Infinite Mage (Re-make)

This is bad.

Back then, Armin had only been eleven years old. All he could do was expand his Spirit Zone to dodge the obstacles in the water.

“Siana! Open your eyes! Don’t pass out!”

“Brother! Help me—please!”

Siana was panicking. She wasn’t in any state to pull herself together.

But with the river’s current so strong, there was no way two kids could make it across on strength alone. Armin realized he had to handle it on his own.

We just need to reach the Delphons area. The water gets shallower there—it turns into a delta. If we keep this pace, we’ll be there in about 20 minutes.

Twenty minutes felt like forever.

Could they survive that long in such violent rapids, especially with Siana losing control?

This is insane.

But there was no other choice.

The river twisted like a serpent, and countless dangers lurked beneath the surface.

Armin twisted his body with everything he had.

Even when muddy water stung his eyes, when sharp rocks struck his sides, or when broken branches tore at his skin—he never took his eyes off the path ahead.

We’re almost there.

He felt Siana’s small hand gripping his waist tightly.

It was heartbreaking—knowing a fragile life was depending entirely on him. But that pain awakened something deeper: purpose.

He finally spotted their destination downstream.

But there was no clear path.

Fallen trees were blocking the way through the river.

“Siana, listen to me. You have to go under that tree. I’ll push you down, so hold your breath and swim forward as far as you can, okay?”

“Oppa! I’m scared! I can’t do it!”

“You have to! You can do it!”

Two swirling currents clashed ahead, and the water's speed suddenly doubled.

Armin clenched his teeth in frustration. Above the surface, he could see flood debris surging forward like a monster.

His limbs were heavy with fatigue. His legs started cramping.

Sharp debris tore into his body. He was bleeding, growing colder, and on the edge of losing consciousness.

They finally reached the tree blocking their path.

Up close, it was obvious—there was only one option: dive under.

“Siana! It’s time!”

Armin quickly calculated the distance and timing. Just before impact, he pushed down on Siana’s shoulder.

“Go—now!”

Her terrified scream was swallowed by the roaring river. Armin’s vision shot upward, and in the blink of an eye, he saw the jagged bark of the waterlogged trunk rush past.

But all of his focus was on the hand holding Siana down.

Only when he felt her slip far enough under the tree did he let go.

You did it, Siana.

A faint smile crossed Armin’s face—just before a look of shock followed.

Even in that final moment, as everything faded, he never shut his eyes.

“Oppaaaaaa!”

Siana’s voice echoed from farther downstream.

“…And that’s what happened.”

When Siana finished telling the story, Shirone and the others remained silent.

“I floated to the Delphons delta and was rescued by some villagers. There weren’t any more obstacles past the forest, and my brother was found unconscious farther downstream. The school sent people right away and treated him… but the diagnosis was permanent eye damage. My brother lost his sight.”

“…I see.”

“He’s the one who taught me how to overcome fear. Thanks to him, I escaped the flood. But he… he lost his light. He was the most gifted student in our school’s history. And it all ended like that.”

Shirone felt a pang in his chest.

Losing one’s vision, especially for a mage, was like losing everything.

No more reading. Limited learning. The frustration and sorrow Armin must’ve felt were easy to imagine.

“I heard something recently… My brother came here three years ago. He said he was working on a painting style that captures light. That’s why I volunteered to be his model.”

“…We didn’t know. I’m sorry.”

Even misunderstanding their relationship felt like an insult now.

Just as the mood grew heavy, Armin reentered the room carrying refreshments.

“Did I interrupt something? It’s rare for Siana to bring up the past.”

“…Brother.”

“First, have some tea. It’s nothing special, but it’s made with my wife’s secret recipe. I think you’ll enjoy it.”

“Oh, thank you.”

Shirone and the others accepted their cups politely.

Even though Armin had given up on magic and become a painter, he had once been a genius magician twenty years ago.

They might pity how life turned out for him, but they couldn't look down on Armin as a magician.

Armin returned to his canvas and motioned to the back of the room.

“Alright, I’ll start painting now. Please make yourselves comfortable while you wait.”

“Yes, of course.”

The group moved awkwardly to their seats, holding their teacups.

As Siana sat up in bed again, Neid hesitated, then asked a bit awkwardly.

“Um… when you said, ‘You’re not wearing anything today,’ earlier… did you mean it was going to be a nude portrait? That would mean—”

“Haha! Just because I’m blind doesn’t mean I’d ask my little sister to do something like that. I realize how it must’ve sounded, though. Easy to misunderstand. Siana, can you bring it out for me?”

Siana pulled a silver coat from the closet. The sunlight reflected so brightly off the fabric that it was hard to look directly at it.

“That’s blinding.”

“You can’t see clearly using only the Spirit Zone. But if you apply a luminous substance to a person or object, you can sense the light it emits. That silver coat is perfect for that.”

“I see. So you paint by feeling the light.”

