༺ Ella (2) ༻
Ella’s expression within the ice was peaceful, as if she were asleep.
No warmth or movement could be felt.
‘Could she be dead…’
No, that couldn’t be. If that were the case, the door should have closed. However, because Ella, the source of power, was alive, the gate to the underworld was still wide open, spewing out gloomy energy.
Enduring the howling storm, I cautiously approached the crystallized ice.
“El…la.”
Why did uttering these four letters feel so awkward?
20 years. A name that I hadn’t called for such a long time.
I looked more closely at her figure trapped in the ice.
She seems to have grown a little.
Compared to when we parted, her face had changed slightly. Even so, it was only by 3, 4 years. She seemed to be about the same age as the students.
So, had she been frozen all these years?
In this place, in this state, all alone.
“……”
With trembling hands, I placed my hand on the ice.
It was cold. But it was not ordinary ice. Even a slight touch made it clear that it was incredibly solid. It seemed difficult to break with ordinary strength.
What should I do?
Even if it were possible to break it by force, I had no intention of doing so. Ella inside could be harmed if I did.
Even if I were to carefully break the ice, this place is filled with the gloom of the underworld. I can’t stay here for long either. Although my resilient body has been holding up for a while, I felt my extremities starting to stiffen. If it were a normal person, they would die in just a few seconds.
Even though Ella opened the door to the underworld, I didn’t think she would be unaffected by this gloom.
Should I close the door first then? But how? I’ve been conveniently calling it a door, but in reality, it’s closer to dimensions being stuck together. Could I cut it with Ajetus? If I cut, what should I cut?
I even thought about lifting and moving the whole ice crystal trapping her… but the floor was filled with a magic circle drawn with blood, and Ella was in the center of that circle.
I didn’t know what the magic circle was for. And, of course, I didn’t know what would happen if I detached Ella from there.
It would have been easier to destroy it. Because Ajetus’ power can cut and smash anything.
But in a situation where everything is uncertain, I couldn’t act recklessly, not knowing what problems might arise from touching it.
Thanks to the royal ring, I found the coordinates to the treasure chamber. So, coming here was always possible. I had to make a rational judgement.
I let out a long sigh and cleared my head.
…I can’t do anything for now.
If Ruellyn, or at least Oznia, had been here…
I bit my lip to suppress my emotions.
“I’m sorry, Ella.”
It took me 20 years to find her, and the feeling of helplessness washed over me at the fact that I had to leave at this moment, with Ella, whom I had barely found, right before my eyes.
“Just wait a little bit.”
Knowing where she was and having found a way to come here anytime was a significant gain in itself.
I will definitely find a way and return.
Making that promise to myself, I somehow managed to tear my gaze away from Ella. Then I looked around the room, wondering if there might be a clue I had missed.
However, there was nothing special left. Torn books and broken experimental flasks suggested this place was once the workshop of the Immortal Corps Commander, and the dried and frozen bloodstains here and there hinted at the terrible experiments that had taken place here.
But the interior of the workshop was mostly empty, as if swept away by an explosion. The only things left here were the ice crystal encasing Ella and the wide-open dimensional door.
Just at that moment, I felt a penetrating gaze from a very distant place.
“…!”
I quickly raised my spear and turned my head towards where the gaze was coming from. I couldn’t see anyone, but I felt the gaze for sure. I knew for certain that someone was looking at me from beyond the wide-open dimensional door.
I widened my eyes and focused my sight as much as I could. Far away, further away… finally, hundreds of kilometers away, I saw the owner of the gaze.
A skinny man in a black robe. As I had guessed, it was the Immortal Corps Commander.
The reason he hadn’t appeared anywhere was because he was in another dimension, wasn’t it?
Behind the Immortal Corps Commander, countless souls were flowing like a river, being absorbed into his body without pause.
He looked straight at me and opened his mouth. I couldn’t hear his voice, but I read his lips.
[Wondering who the bug is that invaded my old workshop, turns out it’s you again? How the hell did you get in here? I should have all the keys to this place… Ah, I see. One of the royal women survived. Did you use her ring?]
