Ch.48Elysion (4)

The terror began abruptly. A passerby’s body started to swell. The flesh, rising like a balloon, couldn’t withstand the expansion and burst open.

Torn skin scattered in all directions. Red raindrops and flesh-colored tatters covered the surroundings. First came silence. Then screams. Chaos erupted from people drenched in flesh and blood.

Yet there were those who calmly observed the screams. Skilled mages, including Elysion’s security personnel.

If one survives as a mage for a long time, they become accustomed to such magical disasters. Experienced mages drew their equipment and began assessing the situation.

The power was too weak to be a suicide bombing. For now, it appeared more like a curse targeting a specific grudge.

The first mages to step forward were of two types: the White Light mages who specialized in light attribute magic for curse removal, and their opposites, the Black Darkness Tower mages who were experts in curses themselves.

Just as the mages parted the crowd to approach the scene.

The corpse rose.

The two legs that had been sprawled out, having lost their upper body, suddenly stood up. Something white and glowing writhed between the ruptured muscles. The mages instinctively deployed defensive magic and prepared to attack.

Beams capable of instantly melting human flesh gathered at the tips of their staves.

But before they could fire, silver threads burst forth.

As the standing lower body collapsed like a shed skin, white thread-like substances poured out from between the muscles. It was like watching a swarm of parasites emerging from their host, magnified to human size.

Those who had been splattered with flesh when the first person burst were in an even worse situation. Silver threads embedded in the flesh fragments extended and burrowed into their bodies.

Those quick to assess the situation immediately burned the threads or cut off parts of their own bodies in response.

But those who reacted slowly or had threads burrow into places like their eyes, where immediate response was impossible, met a different fate.

The threads that invaded their bodies multiplied, using the mages’ magical power as fuel. Again, expansion.

Thus began the flood of silver threads.

***

‘What on earth is happening?’

Had Elysion’s mages created some bizarre biological weapon that got released?

Screams began outside the promotion examination hall. Several mages fled inside, bleeding. The mages taking the exam realized something ominous was occurring.

They joined forces to place a barrier at the entrance of the exam hall, preventing the chaos outside from penetrating within.

That’s when one of those who had entered began to swell.

Just as silver threads were about to tear through the skin and surge forth.

A beam of light flew in from somewhere. The ray aimed precisely at the infected person, erasing them…

Or rather, it didn’t.

Only the silver threads disappeared. With the silver threads that had filled the space beneath the skin gone, the skin sagged grotesquely. Like a deep-sea fish brought to the surface.

People quickly looked around, but no one witnessed who had cast the spell that removed the silver threads, let alone what kind of magic it was.

Except for one person, Lampades.

As soon as ominous sounds were heard from outside, he had been scanning his surroundings.

Where was Ortes, who had left after giving a warning, as if he had known about this situation in advance?

Ortes was nowhere to be found. The only one remaining in the exam hall was Carisia, the president of Hydra Company.

When people in chaos finally began pouring into the exam hall, Lampades saw Carisia raise her right hand, clad in a black gauntlet.

Just as the thread’s host was about to burst. From the tip of her index finger unfolded advanced magic that no one present could interpret.

‘Why did she save that person?’

If Ortes’s goal was chaos, wouldn’t it have been more advantageous to leave it be? Lampades observed Carisia’s demeanor.

Her golden eyes were shining.

‘She’s different from Ortes… Well, he has slit eyes, so of course they’re different.’

The atmosphere. Unlike Ortes, who seemed devoid of humanity, the president of Hydra Company emanated a sense of humanness.

As Lampades focused on this difference, he suddenly realized that the strange noises from outside had ceased.

Beep—

A piercing noise came from the loudspeaker. The sound of checking audio before a broadcast.

“Greetings, fellow mages of Elysion. We have come forward to expose the secrets hidden by the Ten Towers.”

Though they hadn’t yet mentioned the terror attack, everyone who heard the voice knew. The person broadcasting was the mastermind behind the terror.

“The Ten Towers have always emphasized the dangers of the outer dimensions to us. They claimed that the evil writhing beyond the outer dimensions is the bane of this world. They denounced its grace as a curse! But isn’t it strange?”

