Chapter 47: 《Homunculus》 – (2)
(I)
“Immortality spell…?”
If it’s immortality, it means neither aging nor dying.
Even in reality, countless people have sought after immortality.
Take the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang, who spent his entire life endlessly yearning for it.
Just as the shamans of Tenma developed an immortality spell, and Lilianel tried to seize it, it’s not particularly surprising.
Immortality is everyone’s dream, after all. Especially for those in power, who want to remain at the top forever.
…However, there’s something that doesn’t add up.
‘Lilianel is an elf.’
The Lilianel who supposedly desired this immortality spell is an elf.
Not just any elf, but a pureblood—a rare breed. Even without such a spell, her race can live eternally unless killed.
Not only that, elves don’t age, making them a truly blessed race.
Why then, would Lilianel seek immortality, even to the point of destroying an entire nation?
Knowing her lazy and selfish personality, it’s unlikely she wanted the spell for the sake of her country or its people.
Could it be… for her lover, the first Hero, Vellius Varius?
Even though he was the Hero, Varius was still a human with a finite life.
Could she have wanted it for him? To live together with him forever?
‘…No.’
According to the shaman’s records I read in the “Labyrinth of the Undying,” the destruction of Tenma by the Avilia Kingdom occurred after Varius had already died.
If it was to grant immortality to Varius, she should have acted while he was still alive. What good would immortality be after his death?
So then why, exactly, did she want the spell? Could it have included a resurrection spell to bring back the dead? If that’s the case, it aligns with the puzzle a bit, but….
-That’s not it. Although it’s called an immortality spell, it was actually closer to a spell of “soul transfer,” moving a human soul to another vessel.
“…What?”
I furrowed my brow at the cactus monster’s words.
A soul transfer spell? How could that be considered immortality? Simply transferring a soul to another vessel and living forever are two entirely different things.
-…Yes, that’s correct.
The cactus monster squirmed under my foot as it answered. With a much calmer voice now, the dismembered head began to add more details.
-As you said, the soul transfer spell is far from immortality. Yes, that’s absolutely true.
“….”
-…At least, until the Avilia Kingdom developed “that.”
The cactus monster’s voice grew heavier. I didn’t know whose voice it was mimicking, but it seemed to belong to someone who had endured significant hardships in life.
I questioned it sharply.
“What is ‘that’?”
-….
The cactus monster paused, likely due to the pain from its severed body. After a few gasps, it finally continued.
-…It was something developed by the geniuses of the Avilia Kingdom—an artificial being almost indistinguishable from a human.
“An artificial being…?”
-…It uses a blue, magic-infused liquid to function as blood, and a “monster core,” which drops when a monster is slain, is placed in the chest as its heart…!
“….”
-They are called “homunculi.”
“Homunculi….”
Artificial beings created using magic and monster cores.
So, this is what they call homunculi?
“In that case…!”
A hypothesis suddenly formed in my mind, and my eyes widened. I even removed my foot from the cactus monster’s head, muttering absentmindedly.
“Did they plan to transfer their souls into the homunculi using Tenma’s spell?”
After all, what defines “us” isn’t the body but the “self,” or the soul. If one were to transfer their soul into a body that neither ages nor dies, that would indeed constitute immortality.
A homunculus’ body could later be modified to resemble the original. And if it were damaged, the soul transfer spell could simply move the soul to a new homunculus. It wouldn’t be incorrect to call this the spell of immortality.
-That’s exactly correct. The elf of the Avilia Kingdom wanted that technology more than anyone else.
“….”
-But not everything went according to that elf’s desires.
“….”
-Defying a set lifespan is not only an affront to the will of the Earth God, Astra, but also a challenge to the greatness of nature itself. Naturally, there was significant opposition.
“Significant opposition…?”
-Yes. For one, the leader of Tenma soon regretted developing the soul transfer spell. The Grand Saint of Serion also visited the Hero and the elf at the time, advising them not to go against the will of the gods.
“….”
-Even her lover, the First Hero, opposed it.
“Varius did?!”
Hearing the cactus monster’s words, my mind grew chaotic.
The damned shaman, the saint, and even Varius were all opposed to immortality. Then why did Lilianel so desperately desire it, even resorting to the soul transfer spell?
