Ch. 285 - League of Spirits (1)

The capital of the Pung Empire, Taeyusan.

In one of its secluded alleyways, far from the bustling streets, the air began to ripple and form a sphere.

Suddenly, over ten boys and girls emerged from it.

They were the first-year students of Stella Academy, who had just returned from the Persona Gate.

"Phew! This training session was such a whirlwind…”

Ban Di-Yeon released the tension from her body, shook her hair loose and fanned herself with her hand.

The sweat running down her neck revealed just how stressed she had been up until now.

She then turned around to check if all the first-year students had made it out safely.

All twelve students, present and accounted for.

‘I thought something would definitely go wrong….’

The mission itself had been quite uneventful. It was just a typical Danger Level 3 Persona Gate.

No unexpected factors, and actually, it was one of the easier ones among the Danger Level 3 gates.

But the final outcome had been the issue.

'Human…?’

One girl was asleep and carried by Baek Yu-Seol on his back. She appeared to be around middle school age.

This cute child had been found inside the Persona Gate, and surprisingly, she turned out to be someone Baek Yu-Seol knew.

It was shocking enough to find a real person in the Persona Gate, where she had somehow become the final boss monster. But to top it off, she was actually an acquaintance of Baek Yu-Seol.

“U-um… Senior.”

"Yes? What's wrong?"

“We… We almost killed a real person…”

One of the first-year students had his voice trembling. He approached Ban Di-Yeon with tears welling up in his eyes.

Finally, Ban Di-Yeon relaxed her expression and approached the student, and spoke softly.

"It's okay. Calm down and listen."

“Huh?”

“You didn’t do anything wrong. And I’m not just saying that to comfort you.”

"But…"

“I was surprised too, but this isn't something that's never happened before.”

“What do you mean?”

It might not have been mentioned in their textbooks, so the students wouldn't have known, but there had been similar cases before.

While it was unheard of for someone like Anella, who hadn’t entered the gate, to be found inside, there had been instances where comrades had been completely consumed by the Persona and turned into boss monsters.

In those cases, mages had to face the heartbreaking task of personally killing their comrades, and it left lasting scars on them.

“The Persona Gates are notoriously difficult to clear, but they’re famous for the huge rewards they offer. And they’re also the ones with the most recorded accomplishments in the Magic Association. Do you know why?”

"I don't really know..."

"It's because of the mental stress. Hunting monsters or dark mages isn't easier than clearing a Persona Gate, so why does the Magic Association recognize it so highly? Why do senior mages avoid it even though the rewards are so generous? Have you ever thought about that?"

When the junior shook his head, Ban Di-Yeon patted his shoulder and continued, "This is why. It's not because it's physically exhausting, but because it's mentally draining."

"Does this happen often?"

Ban Di-Yeon shook her head. "Not really. But the Persona Gate has many other elements that mentally torment us, which is what makes it so tough."

In the Persona Gate, you’re immersed in some artificial 'story' and forced to act as one of the characters.

During this process, countless mages had been hurt, suffered from mental stress, and even quit their jobs.

This was why there was a specific position known as the 'Persona Hunter.'

"I'm going to head to the hospital."

"Yeah. Go ahead. I'll make sure to handle the scoring properly."

Ban Di-Yeon watched Baek Yu-Seol’s back as he hurriedly carried Anella somewhere.

Even though she hadn't seen him act properly during this mission, it was probably for the best.

After all, Baek Yu-Seol truly got serious when things were really bad.

"Something feels off."

"Huh? What does?"

Lu Deric frowned and spoke up, "That guy. He’s not ordinary. I followed him from a distance, and his speed at navigating the Persona was faster than even professional Persona Hunters. I still don’t understand why he kept circling around and avoided the final destination, but he's an interesting one."

Watching him speak as if he had discovered something fascinating, Ban Di-Yeon chuckled.

"If you say so."

"Are you doubting my judgment? That guy is definitely no ordinary first-year—"

"Yeah. You’re right."

"Hey!"

Casually responding, she led the first-year students out of the alley.

Since they had finished the mission earlier than expected, with it taking just three days instead of the planned week, spending a day sightseeing wouldn’t be such a bad idea.

———-

A gentle breeze carried the fragrance of flowers over the hill.

Holding her fluttering hair with one hand, she would often see her mother in the distance, wearing a pure white dress and waving at her.

"Anella, come here. It’s time to eat."

In her childhood, their home was small and shabby, but it had everything they needed for a happy life.

Though her father was absent, her mother faced the world with strength, and the villagers loved her for it.

Valcamic Kingdom.

It was once a flourishing kingdom, built by one of the twelve disciples of the Progenitor Mage. It had now shrunk to a small corner of the world.

But what did it matter if the kingdom was big or small?

Yesterday, Anella was happy, today she was happy, and she believed tomorrow she would be happy too.

