Chapter 127: The Taste is Stable

“Grrk—”

Tua, who had collapsed after fulfilling her role, stood back up.

“Ugh—”

Magnus, who had been flung into the wall, also pushed himself to his feet.

“Commander!!!”

“Deputy commander Magnus!”

The Knight Orders members rushed over to them.

“Commander, are you okay!?”

“I’m fine…”

“I’m fine too, calm down.”

From the start, both had thrown themselves at the Face Thief, determined to create an opening for Risir.

In other words, they intended to act as bait.

Because they had prepared themselves, they were able to focus all their strength on defense just in time, allowing them to weather the brute force of the Face Thief’s attack.

Their claims of being fine were no exaggeration.

Thanks to them fulfilling their roles so well, the battle reached the best possible outcome.

That horrifying monster was taken down with no casualties.

The Knight Order had completed their mission.

It was an incredible feat.

“…”

“…”

Even so, Magnus and Tua wore complicated expressions.

“Commander…?”

Was something still wrong?

The Knight Order members followed their gazes.

“Ah…”

Their expressions slowly mirrored those of Magnus and Tua.

The Face Thief.

The man consumed by the Faceless One’s core was truly a monster.

His swollen body seemed to be made of pure mana, not flesh or muscle.

That solid mass had easily withstood the combined, desperate blows of Magnus and Tua.

The Knight Order wondered, could they have taken him down on their own?

Strictly speaking, it wasn’t impossible.

The mindless Face Thief wasn’t much different from an enraged beast.

He was dangerous, but not overwhelmingly powerful.

So in that state, it would’ve been possible for the Knight Order to take him down.

But—

“…”

The Face Thief.

That massive brute had been split cleanly in two.

Would it reanimate if the two halves were rejoined?

The thought occurred naturally, because the cut was astonishingly clean.

The Knight Order felt awe at the trace of that miraculous strike.

And that awe slowly turned into a complex emotion.

That blow—something none of them could ever imitate—was not the work of some knight or swordmaster, but a mage from the Gray Tower.

Risir.

Their complicated emotions pooled in their gazes toward him.

“Commander?”

At that moment, Tua slowly walked toward Risir and called to him.

He was crouched in front of the Face Thief’s corpse, examining something closely.

“Risir, are you alright?”

Risir stood and faced her.

“It seems I’ve sustained a minor injury from overexertion, but I’m alright. I’m used to this sort of thing. I’ll treat it myself.”

Huff.

Huff.

He was speaking through short, ragged breaths.

Tua frowned.

“No. Tell me your symptoms. I’ll call a healer. He’s a skilled one—it’ll definitely help.”

Tua gestured toward the squad.

A bespectacled member of the Knight Order quickly approached.

“This is Hans. In terms of healing ability, he’s almost as good as a mid-level cleric. Honestly, if he hadn’t joined the unit, he probably would’ve been a great healer. Tell him your symptoms. Whatever it is, he’ll handle it better than you treating yourself.”

“Where do you feel discomfort?”

“I really am fine…”

Risir smiled weakly, but Tua spoke sternly.

“You’re the benefactor—no, the hero—of our Order. Without your help, our squad would’ve taken far more damage during the mission. The Face Thief… his abilities were far beyond our expectations.”

Then Hans pushed up his glasses and spoke with a stern face.

“Improper self-treatment can worsen the injury. Please, would you follow my instructions here?”

Hans and Tua seemed tense.

They knew how stubborn mages from the Tower could be.

They always believed their own knowledge was absolute.

A mage who said, “Oh, I know that already,” was practically a natural disaster.

“This guy’s from the Tower too… persuading him is going to be rough,” Hans thought, already feeling overwhelmed.

But—

“Understood. Then I’ll gladly accept the offer, may I ask for your help?”

“…?”

Hans’s eyes widened at Risir’s unexpected response.

He really is from the Tower, right?

To acknowledge and respect someone else’s expertise over his own… it was a rare trait among Tower mages.

—You’re a healer? So what? I’m from the Tower.

Hans had braced for that sort of arrogance, so he couldn’t hide his surprise.

