Chapter 590 - Crodon Olentia (1)
Crodon thought.
How should he define his relationship with Isabella?
A benefactor who was the only one to help him during the collective bullying of his academy days, a classmate with whom he could fiercely exchange advanced magical knowledge, a friend with whom he once promised to help each other's dreams…
In other words—
A companion.
Yes, a companion.
Even if the hands they once held were released, they were still connected by invisible threads.
What difference, then, was there between them and fellow travelers walking the same path, step by step?
Friendship is shallow and fragile. Love is narrow and shabby.
Compared to those, the sentiment of companionship is infinitely pure and noble.
Crodon brought his fist close to his mouth and laughed heartily. The expression that had been frozen like a statue relaxed as if nothing had happened.
"Ahaha, what are you suddenly saying? A lover? I don't know what's happened to you, but it sounds like you've met someone special. If there's a chance later, why don't you introduce me too?"
He simply wanted to see the face. Nothing more.
It was precisely because his words were sincere in this moment that they were vile. If it ever suited his needs, he would use and discard someone without hesitation, then rationalize it, claiming he had done nothing wrong.
Just as he did back then, when, to strengthen his standing in the Bohemirn Magic Tower, he massacred Isabella's family during the process of seizing the heirloom of House Argyle, and then shifted the blame to her for "failing to uphold their promise".
Knowing that, Isabella spoke with a clean, pure malice.
"There's no need for an introduction. It's someone you already know well."
"Me? Who would that be?"
"Verden."
...!
Crodon's body flinched. His pupils widened. An even stronger reaction than before.
Just as he was about to shake his head, thinking it impossible, Isabella curved her lips upward and whispered the uncomfortable truth.
"Judging from that reaction, it looks like you haven't forgotten who I mean. Well, I suppose you wouldn't—after all, it's only been three years, unlike my family. Yes, it's that Verden you know. Verden, the unofficial experimental subject of the Bohemirn Magic Tower, known as Number 77."
"What are you talking about…"
Verden had died after being caught in a mana reactor runaway incident—exposed to such an overwhelming density of mana that even his corpse could not be found.
And now, Verden?
"Lying to a friend isn't good, Isabella."
Crodon spoke casually, but the stiffness in his voice betrayed him.
Even he could tell something was off.
Isabella and Verden—no matter how he thought about it, there shouldn't have been any connection between them. There couldn't have been.
If there had, Crodon would've noticed long ago.
It didn't add up.
"Where did you even hear that name?"
"From him, of course."
"I told you not to lie."
"Lie?"
Isabella sneered.
"Then why don't you see for yourself?"
She took out a Memory Golem and activated it. The magical light scanned the wall.
A recorded image began to play.
Crodon's eyes widened at the sight of a magic item he had never seen before—but his surprise lasted only an instant.
Before long, his gaze fixed on the protagonist of the video, who was casting a variety of spells, as if sparring against some examiner.
Crodon's lips parted blankly.
"...Verden?"
Ash-gray hair. Blue eyes. A mage's attire.
Compared to how he looked back when he was at the Bohemirn Magic Tower, his appearance had changed significantly, but that face—he could never mistake it.
After all, he had faced Verden multiple times as a test subject in human experimentation.
'Could Verden really have survived that explosion? No… that's impossible.'
Yes, impossible.
Even fifth-tier mages had been unable to withstand the mana of the reactor and were vaporized— how could someone like Verden endure it?
Perhaps it was just an illusion… But if so, how could Isabella know the factual details?
At that moment, Isabella began walking toward him.
"As you know, Verden's limit was only the 1st tier, but his understanding of magic was unparalleled—beyond comparison with others.
That's why, after the Bohemirn Magic Tower engraved the Coercion, he was reduced to an unofficial experimental subject."
"Isabella, how do you even know Verden? Tell me properly."
"But the one who didn't stop at tormenting Verden's mind, the one who shattered it completely, was you, Crodon Olentia."
Ignoring his question, her footsteps drew closer.
"I heard you used all sorts of stimulants, forcing Verden's sanity to function through sheer torture. Even if you thought of him as expendable, it was excessive—so much so that anyone would say it was too much. And the more you did that, the more your reputation rose alongside the prestige of the Bohemirn Magic Tower. Simply put—you packaged Verden's ability as your own."
Crodon's eyes snapped wide open.
"Who told you that!!!"
Mana flared violently as his shout reverberated through the room. Panting roughly, Crodon looked as though he might explode.
What had shattered the composure of the next master of the Bohemirn Magic Tower?
Isabella, having struck precisely at his reverse scale, retrieved the Memory Golem and continued.
