Chương 118: Corruption Had a Pattern

Sieghart remained crouched beside the opened corpse for several more seconds, staring at the corrupted core while every sensible part of his mind reminded him exactly what had happened last time. Bellhaven had given him one thousand experience, a new magical discipline, Zombification, and several minutes during which turning his grandparents into walking corpses had somehow sounded emotionally reasonable.

That should have been enough evidence to abandon the experiment, destroy every corrupted core he encountered, and follow Mira's instructions like someone possessing a healthy appreciation for consequences. Unfortunately, Sieghart had never been particularly talented at leaving useful questions unanswered, especially after spending several days specifically wondering whether different corrupted creatures contained different magical principles.

The Dungeon Guardian had been undead, and absorbing its remains had granted Necromancy. These orcs had been alive until several minutes ago, meaning whatever existed inside their cores should represent something completely different. If the result was another horrifying spell, Sieghart could simply seal that one as well. He was becoming disturbingly comfortable with that solution.

"Well, here goes nothing." Sieghart acknowledged the problem without changing his decision. He extended one hand again, placed his fingers against the dark-red surface, and immediately felt the familiar connection forming between himself and the core. The energy inside reacted almost instantly, flowing toward his palm through the same strange mechanism that allowed him to absorb ordinary monster cores despite never receiving proper instruction in the process. Sieghart concentrated. The core began crumbling.

Dark-red energy traveled through his hand and spread across his body, carrying the same uncomfortable heaviness he remembered from Bellhaven without producing the intrusive emotions associated with Zombification. Several seconds later, the entire core collapsed into reddish dust. Sieghart remained still. Nothing disturbing entered his thoughts. No desire to reject death appeared. No unfamiliar knowledge suddenly informed him how to turn nearby corpses into servants. A notification appeared instead.

You have received 20 Experience. Reinforcement Magic received 20 experience. Sieghart blinked. That was considerably less dramatic than expected. He read the notification again, paying particular attention to the second reward. The core had not merely provided ordinary experience; something inside it had directly contributed toward reinforcement-related magic.

"That's interesting." Sieghart checked himself carefully before becoming excited. His thoughts remained his own, his body felt normal, and no unfamiliar magical instructions were trying to persuade him toward something obviously insane. He looked toward the remaining three corpses. One core could be unusual. Four would establish something closer to a pattern.

Sieghart moved toward the next body and extracted the dark-red sphere carefully, avoiding unnecessary contact with the surrounding tissue before wiping the surface clean against burned grass. The second core looked almost identical to the first, though slightly smaller. Sieghart placed it on his palm and initiated absorption without hesitating nearly as long this time. Dark-red energy flowed into him. The crystal turned to dust. The System responded. You have received 20 Experience.

Reinforcement Magic received 20 experience. Sieghart stared at the message. Exactly the same. That reduced the possibility of coincidence considerably. He retrieved the third core. The result repeated. You have received 20 Experience. Reinforcement Magic received 20 experience. Sieghart's interest sharpened enough that the surrounding battlefield temporarily became secondary. He absorbed the fourth core immediately afterward, receiving another identical reward without unlocking anything new. Four cores.

Eighty Personal Experience. Eighty experience toward Reinforcement Magic. No mysterious branches. No disturbing spells. No emotional contamination that Sieghart could detect.

"That wasn't what I expected." He sat beside the corpses while considering the result, occasionally glancing toward the retreating army to ensure another group of orcs had not noticed him conducting magical experiments among their dead. For several days, Sieghart had been wondering whether his ability to gain magical knowledge from corrupted cores came entirely from whatever mysterious System accompanied him into this world.

Mira had already explained that certain people could absorb energy from monster cores to strengthen themselves, although the technique was apparently uncommon, guarded, and considerably less straightforward than Sieghart's version. What she had never said was that absorbing a core could teach someone entirely new magic. Perhaps she simply had not mentioned it. That was possible.

Mira had an impressive talent for revealing only the amount of information she considered necessary, particularly whenever Sieghart asked questions that might encourage dangerous experimentation. Still, Sieghart suspected she would have mentioned something as significant as absorbing magical disciplines directly from another creature if ordinary core users could actually accomplish it. That suggested his System was responsible. The question was why.

Sieghart picked up a handful of reddish dust and allowed it to fall slowly between his fingers, watching the remains scatter across the burned ground beneath the night breeze. Stolen novel; please report. The Dungeon Guardian had possessed Necromantic principles because someone or something had apparently forced its corpse to function through corrupted methods. Absorbing that essence had allowed the System to interpret those principles and convert them into Necromancy, Undead Creation, and eventually Zombification.

The orcs produced a different response. Their cores contained something similar enough to reinforcement magic that his System immediately recognized the relationship and directed the absorbed essence toward that field instead. That implied the orcs had not simply become naturally stronger. Their corrupted cores were somehow connected to the method strengthening their bodies. Sieghart looked toward the nearest corpse again. The excessive hair. The unusual durability. The resistance to Fire Magic.

The physical strength that allowed some of them to climb ten-meter walls almost casually. Those traits might not represent ordinary racial characteristics at all. At least some could come from corruption. Sieghart remembered the weaker orcs he had encountered years earlier near his grandparents' farm. They had been dangerous, but nothing about them had seemed comparable to these warriors. Perhaps these belonged to another tribe. Perhaps their Orc King had given them the cores.

Perhaps every member of this army underwent some method designed to strengthen their bodies through corrupted reinforcement. There were too many possibilities. Sieghart needed information about ordinary orcs before reaching conclusions, preferably from someone who had studied different tribes rather than killed a handful and assumed the entire race worked identically. Another possibility bothered him considerably more. What exactly was his System designed to do with corrupted power?

