Free Web NovelChapter 180: Phlegra Continent [4]
Chapter 179
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Episode 42 - Phlegra Continent [4]
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The professor talked about a few more things and, shortly afterward, left.
The Abyss Containment Team.
It was a place where a military city stood, one that was difficult to access.
Only merchants, caravans, and, in general, people with major businesses were allowed to enter that place.
The Abyss Containment Team was established around one of the entrances to the World of Abyss.
They guarded one of the entrances that had been sealed in that very location, the largest entrance—or rather, the main portal.
The portal itself was located elsewhere; however, setting that aside, the leader of the Abyss Containment Team was a Ten-Star Awakened.
And the duty of the Abyss Containment Team was to observe, study, guard, and protect the entrance to the Abyss.
And currently, all the cadets were heading to that very place to take their final examinations over the course of an entire week.
Lumina reviewed the memories of her previous regression and what had happened there.
’The resurrection of an Apostle.’
It happened on the very last day, when everyone was leaving.
And it just so happened that, at that moment, the Ten-Star Awakened, William Ortlock, had been summoned to the World Congress.
A place where all Ten-Star Awakened gathered whenever something related to the Abyss occurred. fɾēewebnσveℓ.com
’Aside from the Apostle, there’s also the Ice Queen, who is responsible for reviving him.’
The problem was that the Ice Queen had already completed all her preparations; she simply had to wait for a natural phenomenon in which the moon and the sun aligned.
It was a condition required to revive the Apostle, who was not actually one hundred percent dead; rather, he was in a state of freezing or hibernation.
Not even William or the other Ten-Star Awakened knew of this Apostle’s existence.
But aside from that, Lumina looked in a specific direction.
".....?"
Her body froze for the second time, but she immediately regained control of her emotions.
’Why do I feel like he’s looking at me?’
Even though he was blind, the feeling remained.
Lumina glanced out of the corner of her eye at Adel, who was seated in the distance. His head was turned in her direction.
If not for the bandages covering his eyes, he would probably have been looking directly at Lumina.
’Ugh, why did I say that in his room? What was I thinking?’
Now, after looking at Adel, it seemed as though he was openly saying, "I’m suspicious," without anyone needing to spell it out.
Lost in her thoughts, she suddenly felt the airship begin to vibrate.
That meant the journey to the Abyss Containment Team was beginning now.
And throughout that entire trip, for some reason, Lumina kept running into Adel over and over again.
***
I felt the airship begin to take off, and while I was absorbed in my thoughts about Lumina,
suddenly, the Mission Window appeared in my mind.
Without wasting any time, I focused my thoughts, and a screen appeared before me.
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■| Chapter No. 2, Part Two: Apostle.
Category: Main Story.
Difficulty: ★★★★★★★
Description: The Apostle Kaiser, who had been frozen at the center of a great mountain, suddenly returns to the world, seeking to return to the Abyss in order to deliver a report to an unknown entity.
∆ Time Limit: 7 days.
∆ Reward: Philosopher’s Stone.
∆ Failure: The Gates to the Abyss will open.
∆ Status: In Progress.
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"...?"
Even with my expressionless face, I had to read the difficulty section more than once.
’Seven Stars...’
Such an absurdly high difficulty for only the second Chapter of the story.
A difficulty like this should have been reserved, at the very least, for Chapter Three or Four.
And that was assuming we were unlucky by then.
I let out a sigh and rubbed my temples while reviewing the description and, shortly afterward, the reward.
’Philosopher’s Stone... I know what this is, but only from texts. In a world where mana exists, I have no idea.’
It seemed more like some kind of forging material, perhaps.
Then I thought about my sword.
If it really was a forging material, and considering the difficulty was Seven Stars,
then this material would be on the level of a mythical substance described only in legends.
’If it really turns out to be a material, it could probably improve my sword to a completely different level.’
Of course, it was a Mythical-Rank sword, but that did not mean it could never break or become damaged.
In any case, it was not a sword with something like self-repair.
