Offer a Tribute and Become an Archmage - Chapter 209



Only Noblemtl

Episode 209.

Originally, when Ronobe called God.

So, unless you have met them once, various gods will come to you, drawn by offerings. It felt more like a group of beggars begging in front of a rich man’s house than a god, but that’s how it is.

There are still quite a few gods gathered here.

Those with distinct forms were relatively recognizable, but there were many more who were not. Gods who were so small and flimsy that it was impossible to tell what they were originally. There were also gods who maintained human forms but were so small that they were like dwarves.

In the past, I would have just been surprised, but now I feel compassion first.

‘How poorly I must have eaten growing up…!’

I’m talking about tribute.

How long must they have been forgotten by people without receiving any tribute to become such pitiful wretch? I could feel the years of suffering they must have endured.

But that’s that and this is this.

Isn’t it the fundamental law of the world that if you can’t adapt to the environment, you will be eliminated? It’s a pity, but I couldn’t help the gods with a pitiful heart.

‘Who digs the ground to do business?’

My nose is three inches long.

Ronobe rubbed his palms together as he looked at the gods whose shapes were relatively clear.

“Now, today is the only day for the offering! If I miss this opportunity, who knows when it will be? Who knows when it will disappear! How sad it would be if I were to disappear after having finally become a god!”

[But it is ridiculous to give up Akan without any consideration! Which god would give up everything he has for such a small tribute!]

[That’s right, that’s right! Akan is everything I’ve ever lived for! Trading that for a mere low-level grimoire is as foolish as trading my life for a piece of meat!]

The most obvious were the locust and the lychee.

“How can someone who doesn’t have a single piece of meat say something like that? If you’re going to interfere with my business, then step aside. It’s a precious tribute that looks like it’ll wear out just by looking at it. How dare you!”

Ronobe waved his hand towards Richie and the locusts as if swatting away flies.

[Hey, this guy! Have you ever seen such a worthless guy! Even if you take tribute from this guy, it won’t help you at all! This guy, he’ll be eaten by the tribute hunter!]

“What do you mean you’re nothing but bones and can’t be eaten? Get out of here before I throw it as a snack to the dog next door!? Oh, even a dog wouldn’t eat bones that are completely decayed, right?”

[Hey, hey! Have you ever seen such an impudent man…!! Do you know who I am and are you talking about?]

“I don’t know, so I won’t do it. If I knew, would I do it? Oh, your head is just bones, so you don’t have a brain, so your thoughts are empty? Puhehehe!”

It’s thrilling.

How dare you fool someone with words! And you’re talking to a god who’s probably lived for hundreds of years!

‘ah.’

But then it occurred to me.

You never know what will happen in this world. Ronobe was startled as he recalled the old weasel god. Didn’t he unknowingly make an enemy of the god?

“Uh, um… uh.”

Besides, Richie was crying.

Although his face was like a skull and tears weren’t flowing, he was shaking so much that it seemed like he was crying because he had never heard such an insult before.

‘I am the man who makes God cry.’

I felt a sense of pride, but this shouldn’t be happening. The reason why the Ronobe of the past and the Ronobe of the present are different is because of the difference in whether or not they realize their mistakes and take action to repent.

“Hey, don’t cry. You’re still a great wizard even without a brain, right?”

[You, you think you won’t become bones?! In the end, everything in the world will become bones!]

People say that when they die, they leave behind a name, but that is not the case for everyone. There are many who do not even leave behind a name and become bones. Those who are alive leave behind bones.

“Yes, yes. Of course. Okay, stop it. This is nothing special, but I promise you this…”

[What is this?]

“Ten soul offerings. This will fill my empty heart…”

[Huh! Who would think that giving a bribe like this would make someone feel better?]

However, Richie carefully took care of the soul offering and swallowed it. He made a sandwich out of the offering and chewed it. It was the first time I saw someone handle an offering like that.

