147. Facing (4)
Temulen.
Other than the fact that he was from the north, his past was shrouded in mystery. He appeared one day out of the blue.
He suddenly appeared at an age where his beard had turned gray and effortlessly surpassed all the young wizards, graduating at the top of his class from the academy.
His graduation thesis shattered many existing theories and shook the academic world.
There were numerous attempts to recruit him.
However, Temulen rejected all wealth and fame and suddenly declared that he would build a magic tower.
At the time, the leaders of the Azure Magic Tower and the Crimson Magic Tower strongly opposed him.
They protested, saying that a mere fledgling who had not even been in academia for five years was sullying the name of the magic tower by building a brick house.
Despite the opposition, Temulen’s magic tower, with its white exterior, was eventually built.
Temulen immediately began to gather supplies and people with a huge amount of funding.
At the time, it was a rather unexpected topic, as he said he would explore the soul.
About five years passed.
The results of the White Magic Tower’s research began to be released to the world.
And the exploration of the soul, which everyone had believed to be useless, shook the entire magic world.
The basic definition of magic had changed.
The principle of magic power had changed.
Everything had to be uprooted and rewritten from the ground up.
At this, the protests from the Azure Magic Tower and the Crimson Magic Tower stopped at once.
The magic world also officially recognized Temulen as the Lord of the White Magic Tower.
Temulen became a giant in one breath.
He was nominated and won various awards, but Temulen did not show up anywhere.
This was because he was holed up in the basement of the White Magic Tower at the time.
He was conducting his own research based on the results of the magic tower’s research, and he had finally reached a new level.
‘Now······ I can see the soul······!’
A vision that only some monsters could see.
He had gained the eyes to see the soul.
Someone’s soul was clear.
Someone’s soul was murky.
Someone’s soul was bright.
And someone’s soul was dark.
At first, Temulen enjoyed simply observing the various souls, spending his time looking down from above with an observation spell cast in the sky.
Then one day.
He found it.
The owner of a unique soul that could not be found anywhere else.
“What are you?”
The color of the man’s soul was varied.
The expression ‘colorful’ was not accurate.
His color was not ‘combined’ but ‘overlapped’.
It was as if several souls were gathered in one place.
He wondered if he had acquired the eyes to see souls like him and had taken someone else’s soul.
However, the way it overlapped was too natural to be someone else’s soul.
It was as if there were several selves of the same person who had lived different lives.
“Let’s watch for a while······.”
Several months passed.
And the man gradually increased the frequency of looking up at the sky.
As if he had noticed the ‘gaze’······.
And this time, the man headed to none other than this place.
The White Magic Tower.
At this, Temulen trembled.
“It’s here!”
He had been caught.
No one had noticed this extensive observation spell, but he had finally been caught.
A sense of excitement and exhilaration spread throughout his body.
He had been afraid to approach first and had been doing some preliminary research from afar.
But the target had come to him first.
Temulen felt his heart pounding at the thought of exploring that strange soul.
.
.
.
“······still doesn’t know me well. Memory? My specialty is not such a trivial thing. Me, and the subject that the White Magic Tower explores. That’s the soul.”
“Soul······. Are you saying?”
“What do you think is the criterion that distinguishes people and defines a person?”
“I think it’s memory.”
“That’s an interesting opinion. You’re wrong. It’s the soul.”
“If the soul is the same, does that mean that the person is the same?”
“That’s right.”
“······.”
“Why do you look like you don’t agree?”
There was no way he could agree.
Just because the soul is the same does not mean that they are the same person.
In every turn, Jill, Julia, and Yerina were all different people.Each of them made a different choice in the same situation, went through a different process, and reached a different ending.
Memories with each and every one of you are precious.
But those children are no longer there.
There is not even a trace left except in my memory.
Those who have already disappeared will never come back again.
Just because they have the same soul does not mean they are the same person.
I can say that with such certainty.
“The soul is bound to the body itself, but memories are stored in a specific organ called the brain. The soul remains for a while after the body dies, then volatilizes and flies through the dimensional wall to the underworld, but the memories disappear along. “Memory is nothing more or less than just data.”