Damn it. Lampades muttered under his breath. Just from that introduction, he could guess the identity of the speaker.

“If the outer dimensions are truly dangerous, why do all mages dream of ascension? See the contradiction of fearing the outside world while speaking of transcendence beyond this world. As can be seen from ascenders leaving this world, the truth lies in the outer dimensions.”

That bizarre cognitive distortion. They twisted the fact that one challenges ascension only after gaining the ability to transcend the destruction of the outer dimensions, believing that truth lies within that destruction. Infiltrators, or doomsday cultists.

In fact, the two weren’t that different. It was just a matter of whether one went mad due to contamination from the outer dimensions or was mad regardless.

“To hide this obvious truth, the Ten Towers spread lies. Research on the outer dimensions was monopolized by them. Fellow mages! Join us, the Argyrion (ἀργύριον)! Gain new eyes and ears to witness true wisdom!”

Lampades took a deep breath. Was that the group Ortes truly belonged to?

No. It could be the opposite. While the Ten Towers’ attention is focused on Argyrion, Hydra Company could carry out its evil plans without interference.

‘Then is Argyrion just a decoy to hide Hydra Company? Or…?’

“Many fellow mages sympathized with our cause and offered their bodies and magical power. Now we will perform a ritual to liberate this sacred place, Elysion, from the control of the Ten Towers—”

The mage from Argyrion couldn’t finish. The loudspeaker suddenly went off. It seemed Elysion’s administration had reclaimed the broadcast channel.

“Tower Master, what should we do?”

“Wait here. This isn’t the first terror attack on Elysion. Soon, the Ten Towers will—”

Suddenly, Lampades remembered Astrape, who had gone to submit the entrance exam documents. That child was alone now.

An ominous possibility crossed his mind. He checked his equipment and magical power.

Remaining magical power was less than half. Plenty of charging cartridges left, thanks to his habits from his active problem-solver days.

“Form a defensive formation and wait here. If…”

Ortes’s final message. If it becomes too much to handle, seek Hydra Company.

Would Ortes really save Lampades Tower? Lampades thought so. At the very least, Ortes saw value in Lampades Tower and was likely proposing an alliance.

But whether living as a pawn of doomsday cultists or dying would be happier was uncertain.

Lampades glanced at Carisia. She had approached the host who had been entangled in silver threads and was now casting healing magic.

Organs and blood vessels that had ruptured under the weight of the silver threads. Skin stretched to its limit was returning to its original state and recovering its form.

From the sight of Carisia using healing magic on someone she had likely never met before, Lampades formed a hypothesis.

‘Perhaps.’

Carisia might be different from Ortes.

‘Clearly, my first impression was that she seemed unaware of Ortes’s true nature. I revised that assessment after hearing her distinctly Ortes-like speech, but…’

In reality, her nature hadn’t been completely tainted by Ortes. That’s why she was healing the victim like this.

‘There’s also the possibility that Ortes hasn’t revealed his true colors yet. He might be hiding his identity with clever speech, brainwashing her into believing he’s an ally.’

Lampades came to a conclusion.

“If an unexpected situation arises that’s difficult to handle even with the mages gathered here, go to the president of Hydra Company over there, identify yourself as Lampades Tower, and ask for help. However, if a man with slit eyes approaches, don’t engage in any conversation. I’ll go find Astrape.”

He decided to trust the compassion and kindness that remained in Carisia.

‘After I rescue Astrape… I should let her know that Ortes isn’t a trustworthy being.’

My life might be in danger. But that pure mage shouldn’t be used as Ortes’s pawn without knowing anything.

Lampades made that resolution.

***

Carisia examined the host who had been infected by the silver threads and thought.

‘Hmm. As I suspected, those silver threads are a type of summon. Regardless of whether they’re actually inanimate or living, forced reverse summoning spells work on them. And healing magic is effective as long as they haven’t burrowed into the host’s brain.’

She caressed her gauntlet.

‘Argyrion, was it? They won’t be difficult to deal with. I should tell Ortes when he arrives.’