30 Years After Reincarnating, It Turns Out This World Was A Rofan?! novel Chapter 179

The snow had stopped.

The blizzard, which seemed destined to last forever, came to an end.

Even more astonishing was what followed.

Drip, drip...

The ground began to thaw, and sprouts emerged.

Snow, over five meters deep, melted away in an instant. Life quickly took root in the soil, transforming the barren, frozen wasteland into a lush green landscape.

It was the color of life, a herald of spring's arrival.

[-Kya-ha-ha!]

The vibrant sprouts spread wider with every peal of the girl's delicate laughter.

Creeeeak...!

With a low rumble, vines erupted from the ground, covering the ruins of the floating fortress. They enveloped the remains of the fallen mages, breaking them down into nutrients.

Where the dead mages had fallen, small trees and massive trunks sprouted in succession. Soon, an area stretching 30 kilometers from the ruins was transformed into a land brimming with spring's vitality.

The air was filled with the scent of blooming flowers and the energy of life.

Whoosh...

A faint green glow covered the land, and sunlight began to peek through the sky.

Though the light was still soft and weak, it gradually grew stronger.

[Laughter echoed.]

[Kya-ha-ha!]

[Ah-ha-ha!]

This was no ordinary being.

A Fairy of Spring, a creature among the highest order of fae, who governed seasons and wielded the power of life itself, had descended.

How could winter hope to persist in her presence?

Even winter had no choice but to retreat quietly.

RUMBLE!

And it wasn’t just the ruins of the fortress or the corpses of mages that were being broken down by the sunlight radiating from the fairy.

Even magic itself was being dismantled.

Magic, while undeniably a mysterious force in this world, paled in comparison to the power of the fae.

Even if magic could conjure natural disasters, no human could ever hope to defeat nature itself.

Just as no mortal could overcome the will of nature, no magic could withstand the fairy’s authority.

Hisssss...

The labyrinth, constructed from thousands of overlapping spells to seal the knight, melted away like snow in the sun.

As long as the fairy willed it, and as long as her anger toward mages burned, it was possible that magic itself might vanish entirely from this land.

“Why does the sunlight feel so welcoming...?”

Whoo...

The knight, who had been desperately plotting his escape from the labyrinth, basked in the warmth and light that now enveloped him.

It was the same sunlight he had always known, but today it felt profoundly different—special, even sacred.

Gone was the biting cold wind; in its place was a warm breeze carrying the scent of life and fresh grass.

It was the smell of spring, a heartbeat of renewal.

As he enjoyed the refreshing vitality of spring, Ihan noticed a gaze fixed on him. He chuckled softly.

“At last, you’ve lost that smug grin.”

“.......”

“How does it feel? Being toyed with by the people you dismissed as insects?”

“......You’re more cunning than you look for a warrior.”

Normally, Ihan might have snapped back with, “What’s wrong with how I look?”

But not today.

Today, Ihan was in too good a mood.

So instead—

“I’m not clever. You’re just an arrogant, delusional idiot who thinks he’s a god.”

“.......”

He struck with nothing but blunt truths.

Turr seemed momentarily at a loss for words.

“...When did it begin?”

Creak...

Even as vines, feeding on his magic, climbed up his body, Turr remained calm and asked his question.

Anyone else might have responded with confusion, but Ihan wasn’t just anyone. He immediately understood what Turr meant.

And so, he replied:

“From the start.”

“.......”

“Before we even came to the Empire, the plan was already in motion. Honestly, we threw it together in an hour and weren’t sure it’d work. Who’d have thought it’d turn out so well? In hindsight, it was a low-odds gamble—about 50/50.”

“.......”

Ihan answered with deliberate clarity, almost as if mocking him.

“Did you know? The only reason the odds were even that good was because of that golden-haired beast you raised. That guy sure can’t keep his mouth shut.”

“...Ah, Huey, that child...”

Turr’s eyes flickered as he finally understood everything.

*****

"We... we kidnapped a fairy! T-ten years ago!"

The golden-haired mage, who had introduced himself as the Tower Master’s apprentice, revealed countless secrets to Ihan under torture.

From the Disappearance of 10,000 People to the Incident of the Winter Fairy, he confessed to things that could shake the entire Empire to its core.

It wasn’t surprising that the Magic Tower had a hand in all these events. After all, mages committing mage-like atrocities was hardly shocking.

But then the mage dropped a revelation that even left Ihan stunned.

“W-what did you kidnap?”

“A... a fairy. The Fairy of Spring...”

“......”

Even Ihan, hardened as he was, was momentarily shaken.

“You kidnapped the Fairy of Spring? You lot?”

The notion was absurd.

The Fairy of Spring wasn’t just any being—it was a creature of a completely different caliber. Revered for its dominion over seasons and its powers of renewal, the Fairy of Spring was still worshiped as a god in some places.

That mere mages could abduct such a being, let alone keep it sealed for over a decade, was both shocking and nearly impossible to believe.

Even knowing of the existence of an archmage, Ihan couldn’t fathom how such a feat could have been achieved.

It was only after hours of grueling cross-examination, using techniques that tested even the limits of his endurance, that the truth came to light.

“Our master discovered that fairies love pure-hearted children... so he held the lives of 10,000 children hostage to seal the fairy.”

“...You monsters. Worse than beasts!”

“P-please! Stop this! Stop the torture! Aaargh!”

“No matter how much I peel back, it just gets worse!”

Every new piece of information was more horrifying than the last.

How could such beings continue to breathe without being a crime against the world itself?

But despite the horror of it all, this revelation gave Ihan the foundation for a plan.

“We’re going to rescue the fairy.”

“...Are you out of your mind?”

“I’m perfectly sane. The moment we free the fairy, nothing the mages do will matter. Even if the Fairy of Spring’s powers are only half as miraculous as the legends say, we’ll be unstoppable.”

“...I can’t argue with that. But it’s impossible with just the two of us.”

Raq had initially opposed the plan. It was far too unrealistic.

Even they couldn’t be certain they could take on the Magic Tower alone.

“Then we’ll just find allies.”

“?”

“Blacky, Taechang... no, Nervous and Chick should do nicely.”

“...You’re insane, you reckless brute.”

“What? I trust them.”

Though Raq cursed at the suggestion of involving the cadets, Ihan stood firm.

The cadets were special. They possessed talents even he couldn’t ignore. If anyone could rise to the occasion, it was them.

And they had proven him right.

“See that? My cadets are this good.”

“Of course they’d succeed. That girl is exceptional.”

“For someone who didn’t trust them, you’re quick to praise.”

“Watch your mouth!”

“Heh!”

The two knights bickered.