"From the Tower's point of view, Verden had immense magical value. Naturally, they would've preferred to use him gradually over time—but you, you overworked him instead. Why, I wondered? And then the answer came easily."
Crodon Olentia, who had barely managed to enter the Academy through late admission despite his age, was a commoner who, due to innate limitations, could not even have his maximum tier measured.
Though brilliant in theory, he was poor, and incapable of even basic spellcasting.
A dropout—that had been his nickname.
Cowed and beaten, Crodon was once the target of ridicule, violence, and scorn.
But later— when it was revealed that he possessed the potential of a seventh-tier mage, and his magical abilities began to bloom, his attitude changed completely.
He began to look down on those weaker than himself, and didn't hesitate to use violence against anyone who irritated him.
If Isabella hadn't stopped him, he might have killed someone.
When powerless, he cowered. Once he gained strength, he became arrogant, self-righteous, and violent.
That was the true nature of Crodon.
And when someone of lesser physical talent— but far superior intellect—stood before him…
The proud Crodon Olentia, first disciple of the Omnipotent and self-proclaimed transcendent being, could never have endured it.
To summarize that emotion in a single word—
"Inferiority."
"Isabella."
Crodon's fingers twitched on the staff he held.
"Since you're my companion, I'll warn you— stop spouting nonsense. You think I felt inferior to Verden? Ridiculous.
I pushed him hard because it was efficient, nothing more. Why would I feel inferior to a first-tier mage? And as for intellect—mine far surpasses his."
"If you were really that exceptional, you wouldn't have needed to exploit Verden in the first place. You're starting to lose track of what you're even saying, aren't you?"
Though he knew what he couldn't admit, though he was aware of what he had done wrong, he twisted logic to convince himself otherwise— a contradictory self-justification.
This was one of the traits that both Verden and Isabella understood about Crodon.
"Besides, you're saying Verden was first-tier? That's ancient history.
And you asked earlier—how do I know him, right?"
Isabella stopped. Ten paces separated them.
"I wanted to die because of the Coercion you carved into me, and it was Verden who saved me.
He didn't just elevate my magical realm— he gave me a reason to live.
And you dare say you're my companion? Don't make me laugh."
Golden eyes gleamed.
"My companion is Verden."
Countless ice crystals formed in her palm and scattered, merging and expanding rapidly into a massive cluster of frost.
Crodon didn't dodge.
He intertwined Flame Current and Eighth Lightning to form a barrier.
Kwa-ja-ja-ja-ja-ja-jak!
Magic collided with the sound of shattering glass, piercing the eardrums.
Ice shards, firelight, and steam filled the air, clouding vision.
Through that chaos, Isabella hurled herself forward without hesitation.
Her heightened senses, amplified by [Ring of Rune – Exceed], shone brilliantly.
Crack!
Her knee struck his chest.
An inhuman level of strength.
Crodon flew backward, tumbling across the floor before crashing into a wall.
'I definitely felt it connect… but it didn't work, huh.'
An ordinary mage would've been split in two, yet Crodon rose easily.
Just like when he was struck by
'A bracelet that completely nullifies not just magic, but physical impact too… not in the records. Judging by its performance, it's probably an artifact.'
Then, if the remaining two jewels were destroyed, could she kill him?
It wasn't as though Crodon was the kind of man who would easily allow himself to be hit, so it was hard to take that conclusion at face value.
"...How could you?"
Crodon bit the inside of his cheek and glared at Isabella.
"I already apologized, so what's the problem? We could've just made up and gone back to how things were! Are you still hung up on your family? All this just because I forgot one name? They're already dead! What do you want me to do about that?"
The longing and joy he felt toward Isabella were tainted crimson with rage.
The snowballing emotions burst forth as fury.
"And I'm the only one at fault? I'm asking you, answer me, Isabella. Was it only my fault? If we're talking right and wrong, you're the real cause of it all. If you'd trusted me from the start and come to the Bohemirn Magic Tower with your heirloom, no one would've died. You're the one who drank [Blood of Resurrection], turned yourself into a monster, and ran away from me. You're the one who chose to suffer all those years. Isabella Argyle—it's all your doing."
Everyone sees the world differently.
Even when looking at the same object, the side one perceives, the emotions it stirs, and the meaning one interprets—all differ from person to person.
That's what it means to have an individual perspective.
Crodon's sins, in his own eyes, were minimal.
"At least be honest, Isabella. It was you who killed your family, not me. And yet I was the one who apologized first, the one who tried to mend things. What did you do? Nothing. You didn't do a damn thing. You only made it worse. And now you say that worm Verden is your companion?"
His fury turned into murderous intent.
