Chapter 127
I went to the Telema School building, after finishing business at Golden Intellect.
Returning to this place that now felt like home, it really seemed like things had come to a conclusion.
Although I heard some shocking results in many ways, arriving at this place I consider my nest made me feel a bit calmer.
And adding to that, the voice I always heard.
"You're back?"
Hecate, who always stayed at the Telema School and welcomed Devil Sorcerers who visited.
Somehow, I felt human emotions were mysterious.
Unlike with Mea, I didn't have any particularly great memories or regular lessons with Hecate, but just seeing her every day, greeting and talking, made me feel this familiar.
Responding to Hecate's greeting and sitting across from her, Hecate, who was guarding the bar table, took out a glass and poured from a bottle, saying I worked hard.
The contents were still water.
"Hasn't business been good lately?"
"Ah, that... it's over."
The irregular monster Evolver that appeared in the First Floor.
Many people wanted to research its special ability to instantly evolve by adapting to its opponent.
It was natural that supply increased as demand increased.
Devil Sorcerers being natural enemies, the Telema School enjoyed a very rare boom period, but it cooled down really quickly.
"There's almost none left now. And it wasn't something only Devil Sorcerers could catch anyway."
"That's true."
It was shocking that even Senior rank had difficulty dealing with it on the First Floor.
Frankly speaking, if Expert rank Explorers set their minds to catching it, it wouldn't stand a chance.
The guys who came to the Telema School hoping to make a big score were either from the early days when there was almost no information, or those with similar skills trying to exploit the type advantage cleverly.
"More importantly, how is it? Did you get a diagnosis?"
"Well, about that..."
How should I put it?
While I was choosing my words, Mea, who had passed by Hecate and helped herself to a glass, sitting next to me, said, "It's okay. Hecate doesn't have anyone to tell anyway."
Did she think I was hesitant to speak because it was sensitive information?
It seemed like she was trying to reassure me, but wasn't that too harsh?
I think it would be better to wipe off the white mark on your mouth before speaking, though.
"...A mistake."
Let's leave it at that.
The important thing is my story.
"It seems I'm in a state similar to a kind of Philosopher's Stone."
"Philosopher's Stone? Interference with the phenomenal world?"
"You know about it?"
I knew Hecate was knowledgeable, but every time she showed such a truly smart moment, I couldn’t shake off the feeling of surprise.
This is why first impressions are scary, I guess.
"How do you think of me... Of course I know that much."
"Um, I'm sorry."
"It's fine. Ordinary mages don't usually think about such things. Anyway, this is serious. Roman, you're really going through a lot, aren't you? No, I guess it's natural if it's natural?"
"Natural?"
Surprisingly, Hecate showed a more intense reaction to my question about whether she knew about it than to the statement that I had become a living Philosopher's Stone, which she was only slightly surprised by at first.
Taking it a step further, she accepted the reality I was experiencing even faster than I did.
Rather than simply because it was someone else's business, she seemed to accept it as if it really was natural.
In response to my words, Hecate readily explained why she thought so.
"But, Roman is already receiving the love of Devils, right?"
Borrowing the power of Devils without paying any price, freely wielding that limitless authority.
In fact, during this expedition, I clearly saw with my own eyes how amazing the power I was casually wielding was.
Thanks in part to the Smite magic obtained from the floating island, but the foundation of that power ultimately originates from Devils.
The fact that I, a newcomer who had barely been around for a year, possessed firepower capable of landing effective hits on Master-rank Explorers was something unthinkable by common sense.
It was beyond the norm.
It was a power that broke providence beyond common sense.
"So, you should accept receiving the world's hatred to some extent."
"The world's hatred... isn't that too large a scale?"
"Receiving the favor of Devils isn't much different, you know?"
In some ways, it might be an even bigger concept than the world.
The world we lived in was limited, but the other side we didn't know, the outer world where Devils lived, was probably closer to the concept of infinity.
Hecate offered those words, unclear whether they were consolation or a lecture.
"But if you handle it well, you've gained tremendous power, right? A legacy left by the Mother of Alchemy. If others heard about it, they'd try to get it even if it meant living a life of being chased forever, wouldn't they?"
"That's true."
"If you hide it well, nothing much will happen, right?"
Is this giving the disease and the cure?
"So. Are you learning to handle the power of the Divine Blood Serum at Golden Intellect?"
"It seems that's how it will be. For now, Costin is cooperating, and they say we can get cooperation from the Naturalis side because of this incident. It's also a power closer to alchemy than magic."
