MNINAV Chapter 131

131

[I talked to you so much, and yet you never thought of breaking the seal?]

"I truly didn’t know. I’m sorry. But… what exactly is going on here?"

[Nothing special. Just like Ego Sword, I’ve embedded myself into Fragarach.]

The End of the Sword spoke as if it were no big deal.

"Why would you do such a thing…?"

Ian couldn’t finish his sentence.

The place where the constellations reside is a vast universe.

And a being that once roamed that universe freely had now confined itself inside a narrow sword—for Ian's sake.

Reading Ian’s thoughts, the End of the Sword spoke again.

[Don’t worry. I didn’t enter the sword without a plan. I can return whenever I want.]

“Then… return now.”

[<Origin> says that for it to speak with you, one of us Constellations has to be present nearby.]

“Even so, this is just too—”

[It’s fine. Really. The inside of Fragarach is more spacious than you think, so don’t worry.]

Ian’s eyes grew moist.

He always knew the Constellations cared for him—but he never imagined they would go so far as to sacrifice themselves for him.

[<Origin> says they’ll communicate whatever they needs to say through ‘the End of the Sword,’ so you don’t need to worry anymore.]

"Thank you."

Choked up, Ian could barely speak, and the sword grumbled.

[Come on, don’t get all emotional over something like this. To us, you’re like a child.]

Ian smiled, eyes red.

[‘Well of Mana’ says it’s time to return now.]

[<Origin> wants to know if you have anything else to say.]

Ian spoke with resolve.

“Please destroy my original body.”

[What?! Why would you do that?! That’s your body! Yours! Even if your soul is here, you can’t just kill it!]

“It’s precisely because it’s my body. I know exactly what kind of person Yoon Sijun is on Earth.”

None of the Constellations could say a word.

Yoon Sijun—the Chosen One.

The most powerful among the Chosen on Earth.

His participation could change how many other Chosen survived monster subjugations.

When he was injured and fell into a coma after a monster attack, the people of Earth prayed earnestly for him to wake.

Not knowing that his soul had already left, they held on to the empty hope—just because he was still breathing.

[<Origin> lets out a sigh and says: As you wish.]

"Thank you."

As Ian replied with a grin, the scene changed in an instant.

Now in a forest filled with the sound of crickets, a strong scent of blood hung heavily in the air.

‘How much time has passed?’

Reading his inner thoughts, the End of the Sword answered.

[We froze time in this place before moving. Barely a blink. So don’t worry.]

"Alright."

Ian walked toward the mine, carrying Fragarach.

In front of the mine, bodies lay everywhere—evidence of Edelmar’s efficient work.

‘He had a blast, clearly.’

Ian passed the corpses of those who had been slain without a second glance and stepped into the mine.

Unlike the silence outside, the interior was filled with chaos.

"Hold the line! Stop them, even if it kills you!"

"Aaagh!"

Hearing screams and shouts, Ian paused as he passed a cart loaded with mined mana stones.

"Hmm."

The mana stones in the cart were even larger than those produced by his own mines.

Even with dirt still clinging to them, they shimmered beautifully.

‘These are high quality.’

Ian smiled in satisfaction.

Once the duchy gained independence and became its own principality, the Emperor would surely reclaim all the mines under Ian’s control within the empire.

He wasn’t particularly attached to the gem mines—but the mana stone mines were another matter.

And just as he was feeling the sting of that inevitable loss, a new mana stone mine had been discovered within his duchy.

It was as if fate was compensating him.

Ian picked out two of the roundest mana stones from the cart and stored them in his inventory.

‘I should give these to Rose.’

She loved pretty things, so she’d probably enjoy playing with mana stones.

‘Actually… maybe I should make accessories from them.’

With their iridescent glow, they would be beautiful just worn as-is.

Ian swept a handful of properly sized mana stones into his inventory—enough to make a full set of accessories: earrings, a necklace, bracelet, ring, even a brooch.

With the stones secured, he moved deeper into the mine.

[Left!]

Just as he was about to head toward the noise on the right, the End of the Sword gave a warning.

Ian quickly swung his sword.

"Ugh!"

With a pained groan, a figure appeared out of nowhere—someone who had been hiding.

‘So he was camouflaged.’

"You, you’re—!"

Ian didn’t let him finish.

He moved again, his blade slicing through the man’s throat with precision.

"Gah—!"

As the man let out a short cry and collapsed, Ian turned to walk past him but then paused.

He crouched and studied the corpse.

“…Huh? Isn’t this the guy who was with that dark mage?”

Examining the man’s face more closely, Ian frowned.

‘Don’t tell me… Was this mine being operated by the dark mages?’

He searched the body.

But there was nothing. No sign or clue.

Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Ian resumed walking deeper into the mine.

The screams and cries still echoed from deeper inside the mine—evidence of just how wild things had gotten.

[I’ve been watching, and you know… that Edelmar guy has real natural talent.]

"Yeah. Anyone who’s that thrilled to cut loose couldn’t have become a Swordmaster otherwise."

[No, I mean it. Even if he had slacked off, he still would’ve become a Swordmaster.]

Ian glanced at Fragarach.

"He's that gifted?"

[Yup. From his bones to his muscles, he was born with the blessings of the sword. I don’t know what the god of this world was thinking, giving out a blessing like that—but lucky for everyone, he turned out decent. Otherwise, he’d have become one of the most terrifying murderers in history.]

Ian let out a dry chuckle.

Based on the rumors and Edelmar’s bloodthirsty fighting style, Ian figured he was still something of a terrifying killer.

