Chapter 59
Wolfram was trying to figure out where she was by looking at her surroundings.
Even for her, who had experienced many things living as a magician, this kind of kidnapping and confinement was a first.
Water dripped from the ceiling, and her arms and legs were tightly bound with shackles. Even when she tried to use magic, she couldn't do it without her staff.
'I'm sure I... lost consciousness after encountering that girl called Bing Seolhwa...'
An appearance believable as Bing Yeon's sister, the characteristic appearance of the Northern Sea Ice Palace was striking enough for even Wolfram, who didn't know much about the martial world, to notice.
'...I almost died.'
Wolfram recalled the situation just before she lost consciousness.
A feast of numerous tentacles approaching to devour her and incomprehensible languages. A wave of chilling sensation as if a knife was scraping her brain.
Anyone would think it wasn't something a human would do. It wasn't magic, nor a type of martial art, and it felt like something similar to a Demon King rather than a god.
Something wearing human skin. Wolfram, who had felt a more cruel killing intent than the dark mages of the continent, swallowed hard and looked around to see if there was any way to escape from here.
"......"
She kept silent, suppressing even her breathing, as it wouldn't do to scream for help.
The place she was in now seemed to be an underground room in the enemy's main base. If someone heard a sound and came down to check, or an even worse situation could unfold.
─ Thump, thump, thump.
At that moment, she heard someone's presence. A noise that sounded like the footsteps of two people. As soon as she heard it, Wolfram tried to improvise by relaxing her body and pretending to be unconscious, but...
"Hey, this one seems to be awake."
"......!!!"
It didn't work on the two who came down. They noticed that she had regained consciousness and were approaching closer.
"S-Stop...! Do you know who I am? I am..."
Wolfram tried to utter threatening words towards the ruffians closing in on her.
She thought that since she was also the master of a magic tower, called a pillar supporting the world, they might at least not harm her if she revealed her identity, but...
"...We know very well. Golden Pagoda Lord, Wolfram Alchemista. Aren't you the magician and alchemist researching alchemy to turn stone into gold?"
As if such threats didn't work, the boy tapping a white staff on the floor smiled at her.
"If you know my identity, it would be better not to lay hands on me. Unless you want to make enemies of the entire magic tower!"
At this point, it was all or nothing. She could only hope that even if she died here, other people from the magic tower would avenge her.
The being that had kidnapped her was beyond human standards. To defeat such a thing, she had to struggle even if it meant going berserk.
"Don't misunderstand, we came here to help you escape."
Seeing Wolfram frowning, Sieghart extended his hand to show he had no intention of harming her. He had come with Kim Hyul to rescue Wolfram, who was being held hostage.
"...What did you say?"
"Yes, because we thought that would be helpful to us."
The steel restraints crumbled easily like an apple being split, turning into fragments. Kim Hyul nodded and demonstrated his strength by breaking the shackles binding her with his bare hands.
"We also have our families held hostage, so we need to capture that woman called Bing Seolhwa and teach her a lesson."
Kim Hyul gritted his teeth thinking of Bing Seolhwa. At first, he thought she had saved him from bandits out of goodwill, but when he didn't obey the order to kill someone, she resorted to using his family as leverage.
Kim Hyul felt a deep sense of betrayal, to the point where he had never regretted trusting someone even for a moment.
"That's right, to catch an Outer God, we'll essentially need your help, the magic tower's, and... that man called Bing Yeon's."
The same was true for Sieghart.
Bing Seolhwa, possessed by Shub-Niggurath, had ordered him to kill Verdandi, Azazel, or Bi Wol, and when he didn't listen, she made all sorts of threats and eventually kidnapped his sister.
Sieghart, the protagonist of "A Hero Must Die," who could notice before anyone else that Bing Seolhwa was being controlled by a strange being, in exchange for his blindness.
This was also the reason why he deliberately pretended to kill Verdandi during the Dragon Phoenix Gathering, but actually stabbed her avoiding vital points to preserve her life.
To test the hope of protecting his family.
"Now all the conditions are met. Bing Yeon's disciples were stronger than we thought, and if we have you as an ally, they won't be able to easily touch our families."
"...How can you be so sure?"
Wolfram couldn't understand the current situation. Even if she had figured out with her superior magician's detection ability that some strange god had possessed the girl called Bing Seolhwa,
"I could betray you. I might not care that your families are being held hostage."
