The Great Mage Returns After 4000 Years (Web Novel KR)

He didn’t give a very striking impression. His hazy blond hair resembled dusty gold. This didn’t mean it shined. It more had the appearance of a treasure that had been neglected for a long time. But the thing that made the greatest impression on her was the colour and depth of the man’s eyes.

“…”

Sama Ryeong couldn’t keep looking at the eyes of this man which seemed to lack even the slightest glimmer of light. Because her chest began to feel stuffy and her head throbbed.

She was beginning to hear the voices of her ‘other selves’, the possibilities that she’d obtained in this place. It was as if the madness, which had faded since she’d left the dump site, had reappeared.

“…did you say 4,000 years?”

The man who spoke in a heavy voice was Haspin, the man who had the appearance of a devil. He stared at the skeleton with a hollow gaze.

“I would like to ask you something, skeleton.”

[What is it?]

“I would like to know if you know what 4,000 years means.”

Haspin’s doubts resonated with the hearts of all the people in the dark room.

But the skeleton responded in a low voice.

[I know. It is a long time, 1,460,000 days.]

“Kikiki… No. You, a walking corpse, could not know. 4,000 years in the dump site is much harsher.”

The man in the white coat, Daihad, smiled twistedly.

“The atmosphere paralyses the mind and penetrates deep into the brain. After analysing it myself, I concluded that it is impossible to fully adapt to this energy.” (TL: Self-proclaimed specialists are the worst.)

[…]

“This was probably intentional by the Corpse Ghost. If it weren’t for such restrictions, many people would stay in the dump site forever.”

Daihad’s words weren’t entirely wrong.

If it weren’t for the pressure of madness, Sama Ryeong would have stayed for at least a few more years.

The skeleton didn’t respond. She couldn’t tell if it was because he’d hit the nail on the head, or if it was for some other reason.

Daihad didn’t seem particularly interested in obtaining certainty in his conjecture. His eyes were shining for a different reason.

“Personally, I’m more curious about how you’re able to accurately measure the independent flows of time so accurately while being out here… But of course, you wouldn’t tell me that, right, skeleton?”

[That’s right.]

The skeleton responded bluntly before continuing.

[There are no abnormalities in my measurement. Lukas Trowman, from Universe Number 273136, has spent around 4,000 years in the dump site.]

The reason he said it again could also be taken as a firm expression of his intention to not speak about this further.

The mantis bobbed its head and exclaimed.

“Wo-, wow. Then doesn’t that mean that is an amazing feat?”

Its forelegs, which were like scythes, waved wildly.

“4,000 years, 4,000 years! That’s long enough to be called history! I’m really impressed! A guy like me almost died after just 3 years… uh, honestly, I can’t even imagine how he survived.”

“Well. Just because he survived for a long time doesn’t mean he’s that great.”

The mantis titled its head at Daihad’s words.

“What do you mean?”

“Look at that guy’s eyes. There is hardly any emotion in them, let alone thought. The AI robot I developed is probably more human than he is.”

“Like a robot with artificial intelligence?”

“Yeah, something like that.”

Daihad laughed.

“If you sacrificed your ego and emotions, the passage of 4,000 years would probably feel like a moment. After all, the passage of time doesn’t matter to an inanimate object like a rock.”

“Huh? However, he’s not a rock, is he?”

“…you have a brain worthy of your outward appearance, don’t you?”

It was at this moment that Haspin, who had been silent all this while, spoke.

“So you’re saying that man killed his ego and passed the time by becoming like an inanimate object.”

“That is the most convincing hypothesis.”

Sama Ryeong quietly listened to their conversation.

The man named Daihad spoke without much regard, but it would be even more surprising if what he said was true.

Because that would make it seem as though that man, Lukas, had crossed a natural boundary.

‘I can’t tell what he’s thinking.’

The man named Lukas didn’t seem the slightest bit interested in the debate going on around him. He simply stood there with an expressionless face as if he was wearing a mask.

