novelraw Chapter 375: Baimon
Chapter 375: Baimon
Although the atmosphere within the Crevice could be said to have dropped to the freezing point, nevertheless, it was a domain of rules created by a powerful deity, a long distance away from the true real world. Therefore, those extremely terrifying yet incomparably magnificent scenes were mostly witnessed only by Fisher and the others who were still within it.
In the real world, the aurora in the sky still flickered, the moonlight was still bright, and the living beings below the mountain rested and recuperated. No one had any connection to the destiny-like war within this Crevice.
In the Snow Fox-kin tribe that had just eradicated the Death-Rot Plague, the Snow Fox-kin, as if having been graced by luck and taking a stroll before the God of Death, were weeping tears of joy, looking after one another, and cherishing the beauty of life. Deep in the night like now, they should have also rested early, leaving only a few Snow Fox-kin who had recovered their health to keep watch. But for some unknown reason, they were incredibly sleepy tonight; few Snow Fox-kin still kept a clear head.
Whether lying in bed resting or dozing off while leaning on their cute, miniature weapons, as a gentle breeze rippled in from outside the cold night, they unconsciously slept peacefully. Yet, for some unknown reason, a strange tune they had never heard in their lives suddenly hummed from their throats,
"Hum hum hum~ Hum hum..."
In the barracks, the sick Snow Foxes, the one-armed Balzac, the mechanic Sertil left alone in bed—in their quiet slumber, they all unconsciously, convergently, like tacitly cooperating orchestra members, softly hummed the same song.
That gentle breeze rippling through the snow plains roared all the way past. In the city of Mya, which was usually bustling even at night, dead silence reigned. Humans and demi-humans who had fallen into slumber early on dozed off, unconsciously humming,
"Hum hum hum~ Hum hum..."
The gentle breeze went all the way up, crossing the mountain camp where the campfire still burned. Several middle-aged men wearing the attire of Witch Research Society elders huddled in their tents, humming...
Past Phoenix Bridge on the heights, within the Giant Troll camp enveloped by Spatial Turbulence, the Giant Trolls, who originally had been nervously watching deep into the Sema Mountains, now all slept askew in the snow, humming softly along with the passing breeze...The moonlight was brilliant. At this moment, on the profound Northlands, tens of thousands of living beings unconsciously seemed to be driven by a unified baton, jointly performing a beautiful ballad. Even the aurora in the sky was drawn by the beauty of the music below, unexpectedly and forcefully plucked by that gentle breeze sweeping over the snowy mountains, dancing in mid-air and transforming into vivid musical notation to accompany the unified human voices.
"Hum hum hum~ Hum hum..."
That gentle breeze effortlessly passed through the Spatial Turbulence set up around the Frostwood Sycamore Tree, passing through the pitch-black corridors and massive rooms. Gate after gate opened in response, and only then did the footsteps of that gentle breeze gradually slow down, forming long, drawn-out hoofbeats one after another within the expansive venue...
"Clip... clop..."
Through the countless kaleidoscope-like True Ice within the Sycamore Tree hall, amidst the angular radiance and fog, the biological form of what was slowly walking within the Sycamore Tree gradually revealed itself.
It was an extremely anachronistic creature that shouldn't appear here. That creature was seen slowly swaying its hooves and inching forward, its golden, supple long fur swaying bit by bit with its movements. Beside its single hump sat an indistinct human figure.
That was... an extremely bizarre-looking dromedary camel, just that no one knew why it would suddenly appear here.
"Hum hum hum~ Hum hum..."
That bizarre humming tune sounded once more. However, this time, it was hummed by the figure sitting on the camel. That beautiful, proud tune, like some horn declaring victory, despite its low volume, resounded deeply in the heart, making fragile living beings unable to resist bowing their heads.
