Chapter 9
'I was trying to bring him back to life.'
The reason why there are two White Deer Tribe children this time—though only one is usually born at a time—seems to be because one of the two died early.
Besides, Diarin is too cold to be like a child of a white deer.
The elders of the White Deer Tribe concluded that, in accordance with the duty of the tribe, Diarin had to revive Banda.
So, Diarin drew the Great Magic Circle.
A magic circle designed to resurrect the dead Banda.
It was the same magic circle Diarin had drawn at the end of her previous life. There was no error in this Great Magic Circle, which she had prepared with great care.
Nevertheless, it failed.
Diarin still hadn't fully figured out what was lacking or what was wrong.
'Thankfully, it failed miserably.'
The laws of the world were cold. In exchange for the failure of the Great Magic Circle, Diarin was urged to devote either her life or her remaining mana.
She sat down on the failed magic circle and burst into laughter. The young wizard, who had been laughing for a long time, threw away her entire life.
Her second life and third life were similar. If there's anything else, what's the point of dying without even exceeding the age of 20 in both lives combined?
'It's okay. I don't remember because they were too short anyway.'
What Diarin realized through reincarnation is that after failing to revive Banda in her first life, serious magical side effects remained on her soul.
At a certain age, she always obsessed over the failed Great Magic Circle.
The lives she's lived are blurred, and only the first life comes to mind.
Something she can never forget.
'It's already my fourth life.'
At the moment she perceived her new life, Diarin made an oath while placing a strong prohibition on her own magic.
I will never use magic again.
I will never place my hopes on magic again.
'Even though I've done that, it was not a very peaceful life.'
The enchanted banishment was completely broken as the spirits of the Red Tides ran wild. The reason why Diarin's life was not broken is because she had been quite a high-ranking wizard in her previous life.
Knock, knock.
It was then that she heard a knock on the door.
"Lady Concel, may I come in for a moment?"
Limoud, who had sat next to the coachman throughout the trip, opened the door and came in. He was still stiff. However, if there was a difference from before, it was that he disliked Duke Concel, not Diarin, so he was merely wary of her.
"Well, my lady, I had a discussion with the merchants who accompanied me earlier, and they said the atmosphere around Mount Chiralt is not good these days. Do you mind if we narrow down our arrival to avoid the night?"
"You don't like the atmosphere?"
"I've heard eyewitness accounts of monsters appearing."
"Monsters? Then we should get out as soon as possible."
"Yes, then…"
Limoud bowed his head lightly.
It was when he was about to step down and close the carriage door that—
"Ahh!"
An ear-piercing scream echoed through the mountain road.
"Black Mist! There's black mist!"
"All mercenaries, take out your weapons!"
Limoud looked at Diarin with a stiffer face.
"Never come out, my lady. I'll get out right away."
Without her nodding, the carriage door closed tightly. The carriage started to move quickly again amid the screams. It seemed like the carriage was trying to run away from the mist as fast as possible.
Diarin grabbed the carriage handle and stiffened her expression.
'The black mist.'
Outside the window, it was dark in a different sense. An artificial black mist, which seemed to be produced by burning, rose. That mist was not a normal natural phenomenon.
Black mist.
It was a mist that rose whenever a monster appeared, just like how a foul smell surrounds a rotting body. In the first place, a monster didn't mean an ordinary beast.
A curse that had risen from the bottom of the earth, from hell. It was none other than the dragon who cast this curse.
The Celestial Dragon.
The official name of the Akir Empire listed in Imperial Law was 'Od Akir'.
The founder of the Akir Empire was a wise man and at the same time a legendary wizard.
He established the country with the help of the Celestial Dragon, Od, and later completed the Great Magic Circle. In that Great Magic Circle, divine beasts with a pair of wings each appeared.
Those divine beasts are the white bird, the black bird, the blue bird, and the golden bird.
(TL/N: I know in chapter 3 I said 'golden tide', but I'm gonna switch.)
And the Red Tide.
But human greed never ends.
The founder coveted dragon blood. He betrayed the Celestial Dragon, Od, and cast a spell, transplanting all of Od's dragon blood into his own body.
The Celestial Dragon, who lost all of his blood to the human he trusted and helped, cast a curse with all his might before he died. He opened the gates of hell beneath the land, now infested with monsters.