‘…is he strong?’

She couldn’t tell.

She didn’t feel anything from him.

Not that she couldn’t feel anything, she didn’t.

In other words, Lukas had no hidden power. Anyone in the room would be able to tell that.

Nevertheless, she wasn’t convinced that he was weak. Was it because she’d heard that he’d spent 4,000 years in the dump site? That certainly had something to do with it.

But there was one thing that was even stranger. That was Jacob’s attitude.

He was staring directly at Lukas, almost as if he wanted to pierce his face with his gaze.

This was very strange. She’d always heard that Wizards were very closed-minded and rarely showed interest in others.

[If that is all you have to ask, follow me.]

After saying that, the skeleton turned and began to walk in a certain direction. It was the entrance to the dark room. Sama Ryeong’s expression became strange. She couldn’t help but wonder if they were going back to the dump site.

Her doubts were resolved quickly as the skeleton grabbed the doorknob and opened it.

The landscape beyond the door was not the scene of the dump that Sama Ryeong remembered. Now that she thought about it, all of the people who had come through that door had come from different dump sites.

This door probably had some kind of power that allowed it to interfere with space and time.

Outside the door stretched a straight corridor. It wasn’t dark because something that appeared to be amethyst glowed lightly on the walls.

They walked down this corridor that had no windows.

“Wow. The floor is soft.”

“That amethyst… Ho. Interesting.”

Except for the mantis’ meaningless admiration and Daihad’s mumbling, only the sounds of footsteps could be heard. Aside from those two, the other members of the group seemed more reticent. The same was true for Sama Ryeong. However, she wanted to say that that only made her more cautious.

[We’re here.]

When the skeleton stopped and said those words, all but one turned to look at it questioningly. They seemed to have reached what appeared to be the end of the hallway, but they couldn’t see the entrance of another room. It was just a dead end.

“Here?”

[Get ready. You will be moving soon.]

“…”

Sama Ryeong sensed the change in the skeleton’s tone.

When the skeleton turned around, a strong presence that was different from before could be felt in its dark eye sockets.

[You have obtained many possibilities in this dump site.]

As soon as they heard that deep voice, the words Corpse Ghost appeared in everyone’s minds.

Sama Ryeong clenched her teeth slightly as she felt pressure as if someone was holding her heart.

Right. This was it. This was the momentum of a monster who stood on a completely different level even in the World of Void, one of the Twelve Void Lords.

Corpse Ghost was clearly a formidable monster. This could be seen from the fact that they were feeling such immense pressure from a skeleton, a mere foot soldier, whose body he was temporarily borrowing by some means.

[It is not something that can be easily obtained outside. I don’t think you have fully absorbed all of them yet, but there is no doubt that you have become better existences.]

“So what?”

Jacob grunted in a sharp voice.

“We used the power of your territory to become strong, so we have to give you something in return?”

[That is not what I want, Truth Seeker of the Magic Planet.]

“…”

[I do not need anything grandiose. If you can prove three things to me, you will be able to leave this place.]

“Three things?”

[The first, growth.]

As soon as Corpse Ghost said that, the surrounding landscape began to change.

‘Again.’

Sama Ryeong felt time and space being mixed together, just like when she’d first stepped through the door to the waiting room. Suddenly, she had a strong desire to challenge herself and resist. If she could resist this power, she felt like she would be able to gain a clue about how to resist the Everlasting Plum Sword, Yang In-hyun.

…She decided not to.

The dump site was Corpse Ghost’s territory. In other words, it could be said that Sama Ryeong’s right to live or die was in the hands of Corpse Ghost. If she were to act recklessly, she might end up losing her life like a bug. Of course, she’d never heard of such a thing happening.

“What do you mean by growth?”

Daihad stood calmly in the warped space and time and smiled twistedly.

Like Jacob, he also had a lack of hesitation towards one of the Twelve Void Lords.

This couldn’t be helped. By chance, everyone there followed one of the Twelve Void Lords.

