Subliminal Wayfarer

“When did you realize it, hm?”

As Daniel asked that pointed question, Rosetta raised her head.

“I noticed when you and Leo staged that farce.”

“Ah, of course. The Rita I know has always been so perceptive.”

“Hah. The Rita you knew has been gone for a long time. Isn’t it time you moved on from the past?”

Rosetta’s laughter was tinged with sarcasm, and Daniel responded with a faint smile.

“Is that so? Then maybe it’s time for me to move on from Rita then…”

He extended his arm through the iron bars.

It was too late for her to dodge.

Her body, with all her strength and power suppressed, felt unbearably heavy.

His hand gripped Rosetta’s wrist tightly and wouldn’t let go.

Rosetta grimaced and tried to shake him off, but it was to no avail.

Daniel slowly pulled her hand through the bars.

Her forcibly pulled hand turned pale. He buried his face in that hand and whispered,

“I’m falling for you, my Rosetta.”

“Crazy bastard.”

Even her heartfelt curse sounded like sweet music to him.

“Nonsense.”

Rosetta was already in his cage.

So, his smile was inevitable.

Any curse from her lips was just sweet talk to him.

I won’t lose you again.

And to ensure that…

He had to thoroughly shatter all of Rosetta’s hopes.

He needed to make sure she understood what happened when she tried to escape from his cage.

The timing was just right.

The ring on his finger was vibrating, signaling that everything was now ready.

As Daniel loosened his grip, Rosetta hastily retracted her arm.

He looked at his hand with a sense of longing, then shrugged nonchalantly.

“Rosetta, I have prepared a gift for you.”

Rosetta swallowed dryly at the madness in his eyes.

His gifts usually meant someone’s head.

“What have you done?”

“What do you mean? I just thought you’d want to see…”

Daniel’s voice trailed off, seemingly innocent yet cunning.

Behind him, a giant sandstorm began to rise, filling the air with gritty dust.

Nevertheless, Rosetta didn’t blink, staring intently into the smoke.

Faint glimpses of black cloaks swirled within the storm.

‘The same people from before?’

It seemed like those who had brought her here—Leo’s men—were in the storm.

As the smoke cleared, the scene became clearer.

It wasn’t certain if they were the same individuals, but they certainly wore the same black cloaks as the group that had brought Rosetta.

They appeared circularly, reminiscent of a school of fish swarming together.

And in the center of that circle…

A bloodied man, bound hand and foot, was visible.

Rosetta’s eyes widened in shock.

She hurriedly moved closer to the iron bars.

Her face nearly pressed against the cold metal.

Beneath her round eyelids, golden eyes trembled uncontrollably.

“Cassion…”

At the sound of his name, the man’s eyelids slowly parted.

His heavy eyelashes lifted to reveal bloodshot eyes that aimlessly wandered the void before finally focusing on something.

A strained smile appeared on his face.

“Rose…tta…”

His voice was barely more than a groan.

 

* * *

 

Everything traced back to about an hour ago—

Cassion, alone in the Skarm Plateau, was on his third day of wandering.

He had finally found the cave, his destination.

The second trial, known as ‘The Path of the Dragon’, wasn’t as grand as the name implied.

It seemed that until a few hundred years ago, one actually had to encounter a dragon…

But over time, the method of the test changed, unable to find the owner of the sacred relic.

The new test, in the land known as Skarm Plateau, involved fetching the ‘Tears of the Dragon’—a transparent blue gemstone, found only in a specific cave of the highlands.

But, the test was by no means as easy as it sounded.

The vastness of the Skarm Plateau made finding the cave a headache, especially with its distinct lack of any landmarks.

Even Cassion, with his abilities, couldn’t avoid wandering.

But finally, he found it.

Entering the cave, he mined the Tears of the Dragon with the pickaxe he brought.

Passing the second trial was a mere formality now, as long as he returned home safely.

‘Let’s head back.’

Finding the gemstone brought up buried worries and anxieties.

Rosetta had predicted that Daniel and Leo might target him while he was away for the second trial.

But these past three days, he hadn’t seen as much as an ant, let alone any sign of an attack.

It was a relief, but given how unsettlingly quiet it was, it’s no different from the calm before a storm.

‘Right. I should head back.’

Cassion rechecked the gemstone he had gathered and quickly exited the cave.

And at that moment—

BOOM!

A giant flame struck the ground.

Right where he had been standing.

Had he not rolled away in time, the crater could have been his grave.

Cassion, calming his startled breath, surveyed the area.

Soon, one by one, figures in black cloaks appeared.

They did not seem to care about hiding their presence.

Confident, perhaps?

‘Indeed, that spell… was powerful.’

