Ch. 321 - Dusk Soil Moon (9)
I Became A Flashing Genius At The Magic AcademyThis chapter is broken. Please report this on discord.
This chapter is broken. Please report this on discord.
Even when Dusk Soil Moon mentioned the idea of uprooting the World Tree, Baek Yu-Seol remained composed. Dusk Soil Moon found his calm demeanor amusing and stood up.
“You won’t be able to see any interesting here. It might turn out dreadfully boring for you. Would you care to join me and watch?”
"I'm not particularly interested."
"That's unfortunate. It’s quite entertaining, you know."
"I wouldn't know about that. You don’t look entertained."
"... What?"
Dusk Soil Moon raised an eyebrow at Baek Yu-Seol's retort but said nothing, while Baek Yu-Seol calmly sipped his coffee.
"Actually, I find you far more interesting. It’s not every day a human gets to meet one of the Twelve Divine Moons."
"What an amusing thing to say, especially coming from someone blessed by three of the Twelve Divine Moons."
"Exactly. That’s why I’m even more curious. Ignorant humans don’t know anything about you, so they have no questions to ask. But I’ve encountered the Twelve Divine Moons myself, and that only makes me more intrigued. I wonder about the eras you’ve lived through, the life you’ve led, and the thoughts you hold now."
"Haha. Is that so? But aren’t we far from being close enough to share such personal stories? If you’re curious about my private life, why don’t you start by sharing yours first?"
"My story, huh..."
A choice.
Baek Yu-Seol felt it intuitively. If this were a ‘dating simulation,’ this would likely be the moment when a set of options appeared.
1. Talk about your school days.
2. Recall your childhood memories.
3. Discuss the truths of the world.
4. Say nothing.
Stories about school or childhood were irrelevant, so he dismissed those options. Of the remaining two, staying silent was also out of the question. To provoke Dusk Soil Moon into saying anything, he needed an ‘enticing bait.’
"... The truth is, this isn’t my first life."
He chose to mix truth with lies, speaking in ambiguous terms that could be interpreted in multiple ways. This would leave Dusk Soil Moon no choice but to speculate, while Baek Yu-Seol intended to stay silent on any follow-up questions.
"Does that mean this is your second life? Should I interpret that to mean you've been reincarnated?"
"Since I’ve shared something, wouldn’t it be fair for you to share something in return? If you’re unwilling, feel free to end the conversation here."
"Are you suggesting a deal?"
"Yes. Just as I’m curious about you, it seems you’re equally curious about me. A mutually beneficial exchange would be the smart approach."
"How can I trust your words?"
"Surely someone like you possesses the ability to discern truth from lies in the words of a mere human, don’t you?"
"And I assume you possess that ability as well?"
"Yes."
After Baek Yu-Seol said this and met Dusk Soil Moon’s gaze, the latter snapped his fingers. Moments later, a series of dull thuds echoed as objects began to materialize on the table.
Plates, bowls, trays, and utensils appeared in succession, soon followed by an assortment of golden-brown roasted meat, beverages, bread, and cakes.
"Let’s eat while we talk. It’ll be less dull that way."
Baek Yu-Seol picked up a fork and rubbed it lightly with his thumb. To the untrained eye, it looked like a fork made of silver, but he recognized its true nature immediately.
‘Everything in this space is made of dirt.’
The books, the desk, the fireplace, the carpet, even the coffee. Everything was dirt. The food before him was most likely also made of it. The coffee he had just sipped carried no sweetness or bitterness, only a dry, gritty taste that filled his mouth like sand.
Ordinary humans couldn’t eat this food. Even attempting to eat it would likely cause severe stomach issues and lead to collapse.
In the game, players overcame this challenge by using advanced magic to purify the sand or employing special items to assist digestion. However, there was one ultimate solution:
[Eslen’s Yellow Soil Ring].
Long ago, there was a deranged alchemist who dreamed of consuming dirt.
Renowned for his extraordinary knowledge in biology and geography, he dedicated his entire life not to advancing humanity but to the singular goal of enabling humans to digest dirt.
In the end, he perished while creating a ring, never realizing his lifelong dream of eating dirt. Yet, that very ring now served Baek Yu-Seol flawlessly.
He sliced into the meat with a knife, skewered it with his fork, and brought it to his mouth. The aroma was indistinguishable from that of ordinary meat.
Normally, biting into it would have filled his mouth with the gritty texture of sand. But this time, things were different.
As Baek Yu-Seol tasted the meat, his eyes widened in surprise.
Dusk Soil Moon anticipated his reaction and asked, "I had high hopes after you drank the coffee. Can you not eat the food either?"
"No. What are you talking about?"
Baek Yu-Seol continued eating and spoke with a mouthful of food in mouth.
"As expected from a dish prepared by one of the Twelve Divine Moons. It’s much tastier than I imagined."
"... Is that so?"
Dusk Soil Moon narrowed his eyes as he studied Baek Yu-Seol.
Baek Yu-Seol fork moved with a swiftness that signified he genuinely enjoyed the food. His expressions and actions were so natural and convincing that there was no hint of pretense.
‘... This is a first.’
Dusk Soil Moon had long attempted to mimic human ‘culture’ by crafting food, yet he was cursed to handle nothing but earth for all eternity.
At most, he could mimic the appearance of food using dirt.
Now, here was Baek Yu-Seol, eating the imitation food as if it were real, savoring it with an authenticity that left Dusk Soil Moon bewildered.
"Do you… really enjoy the food?"
"Yes. It suits my tastes."
"... I see."
Dusk Soil Moon poked at the food with his fork, then glanced at Baek Yu-Seol.
