The Hero’s Party Members Treat Me Well for Some Reason

The Street of the Outsiders (3)

My embrace of the warm bones was fleeting.

Soon, I detached myself from the figure.

I couldn’t afford to indulge in sentimentality for too long.

After all, it was strange enough embracing someone I’d only just met today. And being a skeleton, it was difficult to even discern the other’s gender.

‘Surely… not a man, right?’

Eh, no way. I have no desire to become… *that*. I wanted to judge its gender by its voice, but perhaps the transformation into a Lich changed its vocal cords as well. From its throat came only androgynous, chilling sounds.

In short, there wasn’t a single element by which to gauge its gender.

Like Schrödinger’s cat. Before opening the box, no one can know the result…

Though, what exactly I would need to *open* to find out, I wasn’t entirely sure. Nor did I particularly *want* to know.

“Ahem, well, rather than that, I was hoping to perhaps peruse some spellbooks? Would that be permissible?”

Awkwardness prickling at me, I cleared my throat and swiftly broached the real topic.

“Of course. Please, follow me this way.”

The figure spoke, then began to move.

“Normally, these are not so easily shown to outsiders… but you are the Hero, so I am making a special exception.”

He even made sure to flirt, putting on airs the whole while. I decided to gratefully accept his favor.

Ah, favor – what a foreign word that is to me.

In any case, I was thus permitted to ascend further into the Magic Tower.

A floor just below the very top, and there it was: a room crammed full with countless books. All of them magical tomes related to black magic. No doubt the ones I sought were amongst them.

“Here we are.”

Stepping inside the book room, the Black Magic Tower Lord indicated a certain area. It was a corner, even for the book room, containing dozens of books that weren’t even shelved.

“From here to there are all the books related to Pain Sensory Magic. The texts on Blood Manipulation Arts are right beside them.”

I couldn’t help but be a little astonished at the sight. There were far more books than I’d anticipated.

‘Why?’

The Pain Sensory Magic and Blood Manipulation Arts that I was studying were difficult, yes, but they were still fringe disciplines, after all.

What that meant was, compared to more mainstream schools of magic, the number of spells was quite small.

Pain Sensory Magic, in particular, only had one or two skills left for me to learn.

‘And yet, such thickness…’

Even if you considered the actual number of skills, Blood Manipulation Arts had more. Yet there were more Pain Sensory Magic books. Which meant there was more explanation pertaining to Pain Sensory Magic.

‘Well, in the game, it cost a fortune in skill points to learn them too…’

Which was why, even in the game, the remaining skills were usually learned right at the very end. Right before facing the Fourth Heavenly King, or when it was time to face the Demon Lord himself.

You could say they were the final skills of a self-harming black mage.

The sheer volume of books already gave me a bit of a headache… but still, I wasn’t worried.

‘Celestial Body.’

After all, I possessed a heaven-sent, legendary talent.

If I just had this, I could learn any magic, any martial art, with swiftness.

And so, I plunged into the world within the book.

···And hours later.

“Ugh…”

I had been defeated, thoroughly. Despite reading for hours straight, I hadn’t properly understood even a few paltry lines of text.

Thanks to that, I couldn’t help but feel flustered.

Damn it, what is this? Am I truly this unable to comprehend it?

I didn’t think the Celestial Body of Myriad Talents was omnipotent. Such complacent thoughts always brought disaster in this game.

Still, I’d expected that after reading for a few hours, I’d at least grasp the gist of it… But I understood nothing.

The fundamentals of Pain Sensory Manipulation had felt somewhat learnable, though.

Thankfully, the book related to Blood Abomination Arts was, at least, readable.

I hadn’t learned any new skills yet, but I felt like I understood more about Blood Abomination Arts itself.

Of course, that was all. What I wanted was the Pain Sensory Manipulation skill; Blood Abomination Arts was just something I was skimming through.

“It seems you’re encountering some difficulty.”

As I groaned to myself, a voice spoke from behind.

A voice laced with an eerie chill, the voice of the Tower Master. I answered not with words, but with my expression.

“I once read about Pain Sensory Manipulation out of curiosity myself. It’s quite an abstruse field of study. Pain, after all, lacks a clear image, making it difficult to wield. I understood it, but I could never *use* it.”

“…You understood it?”

I asked him back, startled. I still didn’t understand it, and this fellow, who didn’t even *use* Pain Sensory Manipulation, had read the whole book?

But that bewilderment was fleeting; I soon nodded my head.

‘… Well, he *is* the Magic Tower Lord.’

Most Magic Tower Lords were, more often than not, consumed by the magic of their specific field. At the very least, they’d have read most of the books within their tower once over. The sheer volume of their knowledge was on a different level entirely.

“If it wouldn’t trouble you, perhaps I could offer my assistance?”

I was chuckling bitterly to myself, and he spoke once more.

