Phantom Demon (3)
13th Month's Nightmare. It was a power that drew energy from the midpoint between the present world and the afterlife.
Those struck by the 13th Month's Nightmare would experience the raw face of death itself. No matter how detached from death a being might be, the shock would shatter their mind.
This was the terrifying aspect of illusion-realm magic.
"Grgh... grrraaah."
The bodies of the Dark Mark Squad members, directly hit by the 13th Month's Nightmare, turned a sickly gray. They writhed in horrific illusions they'd never encountered even in life.
In stark contrast to their bold entrance, Kim Jehyun's single spell had felled them all.
Oh... it's this powerful?
Kim Jehyun hadn't realized the Nightmare's potency reached this level. Staring down at them in surprise, he marveled at its unexpectedly overwhelming force.
"Did... did Mage Kim Jehyun just take them all down?"
"Y-yeah, looks like it."
The Chasers, who had been on edge amid the sudden chaos, spoke in voices thick with released tension.
"As expected!"
This was the power of a high-circle mage. The higher the realm, the wider the gap between ordinary superhumans and mages grew. And among such mages, Kim Jehyun was counted as one of the greatest prodigies.
It was only natural that unidentified foes like these couldn't stand against him.
"These guys aren't going to lose their minds completely like this, are they?"
Kim Jehyun eyed the writhing Dark Mark Squad members with a hint of concern.
He needed to dig into their backs. If they all went insane, that would be a problem.
—For now, it might be better to restrain them first and then dispel the 13th Month's Nightmare. If mishandled, their minds could shatter entirely.
Surprised by the spell's greater-than-expected power, even Alkasha recommended withdrawing it.
Kim Jehyun nodded and flicked his hand, binding the black-clad figures in auras of mana.
The moment he dispelled the 13th Month's Nightmare...
Swoooosh.
A chill crept up from behind.
Kim Jehyun instantly manifested a shield and Dragon Scale.
The manifestation occurred in a fraction of an instant, and whatever assailed his back collided directly with the shield.
He assumed it would be blocked.
Crackle.
But the result defied expectations.
Had he been too complacent? The attacker shredded through his manifested shield with ease and surged toward his back.
"Die...!"
With a voice like scraping metal, the thing that tore the shield pierced toward Kim Jehyun's back.
Or so it seemed.
Clang!
A clear ring echoed as it failed to penetrate the Dragon Scale, rebounding from the counterforce instead.
"...!"
The Dark Mark Squad captain, whose ambush had struck from behind, gaped in disbelief as his attack failed.
"Wh-what...?"
The purple thorn he wielded could rip through mana bindings like paper. Nicknamed the Thorn of Despair, it brought hopelessness to mages—yet it couldn't even scratch the mana barrier sprouting from Kim Jehyun's body.
He couldn't believe the sight before him. Not even VIPs could block the Thorn of Despair like this.
"Whew. That startled me."
Turning after repelling the captain's assault, Kim Jehyun grinned—a smile more menacing than ever.
* * *
"We've received word that the Dark Mark Squad has spotted the target and is moving into action."
"Good. That settles one worry."
Lee Hyunwoo leaned back in his chair upon Shin Dae-il's report.
The Dark Mark Squad entering action meant the environment for eliminating the target was set. Few could easily repel them once prepared.
Even a 7th Circle archmage would struggle to survive in such a scenario.
Kim Jehyun's no ordinary monster brat, but this time, he's done for.
Especially with the Dark Mark Squad's Thorn of Despair, which no mere magic could block.
The one who provided it had said even the Tower Master could adjust mana arrays at will, rendering the Thorn ineffective—but...
Kim Jehyun's not Tower Master level.
Thus, he considered Kim Jehyun as good as dead.
And that wasn't the end.
Even if the Dark Mark Squad fails for some reason, there's still the Phantom Demon.
What he'd handed to the Phantom Demon would greatly amplify its power. Already a handful even for him, now with wings added, dealing with Kim Jehyun would be child's play.
If the Phantom Demon weren't so unpredictable and flighty...
He regretted not entrusting it all to the Phantom Demon and keeping the Dark Mark Squad hidden, but quelling the urgent fire came first.
Dark Mark Squad plus Phantom Demon—a double insurance Kim Jehyun couldn't escape.
Convinced of Kim Jehyun's death, Lee Hyunwoo pondered how to revive the crumbling Black Snake Clan.
* * *
So that's why the Tower Master spoke of mana condensation.
Gazing at the Thorn of Despair in the Dark Mark captain's hand, Kim Jehyun recalled the Tower Master's words.
The Tower Master had mentioned an unidentified shadowy force with the ability to disrupt mana. He'd warned that facing such a foe conventionally could lead to severe injury.
I didn't expect it in artifact form like this.
This was a grave threat to mages' safety—except for himself and the Tower Master.
Without Dragon Scale just now, the Thorn would have pierced him.
Dragon Scale truly lives up to its name.
As a dragon authority, it operated on a plane beyond ordinary magic. Not even a proper mark on the Thorn of Despair.
