Kyi, kyi.
As the Holy Power burst forth, the tiger instinctively took a step back.
It still showed no signs of affection towards me, filled with vigilance.
The Holy Power faded.
“Lady Lily?”
“…As expected. Miss Redberry was right.”
All animals born and raised on this land, like Wenetus, are born with a special ability known as the ‘Primordial Power.’
Because of this, they are friendly towards others who possess the same power, but instinctively feel hostility and alienation towards those who do not.
I nodded my head as I said that.
“To put it simply, it means my likability is set at -100 from the start.”
Of course, why wouldn’t it be strange?
[?]
[Ah, lol, anyway, yeah]
[Isn’t it just that Lily is disliked?]
[Lily’s words are all correct.]
[Oh ho.]
[If Lily says so, then that’s how it is, ooo.]
[lolololololol]
[You’re not making it a tiger?]
The tiger crouched low, ready to pounce at any moment.
It seemed ready to attack, but it absolutely wouldn’t.
The tiger instinctively felt the difference between itself and me, and above all, it was terrified.
Unless it goes mad, it won’t attack.
“By the way, I can’t see the Chief.”
I had clearly arrived via the transfer gate from the chief’s house, but all I could see was the tiger.
“The tiger can’t be the Chief, right?”
“If that’s the case, then the matter is already resolved.”
The ultimate decision-maker for purchasing the Magical Stone is already prepared to cooperate.
But I know.
“The flow of mana is directed towards the back.”
The overwhelming magical power I’ve felt since earlier.
It’s as if the local mana flows toward one point, then returns to the land.
Step. Step.
Through the smoke cloud created by the mana, an old man emerges.
Dressed in neatly arranged grayish-blue fur, with a physique slightly smaller than Umphura.
Three blue flame symbols rotate on his shoulders, and the mana inside the old man is also circulating in balance.
“Cheongho, come here.”
The frightened tiger, Cheongho, quickly returns to his master’s side as if waiting for this moment.
Cheongho, lying flat in front of the old man, looked more like a cat, or perhaps even a puppy.
“Are you Chief Karuns?”
“Indeed. You are the Outsider. The one who has received the Power of Immortality.”
As the old man took a step forward, the mana surged.
Its level was on par with or even surpassed that of the Magic Lord.
Considering the special attributes like magic, the Magic Lord might be far superior, but the old man also possesses extraordinary powers.
‘Mana that fills up close to infinity.’
Continuously regenerating power means one can fight for much longer.
“That’s because we can fight.”
“Above all, in the current state, unless you use something special like the Sacred Transformation or the Casket of Inheritance, you can’t defeat the Chief.”
“I’ve heard the tale. You want the fragments of the ancients.”
“If you’re talking about the Blue-Red Stone, then that’s right.”
“The Blue-Red Stone… what an interesting name. Perhaps it could be right.”
The old man’s two blue eyes gaze at me.
“If you want, I’ll give you the fragment. And I won’t even take any money.”
[Oh]
[We can understand each other]
[?]
[Giving it so willingly?]
[He’s scared]
[Why is he giving it?]
The Chief said he would give it for free without even taking gold coins.
The capital of the Blue-Red Stones is embedded in every house in the village, and while the Blue-Red Stone itself might have significant meaning for the Wenetus, it isn’t such a precious mineral.
Most people would have accepted it with a “thank you,” but…
“What should I give you in return?”
“Just take it. Causing a conflict with you would be a loss for me.”
“It’s too much to accept without giving anything in return.”
I can’t overlook the ‘compensation’ thing since I’m the kind of person who can’t just do that.
“I’ll accept something to a degree, but I might demand more than you expect.”
“That’s fine. There are more fragments from the ancient lands than expected.”
“It matters to me.”
So, it will be given to me.
Even if it means forcefully taking it if I don’t want it.
“……”
[Can’t I just take it?]
[Lily is so niceㅠㅠㅠㅠ]
[?]
[He’s just giving it, so is there even a need to negotiate?]
[Stubborn ON]
[Lily can do whatever she wants]
[Lily can’t help it; it was the same when Yena bought the bread]
[Going for a bold move, huh ㄷㄷ]
[Seems like she doesn’t want to owe anyone]
A brief mental war follows.
While Redberry and I look back and forth, unsure of what to do, the old man nods.
“…Then, I have a favor to ask. You’ll have more than enough to meet your demands.”
“What is it?”
“It’s nothing much. Well, it wasn’t nothing.”
“?”
Do you know the Red Ones?
■
Island of the Ancients.
Now known as the land of the Blue Ones, the Wenetus, but the mineral extracted here is the Blue-Red Stone.
As the name suggests, it means ‘blue’ and ‘red’ minerals, and there are two races living here.
