Chapter 193
Chapter 193. To the End of the Land (6)
Yoo Ji-han swallowed dryly while looking at the sky.
A gigantic palm that had turned the sturdy barbarians into chunks of meat.
That palm was emitting an ominous oval shape again in the sky.
‘The condition is stable.’
Kim Si-hu, who was using magic, was considerably stable.
It was a stark contrast from the time when he was out of his mind.
“Could it be…?”
“Chirp, chirp chirp!”
Min Yu-ri and Chilla, who shared the same memory as Yoo Ji-han, also recognized the magic.
With everyone on edge, Kim Si-hu’s forehead was sweating profusely.
‘Focus, focus.’
He had been studying elf magic non-stop, having used it for some unknown reason while in an unconscious state.
Although he hadn’t fully mastered it yet.
‘I got a small clue!’
The magic from his entire body concentrated in his arms, streaming out in large quantities through the wooden staff in his hand.
His effort to save and use magic efficiently seemed to have been for this moment alone.
Kim Si-hu poured his magic out boldly.
“What the hell are you planning to do?!”
Lim Si-yeon, a fellow mage, shouted as she felt the turbulent magic around her.
The current spell felt very unfamiliar to her as well.
Pwaaat!
Sweating profusely, Kim Si-hu finally created a round oval in the sky.
But as he gazed at his handiwork, he bit his lower lip.
‘Damn it!’
The size of the oval was far smaller than he had intended.
Compared to what he had created in the department store, it might be one-tenth, or even much less.
Even the branches forming the border were thin, and the green grass looked like it had been eaten by bugs, wilting away.
He had put his heart into not failing, yet could not grasp what had gone wrong.
‘Just a little more!’
Kim Si-hu didn’t give up and focused on the magic.
The noise in his ears faded further and further away.
“Hmm?”
“What is that?”
Jerry and Im Min-soo were on guard, watching the magic that had appeared in the air.
They felt an unusual flow of magic.
However, there was nothing to see beyond that, making them tilt their heads in confusion.
“… Is that it?”
He seemed to be acting as if he would show some great magic, yet the overwhelming swarm of mosquitoes was still intact, and the heroes, their prey, were just wandering in place.
Except for the appearance of some greenery in the sky, nothing about the situation had changed.
Jerry felt a bit disappointed by that.
Im Min-soo, still holding up his staff, said to Kim Si-hu, “Is the joke over?”
“…”
“Then I’ll start!”
Beeeee! Buzzzzz!
The mosquitoes which had been hovering in place charged towards Yoo Ji-han’s party and Kim Hyun-tae’s party.
They swung their weapons with all their might, but the incoming mosquitoes far outnumbered the ones that fell.
“Damn it! Run!”
“Ahhhh!”
Kim Hyun-tae and his party members panicked and began to flee in one direction.
However, Yoo Ji-han’s party was different.
They formed a protective formation around Kim Si-hu, who was focused on maintaining his concentration without breaking it.
“Ji-han! We need to run too!”
“Not yet!”
Despite the desperate shout from healer Lee Dong-gil, Yoo Ji-han stuck to his decision.
Lee Dong-gil had no choice but to press his body close to Chilla while waiting.
“Ha!”
Min Yu-ri took out a dagger she always kept tucked away instead of her magic arrow and swung it.
Even though close combat wasn’t her main focus, she had basic combat skills.
Meanwhile, Jerry and Im Min-soo, who were watching the battle from above, had their eyes on Yoo Ji-han.
“Oh ho!”
“… Who is that guy?”
“Our baby is doing great!”
Chikaboom! Chikaboom!
The corpses of mosquitoes piled onto the ground.
The sword Yoo Ji-han wielded sliced through the small mosquitoes without a hint of error.
—Don’t you dare come close!
Even Kim Si-hu and Lim Si-yeon’s magic couldn’t penetrate the high magic resistance, but the aura formed by the Sylph made it possible.
What was unfortunate was that aside from the concentrated aura, other magic still wouldn’t work.
Yoo Ji-han wanted to maximize the use of the aura, swinging not the thin blade but the entire broadside of his sword.
Beeee! Buzzzzz—!
However, as the attacking mosquitoes became overwhelming, he bit his lip and widely spread the concentrated aura around his sword.
Shwaaaak!
The green aura emanating from the sword spread throughout Yoo Ji-han’s entire body.
Only a warrior familiar with infusing aura into weapons could use aura transfer.
He had effectively become a body that mosquitoes could not approach.
—Ji-han! You can’t hold out like this for long!
“I know!”
Holding the aura around him could last at most 30 seconds.
After that, the Sylph would surely be dismissed.
‘15 seconds. No more than that.’
If he didn’t complete the spell within 15 seconds, he would have to get out of this mess.
That’s what Yoo Ji-han had resolved as he dashed around with the aura around him, glancing at Kim Si-hu.
