EP.193 Each person’s stage (7)
A madman.
A derogatory term referring to Kelhalm.
When people encounter Kelhalm, the word madman is often the first thing that comes to mind. The soldiers who remember the scene where he went on a rampage and cut the demon king’s army alive are afraid of him. People give the derogatory term “crazy” to something they are afraid of and want to stay away from.
This guy went crazy.
A wizard who has let go of reason.
‘The madman, Kelhalm.’
Called by that name, Kelhalm wandered the battlefield for over a hundred years. There was no place better than the battlefield to kill the devil’s army, and in order to follow the traces of the shadow, one had to stay in a place adjacent to the devil’s realm.
To achieve the goal, the battlefield was a suitable environment.
However, it was not a good place.
The magic I learned to teach students ended up being used to kill and tear someone to pieces. Kelhalm, a scholar by birth, was worn out little by little as he wandered the battlefield. As he got older, it became more and more difficult for him to control his madness.
Every time I lose control of my madness.
Every time it creates more devastation than necessary.
More and more people are afraid of themselves.
When everyone came to think of the derogatory term ‘madman’ rather than the name Kelhalm, there was no one by Kelhalm’s side. He wandered the battlefield alone.
I don’t expect understanding.
If you can achieve your goal, that is enough.
It was a life lived with that thought in mind.
Then one day, Kelhalm encountered a young wizard. He is a wizard who has recently made a name for himself on the battlefield. A wizard accompanying a hero? He was a wizard of whom only rumors abounded.
“Are you Kelhalm?”
A young man with gray hair.
“what.”
He looked at himself and suddenly let out a sigh.
“You’re fine.”
Kelhalm frowned.
The knights next to the young man gasped.
And the young man laughed.
“I wondered how crazy he was that he was given the name ‘madman’… but he’s fine?”
Kelhalm asked the young man back.
What does that mean?
The young man smiled at Kelhalm’s question.
“Really crazy people don’t even know they’re crazy. Or, they hope that people will understand by explaining why they have no choice but to go crazy. You know the Sword Demon? “That guy is exactly that.”
He shrugged his shoulders and said to Kelhalm.
“Compared to that, how are you?”
He pointed at Kelhalm with his fingertip.
“You understand your madness. I’m sure you had your reasons for going crazy, but I don’t want others to understand that. “I try to keep it to myself and take responsibility for it alone.”
Without forcing understanding.
Do not turn away from responsibility.
He tries to endure his madness on his own.
“That’s cool.”
He smiles and holds out his hand.
“I am Raniel. It’s an honor to meet you, Kelhalm.”
The gray wizard Raniel.
Kelhalm looked at the hand of the young man who introduced himself for a while. It’s been 100 years since he stepped into the realm of superhumans, and this was his first experience.
* * *
I don’t know much about Kelhalm.
I didn’t know why he got mad, why he hated the stars so much, or how the world looked through his eyes.
A few lines written in a history book.
Splintered words spread as rumors.
A handful of scattered and crumbled records.
Because you can’t say that you understand someone’s past with just that much information. Therefore, I could not say that I understood Kelhalm. Because a vague understanding would be rude.
However, just one thing.
There was just one thing I could say that I understood Kelhalm.
‘Madness.’
The madness of Kelhalm.
I understand it.
‘Because I saw it.’
I know what methods Kelhalm has used to control his madness, and what determination he has to hold on to it. and···.
“Okay, I’ll believe it at least once. “Ashen wizard.”
We also know what happens when the madness is unleashed. It’s impossible not to know. Because I saw it with my own eyes.
‘I understand why you’re wary.’
Kelhalm is freed from restrictions and consumed by madness.
What I saw on the battlefield made me understand why everyone called him a madman.
It tears apart everything that comes its way. He fires spells while covered in blood. The way they carried out the massacre by scratching and burning… was closer to an animal than a human. A beast that moves according to instinct.
In the past I had to face the beast.
Because stopping Kelhalm, who became a madman, was a contract to use that madness.
Naturally, it was not an easy opponent.
After defeating the apostate, I had to lead my exhausted body to subdue Kelhalm, who had become a madman. I drew a circuit with my broken finger, gathered the remaining burnt mana, and created a spell.
