155Th Episode: The Crossroads (4)
“So, to summarize, it’s like this. The dungeon core is connected to somewhere in the other world, and if you interfere with the dungeon core through sorcery, you can apply the same sorcery to all dungeons?”
“Yes, yes······! Th, that’s right······.”
“······.”
“······.”
Yurina’s summary made Julia smile.
It was a moment when the content that had taken over 30 minutes to explain with hesitation was summarized in 10 seconds.
Yurina sighed deeply and sat down to examine the documents Julia had handed her one by one.
‘It doesn’t seem like she’s lying······.’
It was quite surprising that the witch of Petersburg was studying sorcery, but let’s skip that. (In fact, it seemed to suit the alias of a witch.)
The question was whether sorcery was really transmitted through the network connecting the dungeon cores.
If it was research on dungeons, there were numerous documents disclosed by the Magic Tower and various countries.
According to them, the network connected to the dungeon core could transmit information in both directions.
From the dungeon, energy was transmitted to the other world.
And from the other world, simple commands (such as adjusting the strength of the monsters) were sent to the dungeon.
So, theoretically, it was possible to access the network of the other world through the dungeon core.
At least theoretically.
It seemed far-fetched because neither the method of interdimensional connection nor the structure of the dungeon core had been fully elucidated yet.
But the witch of Petersburg had done it.
The answer was found in sorcery that utilized magic power, not magic, and a way was opened.
And Julia disclosed this fact to the Saintess and the Frost Monarch.
For free.
There was only one thing she wanted.
It was cooperation to help Eugene.
“I, I’ve already finished testing the si, simple sorcery······. N, now, to have a si, significant impact on the entire du, dungeon······ I need to mobilize mo, more magic power to cast the sorcery······. I, I’m not enough by myself······.”
A huge amount of magic power is required to apply sorcery to a dungeon.
However, there was no group of mages or sorcerers in this world who would join the plan to weaken the dungeon.
In the end, it would be like spending a lot of magic power to fill the stomachs of mercenary rabble.
But the three gathered here were different.
They had a common sense of purpose, loving Eugene and hoping for his safe return.
That’s why they could join hands.
Even though they didn’t like each other.
Paradoxically, that’s why they could be sure that they loved Eugene that much.
They could join hands because they knew that if they were divided, Eugene would be in danger.
“Do we have to learn sorcery too?”
“I, if you just know how to handle ma, magic power······ it’s enough······. I’ll take care of the ca, casting······.”
“Okay. Let’s learn it.”
A stuffy and slow lesson began.
It was not only because they were practicing while listening to Julia’s awkward explanation, but also because feeling magic power itself was a difficult practice.
“Ma, magic power······ is energy generated by consuming em, emotions······. U, unlike magic, which requires you to eliminate emotions as much as possible······ I think it would be ea, easier if you think of it as amplifying a specific emotion and······ putting it into magic······.”
It is difficult to empty your emotions and fill your mind with only reason, but it was something anyone could do if they practiced.
That’s why magic is a miracle that anyone, regardless of age or gender, can use.
Depending on the amount of magic power and talent in their bodies, their abilities were determined, and there was no one in this world who could not use even simple magic.
However, sorcery requires the opposite of what magic requires.
You have to erase your reason and fill your head with only emotions.
The requirement is strong emotions.Whether it’s anger, love, or regret, as long as it’s passion, the type doesn’t matter.
If you have such passion, you can become a sorcerer by awakening by chance or by training.
However, those who have lived a smooth life will never be able to feel magic, no matter how hard they try.
That’s why magicians are called monsters because they are wrapped up in reason and logic.
However, there were many real monsters among the sorcerers.
Those who are consumed by their emotions and can no longer think rationally.
The proportion of those who have gone insane and gone mad was very high.
It was also their responsibility that sorcery caused numerous crimes and led to the suppression of sorcerers all over the world.
“As a saint, it’s certainly a creepy power…. But it’s not the power that’s wrong. It’s the one who wields it.”
Sorcery is a sorcery and an evil force.
The Vatican used this logic to prevent the spread of sorcery.
Simply because it is difficult to formalize and understand.
However, in Jill’s view, sorcery was also a power with high potential.
If we continue to research, we may one day be able to escape from the designation of sorcery and be recognized as equal to magic.
And for some reason, I had a hunch that this elf would definitely do it.
‘What I hold is my heart for Eugene….’
All three of them concentrated on the same thought at the same time.
The element of nothingness, mana, began to carry passion.
Questions, affection, hatred, doubts about Eugene, etc….
Countless thoughts were mixed together and began to turn black.
Julia shuddered at this.
No matter how great your emotions are, it was said that it would take at least three days to feel magic unless you have the ultimate talent.
These women gathered magic at their fingertips in less than an hour, as if nothing had happened.
I didn’t know how to use it yet, but it didn’t matter.
Julia was going to take care of all the use as long as she gathered the magic.
“What do I do with this now….? What?! I’m going to lose control soon….!”
“I, I’ll gather it. T, thank you for your hard work…….”
The magic that was about to scatter and disappear gathered in one place, led by Julia’s magic circle.
An unknown force instantly took away the control of the magic and contained it in one space.
The three powers were intertwined in one place and became one sphere.
“W, what? W, why is this happening….?”
However, the smooth sphere vibrated and began to deform.
It escaped Julia’s control and separated.
I thought it would explode at once, but I turned my head away.
