Memoirs of the Returnee - Chapter 209



Only Krnovel

The Regressor’s Notepad 209

Meaning of Villain (2)

Raye set up a telescope on the roof of the tower. Elise looked at her watch beside her.

“Ellie. I think you’ll wake up soon.”

Colorful air currents sway in the air as seen through the telescope. They are signs of magical waves.

“Yeah. I’m watching too.”

Magic wave observation is a pretty important event for magicians. It is a collision that occurs when extraterrestrial mana carried by solar winds intertwines with continental mana.

It only occurs at certain points on certain days.

“First, let’s measure the horsepower.”

Elise turned on the mana counter.

Tsuzuzuzuzu! That’s right───!

The object immediately started making a loud noise. It was almost like a dungeon.

“… … There’s a lot more than I expected.”

It’s a little disconcerting, but I guess that’s to be expected.

“Ellie. It’s starting soon!”

At Raye’s words, Elise also looked through her telescope.

… … .

A silently moving stream of magical energy. Mana flowing in from an unknown alien world collides with the mana in the continent’s atmosphere, creating special waves.

It’s a magic wave.

“Wow, it’s pretty… … .”

“I know…….?”

Raye was purely impressed, but Elise’s brow suddenly furrowed. A strange sense of unease arose.

The movement of the magic waves. The way they mix and ripple is unusual.

It’s as if it’s wriggling like a living thing, slowly coming down to the ground…

“for a moment.”

Elise took her eyes off the telescope and looked up at the sky with her naked eyes.

Paget- Paget-!

Sparks that explode like firecrackers. Magic waves like spiderwebs that are organized above it.

“Ellie. Why?”

The moment Raye asks back nonchalantly.

───!

The sky flashed brightly. A strange purple color rippled like liquid.

A sliver of light, like a tiny drop of water, fell into Elise’s eye.

“Ugh!”

I closed my left eye because of the sting.

“Ellie, why?”

Raye looked back at herself. Elise rubbed her eyes and shook her head.

“No. Nothing… Let’s start with the report.”

Unfortunately, there was no time for that.

Aaaa …

It was because of the screams of people echoing inside the tower.

* * *

──15 minutes ago.

I’m patrolling the outside of the tower. Nothing special or suspicious. The sun is shining and the wind is warm.

“hmm?”

While patrolling the leisurely tower, I ran into Kane.

The guy spoke to me first.

“hey.”

“why.”

Kane looked me up and down.

“… … You’ve grown a bit?”

“you also.”

I’ve grown a lot, but Kane has grown a little more.

This boar-like creature is probably about 2-3cm taller than I am now. It’s over 2m tall.

“That’s strange. That little rat-like thing… … .”

Kane gave me a sidelong glance, but didn’t say much. He didn’t seem to want to pick a fight.

I asked the guy.

“Hey. Is your family business okay?”

“Huh. Jwiwon is worried about our family too. It’s something you’ll see only if you live long enough~”

“You talk a lot after living for 20 years. Well, you look like you’re in your 50s.”

“Do you really want to fall behind?”

Anyway, Cain is a magic stone tycoon.

However, the future will not be so good. You can live off the mines you own for the rest of your life, but Libra monopolizes the magic stone processing and distribution lines.

It is a fate of being dependent on Libra for life.

“Mom. Don’t you think about the Final Club? You’re always having fun at school events.”

“Oh. No.”

“… … Well, that’s true. Not just anyone can join.”

It was at a time when I was just chatting away for no reason.

Phajijijijik──!

There was a spark. Kane and I looked up at the sky. Magical forces were intertwining in the air.

“Ah. I guess it’s a magic wave.”

Kane muttered calmly, but I felt something more. In an instant, the inside of the tower’s glass windows turned pitch black.

A barrier had been formed.

“what…….”

I turned around to enter the tower.

“No!”

Someone interrupted.

“… … What is it?”

There was a wizard there, dressed in a robe.

“I am the Magic Tower Wizard. This tower has been infected with magic.”

He said so and took off his robe. Kane was the first to notice him.

“… … The Benblit Wizard? Right?”

“yes.”

He’s a famous wizard. Kane knows him, and I know him.

“I came to observe the magic waves and coincidentally… … Anyway, you must absolutely not enter. You cannot enter because of the barrier, but it means do not even touch it.”

“What is this all of a sudden… … .”

Kane stared blankly at the tower. I also looked closely.

What looked like tree roots were stuck to the previously intact tower door. Kane muttered with a disgusted face.

“Hey. Isn’t that thing alive?”

Thump- thump- It was quite bizarre how they pulsed like living beings. I looked back at Benblit.

“… … Then. What should we do?”

“Just wait. I will study this technique and create an antidote.”

“We could all die before then.”

“Hey. Are you going to die, Elise and Rayega? They’re monopolists.”

Kane said so, but he himself looked uneasy. Benblit shook his head.

“… … Then there’s nothing we can do. Just wait outside for now. It’ll be better than going to die together.”

Boom bang bang bang bang──!

A knock on the door rang out.

─Please open the door! There’s a strange monster inside, inside! People turning into monsters, ugh!

