Since the second test was easily passed, he thought the third test could also be taken lightly.
But he lost his confidence as soon as he entered and saw the cave.
If it hadn’t been for you, Ruel could see himself as soon as he entered the cave.
‘Are you going to let me pass through right away this time?’
The third test to gain the power was seemingly simple, go to the end of the cave.
However, this place is called the Doppelganger’s Cave, and if you go inside, a person identical to you appears.
In the novel, only Ganien could reach the end of the cave and gain the power.
“You’re selfish, Ruel.”
Wouldn’t it be scary to hear your own voice talking to you like this?
However, Ruel ignored it and walked forward because he knew that the trial left by the hero was an illusion.
It was neither dark nor wet inside the cave, so there was no problem with walking.
“How many died for your wish? How selfish is this?”
“Aren’t you worried about how many people will be harmed by your presence? The Red Ash already attacked the mansion, what’s next? Apor? Sisel? There could be raids in any of the towns.”
“It’s hard, isn’t it? Isn’t that body frustrating? Why should you be the only one suffering? It hurts, it hurts again, don’t you want to let it all go?”
Although it was an illusion, the problem was it knew his situation too well, bringing up every private thought and flaw he had.
Ruel inhaled Breath.
“You must be anxious. You describe it as a leash, but you don’t trust anyone after all. All you have is a sick body. What do you have, Ruel?”
‘You talk a lot.’
In the novel, the cave was described as short, but it felt longer than I thought.
Illusions continued to appear, bringing out all the worries he had hidden in his mind.
Little by little, it became unpleasant.
“…!”
Ruel’s feet stopped.
The illusion had turned into Kim Han, not Ruel.
“Can you go back to your original place? Ruel, no, Kim Han. Why aren’t you scared when you’re stuck in a novel and don’t even know the end of it? Are you doing well? Are you overcoming it?”
Ruel was agitated for the first time.
“I know you more than anyone else.”
But that was it.
He was caught off guard by his old self for a moment.
“Get lost.”
Ruel passed by Kim Han with his middle finger raised.
It was only then that the end was visible.
‘It’s nothing.’
It was already in the past, regardless of what he said or not, pretending to be himself.
It was much too late for him to have any regrets about the past, it was more important to solve what was happening currently.
Cough. Cough.
Ruel grabbed some of the pieces of a fractured sculpture in front of him.
– You who possess the power of recovery and the power of resistance. You have successfully completed my test. Physical pain is not the only pain. Memories can dig within you at any time. No one can be free from the pain of memory. That’s why I chose you.
It was a very arrogant statement.
“No, I chose you.”
So, Ruel also corrected what the sculpture said with an arrogant expression.
– I will protect you from pain. I will hide you from pain and return your pain to the enemy who gave you pain.
The fragments permeated into Ruel’s body.
Wi-ing.
Wee-ing.
The two powers wept as if welcoming the new power.
‘The Power of Reflection.’
Ruel smiled mischievously.
It was a power that Ganien used instead of a shield, but Ruel planned to use it differently.
He built a strong wall on my body that couldn’t stand Mana.
Now his body was like a broken pipe.
When water is sourced through a broken pipe it can leak here and there, drenching the surroundings and when it rains, the foreign water will enter the pipe and pollute it.
It would be easier to change the pipe itself, but he was unable to do so. He could only block the holes here and there. It would fix some of the problems.
Using the power of reflection, Mana from the outside can be reflected from the inside to the outside.
Ruel closed his eyes for a moment and looked back at his Mana.
After increasing the power and stretching it quickly, it definitely will last longer.
“Ptui.”
Ruel spat out a little blood and raised the corners of his mouth.
All right, then.
As the power of reflection and resistance grows more and more, he will be able to use magic stably.
In order to live for himself was Ruel’s seventh goal.
Must be able to withstand mana.
Ruel turned around.
Now there was nothing to do here.
He stopped and stood tall.
– Stop gaining this power now.
“…?”
It was written in Mana.
Naturally, there was no unique color of mana that it should have.
‘What is this?’
Ruel opened his mouth.
“Cassion.”
“Yes.” Cassion replied, popping out of Ruel’s shadow.
“Who’s here?” Ruel asked, pointing to the handwriting.
Cassion couldn’t have known if someone had come.
“No one came.”
Cassion’s eyes sharpened.
There was only one thing that he had missed before.
Leo.
“Leo.”
At Ruel’s call, Leo jumped up and stood in front of Ruel.
Leo looked at Cassion with resentment.
—Why did you suddenly disappear? This body hates being alone. I learned from Ruel that it’s basic manners to talk before you go…
Sniff.
Leo smelled something and circled around the writing.
—This smell is close to nature but is human.
Leo tilted his head.
“Do you mean a spirit?”
