Advent of the Three Calamities - Chapter 737: Book of Enhancement [2]

Chapter 737: Book of Enhancement [2]

“Hmm… He looks to be struggling quite a bit. That seems rather odd to me. Is he holding back? What is he doing?”

Orson sat on one of the platforms in the air. His gaze was away from the projections and directly onto the distant forest as he overlooked the entire fight.

He didn’t need the projections to see.

From his first impression, it looked like Julien had been pushed back.

This was rather odd considering the information that he had on him.

’No, he still hasn’t used his Emotive Magic. I’m sure he’s holding back.’

Orson slowly turned his head, staring at the seated figure beside him, her gaze similarly directed towards the distant forest as she sat without giving away anything. It looked like she had no interest in the fight at all.

However, upon closer look, Orson noticed the subtle knit of her brows.

Eventually, she mumbled, “Something doesn’t add up…”

“You think so too?”

Orson smiled.

He had noticed the abnormality in the situation as well. Though he kept it to himself for now, dismissing it as little more than a hunch, Delilah’s words confirmed his hunch.

His lips parted.

“…I’m not sure about the twins for now, but the Madhound appears to be a lot stronger than the rumors suggest. He’s also noticeably stronger than when I met him not too long ago.”

Orson had gotten a good look at all the candidates before the fight. As the Central Head and the one who had initiated the battle, this was only natural.

Back then, he didn’t notice anything unusual with the contestants, Madhound included.

But now…?

“Not only has he gotten stronger, but it’s also becoming increasingly harder to make out where his real figure is hiding. This is rather intriguing.”

“Hmm.”

Delilah’s face remained indifferent.

But not for long, as her gaze fixed elsewhere and her brows knitted further.

Unlike the others, her eyes were different. She could see things that others couldn’t, and in that brief moment that she looked at the Madhound, she noticed something.

A thread…?

There was something that connected to the Madhound.

Delilah followed the thread before eventually pausing her gaze on a certain figure.

“….!”

Cracks finally appeared on her cold visage.

As if sensing the changes in her face, Orson followed along with her gaze, and his right brow jumped up.

“Ho…’

A laugh escaped his lips.

“…Now it’s finally starting to make sense.”

Though his laugh seemed to be one out of amusement, he was anything but amused at the moment as his eyes narrowed and his gaze paused towards John Megrail.

’I’ve always known that he’s been hiding something. His movements have been quite suspicious, but I never really put much thought into it. But now…?’

Orson’s gaze flickered as he returned his gaze towards the forest, or more precisely, towards the figure leisurely walking around the forest with a book in his hand.

Upon closer inspection, faintly glowing runes lined its cover, each one spinning out delicate threads of light that stretched into the distance.

’That book, I’m sure of it. It’s…’

“The Book of Enhancement.”

A cold voice beat him to it as Delilah’s eyes turned a deeper shade of black.

“…One of the Seven Artifacts of Evil.”

***

In the last moments of the vision, I caught sight of it.

The book whose runes shimmer under my gaze in those last moments.

It took just one look for everything to finally click.

’Is using such a relic considered cheating?’

I looked at the ring on my finger with a complicated look. In the end, what could I even say? I was also in possession of one such artifact. There were also no rules that stated there was a limit to what artifacts could be used.

This was all fair and games.

’I thought that the artifact was supposed to be lost, but that appears to be a lie.’

I was quite well aware of the seven artifacts of evil. I had done my research on them and understood what most of them did.

While none of the items were inherently evil, their infamous reputations stemmed from their previous owners and the deeds committed with them. In the case of the Ring of Nothingness, its notoriety came from the Emperor of Nothing.

…I was quite well versed in his story.

But as for the Book of Enhancement…?

I didn’t know that much about its past. All I knew was that it belonged to another mad person. What stood out the most, however, were its properties. True to its name, the Book of Enhancement could amplify a person’s abilities.

I had only given it a quick skim, so I didn’t know the full extent of the enhancement.

However, it was all too clear now.

’The enhancement… It’s by a rather ridiculous amount.’

It was no wonder I couldn’t detect the Madhound at all and felt that everyone had gotten significantly stronger. It wasn’t that my information had been wrong, but rather… It was because there was someone within their team with the book.

The realization made my heart sink.

The situation was a lot more troublesome than originally anticipated.

But at the very least, I now understood the source of all my troubles. It was the bookholder. I had to shift my attention towards them.

But…

’That’s easier said than done.’

I had only managed to catch a glimpse of them. However, in that brief moment that I did see them, I understood that their strength was nothing to scoff at.

They were incredibly strong.

