Chapter 105 – Training (2)

“I am a genius,” Serr declared.

The shrill scream had barely left my lips when I hesitantly released the hand clamped over my mouth.

“…Excuse me?”

“I said, I am a genius.”

Serr enunciated each word deliberately, her unwavering gaze fixed on me.

What… was I supposed to do with that information?

“And… what exactly does that have to do with channeling mana into your body?” I asked.

“Technically speaking, it wasn’t mana. But that’s beside the point. I’m a genius, which means there are things I just… know.”

Her enigmatic violet eyes bore into mine.

“As I thought, Miss Rubia, you and I are alike.”

“If you’re talking about our hair color… sure, we’re similar.”

My hair is silvery white, and Serr’s is more of a milky hue. Both in the same color family, I guess.

“Our hair is similar, yes. But that’s not all.”

The mana Serr had been recklessly stirring within me withdrew.

“Miss Rubia, do you hate humans?” she asked abruptly.

“I do.”

“So do I.”

Serr’s lips curved into a soft smile.

“They’re vile creatures.”

“Detestable,” I agreed.

“Selfish.”

“Utterly infuriating.”

Serr’s eyes crinkled with amusement.

“As I thought. We are alike.”

Her seamless flow of words sent a shiver down my spine, but I forced myself to respond calmly.

“Well, hating humans isn’t exactly unique to me.”

“No, it’s not. But Miss Rubia, you lost your family, didn’t you?”

“…Yes. And?”

“So did I.”

The expression I struggled to maintain faltered.

“I don’t see the point of this conversation. If you’re trying to provoke me, congratulations—you succeeded. But you don’t seem like someone who’d do that without reason.”

I took a moment to calm the frustration bubbling within me and continued.

“Why don’t you just get to the point?”

“Events that seem utterly inexplicable. Coincidences stacked upon coincidences. Accidents that defy understanding. And after it all, a power left behind in your body. A body that seems strangely resistant to death.”

“…What are you even talking about—”

“I was summarizing my experiences. But from your reaction, it seems they’re identical to yours.”

Her violet eyes, shimmering like the dawn, locked onto mine.

“I swear on Yggdrasil, I haven’t researched you at all. Your past, your actions, your recent whereabouts—I know none of it.”

I couldn’t understand.

What was this woman saying? Why was she saying it?

“If it makes you uneasy, I’ll start with my own story. First, I was a genius. Born into a family of mages… hmm, that’s not really important. I joined the Tower at a young age and accomplished many things.”

“Okay.”

“By the time I was 19, the world hailed me as the Miracle Archmage.”

“Impressive.”

“Hehe. Thank you.”

After chuckling softly and leaning back in her chair, Serr straightened her posture and set down her coffee cup.

“Then, the Tower Master betrayed me. They tried to use my exceptional talents to open the Spirit Realm. They weren’t always like that, but one day they just… snapped.”

An event beyond understanding.

“But ironically, the Tower Master’s life’s work—their magic formula—was fundamentally flawed. And their arrogant attempt to summon spirits enraged them instead. As a result, every mage in the Tower was killed, starting with the Tower Master, followed by the elders… and my parents.”

A disaster of compounded coincidences.

“And the joke of it all? After everyone was dead, the power of the spirits lingered in my body—a body that could no longer use magic.”

The power left in one’s body after everything ends.

“And then… guess what happened next?”

Serr’s smile deepened.

“…You and I are the same.”

“Exactly. I really am a genius. Or perhaps a detective would be a better term for this.”

Chuckling lightly, Serr reclined into the sofa, her voice taking on a languid tone.

“No matter how I tried, I couldn’t die. Cutting my tongue, slashing my wrists, drinking poison, leaping into fire, hanging myself, gouging out my eyes, disemboweling myself—nothing worked.”

A body strangely resistant to death.

“Every time, the highest-ranked spirit of light would appear and heal me as it pleased.”

Lifting the coffee cup before her, she took a sip.

It had gone lukewarm.

“So, why are you telling me this? And how did you figure out I was the same?” I asked.

“You seemed to harbor a deep dislike for any sort of praise or recognition, so I tested my theory.”

“That’s why you sent that… mana-like energy into me earlier?”

“Yes. And as I suspected, you, too, are under the protection of a being far beyond our understanding.”

With a cheerful smile, Serr conjured a small water spirit in her hand.

“Kyu-a?” the spirit squeaked.

“Even when I casually kill spirits like this—”

“Kyu-eek… KYAAAAA!!!” The spirit’s cry was cut short.

Poof!

“—the Spirit King doesn’t punish me. It doesn’t even move. But…”

Glancing around, Serr picked up a knife and stabbed the hand she had just used to kill the spirit.

“When I do this, I feel it. The Spirit King intervenes directly.”

As she spoke, the knife embedded in her hand vanished, and the wound closed seamlessly.

It was eerily reminiscent of how my divine power healed me on its own.

Effortlessly.

“Sigh…” I exhaled deeply.

I sipped my lukewarm coffee, piecing together her scattered words.

Why she was telling me all this. What her life had been like. The nature of the being protecting us.

By the time my coffee cup was empty, I had reached a conclusion.

One I didn’t want to accept. One I hated.

“So… what you’re saying is that… my life—our lives—aren’t the result of coincidence, but of inevitability?”

“Exactly. Your family’s death, the power you gained afterward, the trials you’ve faced, and the fact that you’re still alive—it’s all because…”

“…We have a role to fulfill in this world.”

“Precisely.”

