150. Confrontation (7)
‘What the hell is this…?’
Temulen was momentarily speechless.
Before his very eyes, something unbelievable was happening.
The materialization device, ‘Alma’, was not a particularly impressive machine.
Strictly speaking, it was a device similar to a high-performance speaker.
The only difference from a speaker was that it allowed one to experience all five senses realistically, including not only sound but also sight.
Alma had no computational ability whatsoever, and its only function was to interpret the inputted data and output it as it was.
‘How is it outputting data that was not inputted…?’
Just as the audience cannot interfere with the sound coming out of a speaker, it was a given that no third party could interfere with the results of Alma.
It was normal to simply observe quietly, without having any influence.
However, the man was breaking that common sense head-on.
His hand touched the image of the past.
It reached out to the girl and embraced her.
As if going back in time to comfort her…
The girl hugged the man and burst into tears.
Unlike in the past, when she had slowly broken down all alone with no one around.
Now, there was a man beside her, silently racking his brains.
‘What did you do…?’
There was only one possibility.
He had taken control of ‘Alma’.
Alma was no longer a device that simply outputted inputted data through illusion magic.
It had evolved into a simulator.
Of course, Alma had no computational device, so in theory, simulation was impossible.
That meant that something else was acting as the computational device.
And since earlier.
That is, from the moment the man began to interact with the illusion magic.
He could feel something inside the man’s bag emitting a strong magical wavelength.
It had to be that.
He didn’t know what it was yet, but it was helping him access the girl’s past through Alma.
‘Excellent. A real-time interactive illusion simulator. This is going to make money.’
Although he had compared it to a speaker, the amount of data that ‘Alma’ handled was far from comparable to single-channel audio data.
To implement all five senses, including magical power and intuition, it would probably be necessary to read all the information engraved in the brain.
But a device that could interact with and calculate that much data?
If there was such a thing, products like illusion simulators would have been on the market long ago.
A super-powerful computational orb that didn’t exist in the world.
More than anything else, Temulen’s greed began to burn for that unknown computational device.
He could make a fortune if he could complete the illusion simulator.
In a world where countless people were addicted to the one-dimensional pleasure of drugs, there would be countless people who would seek out simulators to escape reality.
‘Hmm? But no matter how excellent a computational orb it is, is it possible to operate it in the midst of all that?’
However, there was another strange thing.
There was a perception that a computational orb would do all the calculations on its own, but that was not the case.
The operator also had to exert strong concentration through meditation in order to operate it.
However, the man seemed to be completely uninterested in operating the orb and was simply focused on comforting the girl.
It was ridiculous to think that the girl’s illusion from the past was operating the orb.
Then could it be that the spider inside the man’s clothes…?’Oh my. I’ve seen so many strange things today that I think I’m going crazy.’
He had a strange suspicion.
A spider was controlling the orb.
It was not even funny.
The man’s orb control ability must be outstanding, if not superhuman.
There was no other way to explain it.
‘What the······?!’
Just then.
Another amazing thing happened.
Data was being overwritten.
In real time, the girl’s brain memories were being altered.
As if the man had been there in the past.
The past where the girl was lonely and heartbroken.
It was being changed to where she was healed by the man.
It was not a drastic and destructive alteration like brainwashing or hypnosis.
It was an alteration with the consent of the other party.
The girl would know that this memory was an altered memory, and she would know exactly what the memory was before it was altered.
It was not about deceiving the girl.
It was about covering up a painful memory for the girl.
So that the memory would not be a painful memory just by remembering it or talking about it, but a bittersweet memory.
The courage to look back on the past.
The man seemed satisfied just by giving her that, and he smiled broadly.
‘He’s using Alma all on his own······.’
A memory copier in a fantasy simulator.
At this point, I think my understanding of Alma has already far surpassed Temulen’s.
No. Maybe he came here with the intention of using Alma from the beginning.
I laughed out loud at his audacity and cunning, which was beyond my imagination.
I was used without getting anything in return.
For some reason, I didn’t feel that bad.
Was it because I was trying to get information out of the man?
‘Yes. I believe you. You are not the Great Demon.’
Temulen decided to conclude.
This man, who treats a mere blood girl, who is nothing special except for the fact that she has regained her sanity, so preciously.
He decided to admit that he was not the Great Demon, nor was he an ally of the enemy of the other world.
[I’ll end it here. You’ve just used up ten days’ worth of magic power from the White Magic Tower.]
Temulen muttered to the machine and turned off the power.
However, Alma, who had lost control, resisted for a while by sending out magic power.
Finally, she stopped casting the illusion magic.
.
.
.
“Ugh! Ugh, aaah! Mom! Dad······. aaah······.”
“······.”
Mijung was sobbing, clutching my chest.
It was a sorrow that had been frozen deep inside my chest for a long time.
