The 31st Piece Turns the Tables

Chapter 173

Seol could feel Bornuil’s skin-piercing bloodlust.

‘How is that… possible?’

Seol had only felt bloodlust like that from monsters and demons, never humans.

‘Libra is being mind controlled? No, more importantly… who is he then?’

The evil taking the form of Bornuil answered the question.

“My name is Ur. Have you heard of me before?”

Frannan shook his head.

“I haven’t.”

"I see… Exactly how much time has passed?"

“Tell me… Who… and where are you from?’

Bornuil’s mouth opened wide, as if it was trying to split apart.

“I… am the root.”

“The root?”

Both Seol and Frannan turned pale upon hearing those words.

Bornuil sensed that his opponents understood the implications behind those words.

“Yes, those trees inside of you. They all stemmed from me.”

Seol couldn’t hide his shock at all.

‘He’s… talking about the skill trees!’

The skill trees.

Each tree had its unique shape and color, and one could make their efforts bear fruit by literally making the tree bear fruit.

‘So the skill trees weren’t just born on their own?’

Then how? How was Seol, who prided himself on his knowledge of Pandea, so clueless?

The man named Ur continued.

“I am the flame that was gifted to the humans… and the first wizard.”

“The first… wizard? What do you mean by wizard?”

“Do you not know of wizardry?”

“I know about magic.”

“Hmmm… so an imitation is the best you are capable of, I see.”

“Bwahaha… Look, we neither care nor want to know whether you’re the first wizard or not. The only thing I’m curious about right now is… why did you steal poor Bornuil’s body?”

Ur gave Frannan a straightforward answer.

"I woke up from a long, deep sleep. I sensed my chains had grown loose, and not too long after, my consciousness settled here."

“So you have been sleeping all this time… Then why did you take Libra’s body? Is it to get revenge on the ones who imprisoned you?”

“It is. However, after reading through this individual’s memories, I was utterly shocked.”

“Bornuil’s… memories?”

“Yes, do any of you know the name ‘Cron’?”

The expedition party’s expressions stiffened.

“Cron? I’ve never heard of that name before.”

“Is that so… then it truly was this person’s memories. Is Cron… dead?”

“Look, regardless of whoever or whatever this ‘Cron’ is, does that really matter when they’re likely gone?”

“Revenge was my greatest motivator, but it wasn’t my only motivator.”

“Then what motivates you now?”

“Fascination,” answered Ur.

“Fascination?”

"I will reenter this world and learn all its new knowledge."

“...And then?”

Ur finally revealed his true colors.

“Use that knowledge to rule over all life.”

“...That’s insane.”

“I simply will because I have the ability to do so.”

All of a sudden, a different voice flowed out of Bornuil—not Ur's, but Bornuil's.

“Frannan, did you bring this many people… to find me?”

“Bornuil? Are you alright?”

“Don’t worry about me. More importantly… you must stop him here.”

A new, comforting voice emerged from Bornuil, addressing the expedition party.

“He is evil, completely wicked to his core. I only managed to catch a glimpse into his heart, but… it was just endless darkness.”

"Even in your final moments, you continue to give us homework."

“...If you’re the one here, Frannan, and not another Aspect Magician, then there is still hope.”

“......”

“After all, you’re the only Aspect Magician who has devoted himself to magic as much as me, Frannan.”

Frannan closed his eyes.

He recalled a memory of Bornuil’s teachings.

- Balance exists everywhere in all of the Libra Tower’s teachings. It is essential to recognize that.

"O Libra, I shall think of these as our final words. Do you... have any advice?"

“Go all out from the start. Like a magician.”

Smile…

Frannan laughed.

Bornuil, seeing that, continued.

“Then now, I want you to give it your all… to kill me.”

“...Gladly. I will grant you your wish.”

Fwip!

Bornuil’s voice vanished like a spark, and Ur reappeared once more.

“How annoying… Let me offer you a proposal.”

“A proposal?”

"Is there anyone among you who wishes to welcome a brand new world with me?"

A few options then entered Seol’s vision. They were troublesome options, more so than his usual selection.

[[You stand at the crossroads between life and death! In the heart of Alcatron, a demonic dungeon, you've encountered Ur, an individual who claims to be the first wizard. He has proposed that you follow him. How do you respond?]

1. Accept Ur’s proposal.

2. Change the conditions.

3. Convince Ur.

4. [Dangers: Death] Face Ur.

……]

Seol looked back at the expedition party.

“......”

Their tense faces made Seol’s heart pound faster.

Clatter…

Seol, the Steel Lion, and Frannan stood at the vanguard.

“I don’t have time to explain everything, so I’ll transfer it directly into your heads,” said Frannan.

Snap!

[Frannan used Quick Lessons.]

[Your intent is delivered to your target.]

Crackle!

With a bolt of lightning, Frannan's intent was conveyed to everyone in the expedition party.