"You are certainly unique."
"Thank you."
"Actually, someone gave me a warning about you before you arrived. It was Fawn Prevernal Moon. That insolent one who dared to awaken me from my long slumber."
"... Did you say Fawn Prevernal Moon?"
"Yes. Do you know how this world operates? Under the name of fate, the ending of every story is predetermined. We exist by accepting that truth."
"I’m aware."
"But you… You seem to defy that fate."
"The world’s tale… I would say is like a train running smoothly along a set of rails. Unless something extraordinary happens, it will eventually reach its destination. But then, you show up and shake the rails. The train keeps trying to derail. Do you realize how dangerous that is?"
"I do."
Baek Yu-Seol set his fork down, preparing to speak another lie woven with truth.
"I have witnessed the death of countless worlds."
"… Is that so."
"A train on a smooth journey? Very well. But what if there’s nothing waiting at the destination?"
"Are you talking about annihilation?"
"No. Not at all."
Knowing that Dusk Soil Moon placed little importance on death or annihilation, Baek Yu-Seol carefully mixed in a plausible lie.
"Humans eventually die. Similarly, worlds will also meet their end someday. But at the end of it all… What if there’s nothing? Only emptiness. How would you feel?"
"… Emptiness? What do you mean by that?"
"Exactly what it sounds like. The world doesn’t simply end, it’s erased. Everything returns to nothingness. Nothing is remembered. Everything that once existed vanishes into the void. Your life, your thoughts, your connections, your purpose, your beliefs… all of it reduced to nothing. Less than the dust floating in the air."
Dusk Soil Moon’s expression darkened. The displeasure on his face was unmistakable. Baek Yu-Seol hadn’t wanted to steer the conversation in this direction, but he had no other choice.
"So… if I truly am the one shaking the rails of the running train, my reason is simple: to prevent everything I am from becoming nothing. To ensure it derails."
At those words, Dusk Soil Moon closed his eyes.
For him, death was something inconsequential. But would he be so indifferent to his own death?
The Twelve Divine Moons were said to be immortal, and indeed, they had lived for over a thousand years.
Some might think that living for so long would make one weary of life, ready to embrace death.
But those who think so know nothing.
Precisely because they have lived so long, their desire to continue living burns even brighter.
For those who lived with greater intensity than humans, whose lives lasted only about a century, the fear of death was far more profound.
Yet, since the story’s course was predetermined, they could only accept it as it was.
"Do you really believe… you can change our fate for the better? How can I trust that? Just based on your words? Haven’t you already failed countless times before?"
"Yes, I’ve faced countless failures. But I’d argue my chances of success are far greater than someone who has never failed at all."
Never failing is the same as never trying.
"… Can you prove it?"
At this, Baek Yu-Seol nodded and reached into the air. What he revealed was none other than the ‘Root of Life.’
"That’s… isn’t that Soft Green Spring Moon’s divine artifact?"
"Yes. Now, let’s be honest. Is it true that you seek to destroy the World Tree in order to kill humanity?"
At those pointed words, which hit straight to the core, Dusk Soil Moon’s eyes widened slightly.
"An office mimicking human culture, coffee mimicking the culture of elves, and art mimicking the craftsmanship of dwarves. You’ve been imitating the cultures of the surface races."
"I…"
Dusk Soil Moon started to respond but stopped, realizing it was futile. He already understood that Baek Yu-Seol wasn’t just an ordinary human. What use would lying serve?
"You’re cursed, aren’t you? Everything you touch turns to dirt. You want to be close to them, yet your fate forces you to envy them instead."
And that envy had ultimately birthed the entity known as ‘Absolute Invincible Chelven.’
A body shaped by the desire to become human, yet that wish could never be fulfilled.
So, Dusk Soil Moon created Chelven as his child and released him into the world, commanding him to harm any humans who approached.
Because he envied them.
"You must want life for yourself. And for that, you need the life force of the World Tree, don’t you?"
"… Yes. That’s correct."
"But you’ve already lost."
Dusk Soil Moon’s ambitions had been shattered by the twelve disciples of the Progenitor Mage who created him. They sealed him away, leaving him powerless, with only the ability to observe the world in his dreams through his avatar.
"But what if you were wrong from the very beginning about targeting the World Tree? Would you believe me?"
"What…?"
"The life force of the World Tree isn’t infinite. It has already created countless fairies, and now it’s old and dying. It cannot grant you the life you seek."
"That’s…"
"And so, you’ll need this instead."
The divine artifact of Soft Green Spring Moon, a symbol of birth and life. How the Witch Queen had come to possess it was a mystery, but through sheer fortune, it had ended up in Baek Yu-Seol’s hands.
"Are you saying… You’ll give that to me?"
"Yes."
"That’s absurd. That’s a divine artifact of the Twelve Divine Moons. I know well what such an item means to humans."
"It must be incredibly valuable. I could probably trade it for a lifetime supply of steamed vegetable buns."
"Then why would you…?"
Dusk Soil Moon stopped mid-sentence, shaking his head as though rejecting the very notion.
"No. It’s not possible. The Twelve Divine Moons cannot interfere with one another. For me to receive it is impossible. It’s a ‘fate’ that has already been determined…"
Suddenly, Dusk Soil Moon froze, as if struck by lightning. His expression changed as realization dawned, and he looked up at Baek Yu-Seol, who stood there with a confident smile.
"You told me earlier to prove myself, didn’t you?"
Baek Yu-Seol extended the Root of Life toward Dusk Soil Moon and said, "I’ll prove it with this."
—————
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