Clevatess (クレバテス-魔獣の王と赤子と屍の勇者)

Stop! Don't close the lid!

Let me out!

Hey!

Don't tell me...

Bugs?!

More bugs?

No bugs!

I've been traumatized by them!

Don't!

CLEVATESS

Episode 4: The Dark Tower

So you've captured Alicia Glenfall, the girl who calls herself a hero?

Yes. Her soul is inside the mirror.

She cannot leave until this book is opened.

It seems you've learned to use the Book of Toah well.

Of course.

This book has been passed down through my family

since we were spiritual leaders in the Village of Origin.

I met the general, learned from your noble self,

and now it has regained its true power.

All I do, I do to fulfill our great wish.

And for that, you must gather all the books.

The last book, the Book of the Forge,

is in Clevatess's hands.

Take it, no matter the cost.

Leave it to me.

Solsein is the place that was once the Village of Origin.

Here, none can resist the book's power.

Not even a Lord of Dark Beasts.

Just give me a little more time...

Great lord of the north.

To think that's the sort of dark beast the hero Alicia would become...

And it was Andrew Hwyp who captured her.

I can't wait to see what happens.

Welcome back, Andrew.

I'm back, Ray.

Did you catch something again?

Yes. A rat.

This one will live a long time, I think.

Your dedication to your research impresses me.

You even constructed a basement in which to conduct it.

Is it a bother?

Not at all.

Both Merry Merry and I appreciate your silent devotion to your work.

Fel.

Sometimes I hear voices,

but I can't tell what they're saying.

Is this a dream?

Am I being forced to dream?

I was put somewhere?

A floor? A desk?

Where am I?

What does he want to do with me?

Now what's going on?

Something wrong?

The dark ichor always felt weak in this land,

but now it's totally gone.

Did something capture her?

Clevatess.

Enough talk.

I think I've learned enough about the past.

As well as the fact that you're a piece of shit, Zavthier.

I apologize for not telling you what happened before you were born.

I thought it was over. I was mistaken.

So the legend is coming back?

We have to stop it no matter what.

At all costs.

Eleven hundred years ago, when the world took its current form,

many died, including your predecessors.

The one who put an end to the two-hundred-year-long battle with the hero

was Vordin, the Lord of Dark Beasts of the North.

So that's where all the wounds on his body came from.

So the true hero was that strong?

When the hero evolved to their final form,

they were stronger than us.

A true nightmare.

And Vordin, who fought them the most, knows that better than anyone.

Why would he be trying to revive the legend?

I don't care.

He is an enemy who entered my territory and bared his fangs at me.

Anyone involved with him is my enemy as well.

That's enough for me.

I'll do what I please, as I have done.

Take care, Clevatess.

You're outside your territory. It won't be as easy as it was in Hiden.

Hence why I brought my servant.

Just like you did, Zavthier.

So you noticed?

Of course.

I didn't bring anyone.

It seems I can't reach her at the moment...

Where is she off wasting time, I wonder?

Shit! He released the barrier!

My head feels funny.

So we've lost contact with the hero Alicia... no, Alyssa.

Will she be okay?

So Alyssa Sleihunt is absent again?

Klen, have you heard anything?

Nothing.

I see.

Perhaps she went home.

Sometimes we see kids like that,

who run away because they can't keep up with the classes.

Yeah, right.

How many days has it been since I've had anything to eat or drink?

It all looks like it's rotting...

This isn't real.

The reason I'm sure of it is...

That.

The way I look reflected in the glass.

Like a dark beast rat.

The scenery behind me looks normal.

Is that... the real me?

In other words, the giant who captured me is someone human-sized.

It must be the third-ranked student at the school. He was there, then.

That frog is... my food?

He wants to keep me as a pet?

No, no way.

Because...

this is his garden!

So I'm this thing's food?

You always appear out of nowhere.

Gart.

I fly for you.

You give me information.

That's the contract, Rhode of Eslinn.

You're going to work hard enough to justify all my flying.

Call me "Barnes" here.

I'm the new history professor.

I know you're here to find Drel's secrets.

I'm after the same thing.

Learn anything?

Not yet.

All I know for the moment is that there aren't any

hidden rooms in the school building itself.

Miquel searched for me.

He's a specialist when it comes to spying, searching, and scouting,

so if he says so, he must be right.

What my own investigations have revealed is

that students here often go missing without warning.

"Often"?

Most of the students return.

Supposedly it's a rite of passage to earn one's magic.

So nobody worries about it.

If anything, the more talented students look forward to it.

Those who come back develop some kind of new magical talent,

or if they don't,

they come back in a terrible state like Nathan Franc did a few days ago,

and either take a long break from school or simply quit.

So some are being chosen, and some aren't.

The problem is that I still don't know how it happens.

It's clear that it's related to Drel's room, though.

So the missing students are the key?

Who's missing now?

The exchange student from Hiden. Alyssa Sleihunt.

Finding her is the key to solving this mystery.

It's been three days. The "choosing" could happen at any time.