The True Ice flickering with faint light in the surrounding darkness was eroded bit by bit by that simple camel and human figure, akin to a swath of creeping chaos hidden beneath that high-spirited, beautiful melody, advancing silently. Because whenever you wanted to carefully observe the chaotic shadow projected in that True Ice, you would find it immediately vanishing without a trace.
That tangible shadow was hard to catch; one could only listen closely to that humming melody. The tune was high but not too loud. Although the melody didn't change, the person humming seemed to be constantly changing.
First was an ordinary, plain male humming voice. From the kaleidoscope-like shattered True Ice, his form was indistinctly pieced together. If Fisher were still awake, he would have discovered that this figure right now was extremely similar to the one he had killed on the Southern Continent—Orn, who was originally sent by Pherone to purchase Raphaela...
But he should have already been killed by Fisher in a dog-eat-dog scenario, lying dead in the boundless wilderness of the Southern Continent.
"Hum hum hum~ Hum hum..."
Subsequently, that bizarre tone changed once more, transforming into the appearance of a Naris girl wearing glasses. If Fisher were still awake, he would definitely recognize this girl as his junior from the Royal Academy, Casse—the one who, at Elizabeth's coming-of-age ceremony, suffered a mental breakdown and apologized to Fisher, ultimately making him choose to distance himself from Elizabeth...
But she should have already quietly moved away from Saint-Nazareth, going to a place far from disputes where no one could find her to start life anew.
"Hum hum hum~ Hum hum..."
The timbre of that tone continuously changed. Above countless mirror surfaces resembling shattered glass, that figure constantly twisted and changed.
Many eye-catching and ordinary figures continuously surfaced: Fisher's guide while in Schwari, the admissions officer of Saint-Nazareth University who recruited Jasmine, the slaver squad that shot Raphaela, and many, many other figures who had never appeared before, hiding in the dark, acting like a hidden massive net, revealing their true faces only at this exact moment.
The person riding the camel slowly arrived at the expansive cylindrical space in the middle of the Sycamore tree, gazing at the profound space below. The camel raised its head and panted, while a fair palm gently patted its head. At the same time, the changes of the figure on the camel finally ceased. From her mouth, a familiar female voice arrived once again,
"No rush, we are here."
It could be seen that sitting on the camel at this moment was a beautiful woman wearing the black robe of the Turan family. Her long black hair was tied up neatly on her head, and at the top of her black hair, an emerald-green crown was inlaid, displaying her mature female charm with a smile to the extreme.
That was precisely the maid who had personally served Valentiina and her mother for over twenty years, Heidelin.
The camel bore the smiling Heidelin, leaping lightly down from high above, constantly jumping on the doorways and bridges along the walls, unhurriedly arriving at a place not far from the shattered platform and tree roots at the bottom.
There, the unconscious Fisher lay on the ground. His soul was still in the Crevice, not yet out; only his physical shell remained here. And beside him, the similarly unconscious Erwind slept peacefully. Looking at their tranquil and peaceful states, one couldn't tell at all that they were currently engaging in a life-and-death struggle within the dreamscape.
Fine cracks spread like those on a sculpture across the beautiful face of Heidelin, who was seated on the camel. Simultaneously, the crisp sound of shattering transmitted from her body. Yet, as if feeling nothing at all, she still cupped her chin, sizing up the Naris gentleman lying on the ground before her, or rather, the trembling square book nestled in his embrace, and suddenly smiled and spoke,
"Little thing, long time no see~"
"..."
Sir Book Artifact's square body shrank increasingly smaller. Shaking like a sieve, his body desperately burrowed into Fisher's embrace like crazy, seemingly entirely too terrified to respond to the figure speaking in 'Heidelin's' tone behind him.
'Heidelin' curled her lips. The cracks on her body and face grew increasingly numerous, and her body gradually turned into lifeless quicksand, sprinkling onto the camel, causing it to shake its body.
