Regressor Of The Fallen Family [EN]: Chapter 45

“See? This is a much faster way. Plus, it’s like taking a quick count of everyone as we go!”

Dwayne hesitated. “…I suppose so.”

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“I’m just surprised. You’ve been surprising me lately, Master Logan. I should be used to it by now, heh heh.”

“Okay, okay, stop joking around now. We have work to do. Ah, and we need to share food with villagers who are hurt and can’t work. From now on, no one in our territory will starve.”

“Just these guys are enough… Yes, I understand. I was just worried the villagers might get lazy… Yes, yes, I get it. Don’t look at me like that.”

“Tsk.”

Logan narrowed his eyes and clicked his tongue.

“Anyway, if we wait a little longer, we’ll be able to build properly. Especially since Dwayne, who manages the money, trusts me so much and does what I say.”

“Not that construction!”

“Oh, I’m going to do it anyway.”

“Please reconsider? Why are we spending two million gold a month to drill a hole in a mountain?”

“No. I’m going to do it. Nothing you say will change my mind.”

“Ugh… Master Logan….”

Dwayne was frustrated because he couldn’t stop this absurd construction, this waste of money. He worried about where all the money was going.

Logan, having easily overcome Dwayne’s resistance, looked west again.

‘Even if the scroll isn’t here yet, I still have Clayton.’

The other materials he had ordered through Philip had already arrived.

It was time to start planning the mountain drilling.

“Alright. One, two, three!”

Heave-ho!

With shouts, many tents of brown canvas suddenly appeared, like mushrooms popping up after rain. The sound of hammering and people calling out filled the air.

The place they had chosen was halfway between Tesron Castle and McLain Castle, about a day’s journey from each, so temporary housing for the workers was needed.

And it was important to prepare housing for the wizards too.

“Are you sure you’re okay with the same housing as the workers?”

“It’s fine, Master Logan. The Earth Magic Tower is known for working hard. You saw the Tower Lord being difficult, didn’t you?”

“Well, I’m happy because it means less for me to worry about, haha.”

“Leave it to me. I’ll finish it as quickly and perfectly as possible.”

Clayton looked confident and ready.

The next morning, nearly 8,000 people from the two castles gathered to watch.

“If we’re going to drill a tunnel in a straight line, this is the spot. If we only collapse this much area around here….”

“Dwarf, my magic can cover even more area!”

“No. It’ll collapse too much, wizard. We don’t need a tunnel that big! We want a semicircle about 30m across, so this much here….”

“Come on, trust me and let’s go big and wide!”

“Ha, really.”

A dwarf and a wizard were working together to plan the construction.

Logan watched them with a pleased expression.

Next to him, Dwayne looked around, worried.

“You’re really going through with this. What are you going to do when the Lord finds out….”

Logan waved his hand dismissively. “It’s fine, Dwayne, don’t worry so much. It will all be fine.”

“……I don’t know anymore. Do as you please.”

Dwayne walked away, upset. The construction finally began.

“What are they doing?”

“I don’t know either.”

“The higher-ups must have a plan.”

The villagers watched Clayton with curiosity, never having seen magic before.

“Wizard! Start when you’re ready!”

With Hamar’s signal, a bright yellow light, like sunshine, glowed from Clayton.

“Whoa! What’s going on?!”

“Wow, that’s magic….”

“Nothing bad is going to happen, is it?”

“The Grand Duke is there, too. It’ll be alright.”

The workers watched Clayton with wonder and worry.

At that moment, Logan could feel Clayton’s power changing things.

‘Hmm. The flow of mana is…….’

Natural energy, Mana, was a power used by humans. Logan could feel it now, even more than before.

The light slowly moved towards the rock face as Clayton raised his hand.

The moment the light touched the rock face, the earth began to shake.

Ooooooong.

The light spread throughout the rock face.

Suddenly, with a deafening roar like thunder, the rock face exploded! The ground shook under their feet, and dust and small stones flew everywhere, stinging their faces.

“Aaargh!”

“Get down!”

“I knew this would happen….”

The workers screamed in panic as dust rose into the air. Hamar shouted through the dust.