Still, his gaze toward Risir turned warm.

“Thank you for your cooperation. Then, could you tell me your symptoms?”

He asked eagerly.

Because it was the Commander’s order.

Because Risir had helped their unit.

No, putting all that aside, he simply wanted to help this man.

“Well, I suppose you could call it… this.”

“This?”

“Overload.”

“…?”

“…?”

Tua and Hans both tilted their heads at the term.

“Didn’t you say it was a minor injury?”

“Yes. A light overload then.”

“…”

“…”

A light overload?

The combination of words felt unfamiliar.

The body breaking down from unrestrained mana… was there such a thing as a light or heavy version of that?

As far as they know, It just meant you were screwed.

They took a closer look at Risir.

Bleeding from every orifice, gasping for breath.

They’d thought he was fine because of how calmly he acted, but in truth, he was dying in real time.

“O-Overload…!? Risir, are you okay!?”

“Yes. I’m used to it.”

“Used…?”

“So, Mr. Hans. What should I do now?”

“…I’m not sure how to respond to that…”

“Pardon?”

Risir looked at Hans quietly.

“Didn’t you say I should follow your instructions?” That’s what his eyes seemed to say.

Hans felt wronged.

—Didn’t you say it was a minor injury? What kind of lunatic calls overload a minor injury?

Then again, bleeding from every hole didn’t look minor to anyone.

His very existence was causing cognitive dissonance in the people around him.

“…Hans, is it really okay to leave someone with overload alone like that?”

Tua asked, uncertain.

“…Usually if someone’s bleeding from every hole in their face… they either become crippled or die.”

“But Risir says he’s used to it… Oh!”

Tua suddenly nodded, as if something clicked.

“D-Did you figure something out!?”

“Yeah. If it’s Risir, it all makes sense.”

“…?”

That’s it?

Hans was lost.

Their iron-willed commander was being completely overtaken(?) by Risir.

“Risir, earlier you said you’d handle it yourself, do you have some kind of countermeasure for overload?”

She even asked, intrigued.

Hans wanted to shout in frustration.

Unless you carry around a cleric full-time, that kind of thing doesn’t exist!

“Ah, yes. Normally, I just stabilize the rampaging mana.”

You stabilize mana that’s running wild enough to cause overload?

If you can stabilize it, why did it run wild?

And how do you stabilize it after the fact?

Why does overload even happen?

Why is an eagle’s beak yellow?

Why is the sky blue?

Did his mana suddenly increase? Like he drank some elixir without us noticing?

At that moment, Risir closed his eyes and focused on his breathing.

What followed was remarkably simple.

The rampant mana gradually settled and began to harmonize with his body.

“…Wow.”

Tua muttered in awe.

Hans clutched his head in both hands.

Before his worldview could be changed forever, he fled back to his squad.

“Huff. That should do it.”

As Risir brought his overload under control, Tua brought up the question she had set aside.

“Risir, may I ask you something?”

“Please, go ahead.”

By now, the nearby Knight Order members had also gathered behind her.

They waited nervously for Tua’s words.

“Sword Force…”

Tua uttered the term with a deeply complicated expression.

“How… can you use that power?”

Risir was a 6th tier mage.

He was, by nature, a magician.

And, and—

There was no end to the list, so Tua could only ask the simplest version.

How the hell did you do that?

Risir thought for a moment and answered.

“I have an Ego Sword. It’s called Blue Lotus, and it was given to me by a man known as the Riven Blade. I believe I can use Sword Force entirely thanks to that Ego Sword.”

“…!”

Tua and the others widened their eyes.

The Swordmaster Riven Blade.

And his famous beloved sword, Blue Lotus.

What Risir had just said was far more shocking and stimulating than they imagined.

“I see… so it’s thanks to the Riven Blade’s Ego Sword…”

“If you borrowed the power of such a great sword, then—…!”

Tua murmured, and Magnus chimed in.

The other members nodded as if they now understood.

Except for one.

“…But even with an Ego Sword’s power, how could a 6th tier mage… And besides, you’re not even carrying the sword right now—”.

Hans voiced his doubts with a puzzled face.

A very reasonable question.

