The Great Mage Returns After 4000 Years (Web Novel KR) Vol 1 Chapter 78

As Syax advised, Frey and Ivan did not leave the house.

However, instead of it being because they were simply following her orders, it was because they noticed the gazes of guards nearby.

It was better to stay quiet and wait than to sneak around and get caught.

Frey decided to meditate.

The mana in the Great Reynols Forest was just as rich as in the Ispania mountains.

Although he was long past the stage where meditation would make a difference, the more powerful a Wizard was, the more habitual mediation became.

It helped to stabilize the mind and body as well as improve concentration. It was a great help when there was a lot to ponder.

Ivan, on the other hand, took a nap.

Syax returned the next day looking haggard. It seemed she had stayed up all night.

“Are you finished with your business?”

“Yeah. You can now wander around the town a bit. Except for a few restricted places.”

“Restricted places like what?”

“Places like Hruhiral. There will be Elves guarding them, so you will be able to tell at first glance.”

Syax rubbed her eyes before saying.

“The Hiralgard are working to remove the damage caused by the necromancer. It's going to take a lot longer to restore the dead areas than I expected. It might take a week…maybe more. Ah. Hiralgard is the name of the circle.”

One week. Maybe more than that.

The delay in the contact with the circle made Frey feel that they were fortunate. It meant that they could conceal their identities a little longer.

“I can't…I need to sleep a little.”

Syax then mumbled before stumbling to her room.

Ivan snorted as he watched her leave.

“She must've been up all night.”

[What should we do?]

It had now become natural for them to communicate with Telepathy or Conductive Sound.

Frey told Ivan the plan he'd concocted.

[Contact a woman among the Dark Elves named Camille. She should be somewhere in this High Elf village. If the High Elves ask why you're looking for the Dark Elves, tell them that you want to spar.]

[Then?]

[You just need to tell them my name and that I want to meet them.]

[That's it?]

[That's right.]

If it was Camille, she would find a way to contact him.

She would have more knowledge about the High Elves than he did. Besides, Dark Elves were masters of stealth.

This was something that he'd learned while sparring with Liamson.

Ivan grinned and nodded.

He was getting an opportunity to fight the Dark Elves anyway, so he had no intention of rejecting Frey's plan.

Frey and Ivan split up.

Since the day before, the number of people watching them was not large, so by splitting up, they were able to greatly reduce the amount of attention placed upon them.

'I don't need to go too close to Hruhiral.'

It was impossible in the first place. It didn't matter if he was a reasonable distance from the World Tree.

For his objective, it was better for him to find a quiet place.

The condition necessary to communicate with the World Tree was pure Nature Energy.

Elves, who were born in the forest, raised in the forest and live in the forest, met this condition easily. Among them, the Elven Queen was especially pure.

He'd heard that by staying in the Great Forest their entire lives, they were able to connect with nature more than anyone else.

This was what made his current plan possible.

Thanks to the Frozen River, Torkunta's Heart and his time training in the Ispania mountains where Nature Energy was overwhelmingly abundant, his body now contained just as much Nature Energy as an Elf.

Only the Queen could share their soul with the World Tree, but it was still possible for Frey to have a brief contact.

Not too long after leaving the house, he was able to find a suitable place.

It was behind and in the shadow of Hruhiral, so no Elf wanted to live there.

The team of watchers still followed him, but that didn't matter.

It was normal for Wizards to meditate in places that were rich in Nature Energy.

On the outside, he would simply look like a Wizard who was devoted to his training, so they wouldn't act hastily.

“…”

He closed his eyes and immediately felt like his mind was floating.

This could be described as a partial out-of-body experience.

Of course, this didn't mean that he was completely defenceless. He had already set up several barriers in advance, and he could still react to any nearby movement.

The world that only the mind could see was completely different.

There were dozens and hundreds of lights in a dark space. These things were spirits or, as some would call them, souls.

Some of these lights were particularly bright.

These lights represented people like Queen Snow, the Elven Elders and Ivan.

Ivan's light was intense.

Frey could approximate a person's level of skill based on the light of their soul.