‘What the heck is that kid…’

[Still, you know the way… Huh.]

He looked like a cold and indifferent archmage, Lich, but his mood changed quickly like that of an old man with dementia. Still, he thought that good things were good, so Ronobe asked about Lich’s magic.

“You said you would give me eternal life… What kind of magic can you give me as a blessing?”

[I have no intention of giving it.]

“Can’t you at least listen to the story? You even received the tribute.”

[… This is the first time I’ve seen such a crazy guy.]

However, Richie raised his hand, as if he had no intention of wiping his mouth and disappearing.

[Four things. What do you think a bone is?]

“Why do I have four?”

[Because the word ‘ssagga’ is too vulgar. I don’t want to become a lowly person like you.]

“Oh my… a bone is a bone.”

[That’s a foolish thing to say. How do you know you have bones in your body? You can’t even see them.]

“Even if you can’t see it, you can touch it. Everyone knows what’s inside the skin.”

It’s an answer that’s too bothersome to even bother answering.

We can move because we have bones.

Those without bones cannot move.

Because it hurts when your bones break.

‘Right? Without muscles… No. For joints to move, nerves…? Um, I’m not sure.’

Regardless, Richie continued his speech.

[Bones are strong. But they don’t break. But strangely enough, bones heal again. It’s like a solid piece of wood that heals itself. That’s how I put my soul into bones and lived forever.]

“okay.”

[I guess you didn’t understand properly.]

“No? I understand?”

Ronobe got angry.

Actually, it was true that I didn’t understand it well.

[No, you don’t understand. You’re dumber than me without a brain. How about getting rid of the brain? That would be better than just taking up space. No, it’s so small that there’s still room?]

“Give me my tribute, you brat.”

It was scratched properly.

[It’s already been swallowed!]

Knock knock knock knock! Richie’s teeth chattered and he seemed to turn his outfit upside down at his provocation.

During the confrontation between the two, the gods who had gathered around sat there blankly, watching as if they were watching a fire.

[Anyway, to continue the story. This body can be said to handle the soul.]

“You’re not dealing with bones?”

[What good is dealing with bones? After all, living things are made up of souls. If you only deal with souls, flesh and bones don’t matter. But since they still have to move, you only move bones. Give me a soul, and I’ll show you some of my magic.]

“It’s not a scam, is it?”

[If you don’t want to see it, just stop.]

“Well… just one.”

I gave one soul offering.

A pure white, round, smoke-like soul.

Richie twisted and stretched it like a pretzel, then spread it on his hands and arms like lotion.

[To deal with the soul is not to deal with the soul itself, but with the soul’s potential.]

When he applied the soul to Richie’s hands and arms, an opaque skin with a soft sheen was formed. Applying it as if he were applying body lotion, Richie soon applied it to his face as if he was washing his face with both hands, and the skin was applied, revealing his face from when he was alive.

“!!”

Ronobe was startled.

Richie, surprisingly, was a woman.

She was a woman who looked younger than he thought. Ronobe’s affection for Richie rose rapidly.

[You are also a child of the offering, so you know. Dealing with souls is one of the first possibilities we realize.]

That’s right.

The first time Ronobe became aware of the soul was when someone died. He instinctively drew in the soul of Lady Elena, who had been beheaded for adultery.

‘I guess I figured it out now.’

The plague’s wrath.

Ronobe has only just begun to apply the practice of putting soul into magic.

But Richie in front of us said that there was a possibility that ‘we’ would be the first to realize it.

‘To me, the child of tribute, we are.’

It was difficult to see that this implied that he was a wizard.

“Were you also a child of tribute?”

Richie shook his head.

[I was the wise man of the forest. I was the one who went ahead of you on the path you four had to take.]

A god who became the wise man of the forest.

He became a lich who dealt with souls.

That had a lot of implications.

“Hey, senior! What are the advantages of handling souls?”

