The Great Mage Returns After 4000 Years Book 2: Chapter 537

Book 2: Chapter 537

Surprising scenes continued to unfold one after another.

The fake Lucas, no, the ‘The Beginning Wizard' suddenly shifted his gaze.

For a moment, the eyes of Lukas and The Beginning Wizard met. At first, he thought it was a mistake. That thought was shattered when a faint smile appeared on the guy's lips.

─…Hmm.

The smile deepened even more.

With a brightly smiling face, the Beginning Wizard said.

─You wasted a chance. There's not much information you can gain from looking at me.

It's certain.

Right now, The Beginning Wizard definitely recognizes ‘Lukas'.

─Ah, can it be considered a gain just knowing my appearance? It wasn't particularly something I intended to hide.

How that is possible, I do not know.

Not only Min Ha-rin, but also the 4 Knights – Pale, Red Knight, and even the Ruler Sun G.o.d. No one realized that Lukas was peering through the ‘Spring of Wisdom'.

Only The Beginning Wizard recognized the presence of Lukas and even spoke to him.

“…Why are you impersonating ‘Lukas Trowman'?”

I wasn't sure if my words would reach him, but I said them anyway.

Then The Beginning Wizard let out a faint smile.

─Well… why indeed.

“……?”

─I don't quite understand myself… Anyway.

The Beginning Wizard reached out his hand.

─This is all you can see.

His palm obscured the view, and soon everything went dark. There was no sound. It was as if a camera lens had been closed, and only a silent, dark scene continued.

And a little while later, the ripples on the water surface completely disappeared.

‘This footage’ had completely ended.

“…I should consider that he fully recognizes me, right?”

[Didn't you even have a conversation with him?]

“I didn't expect the fake Lucas's ident.i.ty to be the Beginning Wizard.”

[If you think about it simply, that's right, but looking back, there may have been several hints.]

“Hints?”

[What I mean is, in your past life, that guy may have been constantly lingering around you while you were moving in the Three Thousand Worlds.]

“…….”

Constantly, huh.

There's no way to verify that now, but the fake Lukas certainly intruded in the last battle that took place in the city. And before Lukas was about to die, he even showed his face directly.

‘There was something meaningful about his timing of appearance.’

If it wasn't coincidence, and if his appearance in Manjuri City was not to attend some council but to check on Lukas's movements, and if he made Lukas realize this fact intentionally…

…What is his purpose?

[He said he was your fan. The reason he is imitating you might be related to that.]

“…Is there any basis for that?”

[There is. The way The Beginning Wizard looked at you was almost slimy.]

What is that supposed to mean.

[Don’t you understand? He didn’t have even a hair’s breadth of hostility towards you.]

“The Exile said The Beginning Wizard was going to kill me?”

[Hostility and intent to kill are not synonyms. Love can become an obsession that one might wish to bind by killing.]

“That’s a scary thought.”

[You'd do well to be cautious. If my judgment is accurate, the Blue Knight might have a bit of that vibe…]

Hmm, Residue seemed to think that was unnecessary remark and cut himself off.

[Anyway, the Exile might have used our kind of speaking style.]

Our kind of speaking style, meaning the Ruler’s speech.

Not lying, but also concealing the truth.

[Do you remember the activities The Beginning Wizard conducted while acting as ‘Lukas'?]

“…Charity and relief work, conflict resolution, things like that.”

[From a human perspective, those were quite heroic actions.]

“That’s right.”

I replied with an uncomfortable expression.

Right now, Residue is speculating that The Beginning Wizard’s series of actions might have been for Lukas. It's an unpleasant possibility, but it can't outright be denied, so wearing a grim expression was the most rebellious response he could muster.

…The fake Lukas was called a “great wizard.”

At this point, he wasn't particularly attached to that t.i.tle, nor did he feel any monopolistic desire, but separately, the fact that someone was impersonating him was not pleasant.

Even if that person was only committing acts of goodwill.

‘Because I don't know the intention.'

The Beginning Wizard had never once revealed his purpose.

The source of Lukas’s discomfort stemmed from there.

[…The fake Lukas was The Beginning Wizard. That's the extent of what we've learned this time. How about it, Lukas Trowman. Do you consider this useful information?]

“That would need more time to tell, but for now, there's one thing I do know.”

[What is it?]

Lukas muttered while looking at the spring.

“The Beginning Wizard is truly an enigma.”

* * *

Another day pa.s.sed.

Lukas, with his hand dipped in the spring, contemplated the ‘scene he needed to see.' When he wasn’t sure what to look at, he concluded that this was the best approach.

The water rippled, and the surface mirrored someone’s form.

Unlike with Min Ha-rin, this time Lukas could immediately identify who this ‘someone' was.

“…Peran.”

Peran Jun was walking through some desert-like area with a haggard face.

Was it during a long journey? Dust densely coated his golden hair. Furthermore, his overall appearance was so shabby and pitiful, it didn't suit the man known as Peran at all.