If immortality went against the will of the Earth God Astra, then the people who believed in Astra likely did not welcome immortality either.
Moreover, since Vellius Varius did not actively desire to live forever, for whom exactly did Lilianel so desperately seek immortality?
…Could it be that someone even more precious to her than Varius had appeared?
-Heh, you’re quite sharp.
“….”
The cactus monster chuckled upon hearing my muttering.
-Elzerba, you’re correct. Around that time, the elf had found someone more precious to her than the First Hero.
“Son of a bitch, what?”
A curse escaped my mouth involuntarily.
Lilianel had claimed to love Varius enough to kill Princess Sophie Avilia, her closest friend, just to seal me away.
But what?
After imprisoning me at the bottom of that hellish labyrinth for a thousand years, she quickly moved on to another man?
So Sophie lost her life, and I was sealed for a thousand years, all for a love that wouldn’t even last a hundred?
“That wretched woman.”
The sheer absurdity of the revelation ignited flames in my eyes, and the black mana that had subsided exploded wildly once more.
It was a rage unlike anything I had felt before.
The murky mana not only engulfed the desert but also obscured the sun and shook the heavens and the earth.
-K-kyaaaah!!
Unable to withstand the overwhelming force, the cactus monster spat green blood from its mouth.
“Ugh…! M-my master! Please, calm down!”
Even Tina, my strongest summon, could not endure the mana and collapsed to her knees. The zombie maid gasped for air, her voice desperate as she called out to me once again.
“My master! Please calm yourself! I beg of you!”
“….”
…It wasn’t until I heard the earnest plea of Tina, one of the few beings I trusted, that I finally managed to regain control of myself.
That’s right. This isn’t the place for this.
I can vent this anger directly on Lilianel when I reach Nevirthol.
“Huu….”
I took a deep breath, gradually reigning in my emotions. Only after the black mana that had spread everywhere returned to my body did my mind finally settle completely.
“…Alright, fine.”
I knelt on one knee and stared into the cactus monster’s head with my crimson eyes. Then, with a voice sharper than any blade, I interrogated it.
“So, who is this person more precious than Varius? Who could Lilianel have possibly valued more than that damned hero?”
-Heheh….
The cactus monster coughed green blood as it chuckled. Its voice, distorted and cracked, suggested that my earlier mana had taken a toll on it.
-Emotions are unpredictable things, Elzerba. No one is exempt. In all the tens of millions of humans I’ve observed, they’ve all chased after one thing—burning love driven by their own hearts.
“Shut up. Just answer the question.”
I sharply rebuked the cactus monster, silencing its needless commentary. The plant-like creature flinched and recoiled under my glare.
-…My apologies. Anyway, the elf back then—around 950 years ago—had fallen into a new love.
“And who was it?”
-….
Perhaps finding it shocking, the cactus monster hesitated even after hearing my stern demand. After opening and closing its mouth a few times, it finally spoke again.
-…She fell in love with her own son. A love so passionate and fiery.
“…What?”
My mind blanked.
The moment I heard the cactus monster’s words, my thoughts became tangled, rendering me incapable of coherent reasoning.
“Her son…?”
-Yes.
“Not maternal love, but romantic…?”
-Yes. A very passionate, romantic love.
“…Ha.”
A bitter laugh escaped me.
To think she had discarded Varius, only to fall in love with her son. She was completely insane.
And it wasn’t even a mother’s love.
She had fallen for her son as a lover.
“Ugh….”
The story, which defied the very laws of nature, churned my stomach and made me feel sick.
Was this why Lilianel so desperately sought immortality? To live eternally with her young, vibrant son while abandoning the aging Varius?
“That lunatic… She’s completely insane.”
My pupils trembled.
Lilianel Greenfield, just how deep does your depravity go?
Perhaps deeper than my own mana—a bottomless abyss.
-Ah, I almost forgot something important.
“…?”
…As I struggled to recover from the overwhelming revelation, the cactus monster coughed and added a comment.
And that one statement threw me into even greater confusion.
-Of course, he wasn’t her biological son.
“…What?”
A faint smirk formed on the cactus monster’s lips.
-…After all, the Hero had an illegitimate child.
—
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