The smell of rain brushing past my nose. The sound of heavy rain echoing in my ears.
My heightened senses, as sharp as my heightened awareness, absorbed all the information.
I kept my eyes half-open for a moment, savoring the aftereffects of the breathing technique.
After a while.
'Already a week, huh.'
I gauged the time.
It had been a week since the ordeal in the Chamber of Trials came to an end.
In other words, it had been a week since I settled the past grudge with Frezen.
How do I feel about it now...?
'I don't really know.'
I couldn't quite put it into words.
A sense of emptiness, futility, or even satisfaction—none of these emotions could be clearly defined.
If I had to describe it... well.
'It's calm.'
Just like usual.
Even though I had poured out so much emotion, there was no lingering aftereffect.
The day I calmed my intense emotions was the only day I struggled, and by the second day, it felt like nothing.
Well, maybe the difference was a vague sense of relief, like having a long-forgotten toothache finally gone.
'It's not bad.'
Actually, it felt good.
Wizards have something called a heart demon (心魔).
A damn thing that appears without warning and scatters one's mind; wizards who have heart demons generally don't end well.
Some die spitting blood while challenging higher realms, or meet their end pointlessly when a heart demon strikes during battle.
In my past life, I didn't have such a heart demon.
'Everything was simple.'
Do it if you have to, or don't if you don't.
Even when my comrades died, I just thought, "That's our karma, I guess."
Of course, I might be seen as heartless, but if they had died on a mission that didn't involve forbidden magic, I wouldn't have been so angry.
Of course, I would have been sad.
For a while, or maybe even for the rest of my life, I might not have forgotten.
But it would have ended there.
Death during a mission was as natural as dying of old age for us.
In any case, in my past life, I could be considered a wizard free from heart demons...
'Almost got into trouble.'
The emotions I unleashed in the Chamber of Trials were, in a way, the seeds of a heart demon.
It wasn't a problem right now, but it could grow and eventually consume my mind.
Of course, it wasn't completely resolved.
'But... the Deculan guys are still around.'
If the Frezen incident was the seed of a heart demon, then Deculan might be the root of another heart demon.
Or perhaps, a colony.
Or, a sweet potato.
Sweet potatoes are like that.
If you leave one root, it grows vigorously, sprouts, and extends its vines far and wide, bearing fruit and then taking root again, dominating the area.
I've never grown sweet potatoes, so I don't know if that's really how it works, but the point is that Deculan's existence could be like that.
It was a pretty serious situation.
'It feels like I'm carrying a bomb that could go off at any time. Of course, it might not go off. But the fact that I don't know whether it will or won't is the most frustrating part.'
If it were certain to go off, I could prepare for it, but since it might not, it's awkward to prepare.
It's hard to think of a more unsettling situation.
'Probably not.'
But, who am I?
A former troubleshooter.
Someone who has survived situations where I could die or not for over a decade.
There's no situation more familiar than an uncertain one.
So, even this...
'It's not bad.'
Actually, it's good.
Life is like that.
If it's too comfortable and worry-free, you start to create unnecessary worries and concerns.
Of course, being too tense is also not good.
When you're that tense, you eventually snap and go half-mad.
It's a bit different, but that's generally how lunatics like Hengji are born.
Thinking about it that way...
'What happened to Damian?'
In my past life, Damian was also a crazy guy, and there must have been a reason for it.
Until recently, I thought he might have gone mad during the final battle, but... probably not.
Being exceptionally talented in magic also means having exceptional mental endurance.
'...Well, anyway.'
I gathered my thoughts up to that point.
Swish—
The faint sound of heavy rain coming through the window had a strangely emotional effect.
In any case, to summarize the current situation:
'I removed a heart demon I didn't even know I had.'
But, after removing it, I found another heart demon that was just as significant.
Of course, it's not quite a heart demon yet.
'But, since I know about it, it won't get the better of me, and this level of tension is not bad.'
As for Damian's story...
'When the time comes, I'll know, or I won't.'
That's how it is.
Enough with the sentiment.
"Now..."
I took a book out of the pocket dimension and opened it.
The Vision of Crimson Fire.
For the past week, my focus on the Thousand Circle Technique was not just to calm any potential emotional turmoil, but also for the final check before advancing to the next level.
And the result of that check was...
'Perfect.'
Physically, I was in better condition than ever.
So, now...
"I should move on to the next level."
I smiled at the Vision of Crimson Fire.
It was the time for the harvest I had been waiting for nearly a month.
* * *
The first thing to do was clear.
'Security magic.'
The Vision of Crimson Fire, like any other noble family's vision, was protected by security magic.
I needed to disable it first...
'Easy enough.'
I channeled the power of the Thousand Circle Technique and slowly flowed it into the cover of the Crimson Fire vision.
Soon, the vision emitted a "crackle" sound, disabling the defense mechanism.
Originally, this wouldn't be so simple.
Even the protection magic on the pocket dimension took a month to remove, so how much more for the vision's protection?