Nodding with a smile, Serr rose and began preparing a fresh pot of coffee.

As I watched her from behind, I sank into thought.

A role I must fulfill. A role I must play as a priestess.

To burn my body to save the world.

I understood.

I already knew.

But the truth wasn’t that I had to fulfill this role because I became a priestess.

It was that I was destined to do so all along.

That I, this very existence…

Had been fated from the moment I was born—or perhaps even earlier.

The disgust I felt toward the world.

The decision to leave Erden because I didn’t want to save it.

Meeting Noah.

Falling in love with her.

Wanting to save the world she loves, the world she lives in.

It was all… predetermined.

“You seem quite shaken. Here, have something warm to calm yourself.”

At some point, Serr had returned to the sofa opposite me, offering a fresh cup of coffee.

“…Why are you telling me all this?”

Placing her cup on the table, Serr began to speak.

“Slowly, over time, I’ve studied various texts, ancient civilizations, and the events of the Age of Chaos. I’ve especially delved into everything about Lady Cartia, who accompanies Miss Noah.”

“…So you knew.”

“I’m a genius. How could I not?”

Is this what happens when someone is praised as a genius from a young age? Do they become this insufferable?

Or had she always been like this?

The tangled mess in my head cleared slightly with that single arrogant remark.

Seeing this, Serr’s tone softened, and she offered a more relaxed smile.

“Hehe. It seems you’ve calmed down a bit. I purposely said something unnecessary earlier, but I’m glad it worked. Otherwise, even a genius like me would have been thoroughly embarrassed.”

“Then, if you’re such a genius, would you like to guess what I was thinking just now?” I challenged.

“You were probably wondering if entering the Tower at a young age turns someone into such an arrogant and conceited person. But this wasn’t always my personality. I’ve simply adapted to live more comfortably this way. And, for the record, I wasn’t wrong—I am a genius.”

“…Sure. You’re a genius.”

“Please don’t look at me like that. I’m not crazy.”

“No, you seem plenty crazy to me.”

“So, we’ve gotten close enough for you to start speaking your mind freely? That’s not a good habit. You wouldn’t believe how many people out there would exploit such honesty.”

“If I were to reveal everything in my heart, we couldn’t share the same space for very long.”

“Ah, indeed… That could very well be the case. I’d rather not die, so I suppose I shouldn’t provoke Miss Rubia any further. Hehe.”

Watching Serr sip her coffee with that relaxed smile, I couldn’t help but let out a dry chuckle.

“Fine, still… I’ll admit that you’ve helped me. Thank you. I feel much calmer now.”

“You’re welcome. I’ll gladly accept your praise.”

Her shamelessness left me almost in awe as I took another sip of my coffee.

After a brief silence, Serr’s voice rang out cheerfully.

“Miss Rubia, you should be grateful to me.”

“What are you talking about all of a sudden?”

“Because I am about to endure something extraordinarily painful. I won’t die, but I will suffer to the point of wishing I could. Still, I feel you deserve to know this truth, and for that, you should thank me.”

“What…?”

What on earth was this crazy woman saying now?

At first, I thought it was just another one of her nonsensical ramblings. But the seriousness in her eyes told me otherwise, so I gave her a small nod.

“Um… yes. Thank you.”

Satisfied at having wrung gratitude out of me, Serr nodded in approval before speaking again.

“Don’t you think it’s strange?”

“…What?”

“The heroes who played key roles during the Age of Chaos are all gone. Only their names remain. Even someone as legendary as Lady Cartia.”

“That’s… true.”

“And it’s not just humans. The other races have all vanished as well. Elves, who were said to live for centuries. Dwarves. Demons. All of them.”

“Wait, hold on. Vanished? What do you mean?”

“There are no corpses. No evidence of wars that wiped them out. No meteors crashing from the heavens. They simply disappeared.”

Serr still wore her faint smile as she spoke.

“Isn’t that strange?”

“It is… definitely strange.”

“I’ve thought about why that might be.”

Her milk-white hair swayed gently as she turned her head.

“Why all the other races, as powerful as they were, had to vanish. Why the soul of the great Lady Cartia needed to linger. Why I had to be connected to the Spirit Realm. Why you had to become a priestess.”

Her violet eyes locked onto mine.

“I came to this conclusion: This world runs on human life as fuel.”

Serr’s face grew pale.

“The person who ended the Age of Chaos was the human, Lady Cartia. That’s why humanity, the strongest race of that time, was chosen. As fuel.”

Blood trickled from her eyes.

“The stronger, the more exceptional, the higher their rank—the better the fuel. But… humans weren’t the only ones living during the Age of Chaos. There were impurities.”

Blood flowed from her nose.

“So, the gods must have reset the era. Purged the impurities, leaving only the purest fuel behind.”

Blood poured from her mouth.

“And the tool they used for that reset… was the Calamity.”

Blood seeped from her ears.

“They overturned the world using the Calamity. And the world we live in now… was built after that.”

Her skin split apart.

“The completed world.”

Her bones warped and cracked.

“The false paradise.”

And yet.

“Erden.”

Still smiling.

“The tree that connects worlds, Yggdrasil, is the gate to Erden.”

Serr continued speaking.

“And Miss Rubia, I believe you are the key to that gate.”

Her body collapsed.

[And yet, even in an age like this, I want to believe there still exists—]

Just before her body hit the ground, her voice floated on the wind.

[The hope of humanity, carried forward from the Age of Chaos.]

Her words left one final message.

[An adversary, one who will stand against the gods, kill them, and open the path to a new era.]