Chapter 255
I Became the Successor of the Martial God
Chapter 255.
A heavy silence fell over the room.
The mages stared in horror at the fallen guild members of the Black Shadow, bleeding and sprawled on the ground.
Meanwhile, Harun was deep in thought as he watched Yoo Baek-jun slowly step forward.
“You….”
He felt like he had seen him somewhere before.
Just then, Jin Seo-yeon walked up beside Yoo Baek-jun, and at the sight of her, a memory flashed in Harun’s mind.
“So, you’re Yoo Baek-jun.”
The man who was once Jin Seo-yeon’s fiancé.
Harun’s face twisted in displeasure.
“A talentless fool like you dares to set foot here?”
“Oh….”
Yoo Baek-jun let out a hollow laugh.
It had been so long since he’d been called talentless that it almost felt refreshing.
[Harun]
Strength: D
Agility: D
Stamina: C
Magic Power: S
[Unique Ability: Avatar of the Thunder God Bird (S)]
[Traits: Frozen Heart (S), Hypocrite (S), Exceptional Magic Knowledge (A+), False Charisma (A), ……]
With Harun’s stats, it was no surprise he had such confidence.
An S-rank magic stat.
On top of that, numerous high-tier traits.
“What difference do you think a piece of trash who can’t even use magic will make?”
“Well, one piece of trash might not be enough.”
Yoo Baek-jun conjured a fireball and hurled it into the dark underwater passage.
Whoosh!
The flames illuminated the area.
Only then did Harun realize what lay beyond the entrance, hidden in the darkness.
His eyes widened in shock.
“T-this….”
There were countless corpses.
Members of the Black Shadow, covered in deep wounds and bleeding profusely.
And standing over them were swordsmen, their blades stained with blood.
“When there’s enough trash, the story changes a bit, don’t you think?”
“The Sword Saint’s family! How are you all here?!” Harun was stunned. “How the hell did you bastards get here? This plan was supposed to be carried out in absolute secrecy!”
“You’re wondering how we found out, despite all your covert movements?”
Yoo Baek-jun flicked the blood off his sword.
“Because we already knew.”
“You… already knew?”
A sneer formed on Harun’s lips.
“Yes. We knew everything you were plotting in the shadows. Including how you dragged in Staggler and the Black Shadow.”
“T-that’s impossible.”
Harun staggered.
He had known from the start that Jin Seo-yeon was watching him.
That’s why he had acted through others, moving discreetly without drawing suspicion.
“And you’re telling me a nobody like you figured it out?”
Harun gritted his teeth.
But only for a moment. He shook his head and smirked.
“Hah, even if that’s true… with just those numbers. Do you really think you can stop all these allies and golems with just that handful of people?”
Kwoong!
The golems activated.
These were the same golems that had proven their worth during the Great Invasion.
And now, they had been further upgraded.
“The Magic Tower is ours. If you surrender now, Jin Seo-yeon, I promise no harm will come to you.”
Harun commanded the golems forward.
The mages who had betrayed Jin Seo-yeon began chanting spells in unison, and the golems slowly advanced toward Yoo Baek-jun.
―Enemy detected.
―Eliminating targets as ordered.
A desperate situation.
Yet Yoo Baek-jun remained calm, even mocking Harun.
“Of course, Yoo Baek-jun, you will die here. Even if you surrender! Golems, kill them!”
Harun gave the order.
The heavily armed golems raised their weapons, and those equipped with magic cannons began channeling magic.
Kwaaaang!
Kwa-dduk!
The attack followed.
The golems’ weapons and magic projectiles all aimed at Yoo Baek-jun and Jin Seo-yeon.
“……?!”
But they didn’t strike.
The golems, which had seemed poised to attack them, suddenly turned around—
And attacked Harun and the mages instead.
“Ghk!”
“Aaaagh!”
It was a completely unexpected assault.
Blades tore through the mages’ bodies, and magic explosions erupted among them.
―Magic detected. Deploying defense.
The golems blocked the spells the mages desperately fired in retaliation.
As if Yoo Baek-jun and Jin Seo-yeon were the ones they were meant to protect.
“W-what is this?!”
“Why are they defending them…? Ugh!”
“Stop! I order you to stop!”
The mages were overwhelmed before they could even resist.
Harun frantically issued stop commands, but more than half of the golems ignored him.
―Enemy. Eliminating.
“T-this can’t be….”
Golems protecting the mages clashed with those trying to kill them.
The two factions of golems began fighting each other chaotically.
“I was the first one to see those golem blueprints. Once I knew your sinister plan, preparing countermeasures wasn’t hard.”
Jin Seo-yeon raised her hand.
In her palm was a crystal orb—an item that activated the devices Yoo Baek-jun had installed in the golems.
‘They even prepared something like this? Don’t tell me they knew my plan from the very beginning…’
Harun shook his head.
No, that couldn’t be. Even if it were true, their numbers were still insignificant.
If the allies securing the Magic Tower outside joined soon—
“S-show me the outside! Now!”
Harun used a familiar to check the situation of his allies above ground.
He had been certain they had successfully taken control of the tower.
But that belief—
“……!”
Shattered into pieces.
***
When Yoo Baek-jun appeared underground,
The magic bombardment from the magic circle where Valmir and Staggler had emerged was still ongoing.
“Keep firing! Kill those despicable vermin of the Magic Tower!”