She never doubted she would live like this forever—holding her mother’s hand, living a simple yet beautiful life. She believed with all her heart that she would grow into adulthood this way.

‘Mom...?’

The world had turned completely red.

The night when even the sky appeared to scream in agony, their small, happy home was engulfed in flames and collapsed entirely.

It was no longer a place of happiness.

Instead, it became a shackle, binding her mother to her misfortune.

"Anella..."

Perhaps it was the collapse of an old pillar, but her mother, with half of her body trapped under the rubble, groaned in pain as she reached out toward Anella.

"Anella, listen to me. Run away without looking back."

"Mom... What about you?!"

"I’ll be right behind you, just run!"

"Ah... Okay!"

It was the first time Anella had ever seen her mother shout, so she tearfully stood up.

"Hurry. Run away..."

How foolish she must have been for her eyes to be full of tears at that moment.

She couldn't even remember the last image of her mother who desperately pleaded to her.

Her tears blurred everything, leaving her unable to tell whether her mother had been smiling or crying that day.

Anella turned and ran without looking back.

The Dark King's invasion, the downfall of Valcamic’s royal family—it all happened as she ran, determined to be a good girl who listened to her mother’s last words.

She ran to survive.

When she opened her eyes again, tears welled up at the corners of her eyes.

Why did she suddenly remember that day?

Since she became a Dark Mage, she had completely buried those memories and sealed them away with her abilities so she would never recall them again.

"Ah..."

A white ceiling. Soft lighting and gently flickering sunlight.

She blinked a few times, cautiously trying to lift her upper body.

But her waist stretched painfully, and she couldn’t get up as if she hadn’t used her muscles in a long time.

"Guhhh..."

Her body felt limp, and she collapsed back onto the bed, spreading her arms and legs wide.

That’s when she felt a strange sense of unfamiliarity.

‘Wait. A bed?’

When was the last time she slept in a bed?

The first and last time must have been when she infiltrated Stella as an exchange student that summer.

While this bed wasn’t as soft as the one in Stella’s dormitory, it was comfortable enough. In fact, she felt more at peace here.

“Ughhh..."

Still trying to make sense of her situation, Anella hastily tried to get up.

Although her body felt heavy and weak, she managed to lift her upper body and even stand on her feet, albeit with great difficulty.

Thud!

At that moment, the door opened, and a nurse entered.

"Oh, patient! You’re suffering from mana exhaustion! You shouldn’t be walking around yet! Please lie back down!"

"Huh? Mana exhaustion... Wha—ah!"

After struggling to stand, Anella found her efforts quickly thwarted as the nurse firmly pushed her back onto the bed.

Having already spent all her energy just to get up, she felt as though she might never rise again.

Feeling a sudden wave of despair, Anella buried her face in the bed.

However, the nurse continued to fuss over her, checking her temperature and attaching a device to her forehead, which irritated her enough to lift her head.

“What are you doing…”

At first, Anella was ready to shout, but the fierce look in the nurse’s eyes made her heart shrink.

"What do you mean what am I doing? Don’t you remember what happened before you collapsed? Your friends said you forced yourself to use mana until you suffered mana exhaustion. You can't do that! What if you lose the ability to use magic forever?”

"Mana exhaustion? What are you talking about?"

"How can you not know? You’re supposed to be a magic warrior! When you completely drain yourself of mana, even the minimal amount your body needs to function, you suffer mana exhaustion. It’s very dangerous, so you need to be more careful.”

“Wait. Hold on.”

That didn’t make any sense.

After all, Anella wasn’t a magic user; she was a Dark Mage.

As a Dark Mage, it was impossible for her to suffer from mana exhaustion, something that only happened to magic users.

No matter how much dark magic control she used, she couldn’t artificially manipulate something as specific as mana exhaustion, which only affected mages.

And yet…

The nurse was treating her as though she were a human magic user.

“I’m suffering from mana exhaustion?”

“Yes.”

"That’s impossible.”

The nurse frowned and shook her head.

“The hospital director personally examined you. There’s no use in denying it. Are you trying to say the doctors at Pungryeong University Hospital made a mistake?”

“Wait, Pungryeong University? You mean… This is…”

“Yes, Pungryeong University Hospital.”

“Oh my god…”

Pungryeong University was renowned worldwide as one of the top medical schools.

Given Anella's financial situation, she couldn’t have dreamed of coming to such a place, let alone afford treatment at Pungryeong University Hospital, the best hospital in Pung Empire.

The fact that the hospital's director personally made the diagnosis made it even more unlikely that a mistake had been made.

"If another patient had said something like that, the director wouldn’t have let it slide. But since you're a special guest of the Starcloud Trading Company, I suppose that’s an exception."

None of this made sense to Anella anymore.

Why was the name Starcloud Trading Company coming up again?

"Now, just stay still."