——————
faqwiki.us
Join our Discord for new chapter updates!
https://discord.com/invite/xr7SxG5T6V
——————
We both showed each other’s bottom.
We each saw each other’s limitations.
In the process, I understood Kelhalm’s madness, read Kelhalm’s limitations, and made a contract with him through his words.
“I hate the stars, gray wizard.”
Kelhalm.
“I hate it, but I hate myself as much as I hate the stars. I curse myself for being helpless. “I am wary of myself being consumed by madness.”
A madman.
“So, gray wizard.”
“Can I ask you one favor?”
Although he was a madman.
“There will come a day when I, who has become a madman after removing the restrictions, will no longer be able to return to human form. It will definitely come. “The madness I embrace is like a fire, and one day it will devour everything I have.”
Although he was called a madman.
“When that day comes, kill me.”
A man who resisted being a madman himself.
“Because it won’t be me anymore.”
The madman who wanted to remain human asked me a favor.
If he escapes being human, ask him to kill you. Thinking about that request and that past, I look at the present.
Orders are pouring in.
The shadow approaches, clawing at the floor.
There is a thick black fog that makes it impossible to see an inch in front of you.
“······.”
I stretched out my arms without saying a word.
Catch the pouring orders. Gray mana swallows up spells. She stamps her feet towards the approaching shade. The shadow flinched with a cooing sound.
Throwing away.
I waved my arms towards the hesitant shadow, towards the thick black fog. As I clear the fog, I approach the center. I see a person standing there.
A human with a shadow.
A being that has escaped humanity.
A being that can no longer be called a superhuman.
I speak his name.
“Kelhalm.”
He looks at me.
I smiled bitterly at him.
“Are you saying that to keep your contract?”
A fire burns in the madman’s gray eyes. The skin is cracking starting from the pupil. Black fluid flows from cracked skin.
It is the destruction of a human being.
It is a process in which one’s soul is shattered.
It was a process I also experienced.
“I offer up half of my life.”
The day I dedicated half my life to the stars, I gained a power I could not control. The price was terrible. There was a crack in my soul, and the cracks in my soul showed up in my body.
‘In my case, I shed starlight.’
Today’s Kelhalm sheds a shadow.
Looking at that, I realize that I don’t have much time. It wasn’t just Kelhalm’s story.
‘I also.’
Gray mana that protects me from the shadows.
‘It would be the same.’
That too is poison.
It only blocks poison as a poison, but the gray mana also remains a burden on my body. The time I can spend is limited, and the moment the last sand runs out of the hourglass, I am defeated.
There is no time.
There is a lot of work to be done.
Limited time forces me to make a choice.
My reason whispers to me to kill the shadow along with Kelhalm before the shadow escapes Kelhalm.
‘Kelhalm has already broken all restrictions.’
Even if he were to rip off the shade, he would just become a madman running amok. The option of reimposing restrictions as in the past is impossible.
At that time, Kelhalm left one limitation.
Those restrictions left Kelhalm with the last of his sanity, so as time passed, Kelhalm regained his senses. He was able to create constraints again around that chain.
However, it is impossible now.
‘Because all restrictions have been lifted.’
There was no way for Kelrhalm to return.
The only end left for him would be death.
‘So, kill him.’
That is a reasonable and efficient choice.
Kill Kelhalm with the shade.
Give him the death he desires.
Otherwise, I will just die.
“······.”
decreasing time. The coming moment of choice.
Standing at a crossroads of choice, I closed my eyes.
2.
Three girls walk in the dark.
The inside of the whirling barrier is dark. He couldn’t see an inch ahead. They head forward, leaning on the starlight that Ayla brings up. However, don’t always lean on it.
“This way.”
Resty points the way.
“The flow continues this way.”
Eyes that see what ordinary people cannot see.
A Watcher with it can find a way even in the dark.
“It’s very dark.”
“···If it’s just for a moment, I think I can reveal it.”
A place where Ayla’s light does not reach.
Chloe extends her hand towards that place. The darkness slows down with a flash of light. After I wince, the darkness is not as dark as before. Ayla’s star lights the way again.
They went on like that.
