**#176. Wilderness (3)**
—
“Hello.”
A clear voice rang through the air.
Just like her vintage attire, the voice was out of place amidst the desolate scenery of the wilderness.
Ray thought he understood now.
That imposing presence—the reason the expedition members shrank back whenever they passed by the noblewoman.
“I heard you two were the last mages to join the expedition. I was wondering if we could perhaps share a meal and talk together.”
An unexpected proposal to join them.
Startled, Veronica and Jang stopped eating and turned to Ray, the de facto decision-maker of their group.
“……”
Ray, while observing the noblewoman, waved his hand through the air.
At his gesture, foldable chairs flew out from the luggage compartment on the side of the bus and unfolded themselves neatly around the table.
Clack! Clack!
Not one, but three chairs.
“Oh my, thank you. Even chairs for my disciples. Bring our meals over, will you?”
The two disciples approached the table, bowed politely, and took their seats.
Both had unremarkable appearances and looked to be around seventeen or eighteen.
…A familiar feeling.
During the war with Allager.
The emotion he felt after encountering the yellow gemstone slumbering underground was one of profound longing and joy.
And now, he was feeling that exact same emotion as he looked at these three.
What was it?
Could this strange trio be carrying a shard of the Rainbow?
If so, it should have already been detected by his senses.
The gemstone, unlike mana from the atmosphere or the circles, contained an exceptionally pure type of mana.
“……”
Ray calmly observed them.
Only one of the three had a circle, while the other two were composed entirely of green mana.
“Dear girl, could we borrow some utensils?”
“Ah, yes! Here you go!”
“Pleased to meet you. I’m Chepel, a disciple of Lady Grine.”
“Hello. I’m Yeren.”
“Just call me Jang.”
They naturally merged into the meal.
At a glance, it seemed they were only conversing with Veronica and Jang, but Ray’s keen senses caught it.
Their attention, subtly but completely, was focused only on him.
‘Veronica and Jang aren’t their real targets.’
Sorting through the clues and eliminating possibilities, Ray quickly arrived at the most likely conclusion.
‘They sensed the presence of my gemstone.’
The mix of curiosity and confusion in the other mage’s emotional aura.
The sidelong glances, as if trying to confirm something.
And an undeniable intuition that tied all the evidence together.
He couldn’t tell how they detected the gemstone, which was currently inactive within his body.
But there was no doubt now that the noblewoman and her disciples were entities to be wary of.
…They didn’t show hostility, but their identities were still uncertain.
Then the noblewoman asked,
“Do you two have a particular reason for joining the expedition? I didn’t get the sense it was purely for money.”
“That’s not really what you want to ask, is it?”
All eyes suddenly turned toward Ray.
He realized the words had just come out of his mouth.
‘What the…?’
Why had he spoken out loud without meaning to?
Looking down at his bowl, Ray noticed a powerful emotion dancing wildly within.
Like sliding uncontrollably across an icy surface, the emotion had tossed his caution aside.
…A massive surge of curiosity.
He needed to restrain himself.
They didn’t know who the other side really was yet, so he needed to proceed carefully—
“Wouldn’t it be better to just get to the main point, since we both have things we’re curious about?”
—Too late for that now.
As Veronica would say, curiosity had gotten the better of him.
Ray looked the noblewoman in the eyes, as if he’d intended to take a bold approach from the beginning.
She smiled.
“Interesting. I’ve heard your name from Mr. Gaiole. You’re Ray, right? What do you think I’m curious about?”
“The Rainbow, right?”
“Correct. You have good instincts. To elaborate, I have a deep interest in the history of forgotten things. The Rainbow is one of them.”
“Do you know much about it?”
“I’d say I know more than most.”
The conversation between Ray and the noblewoman flowed smoothly.
Only Veronica and Jang looked flustered, unable to keep up.
“You must have done a lot of research.”
“More than the average person. And you, Ray—you seem very interested in the Rainbow too?”
With each exchange, the feelings of longing and joy within Ray grew rapidly.
Unable to contain them anymore, he asked,
“Do you possess a Rainbow Fragment?”
A brief silence followed.
The noblewoman smiled gently, like a mother indulging a child asking for candy.
“Before I answer that, would you mind introducing yourself briefly, Ray?”
“I’m searching for the Rainbow. And I think I’m sixteen years old.”
Veronica’s eyes widened in shock when Ray revealed his true purpose.
“You’re searching for the Rainbow. That’s quite something at your age. So… have you found it?”
“I asked first.”
Another short silence.
Then the noblewoman spoke.
“We’re both curious about each other. But it seems we’re also both avoiding giving answers. How about this?”
“What do you have in mind?”
“You have a simple duel with one of my disciples. The loser answers the winner’s question.”
“What kind of duel?”
“Well, since we’re in the middle of an expedition, we can’t risk anyone getting hurt.”
With a flick of her hand, the green mana dispersed in the air converged into a single point.
As pressure was applied—
*Fzzzt─!*
Tree root-like forms extended in every direction.
Each root writhed and moved as if it were a living creature.
