These Demons Do it for Free-Chapter 78

A true master of spatial magic would use a mana formula to pinpoint the coordinates, but I relied on the spell framework Seir had engraved into my brainstem. In simple terms, while most mages create their own spells by experimenting and fine-tuning the “recipe,” I’m more like someone using a pre-made meal—just heating it up. A standardized spell could be likened to a recipe created by other mages.

Thus, Blink was completely reliant on my senses. Before, I could only teleport to places I could physically see, as my sense of spatial awareness was limited. It wasn’t until I expanded my mana detection through the Axis ability that I could broaden my spatial perception and overcome that limitation.

Even so, being able to close a hidden path? It seemed a little far-fetched.

And more than anything, if it was possible, why hadn’t Seir mentioned this back when we first encountered a hidden path?

[That’s because my awareness is tied to the level of the contractor.]

So, he hadn’t fully understood the nature of the hidden path back then due to the limits of what I could perceive?

Had it taken Viola’s aura sealing off the path or Hernando’s barrier preparation for him to finally comprehend its nature?

[Exactly. You catch on quickly, contractor.]

Was that… praise?

It kind of felt like I was being told, “You’re not physically strong, but at least you’re smart.”

[That hidden path is essentially a coordinate link.]

"A coordinate link?"

Hernando paused his barrier work and looked over at me when he heard my mumbling.

"Doing a bit of studying? This isn’t something easy to grasp. You seem interested in barrier magic?"

"Ah, no."

As I waved him off to dispel his interest, Seir continued his explanation.

[It’s different from a gate. A gate is a passageway that has randomness at the transfer points. But this hidden path has fixed coordinates. It’s locked to a specific point.]

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"So, it’s similar to Blink?" I asked.

[Please call it La Traviata.]

Seir might just be a demon of opera.

"Yes, La Traviata."

[Good. Now, to close the hidden path, we just need to disrupt the coordinates. Once the framework of the path collapses, it will close on its own.]

"…Can we really do that?"

Sure, we could alter coordinates. But how could I apply that to the hidden path?

[You just need to do it like this.]

Although Seir only spoke in words, I could almost picture him pointing toward Hernando’s half-finished barrier.

I suddenly understood why he hadn’t mentioned closing the hidden path before—Viola and Hernando had just demonstrated how they could influence it with their own power.

"Roman? Are you okay?"

"Huh?"

"You seemed out of it for a second."

"Ah, it’s nothing."

"Really, what’s on your mind?"

"It’s just…."

I leaned in and whispered to Ray and Leif, subtly gesturing toward the hidden path.

"I think I can close that."

"What?"

"R-Ray! Keep your voice down!"

Leif, you’re just as loud as she is.

Leif’s outburst startled even me, drawing the attention of everyone around us. I quickly brushed it off as idle chatter between us and led the two of them to a more secluded corner.

Viola’s gaze was sharp—too sharp. Hopefully, she hadn’t overheard.

I had already mastered the art of dispersing sound with mana fields, but a Pioneer’s abilities could easily ignore such measures.

'Looks like I’ll have to actually learn barrier magic someday.'

Barrier magic was considered general-purpose magic, but it was complex enough to be its own class. Out of all my peers, only Holson was particularly adept at it.

"So, what are you going to do?" Ray asked.

"I’m still figuring that out."

"Maybe you should just close it quietly after everything’s done? It doesn’t feel right leaving it open when you can shut it."

She had a point.

"But they’ll probably notice. Even if Hernando doesn’t catch on, Viola definitely will."

I shared the same concern.

I’d gone through so much trouble to keep my spatial magic a secret. Even Arthur, out of loyalty, hadn’t mentioned it to his master. It didn’t seem right to suddenly reveal it now, like, "Hey, I can use spatial magic!"

"Just leave it. Hernando’s going to seal it up with a barrier and collapse the ceiling anyway. It’ll be as good as closed."

Rationally speaking, that was true. But emotions don’t always follow logic.

I wasn’t looking for praise or admiration.

But I was still a mage, after all.

I didn’t want to miss out on a chance to grow. While closing the path wouldn’t lead to any immediate breakthroughs, it would certainly be another step toward advancing my skills.

"Hey, hooded ones."

As I wrestled with my internal conflict, Viola’s voice pierced the air.

We all froze.

'She heard us.'

§

The temporary team name, the "Hoodies Trio," approached slowly, their eyes darting around, while Viola was lost in thought.

'Did I hear that wrong?'

With over 20 years in the exploration life, Viola had obtained her official explorer license at the mere age of 15. At 16, she became a star after rescuing stranded comrades from the top-tier predator in the man-eating symbiotic forest and reached the Master rank by 20.

