novelraw Chapter 280
Chapter 280
Chapter 280
"Expelled records... expelled... ah, here it is."
The archive was dark and dry.
At most there were only thin, high windows for ventilation, and no other light sources besides those.
They lit a lamp hanging on the wall and barely managed to find the expelled members' records relying on the dim light.
At the very top of the bookshelves filling the archive,
Two bundles of parchment tied with red string and stacked as if they were waste about to be discarded.
A bookmark for classification was inserted between the strings.
'Unregistered Mage Records'
When he brushed off the dust that had accumulated all over, the escort knight untied the tightly bound string.Then he took one bundle and sat in a corner, beginning to examine it page by page.
It felt as if he was suggesting they divide and read them.
"Thank you."
Yurik had provided quite a considerate escort.
He also sat next to him and began carefully reading the remaining bundle of parchment.
He thought it would end quickly since there wasn't as much as he expected,
But the amount written on each page was enormous.
The writing was also tiny like sesame seeds, so he had to hold it close to the light to barely decipher it.
Moreover, there were incomprehensible symbols and drawings scattered throughout.
If they were completely incomprehensible drawings, he would have ignored them and read only the text,
But since symbols he had glimpsed during Eibon and Aphoom-Zhah's lectures long ago appeared, he found himself desperately trying to decode the drawings as well.
So one page, two pages.
Some contained delusions close to nonsense, while others listed quite plausible reasoning and theories.
Of course, there wouldn't be any completed research that had derived complete results among these,
But he could at least vaguely guess what kind of thoughts the species called mages lived with.
People like Eibon or Tika who 'heard the voice of the stars' were now almost impossible to find.
Nevertheless, mages still commonly shared certain characteristics.
Obsession bordering on madness, desire, blindness toward the ideals they pursued.
People were still the same whether thousands of years ago or now. That aspect was good, but...
While he was immersed in sentiment and examining the materials, something poked his shoulder.
"What is it?"
It was the escort knight.
At some point, he had almost finished going through the heavy bundle of parchment.
From the remaining materials, he held out one page and pointed to a certain paragraph with his finger.
Among paragraphs where spacing between letters was nowhere to be found, a familiar word suddenly entered his field of vision.
[...through training, the effect of enhancing the caster's magical power...]
Enhancement. Magical power enhancement. Enhancement therapy.
He snatched the parchment. The relevant material dealt with the theme of 'whether magical power existing in flora and fauna can be artificially converted for mages to absorb.'
Asgard faithfully followed Eibon's teachings by adopting magic that centered on the caster's magical power, namely 'incantation-type magic.'
However, incantation-type magic's usable range varied depending on the magical power the caster possessed.
Greater magical power led to more magic, which directly connected to a mage's capabilities.
So it wasn't strange for Asgard's mages to research methods for increasing magical power or magical power enhancement training methods.
But the passage that particularly caught his attention was:
[Magical power existing in flora and fauna - atypical magical power can obtain a certain amount of magical power - standardized magical power through refinement, but the refinement process is extremely inefficient. However, cases exist where magical power exchange occurs between flora and fauna. - Appendix material page 3.]
[Exchange of atypical magical power is commonly found in predator-prey relationships, and in humans' case, it was revealed that they obtain strength necessary for physical activities and minute amounts of magical power through digestion while consuming various foods. - Appendix material page 5, Nabua-Takitan's writings.]
[However, when using calculation formulas that consider human consumption and absorption power of atypical magical power, it is judged difficult to produce meaningful standardized magical power enhancement results through simple food consumption. - Appendix material page 9, Nabua-Takitan's writings.]
[To change atypical magical power into standardized magical power, there is conversion through alchemy, and besides this, there are methods to accept already standardized magical power into the body.]
Standardized magical power seemed to refer to the magical power humans possessed from their perspective.
Everything else in flora and fauna was atypical magical power, and there had been attempts to use that to enhance one's own standardized magical power.
But wasn't it saying it was too inefficient to use?
More than that, who was this Nabua-something person that kept appearing so frequently?
"Nabua... do you know who this person is?"
The escort knight only tilted his head. Since he wasn't even a mage, there was no point asking him such things.
He rummaged through the parchment the knight had classified as read and found the scattered appendix pages.
Fortunately, proper citations and excerpts were written there along with sources.
[Nabua-Takitan, the last disciple of the great Great Mage Eibon,
If he was called Eibon's last disciple, Nabua-Takitan might have been quite a renowned person.
Moreover, writings continuously cited on specific topics.
If he had been an authority on 'magical power enhancement,' it wouldn't be unreasonable for his writings to be treated like a bible in magical academia.
He took out the piece of paper from inside his cloak and placed it next to the materials.
Looking at the appendix materials and the main text of the research together, he felt like he understood something.
[Enhancement Therapy: Gambling / Founder / White Tree]
Recomposing the hastily scribbled note with familiar words:
['Standardized Magic Enhancement Therapy': Gambling / 'Nabua-Takitan' / White Tree]
...He understood up to this point. But what was gambling, and what was the white tree?
Perhaps there was related content in Nabua-Takitan's writings.
Before that, why had the navy-robed mage given him this?
He had originally come to look for clues about mages expelled from the Mage Tower, but he received this paper instead, and various hypotheses increased, only making his head more complicated.
The connection between Nabua-Takitan, this paper, and the research seemed correct, but how exactly was he supposed to...
"Wait a minute."
How did that person know?
When the old mage opened the reception room door, there was only one mage wearing a navy robe in the corridor.
Why was he there?
If Asgard's Mage Tower was truly exclusive, there would be no need to have curiosity about a foreigner.
Indeed, except for the reluctantly emerged person in charge, everyone refused to associate with him.
