abcnovels
Chapter 93 – Sensing the Mystery (1)
Chapter 93 – Sensing the Mystery (1)
[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]
Chapter 93 – Sensing the Mystery (1)
The royal castle of Denian.
Barbosa, seated on the throne, spoke.
“You look dissatisfied, Maximus.”
“Of course I am.”
Maximus replied with a frown.
“What makes that barbarian so special to receive such preferential treatment?”
Due to the recent dungeon incident, all the mercenaries involved were being investigated.
Except for Ketal, that is.
This was due to Barbosa’s orders, which greatly annoyed Maximus.
“I understand that the barbarian has connections with the head of the Akasha family and that he deserves fair compensation for escorting Princess Elene here. But even so, this is too much.”
“Is that what you think?”
Barbosa smirked.
Maximus had not heard the conversation between Barbosa and the Tower Master.
It wasn’t surprising that he felt this way.
Instead of responding, Barbosa posed a question.
“If the mercenaries hadn’t returned this time, what do you think would have happened?”
“…I’m not certain, but it would have been a significant issue.”
From Cartman’s account, the boss didn’t deliberately kill the mercenaries.
The dungeon would have returned to its original form, absorbing their life forces into something more alien.
It could have shaken the entire nation.
“Indeed. Whether it was intentional or mere coincidence…”
Barbosa rested his chin on his hand.
After a brief silence, he spoke again.
“The Earth Goddess has delivered a revelation.”
“What?”
Maximus’s eyes widened.
The Earth Goddess.
Along with the Sun God, she was one of the two major deities in this world.
The Sun God’s church was more prominent, but the Earth Goddess, who governed the land, wielded far greater influence.
A revelation from such a goddess was no ordinary matter.
Maximus quietly awaited Barbosa’s words.
“Prepare for evil.”
“…Is that all?”
“Yes.”
Maximus was taken aback.
The revelation was exceedingly vague.
Typically, revelations about evil were very specific, often including precise timings.
This one was markedly different.
“How it will come, I don’t know. But evil will come here. We must prepare.”
“Understood.”
After a moment of contemplation, Maximus frowned.
“But what does that have to do with the barbarian…”
[Don’t be so harsh. It’s something I requested.]
A sudden voice echoed from behind him.
Maximus quickly turned, not having sensed any presence.
He drew his sword aggressively but then paused.
“You are…”
[Good to see you again. Or is it your first time? I didn’t show myself to you back then.]
Standing there was a lich.
Barbosa calmly spoke.
“Welcome, Tower Master.”
[Yes. It seems some interesting news has reached me.]
“It may not be amusing, but there are stories that might interest you.”
[I’ve heard about the dungeon. That must have been the barbarian’s doing.]
“There’s more to it.”
Ignoring the flustered Maximus, Barbosa continued.
“The Lutein Kingdom, consumed by the alien, has made a move.”
* * *
“Ketal.”
Arkamis called out to Ketal, who was reading a book.
As Ketal turned his gaze, she extended her hand.
In her hand was a small orb.
“What is that?”
“It’s what you wanted.”
“…Oh?”
Ketal closed his book, his eyes shining.
Arkamis spoke.
“A catalyst to help you realize the mystery. I’ve made it.”
“Oh, is this it?”
Ketal looked at the orb in Arkamis’s hand with delight.
It was very small, about the size of her pinky nail.
‘It looks like an elixir from martial arts novels.’
On reflection, since it helped realize mysteries, its effect wasn’t all that different.
Handing over the orb, Arkamis spoke.
“The cost to make that single orb is enough to build a house, you know?”
“I’m grateful. I must thank you and Milena for this. I will repay this favor.”
Ketal smiled broadly, fiddling with the orb.
“So, what do I do now?”
“Have you ever focused your senses to perceive mysteries?”
“Yes, I have.”
“It’s similar. Consume the orb and then expand your senses to detect the mystery.”
Inside the orb was a substantial amount of mystery.
Once ingested, it would start circulating within the body.
“At that point, focus your senses to absorb as much of the mystery within yourself as possible.”
“Are there any precautions?”
“Sometimes, the body can’t withstand the excess mystery and breaks down…”
Arkamis looked at Ketal’s body.
It was a perfect physique, without a single ounce of excess flesh.
It was more like a sculpture than a living body.
“That shouldn’t be a problem for you.”
“Can I start right away?”
Ketal asked excitedly.
Arkamis nodded.
Ketal stepped outside and sat down in the field.
His sitting posture made Arkamis tilt her head in curiosity.
“You’re sitting in a strange position. Isn’t that uncomfortable?”
“This is comfortable for me.”
“It looks uncomfortable no matter how I see it.”
Ketal looked at the orb in his hand.
His heart was pounding.
He felt like the protagonist in a martial arts novel encountering a great opportunity.
