Chapter 211 – This Is Not the Time to Exchange Greetings (2)

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Translated by Heavenly Cat

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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“Space-Time” or the [Veteran Community].

Because a gap existed between reality and the Arcana Continent. I had already confirmed that a few elements were added as the Veteran Community, which had only existed in the settings, was realized into space-time.

From the community being implemented as a Sociality to the Space-Time Duel taking place in the Colosseum. Of course, even amid such changes, there is an unchanging principle.

That space-time is a space meant only for Transcenders.

Be it the Circle.

Or the Swift Swordsmanship.

If not those, then like me, who shoved Gamigin into hell.

Or establishing an achievement that would make anyone gasp in astonishment.

Literally a Transcender.

One must possess the ‘status’ to be called a veteran.

It is a bit much for me to say this with my own mouth, but.

‘It means you have to be exceptional.’

Since when space-time had existed on the Arcana Continent was something I could not know. Considering the difficult qualification test, the number of Transcenders could not be large.

‘The people I spotted were around ten.’

Considering the long history of the Arcana Continent, truly.

It meant only figures who made a mark in the era could enter space-time.

‘I feel like I am gilding my own face.’

However, what is my specialty? It is understanding my place.

I knew.

That me possessing the status of a Transcender.

Was not merely a result of my abilities alone.

The special situation where the gates of Hell opened due to the Demon King Succession Battle. Moreover, I knew it was an achievement made possible by the cooperation of the Akshan seniors called out from Hell through the [Akshan’s Will].

Therefore, I could guarantee.

That at the current point in time, besides myself, there would not be any player capable of entering space-time. Even considering that level is just a number or the variable of the class.

Space-time was not a realm players could currently dare to covet.

Tap.

Thus, I moved my steps.

The Sociality of Space-Time, where players could not enter.

Truly out of the blue.

Towards the ‘Pointed Hat’ that revealed its figure at the table.

A large pointed hat.

Its face was hidden from view.

But the drooping blonde hair was unmistakable.

It was Jesse Heinness.

I opened my mouth.

“Identify yourself.”

Clack.

At my words, someone possessing Jesse’s appearance put down the tea cup they were holding.

‘…Wait a minute.’

At times like this, Granfel’s madness towards tea was actually helpful.

Because I could realize it was black tea by the wafting scent.

Yes, that right there.

Was another reason why both I and Granfel could be certain.

Because Jesse was the only one.

-“I am sorry! As expected, tea does not taste good!”

Who had left behind the green tea I served.

It was not because the green tea bag was cheap.

According to Jesse’s excuse that was not an excuse, ranging from coffee to black tea.

She confessed that she could not actually touch any kind of tea.

She said it with her own mouth.

“Have you perhaps forgotten my name already?”

Therefore, such acting will not work.

And if you plan on acting, you should do it properly.

Because there, you should end the sentence with an exclamation mark, not a question mark.

“I will ask one last time.”

“……?”

“Identify yourself.”

I felt this anew, but my voice was awfully cold.

Thanks to that, Jesse too…

No, not Jesse.

The other party acting as Jesse also.

Seemed to have quickly dropped the thought of feigning ignorance.

Swish.

The pointed hat moved slowly.

The face under the pointed hat was revealed.

An unfamiliar manner of speech could be heard.

“What could it be, how did you notice, when nothing had changed.”

Nothing had changed, my foot.

The lack of exclamation marks in your pupils.

Shows you are not Jesse just by looking.

‘Perhaps.’

Anyway, this damn occupational hazard cannot be helped.

The outward appearance is Jesse Heinness, but the mind is not Jesse Heinness.

The first thing that came to mind was the possibility of demonic possession.

‘No, it does not smell.’

Moreover, [Natural Enemy] had not been activated.

Did this mean it was not related to demons this time?

Was that why? My doubts were growing even more.

Who are you?

“It was not like I intended to trick you. I just wanted to play a little joke. If I could take out the inside of my brain and show it to you, you would immediately understand my playful nature.”

As she dropped her clumsy acting, the atmosphere changed completely.

Her slow voice was overflowing with composure.

Should I say it exuded the experience of someone who had been through it all?

In a situation like this.

It could be noticed just by looking at her sitting with her legs crossed.

Fortunately for me, though.

“Naturally, this must be a difficult situation to accept, right? If I were to explain the full story regarding this situation, it seems the talk will inevitably get long…”

It was not a hostile attitude.

Soon, her gaze headed toward the chair opposite her.

