Chapter 485
Bump. Bump. Bump.
The sound of footsteps echoed softly through the quiet jungle.
The Bleached Reaper left the Mini Reaper Garden and walked deep into the jungle.
With small steps, it pushed through the thick underbrush and squeezed between the thick trunks of trees.
As it continued on, a massive mansion slowly came into view through the gaps in the jungle.
‘!’
Was it the Mini Reaper’s unique “sense”?
The Bleached Reaper couldn’t help but stop in its tracks the moment it saw the mansion.
It had intended to leave Sehee Research Institute and venture far, but it was stopped so soon, not far from where it started.
The grand building gleamed like something out of the Yellow Reaper’s play, standing amidst the dense greenery.
The Bleached Reaper felt an instinctive pull toward it.
‘Maah?’
At first, it thought it was the “Attachment Human’s pull,” but there was something different about it compared to other Reapers’ explanations.
What could it be?
Tilting its little head, the Bleached Reaper moved toward the wide-open front gate.
The mansion’s garden was a truly fantastical sight.
The perfectly trimmed emerald-green grass stretched out like a carpet, and the finely pruned hedges boasted shapes so beautiful they could be mistaken for artwork.
A fountain shot up sparkling rainbow-colored water into the air.
But what was even more astonishing were the gardeners tending to this garden.
Reapers of various colors were moving busily.
A ruby-red Reaper was trimming a rose bush with precise movements, while a sapphire-blue Reaper was mowing the grass.
An emerald-green Reaper was watering the flowers in the flower beds.
‘Maah!’
The Bleached Reaper couldn’t contain its admiration.
The White Reapers it had seen in the Mini Reaper Garden were usually lying lazily in warm places or making “kkyu-hing” sounds in the incinerators.
But these Reapers were different.
They seemed a bit more diligent, almost as if they took pride in their work.
It was like seeing an unemployed Reaper lounging around versus one who had a job.
Thanks to these hardworking Stone Reapers, the mansion’s garden glowed like a garden of heaven.
While the Bleached Reaper was admiring the beautiful garden maintained by the Stone Reapers, a booming battle cry reached its ears.
Drawn by the sound, the Bleached Reaper moved toward the source of the noise.
A large training ground spread out before it.
Dozens of Reapers stood in perfect formation, displaying a breathtaking scene that resembled a military parade.
Stone Reapers of various colors, along with fluffy Marshmallow White Reapers, were mixed together, creating a spectacular sight.
“Kkyuak!”
“Kkyuak!!”
With each booming battle cry, dozens of staffs sliced through the air in unison.
The movements displayed perfect unity.
The overwhelming force of the staffs hitting the ground seemed powerful enough to shatter even physical-immune objects in an instant.
The Bleached Reaper, captivated by the scene, unconsciously created a staff from firewood.
Then, naturally, it slipped into the training formation, as if flowing with the movements.
It took a place at the very back and eagerly mimicked the movements of the leader Reaper, who wore a magnificent hat.
“Kkyuak!”
‘Maah!’
With each repetition of the movements, the Bleached Reaper’s expression grew more serious.
As it swung the staff, it gradually exerted more force, and the movements became increasingly refined.
When the training was over, the enormous Reaper who had been demonstrating the moves stepped back.
Then, when the Reaper’s hands spread toward the sky, the Bleached Reaper felt as if its breath had been taken away.
“Kkyu!”
At that moment, an awe-inspiring spectacle unfolded.
In the Reaper’s left hand, white flames that burned objects, and in the right, golden firewood, blazed brightly.
The two flames danced together and intertwined, creating an astonishing phenomenon.
It was an illusion with substance.
Flame Reapers made of fire flew through the sky, and Ice Reapers made of crystals leapt about.
It was a world of Reaper spirits.
Seeing this, the Bleached Reaper’s eyes sparkled.
‘Maah—!’
To the Bleached Reaper, the Reaper’s alchemy resembled the Mini Reaper Garden its mother had created.
Though, of course, it was an entirely different technique.
A burning passion rose in the Bleached Reaper’s chest.
A strong resolve to learn this technique, to master it, surged within.
With this skill, it felt as if it could become a “hero” like the Golden Cloak Reaper.
Leaving behind Sehee’s business plan, the Bleached Reaper entered the Mini Reaper Garden.
Walking through the snowy Marshmallow Plains, it saw the Hug Reaper embracing the children.
“Hug!”
“Hug!”
Seeing the Hug Reaper reminded it of the previous Hug Reaper ability test.
The ability to draw strength from the Color Universe…
That was a very good thing.
Except for the fact that it had been thoroughly hidden from it.
When it asked why, the Hug Reaper had said that it thought the Bleached Reaper might dislike the external power.
Hearing that, the Bleached Reaper realized that the Mini Reapers didn’t really know it.
The Hug Reaper, despite being much smarter and quicker than the other Mini Reapers, had still thought that way.
