The Book Eating Magician - Chapter 296

Chapter 296

Chapter 296 – Reproduction of Myths (4)

“Kihihihihit! For the king!”

As soon as the command was given, the red knight, Vampire Lord Elohim, moved first . The bat wings and pointed fangs proved he was a vampire, a species that couldn’t use half of its power under the sun . However, it was a different story now that Erebos’ fog occupied the area .

Vampire Lord Elohim took two steps, moving faster than sound and without any afterimages, as a bloody aura wrapped around Invidia .

Jeeeong!

There was a loud sound, and Elohim deflected . His arms were badly shattered, but his regenerative power, based on all the blood he had accumulated over the centuries, meant he was close to immortal . He acted without caring about his body . Thus, even Invidia couldn’t cope easily .

“Damn Gluttony! Do you intend to deal with me by borrowing the power of a low ranking warlock?”

However, it wasn’t a human voice that answered .

Kiaaaack!

It was White Knight Hipatia’s scream! A terrible mental wave filled the area, attacking without regard for friend or foe .  However, the undead’s spirits had long decayed, meaning only Invidia received a substantial blow . The sound struck accurately, rattling his nervous system .  Invidia’s mental state was close to invincible, but his host was just a human body . The confused host temporarily escaped from Invidia’s control .

「Death… follows behind… you…! 」 The arch lich’s 8th circle curse magic wrapped around Invidia’s body .  After feeling his body grow heavy rapidly, Invidia’s eyes turned bloodshot, and he raised his strength .

He had consumed more than half his power in the fight against God King Nuada, but he still had many sword master abilities left . A bloody aura flashed, and the curse on his body exploded .

“―Good, I will play with you! The one who gathers the remnants of the deceased, I will make you regret stumbling in front of me!”

Invidia’s aura soared into the sky .

The four riders all stiffened for a moment . They were monsters with a considerable amount of experience, but the opponent was a grimoire that had existed since the earliest days of history .  It was hard for even the four riders to win against him .

“A clown is speaking such funny words . ” However, Jerem chuckled without any fear . “You don’t even know the mistakes you have made, lost in fear after being driven to the extremes . Aren’t you just a clown?”

“What?”

“I’ll teach you personally . I will teach you with your life . ”

The riders accepted their king’s will and raised their magic power again . Invidia took on a fighting posture, twitching as the ominous power swept toward him like a wave .

The four riders, including the pale rider, rushed in .

The terror wight screamed, the vampire lord used his blood, and the arch lich launched curses when there was a chance . The aura of death coming from the pale rider’s hands and feet was also terrifying .

This was the second round between the four riders and Invidia .

“They should last a few minutes without my help . ”

After letting his riders face Invidia, Jerem looked at Veronica who was collapsed at his feet .  ‘This is a quarter-dragon hybrid?’

Veronica was still at the border of death due to the power of the elixir and her own strength . An average person wouldn’t have been able to endure the shock and would’ve died already .

“Let’s see… Hrmm, this is a little annoying . ”

Black magic, including necromancy, was a magic that dealt with death . Therefore, they had a high sensitivity towards the ‘soul . ’ A 9th circle warlock like Jerem would be able to see it instantly . Theodore’s body only had eight circles, but Umbra was enough to make up for the lack of power .

Based on Jerem’s judgment, Veronica’s wounds couldn’t be healed with 8th circle magic .

“Tsk, I have to patch it up first . ”

Umbra shone on Theodore’s right hand, and a string of green magic power penetrated Veronica’s body .

An 8th circle magician couldn’t cast magic that directly interfered with the soul . However, Jerem’s deep understanding of magic and Umbra’s ability raised that impossibility into the realm of possibilities .

The astral-like magic power transformed into a needle, and Jerem roughly stitched Veronica’s soul together .  Then he shifted his gaze toward Theodore’s other companion, Randolph .

“Over there… the wounds are serious, but he should be fine . A sword master’s recovery will handle it . ”

It was as he said .

As long as it wasn’t a deadly wound, the body of a sword master would recover quickly with time and nutrition . There were a few broken ribs and damaged lungs, but they would help with a few days of nursing . His injuries couldn’t compare to Veronica, whose soul was torn apart .

In case something might happen, Jerem moved Veronica and then looked at the battlefield, which was becoming more disadvantageous .  His four riders were quite busy, but they were being pushed back after Invidia opened the lid of his power .

“Indeed, this is one of the Seven Sins despite being a non-combatant . ”

Invidia had already spent most of his power against Nuada . If Invidia were at full strength, Jerem would be at a disadvantage .  Therefore, Jerem needed to kill him here .  Jerem smiled evilly with Theodore’s face . It was burdensome to confront Invidia with a body that was only at the 8th circle and possessed insufficient strength .

Therefore, he needed to add more power .

