Everyone was at a loss for words after hearing Elena’s words.
“Hm...”
“Uh...”
“Then...”
Koo...
Sounds that were hard to decipher whether they were words or groans came out of everyone’s mouths. While in this state of shock, Hans spoke first.
“Could you explain in more detail? How could such a thing happen? We were told that Ms. Lyla would wake up safely if we use that device and go through the proper steps.”
“As I said before, the problem is that the World Tree’s mana had been strangely distorted. Although this is a device that controls the World Tree’s mana, the device ironically needs the World Tree’s mana to be activated too. Therefore, if something happens to the source of World Tree’s mana, a problem arises with the device too.”
“But Ms. Lyla sent you a new method just now.”
“It’s a method that forcefully activates the device even while it's out of control. Obviously, that could produce unreliable results.”
“Since it’s unstable, are you saying that Ms. Lyla’s self-identity will disappear?”
“If we fail, it will be the same as us forcing her awake. You also know, Mr. Hans, that if we awaken Ms. Lyla by force right now, her self-identity will be erased.”
Since Elena was placed in charge of overseeing the Brushel System, Zich had explained to Hans and the others the current situation as much as necessary. Thus, everyone knew what would happen to Lyla if they forced her awake.
“If Ms. Lyla sent you that method, then that must really be the only possible method....” Hans muttered.
“Can we wait until Sir Zich comes?” Snoc suggested. The others agreed with him. They thought Zich would be able to come up with a better solution, which showed the depth of their trust in Zich. Furthermore, Elena’s grandfather, Walwiss Dwayne, was also in Zich’s party. Even if Elena possessed great knowledge in magic and showed progress unthinkable of a mage who had just begun to practically use magic, her experience and knowledge couldn’t compare to Walwiss’ expertise. Yet, Elena’s next words shot this idea down.
“According to the information Teacher sent me, Sir Zich is also facing great difficultly right now.”
“Great difficulty? But we pulled away quite a lot of enemies according to the plan. Since the teleportation circle stopped activating too, the mana heading to the tower was cut off. Was the man named Ultel such a strong enemy?”
“It’s not Ultel, but Glen Zenard.”
“Glen Zenard? What does that loser have to do with this?”
Though Glen Zenard was a skilled fighter, Hans had witnessed Zich utterly crushing Glen before and couldn’t imagine Glen causing great difficulties for Zich.
“For some reason, the World Tree’s mana is traveling into him, and the amount of mana Glen Zenard can currently wield is unimaginable. It’s so vast that even Sir Zich’s immense mana can’t compare to it.”
“Is that so?” Hans knew that this information probably came from Lyla too, and for her to send such clear information probably meant that Zich was seriously struggling at the moment.
“Teacher told me to wake her up immediately so that she can go help Sir Zich.”
“Didn’t you say it would be dangerous?”
“...Yes,” Elena said weakly. Hans fell into deep contemplation. He was the leader of this party, and one of the most important roles of a leader was to make a decision in times like these. In the end, Hans didn’t think for too long since he thought the answer was already decided for him.
“Elena.”
“Yes?”
“Let’s try it.”
Elena’s hands shook slightly.
“B-But...” This could possibly destroy the character and identity of the master she respected and loved. Hans understood her sentiments. He probably would’ve thought longer and harder if he were in the same situation as her.
“Don’t worry, Elena. No matter how urgent the situation is, there’s no way that Ms. Lyla would’ve ordered you to do something impossible. I’m sure you can do it.”
“But still...”
“This is the only choice we have right now. If time passes, do you think the system will stabilize and we can safely remove Ms. Lyla from it?”
“...I don’t know.” There was nothing about that in the information Lyla transferred to her, and this wasn’t something even Lyla could be certain about. When the last emperor of the Clowon Empire had gone mad and caused a great commotion, the only problem had been the emperor at that time, while the Brushel System her been intact. By contrast, Zich had messed up the very foundation of the Brushel System in order to stop Glen and Ultel. There was no guarantee that the system could regain stability. Instead, the system could change even more strangely and become beyond fixable.
Lara placed her hand on Elena’s shoulder and said, “Although I haven’t traveled with you all for long, I can say with certainty that Ms. Lyla had great trust in you. She always said that you had outstanding talent too. Just believe in the experience and learning you gained from your teacher.”
Elena’s eyes looked more and more determined, and she naturally turned to Snoc.
“If something happens, I’ll surely protect you,” Snoc said.
Koo!
When Elena saw Nowen lift his front leg off Snoc’s shoulder and shout in encouragement, she smiled slightly.
“I understand. I’ll do it.”
“Yes. You’ve made the right decision.” Hans nodded.
“But I need something first.”
“What is it? If it’s something I can get right now, I will go get it immediately.”
“First of all, I need Tornium.”
