The Return of The Mythical Archmage [EN]: Chapter 408

The Rebirth of a Mythical Archmage-409

A small island located somewhere in the Pacific Ocean.

Bale was resting in a room of a building that was practically a ruin.

‘Sein Vinoche. Sein Vinoche.’

Sitting in a worn-out chair, he was frowning deeply, thinking about Sein.

‘I didn’t want to give him any more time, but…’

Bale knew better than anyone how annoying and troublesome the Vaiternic power was.

He knew how foolish it was to give time to a Vaiternic wielder.

That’s why he tried to finish things quickly, even if it meant pushing himself a bit.

He wanted to crush Sein Vinoche before he grew any stronger, before Vaiternic achieved a new evolution.

‘Sein Vinoche. Dealing with him is postponed for later.’

But that plan failed.

Despite having such a favorable position, he couldn’t kill Sein Vinoche.

‘Now that he can ignore the restrictions to some extent, there’s no point in fighting him any further.’

He almost finished him off, but failed to land the final blow.

Sein Vinoche overcame his weakness at the very last moment.

The ‘evolution’ of Vaiternic granted her new power.

‘…Tch. Even though the times have changed, some things are still annoying.’

Vaiternic.

He knew it, but it was truly a disgusting power.

Even if he devised all sorts of schemes and drove them to the brink of death, they would suddenly awaken new powers and attempt a reversal.

What a selfish and disgusting power.

Bale clicked his tongue with a look of utter annoyance.

‘The good thing is that Sein Vinoche’s actual growth rate isn’t that fast.’

Anyone who heard that would tell him not to talk nonsense.

Sein Vinoche’s growth rate isn’t fast?

He had just succeeded in nullifying the ‘restrictions’ that were considered impossible. How could anyone say his growth rate wasn’t fast?

…It wouldn’t be strange to object to that.

But that’s something only people who know one thing and not the other would say.

Anyone who knows about Vaiternic would never object like that.

‘For some reason, Sein Vinoche’s growth is only happening in conceptual and mental aspects.’

Certainly, Sein Vinoche’s growth rate is tremendous.

Evolving his mind sword, making it able to choose and cut targets.

Being able to cut through Bale’s restrictions to some extent, though not completely.

The evolutions Sein achieved after meeting Bale were by no means insignificant.

‘His physical growth rate is not fast at all.’

But that’s it.

He has grown greatly mentally and conceptually.

His body remains the same.

It hasn’t changed at all compared to when they first met.

‘At this rate, my recovery rate is much faster.’

Sein Vinoche’s physical growth rate is far behind his own recovery rate.

In fact, he could leave him alone without any problems.

‘There’s a good chance that his growth might suddenly accelerate, though…’

Vaiternic is a power for evolution.

It wouldn’t be strange if he surpassed Ray Bale Vaiternic, surpassed Bale, and reached a new horizon.

That’s why Bale prioritized dealing with Sein over regaining his own power.

‘Even so, it wouldn’t match my prime.’

But now the situation has changed.

Sein’s physical growth rate is by no means fast.

At that rate, he can just leave him alone.

He can leave him alone and focus on regaining his own power.

No, he must focus on regaining his power.

That’s the best course of action he can take in the current situation.

‘It would be better to stop the dragon-based terrorism as well.’

Now that there’s no need to rush, it’s right to stop using dragons like consumables.

‘Only the dragons that have already been prepared will be set to go berserk naturally, and the rest will be recovered. They will be used solely as my nourishment.’

The remaining dragon souls will all be used to regain his power.

‘I wanted to avoid giving the mages time to prepare as much as possible, but…’

Magic derived from Vaiternic.

Commonly known as general-purpose magic.

Bale, who fought a war with the Empire, knew best how troublesome and annoying those who wielded that magic were.

Each individual’s power is insignificant, but when they start combining their powers, they become incredibly annoying.

That’s why he tried to weaken the powers of each nation by using dragon souls as consumables.

‘…Since things have turned out this way, there’s no choice. I’ll just have to endure that much annoyance.’

If he leaves things as they are, troublesome things will surely happen in the future.

But there’s no choice.

What’s important now is to regain his power.

For that, other things have to be sacrificed to some extent.

‘I’ll regain all my power within a month, and then start acting again. That’s the best course of action right now.’

Bale decided to lie low for now.

Bale slowly got up from the chair.

He had finished organizing his thoughts, and his power had recovered to some extent.

There was no point in staying here any longer.

He needed to return quickly, even to convey his new course of action to his subordinates.

Bale quickened his pace.

‘It’s really not much time left now.’

Walking through the corridor of the old mansion, Bale thought.

‘Until I return as myself. Until the day I return as my complete self. One step closer.’

Before he became Bale Stoll.

Back when he was still called ‘God’.

The day he returns to that time is not far off.

Bale, who had stepped out of the mansion, looked up at the black sky.