It's just that his targets happened to be enemies and villains—so people let it slide.

"I guess I need to step it up, then."

To that, the End of the Sword snorted.

[Yeah, you do. Lately you’ve been relying too much on magic. ‘Well of Mana’ is just fawning over you—and you really shouldn't let that go to your head.]

The sword's voice was full of grumbling annoyance.

And understandably so.

Well of Mana and the End of the Sword were polar opposites in temperament—and naturally didn’t get along.

It was such a well-known rivalry that even other Chosen Ones in the celestial realms were surprised the two Constellations had agreed to support the same person.

Since Ian was the only Chosen One in this world, the two Constellations often clashed over who got to exercise their powers through him.

Back during his Chosen days on Earth, Ian had preferred physical combat, using swords over magic to hunt monsters.

That made the End of the Sword feel proud and favored.

But ever since arriving in this world, Ian had started relying more on mana and magic—because it was versatile and useful beyond just combat.

Still, for the End of the Sword—who already disliked the Well of Mana—this shift in balance felt like a personal slight.

‘Maybe…’

If the End of the Sword were housed inside Fragarach, Ian would always have the sword with him…

Perhaps the End of the Sword entered Fragarach with the calculated intent that Ian would end up using his sword more than his magic from then on?

Thinking his theory might be right, Ian smiled to himself and tried to appease the spirit in his sword.

"I’ll be using the sword more often from now on."

[Exactly! I am your Constellation, after all—you should use the sword more.]

Echoing the triumphant voice of the End of the Sword, Ian stepped deeper into the mine and spotted Edelmar, standing among piles of corpses.

Whether he didn’t care to dodge or simply never had the chance, Edelmar—completely drenched in blood—was cutting down enemies with a crazed look in his eyes.

[Aren’t you going to help?]

Prompted by the End of the Sword, Ian sighed, gripped Fragarach, and leapt into battle.

Despite the already considerable number of bodies, enemies still swarmed around Edelmar.

"Duke, what the hell are you doing?"

Edelmar growled irritably as Ian blocked an attack from behind and fought back-to-back with him.

"Shouldn’t we finish this before Rose wakes up?"

Even while swinging his sword, Edelmar shot Ian a sharp glare.

Though clearly annoyed, Ian ignored him and kept slashing through the enemy.

Two swords moved in unison, each strike unleashing a geyser of blood.

[Not going to use aura?]

‘I don’t think I need to.’

There were a lot of enemies, sure, but they were mostly untrained rabble.

"Mon… Monster!"

Seeing Ian’s effortless movements, one man screamed, dropped his sword, and ran toward the exit.

"That one’s mine."

Edelmar barked, and sprinted after the fleeing man before Ian could even react.

Ian shrugged and turned his attention back to the surroundings.

The mine carts were full of mana stones, but there were no miners in sight.

‘Were these guys supposed to be the miners?’

He checked the bodies—but all of them had swords, not a single pickaxe among them.

‘What’s going on here?’

Ian walked toward a blocked section of the mine.

The walls had clear signs—indentations where mana stones had been dug out.

‘Could I extract them with the sword?’

Ian briefly considered pulling out the stones using Fragarach, but then remembered the End of the Sword was residing in it now, and gave up the idea.

As he stepped closer to examine the marks—

[Get out of the way!]

The End of the Sword shouted urgently.

Ian yelled, "Shield!"

Just as a transparent barrier formed around him, a fireball crashed into it.

—BOOM!

The impact rocked the mine, shaking dust and debris loose from the ceiling.

The shield didn’t hold up perfectly.

Like glass cracking under pressure, fractures spread across its surface.

Ian shouted again, "Shield! Shield!"

Two more barriers layered over him—just in time for another blast of fireballs.

—BOOM! BOOM!

After the two successive explosions, more debris fell from the mine ceiling.

Ian looked up.

Even though the mine had been safely carved, if more explosions followed, the structural integrity could be compromised.

And just as he feared, hairline cracks were now forming along the ceiling.

‘Damn it.’

Unlike Ian, the enemy showed no concern for a potential cave-in, and another fireball came flying toward him.

‘No choice.’

Ian dismissed his shield and shouted toward the incoming fire.

"Waterball!"

A waterball, larger than the fireball itself, swallowed it whole.

But as soon as he cast it, a sharp pain stabbed through Ian’s chest and he coughed up blood.

He wiped the blood from his lips with the back of his hand and looked around warily.

‘Where is he?’

He’d expected the enemy to be visible once the fireball was extinguished, but no one was there.

As he scanned his surroundings, more fireballs appeared—this time, two at once.

"Waterball! Waterball!"

Two new waterballs neutralized the twin fireballs.

"Show yourself!"

Still, no enemy appeared.

‘What is he trying to do?’

If the opponent was capable of that level of magic, surely he could use a variety of other spells. Yet he only kept casting fireballs—as if deliberately trying to draw attention.

‘A diversion?’

A sudden suspicion hit Ian. He quickly activated his detection spell.

"Scan!"

Mana spread out from him in waves and pointed to a single location.

"There you are!"

There, hidden by illusion and floating just off the ground, was a man carefully carrying dynamite.

‘He’s trying to bury us alive!’

The kind of dynamite used to tunnel through mines needed a magical catalyst to detonate.

The dark mage had been using fireballs to distract Ian while sneaking in dynamite to collapse the mine—killing Ian and covering up everything.

He knew that even if this entrance collapsed, other tunnels could be excavated later. The mine could be reopened. But the witnesses? Gone forever.

"Damn it!"

Ian charged toward him.