Chapter 98: Black Water (2)
Ruel saw Leo.
As soon as their eyes met, Leo smiled.
‘Maybe I’ll meet the rest of the Great Purifiers.’
Leo came running and jumped into bed.
Ruel tried to talk to Tyson, but waited as he wrote in his notebook.
It was no longer unfamiliar to see Tyson writing in a notebook with an apologetic expression on his face.
“Otherwise, I was thinking of visiting you because of the black water situation…”
Tyson looked at Ruel with his notebook folded.
“But rest today.”
“Uncle, didn’t you say it’s a problem that can only be confirmed when I came back? I’m home, now I just need to check.”
“You look very tired.”
Tyson gave a calm smile.
“You can take a day off. Rather, I’m worried that you’ll fall while running in a tizzy.”
“…Uncle, if I sleep now, I think I’ll sleep rather long. So I’m worried. Don’t I have to keep moving?”
“It’s all right. I’m fine today. It’s okay if you don’t move today. Even if anything comes, your uncle will prevent it all.”
Ruel felt his eyes getting heavier, even though no one was forcing him to sleep.
Maybe it was because he came back home.
Maybe it was because he felt relieved from Tyson’s words.
“When I fall asleep, no, I still have a lot of work to do.”
“It’s okay. Put everything down today and take a rest. The Setiria you rebuilt won’t be shaken just like that anymore. Don’t you trust in Setiria?”
It was funny that he didn’t seem to trust in Setiria’s ability despite Ruel himself deciding to make a Setiria that would work without him.
No matter what anyone says, he’d believe in it.
Setiria.
Everyone.
“…Yes, I’ll rest.”
Only then did Ruel close his eyes. The sound of breath soon deepened.
‘He looks tired… He really looks like my older brother.’
Tyson looked at him with a smile.
His sleeping appearance hasn’t changed since his younger days.
He is still stubborn about going to bed.
—This body doesn’t like Ruel sleeping.
Leo looked at Tyson with a sullen face.
He patted Leo on the head.
“Ruel must rest, Spirit. Please, understand.”
—…This body knows. It’s kind of tense when this body looks at Ruel these days. This body felt so much emotion. This body is overwhelmed by just feeling it, so this body doesn’t understand what feeling it is.
Leo’s ears are drooping.
“It’s because he has a lot on his back. Chased, threatened, sick. My heart hurts like this just watching, how much will my heartburn?”
Tyson’s eyes twitched for a moment.
He wanted to take everything if he could.
“So he needs to rest. I’m so glad you’re here.”
—This body is a great purifier! Ahem!
Tyson smiled as Leo wiggled his tail again.
Knock. Knock.
Leo ran and stood at the door.
—Cassion quiet…
“Shh!”
As soon as the door opened, Leo rushed to Cassion.
“Ruel is sleeping.”
Cassion smiled lightly.
He was thinking about how to let Ruel rest all the way here.
“Did he just go to bed?”
“Yes, he’ll probably sleep for a while.”
“Yes, thank you for your hard work.”
“You’ve been through a lot. You’ve worked hard.”
“I’m glad that there’s someone who recognizes my hard work.”
Cassion sighed deeply.
***
—Did you open your eyes? Are you up?
As soon as Ruel opened his eyes, he saw Leo’s face.
He felt like he slept for a long time.
“How long did I sleep?”
—You’ve slept three feet of this body!
‘Did I sleep for three days? I slept for a long time.’
Leo licked Ruel’s face and soon rubbed his face.
—If Ruel hadn’t gotten up now, this body would have cried today.
Leo’s eyes were already preparing to shed tears.
Ruel stroked Leo.
“Yeah, you did well.”
—Are you sick?
“No.”
—What a relief! Can you speak to this body now?
“…Yes.”
His body felt lighter as he had slept for a long time.
When he raised left hand as he felt uncomfortable, there was an IV.
‘No wonder it hurt less.’