It seemed that the Orange Reaper was truly the one who understood its heart best.
With automatic hunting becoming closer, there was no reason to dislike it.
Hehe.
As it watched the Hug Reaper embrace the Mini Reapers, the First Sword and Golden Cloak Reapers fell from the sky.
Then, they alternated in sharing hugs with the Hug Reaper.
‘Do they also like hugs?’
Before it could think any further, the Hug Reaper, wearing the Halo, fused the First Sword and Cloak Reapers together.
‘So that’s why…’
The hug between the First Sword and Cloak Reapers was for entirely practical reasons.
Well, it did seem a bit out of character for the First Sword to be hugging.
After the First Sword flew off, and some time passed, the Hug Reaper suddenly grew pale and clung to its ankle.
‘?’
It felt as if it was hiding from something.
Turning its gaze to where the Hug Reaper was looking, it saw a lead-colored doll Reaper walking along, dyed in blue.
So it had been avoiding the lead-colored doll…
But that direction led to the Immutable Orb…?
In the massive mansion’s training ground surrounded by the jungle, the Master Reaper’s sharp gaze settled on one spot.
Amid the breathtaking spectacle of dozens of Reapers training in perfect formation, there was a particularly conspicuous small figure.
A peculiar Mini Reaper, with a white body and a burning firewood candle above its head, walked unsteadily between the Reapers, observing everything.
Unlike the typical curiosity-driven interest of other Mini Reapers, this one’s gaze was filled with deep academic passion and a seriousness that refused to miss a single motion.
The Master Reaper watched the unusual figure and fell deep into thought.
At that moment, the tattoo-covered Alchemist approached the Master Reaper.
She had a special relationship with the Master Reaper, one where she taught forgotten ancient alchemy and cultures instead of learning alchemy herself.
It was a form of mutual assistance.
For the Master Reaper, the tattooed Alchemist was like a resurrected human from the ancient world.
“What is it that you’re watching? Ah, is it the Bleached Reaper?”
The Alchemist spoke as she followed the Master Reaper’s gaze.
Upon hearing this, a peculiar light gleamed in the Master Reaper’s eyes.
“Kkyuu… Kkyu-kkyu. Kkyu.”
[The Bleached Reaper, huh… looking at that firewood above its head, it would make more sense to call it the Candle Reaper. The naming sense of Mini Reapers is always so unpredictable.]
“Well, according to James’ research, it’s completely random and based on the Grey Reaper’s mood,” the Alchemist said.
At that moment, the Master Reaper recalled the Grey Reaper from memory.
A being that could tear apart space like a god from ancient stories, wielding the power of seven moons with ease.
But unlike the god in the story, the Magic Book seemed careless and indifferent to humans.
It was a far cry from the cruel god who watches over humans with meticulous care.
The Master Reaper suddenly realized.
The Grey Reaper resembled the “gods we need” that some alchemists had spoken of.
Was that what it was?
In that moment, the Master Reaper recalled a blue-haired girl from long ago.
As the Alchemist and Master Reaper conversed in the mansion’s garden, a cloud descended from the sky.
From it, a small Golden Reaper cheerfully jumped down.
“Mail’s here!”
With a bright smile, the Golden Reaper handed the rolled-up letter to the Alchemist.
As if this happened often, the Alchemist casually took out a shining candy from her pocket and handed it to the Golden Reaper.
Seeing the Golden Reaper’s eyes sparkle with joy, she quietly unrolled the letter.
James’ handwriting appeared before her eyes.
The recent events in Japan were briefly summarized.
The success of the Dome attack and various alchemical achievements were written in detail.
Then, as her eyes quickly scanned the letter, they stopped at one particular line.
<There has been a request to develop technology to sustain the energy of the Dome within Japan.>
“This is bad.”
The Alchemist’s voice sank heavily.
The expression on the Master Reaper’s face darkened immediately.
A human couldn’t have made such a request.
The Color Universe radiated an aura that any human would inherently avoid.
‘Ah, if they try to use that Dome, the world will end.’
It was a normal human reaction to have such an instinctive feeling.
In other words, the very thought of trying to use it signaled that something was terribly wrong.
The Master Reaper and the Alchemist silently looked at each other.
There was no need for a lengthy conversation.
The Alchemist and the Master Reaper quickly began to gather their alchemical samples.
Before an irreversible crisis could unfold, they had to stop the humans entranced by the Color Universe.
Their movements were filled with urgency.
The Master Reaper looked up at the sky, where Japan’s sky still appeared unchanged.
But somehow, there seemed to be a red aura lingering.
“Kkyu.”
[This is too ominous.]
It was a moment filled with unease.
Maybe that was why, the Master Reaper didn’t notice a small Mini Reaper silently sneaking into the bag.
‘Maah.’
In the quiet bag, the Bleached Reaper’s eyes sparkled with a resolve for its heroic adventure.
