chapter_0043

Chapter 42 : Forced end of adolescence

“Ugh… As expected, maintaining both at the same time is quite a heavy burden.”

The outskirts of the Delusion Forest.

Having sent his illusions and Naila to Kali’s side while also maintaining the water barrier, Chain, who had teleported Kali and Naila back to the hideout, collapsed to the ground as soon as the illusion magic was undone by Kael.

The vibrant greenery unique to the Delusion Forest brushed against Chain’s hand as he sat on the ground.

“Sigh… Next time, I’ll have to develop my magic to the point where I won’t need to come in person.”

To use both illusion magic and teleportation magic simultaneously, Chain had to be relatively close, so he had teleported to the outskirts of the Delusion Forest.

But when he turned his head slightly, a devastating sight came into view.

“If I had gone just a little deeper, I might’ve actually been killed.”

If Chain wasn’t mistaken, a deep strike had clearly been made, yet for some reason, the top of the tree at the outskirts where Chain was located had been cleanly severed.

It seemed that the strike had been aimed at the upper part of the tree to avoid injuring other mercenaries or civilians at the entrance.

And Chain was shocked by the fact that the strike, fired from deep inside, had traveled all the way to the outskirts, over several hundred meters.

“Indeed… heroes are heroes after all.”

The war hero who was credited with ending the Demon-Human War.

Even after 15 years, Chain marveled at the still-intact power, briefly lost in thought.

More specifically, it reminded him of the time when he first discovered Kael during his research into lifespan.

“Has it already been over 50 years?”

Although he never told Kael, it had already been over 50 years since Chain first discovered Kael and started his research.

Before meeting Kael, the first race Chain had approached in his quest for immortality was the Elves.

Among the known races, only the Elves were known to live forever, so Chain had approached them amicably, collecting their blood, hair, or even the bodies of Elves from the underworld to research the elixir of immortality.

“But the Elves weren’t helpful.”

Unfortunately, the research results from the Elves were insufficient, and more importantly, their immortality didn’t seem to be compatible with the human body.

So, Chain turned his attention to monsters and plants that lived for an extended period, collecting them for further research, but the results weren’t satisfactory either.

There were some minor results, and he managed to delay aging and extend his lifespan slightly, but the increase in life expectancy was only about 10 years when calculated.

The lifespan was far too short to achieve the great feat Chain desired, leaving him frustrated and enraged.

Was there no way? Was he doomed to hit the wall of his lifespan and give up?

This feeling of despair filled his mind, and he was angry at himself for being born human.

If only he hadn’t been born human, he wouldn’t be wasting time on these pointless researches.

As this thought crossed his mind, Chain’s research became even more reckless and, at the same time, grew more extreme.

Desperately craving immortality, he committed unspeakable atrocities in the process and became a criminal.

To continue his research while avoiding public attention, Chain entered Rahman.

He continued his research in Rahman, but unfortunately, he still couldn’t find any significant results.

And it was during this time that Chain first discovered Kael.

It was when Chain was experiencing endless frustration and despair.

The Royal Guard Captain, Kael.

Chain had heard news of him fighting alongside his disciples on the battlefield against rebellious nobles many years ago.

But one day, by pure chance, Chain had the opportunity to witness Kael in person in the Kingdom of Shardena.

Kael appeared to be no older than his twenties, and Chain’s eyes widened in astonishment.

Could this person be the key to the research I’ve been searching for?

The thought flashed through his mind like lightning, and from that day, Chain followed Kael from afar.

From his time as the Royal Guard Captain to his training of disciples and participation in wars.

The result of this observation and research was enough to erase the storm clouds of despair that had hung over Chain.

His race, he was definitely human.

There was no other race on the continent that could have the same appearance as Kael, so he was naturally human.

“But he wasn’t just a human; he was an immortal human.”

Despite 40 years passing, Kael showed no physical change, even when he went to war.

Considering that even long-lived races show some change over such a period, it became half-certain to Chain that Kael wasn’t just long-lived but was indeed immortal.

Therefore, Chain wanted to make him his experimental subject, but unfortunately, Kael’s strength made that impossible.

“How could I defeat someone who kills demons all by himself?”

Kael’s strength was on a different level, one so rare that it could only be born once every few centuries or millennia.

Chain, a criminal who had to sneak in and out of the Kingdom of Shardena through secret passages, found it impossible to make a legitimate request to Kael for collaboration.

How could a criminal, who had committed countless brutal crimes to enter Rahman, ask the Royal Guard Captain for help?

