房客(糙汉)何璐程曜坤

"Mind explaining what you mean by that? What do you think is the case?"

The elven woman sat up on her bed and looked at the black-haired man with intrigued expression.

"This is just a take from an outsider – this world, and I mean whole, both the land of star power and the land of mana, is a land like from a fantasy novel. To be honest, even before I learned about this part of the world, I was shocked that there are no monsters there – I mean, what's the use of magic? It was never something necessary for the survival of the people living there, so why was it there in the first place?"

Zoemi waved his hand to the side and tilted his head with a devilish smirk as the breeze from the hole in the wall he melted ruffled his curly hair.

"Truth be told, at the very beginning I believed that magic was just something that the Presence created, causing the time loop..."

He said, looking between the young martial artist and the elf, closing his mouth instead of continuing.

"But...?"

The princess of the white tower leaned forward and asked with an impatient expression.

"If that was the case and mana and magic were just creations that did not belong in this world, the monsters infected by Cherro would simply die. After all, mana is poison, right? But then why is it not poisonous for monsters?"

The black-haired man asked, continuing to look between the two as if he was a teacher doing his best to keep his class engaged in the lesson.

"I would say that it's because they are monsters, but you don't seem to share that sentiment."

The elven woman rolled her eyes and sighed heavily as she didn't seem to enjoy the impromptu lecture.

"Quite opposite, actually. You are very much correct and I do agree with you. It's exactly because they are monsters."

"...eh....?

"..."

Zoemi nodded in confirmation, causing the elf's eyes to widen as she let out a shocked gasp, while the young marital artist furrowed his brows and looked to the side deep in thought.

"Zoemi, correct me if I'm wrong, but by any chance are you suggesting that mana and magic were something exclusive to monsters...?"

Alan gulped down his saliva and slowly raised his head before asking while making eye contact with the brightly smiling black-haired man.

"Indeed, that is what I think."

Zoemi confirmed without a moment of hesitation.

"On one hand we have monsters wielding magic and casting devastating spells, on the other hand, we have humans who fight back with star power that directly counters mana. Things were pretty simple until at some point the Presence began a time loop and created magicians – humans who could use mana, like monsters, which balanced itself out with some monsters gaining the ability to use star power... And by that, I mean dragons and to some extent dragonewts."

The black-haired man raised both his hands and moved them up and down as if he was weighing something invisible.

"Even if that is true, what does it has to do with the evil filth creeping below the ground?"

The elf scoffed, smacking the mattress with one hand while clenching the other one into a fist.

"My guess is that because of the disappearance of the line of death that kept the land of mana sealed, mana itself is returning to the world. Just like an underground stream, mana is slowly permeating the earth, returning to the place it always belonged to. Our problem is that said stream of mana was polluted by Cherro's consciousness and he is messing up the already tangled up and convoluted situation of our world."

Zoemi shared his thoughts, pointing towards the outside.

"Then, you are saying that earth dragon's power can't reach that whole Cherro because he is in that whole mana stream?"

The elven woman breathed out and asked.

"Then our next move should be obvious – We should call for every dragon, dragonewt, and maybe even some martial artist with particularly impressive talent in the law of Aquarius, and cleanse that fucking shit right up! If it's mana, then the law of Aquarius with deal with it easily."

...and then she declared, coming up and announcing the answer to her own question.

"I mean, yeah, sure – it is worth a try, please do give out the appropriate orders – but if eradicating the mana from the world was possible in the first place, then I dare say that it would be long gone before the presence even started the time loop. Do you know? If magic-wielding monsters were a thing then humans with star power would have most definitely tried to get rid of them once and for all."

Zoemi nodded seemingly in support of the decision but then added offhandedly, making the princess of the white tower frown and glare at him.

"Then what do you suggest? I mean, you wouldn't critique my plan if you didn't come up with a better alternative, would you?"

The elf asked in an accusatory voice.

"I don't. That's why I encouraged you to go with that plan. Because honestly, If I'm right in this case, we are majorly fucked, me in particular. Basically, the whole thing would turn against a fight against an entire planet."

Zoemi stopped smirking and shook his head, with a particularly serious expression.

"...fuck... it is that serious...?"

Seeing that reaction, the elven woman straightened her back, realizing the gravity of the situation.

"Hopefully – no. But I would not advise clinging to that hope too much."

Zoemi shrugged his shoulders and sighed.

"I will get my dragons and gather the dragonewts, I will have you and your friend pass the information to the marital artist, there should be a few humans strong enough to be of help. The Heavenly Star Warrior in particular."

"H-hold on...!"

The princess of the white tower got out of her bed and ruched towards the closet where the only change in the wardrobe she made was putting on a cape before speaking in a commanding tone to the black-haired man and the young martial artist.

"...was I not clear enough...?"

The elf asked coldly, glaring at Alan as if he was a major annoyance.

"Understanding your request is not the issue here – the problem is that for the outside world Zoemi and I are considered members of the dark sect and will be hounded by basically everyone. We can't really get out there and request a meeting with the strongest martial artist in the nation!"

The young man braved the nervousness and explained.

"~!"

"!!!"

To which the elf smiled evilly, causing Alan to flinch and hide back behind Zoemi.