「Answer me, pillars of the underworld! 」

It had been a few centuries since the legitimate owner opened the door . The barrier to the back of the material world opened its mouth .

Named after a mythical record, Tartarus, this was the space where Jerem had placed the undead he created in his prime: a bone dragon, made from the body of a black dragon; a death knight lord, made from a grandmaster’s body; a chimera daemon, created from the fusion of a human and demon body; and a hydra, a legendary creature in this era .

If he released even just one of them, it would be a disaster on a continental scale . It had been different during the Age of Mythology when there had been nearly 100 grandmasters . In this era, his undead were invincible monsters .

They were so powerful that only a few 8th circle magicians together could control them .

“Ghoul prince, helix ogre . These two should be enough . ”

Both undead answered Jerem’s call and rose from the abyss .

■■■■■■■■―――!!

■■■■■■■―――!!

An ogre with four horns, magma-like eyeballs, dark leather, and a mace in its hands emerged, with the ghoul prince following him .  Each of them was the incarnation of disaster, like an adult dragon .  For Jerem to set a target for them, it was comparable to sentencing the target to a death penalty .

“Go . ”

Two monsters that could collapse the balance were released .

*     *     *

This was an earth-shaking fight . Only a short amount of time had passed, but the amount of power exchanged between the opponents was enough to destroy a kingdom several times over .  On one side was a notorious grimoire from the Age of Mythology, and on the other side was a warlock who had almost turned the entire continent into a living hell .

Either way, it would clearly be a disaster regardless of who won . In the end, a winner was produced .

“Kneel . The circus is over, so the clown has no right to raise his head in front of the king . ”

The red knight acted as soon as Jerem spoke .

Kwajik!

Invidia’s face was pushed into the ground . Invidia wanted to resist, but his limbs had been cut off, and his stockpile of Aura Abilities was depleted, leaving him powerless to fight back .

Of course, the damage that Jerem’s undead received was enormous .

The red knight consumed 80% of the blood he had collected over the centuries, while the white knight and black knight wouldn’t be able to move until their bodies were restored . The ghoul prince and helix ogre were in the same state as they returned to Tartarus .

If Invidia still had all his divine artifacts, Jerem would never have won this fight .

“Well, I can’t call you cowardly because I also used an external force . It is time to end this Seven Sins grimoire, who built up a futile thing . ”

“…Do it . ”

“Hmm?” Jerem wanted to listen to what Invidia had to say and nodded to the red knight .  Then the red knight removed his foot, and Invidia raised his head to say, “Tell me . You said that I made a mistake, and you would teach me with my life . ”

“Ah, there was that . ” Jerem nodded as he was reminded . “It isn’t a big deal, clown . You chose the wrong path from the beginning . ”

“What does that mean?”

“Judging by my intuition, you are trying to gather Aura Abilities and fit them together like a puzzle, right? You thought to reach transcendence by filling up all these deficiencies and going backward to achieve it . ”

Invidia’s body shook at the words . He wasn’t angry . Rather, he felt awe and envy that Jerem had noticed all of this despite meeting him only once .

Jerem continued talking like he didn’t know Invidia’s feelings .  “Your idea was wrong, idiot . Transcendence isn’t like a puzzle . It is fundamentally different . Just like a solid surface can’t become a three-dimensional surface, your thousands of years were worthless . ”

For a mortal to walk on the path of transcendence, they needed to tear down the surface and cross the wall . In order to cross that wall with the power of a mortal, the power needed to be concentrated on one point . Invidia’s ‘puzzle’ was the complete opposite answer .

Perfection and transcendence had nothing in common .

All transcendents understood this fact, but Invidia didn’t know it . He had infinite time and resources, but he had been carried away by his own beliefs instead of listening to others . Indeed, it was the reason why Invidia was responsible for the ‘envy’ sin .

Invidia stiffened when faced with the truth .

Meanwhile, the king of the end spoke in a low voice, “Now, it is time to pay the price . ”

Jerem placed a hand on Invidia’s head and ‘ordered,’ 「Death . 」

This wasn’t magic . It was much closer to the source, a power which had left the mortal realm and was adjacent to the realm of the gods .  One of the great magicians of the Age of Mythology had defined it as this—Order .

It was the expression of one’s own will, a power that carried out the will to the world . The closest thing to it was Dragon’s Words . The Order could spark a natural disaster with just one word .  Many magicians had researched into it, and not one of them had succeeded .

However…

“I… Am I going to disappear…?” Invidia spoke with astonishment .  It was then that Jerem realized that he had succeeded .

“Nonsense, this is nonsense . You aren’t Sloth or Wrath . Even if you have Gluttony, for a human warlock…!” The parasitic grimoire, Invidia, could find another body if this host died . So, he was calm before death .

However, what if the grimoire itself disappeared? While Invidia faced an unforeseen crisis, Jerem used the power again .

