Walter shouted furiously at my blunt words. “Don’t try to make me feel guilty! Isn’t it the same as saying I’m already dead even if I’m still breathing.. If I were to save them, I would die! No more… no more! I wouldn’t be able to see Sheliak!”
I looked at him placidly. “But even if you don’t destroy the magic, you can’t see Sheliak either, right?” Walter remained silent. I continued, “Do you hold any hope that you’ll be able to see her when you can’t even leave this place?”
“… If I’m alive won’t she be able to see me!”
People became foolish and desperate in the face of death. Either because they were scared, or they were in a hurry. I raised my head and looked straight at Walter.
“No one can enter this place,” I slowly said.
“But, you-”
“Didn’t I already tell you? I’m a victim of time magic – just like you. That’s why I was able to come in. But… Sheliak isn’t one, right?”
Walter didn’t seem convinced. “In the end, you’re asking me to sacrifice myself.”
“I said that it was your choice,” I replied. Then in a hardened voice, I asked, “Then, do you want Sheliak to experience being trapped in time magic just so she can come here?”
“That’s ridiculous!”
Enraged, Walter jumped out of his seat and slammed his fists on the table. He closed his eyes and shook his head. He was terrified just thinking about it.
“Such, such… such a terrifying thing… how could she…”
I watched sympathetically. I, too, once held a little, fragile hope that someone would come to rescue me. But besides that, I had extraordinary mental strength thanks to my advantage of a second life. I had maintained time magic for a hundred years without breaking because of it.
However, Walter was different. Born weak and with only a few days left to live, he was unstable, both in mind and body. Even if he didn’t have a few days left to live, he’d be as bad as the other mediums if the time magic was broken.
He spoke as if he had a choice, but his pale face and his ragged breathing whenever he was furious showed that his mental and physical strength were at their limit.
I gauged the situation at hand. Three months. That was the limit of time he could maintain with his mental power.
Walter was still in a deadlock. He was torn and confused, unwilling to give himself up. I slowly rose from my seat and soothingly patted him on the shoulder.
“Walter, communication magic and telekinesis are currently impossible in Hoiore. Do you have any idea how worried Sheliak is?” I said.
“…Hahhh…”
“Should I lie to her and remain mum about you?”
Tears fell from Walter’s brown eyes. “I… I’d like to say my goodbyes to her first…” he mumbled.
Indeed, a mention of a special person can change someone’s mind. Walter swayed back and forth, his spirit was crumbling, but his words were sincere. He wanted to die valiantly without regrets before he died.
‘From the very beginning, he held out until someone came to save him…’
My nose prickled unconsciously. For some reason, it felt personal. Walter must’ve waited eagerly just like I had waited for Kaichen every day, preparing portraits of criminals, and preparing myself to say goodbye. No matter how much I wanted to live, I didn’t want to live in a frozen place just to achieve immortality.
I composed myself and approached him. “I’m sorry for asking this, but… after telling her your goodbyes, is it alright if I investigate you as a medium?” I asked.
Walter nodded his head.
Fortunately, the video-storing magic I learned from Kaichen to use for pranks, finally had a purpose and could be used for Walter. I turned around, walked to a corner, all the while trying to hold back my tears as Walter said his goodbyes.
After he said his farewells, I temporarily placed the video in the communication seat ring given to me by Julius. Walter looked at me.
“What should I do next?” he asked in a tight voice.
I coughed loudly and held out my hand. “I’m not as gentle as Master, so I’m not very good at it, but I’m going to take a look at your body. Relax and don’t move even if you feel strange,” I said.
“Alright.”
I grabbed his hand after telling him to lean back comfortably on the sofa. Walter’s hands were as cold as mine. It felt a little strange since I had only ever held Kaichen’s warm hands. I closed my eyes slowly and poured my magic into Walter’s body, erasing other thoughts.
‘Pour in the magic and feel it naturally. If he’s affected by time magic, there should be something dark and listless, just like I had…”
My brows scrunched in concentration as my magic attempted to infiltrate Walter’s body.
“Ugh…”
Walter let out a short moan at the unfamiliar sensation, but not to the point that it felt intrusive.
‘Ah, found it! It’s the time magic crystal appears when a person becomes a medium. Judging by the fact that it’s so small… the size seems proportional to the time spent in the time magic space.’
I initially rejoiced. Then I felt something strange when I examined his body, as I recalled the time I examined my own body with Kaichen at the willow house.
‘Oh? What is this? It’s a familiar sensation…’
The closer I moved my mana, the worse he felt.
