Chapter 158 – Frozen Things (Two)

The moment Ray spotted the bruise peeking from inside Ayla’s sleeve.

Thud!

Ray snatched Ayla’s wrist and pulled it to the center of the table.

Swoosh—

As her sleeve slid down, the bruises covering her arm were revealed.

“……!”

Utterly flustered, Ayla shook off Ray’s hand and yanked her sleeve back up.

She immediately pulled her body back, creating distance, and drew up the Ring’s Mana.

Jjeojik! Jjeojeojik!

Multiple ice spikes bloomed.

As if they would shoot toward Ray at any moment.

“…….”

Ayla said nothing.

Only her eyes filled with wariness and her quickened, startled breaths conveyed the girl’s message.

“…….”

Ray was also silent.

Even though the other party could shoot the spikes if she wished, he didn’t draw up any Mana at all.

He simply stared at the arm covered by her clothes—

“Did Binjin do that?”

—and asked.

“……!”

Ayla’s pupils trembled violently.

The multitude of emotions bound on the Ice Field also shook greatly.

From that sight, Ray could solidify his speculation into certainty.

“It was Binjin. Judging by the shape of the marks, it seems like he used a whip-like tool. And seeing how the shades of the colors vary slightly, it probably wasn’t just once or twice.”

“You…! Your voice is too loud…!”

Ayla looked around frantically with panicked eyes.

This was one of the restaurants operated by the Amon Family, and their conversation could potentially reach Binjin’s ears.

“No need to worry. I’ve already cast Soundproofing Magic and a Distortion Field. No one outside can hear our conversation. They can’t see the ice spikes either. We’ll just look like we’re quietly drinking tea.”

Only then did Ayla’s head, which had been spinning like a large-caliber turret, come to a stop.

“When on earth did you…?”

“Ever since we first sat down.”

“…….”

Ayla, who had been silent, spoke.

“It’s not from being hit by my teacher. I just fell and got these bruises.”

“…….”

How exactly would one have to fall to get marks that look like a snake coiling around?

You’re not very good at lying.

I should teach you later.

Thinking that, Ray asked a confirmatory question.

“It was Binjin who hit you, right?”

“No.”

“You were punished with something like a whip, weren’t you?”

“I said no.”

“You were hit, right?”

“You… do you want to get hit by me…?”

With each repeated question, Ayla’s fear of Binjin swelled.

And when the question directly included being hit, her fear of her father swelled alongside it.

“Did your father hit you too?”

“…….”

That was the moment.

When a bright red anger bloomed in Ayla’s Vessel.

“That’s none of your business.”

The crimson flames seemed unaffected by the Ice Field.

Realizing he had hit the mark, Ray completely shifted the subject of his questions from Binjin to her father.

“So you were hit by your father too.”

“That’s a rude question.”

“When were you hit?”

“You’re being very rude right now.”

“When you were little?”

“Don’t meddle in other people’s family matters.”

“So it was when you were little.”

Along with the talk of her father, Ayla’s Ice Field turned an even deeper blue.

Ray could sense it.

The reason an Ice Field was spread in Ayla’s Vessel was very likely due to the violence from her father in her childhood.

‘Trauma.’

Past events shape present emotions.

Then, in my case.

What event caused the Ice Field in my heart to be laid?

Then, Ayla stood up from her seat.

“I can’t talk to someone this rude. I should go.”

Ray immediately pulled out the dictionary.

Seeing the dictionary half-emerged from the bag, Ayla flinched and hastily picked up the menu to hide her head behind it.

“…….”

“You won’t hit me…?”

“…….”

“You won’t hit me, right…?”

“…….”

“You’re planning to hit me the moment I put this shield away, aren’t you…? I know all about it.”

Ray thought for a moment.

The reason blue ice spread and indigo stains formed in Ayla’s Vessel could ultimately be attributed to the violence from her father and Binjin.

‘Taking out a dictionary to stimulate the other person’s fear… is that violence?’

Ray briefly pondered the dictionary definition of violence.

‘Depending on the situation, it could be.’

