CH 140

Chapter 140

When Peaceful Times Cease To Exist : A Name That Calls Death, Part 12 — A Man Who Was Once Called A Hero

Translated by KaiesV

Edited by KaiesV

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Miranda and the others were watching the whole exchange from behind. They could not fully grasp what had happened, but at any rate, there was a considerable explosion, and they all reflexively covered their ears and bent down.

After a few seconds of defense, she wandered up to Alfiris, each remembering the ringing in her ears from the tremendous explosion. The area around Lifeless was filled with smoke from the tremendous explosion, making it impossible to see.

「Did you do it, Alfie?」

Miranda finally calls out to Alfiris.

「Perhaps… I confirmed that it was a direct hit, so as you can imagine, if you were to eat that without defensive magic, you wouldn’t be safe. I’m sure he was trying to chant defensive magic because it was dangerous.」

「Did you calculate it?」

「Of course. I knew that with the maximum power of magic, whether to offset or protect, I’d be chanting some degree of chanting magic of some kind. Taking advantage of that gap, I fired two surprise attacks in a row. As expected, it would be impossible to respond. No one would expect magic to occur in an empty space. Especially if you’ve been a mage for a long time.」

Alfiris answered flatly, but Miranda knew that she had done something pretty amazing. When and where did she do such training?

「Alfie is a mage too, right? When did you train?」

「Don’t you remember, Miranda? I was a natural, I was able to use magic, and the Magic Association almost conquered me, remember? I was sealed after that, and I’ve never practiced the use of magic, though my master taught me the theory.」

「Eh? Then how did you…」

「Wait a second!」

Alfiris won over Miranda’s words. Then she concentrated on the dirt and smoke. Gradually a look of impatience began to appear on her face.

「Alfie, don’t tell me…」

「You’re kidding me…」

「…Phew… I’m sincerely surprised… and I must give you my compliments, Alfiris…」

They can hear the voice of Lifeless through the smoke. The smoke has not cleared yet, but apparently there is no serious damage, judging from his voice.

「…You’ve got to be kidding me. What the hell is wrong with that guy?」

「…I’d like to hear it myself.」

「…I’ve fought many enemies… some with leaps of magic, some with specific magic, some with magic… but no one has ever handled magic this well… kukukuku, hahahahahah!」

As the unbelievable reality drained the vigor from Miranda and Alfiris’ expressions, a high pitched laugh was suddenly heard from the smoke. At the same time, the smoke was blown away by a massive wind of magic power.

「Hii—!」

Who was the voice that leaked out? But those who saw Lifeless must have felt the same way in their hearts. Lifeless who emerged from the smoke had no right side of his body. But there’s no blood spewing out, no pure content—— none. The edges of the area where Alfreys had blown away the glass were cracked like glass, as if the figures in the stained glass were speaking to them as they were. And as if paint had been dropped on the missing parts, soon Lifeless’ body was restored to its original state.

Alfiris gritted her teeth at the sight.

「Lifeless, you’re…」

「As you can see, I have no substance.」

Lifeless’s tone of voice changed from the previous one. His tone was light, yet heavy and intimidating.

「A long time ago, I was born with exceptional magical powers and set out to master the art of magic. My training went very well, and as the years went by, I mastered magic as I wished. But alas, life is short. I was about to reach the end of my life before I could reach the extreme end of myself that I had yet to see.」

「…」

Alfiris doesn’t answer anything. As well as the fact that she is under pressure from Lifeless, she is desperately trying to recover some of her magic.

「So I devised a plan. I constructed a magic spell that made my life as close to eternity as possible. As a result, I soon saw the ultimate in myself. However…」

Lifeless slowly closes his eyes.

「On the contrary, I no longer have any enemies. The power I had dreamed so much about, pursued so much, and now I had it… But I have no enemies to wield it against. It was extremely painful, do you understand?」

「…I don’t even want to understand.」

Alphilis spat at him, but Lifeless only smiled thinly when he heard the answer.