—They put it on when Ruel was sleeping. You seemed to be in pain because there was blood.
Ruel stroked Leo again.
“Cassion.”
Cassion came out of the shadows.
He was holding a cup of water.
“Are you awake? How is your body? Even after you fell asleep your body was in pain, so I told Fran and she added an IV.”
“It’s alright.”
“The meal is almost ready.”
“Nothing happened?”
“Yes, nothing happened.”
Cassion handed the water.
He couldn’t tell a lie.
The feeling of cool water entering through his throat made the remaining drowsiness disappear.
“Call my uncle.”
“How about seeing Fran first?”
Ruel paused for a moment.
“How’s the wound?”
“It’s healing. But you still have to lie down more.”
“I know, don’t worry, I have no intention of leaving the mansion until the wound heals.”
Tyson previously said he should see his purification and Leo’s purification.
Purification itself hurts the body, so it was better to listen to Fran’s nagging anyway.
“Starting from my uncle.”
“I see.”
Ruel waved at Cassion, who was about to turn around.
“Snacking on an empty stomach is not good. I think it would be good to have it after you have eaten.”
‘I’ve been eating well so far.’
Fran seemed to have brought up a story about snacks to Cassion.
Ruel waved his hand with a sad face.
Shortly after Cassion left, he came in with Tyson.
“Did you sleep well?”
Tyson smiled at Ruel.
“Yes, I slept well.”
“How about eating and moving?”
“That’s alright. I’ve kept you waiting three more days, so we can’t slow down any further. My uncle knows that. And I’m not overdoing it.”
“Yes, I know.”
Ruel’s face looked more comfortable today.
“Cassion, black water.”
“Alright.”
Cassion took the black water out of his arms and dropped only one drop on the floor.
The spirits stood at a distance from the black water.
Even if it was the same kind of spirit, purification could not be done unless it was a Great Purifier.
“Clean it up, Leo.”
Ruel said, pointing to the black water.
—Okay! This body practiced a lot when Ruel was sleeping!
Leo wagged his tail down the bed.
—Look carefully!
He raised his front foot to make a silver orb.
Along with the larger size than before, the warm feeling deepened.
Tyson was fascinated by the beautiful color and immediately took out his notebook.
“This, this is an impossible light! It’s natural mana, but it’s more noble and clean! This is impossible!”
His hands moved incessantly with laughter.
—Look carefully, uncle.
Leo said triumphantly.
Just as the color of the silver orb faded into black water, the black water turned white and shiny powder flew into the sky.
It wasn’t as beautiful as the Milky Way up to the sky as he saw it then, but it was beautiful.
“… Unbelievable.”
Tyson smiled brightly like a child who had just picked up a toy.
In the place where the black water had been, only transparent water droplets remained.
“Leaving the essence alone and taking out only the things that are out of natural order. This, this is purification. Purification was such a beautiful thing!”
—This body is a Great Purifier!
Leo ran to Ruel, not Tyson, and wagged his tail.
Leo rubbed his head when a familiar touch touched his face.
“Well done, Leo.”
—This body couldn’t do it as big as this body did back then. Still, this body did it!
“Does Ruel-nim have to do it, too?”
Cassion stopped to drop the black water and saw Tyson.
“I also want to stop, but it’s essential to know what the black water is.”
With a distressed look, Tyson clenched his notebook.
“My purification is different from Leo, uncle.”
At Ruel’s nod, Cassion dropped black water on the floor.
Ruel moved his shadow, inhaling Breath.
The shadow waited calmly for Ruel’s orders, like a dog about to feed.
‘Eat it.’
As soon as the order was given, the shadow rushed toward the black water.
It was only a single drop, but the brow furrowed slightly at the simultaneous pain.
—Are you sick?
Leo looked at Ruel with an uneasy look.
“It’s alright.”
Where the shadow disappeared, only water droplets remained, as in Leo’s time.
Tyson looked at Ruel with a grave face.
