The Return of The Mythical Archmage [EN]: Chapter 432

I had my doubts, but it really was absorbing Mora.

‘This makes the strain I put on myself a non-issue.’

I successfully achieved the ultimate goal of this labyrinth exploration, which was ‘acquiring Mora.’

What’s a little exhaustion compared to that?

Considering the potential dangers that might arise later, this level of strain is nothing.

‘Considering the other stages, like the 3rd and 4th, this is really nothing.’

Given the amount of mana within the Black Star [a source of immense magical power], there might even be a 5th stage or more.

Finding Mora here in the 2nd stage is nothing short of a stroke of luck.

‘Now the problem is how to rejoin Adela and the others…’

I’ve found Mora’s relic, which was my objective.

There’s no need to explore the labyrinth any further.

All that’s left is to safely escape the labyrinth.

To do that, I need to rejoin my companions first.

Escaping the labyrinth comes after that.

“Successor.”

As I was thinking that.

Mimir called out to me.

“It’s confirmed. Just as you said, the seal is broken.”

It seems the analysis of Mora is complete.

“So, can I just put it in Aeth [a personal storage space]?”

The absence of a seal means there’s no issue with handling it directly.

I should be able to just pick it up.

“No. You can’t do that.”

Mimir shook his head with an expression that said it was absolutely not possible.

“Right now, Mora’s relic is raw and unprocessed. The moment you touch it, you’ll be sucked into the relic.”

“Can’t I just block the mana and put it in Aeth?”

Raw or not, as long as I don’t infuse it with my mana, I won’t be sucked into the relic.

That’s how relics are structured.

Mimir shook his head with a look of disbelief.

“Mora’s relic currently has time-freezing magic on it. It’s impossible to pick it up without using mana.”

“The relic’s time is frozen?”

“Yes. That’s why it’s floating there without moving.”

That was the first time I’d heard that.

Time is frozen.

Did he find that out during the mana analysis?

“To undo the time freeze on the relic, you need to interfere with it again using Phinis [a magical energy]. That will inevitably cause mana to touch the relic. And then…”

“Mana will naturally flow in, and my body will be sucked into the relic. Is that what you’re saying?”

“Exactly.”

Mimir nodded with a serious expression.

“It’s not just your mind that gets sucked into the relic. Even if you get sucked in, it won’t cause any problems with your body, but…”

“It’s not something I can do right now when I need to find the others.”

“Right.”

Right now, I need to prioritize rejoining my companions.

Acquiring Mora can wait until after everyone’s safety is secured.

“Then, let’s leave Mora as it is for now and find the others…”

Let’s find them.

That’s what I was about to say when.

KWAHAAAAANG-!

A deafening explosion shattered one of the walls.

Dust billowed out from the collapsed wall, forming a fog-like shape.

‘That’s…’

Beyond the dust-made fog, I could see a silhouette.

The silhouette of a woman holding a sword.

“Kuh…!”

It’s Stella.

The moment I was sure of that, another explosion erupted.

Amidst the explosions, I faintly heard the distinct sound of metal clashing.

Then, a strong gust of wind blew, clearing away all the dust.

‘Stella?’

Beyond the cleared view, I could see Stella.

She was holding a sword with both hands, blocking a huge fist.

Her clothes were torn in several places, and her whole body was covered in dust.

Just from what I could see, she had at least three wounds.

Her expression was serious, and it was clear that the situation was dire.

“Successor, that… it’s a mass of flesh!”

The dust completely cleared, and the monster that Stella was blocking with her sword fully revealed itself.

It was very similar to the mass of flesh I had fought.

It just had limbs.

Its unique disgusting aura and the texture of its skin were almost identical.

‘Did Stella also fight a boss monster on the other side, just like me?’

It seems so.

‘If Stella is struggling this much… does it have some kind of characteristic like ignoring physical attacks?’

The monster didn’t seem to have a single scratch.

It might have a characteristic similar to magic nullification, but for physical attacks.

‘No, now is not the time to be thinking about this.’

I immediately lunged towards Stella.

“Stella!”

“… !”

Stella’s eyes widened as she heard my voice.

“Ha, Hayul-ssi!”

Then, she called my name with a look of utter relief.

WHOOOOOSH-!

At that moment, the monster swung its fist again.

It swung its fist with incredible speed, not befitting its massive size.

“…Kuh!”

Stella bit her lip and swung her sword.

The brief flash of light created by Stella’s sword.

Normally, a sword with that much power should have cut through the fist and the entire body.

CLANG-!

Stella’s sword didn’t even leave a scratch on the monster’s fist.

“Kyaaak!”

Still holding her sword, she was thrown backward.

‘As I thought…!’

As I expected, it seems to be an entity with a characteristic like physical attack nullification.

I quickly caught Stella’s body and cast a spell.

“Be, be careful! That thing… its attacks don’t work at all…!”

Stella urgently shouted to me about the monster’s characteristics.

“I know, just stay still!”

I cut off Stella’s words and cast a spell.

It’s unlikely that it has both magic nullification and physical attack nullification at the same time.

I should be able to deal with it with a simple spell.

I cast the spell with that conviction.

At that moment.

“…Heh heh.”

A chilling laugh echoed from my chest.

“Suc…!”

Mimir’s panicked voice was also heard.

Successor.

Mimir couldn’t even finish the three syllables.

He only managed to utter one syllable, ‘Suc…!’, with a look of utter panic.

‘What is it?’

I cast the spell and lowered my gaze.

To find the source of the chilling laughter and the reason for Mimir’s panic.

