Competent Lee Ha-yul (1)
Competent Lee Ha-yul (1)
"Hoo."
I let out the breath I'd been holding only after I cleared the cathedral entrance without incident. I pretended not to notice the flinch from the priest guiding us at the front and swept my gaze across the area.
People lump it together as the "Tower Faith's headquarters," but it has a proper name.
'Erteria.'
That's the name of the city and its archdiocese both. The religious district that serves as the core of the Tower Faith. The holy building we just entered is essentially the Grand Cathedral.
Inside, where one might expect a sacred calm, the place bustled with commotion.
Priests dashed everywhere dripping sweat, and in one room, several people hammered frantically at projected hologram keypads.
A priest appeared from the opposite direction.
Those called priests here shared one common feature: a pentagram was engraved somewhere on their person—on their clothes, or their accessories.
"Hah, haah..."
The priest, carrying an armful of boxes, gasped for breath. He glanced left and right before noticing our group.
A strangled sound escaped him, and his body trembled like a leaf. He then carefully retreated back into the room he'd come from, as if clearing the path.
Lee Ha-yul's face stiffened with awkwardness.
[...He could have just walked past.]
"Ahaha... well, from an ordinary believer's perspective, Ha-yul, you're a pretty intimidating person to run into."
Lee Ha-sol answered with a bitter smile. Unable to refute her, Lee Ha-yul just nodded.
He didn't often realize it, but Lee Ha-yul was such a big deal that most ordinary people couldn't even meet his eyes. In the first place, isn't this a world where legal status got redefined by the emergence of superhumans?
[Did you also spend time in cathedrals like this, Lee Ha-sol?]
"I only really came for occasional training sessions or events. Mostly, I went back and forth between the diocese seminary and my quarters."
[Ah...]
"Even in the seminary, since I was a superhuman, it was mostly training. On weekends, I'd go to the academy for accelerated classes..."
As Lee Ha-yul showed interest, a satisfied smile bloomed on Lee Ha-sol's face.
But soon, she glanced around at the disorder and swallowed her regret.
"Sigh, if only we had the time, we could have looked around together..."
[We can just look around after we resolve this situation.]
Lee Ha-yul's necklace spoke up promptly. Lee Ha-sol muffled a laugh at the voice that carried a mix of sincerity, anticipation, and a touch of comfort.
That subtle, careful consideration was so endearing and lovable.
The corners of Lee Ha-sol's eyes curved softly.
"Thanks. Yes, when we have time later, let's go see it together. The training grounds and facilities should all still be here."
"I'm happy you two siblings get along so well, but you aren't thinking of sneaking off just the two of you, are you?"
Amid the harmonious atmosphere, Ellia pouted her lips slightly.
"Of course not. There's no way we'd do that after coming all this way. Once this situation is dealt with, let's all look around together. I'm an expert on the local geography, so leave the guiding to me."
"That's Ha-sol for you. I trusted in the Spirit Union."
[Spirit Union?]
Lee Ha-yul tilted his head at the unfamiliar term.
[A union, what does that mean?]
"Hehe, there's a little chat group that gathers when our baby is fast asleep, you see?"
Ellia smiled mischievously and gently stroked his head.
Liana, behind them, turned her head and chuckled quietly, while Lee Seo-yul made a cryptic expression—clearly, the goal was teasing.
As we walked and chatted idly, we took an elevator to the upper floors.
Why would a cathedral have an elevator? The building was quite high, so one was needed.
"...We've arrived."
A grand door appeared shortly after we got out of the elevator. Lee Ha-yul nodded at the priest who had been working the hologram in front of it.
The priest swallowed hard for what must have been the umpteenth time, made the sign of the pentagram, clutched his pentagram-stone necklace, and bowed deeply.
"It has been the honor of a lifetime to guide the great one."
[Go carefully.]
The priest, his hands trembling as if overwhelmed with awe, stepped aside right next to the door.
- Wung...
The door slid open to both sides. Lee Ha-yul took the lead and entered the room.
The spacious room was a flurry of activity.
