Chapter 124 : Chapter 124
Chapter 124: Semenu Baperr (2)
In the northern Aitentel, all the chaos of the world gathers.
It is a chaos that drives even the noble sages of the Sage's Castle mad, and the reason the continent designated it as forbidden.
The Great Desert Hindra was also like that. It was an undeveloped land in the distant past, but humans eventually overcame it.
It became a road connecting Ruo and Poruo, and in the present, with the completion of the Magic Gate, it was an abandoned crossing.
‘Even Akarr Bahab endured it.’
What was impossible in the past became nothing in the present.
The image of death is still vivid. Akarr Bahab personally cut off Exa's left arm and neck.
Even after seeing such an Akarr, he had endured. He accepted reality and obtained what was Bahab's.
‘The other bastards will be the same.’
The Emperor, Basor, the Saintess.
…And the adjutant.
Simurtr is confident he can face them and endure. His last meeting with Akarr is evidence of that future.
If there is something he needs, Simurtr can laugh in their faces. He will obtain something comparable to the White Flame.
‘Fuck.’
But just like Aitentel, there are still some impossible things.
Many things have changed, but Simurtr Mectera is ultimately Exa Baperr. As long as the memories of his past life are clear, that truth will never change.
‘……’
In fact.
There are no regrets.
If the same thing were to happen again, he would draw his sword the same way and produce the same result.
…The Doom Species were such an object to Simurtr.
‘Why of all times.’
When he met the Baron-rank Doom Species in Hella, he thought nothing of it.
It is an era of peace, but if you search the continent like you're catching mice, they say there are still living Doom Species.
‘Why the hell are they popping up now of all times.’
He had no intention of deliberately seeking out the Doom Species hiding on the continent.
He had expected that the Doom Species would emerge someday… but he thought it would be a distant future.
The current peace made him think so. He had hoped the rift of the Void would open only after his revenge was complete.
‘Resurrection, you say.’
But Taparel.
Simurtr found his existence endlessly annoying.
Transplanting a soul into a body created by Kua? He had never even dreamed of such a concept.
‘He can see souls too. For what he is, his eyes are good.’
Taparel found out his identity.
He killed him, but he will transplant his soul again.
He guessed the conditions were strict… but wasn't it a process that had already succeeded?
If left alone, it is a future that will surely happen.
‘I will not divulge your soul to the humans.’
Taparel had said so.
He can be trusted. But at the same time, it was also a play on words.
In the end, isn't it a matter of not telling humans with his own mouth? The resurrected Doom Species would gossip about it for a long time among themselves.
‘That means that princess bastard will also be resurrected soon.’
Taparel constantly mentioned Luer.
The Doom Species serve Abina. It is a monotheistic religion. And under that god, there is one king.
God's agent, representative. The concept of rebellion does not exist for the Doom Species.
And under that omnipotent king is Princess Luer.
The Exa of his past life personally killed that youngest princess. I don't know if it's right to say he killed her, with her resurrection at hand, but anyway.
‘They’ll be annoying.’
The Doom Species remaining on the continent, or those who will newly acquire bodies, are now highly likely to know of my existence.
‘…It’s fine. I just need to kill the ones that come.’
As long as it doesn't reach the ears of humans.
As long as the traitors don't find out.
He will still prioritize the traitors, and the Doom Species that come looking for him will be killed just like Taparel.
But he has no intention of going out of his way to hunt them down. There is still too much to do for that.
‘Nothing changes.’
A reasonable conclusion.
In the first place, hadn't he set his goal for this life that way? There is no reason to be swept away by the Doom Species now.
If that were the case, he would have told them the truth about the Doom Species King and died before he died in his past life.
‘Now of all times.’
He didn't want to adjust his direction.
If he were to live while being swayed like that, there would be no meaning in being reincarnated.
Simurtr recalled his death in his past life. The faces of the traitors, and the reincarnation, Exa's memorial site.
‘Emotion is the greatest fuel a human possesses. Instinct and intuition are the signposts of the Star-Breaking.’