The remaining time was 10, 9, 8, 7…
And with just 2 seconds left until 15 seconds elapsed.
Hoooom—
Just as Yoo Ji-han determined it was a failed operation and prepared to take Kim Si-hu and flee,
A change finally occurred in the oval that had appeared in the air.
Kuuuuuuuuuung…
An object formed from countless trees knitted together.
Those who saw it for the first time would not know what it was.
But it was undoubtedly a part of the gigantic hand that existed in Yoo Ji-han’s memory.
“You should know it’s all useless!”
Im Min-soo sneered at the object emerging from the oval.
It was just magic, merely magic!
Though the green energy surprisingly affected mosquitoes, there were far too many mosquitoes around with tremendous magic resistance.
“… Im Min-soo.”
“Yes?”
“That’s dangerous.”
But Jerry’s response was somewhat different.
From the moment it appeared here, she hadn’t lost her composure even once.
She sensed the ominousness from the descending wood and wiped the smile from her lips for the first time.
Perhaps it was the most serious demeanor Jerry had shown since arriving in Korea.
‘The entrance is too small.’
Yoo Ji-han looked at the giant’s hand trying to exit the oval.
It was great that the magic had succeeded, but the oval was too narrow compared to its size.
Even the giant seemed aware of this, with only one finger revealing itself through the oval.
That being the pinky finger.
Swoooosh!
Nevertheless, the giant finger boasted an impressive presence as it fell from above.
Seeing the pinky finger that was nearly right in front of him, Yoo Ji-han could hardly close his mouth.
Min Yu-ri and Lee Dong-gil, who were next to him, also stared wide-eyed at the finger.
The finger formed an intricate shape of intertwining trees that wriggled like worms, not just a simple object but felt like a living being.
‘Incredible…’
Seeing it so close brought clarity.
This object absolutely did not exist on Earth.
And just how powerful that tree held within it was.
Giggity giggity.
The joint of the massive pinky finger folded inward along its knuckle.
Watching that scene, Jerry shouted, “Get away!”
“Jerry?!”
“Hurry, right now!”
A pale-faced Jerry tried to pull Im Min-soo away, but—
PAAAAM!!
As the giant’s finger folded inward, it rapidly unfurled.
A wave of power, so immense it was indescribable, crashed in all directions.
Hooowwwwwww—
The mosquitoes that had been floating in the air simultaneously stopped flapping their wings.
The battlefield fell silent in an instant as the sound of mosquitoes disappeared.
Every mosquito that had been flying fell weakly to the ground.
The sight was reminiscent of a rain of mosquitoes falling from the sky.
Thud! Boom!
Even the other monsters that survived collapsed to the ground.
An incredible result born from just a simple gesture.
Moments later, the giant’s finger was slowly retracted back into the oval.
Dumbfounded, Yoo Ji-han looked at the mosquitoes that had fallen to the ground.
‘They’re dead.’
The movements of the mosquitoes, which had been flailing around, soon ceased completely.
The fate of those that had fallen elsewhere was no different.
Despite being monsters with exceptional magic resistance, they had lost their lives due to the giant’s finger, which was like magic.
‘We suffered no damage at all.’
What was amazing was that the heroes, who had also been swept away by the magic, had suffered no harm whatsoever.
Only the enemies had taken hits.
The large-bodied monsters appeared to still be alive, but they could not get up from where they fell.
“Ughhhh!!”
“Ahhhhh—!”
The only humans screaming were Im Min-soo and Jerry.
The two, who had fallen alongside the monster they had ridden, trembled all over.
At that moment, Yoo Ji-han shouted, “Yu-ri!”
“Yes, yes?”
“Bind those people up!”
Min Yu-ri hastily summoned a rope and tightly bound the two individuals.
It was a binding that couldn’t be undone unless she canceled the skill.
Of course, she didn’t forget to confiscate their concealed weapons.
“Ah, I feel dizzy…”
Kim Si-hu, who felt dizzy from his head, plopped down on the ground.
By now, a stream of red blood was flowing from his nose.
“Are you okay?”
“I’ll just sit here for a bit.”
“Dong-gil! Check on Si-hu!”
“Uh, sure!”
Lee Dong-gil checked on the condition of Kim Si-hu, who was sitting down.
Fortunately, aside from a bit of dizziness and more than 90% of his magic being spent, his body seemed fine.
Still gripping his staff tightly, Kim Si-hu smiled and said, “I did help a bit, right?”
“Not just a bit! It’s far more than just help!”
Yoo Ji-han, with a bewildered expression, messily ruffled Kim Si-hu’s hair.
Despite how dire the situation had looked, it had completely turned around.
Simply calling it help didn’t do justice to his contributions.
“Chirp, chirp chirp…!”
Chilla cheered, proclaiming, this is teamwork!