The founder betrayed the dragon in order to enjoy eternal life. In return for his betrayal, he had to create a magic circle to defend against the gates of hell for the rest of his life.
What was completed through that labor was the hydrology stone, a concentration of high-ranking magic.
The hydrology stone was a large sacred stone that sealed the gates of hell. The eight gems of the hydrology stone weren't perfect—because dragon magic was superior to human magic.
(TL/N: Remember from the prologue, the hydrology stone refers to eight large gems :>)
Over the next thousand years, numerous wizards repaired the hydrology gems.
Four hydrology gems were perfected, but the remaining four were still incomplete.
(TL/N: I believe that "floodgates" is another way to say the gates of hell that are sealed by the gems. I'll make a note if otherwise.)
Wizards were always suffering from a lack of manpower, and the magic of the founder, who had absorbed dragon blood, was too vast and difficult. The repair of the hydrology gems was still in progress.
The northern hydrology gem, protected by Ezet, was one of the remaining incomplete gems.
Demonic monsters regularly climbed through the cracks of this imperfect gem. It was the duty of the Akir imperial family—born with dragon blood—to protect the gems and defend the land from them.
〈...…You understand this, master?〉
"Yeah, you're good at explaining, Ol."
Diarin replied shakily. But it was also interesting. In particular, it was the first time she had heard the truth of the Celestial Dragon Od.
"What a curse. After all, it's been a thousand years."
There was no one left who knew this story.
In the Akir Empire's imperial family, the story has been moderately reproduced as a beautiful and instructive legend. Then, it spread widely as an old tale. Perhaps if Diarin hadn't been the Red Tide's master, she wouldn't have known it in her lifetime.
She didn't take her eyes off the scenery quickly changing outside the window.
"Run! Keep running!"
"Get out of the mountain, come on!"
Even though she was riding in the carriage, she felt a great sense of speed. What if a wheel came off? It was a moment Diarin worried about.
"Huh?"
Rumble.
The carriage suddenly stopped with a loud noise. Diarin nearly fell over as her body tilted.
"Lady, come on out! Come on..., Ukk! Knight! Sir!"
The coachman screamed.
There was a loud, unidentified noise and the shrieks of horses, and suddenly the carriage shook violently. In the blink of an eye, the carriage began to move again at a tremendous speed.
'What's going on?'
〈Master.〉
The red feathers of Ol, who flew through the window and looked outside, whispered—
〈A bearwolf has eaten the horses and is pulling the carriage.〉
"Huh? It's just pulling this carriage?"
〈Yes.〉
"…Why? This carriage is in the middle of a battle."
〈That's because the monsters are possessed by the scent of a divine beast summoner.〉
〈Human, it sounds like you smell the most delicious.〉
At that moment, the book Diarin had been reading burst open in shock. She saw the illustrations drawn in the book—
Sweet whipped cream cookies. A delicious roast turkey. A piece of butter. Fruit with honey and sugar. Various delicacies glowing with luster.
Diarin's face slightly twisted.
"… … You mean I look like that now?"
〈Yeah.〉
Ol added in an indifferent voice.
〈Also, Human, if you get pulled further, you'll be at a cliff.〉
"Wow... I've never been on a trip like this before."
"Normal people don't travel like this."
"When I return, I'll have to start hiding the power of the divine beast properly."
Diarin stood up and opened the carriage door. With a roar, the carriage door swung outward and fluttered in the wind.
The landscape was speeding past faster than a horse at full gallop. If she jumped, her body would've been smashed to pieces.
Diarin grabbed the inner handle with her left hand and stretched out her right. A red magic circle floated on her palm.
The red mana sharpened like a blade. Diarin, who wielded the mana, slashed the carriage door into pieces.
Bang!
With a deafening sound, the carriage door flew back. As if they'd detected the loud noise inside, the monsters suddenly stopped.
Diarin didn't miss the timing and jumped out of the carriage without hesitation. At that very moment, a chilling sound was heard from the front of the carriage. She turned her eyes forward.
A shadow, twice her size, walked forward with heavy steps.
"Crung…"
Bright red blood and flesh were stuck to fangs as thick as Diarin's wrist. Its yellow eyes glinted like a beast's in the dark.
Bearwolf.
As if proving it was a monster, red blood constantly flowed from its eyes. Some of the knights were brave enough to attack, but the creature's huge body was overwhelming. The bearwolf had its sights set solely on Diarin.