I Don’t Want To Be the Main Character

88. Optional Benefits (3)

1.

First of all, magic was seething. Magic was a miracle that created images and made them real through magic.

As if responding to my emotions, the magical power that had been filling my body began to boil like heated water. In fact, this was the first time I had used attack magic with such determination since the last time I went to the knight training together. However, I had no hesitation in using magic on something that wasn’t a monster or something that looked like tentacles.

The act of shouting out a slogan while using magic could be likened to a kind of process shortcut.

When using simple magic, the concept is to shorten the speed at which it is activated, even if its power is reduced through words.

But now, the protective shield that Sylphia had spread out was holding up well against the attacks of the tentacles that were swinging violently, so there was no reason to go through such a process to reduce its power.

“Kun Ludrick, by any chance……”

“Let’s talk after everything is over.”

Perhaps sensing something strange, Sylphia looked back at me and hesitantly opened her mouth. But I cut her off and dismissed her words.

My head was still in confusion. What on earth had happened?

Is the Master really dead, or did he open a gate to the source, but why did this happen? What is the identity of these tentacles that are proliferating and attacking us from beyond that gate?

There was no answer I could give with any certainty, but several thoughts came to mind at that moment, and the arrangement of my magical power was disrupted.

For a wizard, magic is a mirror that reflects his or her own feelings. It would be undesirable for distracting thoughts to interfere with the act of performing miracles that would otherwise be impossible.

The result was a flash of light before my eyes.

“…It didn’t go as planned.”

Phage crackle!

Sparks flew and flashed. Electricity flowed through the incandescent light, and the belated flame burned like the wick of a candle, like a bolt of lightning striking the ground from the sky.

However, because I was deluded at the last moment, it was not as powerful as the image I had pictured in my head.

“Keeeeeek!”

Even though the tentacles had no mouths, they still screamed and writhed, but it wasn’t enough.

Instead of my overwhelming talent for magic, the limitless magical power that had chained my lifespan was now helpful. Unless I removed the magical power all at once through a specific means, like Sylphia did in Lair, the magical power that flowed inside my body instead of blood did not show any signs of decreasing even when I used magic.

If it were a normal wizard who just cast the spell, half of the magic power would have been consumed in an instant, but to me, it was like scooping up a bucket of water from a lake.

Once again, he drew a magic circle with his fingertips.

I didn’t like the situation that had unfolded in the blink of an eye. To be honest, I was angry. And right in front of me was the ultimate toy for venting my anger.

Actually, if you think about it, the open door in front of me and the tentacles wriggling beyond it are the cause of this situation.

When I thought about it that way, the hold in my hand disappeared.

“Keeeeee!”

In an instant, the five-layered magic circle emitted flames. The wave of flames that swept in an instant enveloped all directions and burned the black tentacles. The tentacles that had been striking the protective shield with great force just a moment ago were engulfed in flames and burned, and once again let out a dark and painful scream.

Yeah, first of all, like Sylphia said, about an hour or two.

Because I don’t think we’ll get a satisfying answer until we burn all the culprits who started this.

“I don’t know why I’m angry, but right now……”

“I know. So, Sylphia, keep the shield up. I’ll do the attack.”

“……all right.”

Even the way Sylphia answered and ended her speech with a strangely worried tone made me feel bad to the point where even such trivial things bothered me.

Above all, the subtle sense of disconnect was what bothered me the most.

2.

Once the court wizard of the Esgelant Empire, Lorenzo Tonali conducted experiments to open a door to a world beyond the ‘Origin’ in order to pursue the truth, a lifelong dream and the long-cherished desire of all wizards.

In terms of spatial coordinates, this place was fixed between reality and the dimension through space-distorting magic, and the dimensional boundary was extremely unstable.

Of course, the aftereffects of repeatedly experimenting with magic that connected worlds were the greatest, but the power of the magic that Ludrick was now recklessly casting was also formidable.

Sylphia expected that the situation would end when Arwen, who noticed the change, arrived, just like in the past before the regression.

‘… … Was it like this?’

After the situation was over, Sylphia looked around and thought that without thinking, the surroundings were in a terrible state.

The ‘door’ that had been open had long since been forced shut, unable to withstand the relentless pouring of magic. The invaders from the source that had crossed the door, or in other words the tentacles, were incinerated by fire and scorched by lightning, leaving only ruins behind.