But only that person stood there blankly. Why exactly?
Moreover, this note. It clearly had a connection to the records left by the expelled members.
How did he know he needed a clue?
No, if it wasn't that 'because he needed such a clue' that he gave it?
Rather, the navy-robed mage might have given it 'because he had to give it to someone.'
He had been continuously searching. Waiting for someone to whom he could slip this paper.
And since the person who happened to come was him, he inevitably had no choice but to give it to him...
From Asgard's perspective, he was a foreigner.
An eccentric from the frontier small country of Aquilonia.
A solver who came with an unofficial commission from the royal family.
A person investigating the cause of Asgard's endless cold.
He suddenly became anxious.
Asgard's Mage Tower hadn't withdrawn because it was unrelated to that matter.
Rather, it had been watching everything while remaining silent.
* * *
Three people were walking in a line toward the center of a white forest.
Rough winds swept through the entire forest, roaring fiercely toward the intruders.
Though it was clearly a gale that could easily topple entire trees,
Ironically, it couldn't even touch the edge of the people's cloaks.
Protected by power that had continued from long ago, they walked leisurely over the frozen snow.
The people walking without leaving footprints through a forest with no signposts or proper markers to show the way stopped.
Before them stood a birch tree that was particularly larger than the neighboring trees.
That tree was special in ways other than just being overgrown.
Transparent blue crystals hung from the bare branches that had no leaves.
They hung like the tree's fruit, enduring stubbornly regardless of the wind.
The people looked up at them admiringly and exchanged words.
"This sight is always wondrous."
"Indeed it is. The color is truly beautiful."
"Since each one contains abundant magical power, everyone should pick one to take back when returning. Weren't there some who couldn't have any last time?"
"Before that, I need to claim my share."
They slightly bowed their heads in respect, then gathered under the tree.
Shovels and pickaxes that each had been carrying were revealed from under their cloaks.
Though using magic would be easier to dig the frozen ground, it was to minimize external magical power interference in case of emergency.
Pickaxes struck down into the ground revealed by pushing aside snow with bare hands.
Shovels carried away dirt, and soon people began sweating profusely. Steam rose abundantly whenever cloaks were slightly lifted.
How long had they labored like this?
When red blisters formed on the palms of those who had rarely done hard work, someone shouted.
"Stop! Let's dig slowly from now. It's right below."
"The previous mages must have buried it terribly deep."
"The colder the better. Let's carefully clear from here."
Six hands moved swiftly.
As they cleared dirt with frozen hands, a vivid white coffin was soon revealed beneath.
A smooth rectangular box with no memorial for the dead or the name of whoever might be sleeping inside engraved on it.
They joined forces to extract the white box and place it above ground.
No one paid attention to the bottom of the deep pit from which the coffin had been removed.
When they opened the lid that wasn't even properly nailed shut, what was revealed beneath was a person who seemed to be sleeping with eyes closed.
Snow-white hair, pale gray eyelashes, a neat and cold face.
The mages looked down at the man in the coffin and let out low exclamations.
Someone asked hesitantly.
"Th-this is really that..."
"Is this your first time seeing it, mage?"
"I only heard about it in words. The one who was always with Great Mage Eibon...?"
"That's right. It's clearly mentioned in the only grimoire written by Great Mage Eibon, the 'Ivory Codex.'"
A trembling voice composed itself briefly, then recited.
"[With the only understanding one departed far away, only the white god who vowed eternity for believers exists with me in this world.] ...Though the Ivory Codex hasn't been completely deciphered yet, there's no doubt that the white god refers to this being."
"But wasn't Eibon a person from thousands of years ago?"
"A person from that era is preserved so vividly as if asleep. Doesn't that make it more credible?"
"That's true, but."
"Some speculate that the reason Eibon could be called a Great Mage was precisely because of this man. Feel the abundant magical power around us. Isn't it dizzying? This tree even grew by feeding on magical power and bore fruit."
"Are you saying this man was the source of Eibon's magical power?"
"Of course! It's not just the 'Ivory Codex.' It remains in various records. Haven't you heard about the 'white man' that Eibon uniquely kept by her side?"
He spoke excitedly, even spitting saliva.
"The white man and Eibon were always together. When Eibon aged and secluded herself, didn't the white man travel the continent in her stead, carrying out her will? The white man, who was also the white god, received Eibon's favor. Do you know why? Because of this magical power!"
The one who had been speaking with great fervor pointed to the lid of the white coffin.
Complex magic formulas were densely carved on the inside of the lid.
"These are formulas to prevent the magical power from leaking and being detected. How many mages sacrificed themselves just to carve formulas on a mere lid, in this small area!"
"I know. I know, but."
"Right now, it doesn't matter to us what the relationship between Eibon and this man was. This is the Mage Tower's precious asset, merely a massive lump of magical power in human form. There's no need to feel guilt."
Having said this, he carefully opened the chest of the man lying in the coffin.
On the inhuman snow-white chest were terrible wounds.
Wounds that would never heal and would only continue to grow.
Around them, things that were neither blood drops nor icicles were frozen and scattered like jewels.
He handed a small, sharp dagger to the hesitating person.
"Don't hesitate. This is an opportunity gained through dedication to our school. If you taste this thing's blood, heaven will be right before your eyes. By tomorrow, you'll be able to implement magic you never imagined with just a flick of your finger."
"The fact that it has human form is..."
"So you won't do it?"
The hesitating person finally took the dagger.
This was the Mage Tower's asset, a precious source of magical power.
Perhaps he too could become a great mage who would leave his name in history like Eibon...
Harboring such hope, the man placed the blade against the unhealed skin.
From beyond the dark forest, a wolf's howl was heard long and clear.