I’ve seen disasters like this before, though they’re far in the future by my standards.

‘Void’.

It’s a biochemical terror attack caused by that son of a bitch.

“… … .”

I quietly hid myself in a back alley.

You have to go inside.

Because I know a way to neutralize his terror.

* * *

Elise came down from the rooftop. There were many people and security gathered in the large hall.

“Everyone calm down!”

A crying child, a parent holding the child in their arms, and security calming them down.

An active knight looking around with his weapon strapped to his waist. And several college students and magicians who came to observe the magic waves like him.

Elise looked out the window.

It’s dark.

The inside and outside were blocked by the strange magic wave just now.

“Ugh.”

Suddenly, a pain shot through her eye socket. She clutched it.

“Isn’t that right, Miss Elise?”

Suddenly a knight approached me. He was a man who looked a little timid.

Elise looked at him with one eye narrowed.

“yes that’s right.”

“Whew. My name is ‘Line’. I’m an active-duty senior knight. Still, it’s fortunate that there are quite a few magicians. This tower is equipped with quite a few facilities, so I’m studying magic inside-”

──I will announce it.

Suddenly, a strange voice rang out from inside the tower.

──I am ‘Void’.

“Void?!”

Raye suddenly ground her teeth. Elise endured the pain in her eyes and asked again.

“Why? Don’t you know who it is?”

“A crazy Billan!”

──Yes. It’s ‘Void’.

“You’re listening!

Raye shook her fist, glaring somewhere at the ceiling.

──I, ‘Void’, invented a biochemical technique based on alien mana, and implemented it today.

Biochemical techniques.

Elise closed her eyes and opened them again. They kept going out of focus.

──There are countless people among you who have been infected by my miraculous magic. This is a feat that the Magic Tower guys would never be able to accomplish.

Then, the knight who had just introduced himself as Line looked at Elise with a strange look.

──Humans exposed to this magical wave will be reborn as alien beings. Those beings will infect other humans in order to prosper their kind.

“… … .”

Line’s pupils turned bleak. He quietly placed his hand on the scabbard at his waist.

──The decision is yours. Die as a human, or live as a monster… … .

“X you murderer! Where are you now!”

Raye glared and cursed,

Chijijijik──

The speaker has already been cut off.

“You crazy bastard! I’ll catch you!!”

“Mr. Raye, that’s not the problem.

The line that had stopped her winked at Elise.

“Then what’s the problem… … Ellie, Ellie, what’s wrong?!”

Elise’s condition was dire. Her eyelids were bloodshot and the blood vessels running from her face to her neck were swollen and blue.

“Me too… … I don’t know.”

Sreung─!

Line drew his sword. He was about to cut off Elise’s neck, but Raye quickly stopped him.

Chaeng──!

Raye’s bracelet and the knight’s sword met.

“Are you crazy?!”

“You said you were infected by an alien being?”

“You can’t just believe that!”

Ughh …

Almost simultaneously, a human being mutated into a grotesque creature, like a zombie whose skin and muscles had been stripped from his body.

“… … It was true.”

Raye was confused, and Line quickly raised his sword.

“We must kill him quickly!”

“What are you killing!”

“This person is already infected! It would be the worst if someone with a lot of magical power ended up like that!”

Elise saw them fighting. It was so fierce that they seemed to kill each other.

Elise didn’t look very good.

Kwaaaa …

My thoughts keep coming and going.

Consciousness also disappears from time to time.

Elise absentmindedly let go of her body.

Ellie! Ellie!

I could hear Raye’s voice calling, but my vision was unfocused. My head was hurting like it was going to burst. It felt like there were larvae crawling inside my eye sockets… .

Elise finally closed her eyes again.

… … .

When Elise opened her eyes, she was lying on a bed in the tower’s shopping mall, a furniture store.

Ellie! You’re awake! Are you okay?!

Raye looked at him and shouted something. His voice was hard to hear as if his ears were blocked, but his face looked urgent.

Ellie! How are you! Are you okay?!

I don’t know.

I can’t remember anything, my thoughts just stop and go blank, it’s strange.

I’m tired more than anything.

I’m so tired.

I think I need to sleep a little more.

Ellie! Ellie!

A voice that seeps in like a faint echo.

Elise closed her eyes again.

… …

Elise opened her eyes. The place was the same, but there were a few more people. They were sitting at the table, talking to each other with serious faces, as if discussing something.

Elise listened.

“… … Line. That guy is crazy. He keeps killing people.”

It was Raye’s words. Across from her, the man in security uniform glanced at Elise.

“Wouldn’t it be right to kill the infected… … .”

“It’s not too late to kill them when they turn into monsters.”

At that time, Elise realized something belatedly.

I’m infected.

For what?

First of all, my head hurts. It feels like a big caterpillar is poking around in between my skull, eyes, nose, and mouth.

Is this guy infecting me?

Is it trying to eat me by piercing my skull?

“… …Ellie. I will definitely save you.”

Raye got up. Elise wanted to tell him not to go, but her mouth wouldn’t open.

Knock knock knock.

Just then, a long walkie-talkie rolled under her bed. She glanced at it.