The scene where a wizard of the Archmage class had made up his mind and had fired his main type of magic without worrying about his magic power, was so destructive that it was not difficult to guess its destructive power just by looking at the traces.

The traces of destruction were so horrific that even Sylphia, a dragon in essence, would stick out her tongue in disgust.

Just like the past before the return, the situation was over before Arwen could even notice the change.

And in the midst of all this, Ludrick just stood there blankly, waving his hands.

‘Is the remaining magic power about half?’

Ludrick’s magical power capacity used to be nearly infinite, but now he only has about half of the magical power left in his body.

The fight just now was that fierce.

In reality, he simply fired his magic unilaterally without worrying about the protective shield the dragon had created, but it was by no means easy to cast great magic hundreds of times in a short period of time.

“…Mr. Ludrick, are you okay?”

“That’s right. I’m fine.”

“Well then that’s fortunate…….”

“This is the first time I’ve cast magic so thoughtlessly, but I still feel frustrated.”

“……yes?”

As soon as Ludrick finished speaking, Sylphia’s heart sank.

Because I had absolutely no idea why Ludrick was reacting that way.

It was not the usual casual, yet somewhat cautious, cute way of speaking, but rather a cold, cynical attitude that felt distant.

“Tell me.”

“yes?”

“Is what I thought really right?”

“What does that mean…?”

Sylphia’s eyes wavered. On the other hand, even though he had been pouring out magic continuously just a moment ago, Ludrick’s thoughts had been somewhat organized in his head.

“……You already knew, right?”

“That’s right. It’s something I’ve already experienced once, so…”

“I thought about it carefully, but no matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t think of a reason why you knew about it but ignored it.”

The title changed from ‘Sylphia’ to ‘you’. It seemed to indicate the subtle distance that was currently between them, so every time she was called ‘you’, a part of Sylphia’s heart would ache.

“You probably wouldn’t have heard me tell you to stop it, like you said. It’s been a lifelong wish and a long-cherished desire, so there’s no way you, who’s just acting like a disciple, would have gone and told me to stop it. And of course, if I told you what would happen, you’d ask me back. How did you know that?”

“…….”

“Actually, I’m a regressor, and I’ve already seen it once in the past. Or maybe I’m actually a dragon, and when I open the door to the source, instead of realizing the truth, something terrifying happens. Either way, it’s weird, right?”

“……That’s right. That’s why I didn’t say anything.”

“Your way of thinking is different from that of a human. Since we’re just having fun anyway, why should I reveal my true identity and go through all that trouble to save a single human? Why should I break the mold that’s already been created? I think you probably thought that it would be more detrimental than trying to fix what’s already happened.”

Ludrick continued speaking.

He was originally easy-going and hated troublesome things. And it wasn’t just because of his constitution that he had the talent of a great wizard. On the contrary, if you look at it from a distance, Ludrick’s brain was on the bright side.

Because I was able to easily get to the heart of the problem with just a few clues given.

Naturally, Ludrick’s voice, which had been questioning Sylphia just a moment ago, became cold.

“Don’t lie, Sylphia. If you really set your mind to it, there are many ways to do it.”

“…….”

“You can easily manipulate memories with just a little bit of perception-impairing magic. I believe you wouldn’t say something ridiculous like, “A dragon, you can’t break through a human wizard’s mental barrier.”

“……That’s true, but this happened so quickly that I didn’t have time to think about that──”

As soon as Sylphia finished speaking, Ludrick burst into laughter.

“lie.”

No matter how much I thought about it, there was only one reason to leave Sylphia and Lorenzo to die here.

With the sole exception of Ludrick Weiss, Sylphia’s way of thinking is completely aligned with that of a dragon. A transcendent being who has lived for almost an eternity and has acquired powers beyond human training since birth.

Her attitude towards humans was essentially a mask created during the process of play. Even the root of her fundamental thoughts was not like that.

The corners of Ludrick’s mouth twisted upward.

“Just tell the truth.”

“…What are you talking about?”

“If the Master dies in such an unfortunate manner, a successor will naturally be chosen. I cannot leave the position of court magician vacant for too long.”

“…….”

The essence is revealed in one breath.

“It would have been simple if you had just said that you wanted to make me a court wizard, so why are you making excuses?”

Sylphia didn’t understand what the problem was. No, she couldn’t understand.

Maybe, maybe from the beginning.

Like parallel lines running opposite each other.

What was a ‘good opportunity’ for Sylphia was not a ‘good opportunity’ at all for Ludrick.