The master is also clear.
If I recall, his voice echoes in my head. A teaching I still believe in and love.
And my current emotions still prioritize the traitors.
It is the path forward. It does not change.
Simurtr opened his eyes.
“Captain.”
In his regenerated eyes, he saw Semenu.
“Can you see now?”
A world of green.
Semenu’s Unique Phantasmal Realm.
Simurtr was there.
***
“Don’t overdo it. The captain is weak right now. You have to be careful until the elixir is fully absorbed.”
“Thanks.”
It meant his body's condition had been at its worst.
Elixirs are sometimes called all-purpose, but they are also items that require that much time.
If Semenu hadn't been storing elixirs separately in her Phantasmal Realm… it probably would have taken a very long time to fully heal and reach rehabilitation.
“Bill Mectera later. If you say it’s under my name, the old man will give it to you. Or Aran will.”
Simurtr slowly pressed his abdomen with his fingers. From his lower abdomen to his heart, he pressed firmly. Then, he operated his magic.
He feels a stiffness in his magic circuits, but… there is no particular pain. It means that all his internal organs, including the circuits, have been perfectly restored.
“No.”
“Why not?”
While speaking, Simurtr slowly moved his feet.
They felt as heavy as logs. A sensation like the paralysis hadn't fully worn off. The main organs were regenerated, but the body hadn't perfectly recovered yet.
“……”
“Why?”
“You know.”
Time will solve the stiff muscles.
The same goes for the joints, stiff like a new toy. They will get used to it with use. Simurtr knew well how to handle muscles and bones.
It meant that part was not a problem to worry about.
…For now, he had to worry about what was in front of him.
“Are you still angry?”
“……”
“I’d like to sit down a bit. Are you going to keep me like this?”
Around him.
There is nothing. No objects, no shapes that can be inferred as something. The green has no boundaries.
The ceiling, the floor, the walls cannot be gauged. The same goes for the size of the space.
It is Semenu’s own Phantasmal Realm, constructed with her Phantasmal Ability.
“Why is it so bleak? Not even a chair. Is this why you didn’t want to show it to me?”
“Don’t change the subject.”
“I’ll tell you everything.”
“……”
Sometime while returning to Mectera.
Simurtr had used Semenu’s movement skill. It was a method that required passing through her Phantasmal Realm, but she hadn’t shown it to him.
“You’re telling me.”
“Of course.”
“…I haven’t decorated here yet.”
“Is there a decorated place?”
“Over there.”
Semenu pointed behind her with her finger.
It doesn't look particularly different from the surroundings.
“It looks the same.”
“It’s different when you go there.”
Semenu took Simurtr’s hand and guided him. At a certain point, the scenery changed completely.
…It was a familiar scene.
The remote mansion he got along with the name Baperr.
The room Semenu materialized was identical to a room in that cozy mansion.
A decent size, a desk and chair by the window, no books, a few swords scattered about carelessly…….
“My office?”
“We were supposed to live here together when the war ended.”
“When did I say that? I said it was too small for all of us to live together.”
“You said you’d allow me. You said the rest could live well on their own.”
“…Did I?”
“You said you’d make Ayulsor Terkan a guard. Because the captain was worried about Ayulsor Terkan.”
“That guy… never mind. He’s probably living well.”
“Yes.”
In my memory, the office was quite empty.
Looking at it now, it wasn't that empty. Simurtr looked at the bed next to the desk.
“Who puts a bed in their office? Especially one that big.”
“When you’re working, if you get tired, you can sleep there.”
“Who?”
“The captain.”
“When there’s a bedroom, why bother?”
“I can lie down there when the captain is working.”
“Who sleeps next to someone who’s working?”
“The captain can sleep with me.”
Semenu smiled brightly.
A rare smile. Semenu was happy that a future that could not have been was now possible again.
“Now tell me.”
The smile quickly disappears. Simurtr secretly clicked his tongue. In the old days, if he did this, she would just let it go.