Not as much as him or Leo, but certainly above average for mages.

Had there been such individuals before?

As he pondered, another flame from a different direction flew in.

He rolled away again.

Then came ice.

Electrically charged water.

Monster plants sprouting from the ground.

The attacks came relentlessly, each one powerful.

A quick count suggested more than twelve proficient mages here.

‘Strange.’

Cassion gasped for breath, thinking.

If there were so many skilled individuals, he should recognize at least one…

But strangely, not a single one was familiar.

‘Then, there’s only one way.’

Let’s look at their faces.

Cassion calmly countered the attacks and then, in a swift moment, twisted and yanked off the cloak of the nearest attacker.

“…What?!”

Cassion was shocked.

The face under the cloak was completely unexpected.

More specifically, the ‘state’ of the man in the cloak.

Blue veins protruding over pallid skin.

Darkened, slightly larger irises than a normal human.

Blue lips.

Long, sharp nails glimpsed as he adjusted the cloak.

It was, in every sense, a living monster.

 

* * *

 

‘Monsters made from the living?’

Until now, the blue monsters he had seen were all made from the ‘dead’.

They couldn’t communicate, their bodies were bluish-black, and they moved more on instinct than reason.

But these were different.

They moved like a well-organized group.

Reacting to Cassion’s moves, they quickly changed their tactics among themselves.

That’s what made them more troublesome.

But it didn’t mean Cassion had no chance of winning.

Thanks to Rosetta, he had been through numerous real battles and spars, and his body overflowed with mana.

At first, Cassion seemed to be pushed back, but gradually he overwhelmed the enemies with his dominating momentum.

The number of wounds on Cassion’s body was far less than those on his enemies.

And the wounds on the enemies were much deeper.

Damn it.

He’s too strong.

Whispers like these were occasionally heard.

Gaining confidence, Cassion pressed on, overpowering the cloaked figures.

Struggling to fend off his attacks, the group in black cloaks exchanged glances.

Already, four of them lay sprawled on the ground.

In their already disadvantaged state, losing more would be a severe blow.

“Has there been no contact from him yet?”

“We should have heard from him by now…! It’s getting too hard to hold on!”

While the remaining ones whispered to each other, Cassion’s hand was ablaze with a bright blue flame.

“Wait!”

As the snake-like blue flame danced closer, the man at the front of the group reached out his hand, yelling.

The gaping flame serpent halted right before his nose.

“What? Decided to surrender now?”

The man swallowed hard.

He had confidently called for a halt, but the awaited contact had not yet arrived.

As he racked his brains for what to say next, a vibration suddenly came from his wrist.

“…It’s here!”

His mutter was mixed with relief.

Cassion cocked his head, gathering his strength again.

It seemed they were just trying to buy time with some trivial matter.

He had no time to play along.

He was eager to finish this and see Rosetta.

But the triumphant voice that followed made Cassion hold back his power.

“If you want to save Rosetta Valentine, it would be wise to surrender.”

It was the last name he wanted to hear from the enemy’s mouth.

Flames flickered behind Cassion’s eyes.

In a blink, he moved to the front of the group and grabbed the collar of the man who had just spoken.

“What nonsense are you spouting?”

His rough voice growled, sending a wave of murderous intent.

The mage, caught by the collar, involuntarily shut his eyes, then realizing they had the upper hand, he opened them wide.

“This… will be less fun, won’t it? Don’t you care what happens to that woman?”

“She’s not someone who would be caught by the likes of you.”

The sneering growl was soon followed by mockery.

“Really now?”

The man in the black cloak grinned slyly, lifting his wrist. On his wrist was a bracelet, but instead of an ornament, it had a small mirror attached to it.

Cassion naturally turned his head to look into the mirror.

Soon, the mirror began to ripple.

Instead of reflecting Cassion’s red eyes, the mirror showed a different scene.

A vast plain, with a small mobile prison standing alone.

And trapped inside…

“Rosetta…”

“Now you see how the situation is unfolding, don’t you?”

With a sneering voice, Cassion glared fiercely at the man.

But from the moment he saw Rosetta captured, there was nothing Cassion could do.

He slowly relaxed his grip on the man’s collar.

“Cough, cough!”

The man, having regained his breath, grinned wickedly.

“Don’t worry. Before dying, you’ll get to see her face one last time. Now…”

Kneel.

Despite the somewhat insulting command, Cassion’s fists clenched, but that was all.

He took a couple of steps back and then heavily knelt on both knees.

He knew what was likely to come next, yet he felt no fear.

Only one thought occupied his mind.

‘…Wait for me, Rosetta. I’ll come to save you soon.’

Thwack!

A dull sound echoed near his head.