Cluttered desks lined the edges, with people in various uniforms frantically moving their hands and interacting with documents and holograms. A round table sat in the center, with several people seated around it.
- Squeak.
An elderly man who had been sitting braced himself on the round table and slowly rose.
His hair was flecked with gray, and his face bore deep wrinkles like the proof of passing years.
The old man calmly straightened his loose-fitting clothes, checked that his shaggy beard was in order, and only then faced me before slowly bowing his head.
"The diocesan head of Erteria, Agram Musgella Aromut, who leads the flock in an unworthy body, stands before the great one and his company."
[I thank you for your hospitality.]
His initial greeting was deeply respectful. It was internally burdensome, but since it was an attitude I had to accept based on status, Lee Ha-yul nodded.
'The archbishop... his name is Agram. Same as the original.'
This was a part that hadn't changed. Lee Ha-yul turned his head to the side.
A middle-aged man who had stood up with the archbishop gave a stiff-faced smile and bowed his head.
"I am Twin-Star Observer Bergol Durno, from the Observation Unit. Hero Lee Ha-yul."
[It's good to see you. We meet again.]
He was dressed in a black robe sparsely embroidered with stars, likely indicating his affiliation with the Observation Unit. This man was an acquaintance. He was the one who managed the observation devices on the front lines that blocked the Reverse Side's rampage, though I was in a state of mental and physical weakness and infantilization back then, so we couldn't converse properly.
"It is an honor to meet again, but... the situation isn't ideal for greetings."
Bergol smiled bitterly and trailed off.
From the rigid expression he'd been wearing, I could guess the gist of the situation. I sat in a chair that slid out automatically as magic activated.
The others sat on either side of me.
Lee Seo-yul insisted on acting as a guard and stood behind Lee Ha-yul. Only then did Agram and Bergol take their seats.
Agram bowed his head and spoke.
"I beg your forgiveness for the inadequate hospitality. Though we should have greeted the great one's visit with proper preparations, my incompetence has left us lacking."
[Please, do not apologize so. I am the one who visited uninvited. If anything, I wish to apologize for my own discourtesy.]
"It is in no way discourtesy, nor is it rudeness. We are only deeply grateful that you would personally visit us amid this poor situation."
Archbishop Agram was extremely humble.
Considering his status, it was astonishing.
But Agram himself, and the other clergy who could perceive the atmosphere despite the soundproof magic, didn't mind.
If anything, they seemed to consider it natural. Lee Ha-yul didn't find fault with it either and simply nodded.
[Then, as this doesn't seem the moment for pleasantries, I'll get straight to the point. Twin-Star Observer Bergol, are the observation devices operating normally right now?]
"...They are partially operational."
Bergol replied with chagrin to the direct question.
[Partially?]
"For low-grade dungeons, both speed and precision are fine. But as the dungeon scales up, or as variables become more complex even in lower grades, the observation performance drops."
As expected, the Observation Unit's functionality was declining. And in this reality, the rate of decline seemed faster than in the original.
[How far have you measured in the data?]
"The cause is a dungeon rampage that began in the central mainland, with a chain reaction spreading to the outskirts."
'Is this a Catastrophe-level event...?'
Australia.
Whether you called it Oceania or just Australia, this region had frequent Catastrophes in the original work.
So much so that in the worst cases, it could even reach the state of a Demon Realm.
Africa had been a Demon Realm since ancient times, and in the original, Australia or South America often became Demon Realms as well.
"Within one Grade 1 Dungeon that showed a precursor to rampage, we faintly observed a wavelength approaching 2nd Rank."
[So it's not a confirmed level.]
"Yes."
[And even this was only observed right before the dungeon rampage.]
"That's correct."
Bergol bowed his head with a heavy air. He seemed to feel the weight of responsibility as a member of the Observation Unit.
Though it was inevitable, since the authority left by the Tower Master of Observation was slowly reaching the end of its lifespan.
[I will visit the Observation Unit soon to overhaul the facilities.]
"Pardon?"
[And I will conduct the on-site observation this time, so inform them in advance.]
