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Chapter 40: The Lightning Ravager

In the darkened classroom,

Grantoni was busy preparing a necromantic ritual to summon Thunder Caller.

He painted a massive magic circle using goat’s blood and scattered bone dust of indeterminate origin across it.

After a while of bustling preparations, Grantoni finally grinned with satisfaction.

“This sets the mood.”

“Grantoni, all of this feels unnecessary, doesn’t it?”

What he was attempting was a summoning ritual—nothing he’d ever read indicated such dramatics were required.

“Hehe, these things are all about the atmosphere.”

True to his eccentric nature, it was clear he was doing this simply because he wanted to.

“So, who are we summoning again?”

Had he forgotten already?

“Thunder Caller.”

“Not the nickname—the actual name.”

Ah, right.

Calling someone by a nickname via necromancy wouldn’t exactly summon them.

“Barcavaran.”

A name from the northern empire, derived from the savage tribes that lived among the world’s tallest mountain ranges.

“Hehe, noted.”

Grantoni clattered his teeth together and stepped into the center of the magic circle he had drawn.

He placed a chair backward and sat with its backrest pressed against his chest.

“I’ll start the summoning now. Keep quiet for a bit.”

Grantoni was a spiritualist, and not just any ordinary one.

He was among the most gifted, a person who was closer to the dead than the living—a mobile mausoleum.

He wasn’t called by such a chilling nickname for nothing.

As his skeletal eye sockets lost their eerie glow, the atmosphere in the classroom began to shift.

This place was transforming into a domain that welcomed death.

Even my steel skin started trembling in response to the encroaching aura of death.

An unsettling, creeping sensation crawled across my entire body.

The colors of the scenery began to drain away, leaving everything bathed in a desaturated grayish hue.

This signified one thing: the classroom was now an entry point to the Otherworld, the realm of spirits.

This was why Grantoni was considered an unparalleled spiritualist—his unique ability allowed him to traverse the boundary between life and death at will.

Yet even he knew.

Staying in the Otherworld for too long meant risking the inability to return.

And still, he repeatedly ventured here, undoubtedly searching for someone.

‘That someone…’

One day, though, he would have to let go.

During the fourth act of the “Mad Mage Saga,” in his final battle against Vinesha, Grantoni faced a crossroads.

Would he remain in the Otherworld?

Or choose to stay in the mortal realm?

If he stayed in the Otherworld, he would find happiness—his greatest wish fulfilled.

But it would also bring about one of the story’s 38 bad endings: The Descent of the Otherworld.

If he stayed in the mortal realm, however, it would mean an eternal separation from what he held dear—an endless sorrow that would haunt him forever.

Happiness in the Otherworld or despair in reality—the choice was his alone.

‘As for me…’

Despite knowing his story, I must ensure he stays in the mortal realm.

‘But that’s still far off.’

As I observed the Otherworld’s dull, lifeless hues, I couldn’t help but chuckle bitterly.

This bleak, joyless world was the place Grantoni considered his happiest refuge.

Reality must have appeared even grayer to him.

“Barcavaran.”

Grantoni began his invocation, and immediately, the classroom’s windows burst open.

Heavy blackout curtains flapped wildly in the northern wind that came rushing in.

The biting cold stung my steel skin, and I almost let out an involuntary sound.

While I had grown used to intense heat, freezing cold was another story entirely.

My steel-like skin amplified the chill, making my teeth chatter uncontrollably.

‘I need to work on my cold resistance. Definitely something to get soon.’

With such thoughts flitting through my mind, Grantoni raised his hand toward the ceiling.

“Barcavaran.”

A rumble of thunder echoed through the roaring wind.

It was coming.

That realization struck my entire body at once.

“Barcavaran!”

KRAK-A-BOOM!

Blinding lightning illuminated the room as the sound of thunder split the air.

The momentary flash left me blinking to regain my sight.

Slowly, my vision cleared, revealing a silhouette in the dissipating smoke.

The figure lacked visible legs, and their entire body was marked with jagged lightning-shaped scars.

The man surveyed his surroundings with a grim expression, as if searching for something.

When his gaze met mine, he paused briefly, then furrowed his brow before snorting in disinterest.

[Impossible.]

I felt like I’d just heard some ridiculous nonsense.

“Hello, friend!”

Grantoni suddenly popped his skull-like head out from behind the man, startling him.

The man swung a punch reflexively, but it passed right through Grantoni’s head.

Of course, it did—Grantoni was already dead.

This man was Barcavaran, the one they called Thunder Caller.

“Nice punch! My friend here needs to talk to you.”

[Annoying. Send me back.]

“Aw, come on! Give us a moment. He’s a fun guy, promise.”

Grantoni worked hard to persuade Barcavaran.

That pendant I gave him was proving its worth.

Annoying personality aside, Barcavaran was someone who repaid his debts.

[Fine. Talk quickly.]

Barcavaran sat cross-legged on the floor, exhaling sharply.

[What do you want?]

I grinned.

“You mind explaining how you earned the nickname ‘Lightning Ravager’?”

Barcavaran fell silent.

KRAK-BOOM!

Another thunderclap roared through the Otherworld.

Barcavaran flinched, his shoulders trembling as he hunched over.

The memories of those 108 lightning strikes must have been seared into his soul.

“Come on, no need to dodge the question. Your wife’s clearly still mad—look at the weather.”