“Death Sentence . No, Power Word Kill would be great . ” It was a power that Jerem hadn’t been able to use in his prime . However, it was possible to reproduce it by utilizing the knowledge of Dragon Words gained from the sea dragon’s blood inside Theodore’s body .

‘Death’ was the concept most familiar to warlocks .  Unfortunately, Invidia became the test of this ‘Order’ and was suddenly in a position to be destroyed .

“N-No! I can’t disappear like this! I will make note of this error and in the next experiment―…” He struggled until the end, before Invidia’s elderly voice was cut off .

It was the last of ‘Envy’ of the Seven Sins, a grimoire from the Age of Mythology .  Of course, the information would be passed to the real body outside the dimension, but it would take at least 10,000 years for the grimoire to return .

Jerem was convinced that he would never see the grimoire again .

“―Kuhuk . ” The joy that was hard to restrain boiled up inside him as his mouth opened . “Kuhahahaha! Excellent, truly excellent! Divinity, dragon blood, Umbra! There is even this Jerem’s soul! If I use this body, I can become a god without the help of a great demon!”

Who wouldn’t savor a host with so many things gathered in his body? No, not just that . Jerem was reminded of something he had forgotten . There was one more, apart from the grimoire Death’s Worship where his soul was sealed .

Any magician who knew the power of the Seven Sins desired the grimoire, Gluttony .

“I wish to talk to you, Gluttony,” Jerem spoke in an excited voice as he felt the bottomless presence in his left hand .

A few seconds later, a dark voice was heard from within, -…You know me?

“That’s right . Any magician would want to be with you . It is the same with this Jerem, who wants to be recognized as your user . ”

This was the grimoire with infinite wisdom, Gluttony . Jerem looked at the palm of his left hand with a dark greed .

It wasn’t just the knowledge from the Age of Mythology . According to the rumors, this grimoire contained even the magic of other worlds . In the past, Jerem had treated it as just a rumor . However, after receiving Theodore’s memories, he became almost certain of it .

This grimoire contained the truth that all magicians must obtain!

Gluttony was silent after receiving the suggestion .

However, the nervous Jerem persevered, “Gluttony, I was told that your purpose is to achieve the 10th circle in magic . Is that true?”

–It is true .

“Then shouldn’t I be the best fit?” Jerem called himself the ‘best’ and summed up the reasons why he should be Gluttony’s master . “The child who was your former user can’t even compare with me, who has already reached the 9th circle . And I don’t have the unnecessary sense of justice that will hold back a magician . ”

–Hrmm .

“I am different . I learn magic for my own cause and am seeking the same destination as you . I will reach the ultimate form, even if I have to consume all life in this world . Is there anyone in this age who is more qualified than me?”

No, Jerem was filled with confidence and believed that Gluttony would choose him .

It was natural .

There had been two 8th circle magicians in this age, and now only one remained . If Jerem didn’t follow up on treatment, that one remaining magician would die . A grimoire wouldn’t choose that person as a host, so Jerem had no reason to worry about it .

Unsurprisingly, Gluttony responded to his proposal, –Certainly .  Your proposal is reasonable .

“A magician should pursue rationality . ”

–That’s right .  My user was quite immature and had many stifling morals .  Compared to him, you are a perfect magician .

Jerem listened up to there and felt delighted .

…Until he heard Gluttony’s next words .

–I refuse .

“…What did you just say?”

–I won’t accept you as my user .

“Why? What am I lacking? Or did you like the previous user?”

–Everything is wrong .

While Jerem was thinking that it was ridiculous, Gluttony revealed his reason, –I don’t like Theodore Miller .  It isn’t because you lack anything .  I just don’t want to tolerate this situation .  

“What nonsense…”

–I’ll get my user back, Gluttony spoke these words and ordered an artifact to be melted into him . It was the king’s flagpole that Theodore had received from the royal family during his involvement in the Soldun civil war .

At that time, Theodore hadn’t been able to swallow it .

[Poseidon’s Trident has been consumed . The status of the divine artifact isn’t perfect . ]

[The divinity of the water (small) has been acquired . The flow of water will move in a direction favorable to the user . You can interfere with currents, including ocean currents, as your proficiency increases . Regardless of elemental affinity, you can contract with water elementals . ]

[Your understanding of the flow has greatly increased . You will be able to grasp the flow of the world with your senses, rather than just touch . ]

Jerem’s expression changed at the sudden notification windows . What was going on? He didn’t know what connection consuming this divine artifact had with taking back the user .  If even a 9th circle magician had no clue, then it was impossible to find an answer .

In the end, Jerem gave up trying to deduce the reason and opened his mouth, “What are you doing? This body is already mine . It belongs to me, Jerem!”

-You don’t need to know, Gluttony said, ignoring Jerem . Then it spoke to someone in a frosty voice, –Get started .

Someone who was hiding in secret answered vigorously, [Hoing!]