The Blue Ones, Wenetus.
The Red Ones, Rutilus.
The Blue Ones have parts of their bodies stained blue and are specialized in water with mana close to infinity.
In contrast, the Red Ones are red-colored and specialized in fire rather than water, but the biggest difference was their ability concerning mana.
“The Rutilus don’t have mana that keeps rising. Rather, the more you use it, the more the total amount of mana decreases rapidly.”
Rutilus’s mana doesn’t keep rising. In fact, the more he uses it, the quicker the total amount of mana decreases.
It was something natural in worlds outside the Ancient Island, but here it was strange.
When Wenetus and Rutilus first met, they maintained a certain level of acquaintance, but as their interactions continued, questions arose.
“Why doesn’t their mana rise?”
“Why does their mana rise?”
The two races, born with different physical forms, pondered.
And not long after, Wenetus thought to himself.
“They are the unchosen ones.”
A race that had not inherited the ancient powers derived from the Ancient Island.
“They are incomplete races.”
“……”
“What a ridiculous thought. But back then, everyone believed it.”
Even Rutilus, who was continuing to interact with him, had such thoughts.
They are a superior race.
They possess a uniqueness that we lack.
Thus, their parallel relationship began to shift sharply into a vertical one.
Wenetus is superior, and Rutilus is incomplete.
The ruling and the ruled became clear.
“The problem started from that point.”
It wasn’t simply that ruling was an issue.
Even now, most countries of Deoen maintain monarchies, and the strong ruling the weak has been passed down like a natural law.
But Wenetus crossed the line.
“What do you mean by crossing the line?”
“I touched their very essence.”
Blue-Red Stone.
The blue and red stone was originally in equal proportion.
Half blue, half red.
But the Wenetus, who were at the peak of superiority, didn’t like that.
“We said, ‘All fragments of the Ancient must be blue. So we will erase the red hue.'”
A declaration to deny their very roots.
Rutilus protested immediately, but there was no turning back the decision.
Though their numbers were similar, the difference in power was clear, and they were far too weak in terms of sustainability.
Ultimately, the arrogant Wenetus, who had brushed aside Rutilus, climbed to the highest point on the island—on a volcanic island named the Starting Point of the Ancient—and poured the Blue-Red Stone, twisting their origins.
And just like that, the red ones went berserk.
“I just realized what kind of blessing Rutilus possessed.”
Why there shouldn’t be a blessing that makes mana rise.
[History ON]
[What is this trash?]
[OMG]
[Isn’t that guy the culprit?]
[Is he literally just confessing? LOL]
“Are you asking to be killed?”
“…So what’s the conclusion?”
“The Red Ones are all dead. We’ve sacrificed nearly everything on our side and returned them all to the ancient earth.”
But.
“There’s Rutilus, who couldn’t kill but ended up sealing instead.”
“Surely, if it’s a request to kill that Rutilus, I won’t accept it.”
“I’m not that devoid of conscience.”
Ding!
“This request isn’t out of concern for future troubles, nor is it to repent for what happened back then. It’s an excuse, but I was just a young child at that time.”
When the incident broke out, Karuns was just a young child beginning to act.
Around the same age as Kal and En now.
He had no choice but to follow the tribe elders and lacked power.
“Just check if he’s doing okay. That’s all I’m asking.”
[Hidden – The Ancient War]
Objective – Confirm the sealing of the original sin, Rutilus Akron.
Reward – Blue-Red Stone ? pieces (quantity can be increased through negotiation), large amount of experience points, ?
■
Original Sin. The beginning of all evil deeds.
Due to the war between Rutilus and Wenetus, the entire first generation was buried in the ground, and the only one who remembers that era is Karuns, who was just a child.
It could be an attempt to hide the sin, but Karuns doesn’t seem to be lying.
If he were trying to hide it, he wouldn’t reveal his own shortcomings like this.
“Akron… Akron…”
“Isn’t it just checking?”
“The problem is we need to confirm it.”
“?”
“Usually when you confirm these things, there’s always a problem with the seal.”
It’s like some sort of rule.
After so much time passed, the seal got loose, and at the very moment I arrived, it broke, or…
Suddenly reacts to my power and wakes up, or…
Out of nowhere, something flies from the opposite side of the planet and breaks the seal.
In a variety of bizarre ways, nine out of ten places I’ve been to ended up loose.
Just look at Deoen, the Spirit of Darkness, Sugarado, Sephid…
“Hmm.”
I’ve released quite a lot in seven months.
[Conan…]
[The mask will definitely blow up.]
[LMAO!]
[Lily always brings chaos wherever she goes…]
“Let’s just catch her and level up.”
“…The payment is definitely assured.”
Still, I hope for the best.
This time, may it pass peacefully.
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