“Especially you, disciple. You have an important role. I’ll take care of whatever happens here, so conserve as much power as you can.”

Frannan’s plan was delivered directly into Seol’s head.

“I understand,” said Seol while nodding his head.

* * *

Translator - goguma

Proofreader - Karane

* * *

Frannan smiled, as if he felt he could trust in Seol, then took another step forward.

"Hey, you, the first-ever whatever the fuck. Do you know what demonic spirits are?"

"Scraps of demonic energy and wicked intent combined together. They're just trash, aren't they?"

Seol then heard a sound from his lantern.

[Toot.]

“......”

Frannan then responded to Ur.

“Yeah, I thought so too… at first.”

“...At first? Are you claiming that you hold a different opinion now?”

"Everything exists for a reason, including demonic spirits. A long time ago, I had a big fight with Bornuil because of the demonic spirit research I was conducting."

“Interesting. And?”

"Bornuil didn’t approve of my research. Demonic spirits are dangerous, after all. Yet, he couldn’t deny their power. Nonetheless, I informed him that I intended to stop my research there,” scoffed Frannan.

He then pulled out a pair of gloves from his inventory.

“That was a lie, obviously. I continued my research. And now, it’s finally complete. Hey, Bornuil, I don’t know if you’re listening right now, but…”

Frannan flashed Ur his palms.

There was a closed eye at the center of each of his palms.

“Say hello to ‘Teeth Grinder’ and ‘Snorer’.”

“What are those demonic spirits actually going to do?”

“After completing these two fellas, I’m…”

Frannan had a strange smile on his face.

“stronger than Bornuil.”

“......”

"This spell can activate once I clap my hands after explaining its principles to my opponent. Simple, right?"

Frannan turned back, looked at the expedition party members, then gestured with his head.

Ffft!

Fwoosh!

In an instant, the expedition party surrounded Ur in a circle.

Thanks to Frannan’s Quick Lessons, everyone in the expedition party moved in a coordinated manner, as if they all shared the same mind.

"These two really hate being woken up from their sleep. They just sleep around all day, but when they wake up... they end up despising the first person they see, to the point of wanting to kill them."

“...And?”

"The target of their hatred becomes exposed to the eyes of others. Not just to me, Teeth Grinder, and Snorer, but to everyone else as well. The longer the target is seen, the more their mana decreases. And then, the moment the target’s mana equals mine..."

Ur glared at Frannan.

“the target dies. Now… It’s morning, Teeth Grinder and Snorer! Let’s get to work, you lazy bastards!”

Clap!

With Frannan’s clap, the two eyes on his palms opened.

[Who was it?]

[Who was it?]

The eyes then looked at Ur.

[Was it you?]

[Was it you?]

‘For now, I’ll go with his plan.’

As Koko wasn’t capable of intricate movements, Seol let Koko do whatever he pleased while he followed Frannan’s plans.

Frannan’s plan was quite simple.

‘Keep your eyes on Ur.’

It was a more concise order than to fight Ur and kill him.

Hum…

[Ur:Bornuil used Seal Divine Power.]

[Divine Power cannot be used within this spell’s distance.]

According to the information that Frannan gave them, Bornuil’s specialty was in spells that controlled space. He was especially good at spells that allowed him to suppress and restrain anything that could be dangerous.

‘Frannan said that no one will be able to do anything once the battle drags on. I guess first was Chameli and the pilgrims.’

Ur waved his hand.

[Ur:Bornuil used Mire.]

[Movement speed is reduced by 50% within this spell’s distance.]

Frannan then casted a spell to resist this.

“Hargh!”

Hum…

[Frannan used Magic Circle: Crush Magic.]

[Nullify the low-level spell cast by the target.]

Faaade…

“Five minutes left! Don’t take your eyes off him!”

“Yes, sir!”

Ur scoffed as he casted another spell.

[Ur:Bornuil used Sandstorm.]

[Targets have reduced vision and take damage over time within this spell’s distance.]

Fwoooooosh!

A sandstorm suddenly appeared in the center of the battlefield.

Ur planned to prepare another spell while avoiding their gazes.

“A good idea, but!”

Frannan prepared another spell.

[Frannan used High-Rank Magic Circle: Copy Magic.]

[Copy the mid-level spell cast by the target.]

Fwooooosh!

Frannan summoned a sandstorm as well, which collided with the one Ur had conjured.

WOOOOOOSH!

No one in the vicinity could keep their eyes open as the fierce winds raged on.

“Urgh… I can’t keep my eyes…”

“Sir Frannan!”

“It’s alright! I’ve kept my eye on him the entire time!”

Ur laughed after hearing that.

“Are you sure it’s alright when I should be the one thankful to you?”

Suddenly, Koko appeared, charging in toward Ur. Koko must have sensed an opening with his wild instinct.

Graaaaar!

“No, Koko!”

