The Great Mage Returns After 4000 Years

“Frey Blake.”

His breathing was ragged, making it difficult to even utter a mere two words properly.

At that moment, the emotionless eyes turned toward him.

“You are-”

Frey’s gaze narrowed slightly, as if analyzing him, then he gave a slight nod.

“You are one of the most distinct faces in my memory.”

“…What do you mean by that?”

“Exactly what I said.”

Despite the cold voice, Residue found it difficult to remain calm.

“What brings you here?”

“I did say I had been searching for a long time, didn’t I? Though it was more of a muttered remark, to continue, yes. I came here because I was looking for something.”

At those words, his heart sank.

Could it be that Frey was a watcher sent by Lukas?

Did Lukas send him to check whether he was properly carrying out his tasks…?

The moment such doubts arose, Residue felt an emotion he had never experienced before. Standing here felt uncomfortable and burdensome, and he had the impulse to break down the door and flee at once.

Shame.

It was a weak emotion, one he wouldn’t have felt if he didn’t consider himself disgraceful, and yet he experienced it despite not even standing face-to-face with Lukas himself.

“…Do you have something to say to me?”

The only reason he was able to turn the situation around by asking in that manner was because he still had remnants of his pride left.

At that, Frey—or at least, that was what he was calling himself—looked puzzled.

“Something to say to you? Me?”

Then, he shook his head firmly.

“I have nothing of the sort.”

“Then why are you here…?”

At that moment, Residue realized that ever since Frey had arrived, he had not been the one Frey was focusing on.

“I could sense they were in this vicinity, but I didn’t know the exact location. So I decided to search every city nearby one by one, but to think they would be in the first city I checked. In crude terms, would you call this… ‘dumb luck’?” Ꞧ𝙖Ɲỗ𝖇Ês

He had no interest in the foolish jargon of mortals.

Residue heightened his vigilance and spoke.

“What nonsense are you spouting? Who are you? And what is your goal…?”

“Calm yourself. As you can see, I only have one mouth and one tongue, so I lack the ability to answer multiple questions at once.”

“……”

“I apologize for the late introduction. I am the Apostle of the First Destruction… hmm.”

After a brief moment of contemplation, Frey continued.

“My name is Frey Blake.”

His expression twisted slightly, as if rolling rough grains of sand around on his tongue. His reaction was somewhat awkward for an intelligent being, it was as if he was not accustomed to saying his own name.

“So, how should I address you? Your real name? Or the name of that body? Perhaps a name you held in the past, or another name you are currently using, any would be fine. If you have a preference, I will comply.”

“Call me whatever you want. More importantly, tell me who you really are and what your purpose is.”

It was then that Residue realized his sleeve was trembling. But it was not he himself who was shaking.

Luca’s face was filled with fear.

“H-hyung. We have to run.”

“What?”

“That man is dangerous.”

“Hmm…”

Frey stroked his chin, gazing at Luca as if observing something.

“I don’t know what criteria you’re using to assess danger, but I don’t think I’m the person you should be saying that to.”

Did the two of them know each other?

Perhaps sensing the question on Residue’s face, Frey opened his mouth again.

“I am-”

Boom!

In an instant, Frey’s body bent violently as if he had been struck by something, and he was hurled backward with immense force. The impact was so fierce that not only did the asphalt wall Residue had constructed collapse like a sandcastle, but even the hallway wall shattered.

Residue’s gaze turned to Luca.

“Was that you?”

“……”

If so, it was unbelievable.

Residue hadn’t foreseen what had just happened. That meant if Luca had truly been the one responsible, he hadn’t noticed her intent to attack until the very moment she acted.

“Run.”

Without giving him a chance to respond, Luca grabbed his hand and started running.

And for some reason, Residue couldn’t bring himself to resist that touch.

***

They ran through the rain-drenched streets, their sprint continuing until they entered the interior of a building.

It was a place that had long been untouched by human hands.

A cracked floor with wild grass growing fiercely between the gaps, shattered windows…

Thudududuk-

But the most unique feature was the glass ceiling. Fortunately, it seemed sturdy enough to keep the torrential rain at bay, but as a result, the noise was much louder.

“Haa, haa…”

Luca panted heavily. Soaked in rain and sweat, she looked wretched and pitiful, but Residue couldn’t help speaking in a cold tone.

“Why did you run away?”

“……”

Luca kept her lips tightly shut.

Was it from the cold, or from fear? She was still trembling.

“I… don’t know.”

“You knew who that man was just now, didn’t you?”

“…I don’t.”

“If you don’t know him, then why did you run?”

“……”

Residue voiced a possibility he was reluctant to acknowledge.

“Did you deceive me?”

At that, Luca’s head snapped up. Her eyes, on the verge of tears, stared at Residue.

“No.”

“Then why?”

“I just… just felt like I had to…”

Residue fell silent.

He wouldn’t be fooled by tears. His knowledge and experience ran too deep for that. The same went for the voice laced with emotion.

The likelihood that Luca was lying was high. Probably from the very beginning.

Realizing that, a cold sneer rose from deep within him.

So even this mortal, whom he believed he had figured out completely, had been toying with him?

“You must know how absurd your claim sounds. If you want me to believe you, at least give me an explanation.”