“That may be true. But my opinion does not change. “This is a conclusion drawn empirically, not while sitting at a desk typing away at a calculator.”
“This is a very stubborn customer. That’s why he came to me, mistaking me for a ‘memory expert.’ What do you have to ask me for?”
“I want to regain this child’s lost memories.”
“······.”
The corners of the old man’s eyes were bent.
It’s a face that looks unexpected.
What did you expect…?
“If the memory has been physically erased due to brain damage, there is no way I can do anything about it.”
“It’s okay. It’s a psychological problem. “The memories must be in this head.”
“Then it doesn’t matter. “Can we start the procedure right away?”
“Please do me a favor. “What should I pay in return?”
“hehehe. Since we are meant to be together, let’s join without any compensation. It’s not a task that requires a lot of effort.”
“······.”
I took up the time of the famously busy White Magic Tower owner, but they’re just giving it to me for free?
Doubts begin to creep in.
Come to think of it, this old man.
The way they look at me gives me a sense of déjà vu.
It’s a ‘gaze’ that I feel like I’ve felt somewhere before…
From Noble mtl dot com
When people look at another person’s face, it is common to focus on the eyes or between the eyebrows.
This old man’s eyes are strangely focused, as if he is looking inside me.
‘Gwiho?’
Taesu Gwiho was exactly like that.
Inside me.
When the soul sees something and says it is delicious and takes a liking to it.
After a while.
The old man’s focus shifted slightly.
Soon he looks straight into my eyes.
“Follow me. The human brain is a sensitive organ, so it requires precise devices and magic. “We will have to borrow underground equipment.”
“Yes. By the way, Mage Tower Lord. “Can you see the soul?”
“······.”
Stand tall.
The old man’s steps stop.
Only then does doubt turn into certainty.
As expected, this old man had a vision that transcended humanity.
‘Did he show up in the second session out of interest in my soul?’
The reason why I didn’t have a chance to meet this old man in the first episode is simple.
Because I am ordinary.
Because I had an ordinary soul who lived a life like anyone else.
However, it seems that traces of it have somehow remained in my soul as I returned.
During the second round, the old man must have seen the traces and approached me.
And the reason I couldn’t find the old man from the third time until now…
Perhaps, due to repeated regressions, my soul has deteriorated to the point where it is scary to approach.
“I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”
“······.”
Resolute denial.
With those words, the old man does not open his mouth anymore and walks quietly down the hallway.
Why deny it?
Do you need to hide the fact that you see souls from me?
‘What were you trying to do with my soul?’
No, maybe.
This old man from the second round.
Maybe there was something playing a trick on my soul.
He may have engraved a mark on me that he himself will be able to recognize in the next episode.
Suddenly a thought occurred to me.
A chilling sensation spread throughout my body.
.
.
.
‘aaah!!!’
All while walking down the hallway.
Temulen screamed inwardly.
I didn’t realize it when I was watching from afar.
I never imagined that this man’s soul would be so bizarre.
From the first time I saw him, I had been thinking about going to see him in person.
That was the correct answer.
No. The right answer was to just run away from this world and never meet this person.’Multiple personality? No, multiple selves? No, should I say multiple souls? What kind of monster is this!’
This man’s soul was not only unique but also grotesque.
It was clear but murky.
It was dark but bright.
It created a strange form of soul where many ideas were scattered and tangled.
And then when he looked at Temulen.
In an instant, the scattered ideas all agreed and became one.
Question.
When those many selves expressed their questions at the same time, Temulen almost opened his mouth and screamed.
‘Is he a reincarnated person? Or did he die and come back from the underworld?’
Many possibilities crossed Temulen’s mind.
At that moment, the Vatican’s warning came to Temulen’s mind.
Be careful, there is an intelligent monster that has invaded from the other world.
Elvengard had also given the same warning.
And in the world.
There was a sinister rumor going around.
‘The Great Demon······?’
It was rumored that the Great Demon, who had crawled out of the underworld, was making contracts with people and giving them power.
Temulen’s pupils shook.