‘Is this the scene I need to see?’

Though he clearly recalled the same thing, the result was completely different.

Min Ha-rin, and now Peran.

Was there some common denominator between them?

What is the ‘Spring of Wisdom' trying to tell me?

─…Cough.

Peran slightly coughed.

The scene shifted a bit, and he was now camping. It was a cold desert night; he sat on the chilled sand with a sunken gaze, looking up at the sky.

─…It’s tough.

The moment Peran murmured that, the footage ended.

“……”

There was even less to grasp than with Min Ha-rin.

Just as Lukas was trying to review the hints left by the footage, Residue spoke.

[There was something noticeable, but it’s now confirmed with that.]

“What is it?”

[So far, the scenes you've seen aren't necessarily ‘happening at this very moment.' Of course, you can probably see the present moment too.]

“What does that mean…”

[It means that among the scenes you've seen, some may have already happened, or may yet happen.]

“……”

Lukas’s expression hardened.

“So through this spring, I can see scenes from the future or the past?”

[That’s correct. The spring itself is meant to ‘show the scenes you wish to see.' Time doesn’t matter.]

“……”

Now that he thought about it, something did click.

It was the case with Pale.

It hadn’t been long since he had parted ways with her, yet she was already meeting with the Red Knight. Moreover, the situation she was in was too coincidental.

Wasn’t it the moment Pale and the Red Knight encountered each other that Lukas had unconsciously thought of?

Residue continued speaking.

[What I want to say is simple. This is a far more valuable opportunity than you think. …How many chances are left? Three? You need to use them more meaningfully.]

Lukas contemplated the remaining times.

…Three.

During these remaining three chances, what should I look at?

* * *

When another day had pa.s.sed, Lukas had reached a certain conclusion.

Before touching the spring, he first spoke to Residue.

“Then, with this power, it might be possible to spy on the Rulers, right?”

[Yes.]

“The chance of them noticing is……”

[Hard to say. It's not impossible. In the first scene, the Sun G.o.d did not realize you were spying, but that might have been because he was in the form of an incarnation. If you were to spy on the true body of the Demon G.o.d or the Sun G.o.d… Hmm.]

So there is a possibility.

Lukas nodded and asked,

“What about you?”

[What?]

“Don't you have anything you want to see?”

The response came a beat late.

[What are you babbling about now?]

“I mean the scene you want to see. There are three chances left, maybe I could give you one of them…”

[You dull fool… Are you pitying me?]

Residue burst out angrily, but he wasn't truly mad. He was raising his voice to cover up his embarra.s.sment.

Lukas pretended not to notice and continued,

“It’s not about pity. We just have completely different perspectives, don’t we?”

[And what of it.]

“Honestly, I don’t find the scenes I've seen so far to be very meaningful. There are too many ambiguous aspects.”

[…….]

“Whatever scene you want to see, it's not completely unrelated to me. Maybe we'll discover something unexpected from it.”

[Hmm, stupid. Spouting such flawed arguments eloquently.]

Though his words were still harsh, the anger in Residue's voice had faded.

[Fine. Of course, there are scenes I want to see.]

“Then……”

[But I have no intention of seeing them through the Spring of Wisdom.]

Lukas paused before asking,

“Why?”

[Firstly, the scenes I want to see wouldn't be of much help to you. Secondly, I feel that all seven opportunities should be used solely by you.]

“…Is that just a hunch?”

[Hmph. I don’t care for such vague concepts. …The Beginning Wizard. I'm beginning to get a feel for his principles of action.]

“…….”

[It's not yet time to speak definitively, so don’t ask any further.]

Residue spoke as if annoyed, and Lukas decided not to press any further. The opponent was a Ruler. Once they refuse, they wouldn't backtrack unless the universe resets.

[What about you? Have you roughly decided how to use the remaining three opportunities?]

“Right.”

[Ho. What will you look at?]

Lukas voiced his planned intentions.

“The appearance of the previous Void King, actions of the Seven Fanged Dragon in the Void world, and lastly, the ‘Apocalypse' that the Exile witnessed.”

[…Ha. You foolish guy.]

Residue criticized, and Lukas retorted.

“Why again. Is there something wrong with my thoughts?”

[It's not that. What you just mentioned are things you must see at this point in time. There's nothing worth leaving out, so to speak.]

“Then……”

[But you were trying to waste one of those chances, weren't you?]

“…It’s not that I wanted to waste it; it just seemed like the priority for something like the Seven Fanged Dragon was lower, and maybe it could be more helpful for your side……”

[You’re wrong. The actions of the Dragon might be the most critical among those you mentioned.]

Since Residue's a.s.sertions were almost never wrong, Lukas was persuaded.

[So, which will you see first?]

“The appearance of the previous Void King.”

[Hmm. That piques my interest as well.]

Splash-

Lukas dipped his hand into the water, recalling the Void King.

The water rippled, and a blurry form began to emerge.

*****