“I’ve created a mana network using the elements of growth and expansion. As you probably know, these elements are highly fluid and, once pressured, are difficult to stop or control.”
She formed another root structure from the green mana.
“The duel is simple. Whoever stabilizes their mana network first wins. My disciples are both first-circle mages. I heard Ray is as well. Sounds fair, don’t you think?”
Veronica looked at Ray anxiously.
This was not a fair duel.
As far as she knew, Ray had never worked with such a complex form of mana network.
Meanwhile, the noblewoman’s disciples were likely well-practiced.
Their confidence was written all over their faces.
In duels like this, experience made all the difference.
*Ray, just refuse! If you’re going to duel, pick something else!*
After exchanging a glance with Veronica, Ray nodded and spoke.
“Let’s do it.”
No, that’s not what I meant!
Veronica barely stopped herself from shouting.
The noblewoman looked slightly surprised at Ray’s immediate acceptance.
“Are you sure? Is this really how you want to do it?”
“The method doesn’t matter, but we should start soon. We don’t have much time before the vehicle leaves.”
With that, the meal was temporarily halted and the duel began.
Ray and Yeren each chose a mana network to control and waited.
“Then at the signal, begin interfering with the mana—”
“I have a suggestion.”
Ray interrupted.
“Yes? What is it?”
“We probably won’t have time for multiple rounds. What if we each get to ask three questions instead of one?”
“That’s fine. I don’t mind.”
“Thanks.”
“No, thank you.”
Ray focused on the mana network in front of him and waited for the noblewoman’s signal.
A duel using ambient mana.
The first memory that came to mind was his bet with Graham in Sector 49.
A kind of tug-of-war using orbs of gray mana suspended in the air.
He had lost more than a few of those duels.
Back then, he lacked both the knowledge and the experience, so it was understandable.
He still didn’t know much about the structure of mana bodies—
…but he didn’t think he could lose now.
Because—
A wild, uncontrollable emotion tied to green mana was running rampant in his vessel.
“Begin.”
“It’s done.”
Ray spoke at the same time.
“Huh?”
“I said it’s done.”
Ray’s mana structure was completely still.
Every root, once writhing wildly, was now frozen in place under his control.
“How… is this possible…?”
For the first time, the noblewoman’s composure cracked.
“Wow…”
Yeren, who had been Ray’s opponent, couldn’t close her mouth as she sensed the stillness of Ray’s mana structure.
Chepel and Veronica, watching from the sidelines, were no less shocked.
Of course, one of them was overwhelmed with pride and admiration, while the other was simply stunned.
“I can ask my questions now, right?”
It took a moment for the noblewoman to collect herself.
“Yes… yes, go ahead.”
“Do you possess a Rainbow Shard?”
“Hm… I can’t give a clear answer. I do and I don’t, at the same time.”
Veronica’s pupils shook as she leaned toward Ray and whispered.
“What does that even mean? How can you have it and not have it?”
“……”
Ray didn’t know either.
But after examining the emotions in the noblewoman’s vessel—
‘She’s not lying.’
She had simply evaded the question skillfully.
Without complaint, Ray asked his next question.
“Who are you?”
Though he addressed the noblewoman, his gaze had subtly shifted to Yeren.
No one noticed.
The noblewoman hesitated briefly before answering.
“A curious human, trying to uncover hidden history. Does that answer your question?”
Ray nodded and turned to Veronica, who was watching the conversation like it made no sense.
“Veronica, don’t you have anything you’re curious about?”
“Uh, me? Um…”
After several minutes of thought, she cautiously asked,
“Do you… have any thoughts about the Black Rain?”
The noblewoman’s expression darkened instantly.
Like a sky overtaken by storm clouds.
—
The expedition resumed its journey across the wilderness after the meal.
*Rattle! Rattle!*
Ray stared out the window of the shaking bus.
The sky was cloudy, as if rain might fall.
“……”
The mana in the air was tangled and chaotic, like pigments swirled into oil.
Then Demper’s voice came through the radio.
—Kid, stay sharp. From here on, nothing would be surprising.
“Copy.”
He didn’t need to be told.
The increasing density of mana outside the window was proof enough.
After all, natural phenomena were essentially chemical reactions caused by elemental forces.
And in reverse, abnormal mana distribution could cause unnatural phenomena.
*Like lightning erupting from the ground. A flaming tornado. Or even a rift in space-time…*
Such events, born from violent mana collisions, were called “Mana Crashes.”
A term that lingered in the memories he had absorbed from Binjin.
*Which is why wild animals undergo large-scale mutations in these zones. Like…*
*BOOM!*
—It’s here!
A thunderous explosion and an urgent call on the radio.
Ray immediately stood and turned to Veronica.
“Veronica, prepare a barrier.”
“Got it!”
He opened the hatch on the second floor of the bus and climbed to the roof.
*Whoooosh—!*
Using strength enhancement on his legs, he braced against the fierce wind.
Then—
He turned and saw it.
A massive beast bursting from the ground, rapidly closing the distance with the bus.
*FWOOM!*
A fireball bloomed in Ray’s hand and began to swell rapidly.
