Chapter 196 – What You Lose When You Become an Adult (Four)

The boy couldn’t help but be somewhat surprised by the scene revealed beyond the door.

A pure white cubic space.

Black lines like lightning streaking across the walls.

‘A Cube?’

It was identical to the interior of Ignis’s Cube he had seen in number 37.

Not exactly the same.

This space was larger, and of course there were complex mechanical devices and panels lining the walls, but most importantly, there was that in the center.

A glass sphere resting atop a small pillar.

Inside, a yellow object emitting a dazzling light floated weightlessly.

Its identity was clear.

The intense resonance from the yellow gem within his body was making his entire frame thump like a heart.

The next moment.

Whoosh—!

Without a moment’s hesitation, Ray threw his body forward.

Crunch!

The fiercely charging wolf’s maw tore through the spot where Ray had been standing.

Rolling on the floor and rising to his feet, Ray kept his back to the pillar and the glass sphere, his gaze fixed on the wolf at the power room entrance.

‘Its momentum is growing stronger and stronger.’

The black, materialized mana forming the wolf’s body was now richer in color and density compared to when it was on the deck.

Conversely, the yellow flames clinging to his own body had weakened significantly.

They looked like light losing its place to the encroaching darkness.

…A stronger light was needed.

Ray reached his hand behind him, feeling for the glass sphere.

Huum—

He secretly channeled mana, attempting to deliver a shock, but the glass sphere didn’t budge an inch.

In a way, it was to be expected.

As a protective device for an important object, it likely wasn’t made of ordinary glass.

‘Using the Element of Destruction is difficult.’

He couldn’t fully devote his concentration to creating the Element of Destruction because he had to keep his eyes on the wolf in front of him.

‘If I fight now, my chances of winning are low.’

The vicious malice emanating from his opponent far exceeded his expectations.

‘Its actions are also hard to predict.’

He couldn’t tell if the opponent was consumed by instinct or if its reason was still intact.

Just then, something the size of a fingernail flew through the air and landed on the shell of Ray’s ear.

It was a mechanical bee.

Is’s voice drilled into his ear.

─To unlock the security device, you need the security key the Elders have. I’ll bring it down now, so just hold on a little longer….

“No, that won’t be necessary.”

Ray muttered softly.

Reflected in the boy’s pupils was the image of the wolf preparing to pounce.

A situation where everything surrounding him belonged to the realm of uncertainty and impossibility.

But, it didn’t matter.

There had never been a single moment in his life that wasn’t a continuation of danger and hardship.

Grrroooaaar!

With an ear-splitting roar, the wolf launched itself from its position.

Instantly, its body rippled and transformed into the shape of a massive, violently rotating drill.

Ray didn’t take his eyes off the surging malice, nor did he move.

Life was always a series of tremors.

And whenever that happened, it was always intuition that broke through the situation and extended the wick of his life.

This could be said to be the reason the boy now entrusted himself to animalistic senses rather than rational calculation.

The distance closing in real-time.

The moment the giant drill, now right before his eyes, was about to pierce through his face.

───!

Ray, who hadn’t moved a muscle until now, bent his body deeply in a lightning-fast motion.

The drill traced a perilous trajectory over his back, leaving a searing pain.

Immediately after, the sound of something shattering echoed from behind. Turning his head, he could see glass fragments soaring high and scattering.

And at their center.

The yellow gem emitting an immense radiance as well.

Ray, having regained his posture, immediately flung his body toward the gem.

The wolf on the other side, having returned to its original form, also leaped toward the same target.

The gem falling from high in the air.

In the boy’s outstretched hand was the other half of the gem, and between the two gems that were originally one, a dazzling beam of light had formed.

An instant that felt as if time had stopped.

The boy’s body floated through the air as the wick of light grew shorter and shorter.

The grotesquely gaping maw of the wolf also drew closer and closer to the gem.

Soon.

Thump!

By a hair’s breadth, the boy’s hand seized the gem first.

The wolf’s fangs digging into the back of his hand.

The boy moved his lips.

“Your defeat.”

A bright yellow flash of light, starting from his fist, instantly engulfed the entire power room.

In the quietly unfolding world of light, the darkness raged madly, shook, rippled, and repeated scattering and coalescing.

At some point, his vision returned.

The gradually revealed scenery.

Before the boy standing unscathed, another boy lay collapsed.

“Cough…! So that’s the item Father mentioned…!”

The enemy, lifting his head with difficulty, spat out the words as he saw the intact gem in Ray’s hand.

His body, having lost its right arm, no longer had either darkness or light clinging to it.

All the black mana of the ring had also been washed away, leaving before his eyes now just the boy himself with an ordinary appearance.

“Now I get it…! Cough…! Why Father was wary of you…!”

“…….”

Ray looked down at his opponent with dry eyes.

The remaining executives of Mercread were three.

Obsess, Lazy, Vicious.

According to Curiosa’s childhood memories, Obsess was a woman.

Lazy was said to have a large build for his age but was lazy and insensitive.

Vicious was said to be a boy who killed small animals and insects, an unfathomable child.

That was about 20 years ago.

Why he still retained a child’s form to this day was unknown, but if he had to choose the most likely candidate among the three.

“Vicious.”

Vicious, his body flinching, then let out a laugh and spoke.

“What’s this. You know my name…? Did that traitor Curiosa snitch or something…? Cough…! That coward who was always hiding in the closet.”

Vicious’s malice and momentum hadn’t diminished in the slightest.

However, his ragged breathing and the arm bleeding profusely indicated that there wasn’t much time left for questions.

