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Chapter 227: An Old Promise (1)
It felt like his entire body was subrged in water—each step unbearably heavy.
“…Damn it.”
All his nerves were focused on the back of his head.
It was because of Oran, whom they had left behind.
‘Is it really right for us to just go on like this?’
If they joined forces, they might not be able to kill it, but maybe they could at least drive it away.
As Oscar wrestled with the thought, Kaya snapped him out of it.
“Don’t worry about it. And stop thinking pointless things.”
“…”
Oscar looked at her in surprise.
He thought she would be the most troubled right now.
But she kept her gaze fixed forward, running without even batting an eye.
“That was his decision. He must’ve believed he could hold out sohow.”
“…”
Oscar opened his mouth as if to speak but then shut it firmly.
No matter what he said now, it would only be dismissing Oran’s choice.
Kaya was right.
All they could do now was trust Oran and get out of the mountains as quickly as possible.
‘Then we’ll gather a rescue team and return as fast as we can.’
A little later, as they crossed the boundary of the first peak, Oscar spoke.
“If we keep running for about 40 more hours, we should be able to make it out of the mountains safely.”
“Once we get there, we’ll be able to use spatial magic again, right?”
“Yes. As long as we descend the mountains, organizing a rescue team and returning should be fast.”
They also had to account for the ti it would take to travel back to Oran’s location.
Kaya calculated in her head and nodded.
“If he left with that much confidence, he should be able to hold out. Didn’t he survive two full days and nights before?”
“True.”
Thinking about it that way eased so of their urgency.
Oscar looked at Kaya with a curious expression.
“Why are you looking at like that?”
“It’s amazing. You have a calming effect on people.”
“Just a big sister trick, that’s all. You don’t have any younger siblings, do you?”
“No, I don’t.”
As Oscar answered, his gaze drifted to Sasha, who was strapped to Kaya’s back.
‘I didn’t have siblings, but I did have sothing like children—maybe three.’
Thinking of it that way, he could sort of understand what Kaya ant.
Ever since he started raising disciples, even his tone had softened.
He’d beco more flexible, learned how to deal with people better.
“Stop.”
Oscar suddenly halted, blocking the group.
Kaya, a beat behind, stopped and narrowed her eyes at the scene ahead.
“What is this…?”
“Signs of the Wind.”
At Oscar’s answer, Kaya asked reflexively.
“Signs of what?”
“Everything you’re seeing ahead.”
“?”
Kaya looked forward again.
The first peak of the Red Mountains.
The hills and ridges below it looked torn and gouged out, as if soone had forcefully ripped them apart.
It didn’t feel like looking at land—it felt like staring at the corpse of a colossal creature.
Only the lingering traces of violent winds remained above the exposed ridgelines.
Kaya swallowed hard, unable to look away from the destruction.
“What kind of disaster happened here…?”
“The Wind, Silmarion. A wind spirit completely driven mad after being corrupted by demonic energy.”
Oscar knew this entity better than anyone.
—Please destroy him. Release him from his suffering.
In a previous life, the Wind Spirit King had asked Oscar to end Silmarion’s pain.
A few months ago, when transplanting a wind spirit into Fran, he had heard of this “old promise.”
‘…Honestly, this isn’t how I wanted to find him again.’
The Wind was powerful.
He was the most cherished child of the serene Silaphrion, one of the top-tier spirits.
So when he fell into madness and beca a corrupted spirit, Silaphrion had gone on a rampage, vowing to eradicate all demons in the world.
‘Back when I was Level 8 in a past life, I led the White Tower mages in a subjugation mission to fulfill that promise.’
The result was failure.
Though no one died, they couldn’t destroy him.
They attempted two more subjugations after that, but both failed—the Wind could not be found.
In this magic-unstable region, locating even a minor spirit was nearly impossible.
“…Feels like we escaped a wolf only to walk into a tiger’s den.”
“Still better than being wiped out by the Eye Thief.”
“The Eye Thief tead up with the Mountain Devourer. Who’s to say the Wind hasn’t done the sa?”
Just then, Edna stirred on Kaya’s back.
Peeking her head out to look forward, she spoke.
“Kaya, you don’t need to worry about that. The Wind isn’t capable of teamwork.”
“…Because he’s insane?”
“Yes, completely. He’s in such a state that communication is impossible.”
Kaya nodded slowly at that.
“I think I get the idea. I know soone like that too.”
“You an that berserker mage or whatever you ntioned before?”
The one Kaya once said she least wanted to deal with in the Violet Brigade.
Recalling him, she grimaced.
“Yeah. Thinking of him makes believe we’ll be fine—as long as we don’t run into the Wind directly.”
“Yes, which is exactly why we’re fortunate.”
Edna pointed ahead as she continued.
“A wild gale rarely returns to the sa place within a few days. And judging by those traces—they’ve only appeared recently.”