She didn't understand why Kim Hyul and Sieghart were trying to rescue her now. Bing Seolhwa was someone with such an overwhelming presence that anyone would tremble before her.
She couldn't understand why they were trying to rescue her while going against such a person.
"...There doesn't seem to be any mental contamination, that's lucky."
At this, Kim Hyul nodded while looking at Wolfram, showing an expression of relief. He had even considered the possibility that she might have become a puppet like Kang Si-woo, contaminated by Shub-Niggurath.
"It seems that being a figure of Golden Pagoda Lord level, she used magic before losing consciousness."
Sieghart deduced the reason why Wolfram was normal unlike Kang Si-woo.
As a powerful figure who was the master of a magic tower, called a pillar supporting this world, she must have been able to deal with the Outer God's mental attack to some extent.
"That's right, I used the secret magic of the Golden Pagoda just before those strange tentacles were about to swallow me. So I'd appreciate it if you didn't approach me carelessly either."
Wolfram nodded, confirming that Sieghart's guess was correct. She was threatening them by pointing as if she was about to use magic without her staff.
She was confused about what exactly was going on in this situation, and why such a strange foreign object was dwelling in Bing Seolhwa's body.
"Well, we're just doing what we think is right. Even if we might regret it later."
Kim Hyul smiled and helped Wolfram to her feet. It was a moment that awakened a new sensation in her as the touch of his firm muscles reached her.
"Hey, you...! What are you doing! You young brat...!"
Wolfram suddenly shouted with a bright red face in Kim Hyul's arms. It was her first physical contact with a man in her life.
"You probably don't have the strength to walk after not eating anything for days. Just accept the help without saying anything."
She noticed that there was kindness hidden in Kim Hyul's words spoken in a hard tone.
Based on the information she had heard so far, they were boys whose families were being held hostage by a being called an Outer God, just like her.
"So, are you on the same side as that woman called Bing Seolhwa?"
Wolfram barely managed to ask a question while covering her reddened face with her hand. From Kim Hyul and Sieghart's attitudes, she thought they were at least not enemies, but...
"...Or are you trying to betray her?"
She asked again just in case. Couldn't they be deceiving her and taking her back to that woman called Bing Seolhwa?
"To be more precise, we're reactionary figures who will betray that person. There's no reason for us to be disciples anymore."
As Sieghart said this, he raised his hand and grasped at the air. A black blade appeared, formed by shadows and flickering light melting together into a sword.
"...What?"
Wolfram let out a short exclamation.
It was a phenomenon she couldn't understand even after seeing it with her own eyes, enough to trigger a magician's characteristic curiosity.
How on earth was a sword created from thin air like that?
What kind of principle or material had to be consumed for such a phenomenon to occur? What would happen if this was applied to magic?
"Simply put, it means we're traitors. We're on the same side as you."
While she was staring blankly at Sieghart's sword, Kim Hyul's voice was heard as if whispering directly into her ear.
"Let's go outside now. If she finds out that the person being used as a hostage has escaped, that woman called Bing Seolhwa will be extremely angry."
Sieghart swung his sword towards the ceiling, and immediately an exit to the outside was created.
"Yeah, hold on tight. I'll give you more explanations as we move."
Kim Hyul picked up Wolfram in his arms and climbed up the slope formed by the collapsed ground above. The sensation of wind different from the musty underground air and sunlight was seeping in.
'This boy... does he like me? Going so far as to save me like this...'
Wolfram's imagination started to run wild as she was held in his arms.
Living as a magician, she had almost no contact with men like this due to being immersed in all-night research.
Unaware that a misunderstanding might be building up, Kim Hyul was using his lightness skill to run as fast as possible towards Bing Yeon's sect while carrying her.
At the moment Kim Hyul dashed off, at the Ice Dragon Flower Banquet where Bing Yeon was, three girls were gathered, chatting away.
"So, you're saying we need to reach the state of flower viewing as soon as possible to cure Brother?"
"...No matter what anyone says, I'm first."
"We won't know until we try it ourselves! Just like how I have talent in martial arts!"
Although they were wrapping it in the nice-sounding words of saving their master, the meaning contained in those words was filled with the most sinister desires.