“Let’s just let go of the anger for now.”
“Why should I?”
“Let's call it even. I’ve pretended not to know about this until now, haven’t I?”
Simurtr pointed to his left eyeball.
It was the area where Semenu had planted a key during Mectera’s Selection Ceremony last year.
“…How did you know about that?”
“How could I not know? It’s what Nurmakan did to you.”
Simurtr knew this method.
It was something Nurmakan, who called himself Semenu’s father, always did.
“You didn’t know at first.”
“I didn’t know it was in the shape of a key. It wasn’t this shape back then, was it?”
A key to a Unique Phantasmal Realm?
The illusion of Nurmakan that Simurtr remembered was not that great.
Not a key, but surveillance. Nurmakan had always watched over Semenu through illusions.
“Can the implementer decide the shape?”
“No. A key is better. It’s different from what Nurmakan Degrate did. This can’t be used for surveillance, and you can’t come to the Phantasmal Realm either.”
“…Did you say you’ve never been to that bastard’s Unique Phantasmal Realm?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Your eyes will just rot if you go.”
“You said that in the old days too.”
“Did I?”
“Yes.”
He doesn’t remember, but it’s plausible.
Nurmakan Degrate was truly a rare piece of trash.
“How did you know?”
“The key?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know.”
“You’re lying.”
“I said I don’t know.”
“You know.”
“A gut feeling.”
In fact, he wasn’t sure.
What he could guess was that he had caught a glimpse of Nurmakan in Semenu. To be precise, that obsession.
…The era of peace, Semenu had spent it in vain. She had been hell-bent on only finding Exa.
‘And then she finally found me. She must have taken some measures. When she planted the key, she said so, didn't she? That she should have given it in our past life but couldn’t because she was weak.’
Because the Semenu of the past didn't have a Unique Phantasmal Realm.
That was the only difference. The key must be something related to a Unique Phantasmal Realm. Simurtr had thought so once.
“I thought you’d see if I said it.”
“By a gut feeling?”
“Right?”
If their Unique Phantasmal Realms were connected, it would mean he was connected to Semenu as well.
“Yes.”
“You’re just letting this slide?”
“The captain’s gut is better than Urkel’s.”
“…I doubt it.”
Simurtr let out a hollow laugh.
He would have to apologize to Urkel someday.
It was something he really didn't want to say, and it hurt his pride severely, but… he had to admit what he had to admit.
Urkel was right. Simurtr could not beat his barbaric intuition.
“Is the key the medium? Connecting you and me with your Phantasmal Realm at the center?”
“That’s right.”
“Then can you know everything that’s going on here usually?”
“No. Only when the person with the key is in a strange state.”
Simurtr, who harbored Asha, could roughly understand Semenu’s words.
Phantasmal Ability is not omnipotent. Although it is useful enough for Basor to covet.
“Thanks. I almost died.”
“……”
If it weren’t for Semenu, he would have died.
Even if he had killed the magician, his life was already on the line.
“Now explain.”
“Where should I start?”
“I heard you went to Poruo.”
“Are you sure you heard that?”
“Hmm?”
“No, it’s nothing.”
Simurtr.
Looked at Semenu’s pupils, which had wavered for a moment before quickly steadying, and said.
“I met Taparel.”
***
“We need to find the Spirit Medium.”
The ones who would have called the souls of the dead Doom Species and transplanted those souls into the test subjects.
“Degrate. I’m thinking of asking the Information Bureau separately too. Baramant would be good too. Didn’t they say their main purpose is the Doom Species?”
“……”
He has neither the intention nor the time to search for them himself.
Besides, weren’t the Sword Orders of Mectera also free?
The current peace is fake, but it has certainly given many groups some leeway.
“But the first thing we need to crush is Kua. If we destroy the experimental facility, they won’t be able to find bodies to resurrect in.”
Kua… if he knew its location, he was willing to search for it himself.
No, he would. He has no intention of letting children like Barote increase any further.
“Are you still mad?”