“…Can I check one more thing?”
“That’s alright.”
“Cassion, I want you to drop another drop.”
At Tyson’s request, Cassion dropped the black water again.
Tyson licked his dry lips pausing.
“Can you use only mana to move the black water this time? So, blow your mana into the black water and give it the same commands as when you use magic.”
“Is that okay?”
Cassion asked with a sour look.
“Infusing mana has been done by other magic knights, so don’t worry.”
“Is this why you said you needed my mana?”
“That’s right.”
Tyson revealed his uneasiness in response to Ruel’s question.
Despite his efforts to hide it, he appeared full of anxiety.
It would be better not to hide it.
With the help of Cassion, Ruel managed to sit up.
“Cough, cough.”
Holding his stomach, Ruel coughed.
After the cough had stopped, Ruel slowly breathed mana into the black water.
Ruel was so focused that he couldn’t feel the nervous gaze.
As his mana touched the black water, a sharp touch felt like a paper cut.
A little surprised, but not strong enough to intimidate himself, so he again brought Mana into contact with the black water.
‘…What is it?’
There was a whisper, as if to move the shadow.
It was a sound full of hatred and resentment.
The sound sounded sad to Ruel.
He gave directions to the sound, which was confused and filled with anger, as if it had lost its way, and was wandering.
‘It’s this way.’
The sound calmed down.
He felt like had the rein in his hand as he controlled the shadow.
Ruel took the reins.
He opened his eyes at the same time.
“…!”
The black water was nowhere to be found, and the shadows of the darkened water droplets wriggled.
It didn’t hurt this time.
“What…did you do?”
Cassion couldn’t believe it even when he saw it himself.
The black water melted into a shadow.
It was different from the purification that Ruel just showed.
It didn’t disappear, it just looked like it was back to it’s place.
“…I just took the reins and gave orders.”
Ruel asked Tyson for an answer.
Gulp.
Behind the sound of swallowing, Tyson put on a bewildered expression.
“I can’t believe this is real…”
“Uncle, tell me. Why did the black water turn into a shadow?”
“Do you remember what I said about the dark attribute?”
“I remember.”
He said that darkness is not borrowed, but bequeathed.
“In the process of investigating the black water, I forgot the most important thing. I noticed it while talking to Aris. Black water is out of natural order. In other words, it is out of touch with nature.”
“…”
“Then, I studied what it would look like if it could be reversed.”
“The figure was similar to the darkness.”
“Yes, that’s why I needed you. You’re the only wizard I know who can use the darkness. I can be sure as a result of just now.”
Tyson expressed his regret.
“Black water is uncontrolled…darkness. In other words, it means a shadow that has lost control.”
“Is that possible?”
The shadow did not move or speak unless it was summoned.
“It’s possible.”
Tyson opened his mouth heavily.
“Ordinary magic is borrowed from nature, so it disappears when I stop using it. But your magic, the shadow stops only when you disappear.”
Ruel frowned. Tyson was right.
“Are you saying that after using dark magic, you made that person faint or even killed them?”
“There, it is said to be a substance created by corrupting. A very, very terrible and disgusting substance.”
Ruel couldn’t even laugh.
As Tyson said, it was a terrible thing to do.
And it was the Red Ash that did it.
Tyson soon looked at Ruel, showing his fear.
If black water was created using a person with the dark attribute, Ruel was no exception.
Ruel’s attribute was also darkness.
“That’s alright.”
Even with Ruel’s words, Tyson’s fear did not disappear.
“In the end, it was possible that I was able to purify it because I had the same dark attribute.”
“…That’s right.”
Tyson hesitated for a moment after answering and then brought it up again.
“Ruel, I think it’s better not to purify.”
“…?”
“If the Spirit’s purification is to take out only the corrupted and change the essence itself to nature, then your purification is to eat away the corruption with the same darkness. In the end, that burden is bound to go to you. I hope you never do it again.”