I intentionally didn’t look towards Ella and slowly opened my mouth.
If he noticed any connection between Ella and me, he would surely try to exploit it.
“…You, of all people, have been hiding in a place like this all this time.”
[Huh? Surely you can’t hear my voice from this distance? Ah, you read my lips. Unfortunately, I can’t do that, so I can’t hear what you’re saying. But since you’ve come all this way, I should at least greet you.]
A high density of dark mana gathered in the hands of the Immortal Corps Commander.
And a laser of dark mana was shot. But faster than that, my body was already charging towards the Immortal Corps Commander.
I spun my spear around and smacked the laser hard with the tip. It was originally impossible to block a massless magic with a spear, but the power of Ajetus, which can even cut things that can’t be cut, made it possible. After all, to cut something, you have to touch it first.
The laser’s trajectory bent at a right angle and plunged into one side of the workshop wall. At the same time, I leaped over the dimensional door. As the density of negative energy increased, the energy of the underworld that rejects the living gripped my body harshly.
It was a moment when a decision had to be made.
Soon, the tip of Ajetus’ spear pierced my heart.
“Haaaaaaa―!!!”
Feeling the pain and dark mana exploding from my heart, I covered my whole body with black armor.
I burst out in an instant, using the explosively flaring dark mana as a counterforce.
Bang!!
The ground, unable to withstand the force of my leap, exploded, and I was shot forward faster than an arrow. The scenery around me whizzed past in an instant.
The distance to him was about several hundred kilometers, but that was no problem. If I concentrate all my magic power without considering the damage around me, I can reach him in a few minutes at full sprint.
Perfect. I’ll subdue him here and find out how to save Ella!
The Immortal Corps Commander shook his head in annoyance.
[Insane… it’s still burdensome to fight that thing with an incomplete body… Tsk, I wanted to gather more for a few more days, but can’t help it. I guess I have to be satisfied at this level.]
As the Immortal Corps Commander waved his hand, a dark door opened behind him. Whether it was his own power or he used Ella’s, he opened a dimensional door by himself.
The souls that were clumped together and squirming went through that dimensional door and disappeared somewhere. And the Immortal Corps Commander also threw his body towards that dimensional door.
[I can’t be disturbed by you right now. Wait until I’m complete. I’ll deal with you then!]
He’s trying to escape!
The moment I confirmed that, I slammed my feet into the ground and leaped powerfully towards the sky. Thanks to the rapidly increasing altitude, the surroundings became much clearer.
I saw the swarm of souls filling the horizon and the figure of the Immortal Corps Commander standing at the center.
I gripped the shaft of the spear firmly and pulled my arm back as far as possible. My muscles swelled as if they were about to burst, and with all my strength, I hurled the spear forward.
With the shockwave exploding, the spear, flying faster than sound, tore through space towards the Immortal Corps Commander.
[What…!]
Bboom!!!
The moment the spear hit, the surrounding ground collapsed as if an explosion had occurred, and dust swirled up.
When the dust cleared, the Immortal Corps Commander, who had lost his left arm to the shoulder, came into view.
His upper body peeking through the torn robe looked like a skeleton with only bones remaining.
[You, monster…! How could you dissipate 20% of the souls I gathered in the underworld in an instant? It would have taken a day to absorb all of them! Damn it…!]
The Immortal Corps Commander, having lost his left arm, walked towards the dimensional door.
I couldn’t let him escape. The moment I landed, I automatically retrieved Ajetus and sprinted towards the dimensional door with all my might.
The enormous thunderous sound and shockwave that accompanied me were not due to dark mana, but due to the speed surpassing the speed of sound. Just by running, I was destroying the ground around me, and the souls rushing towards me were swept up in the shockwave and bounced back.
The moment the Immortal Corps Commander entered the dimensional door, it started to shrink rapidly.
Just before the dimensional door completely closed, I threw myself in with a narrow margin.
Immediately, my field of view was dyed with darkness.