Words then flowed out of Ur’s mouth, but they clearly weren’t normal words. It was a spell.

[You, fly away.]

Humm!

‘This feeling…’

- This… is a magic word. I felt it use up a bit of my mana just now.

Seol felt a similar sensation to the magic words used to activate the lights in Alcatron.

However, this felt entirely different from before. These were much more explosive than the ones they used previously.

Fwoooooosh!

Whimper!

Even Koko, a Transcendent-rank monster, could do nothing as he was blown away.

Koko clearly suffered damage too, judging by how he weakly rolled on the floor after the initial blow.

‘That monster…’

Drip…

However, it wasn’t as if Ur was completely fine. He wiped his nose as he spoke once more.

"...I suppose this old body has its limits. Maybe I can manage one more? Well, regardless, it’s fine."

Ur smiled from ear to ear.

“I now see the trick up your sleeve. Hah!”

Ur shot off missiles of magic from his hands.

Bam! Bam!

Crumble…

Something sticky fell from the ceiling after being struck by Ur’s magic missiles.

"A creation... Since when have you been hiding this? Who's behind this?!"

“Hahaha! It looks like he caught on, Snowman! Try hiding it a bit better!”

Seol gritted his teeth.

Frannan’s original plan was for the expedition party to keep their eyes on Ur, but his interference made it more challenging than they had anticipated.

As a result, Seol secretly summoned his crows to keep track of Ur instead of relying on the expedition party to complete Frannan’s spell.

Realizing this, Frannan conjured another sandstorm to hinder Ur from spotting Seol’s crows, or at least to delay it as much as possible.

After all of this, Frannan laughed. Thanks to Seol, they had been able to buy a lot of time.

“There's only one minute left now. You’ll die in a minute if you can’t avoid our eyes!”

“Thanks for the reminder.”

Hum…

[Ur:Bornuil used Seal Summons.]

[Summons cannot be used within this spell’s distance.]

[Passive: Flesh and Blood activates.]

[Summons tied by Lineage cannot be prevented from being summoned.]

Flap flap flap!

The crows that Seol summoned continued to fly around Ur, keeping their eyes on him. As they did, Ur’s face turned pale.

“Hm… I guess you’re decent. How annoying…”

Hum….

[Ur:Bornuil used Bombing Run.]

[Inflict damage on all entities identical to the initial target struck by this spell.]

Fwooosh!

Bam!

Crumble…

As one crow was struck down by Ur’s spell, the rest of the crows immediately crumbled away.

“Ahhhh!” shouted Seol, writhing in pain.

“There you were! I’ll kill you first!”

[Ur:Bornuil used Spinning Stake.]

[Deal damage to a target. Any excess damage is used to pierce through and damage another target.]

Fwoooosh!

A spear made of rocks materialized in the air before hurtling toward Seol.

Suddenly, multiple members of the expedition party around Seol leaped in, attempting to block the attack.

“Block ittttt!’

“Krghhhhhh…”

Craaaaackle…

Roughly ten people stepped in simultaneously to protect Seol. The rock spear was unable to pierce through them all.

“...That is precisely what I despise about humans. Though it is their strength…”

Ur laughed eerily.

“it, too, is their weakness.”

“What is he saying?”

"I enjoyed the show, magician. However, humans are unable to transcend because of the faith we place in each other."

“...What?”

"I've already seen through your spell. If those demonic spirits attack me... this frail, old body clearly won’t be able to endure it. However, you probably aren’t able to use it immediately again if it gets canceled, right?"

“How… did you know?”

“Because I am a wizard. Now, stop your pointless resistance.”

Ur then uttered a magic word.

It was a spell that would render the expedition party’s efforts futile.

[All of you, close your eyes.]

“N-No!”

“If we close our eyes…”

However, there was none among them who could resist that spell. Not even Seol.

‘Damn it… then I’ll have no choice but to…’

The only option left for Seol then would be to face Ur head-on.

“...Why?”

However, as everyone opened their eyes a moment later... they saw a strange sight.

Crunch! Crack!

Crunch…

Two demonic spirits had escaped from Frannan’s hands and sunk their teeth into Ur’s body.

"What compels you to go this far?" inquired Ur.

Seol immediately turned his eyes to Frannan.

‘How did the spell activate?’

Everyone had to have closed their eyes from Ur’s magic words, including Frannan. But for some reason... the spell still fully activated.

Seol quickly realized why.

“Oh my god…”

Frannan’s eye floated in the air, detached from his body, while blood flowed from the closed eye socket.

“Because I am a magician. My creed is to go all out from the start.”

“...I see. So you didn’t trust in the other humans.”

“I did trust in them. I just trusted in myself more.”

“...I see.”

Snap! Crack!

Snorer and Teeth Grinder tore through Ur’s body.

"Even robbery can qualify as high-level if it's done this well, don't you think?"