Chapter 143
I woke up from meditation and looked around.
As expected, the surroundings were in a miserable state.
It had been a wasteland with not a blade of grass to begin with, but now a sand dune had formed.
The fine sand was so soft I sank in past my ankles.
“As expected, this was the right place to do it.”
If I'd done it at home or in the warehouse, I'd have ended up on the news.
And the valuable materials would have blown away too.
“Huh? Where's the bag?”
[Here it is. You idiot.]
I heard the black mage's voice from beneath my feet.
I hurriedly dug through the sand.
My bag and plastic bottle, buried in the sand, came into view.
“Good. My stuff's fine.”
[... And you aren't worried about me?]
“What, jealous?”
[What the hell, you stupid, uncivilized bastard... I almost got buried alive in the sand. Do you know how terrifying it is when the bottle keeps shrinking?!]
“At least you're alive.”
[Ha, this is the first time I've seen someone talk to a lich like that.]
I brushed the dirt off the plastic bottle cleanly.
The black mage went quiet, looking drained, and then studied me closely.
[Did it work?]
“Yeah, now only the heart's left.”
[Congratulations. Soon you'll be able to access the back half of the book.]
“Ah, that.”
The grimoire I received as a gift from Teach.
I wasn't qualified to read the back half.
The qualification was being able to perfectly control the entire body.
In other words, success at full-body sandification.
At the time it had seemed like a far-off goal, but before I knew it only the heart remained.
“The next stage was erosion, right?”
[Yeah. It's the stage where the individual expands into the world.]
A vague explanation, as expected from a mage from the Tower.
I left the black mage alone and checked how my body was doing.
Having my head turn to sand was a little scary, after all.
“My brain won't stop thinking just because it turns to sand, right?”
[Hm? Why would thinking stop when the brain disappears? It's not the heart, is it?]
“What?”
[Hm?]
“Just asking, but what do you think the brain does?”
[You bastard, I am a black mage who has reached the pinnacle. I know the human body better than anyone.]
“Cut the crap and answer.”
[Naturally....]
“Naturally?”
[The organ that cools the blood.]
“…Then the heart?”
[The organ where the soul resides, which rules the body and circulates the blood.]
“You bastard, I caught you.”
This bastard must've been calling me a blockhead all the time.
So you can't even tell the difference between heart and brain, and you dare look down on me?
Then wasn't the hexagonal water you mentioned last time bullshit too?
[Th-there's no way.... If I was wrong, then why has this body's magic worked without any problems until now?]
“Well, that does make sense...?”
When I hesitated for a moment, the black mage didn't miss the opening and started rebutting me.
[In the first place, have you ever personally tested the brain theory? Have you ever cut out a brain and tried thinking afterward?]
“Of course not. But doctors and scientists have researched it diligently.”
[Doctors? Scientists? What kind of job is that? Are they people who can use magic?]
“Uh...?”
I had nothing to say.
Could it be that mages really do think with their hearts?
[Try it once. Then you'll know.]
“What if I can't come back?”
[Sandworm promises to take responsibility and rewind time.]
[Rewind time? What kind of nonsense is that now....]
“Don't go getting surprised by every little thing all over again.”
I let out a long breath.
It was a point I had to check, even if it was a little—no, a lot—scary.
“Then here I go....”
At my will, my head began to disperse little by little.
My head crumbling bit by bit, from right to left.
The first thing I felt was a change in my field of vision.
My vision slowly narrowed as my eyes disappeared.
[Focus. You can already see without eyes.]
“…Right, that's true.”
Insight, which lets me see the flow of mana and life force.
It wasn't something caused by light and optic nerves. It was, literally, the domain of magic.
I sharpened the sensation of Insight even further.
“I can see.”
The objects around me were drawn in vivid detail once more.
A 360-degree field of vision, like playing a third-person game.
A true sensation I had only regained after losing ordinary sight.
I expanded my awareness.
10m, 50m, 100m
Everything within that range was felt vividly, down to the smallest particle.
“Going farther....”
I turned the rest of my head completely into sand and let it collapse.
No brain, no mouth, no ears left.
Even so, the sensations felt vivid.
‘My voice won't come out.’
My mouth, tongue, and throat had all turned into grains of sand.
With no organ left to vibrate the air, there was no way sound could come out.
[You can. You're a mage.]
‘But how...? No, don't say it. I think I know.’
[Hmm....]
I came up with the method before the black mage could continue speaking.
The Siren's vocal cords.
I brought back the feeling of shaping my voice with mana.
As the mana in the air trembled faintly, the sand grains moved in response to the vibration, revealing the source of the sound.
It was as if a giant speaker had been set up around me.
“Aah, mic test.... Easy. Success.”
[You're quick. A fine student.]
“Who's your student?”
Strictly speaking, I'd say I'm self-taught.
“Voice modulation works well too. Using the Siren's vocal cords is no problem.”
In fact, it was easier than speaking normally, since I didn't need to pause for breaths in between.
It seemed like I could keep talking without breathing at all.
I don't know if it'd be useful for anything besides rapping, though.
“My brain's gone, but it doesn't seem to affect my thinking.”
If anything, my head felt clearer.
A head with no fatigue or stray thoughts.
