Chapter 259: Bentu of Time and Space
The moment pain struck his forehead, a single emotion flooded Lyon’s mind.
It was an intensely frenzied and sticky sensation.
The overwhelming emotion of madness.
It was not something that could be withstood even with Lyon’s 5-Star mental fortitude.
His consciousness blurred, and long-forgotten memories flashed by like a lantern slide.
His first meeting with his lord, Kamel, the shock, the hesitation, betrayal, and the oath of loyalty.
Betraying the House of Blyer, then pledging loyalty to it again—at the center of it all was Kamel.
“Memories...”
The memories that resurfaced quickly faded.
His sense of self was being devoured by madness at a terrifying speed.
He could see Rengua waving his staff. He should have stopped that hand, but at some point, thought itself vanished.
A madman.
Only the whites of Lyon’s eyes remained.
Now, only one thing lingered in his mind—His lord’s final will, heard through Rengua.
[I want to see an ice flower bloom on the Millennium Tree.]
"...An ice flower..."
With the phrase ice flower stuck in his head, Lyon slowly stood up.
His torn and pierced flesh had been stitched back together like a puppet.
Touched by Rengua’s spell, his body resembled that of a doll.
“Ggrurgh!”
Drooling blood and saliva, Lyon turned his head.
Far beyond—where the Millennium Tree stood.
Gripping the Dagger of the Dead, Lyon crouched like a beast and sprinted.
Crack!
Trees were uprooted and flung away by his swinging arms.
The power from the Stone of Madness had turned him into a monster.
Destroying everything in his path, Lyon disappeared.
Silently concentrating on his spell, Rengua slowly opened his eyes.
He looked at the now-empty forest where Lyon had vanished and touched his chest.
The Frost Lord’s Heart, so cold it chilled to the bone, yet beating with a heat greater than any fire.
It’s different.
The Frost Lord’s Heart was not supposed to beat. But after passing through Lyon, the heart had begun a new life.
“I guess now it should be called Lyon Martrein’s Heart.”
He wasn’t just naming it after Lyon for sentiment.
[A being that holds a divine name... This is a bizarre situation, even for me.]
That was what Arcane had said after rescuing them and examining Lyon.
Lyon Martrein—someone close to reaching 6-Star might, yet had never awakened as a bearer of a divine name.
Arcane had taken interest and discovered that it wasn’t Lyon himself, but his heart that housed a divine name.
So-called: [Lyon Martrein’s Heart].
It was the Frost Lord’s Heart, reborn within Lyon’s vessel.
Since the heart’s form adapted to a human host, there should no longer be side effects.
Rengua turned his gaze to a figure.
Kamel Blazer.
He slowly walked toward the gruesomely deceased corpse of his lord.
Using spells, Rengua closed Kamel’s wounds. Then he summoned red tendrils and wove them into a cocoon that gently wrapped Kamel.
Vwooom!
Taking out the Gem of the Dead, he extended his hand toward the cocooned Kamel.
Red energy flowed heavily over the cocoon.
“I’ve bought about a month, at least.”
With this, he had prevented his lord’s soul from leaving the body.
But he had only bought time.
The remaining work would have to be done in the city.
Rengua tied the tendrils around his waist and began to walk slowly.
As he dragged Kamel behind him, he murmured quietly.
“Has the brainwashing faded?”
The moment he saw his lord’s corpse, he realized he had been freed from the domination bond.
But that didn’t change Rengua’s resolve toward Kamel.
There had always been only one reason he walked the path of the Black Shaman—
To create the most perfect voodoo doll in the world.
That was why he had remained by Kamel’s side, who had no qualms about making such dolls.
“Everything is in place now, just as he intended.”
He had even acquired the divine name entry: [Doll Crafting Technician].
The heavens had already ordained that a perfect being would be born from his hands.
Since the heavens had granted it, he would now follow their will.
He had developed a desire—to create not just a doll, but a singular lifeform unlike any in this world.
“And I want to see it.”
He wanted to be there, even at the moment of death, to see how far that being would go in this world.
Though his lord had met his fate at the hands of his enemies, Rengua knew better than anyone how terrifying Kamel truly was.
A man who prepared even for his death.
To Rengua, Kamel was someone worthy of staking his fate—
before death, at the moment of death, and even after death.
[He will be my new nest.]
That was what his lord had said at their final parting.
He had said that in order to face “him,” Prime Root was necessary.
That to surpass “him” and expand into the world, one had to become the master of Prime Root.
Rengua pulled out a book from his robe while dragging Kamel’s body.
Dominic Huaton’s research journal.
He opened it and checked a note Kamel had left behind.
[First: Establish an intelligence network within Prime Root.]
The note briefly listed the funds, personnel, and incidents necessary for building the organization.
It was so detailed that failure seemed impossible if followed as written.
“Does he know the future...?”
Though the thought crossed his mind, Rengua didn’t doubt it—everything his lord predicted had always come to pass.
[Do not antagonize the following people inside Prime Root.]
A list of names was written under the label Black Stars.
However, perhaps due to lack of time, it seemed like an old list that had been updated and handed over.
Rengua tilted his head as he looked at the names that had been crossed out with a line.
Two familiar names stood out—names that didn’t match Prime Root at all.
“Lily Base and Fenry Chaser...”
A witch and a dark elf—why were their names on the Black Star list of Prime Root?
He was puzzled but soon shook the thought away.