However.
There were a few special factors.
'The Crimson Fire is Deculan's vision. And...'
I know the Thousand Circle Technique.
The security on the Crimson Fire vision is only mid-to-high level.
Of course, mid-to-high level security is still high.
From the outside, even mid-level security is virtually impossible to bypass.
However.
'As long as it's not high-level, it can be disabled with the power of the Thousand Circle Technique.'
In Deculan, the significance of bloodline is even more stringent than in other noble families.
Even the most insignificant member can stand above all other servants due to their bloodline.
Of course, the security magic on the visions learned by bloodline members is high-level.
'That won't be as easy.'
Anyway.
I opened the Vision of Crimson Fire.
Rustle.
The pages were heavily used, with a thick layer of oil from frequent handling.
In fact, I had already read the Vision of Crimson Fire dozens of times over the past week.
The content was etched in my mind.
'I haven't read it all, but...'
What I needed now was the first stage.
Fire Entry (入火).
The part corresponding to that.
If I were to recite the early sections, I could do so without a single mistake.
However, I opened the vision for a reason.
The first attribute vision I was learning.
'In a way, it's like walking a new path.'
The vision I learned in my past life was a non-attribute vision distributed to troubleshooters, so learning an attribute vision like Crimson Fire was a first.
So, rechecking was natural.
Rustle.
Rustle.
The sound of pages turning echoed in the room for a while.
And after how long...
'It's done.'
After the final check.
I put the Vision of Crimson Fire back into the pocket dimension and closed my eyes.
'First...'
The first breath of Crimson Fire.
'The main magic circuit used is not much different from the Thousand Circle Technique.'
There are subtle differences.
However, in terms of the core circuits used, the flow of magic, and the principles of operation, they share a common thread.
Ultimately, they are not different.
Of course, this insight is possible because I have mastered the Thousand Circle Technique and have a deep understanding of magic.
Anyway.
Sssss—
I drew the magic from my core and directed it into the Crimson Fire circuit, not the Thousand Circle Technique circuit.
One cycle.
Learning the path.
'Now it begins.'
Before the second cycle, I composed my mind.
If it were just about manipulating the flow of magic, it would be no different from an ordinary vision.
However, Crimson Fire (赤火) is a high-level vision, rare even on the continent.
It has an ultimate goal.
If so, what is that ultimate goal?
'A flame that burns alone.'
While Blue Fire (青火) pursues the eternal burning of a flame, Crimson Fire pursues the independence or completeness of a flame that burns alone.
And the ultimate goal drawn in the mind is...
Imagination (心想).
If I just circulate magic through the Crimson Fire circuit, I will only gain the power of fire.
But if I draw the imagination, I can ultimately reach Crimson Fire.
So, the first task is to clearly grasp the form of the imagination.
I visualized the imagination in my mind.
A flame that burns alone.
It needs nothing.
It can burn without magic, and it doesn't crave oxygen, which a flame should naturally consume.
'...'
I focused on the imagination, forgetting everything else.
The magic of the Thousand Circle Technique circled through the Crimson Fire circuit, heating up with each cycle.
It had transformed into the power of fire.
But when it returned to the core, the power of fire turned back into non-attribute magic as if nothing had happened.
I repeated this cycle for a while.
Whoosh—
When I forgot even the concept of cycling, a flag-like sound echoed in my mind.
I didn't question it.
I just kept visualizing the imagination.
One cycle, two cycles...
How many cycles did I complete?
I forgot the flow of time, the numbers, and eventually even the fact that I was circulating magic.
Rumble...!
"!"
A thunder-like sound echoed in my mind.
No, it wasn't thunder.
Whoosh.
A tiny flame, no bigger than a fingernail, which had been so faint that I hadn't even noticed its existence, suddenly grew as if fuel had been poured into it.
The sound I mistook for thunder was the roar of the flame as it burst forth.
'This is...'
A flame that burns alone.
When I thought that far.
Swish, swish.
The flame in the imagination flickered and shrank.
And finally.
Crackle, thud.
The flame shrank to the size of a small campfire.
I opened my eyes around that time.
'Fire Entry (入火)...'
The stage of harboring a flame in the heart.
I raised my fingertips and ignited a fireball.
The magic, which had been calm like non-attribute magic, immediately surged and burst forth.
Whoosh!
A flickering flame shot up from my fingertips.
'...Definitely.'
It's different.
The nature of the flame, the meaning it carries, and the magic it consumes.
It's more radiant and destructive.
But.
Crackle, crackle.
The flame quickly subsided when I withdrew the magic.
"Still, it's just Fire Entry for now."
If I had reached the stage of Crimson Fire, the flame would have maintained its presence even after withdrawing the magic.
I tried it out, hoping the imagination might have an effect, but as expected, this was the limit.
But, even so...
'It's not bad.'
No, it's good.
This is something I didn't have in my past life.
Phaerun von Deculan.
In my last life, I took one step closer to that unlucky but great wizard.