Chapter 83
She wielded magic far more skillfully than before. As naturally as breathing, she could now use it at a speed comparable to the Great Archmage. The traces of hesitation within her were now nearly imperceptible. Perhaps they had disappeared entirely, she thought.
Now, the refreshing, azure mana flowing through the Mage Tower felt utterly natural. At that moment, Fides, who had been moving busily, suddenly stood still, staring into empty space. Noticing this, Roina asked,
“Is something wrong?”
“Ah, my sibling was sad.”
“Sibling…?”
“Yes! If we’re born from the same parents, we call each other siblings, right?”
Ah. He must be referring to the other primordial fragments of magic. Roina realized this.
“How do you know your sibling is sad?”
“Sometimes, I just feel it. We were originally one, after all.”
“Thoughts and emotions still pass between us, like when we were whole.”
“I see.”
Roina nodded. Hearing that they were grieving unsettled her.
“Come to think of it, how are those fragments doing?”
“They are fulfilling the mission given by Master.
Each one seals the empire from the eastern, western, northern, and southern edges, as well as the center—keeping it from expanding, preventing war.”
[I am a remnant soldier of the Kingdom of Castrelo.]
The word “war” triggered the image of someone in Roina’s mind.
“But war still happened, didn’t it?”
From the books she had read, Castrelo was a vassal state of the empire. If someone called themselves a remnant soldier, then a battle must have surely taken place.
“Yes. I guard the eastern edge, while Castrelo is on the western edge. That sibling longed for Master so desperately that they simply fell asleep. They could no longer carry out their duty. That’s why the war broke out.”
“I see… So they’re all waiting for me?”
“Yes. But now that a thousand years have passed, things have changed. They’ve become distorted. Fides was the only one who waited solely for Master.”
An unexpected problem had arisen. Roina pressed further.
“Then what happens if they stop protecting and sealing the empire?”
Fides hesitated. He found it difficult to speak in hypotheticals. It hadn’t been long since he had begun thinking for himself. Until recently, he had only ever processed incoming information as it was or followed orders exactly as given. The Great Archmage had rarely spoken to him. Even over the course of these nearly thousand years.
“Um… Then the empire will grow. And when the time comes, the world will collapse in proportion. Many will die.”
Fides spoke haltingly. Roina was startled by his words.
“Then…”
Yes, she remembered reading in the original novel that Lutan had fallen into darkness and declared his intent to destroy the world.
Could it be related to that?
“Then, what if I go there before that happens and help those children resume their work?”
“Hmm, I’m not sure. The First Emperor’s contract is about to expire. I don’t know what will happen when that time comes.”
The image of the First Emperor’s despicable face, as seen in her dream, surfaced in her mind.
‘What exactly was the contract he made? He called himself a god, but the Roina of my past life said he wasn’t. The contractor…’
“I had returned to explain, but it seems the spirit was already in the middle of the conversation.”
“Fides! He has a name.”
“Fine, Fides.”
Lutan, looking annoyed, grabbed the back of Fides’ neck and flung him far away. Despite his unchanged nature, the boy was still incredibly light, and although he flailed his arms in protest, he was soon forced away from her at Lutan’s gesture.
Fides puffed out his cheeks in displeasure.
“I just encountered another fragment.”
“Another… fragment?”
Roina repeated, confused. She had no memories of them, but she felt a sense of guilt toward them.
‘What must it feel like to wait for a single person for so long?’
She had no way of knowing.
“Do you remember Veronica?”
“Of course…? Why?”
Roina blinked.
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