“…No.”
“You are. Why? Ah. Is it because of that Taparel bastard? Because he resurrected as a Degrate?”
Not just any Degrate, but a body created through the first generation's dust.
Moreover, it was something that happened because of that Nurmakan.
Semenu’s small fist was trembling.
“I should have killed them all back then.”
To have the same origin as that kind of Doom Species?
Simurtr imagined a virtual Doom Species resurrected through Exa's corpse. Just the thought of it made him want to vomit.
“The captain back then was strong.”
“I’m not bad now either. This is quite fast, you know.”
The memories of his past life added a benefit to the time given equally to all.
17 years old. This progress at this age is a speed rarely seen in the history of the continent.
“No. Captain.”
“What?”
“The captain now is not the captain from back then.”
“I know that too.”
“No. The captain doesn’t know. The captain now has no room to look to the side. It’s overwhelming just to take care of yourself. No. You’re in a state where you shouldn’t even be taking care of yourself.”
“……”
“That’s why you almost died.”
From the moment the name Taparel came up.
Semenu had been holding back her anger. She had thought it was because that bastard had a body born from Degrate’s first generation's dust.
“I said thanks. For saving me.”
“That phrase, ‘thank you’. I’m tired of hearing it now.”
Simurtr looked into Semenu’s eyes.
Her characteristically emotionless eyes were looking at him.
“What?”
“It’s a given.”
No. Is it?
Wrong. He wants to think so.
That her small fingers gather into a fist, and her shadow writhes because she can't control her anger is.
“Why are you suddenly being like this?”
“You know, Captain.”
That Semenu is expressing herself so blatantly is… because of him.
All her emotions were aimed at him.
“I’ll do whatever the captain wants. I did, and I will. It’s a given, so don’t thank me. I want to stop hearing it.”
“You…”
“I’m a Baperr. Just the captain and me. Only we are Baperr, right?”
“What are you talking about?”
“You know.”
Simurtr shut his mouth.
It’s strange. From the time he picked her up in the Serepes Mountain Range… Semenu’s eyes were always the same. She was taciturn, and it was hard to know her emotions. She rarely expressed them.
No. Had he just assumed she would be like that?
“You gave me Asha. You could have run away. But why didn’t you? Why? When you’re weak. You almost died. Again.”
“I had the key. You said you trust my gut. I didn’t think I would die.”
“Bahab. Why did you go there again? You went to check when you could kill her, didn’t you?”
“…Why are you bringing that up again? I went to steal the Swelling Flame. I was good and didn’t cause any trouble before I came back. Why would there be any reason for me to die?”
“There is!”
The already distinct emotion swells up.
It becomes so clear that he can no longer look away.
“There are many. You died in your past life too. You’re even weaker now.”
“Semenu?”
“I’m not a Degrate. Neither is Urkel, nor Lete, nor Ejel, nor Melia, nor Ayulsor, nor that fucking Popo bastard. They all had last names.”
“…What?”
Simurtr’s eyes widened.
What? Fucking? The Semenu he knew was cursing?
“Only I have only the captain. Only I am a Baperr. If the captain tells me to do something, I’ll do it all. I have to. Because I’m that kind of body. I can give everything.”
“No. What did you just say?”
“Akarr Bahab. If you tell me to kill that bitch, I’ll kill her no matter what. If you tell me to die with you, I’ll die with you.”
“What the.”
Semenu knows the truth.
Of course. How could she not know what even Aran knows.
In the Sword Master’s graveyard. On Gerehk’s grave, Semenu’s illusion is still faking the cause of death.
“That disgusting Diwates Popo. That fucking bastard who killed the captain along with the heroes, if the captain just orders it, I’ll go kill him. I’ll kill him no matter what it takes.”
“……”
“I’ll do it all. I’ll kill Taparel too, and the resurrected Doom Species. So the captain should stay here. Lying here, or sitting. I wish you would. I don’t want to lose you again.”
Please.
Semenu’s tears drenched Simurtr.