The Price of Fame (4)
An angel is a messenger of God, a harbinger of the apocalypse.
The Great Elder, an old man holding a staff, looked at his nephew with a warm, satisfied gaze.
He was immensely proud.
Proud that his nephew had reduced such a divine entity to a mere human servant.
"Things will be noisy for a while."
It wouldn't take long for this news to spread across the world. The Church would undoubtedly exert immense pressure. No, it wouldn't stop at mere pressure.
"A war is about to begin."
But it didn't matter. They had never feared war, not even for a single moment.
The Management Bureau would try to mediate as they always did, since they despised conflict.
However, there was no way they could interfere this time.
To those who served God, an angel was nothing less than a sacred symbol—a precious link between the divine and humanity.
If such a holy being were to be controlled by a mage and used as a weapon, how could the Church not boil with rage?
"Cluck, cluck, cluck. The age of magic shall rise once more."
In the Great Elder's mind, there was no scenario where they could lose.
With an angel leading their vanguard, holy magic and divine arts would pose no threat at all.
With the power of an angel, even claiming the position of Patriarch will be well within reach.
To lead the family into war, one needed the seat of the Patriarch. But that throne was not granted to just anyone. Only those who possessed the special symbol of the Patriarch were qualified to challenge for the position.
There is no longer any need to worry about that girl.
And one of those qualifications was the special eyes possessed by Ju Harin.
The Heavenly Eye, one of the legendary Five Eyes.
A pristine eye formed from the four great elements of the Form Realm.
Normally, she would have been destined to become the Patriarch without question, as she was the only one in this generation born with the symbol.
But one thing held her back.
The fact that she was born a woman.
The numerous pillars and retainers of the family vehemently opposed a woman taking the helm.
That was why she still remained merely as the successor.
Her marriage to Gihyeok is only a matter of time now.
The Great Elder's position allowed him to manipulate her like a puppet. Yet, even if she was just a girl, she was still the family's official successor. He had to invest an immense amount of time and effort to keep his machinations hidden from others.
It is a bit of a shame, but it no longer matters.
He no longer needed to break her spirit to turn her into a puppet. There was no longer any need, for Ju Gihyeok's position as her partner was now set in stone.
Gihyeok was born with the thickest bloodline of our family. On top of that, he has even subjugated an angel. No one among his peers will ever be able to defeat him.
A broad smile spread across the Great Elder's face.
Once we have the Patriarch's seal, we will finally be able to enter that place.
As the Great Elder envisioned a world ruled by mages—
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, a strange sense of dissonance washed over him.
"Why is he still alive?"
He felt a deep sense of confusion as he stared at Siwoo, who was still standing on his own two feet. Several seconds had already passed since the angel's descent.
The casting speed of their family's mages was far superior to that of ordinary mages. Their training focused heavily on rapid casting to prevent being left vulnerable during incantations.
Therefore, Ju Gihyeok should have ordered the attack the very instant the angel descended. He had to eliminate the target before they could react with magic of their own.
Given the casting speed of Ju Gihyeok, whom the Great Elder had personally trained, the battle should have been over long ago.
Has he not given the command yet?
Ah, he must be playing with his food, confident in his victory. That was how it looked to the Great Elder.
How foolish. I taught him that finishing the enemy swiftly is the greatest virtue.
The Great Elder believed himself to be an exceptional educator. And that was not mere arrogance; it was the truth.
He had trained exactly two disciples.
Ju Gihyeok and Ju Harin.
The proof lay in the fact that both of them had reached heights that other mages of their age could never hope to touch.
Ju Gihyeok, in particular, was his cherished disciple and nephew, so he had poured his heart and soul into his instruction.
As a result, Gihyeok had mastered the ability to manifest magic at an incredible speed. Striking before the opponent could even begin to cast was the core lesson the Great Elder had imparted, and it was Gihyeok's greatest strength.
Yet, there was no sign of that right now. It would have been entirely natural for the Great Elder to scold him for ignoring his teachings, but...
Do you want to toy with your opponent so badly that you've forgotten my lessons?
A smirk crept onto his face.
"That's my nephew."
He felt nothing but pride.
BOOOOOOM—!
"...?"
At least, until a pillar of golden light completely obliterated the angel.
What was that?
Siwoo lowered the arm holding the Forbidden Book and stared ahead.
The pillar of light he had fired began to fade, and the angel, now sporting a massive hole through its torso, started to dissolve.
Ssssshh—
Starting from the edges of the gaping wound in its chest, the angel's body crumbled into ash. White ash scattered into the empty air. A moment later, not a trace of the angel remained. It had been utterly annihilated.
"...Was it just a trash mob?"
Just as he was feeling bewildered by the sudden appearance of an angel, the Forbidden Book had begun to thrash wildly.
It had suddenly flipped open its pages, practically vibrating with excitement as if declaring it was its turn to shine. All Siwoo had done was aim the book at the angel and fire a single shot.
Given its grand and holy appearance, he had assumed it would be a tough opponent to bring down. Yet, it had vanished after a single hit.
Well, a win is a win.
For some reason, the creature had just stood there like a statue, which made aiming incredibly easy.
Siwoo looked down at the twitching Forbidden Book.