“Probably a mistake.”
Rengua trudged across the desolate land where dry sand blew.
At this pace, it would take about a week to reach Prime Root.
Before entering the city, he planned to memorize the notes and research journal left by his lord.
***
“The monstrous bird Fortea? That fortune-teller was really that strong?”
Fenry let out a dry laugh, looking surprised.
She knew who Arcane was.
It was only natural—once someone became a divine name holder, they were bound to encounter him.
She had thought of him as merely a great prophet, like the Prophet of Light once famed for serving the Grand Duke. But after hearing Arthur’s explanation, it was clear Arcane was no ordinary figure.
“Why would someone like that rescue Rengua and Lyon?”
“There must’ve been a deal.”
“A deal? But Kamel is dead.”
“Then all I can say is—it must’ve been a conversation before death.”
If Arcane had flown off in the direction of Prime Root with those two, then it wasn’t a favor for Gram.
Gram had no connection to Prime Root. The only person tied to that place now was the regressor, Kamel.
“What kind of deal did he make before dying... that monster bird actually moved for him?”
“If we could capture Rengua, we might find out—but that’s not possible right now.”
After recovering, the group was now moving across the Forest of Ghosts toward Ordor Forest.
With the ghost Elton leading the way, their pace was remarkably fast.
Fenry glanced at Elton, then motioned to herself.
“We’ve got him for the path—I could go check out Prime Root instead?”
“No. That area is far too dangerous right now.”
“I’ve got a lot to settle with that bastard Rengua...”
Countless of her kin had been killed during Rengua’s raid on the Blue Rose Inn, and Fenry was eager for revenge.
But I shook my head to stop her.
Now isn’t the time to provoke Prime Root.
What we needed now was to secure Ordor Forest and a safe route.
If we held the forest, we could draw Tobaron’s forces into it.
After that, we could slowly approach Prime Root.
Given our future dealings with Demtor, even if we weren’t allies, we could use Prime Root to apply pressure on them.
For now, what mattered was the fact that Kamel was dead.
“With this, Tobaron will unify as a single territory under the blood pact.”
All we needed now was to protect the witches’ forest.
Having secured Tobaron, facing Demtor would now be much easier.
“But shouldn’t we be thinking about how to deal with that monstrous bird first? Arcane has sided with Demtor, right?”
“That...”
Even in the novel, Arcane was portrayed as a figure shrouded in secrets.
I didn’t know the full truth behind Fortea, either.
But then, unexpectedly, I received surprising information from an unexpected source:
[You think the summoned creature’s master is human? That’s a huge misunderstanding.]
“...What do you mean?”
[The creature’s master isn’t human. It’s the summoned beast of Bentu of Time and Space.]
“...Bentu?”
I froze at Reto’s words.
Bentu of Time and Space.
I knew the name.
A being from ancient times, one of the rulers of a fallen world who once acted alongside Retonicalus.
As the ages passed, the rulers of that ruined world began to appear again, gaining the title of Absolutes.
But Bentu was the one being who had never shown themselves again.
So Bentu of Time and Space was connected to Arcane?
This was the first time I’d learned new information about Arcane.
“But... how do you know this? I thought most of your old memories were still foggy?”
[They still are. But when a clue is given, some things come back. Probably because of you.]
If it was due to me, it could only be from Assimilation Rate.
As my divine name list grew, my assimilation with Reto increased. The more entries I gained, the more changes Reto seemed to undergo.
If Reto’s memory ever fully returned—
We might be able to learn far more precise information about the Absolutes.
That was when something happened.
“...Huh?”
Fenry narrowed her eyes and looked at me.
“What is it?”
“Something in your chest... it’s glowing?”
“Glowing...?”
While I had been distracted, a faint light began to glow from inside my robes.
The silver coin.
I quickly pulled it out—the one Elton had given me.
Before I could even contact him, Samuel had reached out to me first.
As I hesitated and recited the spell, a familiar voice urgently rang inside my head.
[Who is this?! Elton?]
[It’s Alex.]
[Ah, Alex! Where are you? Quickly, tell me!]
Samuel’s voice was filled with panic.
Why?
I had a lot to say about what happened with Lyon, but sensing the urgency, I went straight to the point.
[Where are you now?]
[The Witch’s Hut!]
[Why did you contact me first?]
[Things aren’t good! Ugh—my beard! Hey—don’t pull that! This thing only I can use—]
The noise and chaos buzzing in my head made me furrow my brow.
It sounded like someone nearby was tugging on his beard.
There was only one person who would do that.
The one Samuel called a brat and avoided—Lily was clearly with him.
[Where are you right now?! Tell me immediately!]
[You’re coming here?!]
[Things are bad. Conflict has broken out between the Dortas, and some witches are planning a preemptive strike on the mages today. Two Dortas will move.]
[Absolutely not!]
[It’s not a situation I can stop!]
I didn’t know the full details yet, but it seemed a serious rift had formed among the witches.
Was it another trick by Demtor?
But one thing was clear—We had to get to Ordor Forest immediately.
I gave Samuel the coordinates, and the transmission cut off.
He was likely creating a space portal and rushing over.
“We have to hurry.”
“Damn it, seriously—no time to rest. Why is it that every time I get involved with you, it’s just endless suffering?”
“On the flip side, you gain a lot too, don’t you?”
“Hmph, yeah right.”
We picked up our pace and raced westward.