"I don't know how that terminally ill bastard survived and escaped the Tower, but fine. I'll just make it clear now. Once I kill Verden right in front of you, you'll understand—that the only companion you have is me."
The man praised by outsiders of the Bohemirn Magic Tower as a man of character—his true self was more vile than Rayshen Tailroad.
Even among the Tower's own, there was none more despicable.
Crodon's words struck Isabella's heart like blades.
If she had still been that young woman, barely an adult, she might have broken down crying—but too much time had passed for that.
"Crodon Olentia, I've thought and thought about how best to kill you. I was still thinking about it just now. But now, I've decided."
Smiling, Isabella pulled out every last one of those verbal daggers.
"I'll tear that mouth of yours apart."
Mado –
Mana surged from her activated circuits, taking on tangible form and rippling outward. The jewel on her left hand's [Elderron] flickered brightly.
Crodon tilted his staff in response.
"I'm not going to kill you. Never. I don't even want to hurt you… but you betrayed me again, and besides, you heal so easily."
Mado –
From behind Crodon, a second Crodon emerged. Then a third, a fourth, and finally a fifth.
Five staffs, aimed at Isabella from every direction.
The Crodons spoke in unison—
"It'll hurt, but."
"Just a little."
"Bear with it."
"It'll be quick."
"I'll restrain you."
The magic was cast.
KWA-AAAAANG!
An explosion struck a single point, flooding the space with light.
***
Crodon Olentia's Mado –
The number of duplicates varies depending on the caster's computational ability and magical realm.
Each duplicate can only maintain a single elemental attribute and must stay within a 100-meter radius—but their tier equals that of the original.
Of course, magical tools and artifacts that enhance magical ability are merely visual copies and carry no real function.
Yet Crodon had managed to partially overcome that weakness.
The lightning bolts and fireballs cast in perfect sequence by the five Crodons struck Isabella and the surrounding area without delay.
Each was stronger in both power and range than a typical pure-tier spell.
The reason—Artifact [Lingering Regret of Havras].
A staff that amplifies the power of all elemental magic. It can temporarily create multiple copies of itself, each with the same performance as the original—and even link them together.
"I can tell you've reached a level close to mine", said one Crodon.
"But even so, you alone can't form a proper magical duel", said another.
"Unless you've reached the pinnacle of magic, like Angelo did", added a third.
Numerically speaking, Crodon's might was equivalent to the combined power of five upper sixth-tier elemental mages.
And considering his ability to use all forms of magic, his artifacts, and his personal skill, his actual power exceeded even that.
A legion of one—Crodon Olentia.
No wonder the magical world called him the One-Man Army.
What kind of monster would he become upon transcending? The thought inspired both awe and dread.
'So it's finally come to this.'
Though Isabella resisted fiercely, she was being utterly overwhelmed.
In a few minutes, he would suppress her completely.
I was very excited at the thought of fulfilling my promise as a companion.
At that moment—
"───I will seize even the foundation itself."
Isabella regenerated her wounds and chanted the activation incantation.
The physically constructed mana fragmented into delicate streams that spread outward.
Crodon smirked.
"Seems like a fine artifact you've got there, but it won't change a thing, Isabella. Why not surrender quietly? I'll even be lenient."
No matter how one looked at it, there was no possibility of reversal.
Crodon's bracelet—Artifact [Quarto]—nullified all direct impacts aimed at his true body.
Each time it did so, one jewel would fall off. Only after all four had been used would the artifact's true nature be revealed.
With two jewels remaining, even scratching him would be nearly impossible.
...And then it happened.
Puhk.
The mana tumor embedded within one of his clones detonated, tearing it apart from within. Whether a clone lived or died usually had no effect on Crodon.
Normally, that would be the case.
"...?"
Crodon slowly looked down, sensing an alien sensation in his abdomen. A sharp pain spread upward, as though he'd been stabbed.
Not only the original, but every one of his clones froze in place.
"Kh… Wh, what is this…"
"Making such a fuss over a single damaged organ."
Isabella pressed her weight onto her toes.
"This is just the beginning."
She visualized the essence through her Brilliant Eyes and dominated it using [Elderron].
Through that, she grasped the magical origin connecting Crodon and his clones, forcibly pulling and interfering with it—a unique magical principle.
Under Isabella's control, Crodon now shared not only his consciousness with his clones, but also their sensations, pain, and injuries.
And for the true Crodon, this counted as indirect interference.
───Crunch!
She froze one clone's leg, robbing it of mobility, then smashed its face with a kick. The head burst apart as the clone dispersed.
And part of that impact transferred.
Thwack.
Crodon's forehead split open.
Hot blood instantly drenched his vision.