—It’s not a spirit.
“Do you know where it went?”
—The smell still lingers.
He wagged his tail and moved after the smell.
Leo got out of the cave and headed for the forest.
Soon he stopped and looked at Ruel. His ears are drooping.
—It’s gone from here.
“There’s another writing.”
Cassion pointed to a mana inscription on a tree.
– Always stay with the Great Purifier.
– Stop gaining more of that power. Keep this in mind.
Ha, Ruel laughed.
“My head hurts.”
As Cassion said, my mind became complicated.
Someone knew Leo was a great purifier.
He also knew that Ruel had acquired the power left behind by the hero.
‘… Who the hell?’
If Cassion is an opponent that cannot be caught unaware, how strong are they? There was only one power left.
Ruel exhaled quietly as he watched the gradually disappearing writing.
***
‘… Another one has disappeared.’
The man looked at the two round tattoos on his body.
There were only two left.
***
Squish.
Cassion said as he offered hot water.
“I am ashamed of myself.”
The voice was heavy.
Ruel, staring blankly at the window, opened his mouth.
“I must know for sure whether it is an enemy or an ally because if you can’t protect me, my life is already wasted.”
As soon as Drianna saw Leo for the first time, she noticed the existence of the spirit.
The man who wrote Mana’s handwriting saw Leo, so he could notice that he was a spirit just like Drianna did.
If you look at it so broadly, there is a possibility that he might have noticed that Leo was a great purifier, even if you read it in a book or heard it somewhere.
But the power in his body.
Cassion, Ganien, and Uncle knew there was something, but they didn’t know what exactly.
I went to get the power left by the hero, but the burden increased significantly.
“Leo.”
Leo raised his face buried in a rice bowl and pricked his ears.
“You said he’s close to nature, what does that mean?”
Leo’s eyes rolled.
—He is human, but he doesn’t seem to be human. It smells like a spirit about to return to nature. To Spirits, returning to nature means death.
“So, what is it?”
Ruel didn’t understand when he heard it.
—I don’t know. But he is not a being outside of nature, so he is not a being that disturbs order.
“At least it’s not evil?”
—Right. Existences that are out of natural order must be purified by a great purifier. That is the task of this body.
Leo proudly uttered this sentence and then proceeded to bury his face in the bowl of rice.
Chomp. Chomp.
– Always stay with the Great Purifier.
Ruel tapped his thigh, recalling the words written in Mana.
‘If the great purifier’s job is to purify beings out of order, does that mean that someone against nature’s order will appear in the future? So you sent me that message? If not…’
The uncertainty was very uncomfortable.
“Leo, what exactly do you mean by out of natural order?”
Leo tilted his head from side to side and wagged his tail.
—Honestly, I don’t know. I just heard that you will know those who are out of nature’s order when you see it. This body…
Soon the wobbly tail stopped.
—This body, this body is a half-wit so it will be a big deal if a person who deviates from nature’s law appears because it cannot be purified!
He seemed to have just figured out the problem by moving left and right as if he were confused.
“Never mind. No one treats you like an idiot.”
—Right! You don’t treat this body as a fool here. So this body is very happy.
Leo’s tail wobbled again.
Ruel tapped his thigh again and turned his eyes to see the food in front of him.
It was not a problem to be solved by thinking unless the person who engraved the letter materialized.
‘Let’s eat, with what little of my appetite remains.’
“What did you get there?” Cassion, who was listening in on the conversation, asked.
Ruel immediately swallowed the meat in his mouth and held out an unused fork.
“Throw it gently.”
“No. It’s going to get stuck wherever I throw it.”
“Then just throw it near me.”
Cassion had no choice but to hold the fork because his heart would hurt if he refused further orders.
“What are you thinking? You know what happens when I attack Ruel-nim.”
“Don’t worry, throw it lightly.”
Cassion focused on his finger and threw it with force only slightly touching the hem of Ruel’s clothes.
Ting.
It was a very short moment, but Cassion saw a powder appear and push the fork.
It was different from magic.
“What’s that power?”
“The power of reflection.”
“Can magic also reflect?”
“I’m not sure.”
“How much force can you reflect?” Cassion’s voice was filled with concern.
The power of reflection.
It may sound like anything could be reflected by the tone, but there was no absolute power.
Especially when you’ve just gained strength, you’ll be very weak.
“Don’t worry. I don’t intend to use it like a shield, because I’m going to fill in the parts that my body lacks with that power.”
“You thought well. This has made it more bearable with mana. Congratulations.”
Cassion clapped his hands lightly.
“So, Cassion, let’s do a test. We need to figure out how much power this has. We have plenty of time, don’t you think?”
“We’ll start after the meal.”
Ruel laughed contentedly, inhaling Breath.