“….”
The magic lump remained intact within the magic circle.
Three spheres orbiting each other under perfect control within the magic circle.
It’s definitely the same magic, so why is it automatically divided?
I tried to gather it in one place again, wondering.
“What….”
Again, an unknown repulsive force acted and it was divided into three spheres.
I couldn’t understand.
This is the first time I’ve seen this phenomenon.
There is a record that magic was gathered from hundreds or thousands of people to create one lump.
Why can’t these three magics be combined?
Even after a close examination, no difference was found between the three magics.
It was a lump of energy made up of the same black and ugly emotions.
Nevertheless, these three magics were like water and oil, and they could never be mixed.
“Is this the way it is, Petersburg?”
“Oh, no…. I, I’m seeing it for the first time too…….”
Julia learned sorcery on her own, but it was still difficult to say that she had mastered sorcery.
It was difficult to make a hasty judgment on this case, which I had never seen before.
“W, if there is a way…. T, there is…….”Of course, the plan wouldn’t be ruined just because their magics didn’t mix.
They could just divide one large spell into three.
The efficiency would be somewhat reduced, but it wouldn’t be a big problem.
The three of them headed straight to a dungeon.
Even though they killed all the monsters and the boss, and destroyed the walls, exposing the dungeon core to sunlight and magic power, it could still generate monsters.
It still hadn’t been neutralized.
“Th, then, I’ll, I’ll st, start······.”
Julia crossed her hands and made a hand sign.
Soon after, the first lump of magic began to dwell in the totem that had been prepared in advance.
The second lump went into the cursed doll.
And the third formed a magic circle in the space.
The moment the powerful spell, which had absorbed the magic of three superhumans, took effect, the curse was applied, and the dungeon core shattered with a bang.
Then the dungeon core lost its light and turned into an ordinary magic stone.
Its connection to the network had been severed.
“Di, did it work······?”
The three of them immediately used their own information channels to check if the curse had been applied to the dungeons in various places, but······
– No such fact has been confirmed.
– The dungeon remains the same.
– No dungeon changes.
Only disappointing answers came back.
It couldn’t be helped.
They had no choice but to give up······.
Just like that, the three of them, who had dramatically agreed to cooperate, dispersed again.
.
.
.
[The monsters in the dungeon are strengthened by the blessing of the Saintess.]
[The monsters in the dungeon have a weak poison due to the curse of the witch Julia.]
[The dungeon is getting colder due to the resentment of the Frost Lord Yerina.]
“What is this······.”
I lost my mind as soon as I stepped into the dungeon.
It’s a system window I’ve never seen before.
No. Actually, it’s not the first time.
I had already confirmed that it was possible to curse a dungeon.
But this is the first time it’s been done by someone other than me.
And the subjects are none other than the three main heroines······.
“Krrr?”
“Damn it.”
Even the goblin that met my eyes in front of me was completely white with cold.
I wish it would freeze and slow down, but it moved even faster than before and attacked me.
I slashed the guy with my magic sword before he could approach me.
The guy’s blood, which had splattered on the floor and walls, melted the rock as soon as it touched it.
Poison······.
Is it a poison that is also highly acidic?
“Haah······”
Besides, this is not ordinary cold now.
It’s only at the level where I can still breathe out of my mouth.
But as time goes by, I can feel the cold seeping into my body and freezing my whole body.
Each of the debuffs is deadly.
Even I would have a hard time with this level of debuffs, but for ordinary mercenaries, it would be nothing short of a disaster.
It’s a life-threatening level.
“What are you going to do? Are you out of your mind?!”
I don’t understand the intention at all.
What’s the point of strengthening the dungeon and doing this?
This will greatly weaken the Mercenary Association and have the effect of maximizing the damage caused by monsters.
All three of them had lost their minds when it came to something related to me, but at least as a leader, they didn’t do anything to abandon the people.
Something’s wrong.
At least it couldn’t have been the intention of the main heroines to cut off the mercenaries’ lifeline.
‘Come to think of it, there was no particular issue regarding the dungeon?’
I get news about dungeons and mercenaries right away.
I hadn’t heard any news of such a disaster befalling the dungeon until just before I entered it.
Just in case, I left the dungeon and looked for mercenaries at a nearby tavern.”Huh? The dungeon is getting colder, the monsters are getting stronger, and their bodily fluids are highly toxic? Dude. Are you dreaming?”
“I was just in the dungeon, and nothing like that happened.”
“······.”
I wonder if the Black Star dungeon I entered was special.
I moved to another Black Star dungeon.
[The monsters in the dungeon are strengthened by the blessing of the Saintess Jill.]
[The monsters in the dungeon have weak toxicity due to the curse of the witch Julia.]
[The dungeon is cold due to the resentment of the Frost Lord Yerina.]
“······.”
I wonder if this is a common problem in Black Star dungeons.
This time, I decided to explore the Red Star and Yellow Star dungeons.
[The monsters in the dungeon are strengthened by the blessing of the Saintess Jill.]
[The monsters in the dungeon have weak toxicity due to the curse of the witch Julia.]
[The dungeon is cold due to the resentment of the Frost Lord Yerina.]
“You son of a······.”
I went in and out of about five different dungeons.
And I noticed it when I sent Mijung in without me.
“······No problem. It’s a normal dungeon.”
“But why does it become hell difficulty when I go in!”
This damn curse.
It only applies to me.