abcnovels
Chapter 3
Chapter 3
————
Chapter 3 – Have They All Gone Mad?
=======
? Ruin Samael – Trash of the Trash
? Talents: Weapon Skill [Swordsmanship (S), Spearmanship (S)], Elemental Affinity [Fire (SSS), Wind (SSS), Water (SS), Others (S)]
? Traits: Stamina [F], Mental Strength [F], Mana Resonance [SS]
? Tendencies: [Weak-Willed], [Troublemaker], [Cowardly], [Pleasure-Seeking], [Drug Addict], [Sickly]
? Overall Grade: Magic [SS]
======
I kept tilting my head in front of the mirror.
“…It’s not an illusion.”
Was it called [Mind’s Eye]?
The strange phenomenon that manifested during the staring contest with Blok.
I thought it was an illusion, but it was strange that it hadn’t disappeared yet. Well, even that wasn’t as strange as the fact that I had been reincarnated.
But what really pissed me off was…
“Damn it.”
The information revealed through [Mind’s Eye] was quite accurate.
Trash was trash, and a wreck was a wreck, but what the hell did “Trash of the Trash” mean? How much more trash could I be?
But I couldn’t deny it.
My skinny body was no better than garbage, and the pathetic tendencies like [Weak-Willed] and [Drug Addict] couldn’t be more accurate.
However, what I really focused on was something else.
‘Mana Resonance and Elemental Affinity. Especially Fire and Wind.’
The Samael House was the best magic family, and their mastery of Fire and Wind elemental magic was unmatched.
As soon as I expelled some of the impurities from my body, I could feel the mana wriggling around me. It wasn’t just a faint sensation; it was thick and almost tangible.
Despair came before joy.
What I couldn’t achieve even with desperate effort in the past was happening naturally because I was born with Samael’s blood.
In my past life, even after five years of struggling as a member of the Crazy Mage Squad from the age of twenty, I could only feel a thread of mana.
The level I reached by clinging to that thread of mana was 2nd Circle.
If I hadn’t accidentally awakened to the mana of the Yin dimension during that hellish expedition, I would have ended my life as an insignificant 2nd Circle mage.
Of course, mana from the Yin dimension couldn’t be learned under normal circumstances, so that was beside the point.
‘This idiot wasted such talent?’
I immersed myself in the dense mana I felt around me.
When creating a circle, the natural harmony between mana and the body was crucial.
The key was to guide the mana to rotate naturally as it passed through my body.
Whir—
In less than five minutes, a small circle formed in my heart. It was truly a talent of insane proportions.
Then, let’s move on to the next step.
Now that I had created the circle, I had to test elemental conversion by resonating with the mana in the air. Only then would I become a complete 1st Circle mage.
“Young Master!”
Just as I was about to attempt resonance, Lihan entered with an urgent expression.
“The Head of House is looking for you. He wants you to come to his office as soon as you regain consciousness.”
“Lead the way.”
I guess I’ll have to meet the Head of House first and then take care of the rest. I had been wanting to see him anyway.
“This way. He seems to be very angry this time. Don’t say anything strange when you get there, just apologize sincerely, Young Master.”
“…”
I seem to be having a headache.
* * *
I slowly observed my surroundings as I walked towards the Head of House’s office.
Simple arch-shaped buildings caught my eye throughout the estate. They were the symbol of House Samael, which valued harmony and balance.
…They looked pretty worn out, but that was understandable after so much time had passed.
“Phew.”
I took a deep breath, and the refreshing scent of the mountains filled my nose.
In the past, the heart of Samael was located halfway up the secluded Mount Khaoto, and it seemed that hadn’t changed.
But why was it so deserted?
…Could this be all that was left?
Where was the magnificent magical barrier that used to cover the skies of the estate? And why had the land shrunk so much?
Where were all the mages who should have been filling the air with their incantations?
Aside from five or six servants and a few elders, there were only one or two people who looked like mages, no matter where I looked.
“Lihan. Is there another Samael somewhere else? Like a branch family or something?”
“What are you talking about? This is the only Samael.”
“This is all that’s left?”
“This is plenty.”
“Where?”
“Huh?”
“Where is it ‘plenty’?”
“Our House.”
“…Forget it.”
This servant was impossible to communicate with. As my anxiety grew, something else started to bother me.
“Hey, you, there…”
“Yes, Young Master? Are you feeling unwell?”
I stared intently at Lihan and asked,
“How many years have you worked here?”
“I’ve been here since I was born, so 20 years.”
“Then haven’t you seen a temple or something like that around here?”
The temple that stood at the very center of House Samael.
“Ah, I think I’ve heard of it. It was If… something…”
“The Ifrit Temple.”
“They demolished it, I think?”
I couldn’t help but shout.
“What? When?”
“Oh my, you startled me. Why are you shouting? It must have been quite a while ago. I heard from my father that it was old and dilapidated, just taking up space. Something about blocking the mountain’s energy. But they found some useful grimoires and artifacts when they tore it down, which helped us with our finances. Thanks to that, we were able to build a couple more buildings over…”
“Stop!”