Having fully restored all of its torn pages, the book was now bathed in a brilliant golden glow.
"Did you do something?"
How to Slay a God
That was the phrase written on the page the Forbidden Book had opened to.
Considering how eagerly it had stepped up, there had to be a reason.
Wiggle, wiggle.
But of course, he couldn't actually have a conversation with a book.
It merely fluttered its pages as if delighted by his attention. Then, with a sassy *snap*, it shut itself closed—a reaction that was classic for the book.
"This is impossible! This can't be happening! *Cough...!*"
Turning toward the source of the voice, Siwoo saw Ju Gihyeok collapsing, coughing up a mouthful of blood.
"Recovery! Recovery! Recovery! Damn it! Why?!"
Contrary to the desperate spells he was screaming, his body showed absolutely no signs of healing.
Even the headless corpses that had been guarding him collapsed to the ground like puppets with their strings cut.
"...I didn't let my guard down! I ordered it to attack the moment the subjugation was complete! Why didn't it move?! *Cough! Cough!*"
The sudden annihilation of the angel had triggered a severe backlash from the broken contract.
The destruction of an angel was on a completely different scale compared to losing control of mere puppets.
The eradication of an immortal being. There was no way Ju Gihyeok, a mere human who had only scratched the surface of the mystic arts, could withstand the weight of such causality.
"Gihyeok!!"
The Great Elder rushed over, his face pale with worry for his nephew.
"Uncle..."
"Gihyeok! No, hang in there!"
Cradling Ju Gihyeok in his arms, he pulled a small glass vial containing a blue liquid from his robes.
"You must live! You are destined to become the Patriarch!"
The Saint's Elixir. A priceless treasure that could no longer be produced now that the Saint was gone.
However, the reason Ju Gihyeok was dying was not due to physical wounds. It was something far more fundamental—the very core of his existence had fractured.
Because of this, even this legendary potion, rumored to be capable of raising the dead, was useless.
"..."
"No!!"
It could not hold onto Ju Gihyeok's fading breath.
"...Damn it!!"
The surrounding air began to freeze.
The Great Elder's eyes, distorted with pure rage, locked onto Siwoo.
"How dare you...!"
A shimmering haze began to rise around the Great Elder.
He began forming hand seals at a speed that no one present could hope to react to.
The Seal of Daikokuten.
"Stop."
At that moment, someone materialized, preventing the Great Elder's domain from expanding.
"You are...!"
Oh Suhyeok, who still hadn't fled, gasped as he recognized the woman who had suddenly appeared.
"Captain Lee Yerim of the Disposal Unit!!"
The leader of the Management Bureau's primary combat force had arrived.
"I suggest you refrain from acting rashly any further."
"Don't make me laugh! We do not fear war!"
"Then go ahead. But you will die here."
Reading the absolute certainty in Lee Yerim's cold eyes, the Great Elder swallowed a groan.
"...I will never forget this light!"
*Crack!*
He crushed a small stone he had pulled from his robes, and a magic circle instantly expanded beneath his feet.
"Shouldn't we stop him from escaping?! Dozens of our people were sacrificed to those monsters!"
"Let him go."
"But...!"
Section Chief Oh Suhyeok protested, unable to accept Captain Lee Yerim's decision.
Siwoo felt the exact same way.
"Get ready."
He aimed the Forbidden Book at the old man.
*Vrrrrrrr—*
A massive concentration of energy began to gather before the book.
"Stop."
But Lee Yerim placed a hand on the Forbidden Book, disrupting and canceling the charging attack.
"...I need to eliminate any future trouble."
Siwoo glared at her with cold eyes for interfering. Reading the intent behind his gaze, she spoke to reassure him.
"You want to protect someone precious to you... Is it your family? Don't worry. They won't be able to harm your family."
"Why should I believe you?"
"Because the Management Bureau is on humanity's side."
Could he trust her? The eyes looking back at him were filled with absolute sincerity. It was impossible to believe she was lying.
But was it truly safe to let that old man go? Who could guarantee he wouldn't seek revenge on his family?
No, there were no guarantees.
When it came to his family's safety, he needed absolute certainty.
"Charge."
Ignoring whatever was disrupting the flow of his mana, a massive sphere of light began to coalesce in front of the Forbidden Book once more.
"...How are you bypassing my magic?!"
Ignoring the bewildered Lee Yerim, Siwoo uttered the command.
"Fire."
BOOOOOOM—!!
A pillar of light completely swallowed the Great Elder.
A moment later, as the pillar of light faded, nothing was left where the old man had stood.
"...Did you just ignore my warning?"
"I was the one attacked by those bastards. I merely exercised my right to self-defense."
"You are impossible to reason with. If I wanted to, I could arrest you right now for—"
As she spoke with a deep scowl, her eyes suddenly drifted to the space behind Siwoo.
*Rub, rub.*
There, the Lantern was happily rubbing itself against Siwoo's back.
"Eeeek—!!"
A high-pitched shriek escaped her lips—a sound completely unfitting for her cold, professional demeanor.
"Th-That...!"
Stumbling backward with wide, terrified eyes, she quickly composed herself and addressed Siwoo once more.
"W-Would you mind... coming with us for a moment?"
Her previously icy tone was now filled with utmost politeness.