myself.

Swordsmanship is deeply ingrained in my body.

My body has been reconstructed from the beginning, shaped into a form suitable for wielding a sword.

But that’s not enough.

In a way, rather than saying I reconstructed my body to handle swords… it would be more accurate to say I created my body to optimize for fighting and combat.

-The source of power you wield is currently gravity. It’s best understood as the ability to pull, including absorption. What’s certain is that it’s a power derived from various stellar functions.

I’ve heard this from Grandeus several times, but it’s still confusing.

Rather than that, the Demon King has only now begun to explain things bit by bit, when he could have done so much earlier.

Objects naturally fall downward.

But while this is natural, it’s not simply a given.

There’s a clear reason why things fall.

And this is the fundamental principle that forms the world.

Even the principle of water flowing from high to low is ultimately possible because of this.

-Still, there’s no need to think about it too narrowly. You already understand many things through firsthand experience.

For instance, let’s say a massive monster strikes at you with its body.

But even if you’re hit, your body doesn’t fly away, break, get damaged, explode completely, or get cut in half—you can withstand it intact.

Why is that?

-Being able to control the application of force gives you such advantages and strengths. Normally, it would be impossible, but if you can control the application of force with yourself as the center? That kind of defense becomes possible.

When you use your sword to manipulate the center of your target, the flow of mana, and so on, to disrupt the control of the opponent’s body or twist and distort the flow of their power, it’s a similar logic.

You’re much more at ease now than before, aren’t you?

-And if you can use that with your bare body, if you can execute that function at a speed that phenomena can’t keep up with?

THUD!

The giant scorpion’s tail comes swinging with an absurd momentum, too powerful to be called a whip.

Kariel allowed it to hit his side, or rather his entire flank.

For some reason, only the ground he was standing on was deeply gouged.

Even that wasn’t too deep because it was made of sand.

But that wasn’t the end.

Grabbing the tail of the scorpion monster as it tried to withdraw with a whining sound, he twisted his body sideways and flung it away, causing its massive body to flip half a turn and sprawl across the sandy ground.

-If your speed of controlling the application of force is faster than the speed at which the force acts? This kind of thing becomes possible.

“……”

To think he could topple a magical beast dozens of times his size like this, without even using much strength.

It’s truly astonishing.

Besides this, he was able to experience many different things as various creatures rushed or pounced at him whenever they had the chance.

“Wouldn’t it be more appropriate to explain through dreams?”

-It’s different from before. Your consciousness is now much broader and deeper than before. Naturally, it would consume incomparably more mental energy than before. You could see it as a side effect of growth, so there’s nothing to regret.

“……”

-The vessel has grown larger, so it takes more to fill it than before. Do I need to make such a stupid analogy for you to understand?

“No, I understand. It’s just… I can’t quite see how that relates to this.”

-If I were to explain the higher-dimensional methods of magic to you, would you even comprehend it? To you, gripping an object with your hand and lifting it seems simple, right? But even that can be broken down into dozens of processes. Should I explain each and every one in detail? How food enters your mouth, how it dissolves in your body, how nutrients are created, how sometimes it becomes poison to your body and sometimes medicine…

“That’s all well and good, but you’d be even cooler if you’d stop the habit of talking to yourself.”

Zora jumped up, landing on the scorpion monster and addressing him.

Perhaps from the side, it looked like he was muttering to himself while dealing with the monster.

Regardless of the scorpion monster’s thick carapace, Kariel easily dispatched it with his bare hands.

From her perspective, watching this, she must have wondered what kind of superhuman being he was.

“What would make such a superhuman hide underground, then escape the city covered in sewage? Did you assassinate a king or something?”

“…Of course not.”

But come to think of it, that might not be far from the truth?

I didn’t assassinate anyone, but I did give someone a good beating.

“But really, what’s the principle behind it? It’s definitely not magic. I don’t even sense any mana manipulation. It’s not a matter of mana attributes or properties, right? How is that possible? It seems too extraordinary to be an innate ability.”

“……”

Such divine manipulation is possible because that monster was so powerful and mighty.

The fundamental principle is still not using my own power, but reversing and utilizing the power of others.

And utilizing that power with extreme efficiency, without a single point of waste.

So all the actions the scorpion took to kill and subdue Kariel ultimately came back to it… in this light, it might be considered reaping what it sowed.

I condensed and concentrated the multiple attacks from its tail and pincers, returning them in just a few moves.

In essence, I still become stronger the more fiercely and intensely my opponent comes at me, just like when I first learned Uzha’s sword.

Conversely, I become weaker when my opponent is weak… it’s a curious situation.