“That’s good news.”
“And the first peak, incidentally, is the second largest in the entire Red Mountain Range.”
All known information scread that an encounter with the Mad Wind was unlikely.
Oscar, eyeing the traces ahead, spoke.
“…Still, just in case, let’s move in the opposite direction of where the Mad Wind passed.”
There’s no harm in being cautious.
* * *
Whoooosh.
The entity walked the mountain path, exhaling a cold, eerie wind.
With each step it took, the surrounding trees splintered and the terrain twisted.
–Grrraah.
Then, a figure ford of red wind clutched its head with both hands.
A voice echoed alongside a splitting pain, as if its head was about to burst.
Destroy.
Destroy.
Destroy.
–Gaaahhhh!
Wind erupted from the being’s center, sweeping through the area.
The blade-like wind sliced off mountaintops and overturned the earth.
–Grrraah.
After a while of rampaging, the entity panted heavily, then suddenly turned its head.
From that direction ca a very familiar presence.
[Translator - Night]
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–……
The feeling of that unfamiliar emotion surprised the being.
All that remained in it was the instinct to destroy—yet in that mont, a warm mory flickered through.
–…A fairy.
The mont it realized that the energy belonged to a fairy—an old friend and distant relative of spirits—
the being began to walk slowly toward the source of the presence, like a bee drawn to a bright flower.
* * *
Mages, by trade, typically have poor stamina.
After all, a mage isn’t ant to be running around with sweaty feet.
Their purpose is to annihilate enemies from afar with a click of magic.
Which is why Kaya Lockwood was such an anomaly among mages.
“Mages from forest tribes, who mix tattoo magic with physical techniques, naturally have good stamina.’
A glance to the side caught sight of the man running about three strides ahead of her.
‘…But what about him? Why is he like this?’
He wasn’t from any forest tribe, yet had been running for over dozens of hours already.
And it had been over 30 hours since he started carrying Edna on his back.
‘I always thought he was special, but I didn’t expect this level.’
She already knew he had an exceptional ability to sense mana and an overwhelming understanding of magic.
But to have physical stamina rivaling her own?
That was unexpected.
Of course, to be fair, he was likely still far below her.
Her body had been restructured, after all.
His hadn’t.
“……”
At that mont, Oscar’s pace slowed and eventually ca to a stop.
Kaya stepped up beside him and asked,
“Tired? Should we take a break?”
“No… It’s not that…”
Oscar furrowed his brow and asked back:
“Isn’t it too quiet?”
“Well… it is the Red Mountain Range?”
Making noise in this place was like announcing your location.
The Red Mountain Range, filled with monsters preying on each other, was always wrapped in silence.
But sothing about this mont felt different.
‘It’s even quieter than usual. Like…’
As if they’d stepped into the eye of a storm.
Edna confird it.
“In the past 30 minutes, ambient sound levels have dropped from the Red Range’s average of 62 decibels to 34.”
“That much?”
34 decibels—quieter than a whisper from an average person.
Even for a place as silent as this, that was excessive.
“Kaya, I have a bad feeling about this.”
“All of a sudden? I thought the Mad Wind never reappears in the sa place?”
“That’s what I thought too, but…”
Before he could finish—
Sothing appeared in front of them.
“……!”
“……?”
The reason they called it “appeared” was simple—
It had, quite literally, erged from nothing, as if hypnotically conjured from thin air.
Oscar, Kaya, and even the dragon Edna froze in place.
Goosebumps rose on their skin, and they couldn’t even exhale.
It felt as if even that small act required permission from the being before them.
“……”
There were five figures in total—yet not a sound or presence among them.
Sweat dripped from Oscar’s brow as he cautiously glared at the newcors.
‘The Mad Wind…’
To think it would appear like this—so suddenly, without a single sign.
The shock hit even harder because of the complete lack of warning.
–Fairy.
At that mont, Silmarion muttered.
And just like that, Oscar understood how they’d been found.
‘Damn it… Is it because of Sasha’s energy?’
She was a half-blood—part human, part fairy.
And spirits are like distant relatives to fairies.
In that sense, it was no surprise the Mad Wind could sense her.
‘The real problem is its intentions.’
Why had the Mad Wind sought them out, drawn by Sasha’s presence?
Because they didn’t know, Oscar and Kaya held still, wary of provoking it.
If they were lucky, perhaps it would leave on its own.
And then, at last, the Mad Wind made its intention known.
–Fairy… energy.
“……?”
–Familiar mories. Warm tis.
Was… was it capable of conversation?
Just as Oscar began to hope—
–Destroy.
The Mad Wind suddenly stretched a hand toward Sasha.
Kaya, who was carrying Sasha, instantly pushed off the ground and leapt backward.
“Damn it—fall back!”
Oscar hastily gathered his mana.
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