I should probably take an IQ test to compare properly, but that's a pass for now.
In many ways, this was fascinating. Did a mage's self really reside in the heart?
“This is fun, though...?”
I devoted myself even more to the tests.
I floated a handful of sand in the air and clumped it into the shape of an eyeball.
Another screen appeared in my mind.
It felt like watching a CCTV feed.
‘It's weird that it shows up in my head when I don't even have a head.’
[You'll get used to it.]
I could feel the eyeball's vision, separate from my body's senses, at the same time.
It was a little dizzying, but I quickly got used to it.
I moved the eyeball around.
The eyeball flew up into a tree and looked down over the forest.
“A biological drone.”
Just a little thought made it obvious that this ability had endless uses.
Around then, I drew the sand back in again.
Swish-swish.
Even the soft feel of skin and the swish of hair, too.
The grains of sand returned to their places, recreating my familiar face.
“I graduated from being human.”
[That's because you're a mage.]
I'd felt it a few times before, but actually being able to detach and reattach my head at will was a whole different experience.
“Eh, stronger is stronger.”
I decided to think positively.
Philosophical concerns about humanity and all that didn't suit me anyway.
That was it. Time to go home.
I teleported home with practiced ease.
***
The sound of the TV drifted from the living room.
When I went up, Chohogi was sitting on the desk, looking at a phone.
The sprout on Chohogi's head bobbed to the rhythm.
“I'm out.”
“!”
At my voice, Chohogi shot up and turned to look.
It looked ready to wag a tail that didn't even exist.
But when it saw me coming up from the basement, it froze in place.
“Hi.”
I was holding my head in both hands.
Like a Dullahan cosplay, maybe.
A severed head talking, with the space above the neck empty.
“......”
Twitch-twitch.
The sprout on Chohogi's head trembled, as if reflecting its emotions.
Its eyes widened little by little.
“Peekaboo.”
“!!!!!!”
I playfully lifted my head and shoved it toward Chohogi.
Chohogi let out a silent scream and toppled backward.
It looked like it was about to faint.
I chuckled and put my head back on my neck.
“Sorry, sorry.”
Seeing me back to normal, Chohogi cautiously approached.
It clung to my body, sniffed me, and poked my cheek.
It seemed to be checking whether I was really me.
“At this rate, other people's reactions should be good too.”
Excited, I took out my phone, snapped a photo, and uploaded it to the gallery.
My first verification shot posted to the Hunter Gallery.
[Title: Late-night Hunter flesh reveal…jpg]
[Author: ㅇㅇ(99Y.9Y9)]
[(Photo of an eyeball rolling around on a palm)]
[First time posting a body pic. Rate it.]
The response was explosive.
ㄴ No, you fucking bastard. That's a cursed image.
ㄴ What is this? A model?
ㄴ Ah, fuck.
ㄴ I dropped my phone and cracked it. Pay me back.
ㄴ Reported. Later.
ㄴ What the hell are the mods doing!!!!!!!
[This post has been deleted by an administrator.]
“Ah.”
In the end, the post was taken down in less than a minute.
“So who do I show this to now...?”
Jung Manho? No, if I showed it to that old man, he might have a heart attack.
Isn't there someone with enough guts who'd react well too?
Two people immediately came to mind.
But one of them was fulfilling their S-rank duties, so I couldn't meet them right away.
That left only one.
“I guess I'd better go to the 46th floor.”
I headed for the next floor without hesitation.
***
[Entering Tower Floor 46 (EXTREME).]
When I opened my eyes, the familiar smell of the sea hit my nose.
“Have you arrived?”
I walked straight up to Teach and pulled the gun from his waist.
“Teach, shoot me with this.”
“Pardon?”
Teach's eyes went wide.
“I didn't mishear you, did I?”
“Yeah. Aim straight for my head and shoot.”
I tapped my own forehead with a finger.
With the automatic barrier turned off as well.
“All right, then.”
Bang!
The muzzle spat fire.
With a dull thud, half my head vanished.
“….”
I stared blankly at Teach, my head half gone.
Teach casually blew the smoke from the muzzle and said,
“Perfect headshot. How was it? My marksmanship's pretty good, right?”
“…….”
No, this isn't how it's supposed to go.
I drew the sand back in and restored my head.
“Why aren't you surprised?”
“Surprised?”
“No, I mean, a human head just exploded in front of you. You should at least scream.”
“Ah, come on. I'm not that green.”
As expected of an utterly ruthless pirate, Teach was calm as ever.
Looks like he'd already blown off a few human heads long ago.
I asked in disbelief.
“You didn't hesitate once. What if I really died?”
“From the first time we met, I saw you blocking bullets like they were nothing. And now...? I shot because I knew you wouldn't die.”
“….”
“Besides, your face just now was way too confident. I figured you had something to rely on.”
“Tch, boring.”
“Should I do it again?”
“No, forget it...”
I grumbled and handed the gun back to Teach.
“Where are we headed this time?”
“See for yourself.”
Teach pulled out a compass and shook it in front of me.
“Hey, who holds a compass like that? Put it horizontal.”
“No. Right now, this is correct.”
A compass held vertically.
It pointed downward.