Proof (5)
Claire clearly seemed like she was about to say something… but for some reason she trailed off.
What had she been trying to say? It bothered him a little, but he couldn't afford to be distracted for long. Woojin turned his head back and stared at the bull.
Clang! Thud—!
The heavily dented steel plates were straightening out. The steel bull was restoring itself to its original shape.
Pretty sturdy for a machine.
It even seemed to have quite a few built-in functions.
Pssh!
The bull's exhaust vents blasted out steam with force. Using that recoil, the bull charged forward. For an instant, explosive acceleration surged through it.
An attack completely opposite to the sluggish movements it had shown until now. The bull slammed straight into Woojin.
Boom!!
A thunderous crash erupted. Woojin was sent flying far away. Only afterward did he slow himself like applying brakes, increasing his weight through mass enhancement to stop his body.
Honestly, that one had stung a little.
Did it release compressed steam to gain a burst of acceleration?
It was an acceleration method reminiscent of a jet engine. How had the mages of the old empire even created something like this? The thought made him curious.
Pssh!
Another explosive sound rang out. Just like before, the steel bull charged again.
Fast.
But it didn't feel threatening. In exchange for its speed, its movement was far too linear. There was no need to meet it head-on.
He simply stood still and waited…
"…Now."
Then he lightly stepped aside.
The bull barely brushed past him. Unable to control its acceleration, it kept charging straight ahead.
There was an iron pillar there.
Crash!!
The bull slammed its head straight into the metal column. It looked as if it had injured itself all on its own.
"MooOOO—!"
Apparently the pain was considerable. The bull bellowed while shaking its head violently, as if trying to shake off the impact of the headbutt.
Soon the bull regained its senses and glared this way. The ferocity in its eyes had grown even stronger.
Woojin muttered in disbelief.
"Seriously… why are you getting mad at me?"
It had run into the pillar by itself.
Even though the criticism was perfectly reasonable, the enraged bull paid no attention.
Pssh!
It charged again.
The bull accelerated while spewing gray steam. The same technique as before. Naturally, Woojin's response didn't change either.
He stood still in place and, just before the bull could reach him, slipped aside.
Like a matador dodging a charging bull.
It seemed like this situation would repeat forever… but surprisingly, changes were happening every moment.
It's gotten smaller.
It wasn't his imagination.
Each time the bull blasted out steam and charged, its body shrank accordingly. Like a soccer ball with a hole in it.
After dodging another charge, Woojin threw a punch and struck the bull's side.
Thud!!
A dull sound.
The bull's flank was perfectly fine. It felt like punching a solid boulder.
…It's been compressed.
As its size decreased, the steel covering its body condensed and became thicker. Its strength and speed also seemed amplified with the added density.
Soon the steel bull had a sleek, leopard-like form. Its long horns pointed directly at Woojin.
Feels like I'm fighting a transforming robot.
An interesting ability.
Amused, Woojin picked up the coat he had taken off earlier and held it in his hand. He advanced with the coat raised like a shield.
Playing matador.
As Woojin started fooling around again, the enraged bull kicked off the ground and charged.
Its horn had grown long like a fencing blade. The tip caught the edge of the coat. The bull jerked its head violently, trying to tear the coat apart.
…but the coat didn't rip.
The leather of the lion-type beast was astonishingly tough.
Fwap!
Instead, the tightly stretched coat wrapped over the bull's head. Woojin quickly wound the coat around it and tied it tightly so it wouldn't come loose.
The coat covered the bull's eyes.
Such a naive thing.
The bull had impressive strength, but perhaps its intelligence was low—it fell for tricks every time.
"Grrr, Gwoooaaah—!"
The bull bellowed wildly and thrashed around.
It seemed panicked because it couldn't see. Woojin grabbed the horns with both hands and applied force, tipping the bull's center of gravity sideways.
Boom!!
The bull crashed onto the dirt ground.
The bull struggled to get up again. Woojin climbed onto the back of its neck. Using his mass-enhancement ability, he pinned the bull down.
Then he clenched both fists.
Thwack! Thud-thud!
Like striking a punching bag, he pounded the bull's head wrapped in the coat.
After several rounds of pounding…
Sssss—
With a sound like a grill heating up, the bull suddenly turned bright red. Its body became scorching hot, like a lump of metal freshly pulled from a furnace.
Woojin quickly realized the cause.
Did this thing just use metal heating?
Metal heating.
A spell that heats metal until it becomes as hot as a grill plate. A spell originally devised by mages to subdue armored knights.
The bull had used metal heating to try to throw Woojin off its back.
But…
It even comes with a warming function.
Nice and toasty.
Woojin didn't care and kept punching. The bull continued getting beaten.
Perhaps because the metal body had turned red-hot, clear fist marks were left every time he struck it. It felt like playing with soft clay.
No third transformation?
He wondered when another hidden function might appear as he kept throwing punches…
Shhk, shimmer—
Suddenly, golden letters appeared in the air.
—You have passed the test.
Already?
Woojin raised his head in confusion. About half the sand still remained in the hourglass.
"That's still got sand left in it though?"
There was still quite a bit of sand left in the hourglass. That meant the third trial wasn't actually finished yet.
When he pointed that out…
—It would be troublesome if the bull broke.
Please stop destroying it.
Words appeared in the air as if pleading.
Apparently, the test had been ended early to prevent the bull from being destroyed.