The method of making Ayla sit back down with the dictionary wasn’t rational.

What he wanted was to find out the associated emotions of the blue Mana and, ultimately, a way to melt the Ice Field.

Violence, far from melting the Ice Field, would only strengthen its intensity.

Deciding to use a different method, Ray put the dictionary away and said,

“I’ll mentor your younger brother.”

“What…?”

“You value your brother more than yourself, right? Almost as your top life priority. I can bring out Ain’s Magic ability to its fullest potential. In exchange, answer a few of my questions.”

After watching the dictionary get sealed back into the bag to the very end, Ayla said,

“After committing every possible rudeness, what are you talking about now? I have nothing more to say to you.”

Ayla, her spirits revived, placed her hand on the Distortion Field, ready to leave at any moment.

“Goodbye. Take care.”

“…….”

“I’m going.”

“…….”

“I’ve never seen a kid as rude as you.”

“…….”

“I’m really going. Seriously, goodbye.”

“If you’re not going, sit down.”

“Okay. Got it.”

Ayla obediently returned and sat down, then soon said with shining eyes,

“What’s the Mage Tower’s teaching method like? Will you teach him the same way? I’d like to see the curriculum first.”

“The curriculum is specially…”

“I don’t know your teaching philosophy, but first, I’d like the progress to focus on Elemental Extremes, Connection, Formulae, and Extreme Elemental Numbers. That’s the most basic. Otherwise, I can’t entrust our Ain to you. And how much his grades can improve in the next exam is also important.”

Ray stared intently at Ayla.

Was she always this talkative?

“I don’t really understand what you’re saying, but when I fought Ain, I saw several areas that could be improved. If we fix them, he’ll get much better.”

Ayla immediately responded.

“Then fix them.”

“In exchange, answer my questions.”

“…What are the questions?”

“The reasons you were beaten by your father and Binjin.”

After a brief silence, Ayla asked,

“Why are you curious about that…?”

“It’s a very important issue for me.”

Confusion, panic, doubt, conflict, etc.

Many emotions swirled in her Vessel.

Ray addressed the part Ayla was worried about.

“Today’s conversation won’t reach Binjin’s ears. There’s Soundproofing Magic around us, and I have no intention of spreading what I hear anywhere.”

“…….”

“Binjin probably wouldn’t even think you brought up such a topic. If you were worried about that, you wouldn’t have arranged for the two of us to have a meal together in the first place.”

Another fairly long silence flowed.

“I don’t remember exactly why I was beaten by my father. It was when I was… very young.”

Finally, Ayla opened her mouth.

“I must have done something wrong, right? I’m useless and can’t do anything. That’s also the reason I get beaten by my teacher. It’s because I can’t reach the 3rd Circle quickly.”

Ray tilted his head.

“Because you can’t reach the 3rd Circle?”

“Yes. He has high expectations of me. I should quickly raise my Circle and become helpful to him…”

“Do the other kids know you’re being whipped?”

Ayla was silent for a moment before speaking.

“No, they don’t. I’m the only one who gets whipped. Maybe… because I’m the only 2nd Circle among the kids…? I don’t know about skill, but in terms of the speed of Circle development, I’m also the fastest.”

Ayla said she is called to the tower every day and whipped with a rod.

Along with insults about being born inherently lazy and ignorant, unable to advance to the next Circle.

“Doesn’t it hurt?”

“If you consider it hurting… it hurts a lot. But it’s okay. Still, he doesn’t whip me hard enough to cause serious wounds. If I apply medicine, I get better quickly.”

Well, if serious wounds appeared, they would catch the other kids’ eyes.

‘The next target is highly likely to be Ayla.’

Ray recalled the conversation he had with Binjin yesterday.

「I’m planning to have a meal outside with Ayla tomorrow.」

「Hmm… Might I ask the reason for that?」

「She seems to have quite a talent for Magic. I thought I’d observe her condition a bit in a comfortable place.」

After thinking for a moment, Binjin soon smiled and said in a bright voice,

「I would only be grateful if you did that. It would be a great opportunity for Ayla! She might even gain precious enlightenment and reach the 3rd Circle.」

At that moment, strong expectation and desire for Ayla were revealed in Binjin’s Vessel.