‘As expected, there was a reason for the burden on the body.’
Ruel nodded, feeling Cassion’s gaze staring at him.
Is that why the unknown woman stopped him from using magic?
“Rather than that, uncle, what do you think this is used for?”
Black water has already been made.
Understanding its use was of paramount importance.
“Corruption easily stains other things. All that is said to be bad can be corrupted.”
It seemed that there were so many possibilities that it was impossible to determine a specific one.
“Tyson-nim, is it really possible to be corrupted in the first place?”
asked Cassion, with a more serious look than ever.
“Did you know that warlocks can curse opponents?”
“I know that the conditions are tricky, and that the same curse is applied to the opponent who used the magic.”
Tyson nodded to Cassion’s reply.
“Unlike curses that are generally poured out with words, curses that are used with magic are not allowed by nature, so the person who uses magic suffers the same. That’s what we call a price.”
‘It’s not supposed to be used in the first place.’
Ruel inhaled Breath.
He had no reason to use it if he suffered the same.
“In contrast, corruption is similar yet different. It replaces the cost with something other than oneself. The blood, the life of another being. That’s why it’s more severe. That’s why it’s very dangerous.”
“So does that mean that the one who used magic has no price?”
Tyson shook his head at Ruel’s question.
“If using magic in exchange for oneself who used magic is 1, tens of thousands of lives and blood of other beings are counted as 1. The price is the heart and mind worn out by giving many lives.”
“…Did you say tens of thousands?”
Ruel was surprised.
It was a ridiculous number.
“I don’t know if that’s an accurate number, but in the book that contains anecdotes of witnessing the corruption in the past, it is said that the number of people who died was to numerous to guess.”
‘Is that why you’re trying to start a war?’
War was the easiest way to take a person’s life.
Then, how was the black water made now?
“Ruel, I said before that warlocks are given special missions, do you remember?”
“I remember.”
“One of its missions is to prevent corruption.”
“Now I have more reasons to find the Warlock.”
Ruel reached out to Cassion after answering.
“The data from the investigation of the specific people who came out of the temporary hideout in the Red Ash, you probably found out who they were?”
There was no way Red Ash would investigate people without reason.
If he made black water using a person with a dark attribute, that particular person had to be a person with a dark attribute.
“Yes, but we are still investigating whereabouts.”
Cassion turned over the data.
Ruel coughed and looked at the data.
Cassion opened his mouth as he glanced at Ruel.
“Even if it’s true, it won’t be easy to find a solution. Only those with dark attributes can control the darkness.”
“Even if they can’t do it like Ruel, Ruel’s mana alone can calm the darkness.”
“Then it means that we must find and secure someone with dark attributes.”
Cassion excluded Ruel as if it were natural.
Ruel’s mana was as much as Tyson’s, and even if the lost mana was quickly restored, Ruel’s body had its limits.
Ruel covered the data and stroked Leo’s head.
‘…Damn it.’
As he predicted, the Red Ash was investigating those with dark attributes.
To make black water.
“Cassion, find their whereabouts and bring as many as you can.”
Some of these were likely to have already been obtained by Red Ash.
“Understood.”
Cassion replied, receiving the data from Ruel.
“Uncle, can you find a way to deal with black water?”
“I don’t know.”
“I don’t want something perfect enough to be called Purification. We need to find a way to at least kill the black-blooded man. Don’t tell me you can’t do it, try using my mana first.”
Ruel reached out his hand.
He knew this would happen.
As expected, Tyson was heartbroken when he saw Ruel’s hand.
Unlike other people, Ruel became poisoned just by moving mana.
Isn’t he barely blocking the poison with his resistance?
But in order to find a way, Ruel’s mana was needed.
“Before I went to bed, my uncle told me that I could increase the mana quickly because there were more natural mana floating in the mansion. I’ll give it a try. So you don’t have to make that face.”
Ruel smiled as if to reassure him.
“Let’s start by eating first.”
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