Sometimes Resty points the way, and sometimes Chloe clears away the darkness. Ayla leads her, but she does not walk alone. They headed forward, borrowing each other’s strength.
“I guess it’s here.”
And then it arrives.
“That’s the altar we have to destroy.”
Ayla points to the end of darkness.
There lies something terrible in shape. It is an altar made of woven human bones to offer sacrifices to the gods.
“I heard that everything will end if you destroy that thing.”
Ayla says.
Resty nodded.
“Please step aside for a moment.”
Resty placed his hands on the floor. A crack appears where her palm meets the floor. Something reaches out for her hand in the crack.
Cooung, cooung.
The floor is shaking. Something rose from the floor with a vibration that shook the ground. It’s a ministry called Golem.
‘Because it’s the most basic, you can tell the summoner’s capabilities just by looking at the golem.’
With that thought in mind, Ayla looks at the golem summoned by Resty. It is a golem of such gigantic size that you can only see its end if you bend your head and look up.
‘It seems to be bigger than the royal guardian golem…’
There was no doubt about his skills as a summoner.
Resty touched the golem’s back. The golem begins to move. The golem rushed towards the altar, making the ground tremble.
-Goooooo!
The golem gained enough acceleration and almost rushed towards the altar. The large golem and the altar made of human bones collided.
An altar made of a large golem and human bones.
It was easy to predict what would shatter when the two collided. Ayla thought the altar would be destroyed… but when the dust cleared and it was revealed, it was a different result than expected.
“···Are you okay?”
The thing that was smashed was a golem.
The moment it touched the altar, the golem shattered into pieces. There was not a single scratch left on the altar.
“······.”
Resty frowned.
“Clap,” she said, and clapped her hands. As if reacting to the sound, a circuit appears before Resty’s eyes. In an instant, the completed circuit began to glow, and the entire ground shook.
Boom, boom!
Huge golems rise up. Familiars resembling wolves appear, tearing through space. A variety of summoned beasts filled the area.
The number of summoned animals exceeds dozens and is approaching one hundred.
A summoner who has reached the top level forms an army alone. As if to prove the point, Resti waved his hand. The familiars faithfully follow the commander’s orders.
-Goooooo!
Screaming, the familiars march towards the altar. The ground shakes, and dust rises.
“and···.”
As Chloe exclaims in admiration at the crowd of summons passing by her, up to a hundred summons approach the altar.
And, that is the moment.
“···!”
Ayla opened her eyes wide.
Her intuition rings an alarm. She has been receiving the prophecies of her stars for a long time, and her intuition is sharper than ever. Ayla followed her intuition.
Sigh.
I pulled Resty’s wrist.
I grabbed Chloe’s neck and lowered her posture.
And, it was the right choice.
Gooung.
The moment the summons approached the altar, the altar vibrated loudly. Soon, a wave erupted from the altar and swept the entire area. A wave passed over the heads of Ayla, who lowered her posture.
“···ah.”
There is nothing left where the waves have swept away. Ayla held her breath as she looked at the shattered and torn familiars.
“···It looks like it can’t be destroyed by normal means.”
So what means should you use?
“…Starlight in the shape of a weapon.”
Resty muttered.
Ayla and Chloe looked at her. A ring of platinum light was spinning in Resty’s eyes.
“The structure that made up that altar can only be brought down with starlight, but it won’t be possible with just starlight.”
Resty said.
“The story is that we need starlight in the form of a weapon, so… something like a holy sword.”
Eyes naturally focus on Chloe.
The holy sword is the exclusive property of warriors. And, even here, there is one warrior who is a candidate.
“Miss Chloe.”
“···I haven’t gone through the ordeal yet.”
Chloe shook her head.
Although it is an unusual case that her mana itself is made of starlight… she is still only a candidate.
“I heard that only through trials can you be recognized as a warrior and your stellar talents can blossom. “My ordeal hasn’t come yet, so I’m still a candidate…”
Cannot use star weapons.
Her mana cannot be used as a weapon yet.
“Then what should I do…”
Ayla touched the corner of her mouth.
That altar must be destroyed. However, I couldn’t quite figure out a way.
‘···Professor Rania, that is, Raniel.’
This is something I asked for.