It was a rather puzzling situation.
If you're not supposed to break the puppet you presented as the subject of the test… that seems a bit contradictory.
Had he judged something incorrectly?
Well, he should just do as it requested. Woojin untied the coat that had been wrapped around the bull's head, then stepped aside so it could stand up.
Tap tap tap—!
The bull hurriedly ran away in a panic. Woojin watched it go while putting his coat back on.
My clothes are wrinkled now.
He had been using them rather roughly lately.
While he was smoothing the coat with that thought in mind… Claire, who had been standing some distance away, approached.
"Jin. You worked hard."
"I really put in some effort for once. But where is everyone else right now?"
"They're listening to my master."
Jin's martial power was far beyond common sense.
Where in the world had such a man appeared from? Just like the previous Tower Master in the past, if handled poorly, he could easily be mistaken for a secret agent of the dark church.
So Duran made up a story to persuade the others.
"Jin. Did you happen to bring the recommendation token? The one you said you received from Elder Bow last time…"
"Let me check."
Woojin rummaged through his clothes. Soon he pulled out a square object with a green gem embedded in it.
Elder Bow's recommendation token.
"It's good that you brought it. Please show it to the others in a little while."
"Why?"
"My master told them that Jin is Elder Bow's hidden favorite disciple. Since you actually have the recommendation token, it'll make for a good excuse."
The monks who served Vritra, the Dragon of Trials, were skilled in mana arts and unarmed combat. Bow was an elder well known even among those monks.
Woojin's outstanding martial ability came from that teaching. The clever Tower Master had explained it that way to the group.
"Is it really okay to lie like that? It might cause trouble for Elder Bow…"
"There's no helping it. And you did say you actually received teachings from Elder Bow, didn't you? It's not exactly a complete lie."
Woojin had indeed studied under Elder Bow and had a close relationship with him. So calling him a favored disciple wasn't entirely false.
Woojin nodded in agreement.
I guess I have quite a few people I could call teachers.
If you thought about it, Claire was also one of them. She had taught Woojin several spells.
The disciple of the Tower Master's disciple.
Thinking about it that way, it felt like his standing as a mage had risen as well. Was this why people always said connections were important?
…Time to get up.
His idle thoughts had gone on long enough.
They had rested enough, so it was time to move again. After joining the rest of the group, Woojin took out Bow's recommendation token as planned and showed it.
Seeing it, Fabian nodded with a smile, as if convinced.
"Wow, Elder Bow has raised another remarkable disciple. I'm jealous."
Bow was also famous for nurturing younger generations. Because of that, Fabian and Theodore didn't seem to harbor any particular suspicion.
Theodore asked curiously.
"Is Jin perhaps the high monk Radin? I heard before that he also studied under Elder Bow."
A familiar name appeared.
Weakling Radin.
A man who had studied under Bow together with Vikram. He had once been the slowest and most failing student, but through persistence and obsession, he had eventually risen above the rest.
Perhaps Theodore asked because Woojin's current alias, Jin, sounded similar.
"Radin is a senior far above me. Our names are similar enough to cause confusion."
"Ah, I see."
After clearing up the misunderstanding…
Woojin turned his head and looked forward. At some point, the wall had split open and a new path had appeared.
"Let's depart once everyone finishes preparing."
When he said that the mages should prepare their spells before leaving, Duran immediately replied.
"We finished memorizing spells a long time ago. While you were busy fighting the bull, we had nothing to do but rest."
They had wanted to help, but Woojin had been fighting so fiercely that there was no opportunity to step in. If they interfered carelessly, they might only get in the way.
As a result, the three mages and the paladin had been sitting comfortably and resting the whole time.
"Then we can leave right away."
"As you wish."
Without further delay, they left the third trial ground.
As the group continued walking diligently…
Just like when they had passed the previous trials, a massive mural came into view.
Woojin examined the pictures in the mural.
Books and scrolls were drawn everywhere. Mountains of texts were burning in flames or being swept away by rushing rivers.
The records and knowledge humanity had accumulated were disappearing.
Seeing this, Claire murmured,
"…Is it depicting the forgotten age?"
"Perhaps."
Had the humans of the old era already predicted that their age would be forgotten?
Woojin stared at one part of the mural.
The most prominent image.
At the center of the graveyard of books stood a massive altar. And on top of that altar stood five people.
A female knight holding a massive shield and mace.
A man with the build of a giant, wielding a steel axe in each hand.
An old man holding a staff.
A female archer with a bow slung across her back.
And a man holding a greatsword as large as a human torso.
Their appearances were familiar.
Woojin quickly recognized them.
The heroes from the mural we saw before.
Five heroes stood on the altar.
For some reason, their number had decreased from seven to five. The pointy-eared woman and the enormous dragon were not depicted in this mural.
Where had those two gone?
While Woojin wondered about their whereabouts…
Shhh—
Golden particles suddenly shimmered across the mural.
The figures in the mural slowly began to move.
The thick dark clouds that covered the sky split apart to the sides. Golden light poured down onto the altar.
The five heroes were wrapped in that light.
The five heroes slowly began to rise.
Humans without wings ascended into the sky.
"…What on earth is this supposed to mean?"
Woojin muttered to himself.
Shhk—shimmer—
As if answering his question, large golden letters appeared in the center of the mural.
—Ascenders.