「You too will understand when you come to this realm. It is empty without someone to fight… But!」

The magical power of Lifeless began to swell even more. Alfiris can offset some of the pressure with her own magical power, but Lisa and Kazas, who have no magical power, are like being exposed to a storm. They are clinging desperately to the ground as if it were too hard to sit down.

「Alfiris! It’s been a while since I’ve found an opponent worth fighting for, huh? You have my permission to fight me!」

「Permission? Who the hell do you think you are, Lifeless!」

「Who am I… Who am I, you ask?? It used to be that at the mere mention of my, nay, my name, even the Archfiends would run for cover! Hahhaha!」

The figure of Lifeless, laughing loudly, transforms into an adult. Or should I say, he reverts to his former self. In keeping with his appearance, even his personality and looks change to a belligerent look. The eyes are sharp and shiny like those of a bird of prey, the nose looks egotistical, and the mouth is full of itself. They are combined into a neat face.

He then stripped off his black robe, leaving his upper body naked and revealing a large burn-like scar on his chest. He looked like a dragon.

「When was the last time I fought with all my might… 700 years ago when I defeated 100 Archfiends…? …Ohhh, Or that I destroyed the armies of the Great Archfiend 500 years ago.」

「Great Archfiend…? Don’t joke me around!」

Alfiris is about to deny the startling revelation that Lifeless tells him, Lifeless stared at Alfiris and sniffed grimly.

「Unfortunately, I don’t like to joke around.」

「Then are you saying you are more powerful than the Great Archfiend?」

「Kukuku, want to give it a try?」

「Great!」

「700 years ago… after a burn that looks like a dragon… I’m sure I heard that somewhere.」

「Are you wondering who I am, woman? Then I’ll give you a hint… I’m supposed to be able to use six different kinds of magic.」

「Six kinds… that’s…」

Miranda looks at Lifeless with incredulity.

「Lifeless is my true name. When I was active as a human, I had another name. My men told me that being (lifeless) is bad luck. When I was a human being, my name was.」

After saying that much, Miranda noticed. The look on her face is the look of one who cannot be trusted. Because.

「Heroic King… Graham.」

「And, it goes something like that.」

「Did you say Heroic King Graham?」

This surprised even Alfiris. And even the stout-hearted Miranda slumped to the ground.

Heroic King Graham—— He is a legendary figure so well known on the continent that he is mentioned in numerous sagas. Bards compete to see how well they can recite his stories, knights take great pleasure in serving him, people are encouraged by his presence, and children grow up hearing his anecdotes in their bedtime stories. Even Alfiris and the Seeker Fenna, who aren’t well versed in worldly affairs, know the story.

It’s said that he was a commoner, but he founded his country in just 10 years, when he was only 20 years old. When he was only 15 years old, he defeated the Archfiend’s army with only a few offerings. By the time of his death, he had fought a thousand battles and won every one of them. He took on 100 Archfiends and succeeded in defeating all of them in that epic battle. The list of his glories is endless.

Now, standing before the eyes of Alfiris and her group is that legendary figure. And as a mage, he is said to be the most powerful man in history. And he is immortal—— no wonder Miranda slumped over. No, rather, because she has lived a long time and is familiar with history from Arnelian sources, she knows how much of a figure the man in front of her is.

Then she grabs Alfiris’ sleeve with a trembling hand. Her face has become that of a frightened little girl.

「Alfie, Alfie… we can’t, we can’t fight that thing. Let’s run away.」

「Don’t be silly! I’ll never know unless I try.」

「It’s impossible. To fight such a legendary being…」

「I can’t do it, but I have to! …Because it’s impossible to escape anyway.」

Not only Miranda’s face was pale, but also that of Alfiris. But they know very well that they cannot run away. Fighting an immortal and powerful being in a limited space—— there could be no worse situation than this.

Slowly, Lifeless approach Alfiris and the others. Miranda backs away, half teary-eyed, and Alfiris steps back, pulled by her hand. But unlike Miranda, who was already frightened, Alfiris, with all the energy she could muster, asked Lifeless.