‘I will once again become the one and only god who rules this world.’

A dark sky where neither the moon nor the sun could be seen.

A deep darkness where not a single ray of light could be found.

‘This world is mine.’

Bale’s eyes resembled that darkness.

* * *

Two days had passed since I started training to handle the Ring of Nothingness.

‘It’s definitely improved.’

In just two days, the Ring of Nothingness had become even more solid.

To be precise, the connection points between the Ring of Nothingness and my body, and between the Ring of Nothingness and other rings, had become more solid.

If two days ago it felt like the seven rings and one ring were separate in my body, now it felt like the eight rings had become one.

The connection between the Infinity Circles had become even more solid.

‘Good. With this, I’ve solidified almost all the inner strength I can practically solidify.’

The Ring of Nothingness had firmly settled in my body.

There were no more benefits to be gained from mana circulation.

I could stop mana circulation and mental training here.

‘I can move on to advanced training right away from today.’

The basic training was practically over.

It was time to move on to the advanced stage.

“Hoo.”

I stopped the mana circulation and took a breath.

‘Is it already over?’

‘I want to play more!’

‘Let’s play more!’

Perhaps because I had been circulating mana for over three hours, the mana was not easily listening to me.

‘I’ll play with you more later. So, rest inside for now.’

It took quite a long time to calm the mana and settle it in my body.

It took about 3 minutes for the mana to return to its normal state and settle properly in my body.

“Hoo…”

Only then was I able to get up from my seat.

‘I should stop training in the Luminescent Mana Stone Cave from today.’

The place I was in now was the Luminescent Mana Stone Cave.

Until now, I had been training in the Luminescent Mana Stone Cave to increase the efficiency of mana circulation.

But it seemed like I wouldn’t be coming back here after today.

‘The mana here is too self-conscious, so it’s not suitable for using magic.’

A high mana density means that the mana has a more definite will.

The mana here is too individualistic to be refined as magic.

It was not suitable for conducting advanced training.

I wouldn’t be returning to the Luminescent Mana Stone Cave for a while.

‘The next time I return to this place will be when I weave the ninth circle.’

I would return to this place again on the day I weave a new ring and start basic training again.

I left the Luminescent Mana Stone Cave behind and headed towards the Green Castle.

‘Then, what kind of training should I do first in the Green Castle? Should I start by creating the essence of Nothingness in a proper form?’

The essence of Nothingness.

The special power that only the Ring of Nothingness possesses.

Only by controlling this power 100% could I reach the 8-circle master level.

‘No, that’s too fast. First, I need to use other magic to understand the characteristics of the Ring of Nothingness and make it completely mine.’

How does magic used with the Ring of Nothingness change?

What characteristics does it have, and what uniqueness does it possess?

Understanding that is the priority.

‘Then, should I start by using only the Ring of Nothingness and try using everything from 1-circle magic to mythical magic?’

Starting from the basics, one by one.

I was thinking of using everything I had learned so far in connection with the Ring of Nothingness.

‘The Ring of Nothingness feels like the commander of all Infinity Circles in terms of position and structure, so if I use it in connection, something else might be born.’

I continued walking, thinking such thoughts.

How long had I walked?

The gate of the Green Castle came into view beyond the cave passage.

It felt like I was seeing it after a long time.

‘No, it has actually been a long time.’

Since winning against Tay in the Green Castle, I had been stuck in the Luminescent Mana Stone Cave until today.

It had been almost ten days since I had come to the Green Castle.

It was natural to feel like it had been a long time.

I stood in front of the gate of the Green Castle and looked up at it.

‘But… something seems different.’

Was it just my imagination?

The gate seemed to be different.

‘Is it just because it’s been a long time that it looks different?’

It felt like the green color was a bit darker, or that the mana felt more intense.

‘…Or is it? Is my sense distorted because of the Ring of Nothingness?’

The senses of the 7-circle and 8-circle are bound to be different.

I might be feeling this way because I wove the Ring of Nothingness and my senses became a bit more sensitive.

‘…It’s ambiguous.’

I had caused trouble in the Luminescent Mana Stone Cave because of the discrepancy in my senses.

I couldn’t say for sure.

‘Well… I’ll know when I go inside.’

I reached out to the Green Castle.

Creak-!

The green iron gate slowly began to open.

Light poured out from between the gate and the door.

‘It’s definitely different.’

The discrepancy became even greater as the gate opened.

Something was definitely different.

‘What happened to the Green Castle?’

I slowly stepped inside the Green Castle.

And just as my entire body entered the Green Castle.

Sss…

A strange, eerie energy brushed past my skin.

A sensation as if a nasty poison had swept through my entire body.

‘This is…’

I knew the identity of this sensation.

‘Corrupted mana?’

The corrupted mana that black mages wield.

The sticky and disgusting blackness unique to black mages was flowing out from deep within the Green Castle.