And the emerald-green crown on Heidelin's head also fell with the vanishing of her body. Yet, just before it fell onto the camel, another fair hand steadily caught that emerald-green crown. Within that palm, a pillar of fire like a fire serpent spread from the emerald-green crown, completely devouring it, transforming it into a crown inlaid with many dazzling gemstones.
"Don't be like this. When you barged into my abyss back then to peek at my records, I let you leave safe and sound. In your eyes, am I really such a terrifying, heartless existence?"
An entirely different tone transmitted from the owner of that fair hand. She held that crown and placed it onto the top of her own head. That crown then hovered and halted, the dazzling gemstone light immediately revealing the figure truly sitting on the camel right now.
It was a noble, virtuous figure sparkling with faint light all over. Her fair, graceful figure was covered beneath a loose white robe. Without a single non-human organ all over her body, nor any terrifying fire serpents and tails like other demons had, behind her back flickered several phantom-like blue-gold wings, making her look as beautiful and noble as an angel.
She lounged lazily upon that dromedary camel. On her breathtakingly beautiful face, a pair of profound, scattered pale-blue pupils rendered a layer of divinity upon her. Yet, the light eyeshadow at the corners of her eyes and that short, curly soft blonde hair made her look quite approachable. With a smile in her eyes and brows, she looked at Emhart, who was sticking his butt out and burrowing into Fisher's embrace, then gently beckoned with her hand. Emhart then uncontrollably flew toward her,
"My my, why did you suddenly fly over toward me? Are you preparing to make peace with me?"
"Baimon, waaaagh! I knew you were always around. Let go of me, you damn executioner... wuu wuu wuu... Let go of me, Fisher, save me..."
The female called 'Baimon' smilingly watched Emhart, who was crashing blindly in front of her but couldn't fly away. She yawned, speaking as if complaining,
"You really don't know what's good for you. I merely gave you a small punishment so you wouldn't go out spouting the tomes you saw at my place randomly, and eventually I even let you have a good sleep in the Royal Library of Naris. If not for me, you wouldn't have even met this gentleman, would you? Aren't you two on very good terms?"
As Emhart was flying about, upon hearing Baimon's words, he suddenly turned his head to look at the smiling Baimon before him in disbelief. Suddenly realizing something, he spoke,
"You... you deliberately put me in the Royal Academy of Naris to hibernate... you deliberately sent me to Fisher's side?"
"Just a little coincidence, that's all. You continuously doubting others' intentions is truly very displeasing, you know. How come you speak so from your heart with Fisher?"
"Bullshit, Baimon! What the hell do you want? You going to the Phoenix's banquet thousands of years ago absolutely meant no good! But Fisher and Valentiina are innocent, they cannot die. If you dare make a move against them, I will..."
Cupping her chin, Baimon looked at the fierce Emhart before her and chuckled softly,
"Are you threatening me?"
Looking at the smiling, harmless Baimon before him, an innate hair-raising terrifying sensation instantly pierced through Emhart's heart, causing his square body to go limp and almost tumble to the ground. But the Baimon before him had already gently extended a finger, lifting the limp, powerless Emhart from mid-air.
Looking at Emhart, who looked as if he was about to pass out and lose consciousness, Baimon wiggled her finger, tossing him back into Fisher's embrace, shook her head, and laughed,
"I'm not that bad, you know. As for your Fisher, I have no need to pay attention to him either. Even though he looks very special, I only met him for the first time after coming to the Northlands."
"Really?"
Emhart dubiously turned his head to look at Baimon sitting on the camel and asked thus.
Baimon smiled and nodded, saying quite sincerely,
"Mhm, but if you want to tell him more about the knowledge I've recorded, I might come over to collect some remuneration. I hate middlemen like that the most, you know..."
"I came here for the seeds planted earlier. Now they are about to ripen; it's time for the harvest season. It's just that having some fun with you guys in between isn't bad either. After all, among the Demon Gods, I'm the only one who can still walk the world. That bunch of guys who refuse to submit to anyone else staying together in the dynasty—aside from quarreling, it's just more quarreling; not interesting at all."