“Vicious, what is the Doctor’s goal?”

“Doctor? You mean Father? I don’t know…! That kind of thing…! Kikik…! Father arranged everything, and I’m just a good, obedient boy.”

“How did you know I was heading for the ruins? Why did you damage the tower’s records?”

“I know, I know everything! Cough…! Father is omniscient…! Of course he’d know what a thorn in his side is doing…!”

Vicious gradually showed signs of his pupils losing focus and his pronunciation becoming slurred.

He seemed to be on the verge of a mental breakdown, spouting arbitrary answers to questions like a broken machine.

Still, Ray remained unshaken and calmly continued his questioning.

And then.

“According to Curiosa, you were all adopted by the Doctor 20 years ago. Are you the only one who hasn’t aged?”

It was at that moment that Vicious’s focus suddenly sharpened again.

From between his torn lips, a quiet voice flowed out.

“That’s simple. Once your head hardens, you can’t imagine anymore.”

After that, a maddened laugh filled the space.

Vicious shaking his body as if to break it apart.

Having judged further conversation impossible, Ray used the gem’s mana to create a sword.

Huum—

The dazzling light emitted by the Light Sword poured down upon Vicious.

“You’re going to kill me! Yeah, you should kill me! But remember! I may die, but I do not die…!”

The sword fell without hesitation.

Thud!

Vicious’s movements ceased.

Then, the Light Sword, attuned to Ray’s will, scattered into mana and vanished.

Ray looked around once with a somewhat dazed mind.

“…….”

It was the end of a long battle.

The power room’s harsh lighting and the quiet hum of machinery induced a slight dizziness and fatigue.

His gaze, having slowly made a full circle, turned to his hand.

The two interlocked yellow gem fragments had become one complete form.

The mana felt from within was extremely pure and clean, and it also evoked a feeling he had sensed before.

It was a sense of déjà vu.

“How many casualties in total?”

“12 dead, 35 seriously injured, 72 lightly injured, totaling 119.”

“Destroyed facilities?”

“Internal facilities: 3 extractors in the central power room. External facilities: 8 mana condensers were damaged.”

Compared to the intruder’s power, the damage was minimal, almost lucky.

However, Parun’s expression as he received the report in the conference room was anything but bright.

The other Elders, gathered in the conference room after receiving only minimal treatment, also wore similarly dark expressions.

The lingering pain in their solar plexus?

The injuries sustained from the intruder?

Those weren’t the problem.

The real problem was the fact that their high pride had been mercilessly shattered.

Who would have thought that Rael Row, which had prided itself as an impregnable fortress, could be so ravaged by a single intruder.

Moreover, if the human Wizard who happened to be visiting hadn’t stepped in, the damage would have grown uncontrollably.

“…I see. You may withdraw for now.”

“Understood, Elder Parun.”

The reporter bowed his head and disappeared outside the conference room.

“…….”

“…….”

An oppressive silence flowed.

Complex and chaotic emotions locked the Elders’ mouths shut.

Just then, the door opened and Ray and Is appeared.

Ray sat down with his characteristic impassive movements, and Is, with a hesitant gesture, followed and sat beside him.

Parun spoke first, looking at Ray.

“Is your body alright?”

“It’s fine.”

“It would have been better if you had taken our advice and received intensive care in the treatment room.”

“I wasn’t that badly injured.”

That was true.

He had pushed his body to its limits, but the only injury was the scratch on the back of his hand from the wolf’s fang.

Even that wasn’t a deep wound, and it had been perfectly healed with Healing Magic.

After an awkward silence that lasted quite a while, Parun finally opened his mouth.

“First, I want to say thank you.”

The other Elders nodded in agreement and added.

“We acknowledge our complacency.”

“If it weren’t for you, the damage would have escalated to a severe level.”

“Truly, thank you.”

Is’s eyes widened as he saw the heads bowing in unison.

He hadn’t known the usually stiff-necked Elders could humble themselves to this extent.

But there was one fact Is failed to recognize.

Part of the Elders’ submissive attitude was also due to their fear of Ray.

The very person who had single-handedly repelled such a powerful intruder.

It was impossible not to know which side currently held the advantage in power.

“Once again, truly, thank you.”

“It’s not like I was trying to protect Rael Ro—”

—w, or anything.

Ray cut off his words.

Mercread was an entity he would have had to face eventually.

While the result was that he had protected Rael Row, in truth, this battle could largely be said to have been fought for his own benefit.

…But was there any need to reveal that fact?

Philip said that putting the other party in your debt was always a not-bad choice.

So Ray said.

“—w, I was. I fought gritting my teeth with the sole determination to protect the Dwarves. That’s why my whole body is covered in wounds now.”

“Thank you…! But you said earlier you weren’t badly injured…”

“No. Thinking about it, I was injured quite a lot.”

“You look fine on the outside…”

“Ouch, this really hurts. I think my right leg will ache whenever it rains from now on.”

The sight of six old men whose combined ages exceeded a thousand years being flustered by a 16-year-old was quite a spectacle.

It was then that Parun, who had been sweating cold sweat, operated the table panel.

Whirrr—*

Parun took something out from a drawer that extended from the wall and placed it on the table.

“It will likely be woefully insufficient compared to the help we received, but we hope you will accept it as a token of our gratitude.

“Parun, that item…!”

“That wasn’t part of the agreement…!”

The other Elders showed signs of panic, but Parun’s attitude seemed resolute.

Ray silently lowered his gaze to look at the item Parun had taken out.