Chapter 342 : Side Story (12)

Low, and lower.

The boy and the girl headed underground.

The girl, Somnia, led the boy, Colombous.

Down the stairs that appeared between the library bookshelves, further down.

Into the dark underground.

As if there had been traps before, there were bloodstains and such here and there.

But now it was safe.

They just had to brush past the traces of various traps.

“…To think there was a place like this beneath the library….”

Colombous felt bewildered.

He had lived his whole life in the Great Imperial Palace, but he had never even thought that such a place existed.

He looked at the girl descending the stairs that held a gloominess.

“Somnia.”

The stairs ended.

A wide and dark cavern welcomed them.

The cavern was empty.

It was hollow, as if something had been there once but was now gone.

It was the place where the treasure among treasures, Mana Armor Valziart, used to be, but there was no way Colombous would know.

However, he could feel the awkwardness born from the trace of loss, that something was there and disappeared.

“How on earth do you know this place?”

“I heard.”

“Heard? From whom?”

“Shh.”

There was a damp, fishy smell.

He suddenly thought that this dark cavern resembled some kind of nest, or some kind of giant maw.

“Lower your voice, Colombous.”

Somnia spoke with a serious face.

“She has sharp ears.”

The girl put her index finger on her lips, and that action strangely suited her well.

In that state, she rolled her eyes and looked around.

“If we chatter too loudly, she might get angry.”

“…She…?”

“Yeah. She who has settled in the empty space.”

There was a sound of movement.

“Quietly….”

They couldn’t even tell what was moving, but it was moving.

And the sound was getting louder, which meant it was approaching.

“Don’t you hear it…?”

“…….”

“Try listening closely….”

Colombous followed Somnia’s words.

He listened closely, and realized that the moving sound was a dragging sound.

The dragging sound grew louder. With a gloomy fear.

“She is coming.”

Fog began to settle.

***

The fog smelled fishy.

Also, it held sound.

It was the sound of something dragging ssss, sssss-.

It was a dragging sound and simultaneously a sound of pushing rapid breaths into a narrow space.

Colombous ended up imagining something huge with scales.

‘…….’

He felt a presence.

His body, too trained for an 11-year-old, instinctively sensed the invisible being.

Even though it was a being he could not handle. Colombous’s teeth chattered and clashed.

There was something undulating in the darkness.

Just when he thought it appeared in front, it undulated in several branches and slid towards them like an arrow.

Its body was so long that it continued without breaking from that end of the vision to this end.

‘…Monster….’

Snake.

It was a snake.

‘……Monster……!!’

Colombous wanted to scream.

Since that huge snake was approaching them, it was natural.

How big is it?

One fang is about the size of Somnia.

How long is it?

It looked like it could coil around the library ten times.

“-Oh-.”

The snake’s scales were pale white.

A large horn on its head.

“-Oh, my-.”

Pupils were torn vertically long in the eyeballs larger than Colombous’s head.

Even though they were fearful snake eyes that could not be faced at all, he had to face them.

Colombous wanted to collapse with a thud right away.

“Gu-ests have co-me-.”

The horned white snake flicked its forked tongue and spoke.

Because it spoke human language so naturally, he couldn’t even feel the awkwardness.

The giant snake stared intently at the boy’s face.

“A ve-ry rare gu-est has co-me.”

“…….”

Colombous’s hands trembled.

Holding onto his legs that wanted to collapse, he glanced at Somnia.

Compared to this large snake, how fragile did the amber-haired girl look.

Colombous clenched his fist.

‘…I must protect her!’

He felt a huge sense of duty.

A giant monster and a girl to protect.

Perhaps he had been training for this moment.

Colombous clenched his fist tight and stepped forward.

“Do not approach, snake!”

“?”

The horned white snake tilted its head.

“If you come any closer, I won’t let you be…!”

The snake stared intently, very intently at the boy shouting.

Seeing his own face reflected in those large eyes was scary.

However, Colombous had already made up his mind that he had to protect Somnia, and he had no choice but to force himself to hold on.

“I am! I am… Obro Denoebang’s prized disciple! And Emperor Shion’s eldest son…!”

“Ye-es. Your High-ness Co-lom-bous-.”

“?”

At the large snake’s words, Colombous opened his eyes wide.

“…You know me, snake?”

“What are- you- do-ing right no-ow, Your High-ness-? That’s hurt-ful-.”

Colombous looked back to see if there was a snake among the people, no, beings he knew.

Not just a snake, but a very large, white, horned snake.

However, no matter how much he thought about it, nothing came to mind.

The horned white snake flicked its tongue.

“N-o-. You re-ally don’t seem to kn-ow-. It’s m-e, m-e-.”

“Miss Lacrosha!”

Somnia shouted abruptly.

She was jumping up and down with shining eyes.

She was getting excited as if she had met a character from a story in person.

“It is Miss Lacrosha, right?”

“…Lacrosha?”

At the familiar name, Colombous turned his head sharply.

“You said Lacrosha? This snake?”

“A-ahh-. I un-der-stood-.”

The horned white snake giggled.

Then it twisted its body quickly from side to side.

Light shimmered behind its head.

Five centripetal points, Five-Origin Halo.

The proof of a Five-Star Mage.

The large snake transformed into a human form in no time.

“My ori-ginal for-m….”

The forked tongue changed like a human’s.

The large and long body also became like a human.

Scales also decreased and smooth skin was revealed.

Human skin covered the flesh.

The speech that dragged on was the same.

