Chapter 368

Cain the Savior wrote three spellbooks during his lifetime.
Bazura the Destroyer.
Leland of Wisdom.
Blur of Harmony.
Unsurprisingly, all three volumes were considered to be masterpieces.
There was a barrier to entry in the form of a book with a monstrous difficulty level and ego, but given that the author was a sage who had lived since the beginning of time, it wasn’t a big deal.
Those who understood even a little bit of what they were reading went down in history as either great heroes or monsters of untold proportions.
Asel and Elsia did.
Of the three, the most famous was of course the Bazura of Destruction.
“I’m only going to explain this once, so listen carefully. I’m going to seal the Archduke in Bazurae, and I can only do it with your help.”
Erzebet said.
In her hand, she held a thick, dark book.
It was a telekinetic bazura of destruction.
At my feet was Leland, and with the help of Ophelia and Braum, I managed to get to him before the Archduke.
“Bajurae? Is that possible—?”
Ophelia scowled.
The Bajura of Destruction was basically a book that enlightened me to the truth of magic.
The idea of using it to seal something was beyond my comprehension.
“Yes. The bazura is great as a spellbook, but it’s also a great medium for sealing. The Witch of Winter——, so think about where the highest ranking cold elemental, Einar, was trapped.”
“Oh. I did.”
Ophelia waggled her eyebrows in approval.
The Winter Witch was trapped in one of Bazura’s pages and served as Asel’s mentor.
Though weakened by Ronan’s slicing, sealing the highest elemental for decades was a feat.
“As it happens, Bajura is empty right now.
The original evil personality was destroyed by Ronan, and the Winter Witch is gone.
It should be big enough to accommodate the Archduke.”
“That’s good, because if it’s a seal, we don’t have to kill it for now—.”
“I’m all for it, I’ve done too much to die in a place like this!”
Braum replied without turning his head.
My whole body was already drenched in sweat.
He spread out his Auror shield to protect the other two.
The Archduke’s shadow was on the offensive, but Braum stood firm in his defense.
Erzebeth placed her hand on Bazura’s cover.
“Okay, I know the sealing spell, and you two can stall while I recite it, but I’m going to use all the magic I have left this time, so don’t think you’ll get a second chance.”
“Yeah. I will.”
“Hahaha! That’s my specialty! Good luck!”
It was a life-or-death proposition, but the pair readily agreed.
Erzebeth bit her lower lip.
She knew Ophelia and Braum could run away anytime they wanted to.
“…Thank you, both of you. I’ll be sure to make a case for you when the job is done.”
Erzebet ducked her head.
The greeting could not have been more polite, as is the custom of great nobility.
Ophelia and Braum turned, smiling.
“Don’t do that, Erzebet. I did this to you in the first place.”
“Wahaha, that’s what friends do, I’ll go then!”
Before Erzebet could say anything, Braum leaped.
The behemoth soared to the ceiling and fell in a steep, straight line toward the Archduke.
“Over here, you monster!”
A cheer echoed through the library.
An Auror-soaked shield slammed down over the darkness.
The Archduke’s body shook with a binge like a glacier cracking.
[Kaaah!
“That’s enough. Josef.”
Soon after, Ophelia’s blood magic manifested.
Hundreds of bright red spikes tore through the ceiling and floor.
Each one was the size of a building’s pillar, and all of them were made of blood.
The thorns began to attack the archduke like angry wasps.
[Guoooooooo! Guoooooo!
The darkness shuddered with each spike.
Ophelia frowned.
There is no longer a trace of the Archduke’s old self in his beastly howl.
“Whoooooo…here we go.”
Taking a deep breath, Erzebet unfolded her bajura.
The black book opened its gaping maw, revealing a blackened interior.
The moment Erzebet uttered the incantation, an unfathomable amount of mana began to flood the paper.
“Gulp…gulp…!”
Erzebeth groaned.
He was a rampaging mana, worthy of his reputation as the King of the Forbidden Book.
I thought if I put my brain in a barrel and rolled it down a hill, this is what it would feel like.
[Funny, how dare you try to deal with me with your skills].
[You don’t know fractions, Mage Asel, it’s impossible for you].
[You care for that wench Zion as if she were your own sister. I wonder if she thinks so. She is using you at the behest of Gracia].
His own voice was constantly echoing in his head.
It was a bitter magic imprinted on Bazura.
The personality may have been gone, but the evil that shook the reader’s heart remained.
“Shut up.”
Erzebet gritted her teeth.
Even though I knew it was a hallucination, it was painful.
The question asked was a doubt that he had harbored himself at least once.
“Don’t you dare speak of my brother…in my mouth.”
But she got through it.
He didn’t know his talent, but he couldn’t bear to disrespect Zion.
Boom!
A crunching sound echoed in his mouth, and the vision faded.
“Hmph…!”
