The Magic Academy's Physicist-Chapter 276: The Elemental Spring (2)

Chapter 276: The Elemental Spring (2)
0% “We’ve arrived.”
When I set foot into the portal, a world different from Ahrens continent appeared.
There were all different kinds of trees, and the low fields were covered in flowers. A place where even predators behaved themselves and winged fairies pranced about.
The Elemental Realm was much more dream-like than I had thought.
“You are the first Beast in a thousand years to set foot in this place.”
“Didn’t the Elementals complain?”
“No, Elementals are simple beings. What an Elite says, those Greater and below follow without question.”
Secuel smiled and pointed above my head.
There, Alice was looking around as she yawned.
“You sister is an Elec Elemental, the highest even among the Elite. You are most likely already recognized as an ally amongst them.”
This was rather fascinating.
I had been corrupted by the Elementals, yet I had also come back because of them. I suppose this was what they called life being unpredictable.
I followed Secuel further inside.
“From here on is the Deep Realm. It’s a place created by the Goddess herself so it might be too much for a Beast’s body.”
“...Is that, so.”
“Yes. You already look unwell.”
It was as she said.
The moment I stepped into this Deep Realm place, I started to feel nauseous inside.
My throat felt parched like I was running a marathon at full speed, and my mouth tasted salty and bitter at the same time.
Most of all, my head throbbed.
“Will you be alright?”
“I’m fine.”
“To be honest, most Beasts cannot survive here and pass out, so just being able to walk indicates you are of a different caliber.”
Was she complimenting or scolding me?
Or maybe she was concerned, who knows.
“We’re here.”
Several minutes of walking absentmindedly for some minutes, eyes on the ground.
Then when I lifted my head, I could see a waterfall.
At the bottom of the fall, there was a large gazebo and a small pond with a ring of rocks.
“This is the Elemental Spring.”
“...What a killer view.”
And I felt like I was going to die, too.
According to Secuel, if one bathed here for 24 hours and made a wish to the Goddess, she would grant it within the boundaries of the world order.
For example, it was difficult to bring a dead person back to life, but she could save a dying person in exchange for the lifespan of the one making the wish.
If she was going to help anyway, then would it be so hard to do it for a cheaper price?
As I was thinking that, Secuel called me.
“......Excuse me, aren’t you going to undress?”
“Huh?”
Wait.
Fuck.
“Don’t just stand there. You have to first take off your clothes in order to bathe.”
That’s right.
I had to go into the spring to save Lotte, and I had to get naked first in order to do so.
In a way, I was being told to be naked in the middle of enemy territory, which to be honest was something unimaginable for me who still had my male persona.
“Are you not going to save your friend?”
“...Um, can’t I go in with my clothes on?”
“The holy water must come in contact with bare skin for it to be effective. You cannot do it while dressed.”
God. Why me.
But even as I thought that, I dutifully unbuttoned my shirt.
“Huu.”
If it weren’t for Lotte, honestly, I wouldn’t even be doing something like this.
“You may go in.”
“Right, yes.”
When bathing in the Elemental Spring, there had to be Elemental supervision. Secuel was considerate and said she would watch from afar.
She disappeared from sight, leaving only me, Alice, and a few Lesser Elementals.
“Wow, sis.”
“Shush.”
“.......”
After taking off even the underwear I became used to and putting them aside, I walked towards the spring where the moonlight fell.
In the clear, mirror-like water, I could see my reflection.
Snow white skin and a perfectly proportionate feminine body that could hardly be seen as a machine. 기계라고는 생각할 수 없을 정도로 뽀얀 피부와, 지적할 곳 하나 없을 정도로 완벽한 비율을 갖춘 여성적인 몸매.
The girl side was definitely present as well, so it wasn’t as off-putting as I thought.
“.......”
Actually, there was a bigger problem than being naked.
Which was reluctance to go into the spring itself.
This was my Beast instinct; my whole body was screaming that I shouldn’t go in there.
Right, because it was the same as taking a dip in aqua regia in human terms.
“Sis, in all seriousness, we don’t have much time.”
“I know.”
The Demon King had returned.
And even as I was doing this, he was probably getting ready for war. So for efficiency’s sake, I had to get this done as quickly as possible.
And the moment I dipped my foot into the spring–
There was a stinging sensation, then my foot felt like it was burning.
“Fu...!!”
I thought I’d cry out in pain first, but what actually came out was a curse. Apparently the Korean in me hadn’t gone anywhere.
The problem was, I was so caught off guard that I lost my footing.
Splash!