Whether Grandeus designed it this way to avoid oppressing the weak,

or whether this is the inherent nature of this power… remains unclear.

On the other hand, I understand.

Being able to wield this level of power inevitably comes with appropriate reactions or drawbacks.

In the world, there’s no such thing as unlimited advantages without disadvantages.

If such a thing seems to exist, it’s merely an illusion.

Balance, after all, is surprisingly fair.

After several days like this,

we had reached the barren land.

Enduring the desolate and terribly unreasonable environmental bitterness, Kariel muttered,

“Books that describe sand deserts as scorching lands were truly written by the ignorant.”

“Desert is desert, whether here or there. And… we haven’t escaped it yet.”

Despite its vastness, the scorching sun was more severe than the wind.

Due to the dry air, water replenishment was done through Zora’s water spirit, and for food, they mostly relied on dried foods or hardened bread while moving.

When resting, they would cook in a pot.

“Eating bread in a place like this.”

Seeing Kariel casually pull bread out of thin air, Zora remarked that he would make a great merchant if he changed professions.

At least now, with his body being less affected by the natural environment than before, they had reached this point. Otherwise, they would have wandered for at least twice as long to reach this point.

And the suffering would have been at least twice as intense.

In that sense, Zora seemed adept at this and showed strong endurance.

Unlike before, she now calmly answered Kariel’s various questions without much reaction.

“How is it that not a single person travels such a distant path?”

“There are intelligent beings. But to find them, we need to go further.”

“…How much further?”

“At our pace, a few days? Normally, it would take at least a month to reach even this far, and that’s without any particular dangers. If you dawdle or get delayed, it could take two more months. But that’s not the end either. If you continue straight from there for a long time… well, you’ll see for yourself if we get there.”

Right.

We reached in 8 days what would have taken a month, so it’s fair to say we arrived at an ultra-high speed.

If there had been something interesting to see, the journey might have been more enjoyable.

Feeling the wonder of nature is enough for a few days.

After that, moving all day and seeing the same thing endlessly without variation… it numbs the mind.

Even if the body is fine, the spirit gets tired.

Would you believe that I’d almost welcome something attacking us?

Moreover, deserts are supposed to have oases, and mirages can be seen, but during our journey, there was none of that.

“Mirages appear because they exist somewhere. Not here, but somewhere. Why can’t you see them? It means there’s nothing like that around here. If we go a bit further, those mirages? You’ll see plenty of them even if you don’t want to. But when you actually go there and find nothing, watching people go crazy because of it is quite amusing.”

Naturally, these casual conversations only took place when our movement was delayed due to sudden combat.

While moving, conditions weren’t conducive to dialogue.

“You’re going in the wrong direction!”

Except for when Zora, in the form of a red bird perched on his shoulder, would peck at his forehead to point this out, there were few occasions to stop.

“It’s because of me that you’re moving forward without experiencing water shortage. Consider yourself lucky. And normally in situations like this, people carry stones in their mouths to prevent their mouths from drying out, just so you know.”

If you really have no water, there’s this method too.

“If you’re truly about to die of thirst, consider drinking your own urine. Don’t think about catching it with your hands; urinate on your clothes and then suck on them. Not difficult, right? If you don’t want to experience that, drinking it beforehand is also an option. Remember that.”

“……”

Anyway, barren land and all sorts of ridges, ravines, hills, bald mountains, and valleys created by nature.

And then plains again.

Eventually, even the earth turns red.

When the sunset transformed the world into a bright red, it inadvertently reminded me of the scenes of the demon realm shown by the Demon King.

After breaking through the sand desert and reaching the barren land, we traveled non-stop for another 6 days, and then one day…

I sensed an inexplicable anomaly.

“?”

It was right after stepping on the ground without any sign.

Suddenly, it felt like I had crossed a line.

A massive eye, not just one but several, multiple pairs.

……were looking down at me.

……

………

“Wake up!”

My forehead hurts.

She must have pecked it hard.

“Why are you spacing out?!”

“…Didn’t you feel something just now?”

“Not at all! Nothing! Except for you spacing out!”

“……”

It was a terribly unsettling experience, too intense to dismiss as a mere illusion.

Yes, to put it in perspective, it was like…

-Finally, you’ve reached the end of your world.

As if sensing the anomaly on this side, the Demon King uttered those words without any prelude.

“…?”

The end of our world?

-You’ll understand when you experience it. You’ll understand.

There he goes again.

…Would it really hurt him to speak clearly instead of doing this? Would it physically pain him?

I suppress a sigh that’s about to escape.