I lowered my gaze in the direction the sound came from and where Mimir was looking.

Smirk.

Of course, Stella was there, where my gaze landed.

“Finally, you’re showing an opening?”

With an even more chilling expression than the laughter I just heard, she was stabbing her sword into me.

‘Why…?’

The sword hasn’t pierced my chest yet, but it’s literally ‘not yet.’

The blade was right in front of my heart.

It wouldn’t take even 0.1 seconds for the sword to pierce my heart.

‘Why is Stella…?’

Is it because death is so close?

Everything seems to be moving slowly.

Watching the sword slowly approaching to pierce my heart, I thought.

‘Betrayal? No. There’s no way Stella would betray me…’

I couldn’t do anything but think.

There’s no way to avoid Stella’s sword in this situation, at this timing.

If I were in good condition, I might have been able to react somehow, but my current condition is the worst.

My body and mana are in tatters. Responding was impossible.

THWACK-!

The sensation of the sword cutting through my skin was very vivid.

The sword pierced my skin and began to dig into my muscles.

‘I’m going to die…’

Just as the word ‘death’ filled my mind.

WHOOOOOSH-!

Something unexpected happened.

‘…Sword energy?’

SWISH-!

Perpendicular to the sword that Stella was stabbing, another sword energy appeared.

‘Did she prepare another sword path in case I dodged?’

By slashing once, she created two sword paths.

It’s an impossible feat for most swordsmen, but it’s something Stella could do.

Could this second sword energy be a second strike prepared to kill me more surely?

That’s what I thought.

‘No. No, it’s not!’

At that moment, I felt the ‘will’ contained in the sword energy.

I don’t know why, but I just knew.

‘This second strike isn’t aimed at me.’

The second sword energy wasn’t emitting any killing intent towards me.

Far from killing intent, it was showing a friendly aura towards me.

‘This is…’

This sword isn’t a follow-up attack that the Stella in my arms prepared to kill me.

‘Support!’

That’s what I shouted inwardly when.

CLAAAAAANG-!

The sound of metal clashing against metal rang out loudly.

CLANG!

Followed by the sound of metal being cut.

The second sword energy that flew in cut through Stella’s sword.

SWISH-!

And then, the third sword energy that flew in cut off both of the hands of the Stella in my arms.

“How dare you…”

At that moment, a voice was heard.

The voice that should have been coming from my arms was coming from the opposite side, far away.

“How dare you use my face…!”

Thud, thud.

Someone was approaching.

I slowly turned my gaze towards that direction.

“I won’t forgive you…”

Stella was walking towards me.

With the same face as the Stella in my arms, she was grinding her teeth and walking towards me.

“A fake like you!”

The aura she was emitting was so ominous, it was like looking at a demon.

She couldn’t be any angrier.

From her expression to her gestures and aura.

Stella’s entire being was screaming that.

“How dare you, how dare you! Hurt Hayul-ssi?”

She came right in front of me, grabbed the hair of the Stella in my arms who was still smiling with the same expression, and pulled her up.

Then, she slammed her head into the ground.

“You… you won’t die easily.”

She swung her sword again, as if carving out the severed part of the arm.

She sliced the arm thinly, as if she was slicing ham.

“Hmm. Since I’m you, I understand how you feel.”

The Stella slammed into the ground said with a sneer.

“Don’t waste your energy on useless things. I can’t feel pain. That’s how I’m made.”

She laughed, as if she was amused and disappointed.

“Ah~ that’s a shame.”

In that state, she looked up at me.

“I finally broke through that tough guard. But then, help came from somewhere else at the last moment.”

Looking up, she sighed.

“It’s a shame. Why did the barrier have to break at that timing?”

Then, she smiled faintly, as if she was mocking herself.

“Oh, no. The barrier, well, it’s natural that it would disappear after defeating the stage boss.”

“Shut up. Close your mouth.”

Stella, as if angry, put more strength into the hand that was pressing down on the head of the other Stella, who was slammed into the ground.

The fake Stella’s face was half-buried in the ground.

“Then… does that mean the problem was sending you to the stage boss in the first place? Then it’s my fault? What? There’s nothing to be disappointed about?”

In that state, she laughed loudly.

“Ah, but still, it’s a shame. I thought I could easily deal with you with the boss’s magic nullification. I didn’t know you’d have a way to break through it.”

She said it was a shame, but there was no feeling of disappointment to be found.

“And also… if it weren’t for you guys. I could have dealt with everything. Why did the first raiders have to be heretics like you? If you didn’t have special AIs, I could have taken you all down individually. It’s really a shame.”

Far from being disappointed, she looked very pleased.

“Still. Well, it was fun. It was my first time eating it. Human memories are quite delicious. Bitter yet sweet. And sour.”

In that state, she licked her lips.

“It was a delicacy. If I get the chance, I’d like to taste it again. Especially Stella Vinoche. Your memories were the most delicious. Can you let me taste it one more time?”

“…Do you think I’ll let you?”

“Well, you won’t.”

With those words, her body slowly began to disappear.

“Ah, right. Stella Vinoche. Earlier. Do you remember what the other me said to you? That. Remember it well. As someone who absorbed your memories, it’s the last piece of advice I can give you.”

“…Shut up.”

As if there was no reason to maintain her body any longer.

She destroyed her own body with her own will.

And just like that, the fake Stella vanished into nothingness.

“Really…”

The real Stella frowned at the sight.

“It’s really annoying… A fake… with that know-it-all expression…”

Everything about it was annoying, from head to toe.