After attaching various bands and electrodes to Anella's body for examination, the nurse finally left the room.

Sitting there with a blank expression, Anella suddenly brought her hand to her chest.

Thump! Thump!

‘... What?’

She couldn’t feel it anymore—the dark magic of the Dark King that had always gripped her heart.

That sinister seed of dark magic, which could have been triggered at any moment to burst her heart if the Dark King desired, was completely gone.

‘How... How is this possible?’

She couldn't sense dark magic anywhere in her body. Her unique ability to delve into people’s minds and provoke their deepest traumas was gone.

She clenched and unclenched her fists, but when she tried to summon any strength, there was no overwhelming destructive force. What remained was just the feeble struggling of a teenage girl.

Her abilities, her power... Everything had disappeared.

In its place... The oppressive black mana was gone, and now her heart pulsed with clean, blue mana.

"I... I’m really..."

Suddenly, the door creaked open again, breaking her thoughts.

This time, it wasn’t the nurse—it was Baek Yu-Seol. He was holding a chart in one hand and wore a bright, cheerful smile.

"You're awake, huh?"

"B-Baek Yu-Seol..."

"I skimmed through your file. You're fully human now. The complex suppression and control spells on your heart are all gone. The seed has completely disappeared too."

"Gone...? It’s... Gone?"

"They said your physical age is around sixteen or seventeen. I don’t know what your real age is, but hey, that’s good, right? It's like you've gotten younger."

"Sixteen? I’m not that young..."

"That’s just your physical age. But you should start exercising—you’re pretty out of shape. Your mana level is almost like a regular person’s. Still, you won't have to start from scratch. With your experience controlling dark magic, you’ll be able to train light magic in no time. Consider yourself lucky. You were a dark mage, but now you’re human again, and your body’s been blessed with ‘Mana’s Blessing.’ And on top of that…”

As Baek Yu-Seol flipped through the chart and explained things, none of it really registered with Anella.

’Human... I’m really human...?’

Could it really be true?

Was she dreaming?

Was this one of those blissful dreams where the Dark King would suddenly seize her heart and wake her up, threatening to kill her?

The thought made her anxious, and in a panic, she slapped her own cheek.

Slap!

"Ouch!"

It hurt. It stung so much that her eyes welled up with tears.

But even that wasn't enough for her.

She raised her other hand, ready to hit herself again, but her hand trembled in fear of the pain.

"... What are you doing? Want me to hit you instead?"

Baek Yu-Seol stared at her as if she was being ridiculous and offered with a smirk.

Anella nodded furiously.

Seeing him laugh as he approached, she tightly shut her eyes.

She braced herself for the impact on her cheek, but instead of a slap, he gently placed his palm on top of her head, as if putting down an object rather than stroking it kindly.

"Huh...?"

"It’s not a dream."

Baek Yu-Seol gently shook her head side to side as if it were a basketball he was dribbling.

"Congratulations. You’re really human now."

"T-thanks... All because of you..."

"No. I didn’t really do anything. I just said a lot of fancy words, but in the end, it’s because you had the strength to make up your own mind that this happened."

"Even so..."

"You’re completely free from the Dark King now. You’re free. How does that feel?"

At his question, Anella turned her head to look out the window.

"Oh..."

The view outside was the same as yesterday, but today, for some reason, the sky seemed especially clear and pure.

Everything looked more beautiful, and even the smallest details seemed lovely.

’This is how it feels to see the world as a human.’

It was a warm feeling, something she hadn't felt in a long time.

"I... I’m happy..."

Without realizing it, Anella whispered the words, and Baek Yu-Seol smiled along with her.

"That’s great. I’m glad you’re happy."

And then...

Before Anella could fully savor her happiness, Baek Yu-Seol pulled an envelope out of his bag.

"If you're happy now, it's time to put in some work. Don’t you think?"

"Huh. What?"

"It's a special transfer application for Stella Academy. They don't give this to just anyone, and this time, there's only one chance... You need to become a Stella student. No, more than that, you need to have the abilities that match it."

"W-why?"

"Do you plan on staying like this? You’ve finally become human, but you can’t live the same way you did before. And do you think your old boss will just leave you alone? At the very least, you should live under Stella’s protection. Though, even there, it has its flaws."

Holding the papers, Anella stared at them blankly.

"Can I... Really do this?"

"Why not? You're human like me, just an ordinary person. Stella is fair. Anyone with the ability can enter."

The words ‘ordinary person’ resonated deeply, so much that Anella almost burst into tears.

"Mm! I’ll work hard!"

"Forget 'working hard,' just do it well."

"Got it!"

Anella clutched the envelope handed by Baek Yu-Seol close to her chest.

She had thought that becoming human and living as one was her final destination.

But now, she realized that the destination was actually a new beginning.

‘Stella transfer.’

It marked a new direction in her life.

A new goal in her life as a human, not as a dark mage.

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