Which made it a problem.

“Eep!”

Feeling the deadly stares of his teammates, Hans flinched.

Finally catching on, he nodded vigorously.

Thus, the reason Risir could use Sword Force became “It’s all thanks to the power of the Swordmaster’s Ego Sword(?).”

It had to be that way.

“Of course… that explains it…”

“No wonder! The Riven Blade’s beloved blade!!!”

“Of course it’s Sir Risir!!! To be acknowledged by the Riven Blade and receive Blue Lotus!!!”

Hahaha!

The Knight Order cheered enthusiastically.

Their gazes were… slightly unfocused.

—Poor fools.

Clana muttered quietly within Risir’s inner world.

“By the way, everyone. Do you know what this is?”

“What are you talking about?”

Tua’s gaze followed Risir’s hand.

Near the Face Thief’s corpse.

A fist-sized lump of mass had fallen nearby.

Its ominous texture and color were reminiscent of black mercury.

“…”

Tua stared at it for a moment, then recalled the Face Thief’s final moments.

Being consumed by something, losing himself, and becoming a puppet.

“Perhaps… this is connected to his power.”

The Face Thief’s power was something anyone in the world would crave.

Even so, none of the Knight Order members showed any desire toward that mass.

Because of their exceptional restraint?

No.

The energy radiating from that residue mass was visibly suspicious to anyone.

Blood that had flowed from the Face Thief’s corpse gathered around the mass and was absorbed into it.

Risir, on a hunch, tried using the power of Normalization on it.

The mass didn’t react.

So it’s not something related to black magic?

Just as his fruitless inspection dragged on—

“Risir!”

“Are you alright?!”

A moment later.

Drey and Pallarg, having received the news, finally arrived at the scene.

“Ah, Lord Pallarg! You’re just in time!”

Risir immediately asked Pallarg about the mass.

“Looks like I’ve arrived at the perfect moment.”

“Do you recognize it?”

“…”

Pallarg approached the mass and looked down at it.

He muttered,

“A terrifying thing, this is…”

“Do you recognize it?”

In response to Risir’s question, Pallarg snapped his fingers.

In an instant, the Face Thief’s corpse froze over.

Not just the split body, but even the scattered blood.

And thus, in that moment when the mass and the Face Thief were completely isolated—

“…!”

Risir and the Knight Order members all recoiled in shock.

The mass.

From that fist-sized clump, an overwhelming amount of mana began to pour out.

The massive mana they had thought was coming from the Face Thief’s corpse had, in fact, been coming from the mass all along.

“It seems the Face Thief didn’t control this mass… it’s the other way around.”

“Everyone?”

Drey, still eyeing the mass with interest, spoke up.

“If it’s alright, may I collect this mass? I’ll pay a fair price.”

“No, Drey. That’s not something you can handle.”

“Is it that dangerous?”

“It needs to be studied. Everyone, do not approach the mass until the investigation is complete.”

Pallarg swiftly organized the situation.

Risir asked him,

“Lord Pallarg. Then for now, there’s nothing else I need to do?”

“That’s right. Why do you ask?”

“Because I’d like to collapse now.”

“?”

“Everyone, I leave the rest to you. And if possible, please bring the Saint to me.”

Risir sat down on the ground, leaned back, and lost consciousness.

“…Shouldn’t we be investigating him instead?”

Hans muttered without realizing it.

Everyone silently nodded in agreement.

He woke up to a familiar ceiling.

“Aren’t you tired of this yet?”

And a familiar situation.

Fienne greeted him as he regained consciousness.

“Don’t be ridiculous. How could I ever get tired of seeing your face, Fienne?”

“Judging by that nonsense, I suppose we can get straight to the point.”

“Is it okay for us to be this used to this process?”

“Don’t talk like this is our problem. It’s yours.”

Three days.

According to Fienne, that’s how long he had been unconscious.

Fienne summarized the events of those three days.

“First, the date for your ceremony has been set.”

“Oh? When is it?”

“Tomorrow.”

“That’s pretty sudden, no?”

“If you hadn’t lost consciousness three days ago and actually listened to me, it wouldn’t feel so sudden.”

