Chapter 264

Chapter 264
Chapter 264: Never Mind The Heir, I’ll Focus On Healing

Petrick responded evenly.

“Indeed. The Saintess’s power remains concentrated here, making the area considerably denser than elsewhere. How did you figure that out?”

Frankly, I was quite taken aback.

Detecting such a nuance typically demands extensive background knowledge and firsthand experience with corruption.

And understandably, the surrounding region was already heavily tainted by demonic forces.

A massive Barrier was the only thing preventing the corruption from encroaching further.

Yet my grandson, stepping into the Great Barrier zone for the very first time, immediately identified the truth.

‘Did the Dragon give him a hint?’

It was possible, but not very likely.

Even a Dragon would face notable restrictions while operating in a purely spiritual form.

Petrick remembered the presence of Tiamatrak, who had briefly taken control of his grandson’s physique not long ago.

That entity had possessed an unhurried, entirely relaxed demeanor.

To Petrick, accustomed to a lifetime of aristocratic dignity, the tone had even seemed a bit crude.

‘Still, that residual aura was unmistakable.’

Neither Petrick nor Elvia had dared to lower their guard.

Naturally, the tension was heightened all the more because it emanated from his own grandson’s frame…

Regardless.

‘For such an ancient being to remain unaware of even a fragment of its own signature energy.’

If so, Lion must have noticed the corruption independently, but how did he verify it?

Just as those thoughts crossed my mind, he answered.

“Ah, because of the soil.”

“Soil?”

Lion crouched down and scooped up a handful of the parched earth.

The dark dirt crumbled easily within his grip.

“It’s noticeably drier than the ground in the previous sector.”

“…….”

It defied all logical reasoning.

Furthermore, if he had judged the environment solely by the surrounding ecosystem…

‘Weren’t the outer zones actually in better condition?’

Although toxic, vegetation still managed to grow there.

In some form or another, a faint trace of vitality remained.

Not here, however.

This was a barren wasteland where absolutely nothing grew.

No poisonous weeds, no flora of any kind.

Instead of questioning him, Petrick simply waited for Lion to elaborate.

“When was the last time it rained within the Great Barrier?”

“Ah… I see your point.”

Inside the Great Barrier zone, regardless of how heavy the cloud cover grew or how thick the fog became, precipitation never fell.

That was simply a quirk of the region’s unique properties.

Yet, the ground right outside the barrier was usually damp rather than merely moist.

In certain spots, the earth was so soft that boots would sink in like thick mire.

Everyone had assumed the condition was entirely due to severe corruption and dense concentrations of demonic mana.

Mages believed it, and priests preached the exact same explanation.

Yet his grandson had arrived at a completely different conclusion.

And he surely had a solid reason for bringing it up.

“It appears you’ve figured something out.”

“Only this dry patch of earth bothers me. I suspect there is a specific reason why the former Archbishop’s energy is being sustained so effectively.”

“You mean not only is the Saintess’s divine power holding back the spread of corruption, but some underlying mechanism is actively preserving it?”

That particular hypothesis hadn’t been proposed once in the last fifty years.

The Great Barrier stood as one of the rare joint projects undertaken by the Temple and the Mage Guilds.

Regardless of their mutual distrust, reinforcing and maintaining the Great Barrier had become their lifelong mission.

However…

‘Every single investigation has hit a dead end.’

How many mages and clerics had been mobilized during the last major sweep a decade ago?

Petrick gazed across the barren expanse of the Great Barrier—a view he had witnessed countless times—his eyes filled with complex emotions.

‘There is nothing to be found.’

Excavating the ground produced only dusty dirt, and even the scattered ruins and ancient stones yielded no secrets.

Until rumors surfaced of Lion possessing a unique gift, the Hero’s exact reason for visiting this location remained a mystery.

‘Perhaps I’m reading too much into it.’

A whirlwind of thoughts rushed through his mind.

Yet, hearing such a compelling theory fall from his grandson’s lips breathed a spark of hope back into his weary heart.

“So, what do you need me to do?”

Perhaps fueled by that tiny ember of hope, Petrick’s tone held a renewed sense of purpose.

The shift was subtle enough to escape anyone else’s notice, but—

‘Ah.’

Fortunately, Lion, who easily read his grandfather’s expressions, caught the change right away.

‘Grandpa must have suffered with this for so long.’

He had always viewed the Hero as a close friend.

And while perhaps not to the same degree, he likely held similar bonds with his other companions.

‘He must have loathed this wretched place.’

Or more accurately, he loathed his own perceived helplessness in failing to discover the fate or whereabouts of his dearest friend, despite wielding the immense might of an eighth-circle Archmage.

‘If he had only had himself to worry about, it would have been different.’

But Grandpa always carried heavy responsibilities.

His family and the Empire.

His wife, his daughter, and his grandchildren.

Not to mention the countless mages who looked to him for guidance.

Immediate duties likely prevented him from dedicating his entire existence to tracking down the Hero.

And…

‘Even with all that power, Grandpa never lashed out or caused trouble.’

He possessed an unwavering resolve, sharp-witted yet unable to turn a blind eye to those in need.

I, however, am rather different.

Lion grinned and carried on with his explanation.

“I’m not entirely certain, but rare medicinal roots often share a specific trait.”

Lion stood up, dusting the desert-like dirt from his hands.

“They absorb all the nutrients from an entire mountain just to fuel their growth, storing it all inside themselves. So, we need to track that down.”

Something down here was draining the life force of the entire region.

And it was undoubtedly buried underground.

“Please turn this earth over.”

“During past investigations, not even a trace of vegetation, let alone roots, was ever discovered.”

“I know. Which means we’ll have to dig much deeper.”

“…….”

Would digging deeper really solve anything?