“So I turned my eyes to the demons.”

Thus, Chain temporarily put aside his goal of Kael and turned to the mountain of demon corpses left behind from the Demon-Human War.

Like the Elves, the demons were an intelligent race that lived forever.

Living outside human lands, Chain had never had the chance to study them before, but the aftermath of the war gave him the opportunity.

Chain, putting aside his regret over Kael for the moment, studied the corpses of the demons.

“I never expected it would turn out so well.”

Amazingly, at that place, they were able to obtain the long-stagnant research results in an instant.

Unlike the elves, humans could also harness the power of the demons’ eternal life.

By using the regeneration ability of demons, which elves lacked, aging could be drastically reduced, and more than that, Chain, who was already over fifty, could even revert his appearance to that of his twenties.

With the extra lifespan of well over 200 years that he gained, Chain began not only researching immortality but also other studies, leading to the creation of Worst.

Worst—a unified organization that gathered the scattered criminals of the underworld into one entity.

Chain had only one purpose in creating Worst.

“To bring down the kingdom and open the doors to a new era.”

To destroy the established and cyclical present era and revert the continent to the chaotic primordial age.

For the sake of his own great achievements.

And in that process, Chain was also targeting Kael.

“The power of immortality he possesses… I can never give up on it.”

Not the incomplete immortality Chain currently used, but true immortality.

He would obtain it, no matter what.

For Chain was too great a person to die due to something as ridiculous as a limited lifespan.

“For that… I must first complete the unfinished research.”

Determined to hasten the completion of the research he had been conducting over the years to confront Kael, Chain gathered mana in his fully rested body.

Paaaat—

Surrounded by teleportation magic, Chain’s body vanished.

When the mana dissipated, only traces of someone having sat there remained.

Inside the Royal Knights’ captain’s office.

There, Elia sat in tattered clothes, Zenre gently stroking her head beside her, and Asili leaning against the window, observing the outside world.

At first, Zenre had been shocked by the sudden arrival of the two through the window while she was handling official duties.

But after hearing their explanation, she had put aside her work for the moment to console Elia.

“Hah… You must have been really frightened, my lady. This place is safe, so you can rest a bit more.”

Even though she had returned without major injuries, her life had been in danger.

It was probably the first time she had been so close to death at the hands of someone as powerful as Asili.

From what she heard, she had faced an attack aimed directly at her throat.

In the urgency of the moment, she likely hadn’t even had time to feel fear, but now that she was in a safe place, it was catching up to her.

As she trembled, overwhelmed by belated terror, Zenre gently stroked Elia’s head.

“I… I’m okay now, Master…”

“You say that, but you’re still shaking, aren’t you? You can be a little more honest, my lady.”

Though Elia, having somewhat calmed down, tried to push away Zenre’s comforting hand, she couldn’t stop her from continuing.

Giving up on resisting, she instead murmured while thinking of Kael and Ruina, who had yet to return.

“Do you think Mom and Dad are safe…?”

Her last memory was of them rushing to rescue her and then fighting in a fury she had never seen before.

After that, Asili had blocked her sight and hearing, leaving her unaware of what had happened.

The answer came from Asili, who was still leaning against the window.

“Don’t worry, kid. Your Master and Lady Ruina were safe up until we left them. And they’re not late because of the fight but because they’re talking to some unexpected visitor. So instead of worrying, why not change into some fresh clothes?”

“Are they really okay…?”

“Hey, I wouldn’t lie about something like this. You can trust me.”

The woman who introduced herself as Asili.

When Zenre had further explained who she was after their arrival, Elia had been quite surprised.

Like Zenre, she was Kael’s disciple.

And she was also a notorious thief, so famous that everyone knew her name.

Elia hadn’t recognized her because she had no knowledge of such matters.

“I suppose I should at least change…”

Since Asili had also helped save her, Elia decided to trust her words and stood up, looking down at her own clothes.

Her outfit, tattered from the battle with Pigra and the aftereffects of Asili and Kali’s fight, was torn in multiple places.

Asili was right—it looked like a rag.

Deciding to change, Elia got to her feet.

But before she could take a step—

Asili, who had been looking outside, suddenly raised her voice.

“Oh! They’re finally here! Master and Lady Ruina.”

The words Elia had been anxiously waiting for.

Forgetting about changing her clothes, she ran to the window.

“Mom! Dad!!”

To see Kael and Ruina safe with her own eyes.

And to finally apologize to them, from the bottom of her heart.