I couldn’t help but feel puzzled once again. Receiving kindness felt good. Since the other party had noticed my curse, a degree of goodwill was understandable.

But, even so, that didn’t mean the curse wouldn’t affect him, did it?

A Magic Tower Lord’s time was precious. The black magic knowledge he possessed was even more so.

And yet, he was offering to help like this.

“What ulterior motive do you have this time?”

Because of that, I couldn’t help but ask once more.

“Ulterior motive… let’s just say it’s curiosity. I’ve been feeling stifled lately due to my own stagnant growth, you see.”

Hearing the Magic Tower Lord say that, I checked his level.

[Lv 85]

A whopping 85. The same level as me.

Even compared to other Magic Tower Lords, he was a few levels higher. To think there was such a powerhouse in this backwater magic tower.

‘Is it because he’s a lich…?’

Well, he must have lived longer than the average lifespan, so I couldn’t exactly say that level was incomprehensible.

If he was truly on the Demon Lord’s side, he would have already snatched a spot among the Four Heavenly Kings.

“And to be a little more frank… it’s also because I am a lich, after all. If one wishes to live a long, long time, it’s convenient to earn goodwill in advance, you see.”

After I had been staring at his level for a moment, he said that with a hearty laugh. Seeing that, I couldn’t help but let out a slight chuckle myself.

“I appreciate your candor.”

And so, I found myself able to learn from him. When I confessed to lacking understanding, he was quick to pinpoint the problem.

“Perhaps, Hero-nim, your mastery of magic is high, but your knowledge itself is… lacking?”

“Hmm…”

“It happens on occasion. Some, through countless battles, raise their magic itself to a high level, but lacking knowledge, they can progress no further.”

He said it seemed I was such a case.

Hearing this, I nodded.

‘…True enough.’

Though I used skills often, the books I’d actually read concerning black magic were mostly beginner’s guides.

My skill levels had risen simply through use, learning with my body. I barely remembered reading books.

The Mage Tower Lord pointed this out clearly.

“As I understand it, this magic… it is not simply the manifestation of pain. Many principles are interwoven into this one spell. Curses, sacrificial rites, illusions, and so on. One must be able to use these to some extent to even learn the spell that was designed.”

No wonder I hadn’t understood.

It was different from everything before. Until now, the pain manipulation I’d used was simply the imaging of pain, nothing more. Even the [Pain Imprint] skill only had a slight curse principle mixed in, and that was it.

Up until now, the Heavenly Martial Body had allowed me to think, ‘I just did it, and it worked?’

But now, more proper knowledge was needed. Having found the problem, the solution was also clear.

“I’ll have to learn other things…”

“Indeed.”

The Mage Tower Lord nodded, continuing.

“Worry not. I can teach you enough. For now, let us stay here and learn other magics.”

I nodded. And so began my life in the Obsidian Magus Tower.

The goal: to master Sentience Manipulation.

*

“Our first lesson is Curseweaving.”

Greetings. I am Rook, apprentice mage. I dabble in heroism.

On the very day I committed to studying under the Archmagus, I found myself downstairs, attending his lesson.

Before me sat a small doll fashioned from straw.

“Curseweaving, fundamentally, comprises spells designed to inflict harm. Unlike commonplace magics born from a desire to kindle flames or summon winds, Curseweaving is conceived from the very genesis of malice.”

This was the reason black magic had long been ostracized. Its intent was inherently malicious, or it wounded the caster, or demanded recompense in the form of sacrifice.

Only its utility allowed it to surface into the light. The abysmal perception of black magic was not without reason.

“What distinguishes Curseweaving from other magics is its near lack of physical presence. Thus it is more clandestine, and more difficult to parry.”

And rather than inflicting physical wounds, it targets the mind and body.

As such, the mana array is correspondingly more intricate.

He concluded his explanation with a clap of his skeletal hands and set me a task.

“Now then, let us pose a question. Cast a curse upon the doll before you. It will not be easy, as it requires imbuing it with the desire to harm another.”

The straw doll was not a living being, merely a simple object.

To imbue such a simple object with malice was anything but simple.

And so, often one superimposes the likeness of someone they despise upon it.

It was a different sensation from casting a spell. It felt as though one was glaring at their target with raw mana.

The *intent* itself must become *form*, and reach the target.

“Worry not. With a talent such as yours, Hero-nim, I’m certain you’ll succeed within five days.”

Even hearing those words, a profoundly abstruse feeling permeated the air.

‘Einen, you son of a…’

Ironically, it didn’t feel all that difficult.

Black mana surged from within my very being, then was drawn directly into the straw doll.

The straw doll, once vibrant with a sunny yellow hue, was stained black within mere seconds.

“So, with patience, slowly… Eh?”

From the other side, the Archmage’s stunned voice reached my ears.

Graduating from the Magic Tower… it seemed it wouldn’t take all that long.