“I told you to keep it moderate! It’s too strong! Why are you showing off your strength here?!”

Logan sensed an even stronger flow of mana.

‘Another magic?’

From within the rising dust, a stronger power than before surged.

Grrrrk.

Before anyone knew it, the stones and dirt of the collapsed rock face were becoming a giant and rising up.

‘Huh?!’

From the dust, a huge shadow rose. It was a giant made of dirt and rocks, taller than a house, with stones for eyes and mud dripping from its arms. It stomped towards the mountain, each step shaking the ground.

Thud. Thud.

Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.

The giant headed towards the rock face faster and faster, and soon dug into the middle of the explosion with a roar.

Wham!

Rumble.

A series of explosions came from inside the rock face.

“Wh-what?!”

“What’s going on right now?”

The workers were confused, and after a moment, the dust settled.

Most of those who looked at the source of the noise could only stare.

“M-monster!!”

“It’s a monster!”

“Aaargh!”

“The mountain spirit is angry!”

“P-please save me!”

Inside the rock face, a cave had been carved out. The sight of the giant made of dirt and stone was enough to scare the villagers.

Rumble.

He didn’t know it at first, but the rock was holding up the cliff. The cliff looked like it could fall down any second.

“What are you all doing? Don’t just stand there like you’re frozen! Go and make the ground stronger now!”

Clayton shouted loudly, and his students quickly ran forward. Yellow light flashed from their hands, going up to the cave ceiling. The workers saw this light. Slowly, they understood it was magic. They stood up from where they were sitting or lying down.

“Th-that’s magic?”

“Haaah……”

“S-scary……”

“So, that’s how amazing a wizard is?”

They were scared but also amazed. Then, the administrator spoke. “He… he really did it! Oh my goodness… hehehe…” He laughed strangely, like he was losing his mind. Logan was still surprised, but the administrator’s laugh made him focus again.

“Huh?” Logan thought. He could still see the patterns of magic in his mind. A strange idea came to him: If his Poscore got stronger, maybe he could copy that magic. Maybe he could even copy the magic that made the giant, and the magic that made the cliff fall.

‘But wait,’ Logan thought. ‘Isn’t that kind of magic supposed to take geniuses years to learn? People with special magic talent spend their whole lives studying it.’ He quickly stopped that thought. ‘No, that’s crazy. Even with the Divine Sword, it’s impossible.’

Logan stopped dreaming. He looked again at Clayton’s magic. “Wow… that golem…” Even Logan, who had seen a lot, was amazed by the giant golem.

The people who lived on the land were very surprised by the magic. But Logan was even *more* surprised. He had seen so much magic before, in his past life. ‘A 5th Circle mage can do *this*?’ he thought. He knew about golems. He thought they were like magical toys, made from stones and magic stones.

But this giant Clayton made with magic was much more amazing than those golems. Logan remembered seeing many spells in battles before. He even saw a very powerful 6th Circle mage – people called them superhumans – make a huge fire storm that burned the ground. But even that wasn’t as amazing as this giant.

To put it mildly, a giant supporting a mountain.

The power that giant would display in war wouldn’t be just a simple storm of flames.

‘And it doesn’t seem to be a one-off……’

Thanks to his ability to see mana due to the Poscore, Logan could even discern the process by which Clayton’s magic manifested.

Of course, he didn’t fully understand all the complex transformations of mana that originated from the circle near his heart.

However, he could tell that the core felt at the center of the colossal golem was constantly resonating with Clayton’s circle.

As if to prove his guess, the golem began to move again as soon as the ground above its head solidified.

Thud.

Thud.

“It’s moving again!”

“Owaaah!”

This time, the golem began to push the rocks and piles of earth, scattered haphazardly by the collapse, in one direction.

Rumble.

Though its height was roughly 20 meters, its shoulder width was half that, making the earthen giant appear somewhat squat; it used the power derived from its enormous bulk to quickly push away the debris from the cliff face.

‘Why wasn’t such magic, such a mage, known in my past life?’ Logan couldn’t help but wonder.

A 5th Circle spell that was far more versatile than most 6th Circle magic, and no less powerful.

‘Why on earth……?’