Since the second test was easily passed, he thought the third test could also be taken lightly.
But he lost his confidence as soon as he entered and saw the cave.
If it hadn’t been for you, Ruel could see himself as soon as he entered the cave.
‘Are you going to let me pass through right away this time?’
The third test to gain the power was seemingly simple, go to the end of the cave.
However, this place is called the Doppelganger’s Cave, and if you go inside, a person identical to you appears.
In the novel, only Ganien could reach the end of the cave and gain the power.
“You’re selfish, Ruel.”
Wouldn’t it be scary to hear your own voice talking to you like this?
However, Ruel ignored it and walked forward because he knew that the trial left by the hero was an illusion.
It was neither dark nor wet inside the cave, so there was no problem with walking.
“How many died for your wish? How selfish is this?”
“Aren’t you worried about how many people will be harmed by your presence? The Red Ash already attacked the mansion, what’s next? Apor? Sisel? There could be raids in any of the towns.”
“It’s hard, isn’t it? Isn’t that body frustrating? Why should you be the only one suffering? It hurts, it hurts again, don’t you want to let it all go?”
Although it was an illusion, the problem was it knew his situation too well, bringing up every private thought and flaw he had.
Ruel inhaled Breath.
“You must be anxious. You describe it as a leash, but you don’t trust anyone after all. All you have is a sick body. What do you have, Ruel?”
‘You talk a lot.’
In the novel, the cave was described as short, but it felt longer than I thought.
Illusions continued to appear, bringing out all the worries he had hidden in his mind.
Little by little, it became unpleasant.
“…!”
Ruel’s feet stopped.
The illusion had turned into Kim Han, not Ruel.
“Can you go back to your original place? Ruel, no, Kim Han. Why aren’t you scared when you’re stuck in a novel and don’t even know the end of it? Are you doing well? Are you overcoming it?”
Ruel was agitated for the first time.
“I know you more than anyone else.”
But that was it.
He was caught off guard by his old self for a moment.
“Get lost.”
Ruel passed by Kim Han with his middle finger raised.
It was only then that the end was visible.
‘It’s nothing.’
It was already in the past, regardless of what he said or not, pretending to be himself.
It was much too late for him to have any regrets about the past, it was more important to solve what was happening currently.
Cough. Cough.
Ruel grabbed some of the pieces of a fractured sculpture in front of him.
– You who possess the power of recovery and the power of resistance. You have successfully completed my test. Physical pain is not the only pain. Memories can dig within you at any time. No one can be free from the pain of memory. That’s why I chose you.
It was a very arrogant statement.
“No, I chose you.”
So, Ruel also corrected what the sculpture said with an arrogant expression.
– I will protect you from pain. I will hide you from pain and return your pain to the enemy who gave you pain.
The fragments permeated into Ruel’s body.
Wi-ing.
Wee-ing.
The two powers wept as if welcoming the new power.
‘The Power of Reflection.’
Ruel smiled mischievously.
It was a power that Ganien used instead of a shield, but Ruel planned to use it differently.
He built a strong wall on my body that couldn’t stand Mana.
Now his body was like a broken pipe.
When water is sourced through a broken pipe it can leak here and there, drenching the surroundings and when it rains, the foreign water will enter the pipe and pollute it.
It would be easier to change the pipe itself, but he was unable to do so. He could only block the holes here and there. It would fix some of the problems.
Using the power of reflection, Mana from the outside can be reflected from the inside to the outside.
Ruel closed his eyes for a moment and looked back at his Mana.
After increasing the power and stretching it quickly, it definitely will last longer.
“Ptui.”
Ruel spat out a little blood and raised the corners of his mouth.
All right, then.
As the power of reflection and resistance grows more and more, he will be able to use magic stably.
In order to live for himself was Ruel’s seventh goal.
Must be able to withstand mana.
Ruel turned around.
Now there was nothing to do here.
He stopped and stood tall.
– Stop gaining this power now.
“…?”
It was written in Mana.
Naturally, there was no unique color of mana that it should have.
‘What is this?’
Ruel opened his mouth.
“Cassion.”
“Yes.” Cassion replied, popping out of Ruel’s shadow.
“Who’s here?” Ruel asked, pointing to the handwriting.
Cassion couldn’t have known if someone had come.
“No one came.”
Cassion’s eyes sharpened.
There was only one thing that he had missed before.
Leo.
“Leo.”
At Ruel’s call, Leo jumped up and stood in front of Ruel.
Leo looked at Cassion with resentment.
—Why did you suddenly disappear? This body hates being alone. I learned from Ruel that it’s basic manners to talk before you go…
Sniff.
Leo smelled something and circled around the writing.
—This smell is close to nature but is human.
Leo tilted his head.
“Do you mean a spirit?”