"Raaargh!"
While Kim Jehyun pondered briefly, the Dark Mark captain roared and lunged again.
"Like this, huh."
A shield reformed before him, blocking the Thorn of Despair swung by the captain.
"In-insane."
The captain's pupils shook violently as the Thorn was halted by the shield.
Blocking the Thorn with a shield meant Kim Jehyun had arbitrarily condensed the shield's mana particles into unyielding density—a feat only possible for Tower Master level.
Yet a mere 6th Circle mage had replicated it.
"M-monster..."
He muttered through trembling eyes.
"Yeah. Thanks for the compliment."
Kim Jehyun chuckled lightly and fully subdued the captain.
If Lee Hyunwoo saw this, he'd clutch his neck and faint. He never imagined his trump card, the Dark Mark Squad, would be thwarted so anticlimactically.
"This area's handled... Time to come out?"
Kim Jehyun turned toward the shadowed recesses between buildings.
The empty space responded with a man's voice, as if answering.
"Ho ho. Quite the spectacle."
The speaker was a gaunt man over 190cm tall, exuding an aloof aura like a crane drifting alone above clouds.
Phantom Demon.
Kim Jehyun instinctively knew.
"Ph-Phantom Demon!"
As his face fully emerged, the Chasers who recognized him cried out in shock.
"Lee Hyunwoo. I wondered why he'd obsess over a young pup like you. Now I see."
Lee Hyunwoo... So it was the Black Snake Clan after all.
From the name the Phantom Demon dropped, Kim Jehyun identified the attackers' backer.
The Phantom Demon knows them too... Looks like he's allied with the Black Snake Clan.
In the past, the Phantom Demon never joined forces with them.
The future had shifted slightly.
But it changes nothing.
Back then, the Phantom Demon had been captured by the Superhuman Association's relentless pursuit around this time.
Just falling to Kim Jehyun instead—same outcome.
"With this staff, the cost-benefit doesn't add up."
The Phantom Demon muttered, shaking the staff from the Black Snake Clan.
Sagal's Staff. A legendary 7th-stage magic tool crafted from Phantom Demon Stone.
A wand unobtainable even with money, hailed as one of the ultimate weapons for mental-affinity mages.
"A promise is a promise, though... Don't hold it against me."
Aiming the staff at Kim Jehyun, the Phantom Demon spoke.
Kim Jehyun drew his newly acquired Dark Wand, facing off.
"Saw you using some intriguing techniques earlier. You've dabbled in illusion-realm magic too, eh? Let's see your level."
The Phantom Demon's eyes curved into crescents.
Purple energy surged from Sagal's Staff, shaking the air with immense mana that rushed toward Kim Jehyun.
Kim Su-han, the Phantom Demon, was a top-tier 7th Circle mage. His mana, fattened by devouring countless dreams, was fiercer and wilder than any ordinary 7th Circle.
Play defensive for now.
Uncertain of the Phantom Demon's exact abilities, Kim Jehyun opted for a cautious approach.
"Show me your tricks."
Purple energy erupted from Sagal's Staff tip, etching a massive magic circle in the air.
Phantom Demon spell activation.
His favorite: Mental Destruction.
The Superhuman Association's pursuit weighed on him, so he went all-out from the start to finish Kim Jehyun quickly.
Normally needs a medium, but this staff eliminates that need.
The legendary 7th-stage staff erased his sole limitation.
Even a faction leader from the Tower couldn't handle him easily now.
Whirrr.
Flash!
Purple energy enveloped Kim Jehyun and his surroundings.
The instant it covered his body, the Phantom Demon infiltrated his mental realm.
Mental Destruction's horror lay in contacting and shattering the opponent's mind.
Whoosh!
A purple vortex swirled in Kim Jehyun's mental realm, birthing the Phantom Demon.
"Oh ho. Impressive mental world too."
Kim Su-han scanned the space, murmuring admiration.
Kim Jehyun's mental realm stretched endlessly—a world unto itself, vast beyond measure.
"Ha, not a tiger cub... a full-grown tiger."
From experience, he knew: the wider the mental space, the greater the potential.
Kim Jehyun's dwarfed any he'd seen.
Hmm. Finding the core will take time.
He licked his lips, pondering.
If he destroyed this mental realm and absorbed the bursting power...
I might aim for the next stage.
Anticipation flushed the Phantom Demon's face.
He'd viewed killing Kim Jehyun as mere paid work, but this mental world was a heavenly opportunity.
No such realm before, unlikely again.
"Over there."
Spotting a distant ground fissure, he smirked.
The mental world's core seemed there.
Thud.
Kicking off, he sped toward it.
Kim Su-han reached the fissure in moments.
Bigger... than it looked?
Up close, the crack was a colossal cliff like a mountain range.
Around here.
Sensing the core's unique pulse, he peered down.
And...
...!
He beheld it.
A bottomless abyss, endless depths.
And at its floor, two colossal golden suns shining brilliantly.
"H-huh...?"
The moment he faced those twin golden suns, Kim Su-han felt his soul constrict, body freezing solid.