Thududuk…

The sound of the rain grew louder. Only silence filled the space between them.

Luca lifted her head.

She seemed to be gazing at the glass ceiling where the raindrops fell, but her eyes were fixed beyond it.

Beyond the falling rain, the dark storm clouds, the sky that had lost its daylight,

A pitch-black hole.

“Hyung… can you be sure of what you are?”

“……!”

His heart sank again.

Twice in one day.

But this time, the shock was far greater than when he faced Frey.

Of all moments, of all people, he hadn’t expected to hear a question that struck at the very core of his own uncertainty from Luca.

“…What are you talking about?”

“I have no memories.”

“……”

“You asked for my name, didn’t you? I don’t know. There was just… just a name engraved in my mind. The most distinct one. But it didn’t feel like mine. So, that’s why…”

Residue had a feeling he knew what Luca was trying to say.

“…You took it.”

“……”

“That name was-”

“Lukas Trowman.”

Kururung.

The storm clouds had now become thunderclouds, and lightning began to crack the sky. Under the sudden flash of natural illumination, Residue felt a sharp headache.

And it wasn’t just because of the thunder.

“…My first memory is of falling. I was falling from the sky. From an incredibly high place, for an incredibly long time… and then, I crashed into a child.”

Luca clutched her head.

A soft, broken laugh slipped through her lips.

“And then… I ate that unconscious child. I stole everything, the personality, the way of speaking, the memories, the very identity. That’s how ‘Luca’ was born.”

“……”

“You know what people call beings like me, don’t you, hyung?”

Of course.

From the moment they first met, Luca had shown familiarity toward Residue.

Despite being someone naturally wary of strangers, she had been at ease with him, Residue, who had also fallen from the sky.

For most people, encountering someone who had “fallen from the sky” and was “dressed suspiciously” would be enough to arouse suspicion.

But for Luca, those traits only made her feel a sense of kinship.

’─Hide.’ (

That was what beings of Destruction like her were called,

Because all of them had fallen from the sky.

Because they were all beings shrouded in suspicion.

But Luca was different from the usual Hide.

Those creatures possessed intelligence and perhaps even a semblance of self-awareness. However, they completely lacked subjectivity in their actions. More artificial than a machine, they functioned with a mechanical, AI-like nature.

A being like Luca, one who displayed such human-like traits, should not exist.

Exactly.

Creatures like them did not contemplate their own existence.

And Residue… he had a strong sense of self.

At least, he appeared to.

Luca must have believed that made him different from the usual Destruction.

She was completely mistaken, yet, unfortunately, she had no way of realizing that.

“Hyung, I… My wish is…”

“……”

“My wish iiiiis, uuuuugh….”

Her voice started to stretch, as if it were distorting.

Drip…

And then, Luca’s body began to melt.

Literally.

Like a figure made of mud under the scorching sun, she started to disintegrate.

Residue couldn’t move.

That awful feeling crept over him again,

The feeling of standing at yet another crossroad.

Why? Again?

He didn’t want to be involved with anyone anymore.

“She wasn’t deceiving you.”

At that moment, a man entered the building.

Frey Blake.

Unscathed.

He casually brushed raindrops off his shoulder as he continued speaking.

“There are exceptions to everything. A being of Destruction can also possess self-awareness. Just like me.”

“…Are you saying you’re also one of them?”

“Well, not exactly the same… but biologically and conceptually, I am closer to them than to you.”

“……”

Frey placed a hand over his chest.

“I should have reintroduced myself sooner. I am one of only two beings of Destruction who possess true self-awareness.”

“The first to ever fall.”

“That’s why Iris PeaceFinder calls me ‘Firstfall’.”

Residue’s gaze darkened.

...Then Luca is.

“Did you know? The first wave of Destruction is nearing its end. It happened far faster than the Master predicted, and with far less devastation. Honestly, it’s surprising.”

His eyes flashed with a strange light.

“Was it because humanity’s resistance was fiercer than expected? Did their unity at a decisive moment produce a miraculous outcome…?”

“……”

“…No, nothing so dramatic happened.”

Of course.

Residue had long understood the limits of miracles.

“All of this was thanks to the Half King.”

“What do you mean?”

“You don’t know? She single-handedly defeated over 99% of the invading Destruction.”

Residue froze.

“What?”

“In other words, the Destruction that reached this world amounted to only 1% of its full force.”

“……”

Residue found himself in complete shock, for two reasons.

First, that the Half King had truly held off almost the entirety of the first wave alone.

And second, that the catastrophe currently devastating the world, what all of humanity perceived as an unprecedented disaster, was, in reality, merely 1% of what should have come.

...Was the world they ruled over this weak?

The world he had once ruled,

So weak that it could suffer irreparable damage from just 1 percent of the first Destruction’s forces.

“But the First Destruction isn’t over yet. And there’s only one reason why, it hasn’t been finished. Because the finale hasn’t been achieved.”

”Finale?”

“Among all beings of Destruction, only the ‘First’ and the ‘Last’ can possess true self-awareness.”

The man who was undoubtedly the ‘First’ declared,

”Since I know your purpose, our interests seem to align. I request your cooperation, Residue.”

Frey pointed at Luca,

The ’Last’.

”Let’s end the ’First Destruction’ together.”