Chapter 125
Chapter 125
Mad Black Mage's Tower Strategy
Chapter 125
[Kuooooo-!]
"Wh-what is that?"
"It's a monster!"
Following Leviathan's appearance, when Behemoth appeared as well, the Sea Folk scattered in all directions like a receding tide in complete panic.
"Get everyone inside the barrier!"
Leila commanded the guards to evacuate not only Atlantis's citizens but also the rebels inside the barrier.
"Evacuate inside the walls!"
"This way! Over here!"
Following the guards' urgent guidance, Sea Folk poured through the gates.
Seo-jin watched this scene and commanded Baduki.
"Watch your step. Don't step on them."
[Krrr-.]
Baduki carefully moved so his massive paws wouldn't step on the Sea Folk entering the walls.
Though his body had grown enormous, his behavior was no different from before, which was quite amusing.
On the other hand.
[Kuooooo-!]
Leviathan let out a roar filled with rage upon seeing the giant Baduki.
It must have instinctively sensed that Baduki's origin was Behemoth, its mortal enemy.
Gugugugu-.
When it roared, massive shockwaves spread through the water centered on its maw, shaking the deep sea.
"Uwaaah!"
Unable to withstand the powerful waves that shook everything around them, the Sea Folk were blown away in all directions.
Fortunately, the Sea Folk swept away by those waves were able to escape the battlefield and safely enter the walls or flee far to the opposite side.
With the Sea Folk who had been getting in the way now gone, an environment was created where Baduki could rampage freely.
[Krrrrrr-.]
After growling once, Baduki immediately charged toward the Black Sea Dragon before his eyes.
There wasn't a trace of hesitation or doubt in that movement.
Baduki too must have sensed that the being before him was his mortal enemy.
Thump thump thump-.
With vibrations that shook the earth's axis, the massive quadrupedal beast charged through the water.
And then.
Pueong-!
Hit by Baduki's tremendous mass attack, Leviathan was pushed back and let out a scream.
[Kuooo-!]
It only went that far because the water's resistance slowed the speed, but if it had been hit by that massive body outside water, it would have been split in two.
Leviathan, knocked far away by Baduki's charge.
Perhaps because the impact was severe, the black mist that had been wrapping around its body cleared.
Enraged, it shook its head several times like an eel to regain its senses, then immediately charged at Baduki.
Shiirik-.
Unlike the sluggish Baduki, Leviathan flew through the seawater swiftly with its streamlined body.
Like a snake, it wrapped its long body around Baduki and began to squeeze tightly.
Kkudeudeuk-.
The powerful muscles clustered beneath its scales writhed and tightened, digging into Baduki's fur as if to tear it.
[Krrrrrung-.]
Baduki growled at the powerful pressure squeezing his entire body.
Like a wet dog shaking off water, Baduki shook his massive body wildly.
Hudeudeudeu-.
When it still wouldn't fall off, Baduki lay down on the ground and began rolling around.
Ppadeuk-. Ppadeuk-.
As Baduki rolled on the ground with his massive body weight, the sound of bones breaking echoed, and with that sound, Leviathan roared roughly.
[Kroooo!]
The two beasts tangled together in close combat.
Though their size was truly that of mythical giant beasts, the way they fought was unmistakably a dog and a snake.
However, this was merely Seo-jin's extremely personal impression, refined by madness and Black Magic.
The Sea Folk inside the walls watched this scene and trembled with fear.
"Is that really the savior we've been hoping for?"
"No, that's just..."
[Kuooooo-!]
A roar that seemed to awaken fear carved into their very souls.
The massive aftermath of destruction that reached even beyond the walls.
And madness that made one feel like they'd lose their reason just by watching.
That wasn't a savior or a god.
It was merely a manifestation of disaster that destroyed everything.
Leila spoke to the rebels trembling with fear.
"That's right. That is not your savior, nor the one who breaks chains. It's merely a beast that symbolizes the sea's ferocity... an arrogant king that once drove the entire sea into terror."