[ Ahem. ]

Barcavaran let out a series of coughs.

As mentioned earlier, he had defiled the statue of the Lightning Goddess.

And he had been struck by lightning for it.

But it wasn’t necessarily because the Lightning Goddess despised him.

To be precise,

it was jealousy.

‘A legendary womanizer.’

A mad philanderer who, under the guise of a barbarian, would try his luck wherever he could.

After this lunatic defiled the statue of the Lightning Goddess,

for reasons beyond understanding, the Lightning Goddess began to fancy him.

As absurd as it sounds,

every one of the 108 lightning strikes he endured came after he’d been in bed with someone.

And all with different partners, no less.

“Wow, that’s impressive!”

Grantoni clapped his hands, laughing heartily upon learning this.

“But wasn’t the 108th lightning strike after he was already buried?”

Grantoni suddenly asked, as if a question had struck him.

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I didn’t respond.

Neither did Barcavaran.

The only reply was the sound of lightning striking outside the window once again.

[ '...You're prying too much into my personal life.' ]

“Personal life or not, it’s not hard to find. It’s recorded in history, after all.”

[ ‘Must’ve been an extraordinary record, then.’ ]

Well, extraordinary in many ways.

“Anyway, let’s get to the point.”

This wasn’t why I’d summoned Barcavaran.

I had something completely different to discuss.

“The divine artifact you acquired when you defiled the Lightning Goddess’s statue.”

A divine artifact—

an item imbued with the direct power of a god.

However, aside from a few exceptions, most divine artifacts are considered cursed or dangerous.

Some divine artifacts unleash endless seawater.

Others perpetually pour out illnesses.

Most divine artifacts are, in fact, calamities in disguise.

Thus, divine artifacts, despite their name, are often sealed away.

Among them is Barcavaran’s artifact.

“The Lightning Caller.”

The Lightning Caller wasn’t named after Barcavaran’s nickname.

It was the actual name of the artifact he had taken from the Lightning Goddess’s statue.

“I’d like you to give it to me.”

And so, I’d come here to obtain the Lightning Caller from Barcavaran.

Divine artifacts remain tied to their owner unless they willingly pass them on or their soul dissipates after death.

Knowing this, I’d summoned Barcavaran directly.

[ ‘...There’s nothing good that can come from possessing the Lightning Caller.’ ]

Barcavaran looked at me as though I were insane.

The Lightning Caller literally summons lightning.

Who in their right mind would voluntarily take on such a burden?

But I needed it.

For me, the Lightning Caller was a crucial trump card.

“Everything has its uses.”

[ ‘So, you want to get struck by lightning? Planning to die young, I see.’ ]

“Actually, I’m trying to avoid dying, which is why I need it.”

I wasn’t doing this because I wanted to get struck by lightning.

Realizing I was serious, Barcavaran rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

[ ‘If I give you this divine artifact, what will you give me in return?’ ]

Even in death, this guy was greedy.

I sighed and pulled out a book I’d brought along.

“Grantoni, could you present this as an offering?”

“Sure, just put it under here.”

Grantoni casually gestured to the space under his chair.

I carefully placed the book there.

Moments later, the book appeared in Barcavaran’s hands.

He opened it, flipping through a few pages, and his eyes widened in surprise.

“It’s a gravure collection.”

Wherever people live, such things exist.

But in the afterlife, where the living don’t reside, they were impossible to come by.

“I have more if you’d like.”

I lifted the bag I’d brought, showing him its contents.

A faint jolt of static ran through me, and suddenly, something was in my hand.

It was a small ring meant for a finger.

A golden ring with a lightning motif carved into it.

The divine artifact—the Lightning Caller.

[ ‘The deal is done.’ ]

Barcavaran looked immensely pleased.

I handed him the rest of the gravure books as an offering.

‘Unbelievable.’

Trading a few gravure books for a divine artifact—it was absurd no matter how you looked at it.

I slipped the ring onto my index finger.

The gemstone on the Lightning Caller briefly glimmered.

[ ‘A word of advice.’ ]

Without looking up from his book, Barcavaran spoke.

[ ‘The Lightning Caller leaves indelible scars on its user’s body.’ ]

He gestured to the lightning scars covering his body.

[ ‘When those scars completely cover you, your heart will stop.’ ]

Essentially, the Lightning Caller carried a curse.

Using the divine power of a god exacted a toll on the human body,

inevitably leading to death.

[ ‘I don’t know why you’re so determined to use it...’ ]

He gathered the books and walked toward the window.

[ ‘Once you use the Lightning Caller, you’re stepping into the wheel of fate.

And your heart stopping because of it will become your destiny.’ ]

“It’s fine.”

At my calm response, Barcavaran gave me a curious look.

“Fate can always be twisted by a greater force, can’t it?”

Quoting Sharin, I met his gaze.

After a moment of silence, he spoke again.

[ ‘I hope we don’t meet again in the afterlife.’ ]

With that, he leapt out the window.

BOOM!

Thunder roared once more outside.

As the otherworldly realm began to dissolve, gradually returning to the original world,

Grantoni quietly gazed out the window, as if awaiting something.

Watching his back, I tightened my grip on the Lightning Caller.

‘Fate or no fate.’

I wasn’t in a position to worry about such things with a bad ending looming over me.

With this, I was ready.

‘Team battle.’

Let’s see who gets swept away.

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