They belonged to the most powerful groups in the world. And according to Sama Ryeong’s observation, they all held fairly high positions in their respective groups.

Even Sama Ryeong was the same, she was a member of the Seven Flowers, the most elite unit in Flower Mountain.

‘Except for one.’

Her eyes turned to Lukas again.

Only this man had no affiliation… Of course, she couldn’t jump to a conclusion so quickly, but that was the result of Sama Ryeong’s observations.

[It’s not difficult. You simply have to prove that the time you spent here was not wasted.]

“Hmm. So we have to show you how strong we’ve become.”

Daihad nodded his head in understanding.

The warping of time and space was a sign that they were changing location. They were probably going to a place where they could ‘show their growth more comfortably’.

She didn’t know what method it would be, but she could understand it as a test prepared by Corpse Ghost.

Her vision went dark. Now, she even found it hard to stand properly.

In the midst of this, Sama Ryeong turned to Corpse Ghost and spoke.

“There is something I’d like to ask.”

[Say it.]

“What if we don’t pass your benchmark?”

[That’s very simple.]

Corpse Ghost muttered in a low voice.

[There will be one more corpse added to the dump site.]

Eventually, the surrounding landscape changed completely.

* * *

A dense forest.

“…”

Sama Ryeong remained where she was, got down on one knee, and swept her hand across the ground. She grabbed a handful of coarse sand and rolled it in her palm to feel the texture before even smelling it.

This immediately made it clear that this wasn’t a void image.

She brushed the sand off of her hand.

A single crescent moon hung in the cloudless sky.

Although it was midnight, this forest was surprisingly still. She couldn’t even hear the wind, let alone the sounds of nocturnal animals.

As for the others… she couldn’t see them.

Had they been taken to another place? Or were they scattered around this forest?

She couldn’t tell in the present situation.

She recalled Corpse Ghost’s words. He said they’d have to prove that their time spent was not wasted. That meant they’d have to show that they’d become stronger than they were before. This meant that Corpse Ghost was probably observing Sama Ryeong from somewhere. Just that thought made her a little uncomfortable.

Shaking her head, she searched for the tallest among the surrounding trees. Then, with a single leap, she soared tens of metres off of the ground without making a sound.

Eventually, Sama Ryeong was able to look around while standing on a branch that was thinner than her little finger.

‘It’s big.’

The forest was much bigger than she expected.

And… she could feel a lot of presences.

There were more than just one or two people. There were a lot more people than that wandering the forest. Easy opponents… she didn’t think there were any.

Five people.

Sama Ryeong remembered those who were with her in the dark room.

Except for one, she had a rough understanding of the others.

The devil from [The Pit], the scientist from [Futurix], the mantis from [The Colony], and the Wizard from [Magic Planet].

There was none among them that she could guarantee victory against. In other words, they probably also saw her as an enemy.

‘Am I supposed to fight them in this forest to prove myself? How much I’ve grown?’

That was certainly the most intuitive reasoning, but… something felt strange. For some reason, Sama Ryeong had a feeling of incongruity.

At that moment.

She felt someone’s gaze from a short distance away. Sama Ryeong soon found the source of this gaze.

‘That…’

About 30 paces away.

Blue eyes could be seen through the leaves.

‘Lukas Trowman?’

Just as Sama Ryeong recalled the man’s name, the dark night sky lit up. This wasn’t because of moonlight. The crescent moon had been showing itself from the beginning. This was natural since there weren’t any clouds in the sky.

-Magic.

Hundreds of spells appeared at the same time, illuminating the surroundings.

There were many different kinds. A sharp awl made of ice, a blazing ball of flames, a spear of condensed lightning, a boulder the size of a house…

The spells were aimed toward Sama Ryeong with clear hostility. She didn’t know why, but it was clear that Lukas viewed her as an enemy.

“…”

There was no reason for her to avoid a one on one fight.

Sama Ryeong quietly drew her sword with a deep gaze.

(TL: For a swordsman, she’s not very observant…)