That angel-like beautiful Baimon gently patted the neck of the camel before her, pushing it to arrive beside Fisher. Looking at Fisher lying on the ground, she suddenly thought of something and gently extended her bare foot hidden under her white robe. That sudden action scared Emhart so much he hastily flew up to block before Baimon, deeply afraid she'd do something to Fisher.
"Wait, what are you doing?!"
But Baimon merely flicked a finger from afar to knock him aside, then said,
"He has Eliog's mark on him, oh my. To think that guy who only likes slacking off and sleeping would one day also leave her unique mark on someone; this is very interesting... And what's more interesting is, if I erase her mark and brand him with my own, what will happen when they meet again? Aren't you curious?"
Suspended in mid-air, Emhart opened his mouth. Looking at the smiling Baimon before him, for a moment he couldn't tell whether he was curious or not. But Baimon ignored him. She merely extended her bare foot, gently stepping onto Fisher's chest, crushing his invisible mark bit by bit before branding another invisible symbol onto him,
"Anyway, besides Demons, no one can detect the change in this mark; he is no exception... But you mustn't tell him, oh. It wouldn't be fun then. If it's not fun, I'll have to find some other amusement."
Emhart hastily shut his mouth and kept quiet, because he knew better than anyone that the "amusement" Baimon spoke of was absolutely something ten thousand times more painful than Eliog discovering the mark had been tampered with. Between two evils, choose the lesser; he could only keep the secret for Baimon.
But perhaps even he didn't notice, the place where Baimon's bare foot had just stepped on was exactly where the Demi-Human Completion Handbook was located within Fisher's embrace. Moreover, because of the touch of her bare foot, the handbook also produced a slight, tangible displacement...
Sitting on the camel, Baimon smiled and bypassed Fisher, Emhart, and Erwind, heading straight for the space between the Valentiina lying on the ground and the Base.
Valentiina's blood had fully flowed into the Base. The scarlet radiance flickering within the Base also indicated that the Spirit World contamination was using it to descend upon the world.
"As for the deity persona of the Base, I won't be polite..."
Sitting on the camel, Baimon wiggled her finger. Valentiina's body, whose blood had already dried up, was then tossed by her into the twisted Base. Immediately after, before the continuously surging Base, she extended her hand toward the Base. As her fair fingers gently exerted force, a certain twisted, invisible existence within the Base was effortlessly pulled out by her.
This seemingly mundane action without any sound ended very quickly. Yet right after, the scarlet radiance within the twisted Base before her eyes quickly vanished, and that twisted Base also wrapped around Valentiina's body, continuously freezing and shrinking...
In Emhart's eyes, the Baimon smilingly withdrawing something into her embrace was like a fisherman sitting by the river angling; with one effortless hook, she transversed the long history of the Northlands.
"Oh my my, without the Base, this place is going to get lively soon. I'll take my leave first. Remember to take care, oh, little Emhart... we'll meet again in the future."
"..."
Ignoring the Emhart continuously shooting vigilant gazes at her, Baimon merely patted the neck of the camel beneath her gently, slowly heading toward the upper parts of the Sycamore tree.
That angel-like retreating figure walked further and further away, quickly vanishing from Emhart's line of sight. And concurrently, those chaotic shadows within the True Ice also receded bit by bit, as if they had never appeared at all.
In reality, aside from Emhart, who retracted himself back into Fisher's embrace with a complex gaze, it was incomparably silent. But simultaneously, within the Crevice, that massive Base in the shape of a giant tree shadow locked onto by the Spirit World contamination abruptly vanished from the spot. This bizarre scene made all three parties engaged in the arduous tug-of-war within the Crevice stare blankly, falling into an extremely brief moment of silence...
But this simultaneously meant that the stalemate had already been broken, about to lead this chaos toward an unpredictable conclusion.