Slipping and sliding on the smooth, mossy rock, I failed to regain my balance and was dunked into the Elemental Spring–
“Arghh, fuck! Ahh, ahh, ahhhghh!!”
–and was forced to make a scene in front of the other Elementals.
Not that I had the mind to be embarrassed about it or anything.
“Haa, haa, haa...!”
My body felt like it was burning like I had been doused in hydrochloric acid. It hurt like fuck just as Secuel had warned.
“Hgh, hghhh, hghhh*.......*”
I was submerged up to my head, then barely came back up to the surface. As I leaned against the rock, trying to catch my breath, Alice asked with worry.
“Are you alright, sis?”
“......Not at all.”
It hurt so bad like I was going to die.
The first few minutes were so painful that I kept swearing. But that only lasted for a moment, and once I was drained of all energy, I could only groan.
“Khhghhh.......”
“You can’t come out; you have to save your friend.”
“Yeah, I do.......”
The embarrassment of being naked had long since left my head.
There was only despair that I would have to spend 24 hours in this cursed place.
**
Hour 6. I couldn’t talk anymore.
Hour 12. My consciousness started clouding over.
Hour 18. I wasn’t even groaning now, and gradually lost sensation in my body.
Yet during all this, I prayed as much as possible. It was quite comical that I, who was far from religious, was folding my hands together and doing this.
Then all of a sudden, I blacked out.
“Sis, you need to wake up.”
Hour 24. When I passed out and woke up, that was the time.
“...What.”
“She’s come.”
Come? What did.
What was coming?
“The Goddess, she left a message.”
Splash!
I snapped out of it at those words. Forgetting about the pain, I jerked my head up.
As Alice said, there was large writing in the air.
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# Hello.]
“......!”
She appeared.
The Goddess Le’Cuiness.
The one who transmigrated me from Earth to this world, the enigmatic entity who oversaw Ahrens continent.
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# Please respond if you can hear me.]
“...I hear you.”
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# Thank you.]
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# It has been a while since we’ve talked like this since the paper review, hasn’t it?]
I slowly looked over the Goddess’ account as I nodded.
It was definitely a Linux-based account. She seemed to be chatting through a computer from Earth.
Then was the Goddess from Earth?
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# I see what you are wondering about.]
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# I’m sorry, but I can’t tell you who I am. Only questions regarding this world, okay?]
“...Okay.”
Right now, saving Lotte came before learning who Le’Cuiness was.
Even if Lotte and I were mere chess pieces in the world that this person created, the me who thinks still existed as who I was.
So I was going to do the best I could within what was given.
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# An admirable attitude. Then shall we get down to business?]
I nodded.
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# What do you want?]
‘What do you want’, all of a sudden?
I already had the answer, but I knew that the Goddess could read my mind so my response came out curt.
“If you know, why are you asking?”
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# sudo rm -rf /
1]
Fuck, I was screwed.
“I’m sorry.”
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# I’m joking. It would be troublesome for me as well if I use this.]
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# I know what your wish is, so I thought I’d tell you what my goal is instead.]
Le’Cuiness then sent a cute emoji. It felt like I could hear her chuckle ‘huhu’ beyond the chat window.
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# I want to get rid of all the malware that is hidden in my world without using the above command.]
“By malware, you mean the Demon King?”
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# Yes, in fact, there were a lot of flaws in the early stages of development. It was born by mistake, and still hasn’t been caught to this day.]
I see.
Now I understood what had happened.
The Goddess was someone who created things like a programmer. But in creating this world, she had created a serious flaw and it had gotten to the point that it couldn’t be fixed without deleting the file altogether. That was Demon King.
She had tried all sorts of things, then finally decided that this wouldn’t work and copy/pasted a similar ‘file’ from another account.
And that was none other than me.
“So you pretty much used me as a Trojan horse.”
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# Yes. Did it upset you?]
“No.”
Having come to possess a female and male ego at the same time, I struggled a lot.
Who am I. Why did I have to fall into this fucked up place and suffer. When could I go home. No, where was home in the first place?
And it was only now that I could finally come up with an answer.
“Whatever I am, I am me. If my free will wants to go in the same direction as you, I am willing to follow.”
Even if it goes according to the Goddess’ plan, I was going to save Lotte.
Whether Beast, human, or elf, if they believed and followed me, I would not hate them but be equally for them.
And for these, I would destroy the Demon King.
That was the choice I most wanted.
[root@Le’Cuiness:~# Wow.]
The Goddess was sincerely impressed.
Footnotes
1. A permanent delete command