「The growth of my disciples is no different from my own growth. Seeing them grow gives me a feeling of being full and not thirsty even without eating or drinking.」

That statement was also true.

‘At least from Binjin’s perspective.’

Because.

The higher the level of the disciples, the higher the quality of Mana that could be extracted through Exploitation Magic.

…Binjin is raising disciples to use them as sacrificial lambs for Exploitation Magic.

The traces of the Magic Circle left in the center of the tower.

Seeing the Mana of a single color, hazy like fog, lingering in the air above it, it wasn’t hard to guess.

‘Dark Blue Mana.’

That was the first evidence.

Dark blue is the Color of Emotion associated with malice, or inferiority mixed with fear, which was the emotion held by most of the disciples in the mansion.

「You said you send disciples with good grades to the Mage Tower with a recommendation letter? Conversely, you send those with poor grades to the farm for a break.」

「Yes. That’s correct.」

That was, of course, a lie.

Those who supposedly left for the Mage Tower or the farm all fell victim to Exploitation Magic, leaving only the emotions they held behind on the Magic Circle, in the air, and disappeared.

‘Khan would be a prime example. The Mana fragment attached to him was detected beneath the floor where the Magic Circle was drawn.’

That was the second evidence.

…And Binjin is trying to extend that reach to this side as well.

Did he think that as an Elf, a race proficient in Magic, he could extract a lot of Mana?

It was surprising that no malice was visible, but it wasn’t particularly shocking.

However, one question arose.

Where was all the Mana extracted from the disciples used?

Circumstantially, it seemed Binjin had maintained this secret operation for quite a long time.

He said he had focused solely on training disciples ever since he stopped the ruin exploration.

‘Mana extracted through Exploitation Magic can’t be used to strengthen a Ring. It’s usually used to enhance the performance of magical tools like Charging Stones.’

But no objects that appeared to be the result of that could be found in the mansion or the tower.

And there didn’t seem to be any such items among Binjin’s belongings either.

「So, to mention the precautions during the procedure in advance…」

While listening to Binjin’s explanation and focusing his senses, Ray soon found the answer.

‘The Magic Circle, beneath the floor, underground.’

Something was there.

Ray’s gaze, enhanced with Anryeok, pierced through the concrete floor.

Beyond the physical barrier, deep down, what Ray’s sight captured was…

‘…The Milky Way?’

It was a massive flow of Mana.

Its appearance, flowing leisurely along a fixed path, reminded him of the natural phenomenon called the Milky Way he had recently seen in a book.

‘There’s a large amount of high-quality Mana mixed in. This artificial feeling can’t be found in the atmosphere. Was all the extracted Mana poured in there?’

Perhaps it was because his ability to see Mana through objects still had limits.

The Milky Way shimmered very faintly, as if floating in a hazy night sky.

Still, it wasn’t to the point of being undetectable, and Ray continued his observation calmly and persistently.

As a result, he could ascertain several facts.

‘It’s not flowing gently. It just looks that way due to the limits of my vision; in reality, it’s flowing at a very fast speed. And the path is also twisted more complexly than imagined.’

In other words, it wasn’t the Milky Way.

It was closer to blood vessels where blood rushes fiercely in multiple directions.

And as the shimmer of the Mana became more familiar, a single massive form began to be discerned.

That form of thick, long, endless curves…

‘It moved, just now.’

…slid and moved, almost as if it had no presence.

And somewhere, it lifted the front part of its body with all its might.

Crunch!

It snatched and swallowed the Mana fragment of Khan that was drifting in the underground space.

Then it lowered its body.

Its presence completely vanished.

‘So this was it.’

At that moment, Ray knew.

Where the sense of incongruity he had felt since passing through the gate of Binjin’s mansion originated from.

Also.

Mixed within that sense of incongruity was a feeling of déjà vu, similar to when he saw the Stone Tablet.

The boy’s heart began to race.