And among these bright lights was a light so strong that the other lights could not compare to it even if they were all combined.

Even Ivan was only like a firefly before the sun.

Frey moved his soul closer to this bright light, and it slowly began to leave his body.

He felt the pleasant sensation of floating, followed by warmth, comfort and relaxation.

This warm, joyful feeling filled his entire body.

Frey tried to find the core of this bright light without letting go of the feeling.

Then.

“…found it.”

Frey dived into the center of the light.

* * *

The world was completely white.

This was the Soul Space. (TL: or 'Spirit World'…)

It could also be called the Imaginary World.

Frey looked down at his body with surprise.

“This body…”

It wasn't Frey Blake but Lukas Trowman.

It was the body he had in his peak, in other words, before he'd died.

When he flexed his mana, he felt power that 'Frey' could not hope to match currently.

'I see. Since this is the Imaginary World, did I subconsciously see my original image?'

His expression became strange as he wondered if he had been longing for the feeling he currently had.

“Hello.”

A soft voice entered his ear.

Frey turned around.

Standing there, was a beautiful, gentle woman with brown hair. She had a presence that felt like the Goddess of Nature.

Frey bowed in a much more polite manner than when he greeted Snow.

“It's an honour to meet you, Hruhiral.”

“Hoohoo.”

Hruhiral chuckled softly before lightly waving a hand.

The white space flickered for a moment, and in the next instant, it became a comfortable room.

They were now in a wooden house, which had warm sunlight streaming from the open windows and steaming cups of tea on a small wooden table.

Hruhiral sat at the table first before gently beckoning to him.

“Would you like a seat?”

Frey sat in front of Hruhiral without saying anything.

She picked up her tea and took a sip before speaking.

“It's been a while since I had a chance to talk to anyone besides Elves.”

“Does it make you uncomfortable?”

“No way. I'm actually very happy right now. I've been longing to meet someone new for a while now.”

Hruhiral let out a laugh.

Frey also smiled.

“…there's something I'd like to ask you.”

“If it's about them, I have nothing to say.”

Unlike before, the voice that came out was extremely cold. There was no need to ask who 'they' were.

Even Hruhiral couldn't escape the influence of the Demigods.

Frey felt a bit disappointed.

Had Hruhiral, who shared a bond with Snow, vouched against Oydin, then they would need no other witnesses.

However, that wasn't what Frey wanted to ask.

“I understand. However, what I'm actually curious about is the past. First of all…I think I should show you something about me.”

At that moment, Frey conveyed his memories to her.

Hruhiral accepted his memories while silently admiring his ability.

'He has a great understanding of the Soul Space.'

This was the Soul Space.

It was possible to share memories and feelings with those you were connected with.

However, such a task was not as simple to do as it sounded.

The man in front of her had a better understanding of the Soul Space than Snow, who could be said to be the most talented out of all the Queens she had witnessed.

But that was just the beginning of the surprise.

What Frey showed her were the memories of 'Lukas Trowman'.

After he gained this body, Hruhiral was the first person that he revealed this information to.

“…!”

Hruhiral's eyes widened and her mouth opened slightly.

The time it took was not long. Maybe a dozen or so seconds.

However, Hruhiral had been able to fully accept all of Frey's memories in that time.

Bloody battles with immensely powerful Demigods, a group of friends that he'd travel to the ends of the world with, being sealed by Lord, the years of solitude spent in the abyss, acquiring a new body, realising that 4,000 years had passed and the loneliness that came with knowing that no one he cared about was left.

Gulp.

A stream of tears flowed from her eyes.

The memories of Lukas were so filled with thorns and downfalls that even a transcendent being like Hruhiral who had powerful mental capabilities could not control her emotions.

It was a miracle that he did not give up after experiencing more pain than anyone could hope to imagine.

Hruhiral had no choice but to feel respect and pity for the human sitting before her.

“You've had a really, really hard time…ah! You've walked a path of pain and loneliness for so long. You really…doing all of that alone…”

Hruhiral could not find the words to express how she felt and simply cried sorrowfully.