It was a sorrow that I had never even thought of showing on the outside.
Mijung, who could not think of any other way to overcome her guilt than to pressure herself into thinking that it was an unforgivable sin.
Although the people involved were dead.
I forgave her instead.
Until now, I thought I was not qualified and did not ask.
But after looking into Mijung’s past this time.
Seeing the horrific sight and feeling her heart, I was finally able to understand Mijung’s position.
I still don’t have the qualifications.
I can’t say that I fully understand Mijung.
But even so, I dare to, presumptuously.
I forgave Mijung in my own way.
It’s okay.
It’s okay to forgive yourself now.
I whispered to Mijung, stroking her.[I’ll end it here. You guys just used up all of the White Pagoda’s magic for ten days.]
The surrounding scenery collapses.
The appearance of Miso in my arms gradually changes.
“Sob······ Hoo-ook······. Ooo-oong······.”
The girl blood ghost who was covered in blood and shedding tears disappears.
Only a neat blood ghost remains, crying without tears.
Before we knew it, we were back inside ‘Alma’, surrounded by white panels.
“Miso.”
“······Yes.”
Miso’s voice is also hoarse and dull.
It’s the Miso I know.
It’s the familiar Miso.
She hasn’t completely shaken off the trauma of the past yet.
But it’s Miso who is facing the past and slowly recovering.
“No one blames you. The guilt you’ve been holding onto for over 10 years. You can let it all go. It’s not your fault. It’s not your responsibility. You don’t deserve to suffer like this.”
“······But when I close my eyes, I can hear it. The sound of me being blamed.”
Even though she can live without sleep, she can sleep if she wants to, as evidenced by the fact that sleep spells and magic work on her.
It seems that this was the reason why Miso had been refusing to sleep.
Because she was afraid of dreams.
Because she was afraid that the past would come back to life and overwhelm her······.
“Close your eyes.”
“······Yes.”
“Can you hear it now?”
“······No.”
“Then what comes to mind?”
“······You, protecting me, Eugene. You, holding me. You, telling me that it’s not my fault, Eugene.”
Now my existence is engraved in Miso’s mind.
I remained in the past, where facing it was nothing but pain, and made it possible for her to look back.
Now the me inside Miso will protect Miso.
It will erase all the guilt and resentment she feels towards herself.
And around that time.
I feel strength flowing into my body and my thoughts accelerating.
[The trait ‘Guardian Knight’ is activated.]
[Stats]
[Strength: 20(x5) *Guardian Knight effect applied]
[Health: 45(x5) *Guardian Knight effect applied]
[Magic: 50(x5) *Guardian Knight effect applied]
[Agility: 28(x5) *Guardian Knight effect applied]
[Luck: 10(x5) *Guardian Knight effect applied]
The Guardian Knight has been reactivated.
It seems that Miso has begun to ‘recognize’ that she is being ‘protected’ by me again.
Now I think I understand the meaning of that recognition.
I think I understand why Miso can always activate the Guardian Knight.
The ‘protection’ Miso receives was not in the physical sense.
Until now, I had been ‘protecting’ Miso from the past.
I didn’t ask any questions or let her think about it.
But now the meaning has changed a little.
I remained in Miso’s memory.
I got involved in Miso’s past and cherished it.
In a past that could not have been, I am still protecting Miso.
I am protecting Miso from that painful trauma.
Perhaps the ‘me’ inside Miso will remain forever and cherish Miso.
[Hidden achievement unlocked]
[The evolution conditions for the trait have been met.]
[The trait, ‘Guardian Knight’, evolves.]
At that moment, the system window appears before my eyes.
The stat window flickers and changes, and a new ability is applied.
[Initial trait: Guardian Knight (Enhanced)][When protecting someone, stats are ‘greatly’ amplified. If not activated, base stats are reduced by ’50’ as a penalty.]
[Stats]
[Strength: 20(x7) *Paladin effect currently applied]
[Health: 45(x7) *Paladin effect currently applied]
[Mana: 50(x7) *Paladin effect currently applied]
[Agility: 28(x7) *Paladin effect currently applied]
[Luck: 10(x7) *Paladin effect currently applied]
The amplification amount is now a whopping 7 times.
I had been struggling for a while with no way to increase my specs.
Thanks to this, my overall power has increased dramatically.
With this, I should be able to keep up with Kali’s speed, who was ‘perfected’ by Luna.
Maybe I can even go toe-to-toe with Transylvania······
That’s a bit too much to ask.
Anyway.
With this level of power, it seems certain that I can crush Belphegor’s main body.
“Welcome back.”
“······Yeah.”
“And goodbye.”
“······.”
Mijung, who had forgotten the past and was simply happy, is no more.
I erased her with my own hands.
I decided to bury that child in my heart and quietly said goodbye.
That’s the end of it.
It was surprisingly underwhelming.
To face the past.