’Come to think of it, Inverted Heaven is a sword that has probably never received maintenance since my master started using it.’
Although I did not really feel the need to look for a blacksmith to inspect my sword.
Still, I reviewed the reward once more and then stopped at the mission’s failure condition.
’The Apostle Kaiser will probably open the entrance to the Abyss that is located somewhere within the Abyss Containment Team.’
Once that entrance was opened, thousands of creatures would crawl out of the Abyss and into this world.
And the entire Phlegra Continent would suffer a global-scale invasion within a few months.
Unless all the Ten-Star Awakened worked together to seal the entrance to the Abyss.
But even that would be an extremely difficult task.
Because to close one of those entrances, also known as a <Mirror Gate>, a seal is required that only a Ten-Star mage, together with the assistance of dozens of Nine-Star mages, could perform.
And that would take several days, making it a period of continuous attrition.
Shortly afterward, I dismissed the Mission Window from my mind and refocused on my current objective.
But then...
"....?"
’Where is she?’
Lumina had disappeared. I turned my head and searched for her throughout the lobby using my senses, but she wasn’t here.
’I keep wondering this, but... how does she manage to evade my senses? In theory, that should be almost impossible.’
According to my memories, Lumina only has one Trait capable of concealing her presence and disappearing from the radar of my senses.
That would be her Trait, <Absolute Concealment>.
Although its effect worked at one hundred percent during a full moon, it wasn’t necessary for the moonlight to shine directly on her body.
’The only way to evade my senses would be with a counterpart to my own senses, although in theory, I don’t think such a Trait exists.’
Basically, it would be a negative version of my Trait, Nine Heavens Senses.
In any case, thinking about something like that was pointless.
I got up from my seat and left the lobby.
I intended to look for her.
I wanted to get the answer to my question directly from her, although I wasn’t completely sure about it.
Besides, because Lumina possesses many Traits, her strength surpasses mine, so forcing information out of her wasn’t an option.
And in any case, she has tremendous perseverance. After all, she has lived the same life ten thousand times, and every single one of those lives ended in failure.
I walked through a corridor with hurried steps.
Anyone would think I was chasing someone, but it didn’t matter.
I used my senses, but I never managed to find her, so I gave up and simply used my strange vision to "see" my surroundings.
Along the way, the airship staff greeted me kindly.
Perhaps because this wasn’t the Holy Continent.
Most of the people I encountered were friendly.
’Maybe I should transfer to another Academy.’
As I walked while searching for Lumina, my senses suddenly picked up something.
It was a heartbeat that I recognized immediately. However, the moment I heard it, it vanished without a trace.
Without wasting any time, I quickly headed toward the source of the sound.
I reached a corner and, thanks to my vision, noticed a silhouette taking shape on the other side of the corridor before disappearing.
’There you are.’
This time, I walked as if I were lost, and whenever a member of the airship staff passed by, I asked for directions.
So before long, I reached the corner of the corridor. Without hesitation, I turned it, but...
’No one. Don’t tell me I imagined it.’
In front of me was only a straight corridor with no side paths and a door at the end.
But using my senses, I could tell that there were airship personnel on the other side of that door, so it was restricted to authorized staff only.
’Well, I’ll find her later.’
I turned around and decided to return to the lobby.
***
"Ah... ah... M-my mana has run out."
Lumina’s figure appeared in the middle of a corridor, sweat beading across her forehead as overwhelming exhaustion spread through her body.
When an Awakened completely depletes their mana, they normally experience intense fatigue, as if they had run far beyond their limits.
However, when she thought about the person who had been following her, Lumina didn’t care about spending all of her mana.
’Absolute Concealment without a full moon consumes twice as much mana... At this rate, I’ll have to make do with that Trait I learned from him.’
Lumina let out a sigh and stepped out of the corridor where she had been hiding. Then she noticed Adel’s back in the distance.
’Just as I thought, it seems he’s paying attention to me now.’
She internally cursed herself for having said more than she should have when the two of them had been alone.