Frey looked at her.

He knew she was crying on his behalf, yet he was calm in comparison.

“I can take it.”

“…”

Hruhiral wiped away her tears.

She understood.

This man in front of her could truly handle such pain and pressure.

She knew this because she had seen Lukas' memories and felt what he had in those moments.

But being able to endure it and being okay were completely different.

The pain that Frey had endured and will endure in the future. The burden on his shoulders was too heavy.

An ordinary person would have already been crushed by the weight of it all. Still, in her eyes, this face, which had just said that it could endure it, looked incredibly sad at that moment.

“…I am also bound by Lord's power.”

“I know. The power the Demigods can exert on transcendent beings is much higher.”

It was ironic.

Demigods couldn't exert their full power on mortal creatures like Humans or Elves, but when dealing with semi-transcendent and transcendent beings like Hruhiral or Dragons, they could use their powers without restraint.

“But I want to help you. I will tell you anything you want to know.”

Hruhiral said this with a determined voice. Her attitude now was more serious than ever.

Frey looked straight into her eyes before speaking.

“I want to know what happened to my friends.”

“…”

“This is something that you should know since you are connected to all the earth in this world.”

Hruhiral, who was silent for a moment, finally opened her mouth.

“That's right. I know how the Heroes of the Age of Light ended up. The most mysterious one was actually you, Lukas Trowman.”

Only after seeing his memories did Hruhiral understand how Lukas had disappeared without a trace.

Not even Hruhiral could see through the Absolute Field which usually surrounded 9 star Archmages.

Perhaps except Lord, who had made Lukas disappear.

It was understandable that Hruhiral found no traces since it was the power of the being considered closest to god.

“I'll tell you everything I know. First is the Magic Warrior King. He was killed in the 'Amakan Desert'.”

“The Amakan Desert…”

“After fighting against a Demigod for more than a week, he eventually died. It was a terrible battle.”

“…”

To die while fighting to the end. It was truly a death befitting Kasajin.

Frey praised him for being able to fight a Demigod to death on his own, but he couldn't stop the heavy feeling in his heart when he heard about his death.

“The Sword King met his end in his homeland, Icollium.”

Hruhiral didn't say exactly which Demigod killed him. It seemed it was not something she could say directly, but it didn't matter.

All of this information should be stored in Anastasia by Schweiser anyway.

“And the Great Sage Schweiser Strow. His end…I can give you the details. Unfortunately.”

“Unfortunately?”

Why would it be unfortunate to give him the details?

“You will have to prepare your heart. No matter how much of an impenetrable fortress your mind is.”

Hwak.

At that moment, their surroundings began to change once again.

The quaint living room distorted and disappeared completely, replaced by an area that looked black and dead.

Frey looked up.

A black sun was burning in a purple sky.

He wondered if this was the way the world would look before it ended.

“…kuk.”

A painful cough was heard, causing Frey to turn around.

He saw Schweiser.

He looked just like he had in the last room of the dungeon. However, he was not in good condition.

His white robes and beard were stained with blood, and his wrists, which were visible from his sleeves, looked like withered tree branches.

Schweiser wiped blood from his mouth with his hand.

“I always knew that there was a traitor among us.”

“What?”

“But…I would never have expected it to be you. Now, I understand why the relationship between Lucid and Kasajin had worsened to such a degree, and how the Demigods got their information.”

“…hoohoot.”

At that moment, the space in front of him shifted, and a woman appeared.

Her ebony hair fluttered in the wind.

The woman wore revealing clothes that fully exposed her alluring body, and a seductive smile on her face.

Schweiser closed his eyes.

Only

“…trusted you.”

The woman laughed. Her white teeth which contrasted with her ebony hair was very eye-catching.

“Don't be ridiculous, Schweiser. We both know that's not true.”

“I wasn't talking about me.”

Schweiser staggered slightly and shook his head.

Then, with clear eyes, he looked toward the woman, Iris Phisfounder, and said.

“Lukas…trusted you.”

(TL: What a way to come back from my break. I hope this blew you guys away just as much as it did me)

Chapter end