Cra… Crazy.
These lunatics. What kind of temple was that?
The temple of Ifrit, the God of Fire and Wind.
The most sacred place for the mages of Samael, and the source of their brilliant talent.
It was the only place that even the past, reckless me refrained from cursing.
But they demolished it? And even with their own hands?
This was insane. If Pelleer were to be reincarnated, he would kill himself again after seeing this.
“Have they all gone mad?”
“Huh?”
I forced myself to take a deep breath and calm down.
“…Never mind. What would be the point of telling you? Just lead the way.”
* * *
As I entered the Head of House’s office, I saw two middle-aged men.
The one on the left had thick, tiger-like eyebrows and looked quite strong.
The one on the right had kind eyes and looked ordinary.
It was clear who the current Head of House was.
Without a doubt, it was the ordinary-looking man on the right. Those kind eyes were exactly like Pelleer’s.
‘Except for the fact that he looks ordinary.’
No matter how I looked at him, I couldn’t sense any magical aura from the current Head.
“Ruin.”
“Yes.”
“I heard you lost your memory.”
Kazen Samael.
The current Head of House Samael furrowed his kind eyebrows and glared at me. I played dumb and pretended not to know anything.
“…”
“Even if you really lost your memory, it doesn’t change what happened. You’ve brought great shame to the family. How old are you this year?”
“Eighteen.”
It hurt my pride to speak formally to Pelleer’s descendant, but it couldn’t be helped. I had to accept that much since I had been given a new life.
“Eighteen… I’ve never scolded you before. I knew it would only make you more rebellious. But that doesn’t mean I didn’t have faith in you. I thought you would grow into a fine pillar of the family in due time. However, I was wrong.”
As expected, his gaze was filled with contempt.
Feeling a frustrating lump in my throat, I replied immediately,
“It will be different from now on.”
“Silence! Hanging out with the Bayern House’s troublemaker, indulging in hallucinogenic herbs and drugs. How can you call yourself a Samael with such behavior?”
I had nothing to say. I was the one who should be dumbfounded.
But I couldn’t exactly tell him that I had been on an expedition with his ancestor 300 years ago.
“You fool. Do you really not know that everyone in the family is laughing at you?”
“…”
“I don’t even expect you to walk the path of magic anymore. Reflect on your actions and stay confined for the next three months. You won’t be allowed to step outside the estate. Do you understand?”
…Words I wanted to say welled up in my throat, but I swallowed them back down. It was more important to grasp the current situation.
“I have one question.”
Kazen met my eyes, about to scold me again, but then he hesitated. He must have read something in my expression.
“Go ahead.”
“Why has Samael become like this?”
“What do you mean?”
“Where are all the White Horse Knights? I didn’t see them in the training grounds. What about the Crazy Mage Squad?”
Kazen clicked his tongue.
“Tsk, it seems you really have lost your memory.”
“…”
“Could it be that you’ve suddenly developed an interest in magic? The White Horse Knights are at the Tower for training. The apprentice mages are being educated in the training hall. And the Crazy Mage Squad? There’s no such thing.”
I swallowed a groan.
‘The Crazy Mage Squad is gone? And by the Tower, does he mean the White Tower? Why would the White Horse Knights go to those old geezers for training?’
Judging by Kazen’s expression, it seemed unlikely that I would get any further explanation. Instead, I asked something else.
“Why was the Ifrit Temple destroyed?”
Kazen looked at me with an even stranger expression.
“Ifrit… That’s not something you should concern yourself with. We simply demolished something useless.”
I was so dumbfounded that I spoke informally without realizing it.
“Useless?”
“Enough.”
Contempt crept back into Kazen’s eyes.
“I see your intentions now. No matter what nonsense you spout, I won’t lift your confinement. Get out.”
I was about to retort but swallowed my words.
As I stared into Kazen’s unwavering eyes, a forgotten fact came to mind.
The Crazy Mage Squad and White Horse Knights mages who died as cold corpses in the Land of Death.
They were practically all of Samael’s strongest forces at the time.
‘Kazen is speaking the truth. Could it be that 300 years…’
Did the disappearance of those who were called the essence of the family lead to this absurd situation?
I took a deep breath. To calm myself, I deliberately looked away and slowly examined the head’s office.
Right, even in my past life, I thought the head’s office was surprisingly small and modest.
But at least the grimoires on one wall, shimmering with colorful lights, looked impressive. But even those, when I looked again… they were gone?
“Even those are gone?”
…Seriously?
“Why are you still here? Get out!”
“Where did all the grimoires that were here go?”
“Stop talking nonsense and leave!”
Ah…
I stumbled out of the Head of House’s office. I couldn’t even bring myself to ask where the Magic sword Ingrid, the Divine relic of the Head of House, had gone.
It was a relic that Pelleer cherished so much that he left it behind even when he went on the expedition.
If even that was gone, I felt like I would curse out the current Head of House, no matter who he was.
Damn it.
Pelleer promised to give that to me if he came back alive from the expedition.
————