“…This must be the first time you’ve seen it, Your Highness.”

It was a woman with pale skin.

Scales were visible here and there on her revealed skin and there was a large horn on her head, but she looked human.

She showed courtesy towards Colombous.

“What brings you to a place like this?”

“Dean Lacrosha!”

Only then did Colombous recognize that the opponent was one of the Deans of the Imperial Academy of Magic, the ‘Horned White Snake’ Lacrosha.

He sighed in relief.

“You, were you a snake?”

“You didn’t know? My nickname is famous.”

“Horned White Snake? No, of course I thought it was just a nickname.”

“Surprisingly, it is not a metaphorical expression.”

Lacrosha is a Five-Star Mage well-versed in ancient magic.

Since ‘Last Clown’ Beila Beile disappeared along with the other Eight Gods, she became affiliated with the Imperial Academy of Magic and was residing in the basement of the library.

“More importantly, Your Highness.”

The pupils of the horned white snake are still vertically long.

“How did you know about this place and come? It is a very secret place.”

Since a Five-Star Mage is a being rarely seen even once in an era, Colombous felt an intimidating aura from her.

Even though Lacrosha was showing him great favor.

“I don’t like others coming to my nest, you see.”

“…Not me.”

Colombous pondered for a moment on how to continue his words.

Because if he said he came following Somnia and came here because of her, it would sound like tattling.

“It’s me.”

Somnia cut in quickly as if she had read Colombous’s mind.

“I said let’s come, Miss Lacrosha.”

“Hm-mm?”

Lacrosha looked closely at Somnia.

She tilted her head several times.

It was a manner as if she had seen something fascinating.

“…What are you?”

“I am a delivery person. I have a letter for Miss Lacrosha.”

“A letter?”

“Yes!”

Somnia rummaged through her bag.

Then she took out a small letter. It was something that was clearly folded and written with great care, like a young person’s love letter.

“Miss Beila asked me to deliver the letter!”

“…Who?”

Lacrosha ended up stopping all thoughts for a moment.

Because a name that could not come out of Somnia’s mouth came out.

“Miss Beila. Beila Beile!”

“…Beila…!”

The horned white snake’s eyes trembled long. She fell into deep bewilderment.

Colombous did not know what the name Beila Beile signified, and therefore could not empathize with the horned white snake’s bewilderment. Somnia grinned.

“Miss Lacrosha. Looking at your reaction, I guess you really recalled your old memories?”

“…Only recently, barely….”

Lacrosha ended up confiding her inner thoughts without realizing it. Her bewilderment pushed away her wariness towards Somnia far away.

“…It’s a very sad thing for Beila. She waited for me for so long.”

The horned white snake Lacrosha is a being as old as the Hotus Eight Gods.

She is a being who has lived for over 1335 years, and was the closest being to a Man-God.

Just that she was human before becoming a snake, and was Beila’s childhood friend, but she had forgotten all those memories.

Now she has recalled almost all of those ancient memories, but Beila Beile has already disappeared with the other Eight Gods.

“Here. The letter.”

Lacrosha received the letter from Somnia.

[To Lacrosha.]

[It’s me, me!]

[Your clown, Beila Beile!]

What terrible handwriting.

Lacrosha was convinced that this letter came from the real Beila Beile.

She couldn’t know the reason or the method, but the conviction was strong.

[I can’t write long, but I have something to tell you.]

[I’m drilling a hole!]

[So that at least I can return to that side, to you!]

[Since I’m originally someone who went back and forth outside the story, it’s possible!]

Idiot! Lacrosha muttered unconsciously.

Was waiting 1335 years for her who lost her memories and just became a snake not enough?

Just how much more effort does she intend to make for her? Foolish clown.

Lacrosha realized she was smiling.

[So.]

[So, Lacrosha….]

[Just a little, wait just a little longer.]

[I’ll return to you soon.]

[From Beila Beile.]

Even after reading the letter completely, Lacrosha could not take her eyes off it easily.

She just looked at that small paper for a long time, and soon folded it neatly and put it in her bosom.

And she was silent for a long time.

“…….”

At the end of the silence, Lacrosha looked at Somnia.

She realized the reason why Somnia’s hair was amber-colored.

“…Child.”

“Yes. Miss Lacrosha.”

“This letter, it’s real.”

“Of course it’s real.”

The horned white snake continued her words.

“You came from that side.”

“Shh!”

Somnia quickly put her index finger on her lips.

She wrinkled the bridge of her nose playfully.

“It’s still a secret, that is!”

“…Thank you. I want to live a little longer.”

“That’s a very good thing then.”

The girl laughed brightly.

Lacrosha patted her head, and Somnia laughed even more innocently.

Lacrosha peeked inside her bag.

“There are many letters.”

“There are many.”

“You must be busy. Go on.”

“May I?”

“Of course. You must have someone you really want to see separately too.”

“Does it show?”

“This Lacrosha has lived for over a thousand years. That much is obvious.”

The white snake pushed the girl’s back.

“Go on quickly, admirable child.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Lacrosha twisted her body.

Then she became a large, long, and palely beautiful snake again and disappeared deep into her nest.

It was very instant.

“It’s a relief Miss Lacrosha is happy.”

“…Somnia.”

Colombous could not understand at all what was happening right now. He had no choice but to ask.

“…Where is ‘that side’? And, what on earth are you….”

“Secret.”

Somnia shook her head.

“I said it’s still a secret.”

“…….”

“You’ll know soon. Let’s go out for now.”

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