—It’s not a spirit.
“Do you know where it went?”
—The smell still lingers.
He wagged his tail and moved after the smell.
Leo got out of the cave and headed for the forest.
Soon he stopped and looked at Ruel. His ears are drooping.
—It’s gone from here.
“There’s another writing.”
Cassion pointed to a mana inscription on a tree.
– Always stay with the Great Purifier.
– Stop gaining more of that power. Keep this in mind.
Ha, Ruel laughed.
“My head hurts.”
As Cassion said, my mind became complicated.
Someone knew Leo was a great purifier.
He also knew that Ruel had acquired the power left behind by the hero.
‘… Who the hell?’
If Cassion is an opponent that cannot be caught unaware, how strong are they? There was only one power left.
Ruel exhaled quietly as he watched the gradually disappearing writing.
***
‘… Another one has disappeared.’
The man looked at the two round tattoos on his body.
There were only two left.
***
Squish.
Cassion said as he offered hot water.
“I am ashamed of myself.”
The voice was heavy.
Ruel, staring blankly at the window, opened his mouth.
“I must know for sure whether it is an enemy or an ally because if you can’t protect me, my life is already wasted.”
As soon as Drianna saw Leo for the first time, she noticed the existence of the spirit.
The man who wrote Mana’s handwriting saw Leo, so he could notice that he was a spirit just like Drianna did.
If you look at it so broadly, there is a possibility that he might have noticed that Leo was a great purifier, even if you read it in a book or heard it somewhere.
But the power in his body.
Cassion, Ganien, and Uncle knew there was something, but they didn’t know what exactly.
I went to get the power left by the hero, but the burden increased significantly.
“Leo.”
Leo raised his face buried in a rice bowl and pricked his ears.
“You said he’s close to nature, what does that mean?”
Leo’s eyes rolled.
—He is human, but he doesn’t seem to be human. It smells like a spirit about to return to nature. To Spirits, returning to nature means death.
“So, what is it?”
Ruel didn’t understand when he heard it.
—I don’t know. But he is not a being outside of nature, so he is not a being that disturbs order.
“At least it’s not evil?”
—Right. Existences that are out of natural order must be purified by a great purifier. That is the task of this body.
Leo proudly uttered this sentence and then proceeded to bury his face in the bowl of rice.
Chomp. Chomp.
– Always stay with the Great Purifier.
Ruel tapped his thigh, recalling the words written in Mana.
‘If the great purifier’s job is to purify beings out of order, does that mean that someone against nature’s order will appear in the future? So you sent me that message? If not…’
The uncertainty was very uncomfortable.
“Leo, what exactly do you mean by out of natural order?”
Leo tilted his head from side to side and wagged his tail.
—Honestly, I don’t know. I just heard that you will know those who are out of nature’s order when you see it. This body…
Soon the wobbly tail stopped.
—This body, this body is a half-wit so it will be a big deal if a person who deviates from nature’s law appears because it cannot be purified!
He seemed to have just figured out the problem by moving left and right as if he were confused.
“Never mind. No one treats you like an idiot.”
—Right! You don’t treat this body as a fool here. So this body is very happy.
Leo’s tail wobbled again.
Ruel tapped his thigh again and turned his eyes to see the food in front of him.
It was not a problem to be solved by thinking unless the person who engraved the letter materialized.
‘Let’s eat, with what little of my appetite remains.’
“What did you get there?” Cassion, who was listening in on the conversation, asked.
Ruel immediately swallowed the meat in his mouth and held out an unused fork.
“Throw it gently.”
“No. It’s going to get stuck wherever I throw it.”
“Then just throw it near me.”
Cassion had no choice but to hold the fork because his heart would hurt if he refused further orders.
“What are you thinking? You know what happens when I attack Ruel-nim.”
“Don’t worry, throw it lightly.”
Cassion focused on his finger and threw it with force only slightly touching the hem of Ruel’s clothes.
Ting.
It was a very short moment, but Cassion saw a powder appear and push the fork.
It was different from magic.
“What’s that power?”
“The power of reflection.”
“Can magic also reflect?”
“I’m not sure.”
“How much force can you reflect?” Cassion’s voice was filled with concern.
The power of reflection.
It may sound like anything could be reflected by the tone, but there was no absolute power.
Especially when you’ve just gained strength, you’ll be very weak.
“Don’t worry. I don’t intend to use it like a shield, because I’m going to fill in the parts that my body lacks with that power.”
“You thought well. This has made it more bearable with mana. Congratulations.”
Cassion clapped his hands lightly.
“So, Cassion, let’s do a test. We need to figure out how much power this has. We have plenty of time, don’t you think?”
“We’ll start after the meal.”
Ruel laughed contentedly, inhaling Breath.
