Irregular Dungeon (5)

Thud.

Kim Jehyun stepped forward. Golden flames infused with golden mana roiled in both hands.

"H-how...?"

Yang Jaejin stared at him with trembling eyes. He and his men felt an overwhelming pressure from Jehyun's gaze that they couldn't resist.

'W-we're dead.'

It was a biological instinct. The terror of prey facing a predator. Jehyun's gaze was just like that of a predator.

—These fools can't even twitch under Dragon Fear now.

As Alkasha said. Thanks to his recent enlightenment, the proficiency of Dragon Fear had risen dramatically. As he let that power flow out, their bodies stiffened even more than before.

Jehyun immediately thrust out his hand and unleashed Fire Wave at them.

Whoosh!

A wave of golden flames scorching the air crashed toward them.

"Urk, grrr."

Yang Jaejin hurriedly deployed his ability, erecting a purple barrier. But—

Fwoosh!

The golden blaze engulfed his vision, incinerating the barrier he'd created.

'……!'

Yang Jaejin's eyes widened in shock. What had changed about Jehyun wasn't just his presence. This destructive power... It was now on the level of a 5th Circle mage or higher, far beyond mere 4th Circle.

"Oh, you blocked that?"

With those words, Jehyun manifested magic in both hands again.

'Fire Burst.'

This time, Fire Burst formed in both hands simultaneously. While Fire Wave dealt sustained damage to those it hit, Fire Burst inflicted massive instantaneous damage with an explosion.

The two blasts shot straight toward them.

"Sh-shield."

They hastily conjured shields, but it wasn't enough.

Boom!

Crackle.

The first Fire Burst shattered their shields.

Kaboom!

The second swept them away entirely.

"G-gahhh."

"Arrrgh."

The three struck directly screamed and rolled on the ground. Their conditions were wretched. Burns covered their faces and bodies. Im Hong-sik, who had been at the front, had even lost ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠his right hand to the explosion. They were barely clinging to life.

Jehyun approached them.

"Urk. Th-this... grrr. D-double casting?"

"Right. Thanks to you guys, I can do it now."

"N-no way..."

Even on the verge of death, they stared at Jehyun in disbelief. Double casting at 3rd Circle? That was impossible. It required splitting mana flow into two streams and dividing one's thoughts. Only ultra-high-rank grand archmages like the Tower Master could manage it.

"Now, what to do with you bastards..."

Should he subdue them and extract info on their affiliation? Or eliminate them here? Jehyun pondered.

"Sp-spare... gahhh."

Just as Im Hong-sik from the Frost Faction begged for his life with desperate yearning—

Purple light flashed from their bodies.

Their bodies began shriveling like mummies.

"……!"

Jehyun's eyes flashed with surprise at the sudden change.

—These guys... they're dead.

Alkasha, who had been watching, spoke up. The purple power had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠simultaneously claimed their lives. He hadn't expected this turn. His earlier dilemma was now moot.

Riiiing.

A tinnitus rang in Jehyun's ears, and an alert window appeared.

Flash.

With the alerts, radiant light swirled around Alkasha's cover. Characters resembling runes emerged on its surface, emitting light.

'That's... Dragon Word?'

Similar to runes yet different. His instinct told him it was the language of dragons.

He didn't know exactly what Absorption was, but his instinct said it would help him, not harm.

'Use it.'

Rooooar.

At his thought, Alkasha opened wide toward the front.

Shoooo!

It began absorbing the lingering purple energy from the three bodies.

"……!"

Jehyun stared at Alkasha in astonishment.

Rumble.

After absorbing all the purple power, Alkasha closed its pages again.

His instinct told him those garbled characters referred to the purple power.

"Alkasha! What the hell was that?"

Jehyun asked in shock about the Absorption Alkasha had used. Normally, Alkasha would have given prior notice. He'd never heard of this ability.

—W-well... Even this body doesn't... know. Perhaps Lord Arkanios's arrangement.

Alkasha sounded flustered by the question. It truly seemed unaware.

—Indeed... It doesn't seem harmful to thee. Nay, ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠it appears beneficial.

Jehyun nodded at Alkasha's words.

'Understanding increased... Can't be bad.'

Besides, if Alkasha hadn't absorbed that purple power just now—

'It was trying to escape somewhere.'

He'd felt it slowly draining ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠from their bodies. He didn't know where it was headed, but Alkasha had blocked it by devouring it. This needed more thought later.

"Alright. Let's set this aside for now..."

Jehyun opened his status window and allocated the stats from his level-up.

With stats allocated, his base physical stats hit 20. Including buffs from before, totals reached 30. Power surged through his body. He could probably handle E-rank monsters with raw strength alone. Mana total exceeded 90. With enlightenment improving efficiency—

'Now I can spam even Spirit Magic.'

Regular magic, even Spirit Magic in bursts—mana would hold.

'Check ability.'

Jehyun checked the Alkasha ability.

Stage proficiencies listed, with Absorption added below. A new ability.

'0.23%? Absorption rate?'

—Not proficiency.

Jehyun nodded. Felt more like absorption rate than proficiency.

"Gained a ton from this fight."

Tremendous growth. 4th Circle was close. Experience buffs enabled it.

'Next...'

Leaving the corpses, Jehyun headed to the building. A structure in a dungeon? Examining close, he guessed how.

"No way... All artifacts?"

Insane. Magic circles plastering the building maintained its form. Reverse-engineering suggested compression or deployment on demand.

"Total money pit."

Cost to craft those circles? Unimaginable. Now it made sense—how such a building existed here.

Creeeak.

After inspecting outside, Jehyun opened the door and entered.

And—

His eyes widened hugely at the interior.

"……!"

An unimaginable sight unfolded.

—These... all people?

"Y-yeah."

* * *

When the Great Cataclysm first began, the early days were utter chaos. No laws or rules for superhumans. Crime rampant. Many nations collapsed. Those became lawless zones where might made right.

They captured weaker superhumans or enemies for vivisections.

Once the world stabilized and learned how inhumane it was, the first global decree banned human experimentation outright.

Thus—

In this era, capturing fellow superhumans for experiments was unthinkable.

"...Horrific."

Jehyun muttered lowly.

Before him, superhumans subjected to experiments via tools floated in tanks. Shockingly, some faces he recognized—Magic Tower mages. Lackeys of Kim Hyeongjin. The "Circle" group he controlled. All in poor shape. Some already dead.

With Dragon Eye active, Jehyun saw their states. Purple orb energy lingered in their bodies. Experiments to assimilate it, perhaps.

Oddly, the purple energy in the tanks persisted.

Jehyun opened Alkasha and used Absorption again. Rate ticked up slightly.

Looking around more, most equipment was dismantled. Traces everywhere.

'Moved out already? Scale seems huge—where to?'

Jehyun tilted his head when his senses detected a group entering the building.

"This is..."

The newcomers gasped at the gruesome scene. The lead man spotted Jehyun and spoke.

"What the hell happened here?"

His badge read: 'Superhuman Association, Superhuman Crime Investigation Division Chief.'