Sieghart had originally thought absorbing monster cores was simply another progression function, allowing him to convert concentrated mana into personal experience. Bellhaven changed that assumption. These orcs changed it again. Maybe his System could recognize powers created through forbidden methods, dismantle their underlying principles, and integrate those principles into magical disciplines Sieghart could actually use. That possibility sounded absurdly powerful. It also sounded strangely specific.

Systems did not normally appear by accident. At least, Sieghart assumed they did not. He had no sample size besides himself. Still, if something had deliberately created his System, perhaps absorbing corrupted techniques was one of its intended functions rather than an accidental side effect. The thought produced more questions immediately. Was he supposed to hunt corrupted beings? Was the System designed by someone who studied forbidden methods? Did Seraphina possess the same capability?

Had the cooperation requirements attached to his magic been intentionally designed to prevent someone from becoming corrupted while accumulating increasingly dangerous powers? Sieghart rubbed his forehead.

"That escalated quickly." He had four small pieces of evidence. Building an entire theory of his reincarnation around them would be stupid. The safest conclusion remained considerably narrower: corrupted cores could contain magical principles, and his System could apparently extract those principles during absorption. What happened afterward depended upon the core. The undead guardian had contained enough unfamiliar information to create an entirely new discipline.

The orcs contained reinforcement principles Sieghart already possessed, so the System simply converted that essence into progress for the corresponding magic. That interpretation seemed reasonable. For now. Sieghart stood and looked toward the distant battlefield again. The enemy formations had withdrawn far enough that the immediate area remained mostly empty except for burning debris and scattered corpses. He should leave.

Staying longer increased the chance of someone discovering him beside four mutilated orcs whose corrupted cores had mysteriously disappeared, which would produce exactly the kind of questions Sieghart preferred avoiding. Sieghart started walking south. His earlier assumption that he would probably need to interfere with the battle again now felt considerably less appealing after finally seeing what waited inside the enemy soldiers. There was a dangerous temptation here.

Every corrupted orc represented Personal Experience. More importantly, every corrupted core represented additional progress toward Reinforcement Magic, something Sieghart could potentially use to compensate for his lack of Aura. That made hunting them valuable. Very valuable. Possibly too valuable. Sieghart had already learned what happened when curiosity and progression rewards encouraged him to ignore obvious warning signs.

He did not intend to start collecting corrupted cores thoughtlessly simply because the rewards looked convenient. Still, another question appeared. Could enough corrupted reinforcement cores eventually teach him a new spell? The four he had absorbed only granted experience, probably because the principles inside them overlapped with something Sieghart already understood. But progression usually led somewhere. Higher levels. Better control. New techniques.

Perhaps enough accumulated essence would eventually allow the System to reconstruct whatever reinforcement method the orcs themselves were using. Sieghart slowed. That possibility was tempting. His physical parameters continued improving, but nowhere near the ridiculous speed of his magical ones. Against specialized Aura warriors, raw physical ability remained one of his most obvious weaknesses. A new reinforcement spell could change that considerably.

If the orcs possessed some corrupted method that increased strength, durability, resistance, or physical regeneration, understanding a purified magical version would be extremely valuable. Sieghart immediately disliked how quickly he had started justifying collecting more cores.

"Careful." The warning was directed entirely toward himself. There was an enormous difference between absorbing several cores to understand their nature and deliberately hunting corrupted creatures because their power might improve his own magic. Probably. Sieghart was not completely certain where that line actually existed. That uncertainty bothered him more than expected. Perhaps this was exactly why Mira ordered corrupted cores destroyed immediately.

Even without Necromancy affecting his thoughts, the existence of useful power created its own temptation. People did dangerous things for smaller advantages. Sieghart continued south before he convinced himself to turn around and follow the retreating army alone. The town walls became visible again through the darkness, illuminated by torches and several damaged sections still burning after the nighttime assault. Defenders continued reorganizing above them.

Sieghart could hear cheering in some sections, although exhaustion had already reduced much of the earlier excitement caused by his Giant Fireballs. That was probably for the best. The mysterious flying mage should become an interesting battlefield rumor rather than someone people actively searched for inside the town afterward. Sieghart circled away from the busiest sections before approaching a darker portion of the walls. Wind gathered beneath his feet as he prepared to cross without using the gates.

He still hoped the orcs would reconsider attacking tomorrow. Perhaps having their rear lines poisoned and bombarded by enormous Fireballs would convince them that another town offered easier food. Sieghart doubted it. Their Orc King had already broken an army and apparently maintained authority by proving his strength personally. Someone like that probably did not respond to unexpected resistance by quietly abandoning the campaign.

Which meant Sieghart might have another opportunity to collect corrupted cores whether he wanted one or not. He propelled himself upward. For now, four had been enough. He had confirmed that the Bellhaven incident was not entirely unique, learned something about the orcs' reinforcement, and gained another clue regarding what his System might actually be capable of doing. That was plenty for one night.

Sieghart crossed the wall and disappeared into the dark streets before anyone could obtain a clear look at him, already imagining Vessa complaining if she discovered he had vanished during the attack. He would return to bed. He would sleep. Tomorrow, he would help produce more equipment and preferably remain safely behind the walls while ordinary soldiers handled their own war. Sieghart almost believed that plan.

Then he remembered the eighty experience points sitting inside Reinforcement Magic and wondered exactly how many corrupted cores it would take before the System gave him something new. That thought followed him all the way back to the workshop.