[Lifespan Remaining: 25 days, 8 hours, 16 minutes.]
Noct approached one of the smaller clusters protruding from the cavern wall. The crystals themselves were far more radiant than the ones in Lenia’s room.
Even from several steps away, his mana sensitivity could perceive the energy circulating within them, dense and pure. He reached out, wrapping his fingers around one.
〔Mana-Lifeforce Synthesis [★★★★★★★] — Activated.〕
[Lifespan Remaining: 25 days, 9 hours, 45 minutes.]
The crystal’s tranquil blue light flowed into his palm. The surface rapidly dulled, turning gray before eventually crumbling between his fingers.
’An hour and thirty minutes? These are far more efficient...I really need to take over this mine, whatever it takes.’
They were real, and there were thousands of them. And with the spirits residing inside as well, the only thing that needed to be supplied really...was rocks that were able to be turned into mana crystals.
’No...that’s not why I’m here right now...’
Noct closed his eyes and allowed his mana sensitivity to spread throughout the cavern. The overwhelming concentration made him almost throw up as mana from thousands of crystals bombarded him at once.
Finding any foul play among them was like trying to find a needle in a haystack. Still, from sensing mana all this while, Noct had found a pattern to them.
Natural mana felt...free, going along with the currents. Human magic on the other hand, always left some kind of pattern.
It took several minutes, but sure enough, Noct eventually noticed faint traces running along the cavern floor.
They were nearly imperceptible, faint remnants of earth mana being buried beneath the dirt. He crouched and ran his finger over the ground.
At first glance, the soil appeared untouched. But it felt too flat. Even loose stones had been pressed back into place, while every indentation had been carefully flattened.
’Clever...’
He proceeded slowly and carefully, following the residue around the edge of the lake. The trail occasionally disappeared under a cluster of crystals, only to reappear several steps later.
Eventually, the trail ended in front of an unremarkable cavern wall. There wasn’t even an opening or a narrow crack someone could squeeze through. Yet the mana trail led directly into it.
"An illusion spell...?"
Noct placed his palm against the wall. Rather than trying to overpower the entire spell, he traced its structure until he found the thread connecting its outer edges.
Quickly, he found out that job had been haphazardly done. Like the caster had understood the spell’s concept, but was lacking in technical skill in order to pull it off.
On the surface, it looked like a complex knot. But with just a single pinch, like pulling on a loose shoelace, Noct dispelled the whole thing.
The stone distorted in his palm, rippling like the surface of disturbed water before dissolving into drifting particles of light. As the illusion collapsed, one final thread of mana slipped from Noct’s grasp and vanished into the hidden passage.
But before he stepped in, Noct realized that since Faust loved setting up traps so much, there might be one waiting inside for him.
Pulling out the ?Compendium of Two-Star Magic?, he looked for something to locate any foreign objects before landing on a spell that could locate things using earthen tremors.
〔Skill Acquired: Earth Magic [★★]〕
[Seismic Sight has been added to Known Spells]
"O earth, reveal to me the secrets below."
?Alter Terra — Solum Ocular?
[Lifespan Remaining: 22 days, 9 hours, 45 minutes.]
’3 days again...2-Star spells really are costly.’
He felt his awareness travel through the earth, scouting the area ahead of him. There were no hidden mechanisms in the earth, but instead, he found something else. He rushed into the tunnel, where an iron gate stood several meters inside.
And beyond that—
Noct’s mouth opened, his breath catching on the absolute inhumanity of it all.
Men, women, and children were crowded throughout the hidden chamber. Some were shackled to iron rings embedded in the walls, while others huddled together under thin blankets.
Their clothes ranged from those of merchants, craftsmen, to ordinary laborers. There were dozens of them, yet they all had a common point:
These were struggling craftsmen, indebted traders, fishermen, laborers, and children without anyone influential enough to search for them. They were people Altaire could lose without being forced to notice.
The moment the illusion vanished, several captives raised their heads. They couldn’t see Noct under [Curtain of Darkness], yet their instincts kicked in immediately.
A man recoiled against his chains.
"Please..." he rasped. "Please...not us."
Noct recognized his clothing. It was the same man he had watched being dragged from his home and loaded into the unmarked carriage...Otto.
’The missing citizens...they’re all here?!’
He rushed to the iron cell bars to try to find any mechanism to set these people free. "Hold on, I’ll try to—"
Yet instead of gratitude, all they had in their eyes...was a look of horror. That was when Noct realized they weren’t looking at him, but past him.
"No..."
Soft footsteps echoed from behind Noct, before a voice spoke out. "Well, well...I should’ve known that it was you all along. I already had a hunch, but it seems like blonde isn’t the best color on you."
Noct quickly turned, hand already reaching into his sling bag, prepared to grab a spellbook out in case a confrontation was to occur. But what he saw...was a monster.
"...Faust?"
"Glad you still recognize me."
He looked nothing like the composed noble who confronted Noct at his birthday reception. Hell, he didn’t even look like the same person from the banquet. His clothes were disheveled and his dark hair clung damply to his forehead, along with a feverish smile across his face.
But the most disturbing change was his left eye, which had fully manifested into something like a lizard’s, slitted and evil-looking.
"What the hell are you doing?" Noct asked, even if he knew what the answer would be. "Why the hell are you capturing innocent civilians?"
"Always so...nosy," Faust casually sighed. "Why do you always insist on sticking your nose into my affairs, baby brother?"
With a single flick of his finger, [Curtain of Darkness] was torn away from Noct’s body, dissolving into strips of black mana.
[Curtain of Darkness has been forcibly dispelled.]
"No matter. At least now I can finish what I started–"
"...All those months ago."