Volume 7 Chapter 56 Redefining Magic
In the plains, the grass swayed in the wind.
The time was like the sun rising, during the morning glow. The sky was still orange, retaining the darkness of night as it moved away from the sun.
As I stood there, holding Durandal, I heard a voice saying "Papa!" along with the sound of someone rushing towards me.
"Ah!? Moruru! Are you okay!?"
I was relieved, hugging the girl tightly. Moruru. My precious daughter. I had somewhat expected it, but I was still relieved to see that she was unharmed, and tears of joy welled up in my eyes.
"I'm glad. You're safe. Really glad..."
"Yeah! Moruru is fine! Papa, are you okay too?"
"Ah, nothing bad happened. That's why."
I looked up at Moruru. And there, with a bandage wrapped around him like a sail in the wind, stood 'Oath'.
"Just as promised, you've come. I've released your daughter. From now on, this place will become a death zone, so it's better for her to return to Birk territory."
"...Moruru, it's just as 'Oath' said. From now on, the battle will be intense, and I don't have the confidence to protect you. It'll be that fierce."
"U, ...Papa, you have to win."
"Yeah, I will win. So don't worry and return to the stronghold."
Moruru nodded and quickly grew wings with the ancient dragon's mark, flying away. In just a few seconds, her shadow became tiny. 'Oath' said with a carefree tone, "Ancient dragon is amazing, isn't it?"
"'Slow', you've experienced many things that even I, who have lived a long life, haven't. You've risen from an adventurer to a noble in just one generation, and even raised an ancient dragon."
"Is it scary to have such a life?"
"Haha, that's your fate. I think so because I know someone who has lived a life as unusual as yours."
I closed my mouth at those words. 'Oath' smiled faintly, saying,
"Yuuya Hibiki Roman. The Creator said he was the last summoned hero. His life was also unusual. In other words, you might be the first reincarnated person, don't you think?"
"Whoa... What's with that Creator, anyway? How do you know I've been reincarnated?"
"You don't know, huh? Maybe reincarnation makes you forget. Or maybe... Nah, it's pointless to think about it. She'll show up when she needs to, and won't when she's not."
'Oath' slightly shakes his head.
"The current era has few inexplicable events. What we have is a simple, straightforward generation gap, with the new era overthrowing the old. She probably won't show up. It's just that I've lived long enough to see it happen."
As he says that, 'Oath' draws his rusty straight sword.
"Let's cut the small talk. 'Slow', I want to settle things with you."
"Yeah, let's do it, 'Oath'. I've been looking forward to clashing with you for a while now."
We both start to emanate a fierce aura. It's like, "Ah, yeah, that's right."
Immortality. A wealth of combat methods. A heart that purely loves battle itself. A sense of camaraderie.
'Oath'. He's similar to me. If I lived long enough with my current strength, I'd probably become like 'Oath'.
But that won't happen. I'll become even stronger. I'll fight 'Oath' and surpass him.
I say,
"I'm 'Slow' Wade."
'Oath' says,
"I'm 'Oath', Arthur."
We focus our minds, draw our swords, and size each other up.
I think to myself. 'Oath' is immortal. He's got an immortality that surpasses mine. He'll probably use a Geas to make my Anahata Chakra useless and attack me.
He can just undo the Geas whenever he gets badly hurt. But if I really die, I won't be able to come back. That means 'Oath's immortality is on a whole different level.
But I've also got a few unfair tricks up my sleeve. Let's start by breaking through that.
I lower my sword and look at 'Oath'. 'Oath' shows interest, lowering his rusty sword and saying, "What are you planning to do?"
He's got that kind of confidence. He's an immortal who's almost impossible to kill with a sword, and yet he's not arrogant. That's what makes him interesting.
So I'll take my time to drive a wedge into her.
"'Oath', if I said I could destroy your immortality, what would you do?"
I asked, and 'Oath' was taken aback for a moment, then laughed self-deprecatingly.
"That's... an absurdly good luck. I'm already dead, so I can't die. I mean, all immortals wish for death. 'Slow', your immortal life that's always dying is just too convenient."
"So, do you want me to put an end to that immortality?"
"What do you plan to do?"
"What's the big deal? Just listen to what I say and stand still for a bit. Then, your immortality will start to weaken. Want to give it a try?"
"Haha, that sounds interesting. Let's do it. Show me what you've got."