He had to suppress the urge to laugh.
“Swallow the orb and focus your mind. Expand your senses and embrace the mystery occurring within your body.”
“Understood.”
Ketal placed the orb in his mouth.
His throat moved as the orb entered his body.
“Whew.”
With a short breath, Ketal closed his eyes.
He expanded his senses.
Beyond the range of his vision, he observed the entire forest.
The worm crawling through the soil.
The butterfly fluttering and landing on a flower.
Even the baby birds calling for their mother from their nest.
All of it registered within Ketal’s senses.
“Huh?”
Arkamis, sensing something unusual, stepped back instinctively.
She looked at Ketal with astonishment.
And at that moment, Ketal began to feel the mystery.
‘Ah.’
He almost let out a sound involuntarily.
A strange sensation swept through his entire body.
It wasn’t touch.
Nor was it sight.
Not smell, taste, or hearing.
It was none of the five senses.
A sixth sense.
A completely different sense that he had never experienced before.
Like a blind person suddenly seeing, or a paralyzed person suddenly running.
It was a world Ketal couldn’t understand or perceive before.
Ketal was genuinely moved.
Far more than when he escaped the white snowfield and met the elves.
He wanted to feel this sensation forever.
That was his thought.
But it disappeared.
Like flames flickering out and leaving only ashes, it vanished.
“Ah…”
Ketal’s face was filled with regret.
As the sixth sense faded, a strong sense of emptiness filled him.
Arkamis, who had been watching, was taken aback.
“Huh?”
She also sensed the mystery blooming in Ketal’s body.
If it continued, Ketal could have fully realized the mystery.
But suddenly, it started to fade, and the mystery disappeared.
This was something she hadn’t anticipated.
“Why did the mystery disappear?”
“Even if you ask me, I don’t know. I suppose this doesn’t usually happen?”
“Of course not. What is this?”
Arkamis fell into contemplation.
She had actually expected failure.
Ketal’s body was unusual.
Since he hadn’t found the path to mystery, it was possible his body couldn’t accept mystery at all.
But Ketal had definitely sensed the mystery, even if it disappeared quickly.
‘Which means there is a path to mystery within him?’
Arkamis frowned as she pondered.
“…I need to examine the inside of your body.”
* * *
[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]
“Didn’t we fail at that before?”
Both Sword Master Cain and Arkamis had observed Ketal’s interior.
But neither found anything.
“With normal methods, yes.”
Ketal’s body was very deep and vast.
A simple observation couldn’t find the path to mystery within.
“But there is a way to see deeper inside.”
“Is there such a method?”
“I can synchronize my body with yours using a catalyst. It requires some preparation, but we can do it right away. However… there’s a problem.”
Arkamis looked at Ketal with a hesitant expression.
“By synchronizing our bodies, your entire body will come within my senses. Are you okay with that?”
“I have no problem with it.”
Arkamis was momentarily taken aback by his immediate response.
“Are you really okay with it?”
“Of course.”
Feeling the mystery was far more important than anything else.
The sixth sense he had just experienced.
He wanted to feel it again.
That sense alone was worth the journey to this world.
The synchronization of their bodies was no issue at all.
However, Arkamis seemed strangely touched.
“…So you trust me that much.”
Ketal didn’t realize it, but the method Arkamis mentioned was quite dangerous.
If she had bad intentions, she could destroy his body and leave him crippled.
It was a method only possible with someone you truly trusted.
Unless he grew up in an unusual place with a lack of basic common sense, he had to be aware of this fact.
Naturally, Arkamis believed that Ketal was fully aware and was entrusting himself to her because he trusted her completely.
Arkamis was very moved by this.
She was an elf.
To humans, she was ultimately of a different race.
No matter how close they got or how many bonds they formed, there was always an unbridgeable gap in trust.
Even with Milena, it was a contractual relationship, not one that could be called close.
Though she never showed it, she often felt lonely.
But this barbarian, Ketal, trusted her deeply.
Despite being an elf, whom barbarians typically wouldn’t like.
She was very grateful for this.
Arkamis clenched her fist with determination.
“Alright. I’ll make sure you fully grasp the mystery.”
Arkamis prepared immediately.
She mixed various materials to create a catalyst and then began drawing something on Ketal’s back with it.
“What is this?”
“It’s a conduit that allows me to enter your body.”
Once everything was ready, Arkamis took a deep breath.
“Are you really sure you’re okay with this?”
“I told you, I’m fine. I trust you.”
Having seen scenes like this repeatedly in fiction, Ketal felt no particular resistance.
“…Alright.”
With a serious expression, Arkamis placed her hand on Ketal’s back.
“Relax. It might feel a bit uncomfortable, but bear with it.”
Ketal nodded.
Arkamis concentrated her senses and inserted her consciousness through the conduit.