Of course, that did not mean I was a person who would meekly obey someone else’s words. As I ignored the silent proposal and stood upright while looking at her, whoever wearing Jesse’s mask slyly muttered.

“Oops, formalities. Since it is the most important thing, I forgot.”

And then she brought up the Sociality’s menu panel.

“I will at least treat you to some tea, so could we have a talk?”

Living for formalities, dying for formalities.

At her polite tone, I sat down in the opposite seat.

Regrettably.

‘Initially, the goal was the Transcender riding the broomstick, but…’

She was currently nowhere to be seen in the Sociality.

Besides, now that I noticed Jesse was not Jesse.

I could not just smoothly move on from this either.

If you ask why.

I did not know who had taken over Jesse’s body.

But on this side, we were in a position where every single person was precious.

‘Because Jesse Heinness is one of humanity’s core fighting forces.’

Her class was none other than Archmage.

I heard Jesse’s potential had been widely renowned since the days when Arcana was merely a game.

It was said that NPCs, whom ordinary players could not even dare speak to, were favorable towards Jesse. Even Harkon was acquainted with her.

So, let’s hear this so-called full story.

“Will you have the same black tea as me?”

At her words, I looked at the tea cup placed on the table.

Unfortunately, green tea does not exist in the Sociality of Space-Time.

Since I knew that fact.

Was I not the one who had already finished a sufficient doping session with green tea before coming here?

Thanks to that, I spoke without any lingering attachment.

“Skip the idle chatter and get straight to the point.”

I continued my words even colder.

“Because we are not in a relationship to leisurely enjoy tea time.”

Just simply because black tea is not your preference.

If it was green tea, you would have gladly accepted and drunk it.

Do not add a plausible-sounding reason, Granfel…

*

Who is the greatest mage of the contemporary era?

Before the Cataclysm.

Such a question would often circulate the Arcana Continent.

It could not be helped.

Because to ordinary people, mages could only be subjects of admiration.

Fire Dragon, Karimzeva.

Eternal Snow, Senios.

Gentle Giant, Yugweed, and so on…

Moreover, magic had affinities that countered one another.

Just like how Rock, Paper, Scissors, which had no right answer, was the most fun.

Although there was no correct answer to the question of who was the best mage of the era, it was a good question to casually chatter about.

If so, doubts would inevitably follow.

If there was no distinct strongest.

Why was an Archmage called an Archmage.

Some mages would say.

“Leaving aside their abilities, Archmage is closer to an alias.”

“Because their texture is different from an ordinary mage.”

“That side cannot become a subject of comparison.”

“How can one compare a unique existence with other people?”

Yes, Archmage was not a seat one fought to win.

One was merely chosen as an Archmage.

For the adventurer Jesse Heinness to be chosen as such an Archmage.

Was something no one had expected.

Even the Emperor of the Empire.

“Perhaps this too is the Goddess’s grace.”

For the Empire, which always had to walk on eggshells around the Mage Tower, it was an unparalleled opportunity.

If they could win over the Archmage, Jesse, to their side.

They would not have to tremble indefinitely at the unstable element that was the Mage Tower.

However.

“It is a variable upon a variable.”

The Mage Tower did not stay still either.

Was that why?

They exceptionally permitted the adventurer Jesse’s entry into the Mage Tower.

Skipping the qualification verification process, she was granted the rank of Adept Mage.

Who made such a bold decision?

Much less the Chief Mage.

Not even the Elder Mages could make such a decision.

Yes, everything was the Tower Master’s will.

While the Tower Master had lost consciousness.

Right before floating inside the magic power sphere.

The sole message left deeply in the letter he had written was the disposition of Jesse Heinness.

This was the Archmage known to the public.

And the Archmage at the current point in time.

It was information regarding Jesse Heinness.

“But, was that really the end of it?”

Jesse’s shell twitched.

“The breed called mages is fundamentally arrogant. As the Chief Mage of the Mage Tower, do you not know better than anyone else? The fact that a relationship between a master and a disciple does not exist among mages.”

Elder, Chief, Senior, Skilled, Adept.

The mages of the Mage Tower, classified into five ranks.

However, no rank could be called master and disciple.

Even Senior and Skilled Mages, who could be said to be the closest, were merely in a cooperative relationship. During the selection period for Senior Mages, they would occasionally become competitors depending on the situation.

“Could an Archmage have suppressed that true nature?”

The corners of her eyes curving.