Just like I had taken 'Sick's' bait, 'Oath' took mine. I glanced at the new magic seal that had appeared on my chest, then fixed my gaze on 'Oath'.
"My new magic creates a gravity point at the center of the target, then crushes them with intense gravity."
"That's powerful, isn't it?"
"Yeah. Most opponents would be done in with one hit. But honestly, learning a magic that can kill instantly isn't that exciting. You know how it feels, right?"
"Yeah. It's not interesting if it ends with that, and it's useless against enemies it doesn't work on. At least, it has no effect on me."
"So, I decided to redefine it. In other words, I modified the Transformation Magic."
"Hmm... that sounds more interesting than I thought."
"Right?"
We laughed together. I kept pointing at 'Oath' with my index finger, continuing the conversation.
"Transformation Magic can sometimes grant a conceptual ability when cultivated to a certain extent. My rival has a magic that makes the enemy burn in hellfire, for example."
"Yeah. I've seen people like that. They were never weak, even when alone."
"So, I'll redefine my new magic like that. Or rather, reinterpret it. I'll reinterpret it in a new way and announce it here, so the gods will recognize it in a druidic way."
"...'Slow'. You're really interesting. It's rare to find a magician who can control multiple magics, but I don't know anyone else who can do that besides you."
'Oath' couldn't hide his excitement, nodding in agreement with my thoughts. I returned the nod, and began to pray to the gods.
"Listen, Newton, god of gravity. This is a new magic, but I want to interpret it before I use it for the first time."
I speak loudly to the world, just like Roman does. It felt like the morning sun, the gods, and everything were watching over me.
"The gravity that affects an object is essentially a burden. I don't want to put this burden on the object itself, but on something invisible. For example, chakra, geas, or the love of the gods. Something like that."
The wind blew. The plains rustled. The clouds covered the morning sun, and the world grew dark.
"I want to apply gravity to something like that. I want to crush the invisible armor that protects my enemies with gravity. I want to break the curse that binds someone with gravity. If it's not magic like that, then it's not worth using."
The wind grew stronger. I stood firm, shouting loudly.
"I don't need magic that's useless! All the magic I've obtained so far has been powerful! But even if I learn some new magic now, it's pointless! That's why I'm begging you! I want to fight with gravity magic until the very end!"
The wind stopped.
"I was really sad when I lost my gravity magic in the Birk territory! I can still fight without it, but I loved that magic! I want to fight with it until the very end! I don't want to think that it's a weak magic! I don't want anyone to call it 'Slow Magic' again!"
So!
"Make it a powerful magic! I know you're going to say it's selfish, but I want to believe in gravity magic!"
My voice, my words, echoed across the plains. The wind blew again, this time more gently.
The clouds cleared, and the morning sun shone brightly once more. That was definitely the answer.
I looked at 'Oath'. 'Oath' was looking at me with an unbelievable expression.
While feeling the wind, I pointed at "Oath" and smiled quietly, saying this.
"Deep Gravity."
The Geas that had bound "Oath" was crushed by the heavy pressure.
"―――――!"
"Oath" collapsed on the spot. I muttered, "Brahma = Atman".
The second eye that had activated, the Ajna Chakra, clearly showed the cracks in the Geas that had entwined "Oath"'s soul.
"Oath" called out "'Slow'" while thrusting his hand into the ground.
"You, you're a truly terrifying magician. You're not even a magic completer, yet you can do this much. You didn't let me escape the 'Immortal Protection' that's supposed to be unbeatable, and you even dealt damage to it!"
"It was good timing, I thought. This method would work. Druids are passionate, after all. I love you, Newton!"
I feel like I could do it even with the Sahasrara Chakra, but that's for next time. For now, this is enough.
"Oath" stood up. He shed his old, worn-out atmosphere and floated a very pure, transparent smile.
We didn't need words anymore. We had finished our introductions, and the imbalance of our battle had been shattered. From here on, it was just a fight between similar warriors seeking battle.
High invincibility. Countless trump cards. And a heart that seeks battle.
Only those things would be exposed. We would remove the unnecessary and, with our eyes fixed on our worthy opponents, raise our battle spirits to the max.
We faced each other, swords at the ready, in a forward-leaning stance, sharp, long, and taking deep breaths.
―――And then, the time came.
We simultaneously kicked off the ground.
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