Seo-jin nodded at Leila's words.
Maintaining order through overwhelming fear?
That's only possible when you can control that fear.
Against a disaster that destroys everything in sight, even survival cannot be guaranteed.
"Leviathan is not your savior. Moreover... even our god Pontos cannot save us."
All Pontos could promise was to repel the clear disaster that was Leviathan.
It couldn't solve the discrimination and conflicts that had arisen among the Sea Folk.
The same was true for Seo-jin.
In the end, only those involved could solve this problem.
What Seo-jin could do was help them gain enlightenment through the blood they had shed and remind them that they must unite once again.
Leila realized this fact and opened her mouth to solve it herself.
"Only we can solve our problems. Not that evil sea dragon, not our god Pontos, not outsiders."
"..."
Heavy silence fell over the walls.
Seo-jin left to give the Sea Folk time to think among themselves, and to focus on the fight.
Nam-gung Cheon and Nam-gung Rin tactfully followed behind him.
***
Kuung- Kung-.
[Kuooooo-!]
[Krrrrrr-!]
Outside the walls where the two beasts' close combat was in full swing.
Seo-jin and the Nam-gung siblings watched the scene while enduring the shocks and vibrations transmitted directly through the water.
"...To think I'd live to see something like this."
"I know, right."
The siblings who always bickered agreed for once.
This was a rare sight they'd never see anywhere else in their lifetimes.
Seo-jin shrugged his shoulders and said.
"How is it? Do you feel it was somewhat worth being together?"
At that question, Nam-gung Cheon scratched his cheek.
"...Well. It's fun, but if it's like this every time, I don't think I'll survive."
"I agree."
Not to mention Nam-gung Cheon, who had wandered dangerous areas without hesitation, even Nam-gung Rin, who had only stayed in relatively safe cities, had crossed the line between life and death several times.
If every tower climb was like this, even two or three lives wouldn't be enough.
But if there was one certain thing.
'The feeling of being alive.'
If they stayed with Nova, they could definitely escape from life that repeated like a hamster wheel and boring daily routine.
Also, their thoughts about tower climbing had changed a bit.
Tower climbing wasn't just about clearing quests and raising levels.
'Climbers are pioneers.'
Pioneers walk paths others haven't taken.
Even if it's an already opened floor, it doesn't matter.
If you walk a path no one has chosen and tear open and heal festering wounds that everyone has turned away from, that would be pioneering and the spirit of tower climbing.
Compared to that, catching monsters and clearing quests, raising levels and learning new skills were merely incidental matters.
That was just climbing the tower. Not true tower climbing in the real sense.
Seo-jin looked at the figure approaching from afar and said.
"Look, the number one contributor to our plan is coming."
Francesca, dragging the tightly bound Haizen.
She was truly the number one contributor to this affair.
Without Francesca's information and infiltration abilities, a plan like this wouldn't even have been attempted.
The plan to revive Leviathan using the blood of the twelve clans was also learned through her.
She was the one who brought Haizen's communication magic tool for Seo-jin to modify, and put it back in place.
She even disguised herself as a hunting dog so Nam-gung Rin could use Soul Absorption, approaching Haizen to serve as a medium for the technique.
Without her, it would have ended at the level of beating up and chasing away Darkrock's hunting dogs, like they did on the 10th floor Primgard.
She stood with both hands on her hips and puffed out her chest with a triumphant expression.
"How's that? My work?"
Seo-jin clapped and praised her efforts.
"Perfect. Among thief-type climbers, you're the best."
While Nam-gung Cheon would have a great advantage in combat power, Francesca was several levels above in the covert mobility and mission execution abilities Seo-jin wanted.
"...Tch."
Nam-gung Cheon looked at Francesca's triumphant expression and soon averted his gaze.
"Then give me a bit more performance bonus. I have a lot of places where money's needed."
"Of course."
Eup eup-.
Haizen struggled with his gag still in his mouth.