Soul. I fell into the magic of dealing with it.

There were many things I was curious about.

Richie was annoyed by Ronobe’s change of attitude, who immediately called him senior when he had something to say.

But he did give an answer.

[The soul is the form of a living being before it was born. Knowing that oneself is oneself, and knowing that others are others. When that is achieved, we know that a person’s soul is inhabited by the name of soul or spirit. Is that the advantage of handling souls? The soul can be anything. There is nothing it cannot be. It can be fire, water, earth, and stars. The soul is the life and mind of a living being. The potential inherent in it is like the universe.]

The soul can be anything.

Richie’s words sparkled.

That wasn’t a lie.

But that wasn’t the reason why Ronobe chose Richie.

‘Anything can be a miracle. But not everyone can handle miracles at will.’

The gods always speak plausibly.

They say you can do anything, but when you actually use magic, there are many limitations.

Ronobe didn’t want to be fooled this time either.

“I guess that’s what a soul is. I don’t think it’s fake when I see what you’ve done. But just because something can happen doesn’t mean I can either.”

If there’s one thing that Ronobe has realized while living with the gods, it’s that the gods aren’t very good at teaching. Furthermore, his own talents are very humble compared to theirs.

I used to deny it, but now I know.

I could only do what I knew, but what I knew was important.

[hmm…]

Richie didn’t deny what Lonobe had said. He certainly said that anything could happen, but that was just the nature of the soul.

The soul is something that can change depending on who handles it.

People use fire in many different ways, even though they have access to the same fire. Some people set fire to forests, some use it to warm up their floors, and some use it to cook or heat iron.

The soul is fire.

How you use it is up to you.

And Ronobe was a primitive man who had just begun to handle fire. It was clear that there were more things he could not do than things he could do.

[You want a strong power that you can use right now. What you lack is not haste, but impatience.]

“…”

Richie chuckled, saying he knew what he was talking about.

[First, I have a few questions.]

Richie gathered his soul and made it into parchment and a quill.

[What is your usual fighting style? I need to know what kind of magic and applications you use so I can set the direction of your magic that suits you.]

“Huh? Oh, uh…”

I was taken aback when it felt like I was being given some kind of serious consulting, but I answered the question because I knew I could say something.

[I see. Oil and ice. And thread and transformation. But transformation magic is not used as the main… and the internal organs are iron swords. This is not very useful either. And you use magic mosquitoes? But you… Why are there so many gods…?]

“It’s the difference in the bowl.”

[This is the first time in my life that I’ve seen such an idiot worshipping a god in an octopus-like manner… I can’t believe such a person actually exists in the world… I was a little arrogant. I didn’t think he would be this stupid.]

“Hey, who are you calling an idiot?”

Richie was troubled.

[So you want a magic that can be used anywhere, that is powerful, that can change into anything depending on its application, and that can also be combined with the original gods’ abilities. Is that right?]

“Uh… right?”

[Where in the world can you find such magic?]

“So. It’s a miracle.”

[That’s right. If it were any other magic, it would be impossible! But if it’s mainly soul-based, it’s possible. The soul is something that exists and isn’t real. It’s something that can be seen, but isn’t seen. The soul can become wind, matter, and substance. Therefore, it’s the closest power to the magic you desire.]

He said it wasn’t there until just now, and now he’s saying it is. I thought maybe he was losing his mind.

At that moment, Ronobe began to sense a strange madness in Richie and started to move away from him.

Something was born from her hands.

[You can use this too.]

A fish jumped out of the covered hand that had become bony again.

Perhaps a fish made of soul.

It was a soul fish.

But it is different from regular fish.

“It’s a bone.”

A bone fish with only the bones remaining, shining softly.

It was a bony fish.

[Gorge fish. In the old days, it was also called bone fish or needle fish. I call it bone soul Liu fish.]

I was more puzzled by the old saying than by the name of the fish.