By the time she was nearing 30, she had reached the pinnacle of being a Pioneer, and she had never once doubted her senses. Even in the man-eating symbiotic forest, known for deceiving and leading explorers to their doom, Viola’s senses remained razor-sharp.

Even in the depths where perception was said to be completely impaired, she walked without the need for any mental defense artifacts or spells—just her bare self. And she was perfectly fine with that.

Viola referred to her innate ability as Dark Listening. It was a natural talent she had possessed since birth. That extraordinary sense could easily be considered a form of mystique.

Roman’s sound-dispersion technique had been impressively clean. For a novice explorer who had just begun to learn magic, it was exceptional enough that one could even applaud him for it. In terms of mana handling alone, he would comfortably exceed the Regular rank and likely place among the top tier of Seniors.

However, Viola’s Dark Listening was so refined that even a Master-level explorer would fail to hide anything from her.

The sheer absurdity of what she had overheard led Viola to question whether she had truly heard correctly for the first time in her life.

'I’ll have to confirm it.'

Standing at an imposing height of 190 cm, Viola looked down at the three people before her, as if they were cattle being led to the slaughterhouse, and parted her lips.

"Show me."

"What do you mean?"

"Hey, Crawler."

Cutting off Roman’s words, Viola called out to Hernando.

"Why are you calling me? I need to focus, so don’t interfere…."

"That’s enough. Stop what you’re doing and come out. We’re going to collapse the ceiling, so take the kids with you."

"Hah! You’ve really gone rusty. At this rate, you’ll get buried along with the barrier."

"I understand."

Viola shooed out Arthur and Dana all at once, then turned her gaze back to Roman, as if to say, Is that enough?

"I heard everything. There’s nothing I can do about it, but it’s best to be cautious around a Master-level explorer."

"…Yes."

"Don’t worry. I won’t go spreading this around. I won’t repay the one who saved my student with animosity."

"You knew?"

"Of course. It’s obvious. The ones with massive egos are clustering around you like flies. I had a hunch that you were at the center of something, even if I didn’t know what."

Not just Viola, but anyone with half a brain in this field probably had a rough idea.

'I always wondered why the Archduke’s family, the government, and the Union all kept quiet. Did they know nothing?'

If they had discovered the true identity he was hiding, they would never have let it go.

"I didn’t expect it to be spatial magic, though."

Who could have imagined it?

That a novice explorer, just starting out, was already grasping one of the three impossible elements of magic.

"Are you going to do it?"

"Yeah."

Roman approached the hidden path with a somewhat awkward feeling, relieved that the situation had resolved smoothly.

'Seir, please support me.'

[Think of applying La Traviata externally, not just to yourself. Let’s utilize the barrier you laid down as well.]

[Pour my mana into the barrier, using it as a method of erosion.]

Since I couldn’t directly use barrier magic now, I would erode and repurpose the barrier that Hernando had partially constructed.

By using Seir’s mana to misalign the coordinates and Leraege’s mana to erode the contaminated coordinate values, I proceeded.

Then—

Wheeeeee—bang!

The hidden path twisted and distorted, causing the space around it to shimmer like a mirage before suddenly vanishing.

It was closed.

For the first time since the Abyss appeared.

Someone had intentionally closed a hidden path.

"…This is insane."

Watching Roman, who seemed bewildered and unsure of what he had just done, Viola murmured to herself.

'If they find out, he’ll definitely become a target to eliminate.'

The Doomsday Cult.

They had been running rampant, using their ability to create hidden paths at will.

But if they discovered that their most powerful weapon could be neutralized, their next steps would be quite clear.

However, stopping there didn’t suit Viola’s temperament.

"Roman, let’s see if we can trace that hidden path next."

§

"Huh?"

The man squinted at a strange sensation.

It was an important moment, and yet there was an interruption.

"What’s the matter?" he asked.

At his student’s inquiry, the man waved his hand dismissively. The blade-like wind that followed his gesture brushed past the student’s lips.

It was an unnecessary question. A punishment for asking something forbidden.

Even though it was an action that outrageously violated common sense, both the man and the student accepted it as entirely normal.

"…Enough. Viola, so you weren’t just idly waiting. We need to be more cautious."

Whatever had occurred, I could always verify it later.

For now, the task at hand was a priority.

"Use it well. It’s not an easy material to obtain."

"Yes, Professor."

The student resumed the task he had been working on before, with a corpse lying before them.

It was the corpse of the explorer known as Grant Dexter.