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Chapter 57 - The So-Called "Spatial Severance" (Part 2)

Ten Spatial Severances in a short time—

This was Agusheed's current highest record.

And this record, he had achieved exactly three times in 500 years.

From most recent to oldest—

The most recent was over ten years ago when encountering the Demon King in 'Ende.'

The middle one was 150 years ago when Serie came looking for him.

The earliest, and first time, was 300 years ago when he single-handedly invaded the Demon King's castle.

Agusheed didn't hide any of this from Frieren.

When talking about these past events, he appeared quite calm.

So much so that Frieren couldn't see any trace of fear or pride on his face.

As if surviving from the hands of the world's two strongest mages wasn't anything remarkable in Agusheed's eyes.

"I say, Agusheed, isn't your expression a bit too indifferent?"

Frieren couldn't help but stand on her tiptoes and wave her hand in front of her teacher's face.

Her fingertips almost touched Agusheed's long eyelashes.

But Agusheed didn't even blink from beginning to end.

"Fighting the Demon King and Serie with full force, and surviving—"

The white-haired elf's brow furrowed deeply, her voice gradually rising.

"That's quite remarkable, isn't it?"

Her small face was slightly flushed, emerald eyes flickering with incomprehension.

Frieren's assessment didn't change Agusheed's view of those past events.

He simply gently touched the white-haired elf's hair.

As his fingertips passed through her soft strands, they stirred up a few tiny snowflakes.

With a hint of weariness toward those memories in his gaze, Agusheed said softly:

"Remarkable... perhaps it appears so in your eyes."

His faint voice was almost drowned out by the howling wind.

But Frieren still heard him clearly—

"But for someone like me who dislikes conflict, such things only bring me distress."

Dislikes conflict?

Hearing Agusheed's words, Frieren felt momentarily dazed.

Agusheed dislikes conflict?

You've got to be kidding...

Then what about that battle she witnessed not long ago?

An entire mountain range on the Heaven Vein Dragon's back was leveled by Serie and Agusheed—

This is called disliking conflict?

Seeing Frieren's doubt and confusion, Agusheed calmly explained:

"I dislike conflict because I hate death, and I hate killing even more."

His voice was low and firm, a shadow flashing through his eyes.

"But this doesn't mean I don't get irritated, nor that I don't need somewhere to vent my emotions."

Venting emotions...

The little magic sprout nodded with half-understanding, then continued asking based on her speculation:

"Agusheed, when you were so impulsive with Serie that time, was it because you needed to vent your irritation?"

Frieren tilted her head, her silver-white hair floating in the wind.

"Yes."

Agusheed answered briefly.

He lightly tapped Frieren's skull with his finger, making a dull sound.

But the white-haired elf wasn't paying attention to that now.

Having gotten an answer to one speculation, Frieren didn't stop there.

Remembering what Agusheed had just mentioned, Frieren's eyes lit up.

She freed herself from the large hand on her head and suddenly moved closer to Agusheed.

"What about when you actively attacked the Demon King's castle? Agusheed."

The little magic sprout lowered her voice as much as possible, curiosity sparkling in her eyes.

"—Was that also because of irritation?"

Hearing Frieren bring up that dark chapter of his past,

Agusheed gently shook his head, denying Frieren's guess.

From the white-haired elf's perspective—

Her demon teacher's expression showed subtle changes for the first time.

Without making Frieren wait long, Agusheed gave her an answer.

Looking toward the distant forests and mountains, he replied softly:

"That time was because of anger."

Anger?

This word made Frieren freeze for a moment.

Agusheed said...

'Anger'?

After confirming she hadn't misheard,

Frieren looked at Agusheed with some astonishment.

She unconsciously stepped back half a step, her boots making a crunching sound on the snow.

The white-haired elf asked Agusheed back with an incomprehensible tone:

"Anger?"

Her voice rose slightly due to unprecedented surprise.

"Agusheed, you actually get angry sometimes?"

Agusheed sighed deeply, white mist dispersing from his lips.

He reached out to brush away the accumulated snowflakes on Frieren's shoulders, his movements incredibly gentle.

"I simply haven't shown anger in front of you and Flamme."

Agusheed's voice suddenly became ethereal and distant, as if reminiscing about something.

"Three hundred years ago, when I still retained some humanity—"

"Anger was almost an everyday emotion for me."

Frieren's brow furrowed even more.

She stepped forward, her boots sinking into the soft snow pile again.

"Why?"

Agusheed didn't answer immediately.

He lowered his head and asked his disciple, whose family and friends had all died at demon hands:

"Frieren, let me ask you—do you hate my kin who live by killing?"

"Even without asking, you surely know the answer to that, right?"

"Then what do you think—"

Agusheed's voice suddenly became low and struggling.

He spoke with an emotion that even made Frieren feel oppressed:

"When I, who despise killing, see my kin taking others' lives, what kind of feelings do you think I harbor?"

Frieren opened her mouth but couldn't answer immediately.

"Believe me, Frieren..."

Agusheed's voice was so quiet it was almost inaudible.

"The killing and cruelty you've witnessed doesn't amount to one percent of what I've seen."

"You suffer because of that killing—naturally, I also harbor anger."

"And the target of this anger is His Majesty the Demon King, who sits high in the Demon Castle."

Frieren's eyes widened slightly.

She never expected Agusheed's reason for anger to be something like this.

"So you disregarded the power gap and attacked the Demon Castle alone?"

Although she could understand Agusheed's reason for anger,

Frieren couldn't figure out why—

Agusheed would make the decision to single-handedly invade the Demon Castle with such a vast power difference.

"Frieren..."

"I was young then, truly young..."

Agusheed's voice intertwined with a certain nostalgia and helplessness.

"So young that I believed there was no mage in the world who could defeat my Severance Magic."

"Whether it was those Grand Demons rumored to wield various powerful magics or the Demon King himself."

"At that time, I didn't regard any of them as a threat."

This answer was somewhat unexpected for Frieren.

She looked up at this stern teacher who could be described as low-key,

Trying to reconcile Agusheed's image with his younger self.

"Agusheed, were you really that blindly confident before?"

"Hehe... Frieren—"

Agusheed reached out and tapped Frieren's head again.

"If you could instantly take down four Grand Demons with four Spatial Severances in one encounter at age two hundred,"

"You would become just as confident as I was then."

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