Noticing Petrick’s lingering skepticism, Lion simply offered a faint smile.

‘It’s far too complicated to explain.’

Besides, I discovered something else just a little while ago.

While Tiamatrak had been making excuses behind Grandpa’s back, Lion had taken the opportunity to scan the terrain with an expert’s eye.

And he had confirmed a suspicion.

Something faint was glowing deep beneath the soil.

‘Much like a medicinal herb.’

Though gauging the exact boundary proved difficult.

The entire low-corruption zone was emitting a soft luminescence.

‘Since the light is bleeding everywhere, the source is hard to pinpoint.’

What options remained, then? Checking them layer by layer was the only way.

Though undeniably labor-intensive, Lion could theoretically have managed it on his own.

Given enough time, wouldn’t he have eventually uncovered the anomaly?

‘Like solving a maze.’

Unfortunately, time was a luxury they lacked.

That left them with no choice but to employ a rather drastic measure.

“I’ll handle the heavy lifting.”

“……Hah.”

I figured my grandson was capable of grand-scale trouble, but isn’t this taking things a bit too far?

Using earthquake magic to churn up the earth was difficult enough, but controlling the spell precisely so as not to disrupt the Great Barrier’s intricate magic required an entirely different tier of mastery.

On top of that, the land would eventually need to be restored to its original state.

‘Normally an impossible feat.’

However, the caster was Petrick.

For an eighth-circle Archmage, the story changed entirely.

And that troublesome grandson of mine surely knew it.

“You certainly know how to put me to work.”

“Hahaha… you’ll help me out, won’t you?”

“You do realize that if I fail halfway through, things are going to get very dangerous for you, right?”

“Fail… halfway?”

Grandfather?

Faced with a look that clearly communicated the absurdity of failure, Petrick simply sighed and closed his mouth.

“Hoo. Very well, stand back.”

Stepping forward past Lion, Petrick began calculating the required scale of the spell.

An operation of this magnitude could not be managed through rough estimates alone.

Even for someone of Petrick’s caliber, it demanded immense concentration.

“This will take a moment. Until I finish, don’t step into the zone.”

Lion nodded and backed away as instructed.

Raising both hands, Petrick began tracing complex magic circles in the air, weaving raw mana like ink.

Once the first pair of circles locked into place, his fingers danced to conjure a second set.

The four overlapping circles steadily expanded until they spanned the entire dry zone.

‘……Incredible.’

Witnessing this made it easy to understand how his grandfather had managed to construct the Great Barrier in the first place.

“The spells will lift the earth at precise depths. We have four layers in total. You’ll need to spot the anomaly among them.”

Lion acknowledged the warning that digging any further would interfere with the Great Barrier’s structural integrity, making it a strict limit.

“I’ll find it.”

“Lion… it’s fine if you don’t turn anything up.”

Grandfather still seemed torn between doubt and belief.

He must have scoured this exact region meticulously over the years.

Even so.

‘The more he tells me that…’

“The more driven I am to succeed.”

“…You really are a handful.”

Petrick let out a soft chuckle.

Though he tried to hide it, a familiar competitive spark had ignited within him—the very same spirit he and the Hero had shared while fighting to save the world long ago.

Perhaps, once this barrier was unraveled, his current doubts would finally be laid to rest.

Still.

“You really take after me.”

Petrick had no intention of letting the world take his grandson away.

The actions he was taking now were driven purely by the shared curiosity of Lion and Petrick Asteri.

“I’m starting.”

With a sweep of his arm like a conductor leading an orchestra, Petrick pressed one magic circle against the ground and hauled upward.

*Rumble…*

To everyone’s astonishment, the earth fractured into a massive, perfect rectangle, lifting cleanly into the air with exact measurements of depth and width!

An expanse large enough to swallow an entire village rose into the sky!

“Hmm, the previous investigation teams confirmed they reached at least this depth.”

Maintaining his nonchalant expression, the Archmage pressed a second magic circle against the exposed ground below and hoisted the next layer.

Then a third.

The second and third strata soared upward in tandem.

Even the legendary Petrick Asteri began to sweat, beads forming on his brow as his jaw tightened under the strain.

Sustaining three massive magic circles simultaneously without a supporting staff was an astonishing display of power.

Tiamatrak, watching quietly from the sidelines, widened his eyes in shock.

*Vwoom…!*

Within Lion’s field of vision, the hidden light grew noticeably sharper.

The glare was intense, though the precise source remained obscured.

Still.

‘It’s working.’

If not found here, the identity of the anomaly would surely reveal itself in his grandfather’s final layer.

And if that failed, he could always resort to digging through the debris himself.

“Grandfather! Please cast the fourth circle as well!”

“Hmph!”

With a sharp grunt, Petrick forced the fourth magic circle into effect.

At that exact instant.

*Ku-gu-gu…*

A deep, resonant roar unlike anything before echoed across the landscape.

It rumbled up from the depths of the earth and down from the heavy sky.

Lightning cracked overhead.

‘A most peculiar phenomenon.’

This was an investigation fifty years in the making.

Even during the massive sweep a decade earlier, they hadn’t excavated the entire sector to this volume, though certain spots had reached comparable depths.

Back then, nothing had been uncovered.

Yet now… things were different.

Something was hidden down there.

‘Why now?’

Gritting his teeth to maintain the floating earth, Petrick accelerated his thoughts.

A remark his grandson had made moments earlier drifted back into his mind.

An organism that drains nutrients to fuel its growth.

Yet this land had remained largely shielded from corruption for fifty years.

If so… where was it drawing its sustenance from?

‘No.’

That was a question for another time.

Keeping his mana circles fully open to support the suspended earth, Petrick shouted out.

“Lion! Go and see for yourself!”