No matter how much he racked his brain, he couldn’t find an answer.

But one thing was certain.

‘I want it. He’s a talent worth coveting.’

He couldn’t help but desire such magic.

Moreover, wasn’t he currently employing such a top-tier worker without pay?

Therefore, Logan could smile genuinely and brightly at Clayton.

“Elder, you are truly amazing. Who knew I would witness such magic in this world? Thanks to you, I’m opening my eyes to new possibilities.”

“Ahem. Well, this much is basic for the head of our Golem School, young lord. Didn’t I assure you?”

“Haha, indeed.”

“Those narrow-minded individuals in the Magic Tower only see the flaws, but the history our school has built is something we can proudly present anywhere in the world.”

A composed face with his chin held high.

If it weren’t for the sweat streaming down from the scar on his forehead, he could have certainly projected the image of a dignified mage.

Concealing his pitiful expression, Logan raised both thumbs.

“Hahaha, I never doubted your words, Elder. Rather, I was surprised because you are even more outstanding than I imagined.”

At those words, the corners of Clayton’s lips subtly lifted.

A face so close to expressionless that an average person wouldn’t even notice.

But Logan knew from the past few weeks of experience and the disciples’ explanations that that expression only appeared when Clayton was genuinely satisfied.

“You are truly reliable. Are your disciples also able to use the same magic?”

So, seizing the opportunity, he didn’t hesitate to ask a question that might be rude or even a secret.

Clayton’s disciples were currently only using magic to stabilize the collapsing ground.

If those disciples could use even a weaker version of this golem magic, the construction he had planned would proceed much faster than expected.

However.

“They can use it, but, ahem, there’s a slight problem……”

“Yes?”

“The spell to create the golem’s core with mana is only possible at the 5th Circle, so the disciples need mana stones. Even then, it will be much smaller and weaker.”

Clayton’s answer left Logan speechless.

‘Mana stones, you say……’

Mana Crystal.

A mineral as rare as Orichalcum or Mithril, the metals of the gods, it was a rare ore in which mana, the energy of nature, resided.

Because it couldn’t be created artificially and was endlessly consumed by mages to aid their magic or to manufacture artifacts, its price was high even compared to its rarity.

Although the grade varied depending on the concentration of mana contained, even the lowest grade mana stone was far more expensive than gold of the same volume.

‘Tsk. Not cost-effective……’

But when did one consider cost-effectiveness in war?

‘If the effect is good, that’s all that matters. If I can increase the power by investing money……’

For a moment, Logan even forgot that Clayton and his disciples were merely employees.

“What about the Elder’s magic?”

“Of course. Even if one has reached my level, using a suitable mana stone can amplify the golem’s power several times over. Strength, speed, and endurance as well.”

“Wow. You are truly amazing.”

Logan exclaimed sincerely, while rapidly calculating in his head.

If the golem could move several times faster than it does now……

‘It could easily overwhelm any knight. Amazing!’

If it could exert that much power, a little extra cost wouldn’t be a problem……

“However, as I mentioned, a suitable mana stone is required.”

“By suitable mana stone, do you mean?”

“Ahem. Being 5th Circle, it requires the highest grade.”

……That might be a bit of a problem.

The estimated price for a fist-sized, top-grade mana stone was between 500,000 and 1,000,000 gold.

It was the moment he truly understood why the Golem School was always strapped for cash.

However, Logan hadn’t given up hope yet.

“What about your disciples?”

“Of course not! 2nd Circle golem magic is sufficient with a low-grade mana stone. It can last about a day and exert strength several times the average adult male.”

A low-grade mana stone, assuming a fist-sized piece, was about the price of a lump of gold.

In gold, that was nearly a thousand gold.

Spending that much money for just several times the strength of an adult male?

And with a one-day time limit?

Still not cost-effective.

‘Still…… in a short-term battle, it could more than make up for it.’

Even considering all the drawbacks, the moment he imagined the golem magic being used on the battlefield.

‘If that’s an ally?’

Logan felt a slight shiver run down his spine without realizing it.

But……

‘Ah, they belonged to the Magic Tower. Tsk.’

Realizing the reality, Logan could only smack his lips and turn away.