‘What can I do?’

I’ll just let it slide, thinking it’s just another one of his bad habits. It’s not like this is the first or second time I’ve experienced this.

At least he gave a warning of sorts, so I should maintain some vigilance…

“??”

“You felt it too?”

In the moment of hesitation due to the unknown presence, Zora descended from my shoulder and returned to her human form.

“You asked why there are no people around here, right?”

After waiting for a moment, from a distance, a red-skinned giant figure along with a small dwarf approached, pulling a wolf and some unknown large gray beast.

“…?”

They stopped about twenty paces away from us.

Among them, the giant man with prominently grown molars spoke first.

“Are you strangers from the other world, riding the sand winds? What brings you to this land?”

Except for leather bottoms wrapped like a skirt, he was essentially wearing nothing but a necklace made of bones.

His entire body was sculpted like a statue, with various scars.

Just from the marks on his body, one gets the impression of a warrior who has seen many battles.

Here, Zora stepped forward first.

“We are travelers heading to the ruins of the Fire Giant.”

“Travelers seeking to receive the ancient Fire God?”

Having clarified their destination during the journey, Zora could confidently state their destination.

…Rupert was definitely helpful in this regard, if nothing else.

“Have you received permission from your god to visit this land, you heretics?”

“Permission? What permission do we need from a god?”

Zora asked, puzzled by the question.

“Your companion appears to be one who has received consecration from the god of the other world.”

“Consecration?”

As Zora turned to look at Kariel, he asked with confusion.

I did receive it, yes.

But what’s the issue with that?

“Is that a reason why we need permission from your god to come to this land?”

“…How do you know our language?”

At this point, one can only assume it’s some kind of special innate ability.

Kariel had long since decided not to worry about this.

If he can hear and express himself without issue, how else to explain it?

“One who has become honorable through consecration, not just blessing, from the god of the other world. This is a clear violation of the covenant, an act of trespass.”

The problem was that, far from showing goodwill, they were beginning to reveal hostility.

Threats and wariness began to drip from his tone.

So? Are we supposed to turn back quietly from here?

Without knowing anything?

Without accomplishing anything?

“…You speak of things I don’t understand. I have no intention of hostile action. So please enlighten me on what I don’t know. Surely you can bestow that much goodwill without much trouble?”

“…It’s a covenant made by the gods. To violate it is to challenge the gods. Just as we don’t invade your world, you should rightfully do the same.”

“I… have no intention or will to invade. I’m just trying to reach the ancient Fire Giant that is said to have perished…”

“Endekatheon (Έντεκαθεον) will not forgive you. How dare you attempt to worship the old tyrants who were defeated by them? If this isn’t blasphemy, what is?”

“……”

Clear hostility.

From those subdued eyes, which even conveyed a fighting spirit, a firm confidence that he could engage in combat at any moment was palpable.

…Even if it wasn’t killing intent, it was obvious that he was preparing his body to pounce at any moment.

But… Endekatheon?

“The 11 gods? Is that what you’re saying?”

“How do you know Kλληνικό? It’s not a language heretics can understand. Are you then a messenger of the god of the other world, here to represent and speak on behalf of that being?”

“……”

I don’t know either.

Come to think of it, why didn’t I anticipate this situation earlier?

“I’m genuinely curious. Who do you mean by the god of the other world?”

“Isn’t it your god? Don’t you even know that? The one who calls himself the only one, the one and the heaven, the master of all. Don’t you refer to him this way because you dare not speak his name?”

The four letters.

Tetragrammaton.

“And you, in fear, call the shining morning star, once favored by him but ultimately a rebel, by the terrible and insolent Trigrammaton? Because of this, I’ve heard that you don’t even allow challengers to freely use their names. Am I wrong?”

“……”

My head is getting complicated.

Turning my gaze towards Zora, she was just blinking, as if this was all news to her.

By the way, challengers?

“What do you mean by challengers?”

“You truly know nothing. Does this mean your master rules you through ignorance? Devotion and obedience. Not allowing doubt or question, forcing you to be unconditional sinners because you were banished from paradise due to original sin, demanding only innocence by tabooizing evil. Is that your master?”

The giant man growled as if in contempt.

“Listen well. As you call them challengers, I’ve heard that you refer to them as the Kings of Demons. Surely you don’t claim to be ignorant of even this?”

……At those words, I reflexively looked up at the Demon King.

-This or that.

The Demon King of Wisdom, floating in the air in the form of a girl known as the Golden Demon King, merely laughed it off as if it were trivial.

Truly, as if it were insignificant and bland.