CHAPTER 16 — Twilight Outside Sundara
Outside the walls of Sundara Capital, Zodac released a long, exhausted sigh.
"That old enchantress really charged me five silvers for this map," he muttered. "I admire her sales skills, but let's be honest—there's a very high chance I've been scammed."
He shook his head, shoulders slumping, and continued down the dirt road. Soon, he arrived at a familiar clearing — the place where he'd fought his first monsters… the little bouncing orange abominations.
The Balloons.
He walked toward the large tree he had sat beneath yesterday, watching the other heroes proudly wield weapons while he remained powerless. His hand rested against the bark — steady, grounding, almost comforting.
Not even a minute passed before he heard faint, rhythmic bouncing.
Zodac opened his eyes.
"Oh great."
Fifteen Balloons emerged from the grass, surrounding him, their tiny orange bodies pulsing with energy.
"Why are there more than usual?" he asked, genuinely curious. Then he smiled — slow, confident, dangerous.
"Interesting."
They bounced closer, circling him like predators.
"You've got guts," he said, cracking his neck. "But I'm not the weakling from yesterday."
His grin widened — almost feral.
"RAYGUST!"
A red and black dagger materialized at his waist. Zodac unsheathed it, gripping it firmly with both hands.
"Come at me!!!"
For a moment, everything went silent — the world holding its breath.
Then—
Grrrrghhhhhh—!
One Balloon lunged from behind. Zodac reacted instantly, spinning and slashing.
POP.
The creature burst mid-air, pieces scattering across the dirt.
The remaining Balloons screeched and launched themselves at him all at once.
Zodac inhaled calmly. His stance lowered. His heartbeat steadied.
He switched grips, now holding Kogestu in his right hand — and unleashed a whirlwind of crimson steel.
POP
POP
POP
POP
The clearing echoed with bursting sounds as Balloons shredded apart. Some latched onto him, biting and scraping — but Hector's aura protected him, their teeth unable to pierce his body.
One by one, they fell — sliced, crushed, exploded, stomped — until the ground around him was coated in shredded balloon remains.
Zodac exhaled, satisfied.
POP.
He crushed the final Balloon beneath his boot. Another tried to escape—bad mistake. He spun, drew Raygust, and stabbed it mid-air.
POP.
"Holding a weapon is an amazing feeling," he said, breathless and exhilarated.
Then something strange happened.
A torn Balloon fragment shot toward his left arm — and the moment it touched the green orb attached to him, it dissolved and was absorbed into it.
Zodac froze.
"Wait—what?! Did… did you just eat that?!"
The system responded immediately.
MATERIAL PIECE INSERTED
INITIATING MANA DISSOCIATION
FILTERING…
"What do you mean filter—?"
Six circular icons appeared:
< DRAGON MANA >
A circular emblem with a dragon head at the center.
(Empty)
< RESERVE >
A ring within a ring — a storage core.
(Filling up…)
< SOUL MANA >
Sourced from spirits and consciousness.
(Empty)
< DARK MANA >
A black orb with an ominous silhouette.
(Empty)
< BLITZ >
A tornado-shaped symbol.
An unstable form of mana.
(Partially filled)
< PURE MANA >
The rarest, most refined form of mana.
Extremely difficult to obtain.
(Nearly empty — slow drip)
Zodac blinked several times.
"Huh. Doesn't say much about Soul Mana."
He crouched and gathered Balloon remains, dumping more into the orb.
"So these act like storage tanks — separated by mana type." He nodded, impressed. "Makes sense. In every fantasy world, everything is made of mana."
Piece by piece, the orb absorbed and filtered the material. Blitz filled first, Reserve climbed to about one-quarter, Pure Mana barely increased — a painfully slow drip of glowing liquid.
"Wow. Pure Mana really takes its sweet time."
He gathered the remaining balloon scraps — half went into the orb, half into his cross-bag.
When he finally straightened up, a soft orange glow washed over the landscape. Zodac turned — and froze.
Twilight painted the walls of Sundara in gold and purple, the sky fading like a watercolor canvas. Warm. Peaceful. Beautiful.
Despite everything — betrayal, humiliation, disappointment — the world still offered moments like this.
"Beautiful…" he whispered.
He sat beneath the tree, leaning back, letting the twilight settle into him.
"Time flies when you're being productive," he said softly.
A sad smile followed.
"Time also flies when you're depressed."
His breathing slowed. His eyelids grew heavy.
For the first time since arriving in this world… he felt calm.
Zodac fell asleep under the fading light — weapons resting beside him, the wind gently rustling the leaves overhead.