Lee Ha-yul flicked his finger slightly. An intangible stream of mana wrapped around the crystal in Bergol's pocket—the observation device—and brought it over.
Clutching the device in his hand, Lee Ha-yul nodded.
'Its lifespan really is at its end.'
Left alone, it would completely lose function in a year or two. Using it would shorten that time even more.
'Manifest, Authority of Observation.'
The manifestation of Authority. In the past, leaving or sharing Authority with an external object was impossible, but now it's different. The manifested Authority seeped into the observation device.
I left it as a trace of the Authority. I could add more to the crystal, but it was still too early for that.
[Here.]
The observation device, floating in mid-air, returned. Bergol caught it with a dumbfounded look, his shoulders flinching.
"...Good heavens."
After channeling his mana into it, he let out a hollow laugh.
Where it had once creaked and groaned like a rusted cogwheel, it now drank in mana smoothly like a brand-new device and operated instantly.
[It seems it will rampage within a few days. Before that happens, I will handle the supplies and reinforcements on my end.]
Lee Ha-yul turned his head toward the archbishop.
[I will stake my name on forewarning the incident. Archbishop, please issue an evacuation order for the area and take charge.]
"I shall obey."
Agram quietly bowed his head.
Maybe he had bowed his aged neck several times in just a few moments, but Agram felt not the faintest hint of complaint—only relief.
- Kwa-rung!
Just then, the window flashed brightly. A moment later, a faint peal of thunder tickled the window frame.
This wasn't the first time. The irregular crashes had been ringing out on and off for a while now.
Lightning bolts pierced the city's defensive barrier as easily as breathing. Normally, they would have had to declare an emergency council and repair the barrier immediately.
However, knowing full well who was behind this "Divine Punishment," neither Agram nor the College of Cardinals beneath him bothered to convene a meeting.
"......"
The meeting on a grave issue ended in an instant. It wasn't that they'd stormed out of their seats and quit. The problem was solved on the spot.
Kwa-rung! At the thunder once again illuminating the window, Ellia blinked.
The Lee Ha-yul who whined so cutely at home was far too capable out in the world.
.
.
.
"Tower Gods... it's a really strange term, isn't it?"
In the middle of a dim, gloomy grassland.
A man perched on a rock spoke while caressing a staff.
"I acknowledge their stature, but in essence, they're tools... I can't really understand worshiping a giant artifact as a god..."
He waved the staff idly. The mana gathering at the tip condensed into a sticky, concentrated mass.
"Same with worshiping the Tower Masters... Every religion has its own gods, but most lack the omnipotence people normally expect from a deity..."
True omnipotence is impossible. The paradox is so famous it needs no explanation.
The man, who had been swinging his legs back and forth without touching the ground, closed his eyes.
"...though nitpicking logic with a religion is pretty absurd itself..."
If people followed reason and rationality, they wouldn't bother with religion in the first place.
By that standard, the Tower Masters were slightly more reasonable. They existed, and their past deeds were remarkable enough to form a faith around, weren't they?
But if one sought an omnipotent god, they were not gods.
Wasn't the man himself a consciousness born from that god's miscalculation?
"Now."
As the condensed mana seeped into a yellowish lump, the man tossed the lump forward.
Just as the lump was about to fall in a parabola, the empty space where it had been closed up as if cut and pasted from a photo.
- Crunch!
A snapping maw swallowed the lump. After munching on it for a moment, a satisfied-sounding rumble leaked from its throat as it gulped it down.
- Grrrrr...
The low grumble grew heavier. The man, who had read the fragmented will-thoughts, nodded his head slightly.
"Its life experience is lacking, but that should have filled it with a bit of experience and time..."
- Grr...?
"The dungeon is about to rampage anyway. When the time comes, just fight on your own."
The man stared at the monster as it repeatedly swelled and contracted, digesting the lump.
It was larger than the small-statured man, but from the moment the man became the basis for comparison, it was far too tiny to be called a monster.
However, the rank contained within its body was beyond any doubt. If he let something like this loose outside, it wouldn't just end with a few people dying.
"... It should have arrived outside by now."
No need to worry.
The man slowly closed his lowered eyes.