“Ah.”

“And another thing. While you were sleeping, all hell broke loose.”

The Residue of the Faceless One.

That was the official name of the mass that had emerged from the Faceless One’s corpse.

According to Fienne, that very mass was currently the center of chaos.

“Mana erosion…?”

“The power contained inside it is so overwhelming that it’s started affecting the surrounding environment. Some say we should destroy it completely right now, others warn that meddling could cause unpredictable consequences. The investigative teams are deeply divided.”

“Huh…”

Still groggy from just waking up, Risir struggled to process the gravity of the situation when—

“Mastah!”

A familiar shout rang out, Verdande… Ssiu!

“You’re awake already?!”

“Ah, sorry. Was I not supposed to be?”

“You’ve been a great use!!!”

“Ah! Great use great use!!”

For some reason, the girl had entered straight through the door.

“Verdande… Ssiu! What is it? Where’ve you been?”

“This!”

Ver held out her palm.

“It looked tasty, so I brought it!”

In that tiny palm sat a lump of dark-red residue.

No way…

“H-Hey…! That’s—”

It was.

The color had changed a bit, which made it hard to recognize at first, but it was clearly the same mass Fienne had just been talking about, the Residue of the Faceless One.

Risir hastily said to Ver,

“Verdande… Ssiu! You can’t. That’s icky, very icky. You can’t eat that.”

“…”

Ver looked at the mass with a disappointed expression.

No.

“…!”

She glared.

As if locked in a staring contest with something inside that mass.

Risir immediately stood up and approached Ver.

“Risir?”

“This. Let’s go return it to where it belongs.”

“Y-Yes! Let’s go together!”

Together, Risir and Ver headed to the place where the mass had originally been—

The backyard of the Goose Mansion, where the Face Thief had fallen.

As expected.

The place was in chaos.

“What do you mean it just vanished?! Are you saying it got up and walked away?! Do you have any idea how dangerous that thing is?!”

Many people were running around searching the area, and a tall woman Risir had never seen before was scolding subordinates in near panic.

“If that thing reacts to external stimuli or an altered environment and causes a phenomenon—”

She bit her nails in distress.

Drey and Pallarg stood nearby.

“Oh, Risir!? You’re awake? Are you okay?”

Drey brightened upon seeing him.

Pallarg also spotted him and let out a wry smile.

“You must be wondering what this mess is. I’ll explain.”

“Oh, it’s fine. I already know.”

“Hm? And that child is—”

Risir patted the head of Ver beside him, drawing everyone’s gaze to her.

To the child who was glaring at the mass resting in her palm.

“G-Good heavens! Why is that thing there— You! That’s dangerous!!!”

The tall woman reacted first, crying out in horror.

“R-Risir!!! Quickly, get your elemental away from that mass!!!”

“What the hell—why is that even there?!”

Drey and Pallarg reacted similarly.

“H-Hey! Calm down! Will you give that to me? I’ll give you something better—”

The three cautiously approached with outstretched hands, but Ver didn’t even flinch.

“…!!!”

Her entire focus remained locked onto the mass.

Suddenly, her eyebrows furrowed with deadly intensity.

Chomp!

Ver boldly popped the mass into her mouth and swallowed it whole.

Gasp!

Everyone in the area inhaled sharply in unison.

It had happened.

That young elemental had just swallowed the Residue of the Faceless One.

“Damn—”

Their faces turned complex as they stared at her.

The young elemental had crossed a line from which there was no return.

The massive energy of the residue would surely erode and consume her.

Now, what they needed to fear wasn’t her safety, but what she would become after being consumed.

“!!!”

Then—

The child, still chewing, suddenly opened her eyes wide.

It’s coming!

They all braced themselves for what would follow.

She raised both arms high and shouted with all her strength—

“It tastes gross!!!”

“…”

“…”

“…”

Silence fell.

How long did it last?

“…?”

“…?”

“…?”

Their once-serious expressions froze in awkwardness.

“That’s it?” That’s what their faces seemed to say.

And then, all of their gazes turned to Risir.

What the hell is that?

What are you dragging around with you?