[It’s an ancient word. It’s not used anymore, but I like the old word better. It has many meanings in a short word.]

“… okay.”

Come to think of it, Karan Kal also used Chinese characters.

That was an ancient language.

[You can use the Bone Soul Magic as well. If you have enough souls, it will change its form depending on the time, protect you, and attack your enemies. This is called the magic of all-in-one offense and defense. Isn’t this the magic you need right now?]

“surely…”

Nothing else is needed.

It was a type of summoning magic that could be summoned simply by possessing a soul.

Bone soul mate.

A type of magic that involves the transformation of the soul.

The strength of this magic will be proportional to the caster’s ability and the quality and quantity of his soul.

As Richie said, it wouldn’t be a bad idea to learn the magic of manipulating the soul. The soul, as she said, is a power with infinite potential. Even if it starts out weak, no one knows how it will change as you continue to manipulate it.

[This is basic magic. If you offer this grimoire as an offering, I will grant you the grace of Golhonyu five times.]

“I want to try magic.”

[He’s a tough guy.]

It was a plausible magic, but in the end, we had to see the power this magic possessed.

[Try anything. The simple things are better than everything else.]

Ronobé took out the oil.

He immediately blew it up and shouted.

“oil painting.”

bang!

The other gods who were watching nearby ran away screaming because of the oil painting shot at Richie.

[The soul is a strange thing. The soul’s strength is surprisingly not due to the soul itself, but rather because it easily reacts to its surroundings.]

Even in the face of Ronobe’s oil painting, Richie was unfazed. In front of him, a large and wide-spreading bone horn was solidly enduring the explosion of the oil painting.

Of course, it is not without its impact.

The scales made of the bones of the golhonyu fish were broken and only a little fell off.

[This time it’s my attack.]

Then, the giant Golhonyu split into dozens in an instant and rushed towards Ronobe like arrows.

“Waves at your feet.”

Kung. As he stomped his foot, a wave of ice rose in front of Ronobe. At the same time, he created a round ice cover to protect the entire thing. Because it was in the shape of a fish, he thought it would be possible to change direction at any time.

[He may look like a fool, but he’s quite skilled at fighting. He’s a good guy who’s survived until now.]

However.

[It will be difficult to stop it with just that much.]

Crack, crack, crack.

The ice of Ronobe was being eaten away.

It wasn’t just one direction. Schools of fish swam around Ronobe from all directions, gnawing at the ice.

‘To the point of gnawing on Anna’s ice.’

I never thought a fish made entirely of soul could show such strength.

But Ronobe isn’t someone who would be defeated by something like this.

‘Who am I?’

The one who defeated the wizard of the empire.

The white wizard of the kingdom.

One who has received the approval of the Grand Wizard.

A child of tribute and a wise man of the forest.

Ronnove de Hopper.

The ice sheet is made of ice on the inside and oil on the outside.

A squid that has eaten ice is no different from a squid that has eaten oil.

In addition, the ice is imbued with Ronobe’s blood.

“Cool tripe. Yuhwa.”

Kwajijijik!! Boom-!!

In the countless number of bone-splitting creatures, ice spears burst out at once, transforming into sea urchins and each explosion occurred individually.

As the explosion subsided, Ronobe calmly released the ice cover.

“Is this the answer?”

Even I thought to myself that I had a lot of charisma.

But Richie clicked his jaw and pointed down with his finger.

“?”

Let’s look down.

An enormous, gigantic squid was gaping open like a whale.

“ah.”

Chin-!! Inside the giant bone soul fish, small bone soul fish rushed at Ronobe and bit him. I resisted with all kinds of magic, but the bone soul fish was a soul magic made of bones. Even if it was broken, it could regenerate itself. Although it was made of soul, it had the properties of bones. It was truly magic.

I have no choice but to admit it.

‘Bone soul love.’

It was a miracle I wanted to have.

The Three Disciples [4]