“This sword?” Lara asked. Ultel had handed Tornium to his subordinate to check the island, and that was now in her hands. Although most would’ve coveted such a precious sword that no other sword except Windur and Estellade could rival, Lara very easily handed the sword over to Elena.
“And I need both of your mana.”
“I’ll give you as much as you need.”
“Agreed.”
Elena nodded at Hans and Lara’s reliable words and looked at Snoc and Nowem. Then she said, “Nowem, you take their mana and put your own color into it and supply mana to me.”
Koo!
“Snoc, you need to help me with the control device.”
“Ah, will that be okay? I don’t know anything about the control device.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll show you how to do it. You’re at least a genius at sensing and controlling earth mana.”
Snoc nodded and agreed, then Elena turned around to look at the device. The gigantic size of the mechanical device, which had looked daunting so far, seemed a little smaller than before.
“Then let’s get started.” It was now time to wake up her beloved teacher.
***
Nowem had completely discarded his usual cute self and turned into a huge beast. Hans and Lara held Tornium’s handle together, and the tip of Tornium’s sword was pointed to the ground, touching Nowem’s heel.
“Ms. Lara and Mr. Hans, supply Nowem with your mana. You have to adjust the amount of mana you supply according to what I say. Nowem can make detailed adjustments, so you don’t have to control it precisely, but since mana amplified by Tornium is extremely rough and wild, it will be easier for Nowem if you two stay focused and pay extra attention.”
“Got it.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll do my best,” Hans replied.
Lara patted Nowem’s stiff fur and reassured Elena.
Kuruk! Nowem replied with his deeper and rougher voice.
“Nowem, you convert their mana into earth mana and supply it back to Snoc.”
Kuruk! Nowem answered succinctly and put his head on Snoc’s head.
“And Snoc.” Elena looked at Snoc this time.
“Yeah.”
“Follow my mana for now, and harmonize with mine when I tell you to. Got it?”
“Yeah, I’ll try my best.” Snoc sounded unsure since he had no experience with magic or complicated devices. However, the determination on his face was evident.
“That’s all you need to do.” Even though his control of other elements was piss poor, Snoc’s control over earth mana was unrivaled—as expected of a contractor of Nowem, the magical beast of the earth. It was to the extent that it rivaled Walwiss or even Zich.
‘Then it would be possible for him to precisely control the mana of two people amplified by Tornium.’
“Let’s get started.” Elena clasped Snoc’s hand and then touched the device. At Elena’s signal, Snoc also touched the device.
‘This is the control device of the Brushel System!’ He heard that it was an extremely important device, but since he didn’t think he would ever have to handle it or get directly involved, he had never been very interested in it. A little bit of curiosity now arose in his mind, but it was only for a few moments.
‘What is this...!’ Snoc was baffled by the world hidden inside the device. Using his mana, he could feel how terrifyingly complex it was. It was as if another forked road appeared less than ten steps after passing a forked road, and after passing this road, countless paths led to another forked road. In addition, they were not divided into two or three branches, but hundreds.
‘She’s trying to control the device by sending mana in passages like this?’ Snoc had always thought that mages were smart as he loooked at Lyla and Elena, and he was once more impressed by the intelligence of mages as he touched the device. ‘I’d never be able to do it.’
Snoc shook his head, but fortunately, he had a reliable and trustworthy guide to help him. Without Elena, he would definitely have lost his way and operated strange functions or broken the device shortly after injecting his mana. Elena’s mana led the way, and Snoc’s mana followed. Soon after, Snoc noticed a strange fact after a while.
‘Huh? How can there be absolutely no mana in all these passages?’ It was the same as building huge roads for people to use with not a single person walking on them.
‘Is this why the device wasn’t working?’ However, his thoughts soon changed. ‘This is...!’
“You can feel it too, right?”
Snoc gulped at the overwhelming presence felt beyond their mana. He now understood why Elena was so frustrated and devastated. It was a mountain, or it could be described as a hurricane, a tornado, a tsunami, or an earthquake. In any case, anything that possessed the overwhelming power and grandeur of nature would give a similar sense to what he felt in front of him. The World Tree’s mana was an astounding force of nature. However, the problem was that it was running wild through the device like a natural calamity that was about to strike.
“We need to stabilize that.”
“...That?”
Snoc had a deep respect for Zich and Lyla, and he was even willing to risk his life for them. However, being brave and having the capability to take action were completely different matters. Stabilizing the World Tree’s mana seemed no different than calming down a typhoon or blocking an exploding volcano.
“Don’t worry. I’m not telling you to destroy the mana flow or movement. That’s not even possible.”
“Yeah, definitely.” Snoc was really relieved to hear this.
“We need to control that movement to some extent.”
That also sounded incredibly difficult, but this was not the time to complain. Instead, he said, “I’m ready. Just tell me anytime.”
Elena nodded at Snoc’s words and said to Hans and Lara, “Please give us your mana now.”
It was now time to begin.