That unfamiliar eye smile once again reminded me that she was not Jesse.

But someone else wearing Jesse’s shell.

“Master and disciple… There might have been one or two who thought like that, but. Well, including me, the majority probably did not.”

Tap.

A finger touching the brim of the pointed hat.

“If I have spoken up to this point, shouldn’t you have understood?”

To summarize, it was like this.

The former Archmages exist by dwelling as consciousnesses inside the ‘Pointed Hat’.

Their goal was to witness the extreme limit that surpassed the realm of magic.

The most optimal method to reach that ultimate limit genuinely.

Was the one-to-one transmission inherited by the Archmages.

“Why are you not saying anything? Because the true nature of an Archmage is completely different from what you thought? Because our Chief Lee is also a mage who can’t be helped. I thought you would understand my feelings.”

Her eye rim grew even more slender like a crescent moon.

“They say the shackles of a physical body narrow one’s insight. If so, what about the world looking through a new body? Beyond that, what about the world seen through the body of an adventurer born in another world, not the Arcana Continent?”

That is right.

That was the reason they chose Jesse Heinness as the Archmage’s vessel.

It was the decision of the Archmages wearing Jesse’s mask.

“Of course, this was possible because the individual concerned understood and agreed to everything. I do not know what psychological change occurred, but lately, this kid was trying quite hard. Although she then ended up fainting from magic power exhaustion.”

The Archmage shrugged her shoulders and spoke.

“We can only pop out like this when this kid loses consciousness like now. Whose consciousness manifests is pure luck. In that sense, was it a stroke of heavenly luck for me?”

Just how long has it been since I looked at the outside world like this.

Even empty talk was brief.

One of the Archmages whispered.

“By the way, my share of gold coins has run out, so…”

Lifting the empty tea cup.

“Could I get just one cup to drink? No wait, could we?”

Ultimately, Ho-yeol, who had kept quiet, opened his mouth.

“Was it merely to witness the extreme limits of magic.”

“Correct. Speaking in the Mage Tower’s terms, it’s ‘truth’. Actually, thanks to this kid working hard, it feels like that truth is slowly becoming visible. Amazingly, she seemed to understand that difficult concept? Called [『Anomaly』].”

Of course, her understanding of magic was terrible, but.

We are here, so it is nothing to worry about.

The Archmage added one last word at the end.

“Because this kid was meant to act as a vessel from the start.”

That was an obvious unnecessary addition and a mistake.

“If so, that is regrettable.”

“…Regrettable?”

“The path towards Anomaly.”

That was not arrogance or self-indulgence.

Because he had sufficient qualifications, he could dare utter those words.

A voice filled with certainty reached the Archmage.

“Because you all will not be on that path.”

.

.

.

Because she cherished it so carefully.

I had guessed it was not an ordinary pointed hat.

But I could not have imagined that the consciousnesses of Archmages dwelled inside it. And not just one or two, but to the point where they could not be counted on fingers…!

Of course, I did not flinch at the reason.

Eternal Snow, Elder Mage Senios.

It was thanks to him properly shattering any fantasies about mages earlier. Because I knew well from seeing it myself that the breed of mages had been fundamentally flawed from the start.

Moreover, Jesse herself must have known.

To begin with, Jesse was carrying out the Archmage’s Class Quest.

As long as the system, which was the player’s privilege, existed, Jesse also would have figured out through the system status window what consequences her actions were heading towards.

Suddenly, the Archmage’s words came to mind.

-“…I do not know what psychological change occurred. Lately, this kid was trying quite hard.”

From the Great Evil to Demon Kings, and even the Zero Mountain Range.

A continuation of situations where one could not help but feel helpless.

Even so, it meant Jesse had overcome that feeling of helplessness and stood up.

Just like other players seeking out the Zero Mountain Range for growth. Jesse too must have progressed her Archmage Class Quest for growth.

Yes, that must have been Jesse’s pride.

But you see.

What, she’s merely a vessel?

To look down on someone else’s pride in front of Granfel.

Archmages, you have made a huge mistake.

“You’re saying we will not be on that path?”

They seemed to have no idea what I was talking about.

It could not be helped.

That I was the creator of that [『Anomaly』].

And the closest person to the ultimate limit of magic at this point in time.

Because they could not even imagine it.

“From this moment on.”

“……?”

So don’t misunderstand it.

“I, the creator of Anomaly.”

“…What?”

I will make you realize your place.

“I forbid your access to Anomaly.”

“!!!”