“Is this how it feels?”
Ketal smiled.
The sensation of something entering his body.
It was indeed unpleasant, but also fascinating as a new experience.
‘Is it here?’
Arkamis had entered Ketal’s body.
‘It’s certainly vast.’
It was wide and deep.
No wonder she couldn’t find the path to mystery before.
She observed the inside of his body, searching for the path to the mystery.
Deeper and deeper, to places that couldn’t be reached by merely letting the mystery flow.
The more she advanced, the more she realized.
‘…Is this really a human body?’
Even while synchronizing, she couldn’t see the end.
It felt less like a human body and more like something unimaginably massive compressed into human form.
‘This is like…’
It was as if the concept of power had been etched into the body thousands upon thousands of times, with immense density and compression.
Unable to hide her astonishment, she frowned.
‘Wait a minute.’
She was in sync with Ketal’s body.
But the longer she stayed, the more intense the pressure became.
To the point where it was hard to endure.
‘My consciousness can’t withstand his body?’
She, who had reached the pinnacle of a superhuman state, couldn’t handle the body of a barbarian who didn’t even know the mystery?
She was shocked.
Clenching her teeth, she pushed deeper.
The pressure grew more intense.
Her consciousness began to crumble and be crushed like a human body sinking into the depths of the ocean.
She barely managed to hold on to her breaking mind.
And finally, she saw it.
A withered path to the mystery.
At that moment, she abruptly withdrew her hand.
“Huff!”
She released her held breath.
Cold sweat covered her entire body.
“Is it over?”
Ketal turned around.
Arkamis looked at him with disbelief.
“What the… are you?”
* * *
Her consciousness, synchronized with Ketal’s body, had almost collapsed.
This meant that her mind couldn’t withstand the level of his body.
And as far as she knew, there was only one scenario for that.
‘If the other’s level is higher than mine.’
It occurred when her mind couldn’t handle the level of the other person’s body.
‘But this feels… different.’
When facing someone of a higher caliber, one usually felt a sense of awe—a feeling that made their own existence seem insignificant.
But the feeling Ketal gave her was different.
While she did feel a sense of her own insignificance, it wasn’t due to awe.
‘…It’s a twisted and indescribable emotion.’
It was something closer to fear.
It wasn’t just that Ketal was of a higher caliber; it felt more alien and twisted.
When she explained this, Ketal looked puzzled.
“I am human, though.”
“You don’t seem like one at all.”
“No matter what you say, I don’t know why.”
He had only survived by completing quests in the snowy plains.
Ketal genuinely looked clueless, which made Arkamis frown.
“…Now that I think about it, I mistook you for a higher being when we first met too. I really don’t know what’s going on.”
After calming her emotions, she spoke slowly.
“At least I confirmed the path to the mystery.”
“Oh, so it exists.”
“Yes, but there’s a problem. The path to the mystery is withered and twisted. That’s likely why the sense of mystery you felt disappeared.”
The amount of mystery Ketal absorbed wasn’t enough to revive the path to the mystery.
It was like pouring water into a broken pot.
It could fill temporarily, but it would eventually all leak out.
“Why is it so withered and twisted?”
It felt as if it had degenerated over hundreds or thousands of generations.
Though curious, she knew the task ahead was simple.
Reviving the path to the mystery.
But how to do that was the problem.
Arkamis pondered.
“There are still materials left, so reviving it should be simple… but how do we do it?”
“What methods are available?”
“There are several, but the simplest is to replace the path to the mystery.”
There was no way to revive a withered leyline.
Instead of trying to revive it, finding a new leyline was the right answer.
“The problem is that finding a suitable catalyst to become the leyline is very, very difficult.”
“Is it that hard?”
“A strong catalyst alone won’t do.”
It needed to become the path for the mystery, so there could be no resistance.
It had to embrace everything and embed itself in the body without any resistance.
“The stronger the catalyst, the more personality it has and the more resistance it offers.”
“Hmmm.”
Ketal, who had been listening quietly, thought.
There must be no resistance.
And it must be able to embrace everything.
Ketal had something that met those criteria.
“Will this work?”
Ketal pulled something out of a leather pouch.
Arkamis looked at it with a puzzled expression.
“A rainbow-colored pellet?”
“It matches the criteria you mentioned. Though I’m not sure if it can be used in alchemy.”
It was a nanomachine meant to replace humans.
No resistance, no repulsion.
It simply replaced.
Although it was currently inactive, its properties hadn’t changed.
“I don’t know what it is. I’ll check it out.”
Without high expectations, Arkamis accepted the pellet.
After checking a few more things, it was late at night, and Ketal returned to the capital.
The next day, Arkamis greeted Ketal with a haggard face.
“…You. What did you bring?”
[Translator – Night]
[Proofreader – Gun]