“Right. In exchange for losing my eyesight, I’ve gained a way of seeing that lets me draw things other artists can’t. But today is the last time I’ll paint Siana. A good sponsor came forward, and I’m moving in a few days. I wanted to capture her true essence one last time. I feel like the coat dulls her natural beauty.”

Siana blushed.

“Brother, you’re saying embarrassing things again…”

“Haha! What? In my memory, you’re still a little nine-year-old girl.”

“Then just hurry up and draw. Once Keira comes back, we won’t have time.”

Shirone and the others fidgeted slightly in the quiet, ticklish tension of the room.

They could tell the two had a sibling-like bond—but it didn’t mean they were blood relatives.

It also explained why Siana reacted so strongly to rumors of an affair. Maybe she still had feelings for Armin.

“Alright, I’m starting. Since I draw based on intuition, I’ll be done faster than usual.”

Siana took a somewhat shy pose, and Armin picked up a piece of charcoal and began sketching the outline.

As Siana’s features gradually took shape on the canvas, Shirone and his group watched in awe.

“Wow… he’s so fast.”

“Shhh.”

Iruki warned them to stay quiet.

Losing his sight should’ve been a major handicap for an artist. So he’d have to concentrate even harder.

That was logical, but Shirone still felt something was… off.

‘This is strange. Something’s not right.’

Even without seeing light, Armin was capturing every tiny detail of Siana’s features with amazing accuracy.

‘How is this possible? Is the Spirit Zone really that precise? Even if it is… these kinds of details?’

Increasing the density of the Spirit Zone can allow for incredibly precise sensory feedback, even synesthesia. But even that couldn’t explain how he was capturing emotions through facial expressions.

The sketch grew more refined, and on the canvas, Siana wore a soft, beautiful smile—one Shirone had never seen her wear at school.

And then, using a piece of bread as an eraser, Armin perfected the curve of her smile.

Shirone was almost sure.

‘No… this isn’t possible.’

One of the hardest parts to get right in a portrait is the corners of the mouth. A small shift can change the entire emotion being expressed.

“Hey, Armin…”

“…Yes?”

Still smiling, Armin turned his head slightly.

Shirone hesitated. Was it okay to even ask this?

If he was wrong, it could be a huge insult.

“…By any chance, Mr. Armin…”

But the only way to find out was to ask. Shirone took a breath and spoke clearly.

“…Can you actually see?”

“…….”

Armin’s hand froze mid-stroke.

He set down the charcoal and turned toward Shirone.

“…Yes. I can see.”

Shirone stared in shock.

He could see? But then why didn’t Siana know?

“I’m sure you have a lot of questions. Let me show you.”

Armin faced Shirone and removed the cloth covering his eyes.

There were countless scars around his closed eyelids.

‘There’s no way… he looks clearly injured. And yet…’

Then, Armin slowly opened his eyes.

Shirone’s breath caught.

There were no pupils. Instead, his empty sockets were filled with radiant light.

“…Neid, can you see that?”

Shirone slapped Neid’s leg urgently.

But the sensation felt strange—hard, like hitting metal.

He turned to his friends, and his eyes widened.

“That… That’s impossible!”

Neid was completely frozen, not even blinking.

Iruki still had his chin resting on his hand. Siana still sat on the bed, smiling. But none of them moved.

They were like wax figures.

Armin slowly approached Shirone from behind, who stood frozen in shock.

“…It’s been a long time since I had a guest in my room.”

“This… what is this?”

“It’s magic. It’s called Stop.”

Shirone turned around, stunned.

Stop—a legendary magic. Only those who’ve mastered the speed of light can perform it. In all of history, only a handful have reached this level.

He was witnessing an ultimate form of time magic.

“Sit down. Let’s talk. We have all the time in the world.”

“…Hah…”

Shirone let out a breath and smiled awkwardly.

If time was frozen… then yes, there was infinite time.

“Honestly, I’ve been a little nervous. I didn’t know when you’d figure it out.”

“How did you know I would?”

Armin pointed at the light in his eye sockets.

“The eye takes in light and turns it into images. But I—without eyes—am the light. I don’t just receive it—I perceive the world through it directly. It’s a terrifying thing. The way I see the world is completely different from how normal people do.”

“…That’s almost philosophical.”

Who’s to say our senses tell us the truth?

Maybe bricks are soft like jelly. Maybe fire is cold. Maybe a lover’s kiss hurts.

“Let me introduce myself properly. I’m Armin of Gwang-an. Among those who know me, I’m called The Eternal Reflector.”

The Eternal Reflector.

The moment Shirone heard that title, he understood what Armin had meant when he called it “his room.”

“…How long have you been in here?”

“Time doesn’t pass in this place. So I can’t say exactly. But in terms of mental time—how long I’ve spent thinking—it would be about 120 years.”

Shirone couldn’t even imagine it.

What would happen if a genius wizard spent 120 years in uninterrupted thought?

“But Armin… when you were young, you studied magic at the Olipher School…”

“Yes. But there was an accident. I left the school… and wandered in darkness for 15 years. A world without even a glimmer of light.”