Straightening up, Erzebeth began to recite a sealing incantation.
A melody reminiscent of a hymn rang out.
A black light leaked out onto the open page of Bajura.
【Goooooo?!】
The response was immediate.
The pervasive darkness began to absorb into Bazura.
It was like water swirling and being sucked through a drain.
Braum had good news.
“Ohhh, yes!”
“Archduke Shadow, I seal you.”
The tide had turned, but Erzebet didn’t let up for a second.
Her mana was ebbing away.
Bazura was about halfway through absorbing the Archduke’s body.
“Eh, Eri, help me!”
“What?”
Suddenly, Zion’s voice came out of nowhere.
For a moment, Erzebet’s concentration is broken.
She shifted her gaze and froze.
Zion, who had apparently fled, was bound deep in the shadows.
“Shi, Zion?!”
“No, Erzebet, it’s fake!”
Ophelia shouted.
Gulping, Erzebeth closed and opened her eyes.
No one was where Zion had been.
“Oh no…!”
It was a fatal blunder.
Erzebet was about to focus on the order again.
Kaaaaaah!!!
The darkness that had been briefly freed exploded.
It was a massive undertaking, far beyond anything we’d ever seen before.
It was only a matter of seconds before the entire library was enveloped in darkness.
Braum looked back at the two women and cried out.
“Ladies!”
It was like an avalanche of blackness.
Braum threw himself down reflexively.
With Ophelia in his arms, he reached for Erzebet.
“Kuck.”
A tentacle shot out of the darkness and slammed into Erzebet.
“No!!”
Braum screamed.
The seal spell is stuck.
Erzebet slowly dropped her gaze.
“Run this…….”
Tentacles of shadow were piercing his abdomen.
The top of the interstellar tentacle opened to reveal a human mouth.
A familiar voice said.
【m, an. to do.】
“——!”
Erzebet’s eyes widened.
This time, it wasn’t fake.
The squeezing voice belonged to the Archduke, who had long been thought dead.
Maybe there’s still a chance to save it.
This was great news, but she couldn’t answer.
“Ha, yikes—!”
A drop of red blood trickled down the corner of Erzebet’s mouth.
The pent-up pain was rushing in.
Consciousness was slipping away.
“Erzebet!!”
“Er……!”
Ophelia and Braum’s voices echoed in my head.
The tentacles were pulled from its body, revealing a fist-sized hole.
Slowly, Erzebet’s body tilted forward.
The blood from the wound soaked the white book.
****
“…Hot!”
Erzebet opened her eyes.
There was nothing but white space everywhere.
Her head snapped up.
“Hello, is this…?”
I remember being impaled by the tentacles, but the rest is a blur.
A quick touch revealed no holes in the ship.
What is it?
Am I dead?
As Erzebet watched in horror, she was dumbfounded.
“She’s a pretty girl. Face passes.”
A soft woman’s voice echoed from behind him.
Instantly, Erzebet felt goosebumps creep up her spine.
The voice sounded familiar.
I miss it terribly too.
Erzebeth turned, her face as hard as stone.
“Oh, Adeshan?!”
“Hoo hoo.”
Adeshan turned to face him.
A tall stature and a high bridge of the nose.
It was the same all the way down to my drooling pelvis.
The only other thing that was different was that the hair that was supposed to be gray was stained white.
“That’s not ……, who is it?”
“Well, guess what?”
Adeshan Yi.
Something that took the form of Adeshan, to be precise, smirked.
Suddenly, Erzebet’s near collapse flashed through her mind.
The white book that fell over on its stomach.
Another forbidden book lay beside Bazura’s. Erzebet opened her mouth.
“Leland.”
“Correct. Nice to meet you, lady.”
Leland chuckled.
His shaggy gray hair was a distraction.
Despite the cordial greeting, Erzebet said nothing.
“Oh my God.”
One of Cain’s forbidden books materialized before him.
A book said to impart infinite wisdom.
It wasn’t as bad as Bazura, but it was a banned book that drove countless mages mad.
Erzebeth, trying to regain her composure, spoke up.
“What happened to ……, is it dead?”
“Not yet, I’ll die soon enough if I leave it alone. This is a world I’ve created for a moment, for a job interview.”
“Interview?”
“Yes. Just as a man shades a book, so I shade a reader. We’ll see if you’re worthy to be the reader of this Leland.”
Leland approached.
Long fingers, like Adeshan’s, twisted into Erzebet’s hair.
I blushed, even though I knew it was fake.
“Moo, I don’t know what you’re talking about, but I don’t have time for that, just get me out of here!”
“Shut up. You’re dying.”
Suddenly, Leland beckoned.
Erzebet clutched at his throat.
I couldn’t breathe, like I was in chains.
Leland whispered in her ear.
“You’d better play nice and cooperate, because no one but Elsia has gotten through in the last thousand years.”