Crackle crackle── Crackle crackle──

A sound rang out from it.

Crackle crackle── Crackle crackle──

It was a loud noise.

Elise just closed her eyes.

I’m feeling sleepy.

I’m so sleepy.

Oddly enough, the pain is a bit milder.

This seems like a bad sign… … .

─Hey. Can you hear me?

“?”

A voice pierced my ear. My head vibrated as if someone had hit my skull with a baseball bat, and my eyes opened wide.

─Can you hear me?

Elise quickly looked back at the radio. She heard a voice coming from inside.

─Can’t you hear me?

She reached out with force. Grabbing the radio’s antenna-like stem, she lifted it up.

“… … You. Kuweek.”

I opened my mouth to speak, but a handful of blood came out.

─Oh. I can hear you.

Elise held the radio to her ear with a blank, absent-minded expression.

“You… … Zion?”

─I see you can hear me. That’s right. It’s Zion.

“… … .”

─This is a signal from the future Zion to you.

“what……?”

─Haha.

He chuckled.

─I’m joking. I was just trying to see if you were out of your mind.

Elise swallowed. She could taste blood in her saliva.

“You… … where.”

─I’m outside. I can’t enter right now because of the barrier. If I enter, we’ll all get infected.

“… … .”

Well then, I suddenly wonder.

Where did this radio come from? How do you communicate with this radio?

─Anyway. Listen carefully. Use your magnetism.

“A sound like magnetism… … .”

It’s hard to even move my fingertips.

─Please use something. Is there anything like a magnet nearby?

“… … .”

Elise looked around blankly.

There was a magnet.

─Borrowing external power. When I think about it, I don’t think the infection is due to magic right now. It feels like there are worms crawling inside your head.

Yeah, there’s an earthworm crawling inside my head right now.

But how do you know so well?

“… … .”

I’m speechless.

Elise just grabbed the magnet.

─Did you catch the magnet?

“……huh.”

But it wasn’t an ordinary magnet. It had a magnetic core at the end.

What is this?

─Put that on his head. Then, activate your magic. It’s to bind him to one place with magnetism.

It’s a confident voice. As if it really came from the future, as if it was something she had already experienced at least once.

… … Wait, the future?

“You… are Zion, right?”

─Of course not. Elise. So, quickly attach a magnet to your head.

“… … Okay, I understand.”

Exactly-

Elise placed her head on her temple and applied her magic power while in that position.

Wheeee …

I felt a dull sensation, as if something was sticking to my skull.

─Is it okay?

“… … Ugh!”

At the same time, an excruciating pain surged through her. Elise struggled, gasping for breath.

“Ahh, ahhh… … .”

─Hold on! Keep going, don’t stop the magic. Pain is proof that you’re alive.”

“… … .”

─Don’t close your eyes!

My eyes, which were about to close, opened quickly.

Elise took a deep breath.

─Go on.

“……okay.”

─Go on.

“Okay… … .”

Elise thought, enduring the pain that felt like her head was being crushed.

“You keep talking too.”

Just by the voice, you can tell who this person is.

“continue…….”

Just by his voice, I feel like he is by my side.

─It’s hard to continue. Just endure it on your own.

“… … .”

To be honest, I’m a little annoyed, but whatever.

Just the sound of your voice calms my mind. My body relaxes and I can even smile faintly.

My head hurts like this, and that guy’s face keeps popping up in front of my eyes.

Clearer than anyone else.

Above all, for sure… …

─If you have a hard time, please call me on the radio. I’ll keep answering your questions.

At that moment, Elise realizes.

You have no choice but to admit it to yourself.

“… … Okay. Okay.”

I’ve come to like this guy too much.

* * *

─Ugh. Ugh. Ugh.

On the bed. Elise is crying painfully, but she doesn’t drop the magnet.

This is a special magnet that I’ve strengthened with “Perion” and then attached to a magic core. That should be enough to buy you enough time.

─Ugh… … .

“… … .”

Not far away, I watched with my SZX-9500.

“Hold on to it. Even if it hurts. You’re good at holding on.”

─… … Okay. Okay, so just be quiet. I’m holding back, but it gets annoying when you tell me to.

“You told me to keep talking. Stop acting like a spoiled brat.”

─Not being childish… … Ugh.

I chuckled and put the radio back in my pocket.

Like this, I am now somehow in the same tower as that guy. I made a small cut in the barrier of the passage with “Sword Absolute Sword” and entered.

However, what I will do from now on must not be the work of Zion Askar.

Because it might be a little bit gruesome, and a little bit too righteous.

The identity for it has already been prepared.

I looked at the full-length mirror in the furniture store.

The face reflected in it is no longer Zion Askar.

The villain wearing a hockey mask inside out─’Raquel Dra’.

“’Void’… … .”

A lunatic who commits acts of terrorism, both in the past and present.

A cancerous lump that has no reason to exist or be worth living on this continent.

He’s making a big mistake.

Villains aren’t villains simply because they do villainous things. They’re not villains because they massacre civilians.

Villains are villains because they are strong.

“I’ll kill you 10 years early.”

If you’re not strong, you’ll be eaten before you can even assert your own presence…