The fact that the person entrusted it to him means that it is something he can do. Ayla closed her eyes. She thinks and thinks.
own talent.
And, the talent of the people here.
“···ah.”
At the end, Ayla remembers something.
“I started giving special lectures a while ago…”
“I’m taking this class with Mr. Resty, but I’m having a hard time because the content is a bit difficult.”
That was the story Chloe talked about in front of him. The story begins to mesh with what I heard from Raniel a little while ago.
“Lesti, and Chloe.”
“Those two can utilize each other’s talents. “If only the princess’s talent were there.”
That’s why the two people gathered together.
Ayla thinks about her talent and theirs.
Stella, a child loved by the stars.
Stella makes the surrounding flow her own.
All flows can be controlled.
A watcher, someone who reads the context of the stars.
The Watcher sees and understands everything.
Understanding leads to analysis, and analysis leads to utilization.
A child blessed by the stars, Brave.
The warrior uses starlight as a weapon.
Not blooming just means that it has not been tempered yet, and the starlight possessed by the hero itself has the potential to turn into a weapon.
The talents of the three mesh together.
Ayla opens her closed eyes.
“perhaps.”
She looks at the two.
“Maybe, maybe there is.”
A way to destroy the altar.
As Ayla said that, her eyes glowed golden.
3.
“Maybe there is another way.”
While muttering that, I opened my closed eyes.
When you open your eyes, what you see is a flood of shadows. I walked towards the shadow that turned into a wave and washed over me.
“An efficient, certain, and reasonable path.”
So attractive route.
“The easy way.”
I know someone who insisted on that path.
“Draka took that path.”
Sword Demon, Draka.
He called for efficiency and forced others to make sacrifices. He took other people’s lives lightly. He was the only human, so he viewed others as expendable and not human.
Draka was that kind of person.
“Choose lightly.”
He always made choices easily.
“Throw it away lightly.”
He had no hesitation in abandoning someone.
“There are people who live lightly, only lightly.”
And I am.
“I’ve been thinking about it.”
Dracal.
“I don’t want to be that kind of person.”
I lived my life hating those kinds of people.
It was the Demon Lord’s army that trampled my village, but it was those people who burned it down, so I didn’t want to walk the same path as them. This was a mistake.
So I didn’t take the easy route.
Efficiency was neglected. It’s easy to give up. I didn’t do it because it was easy. Even when others shouted that it was impossible and that we should abandon someone, I would put off abandoning someone until the very end.
‘Because sacrifice should not be taken lightly.’
that is.
“A person who stands in front of everyone should not do that.”
Don’t give up when everyone else is giving up.
Don’t give up and find another way.
So, saving someone who should be abandoned.
“A hero shouldn’t be like that.”
Because it was my role to stand next to the hero.
“That’s right, Kelhalm.”
Coo!
I took a big step towards the shade.
Gray mana spreads from the foot you step on. Gray mana crawls up my body. Mana flowed through the circuits she carved into her skin.
Smash.
He held the completed spell in his fist and swung it.
Two hit!
The shadow was lifted all at once. As I faced Kelhalm, who had been removed and revealed, I twisted the corners of my mouth into a smile.
“I think the contract will have to be postponed a little later.”
I see possibilities.
Kelhalm has removed all restrictions, so there are no restrictions left for him.
“There is a contract that must take priority.”
It remained for me, not him.
The contract made with Kelhalm when he came to Aplia. That is the chain that Kelhalm and I share. I remember that.
【The contract is maintained.】
One constraint: If the constraint is shaken, the subject must accept the contractor’s proposal unless it goes against the principles.
Constraint two: If the subject loses his or her senses, the right to impose ‘new restrictions’ is transferred to the contractor.
Constraint three, the above constraints have absolute priority within Aplia.
【Fulfill your contract, wizard.】
The moment I remembered that, something caught my hand. It is a chain made of starlight. I smiled while holding the chain that made a rattling sound.
“Contracts should always be made carefully. is not it?”
It’s not an easy road.
It is very cumbersome and difficult, but it is a worthwhile path. That is the path I have chosen and will continue to choose.
A word from the author (author review)
As promised, I brought you a lot…!
Double the amount….!