"Is that so? Then that too?"
"Ah... that."
I was going to talk about that anyway.
This was a good opportunity.
Let's talk about this too while we're at it.
"That's a bit troublesome. There's no one to use it, and I don't really know how to use it either."
"Is that so? Artifacts are usually like that. There's a reason why there are appraisers who figure out things like effects and uses separately, right?"
Hecate's face brightened considerably.
It was a change in expression that made me think this might have been her goal from the start.
Even Hecate, when one looked at her like this, really couldn’t manage her expressions well.
But when one actually saw her using Devil Magic, her poker face was solid.
It was kind of like becoming an expert in one’s own field.
Anyway, with her reacting like that, it wouldn't be right to just pass it over.
"Would you like to research it a bit, Hecate?"
"Hmm~ What should I do~ I'm so busy these days, no, but if Roman asks, well, I guess there's nothing I can't do. Um... the appraisal fee..."
"Then I guess I'll have to leave it to the Golden Intellect side."
"No! I'll do it! Let me do it!"
Now you're being honest.
You should have been like this from the start.
"I'll be counting on you this time too. You know I trust you, right?"
The legacy Cordelia left in the Third Floor.
The second of her experimental items following the Divine Blood Serum.
An unidentified wooden stick of which we only knew the name.
Sinchoir.
To be frank, leaving it to the Naturalis side would be most efficient... but they couldn’t be trusted.
Here, Hecate with the highest trustworthiness was the perfect choice.
"I'm counting on you."
"...Okay."
It's a public meal you chose yourself.
Let's go along with it willingly, Hecate.
§
Back at Golden Intellect again.
But this time, Costin's workshop wasn't the destination.
I was now at the Naturalis branch, the most remote branch among Golden Intellect's branches.
"I'm Gauron."
The head of the Naturalis branch.
His first impression was intense.
Usually, when one thought of an alchemist, the general stereotype was that they were similar to mages, or a bit more research-oriented.
However, Gauron was the opposite of such typical alchemists.
Muscles that looked like they might burst.
As if he'd given up on covering them with clothes, he openly displayed his muscular upper body wearing only a fur vest.
Even among the Martial School, there might be few who have trained their bodies as robustly as this.
And what about his face?
Unlike his body teeming with vitality, his face showed traces of entering old age.
These traces could be found not only in the wrinkles carved on his face but also in his hair.
His long hair, grown wildly in a way that seemed more suited to the wilderness than civilization, was about half white, clearly the white hair of old age different from graying.
His expression, mastering the three elements of strictness, stoicism, and seriousness, completed the heavy atmosphere in harmony with his massive physique.
Is he really an alchemist?
No matter how one looked at it, he gave the impression that he could easily smash rocks with his fists.
"I'm Roman."
"I've heard the story. My disciple caused trouble."
Unlike his intimidating appearance, Gauron used a fairly polite tone.
Of course, that might not be his real personality but rather situational.
From the Naturalis branch's standpoint, it was a situation where their cherished royal blood successor might or might not have a fatal blemish.
Naturally, they had no choice but to take a somewhat humble attitude.
The conversation shouldn't be difficult.
But it seemed there was no need to worry about such things.
"I heard about the problem from the Chicken Dragon."
Gauron started by openly using Costin's derogatory nickname.
"The body can't keep up with the expansion of senses, it said."
"...That's roughly it."
Costin didn't accurately convey my condition.
It shouldn't have.
And that was what it told the Naturalis side.
The discrepancy between sensation and cognition.
And that wasn’t entirely wrong either.
The moment I entered the World of Forms, I was swallowed by that vast and profound amount of information.
In other words, there was a lot of information detected, but the mind couldn’t process it.
"It's a common case. Especially for mages."
"Is that so?"
"The Chicken Dragon must have explained it to you? Unlike us who prioritize understanding principles, mages are greedy. They're the type to first possess mysteries they can't handle. What you've touched is probably similar. It might be our ancestor's legacy, after all."
Unlike us who had definite evidence, from Blobel's standpoint who only had information provided by Abyss Worshippers, it was natural to have some doubt about whether it was really Cordelia's legacy.
Probably Gauron's ready promise of assistance was also because he wanted to confirm that.
"We repay what we receive. The principle of equivalent exchange is ingrained in life. Don't worry. With our Naturalis branch's alchemy, we can easily solve that much."
§
"...It's not working."