I needed a concrete plan in order to handle the situation properly.

Rustle~

Just then, the vegetation rustled, and a black cat emerged. It stared at me in silence without saying anything as I looked directly at it.

“What do you think I should do?”

I was sure that Pebble had seen and remembered everything.

“You’re asking for my opinion?”

“…Yes.”

The cat turned its attention towards the distance, its eyes narrowing for a brief moment before moving towards me and hopping over to my shoulder.

“You should take some time to recover from your injuries. Your chances of winning against them aren’t high. Especially if you’re already hurt.”

I opened my mouth, wanting to rebuke, but…

“You’re right.”

I couldn’t rebuke at all.

I knew that the cat was right.

“I’ll do that.”

There was no need to go all out just yet. Now that I understood the crux of the situation, my priority was to locate the book’s holder and eliminate them. Once that was done, dealing with the others would be far easier.

Swoosh—!

A streak of light suddenly shot in my direction.

Without even looking, I dodged, avoiding the attack without much effort as I looked around me.

’The mark will be a problem. They’ll always know where I am. I need to find a way to get rid of—No, wait…’

Holding onto my chin, I suddenly paused.

I…

Did I really have to remove the mark?

The mark always kept the others aware of where I was at all times, leading them to me….

Leading them to me…

A smile played at my lips not long after as an idea formed inside my mind.

’Right, right… Why didn’t I think about it before?’

Without wasting another second, I pressed my foot down against the ground as thread shot out from every direction.

***

Not long after.

Rustle~ Rustle~

The bushes rustled as several figures emerged. Captain Albas swept his gaze across the area, his eyes settling on the faint footprints in the dirt before looking ahead.

Standing on top of a tree, with both hands crossed while his hood fluttered, the Madhound’s gaze flickered white before he turned his head.

“…He’s running quite fast. At the rate that we’re going, we won’t be able to catch up to him. Should we pick up the pace?”

“Don’t worry about that,” Albas responded, lowering his body to pinch a handful of soil and lifting it to his nose. He closed his eyes briefly, then nodded in acknowledgment.

“He’s injured. I can smell his blood from this soil. He’s probably trying to recuperate his mana and injuries. Keep the same pace. Constantly keep him on the move and prevent him from taking any rest.”

With a smile, Albas walked ahead.

“…Let’s play the long game.”

Between the two of them, who was going to break first?

Albas shifted his gaze to the right, where a figure had appeared. As if aware of his attention, the figure lifted his head and gave a subtle nod. Immediately after, the book in his hands glowed with an eerie blue rune, and Albas felt his body grow noticeably lighter.

“Go ahead.”

The figure said, his voice soft while his lips pulled into a smile.

“…I’m just here to help whenever you need.”

“Yes.”

All Albas did was nod his head before looking into the distance and dashing forward.

As he did, he made sure to make his words loud enough for everyone to hear.

“No matter what, stick to the pla—”

Hom!

A sharp, humming sound cut through the captain’s words, causing him and the others to freeze mid-movement.

Just as they tried to make sense of what was happening, the ground beneath them shuddered faintly, and threads shot out from all directions. Albas’s face didn’t change at the presence of the threads, somewhat already aware of them.

But something about them felt different this time.

He couldn’t quite understand it.

It didn’t take long for him to grasp the situation as magical circles began forming at the tip of each thread — one, two… ten… a hundred…

One magic circle after another formed, causing the air to turn still.

And then—

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

The magic circles activated, and hundreds of spells rained down on each one of them as Albas raised his weapon to block all the incoming attacks.

BANG—!

The attacks were ruthless, aiming at all of their weak spots.

Despite the sheer number of attacks, they weren’t difficult to block. Albas effortlessly deflected each one, and the others seemed similarly untroubled, their eyes scanning the scene with growing confusion.

’Is this supposed to be a delay tactic…?’

Albas’s eyes narrowed in confusion. Just as he was about to instruct the others to move forward, his expression shifted, and he abruptly scanned his surroundings.

That…!?

Purple fog.

That was all that met his sight as he looked around.

A… purple fog.

…One that made him grow increasingly weaker with each second that he breathed it. Before Albas had the time to understand what was happening, his head flicked up as he saw a figure rush out from the purple mist and move directly where Julien was.

“No, wait!”

But before he could stop him, it was already too late.

His face changed as he lowered his head to stare at his hands.

They…

They were trembling.

Not out of fear, but out of something else.

Anger.

But why?

Why was he suddenly so angry?

’No, wait.’

Albas clenched his hand.

“Has it begun?”

Did he finally start using his emotive magic?