“Yes, Lord Valmir!”
“Hand over the artifacts you possess!”
The relentless spells kicked up thick dust, obscuring vision.
Valmir let out a mad laugh.
“This is revenge! Revenge against the Magic Tower that abandoned us! Against those pieces of trash!”
Many of Staggler’s members were those who had been exiled from the tower.
Some for dangerous ideologies, others for lacking sufficient talent.
“We will liberate the Magic Tower!”
Valmir and Staggler poured out all their pent-up rage.
When the furious magic bombardment ended, the thick dust still obscured their vision.
“They must all be dead by now. Once the dust settles, make sure to confirm the kills.”
“Yes, hehe. Those bastards had some nice artifacts—can we take them?”
“Of course. Everything here is ours now. Everything in that tower too.”
Valmir grinned wickedly as he spoke with his subordinates.
The dust began to settle.
And beyond it, the sight of the corpses that should have been reduced to pulp by the magic—
“……?!”
Was nowhere to be seen.
Instead, what appeared were the unharmed mages of the Magic Tower.
And a barrier.
“A… barrier?”
Had that blocked their magic?
No, that couldn’t be. The barrier shouldn’t have been able to withstand the spells—it should have shattered.
There was no way the mages inside could be unharmed.
Then how—?
Whoosh!
A gust of wind blew away the remaining dust.
Valmir’s eyes widened.
“W-what is that…?”
The first thing visible were roots.
Countless plants had grown beneath the mages’ feet, forming a dome-shaped barrier just below the magic shield.
That barrier had blocked the spells.
“W-what is this? Some kind of magic?”
“Then we’ll just attack again! Fire… Aaagh!”
The moment someone shouted to attack—
Sharp, spear-like branches shot out from the barrier, impaling a mage.
And that wasn’t all.
Grrrrumble!
“T-the ground!”
“Aaaargh!”
The earth shook, violent winds surged, and flames erupted from the floor.
Valmir glared at the barrier.
Standing there were spirits.
“Spirits?”
―You vile creatures!
And at the forefront of the spirits floated a tiny fairy.
The fairy of the World Tree.
―Don’t you dare dirty our home with your filthy feet, you stupid fools!
As if responding to the fairy’s anger, an enormous mass of plants burst from the ground.
Meanwhile, the Magic Tower’s mages, having regained their composure, finished preparing their counterattack.
“T-this is….”
Valmir’s face twisted.
Something was going terribly wrong.
Swoosh!
“Damn it!”
Valmir gritted his teeth as he blocked the incoming attacks.
“What the hell is happening?!”
***
Around the same time—
―Screeeech!
―Eeheehee!
With the magic stone facilities destroyed, the outer barrier became dangerously unstable.
Large cracks formed everywhere, and the monsters wasted no time exploiting them.
“Dammit, the monsters are breaking through!”
“The magic weapon! Is it still not operational?!”
“No, those lunatics wrecked the defense systems! It’ll take time to fix them! A lot of time!”
Kang Seong-hyeok let out a frustrated scream.
“Look at the situation, you idiot! Do you think we can hold out that long?!”
“Ghk! Mr. Kang Seong-hyeok!”
Monsters began descending through the breaches.
As the creatures attacked, Kang Seong-hyeok clenched his teeth.
“Prepare to intercept—!”
Fwoosh!
Just as he and the mages began chanting spells to stop the monsters—
Arrows rained down from behind.
“……?!”
Not just a few, but an overwhelming volley, like a downpour.
The magic-infused arrows struck the descending monsters en masse.
―Screeee!
Monsters fell from the sky.
Then, swordsmen rushed out from all directions, cutting down the fallen creatures.
“Y-you are…?”
“The Sword Saint’s family.”
A voice came from beside him.
The Grandmaster, Moo-jang, stood solemnly next to Kang Seong-hyeok.
“The Sword Saint’s family? How are you here…?”
“There’s much to explain, but that can wait. Right now, dealing with them takes priority, no?”
Moo-jang gripped his sword, a fierce smile on his face.
“We’ll be your shield. Focus on preparing your magic without worry.”
“Huh? But their numbers are too great. We don’t have enough people to hold them off!”
“Just hold out. That’s all we need.”
“Just… hold out?”
Kang Seong-hyeok was baffled.
Moo-jang, seemingly done talking, stepped forward without another word.
“Spear users, protect the mages! The rest, follow me! Charge!”
With a hearty laugh, Moo-jang rushed toward the monsters.
“W-what in the world….”
Kang Seong-hyeok could only stare blankly at his retreating figure.
***
“T-this… This can’t be happening…”
After checking the surface through his familiar, Harun fell into a panic.
Valmir and Staggler were trapped in the magic circle, while the Sword Saint’s family held off the monsters outside.
“…….”
And that wasn’t all.
Inside the tower, swordsmen led by Chang-yeon were rescuing people and executing the traitors.
Harun stumbled back.
“How… This wasn’t part of the plan. It wasn’t supposed to go like this.”
He looked around frantically.
The golems were fighting each other, and the swordsmen were slaughtering the mages.
“Harun.”
He looked up.
Jin Seo-yeon was walking toward him with cold fury in her eyes.
“Filthy traitor. Don’t think you’ll die an easy death.”
Magic shimmered in her grasp.
Harun’s face trembled.