He looked like he had something to say, so Seo-jin removed the gag and asked.
"What? Do you still have lingering attachments?"
With the gag removed, Haizen scrunched his face and shouted.
"You piece of trash! You'd let fellow humans die to save Sea Folk? Are you even human after doing that?"
Due to Nova's intervention, Leviathan had been revived, and several hunting dogs had died in the process.
From the company's perspective, this was a huge loss they could never overlook.
Moreover, this was a problem that couldn't escape humanitarian criticism.
'You'd kill fellow climbers just to save natives?'
From Haizen's perspective, it was completely incomprehensible behavior.
However, Seo-jin wasn't the type to just let such sophistry pass.
"What are you saying, you bastard."
A big mouth that had been opened.
Ppaak-.
Seo-jin punched his mouth and shattered his teeth.
"Kraaah!"
"You bastards who spread drugs to addict Sea Folk, worked them to death as slaves, and turned them into Dragon-Human Soldiers—are you human?"
These were beasts wearing human masks, definitely not human.
So there was no value in keeping them alive.
Of course, among the dead hunting dogs, there might have been those who became corporate dogs due to unavoidable circumstances like Francesca.
But that wasn't within Seo-jin's consideration.
Seo-jin wasn't a messenger of justice who saved everyone, nor a hero.
He just solved problems efficiently under extremely personal and narrow value judgments.
Seo-jin rinsed the blood from his fist in the seawater and said.
"There's only one reason you're still alive. You need to die by the Sea Folk's hands."
How many of the tower's natives had been exploited by this bastard's hands?
He deserved to die.
But he still seemed to have something to say, shouting while bleeding profusely.
"You... you're finished now too. I'll kill all your friends!"
"What's he saying?"
Francesca shrugged her shoulders.
"I think he cursed at me? He says he'll kill all my juniors."
Hearing Francesca's explanation, Seo-jin crouched down and met Haizen's eyes.
"Sorry, but that won't happen. I know exactly where you guys have gathered the orphans. The hills near the western mines on the 2nd floor of the tower, right?"
"...!"
Haizen's eyes widened at Seo-jin's words.
The location of the 'hostages' captured to control the corporate dogs and useful blades was classified information among classified information.
Each floor of the tower was larger than a country, and among them, the 2nd floor was as vast as the North American continent.
In its every corner existed various research facilities and training centers connected to the dirty work of corporations and nations.
Even among those facilities, to know exactly where the children who were Francesca's hostages were located?
'How on earth?'
Seo-jin said to the surprised Haizen.
"There's a way to know everything."
Before the regression, after the tower's collapse, all the evil deeds of hidden nations and corporations were revealed.
Every piece of information they had kept as classified was recorded in the AI Babel.
Babel simply chose not to intervene, but it knew everything about humanity.
The orphanage managed by Darkrock was also on the list revealed then, and Seo-jin remembered this.
Seo-jin said.
"Instead of worrying about other people's kids, worry about your own life. When this fight ends, you'll be finished too."
Seo-jin raised his head to watch the fight between Baduki and Leviathan again.
Kugwagwa-.
Powerful breath spewing from Leviathan's maw.
Baduki nimbly moved his body to avoid the breath and twisted the creature's neck to change the breath's path so it wouldn't damage the city.
Then Leviathan gathered power in its tail, making it sharp like a blade, and began wildly slashing Baduki's thick fur.
Chwajak-.
Being outmatched in size, it was trying to utilize the advantage of speed and technique it possessed.
[Kreung-!]
Continuous exchanges between the two afterward.
Kugugung-.
Every time the two giant beasts grappled, the ground shook and the sea screamed.
The two fought close combat without yielding an inch.
While their abilities were nearly matched, there was a crucial difference between them.
Baduki fought while protecting Atlantis's safety, while Leviathan rampaged without restraint.
It was natural that Leviathan would gain the advantage as time passed.
Seo-jin assessed the battle situation and decided to intervene.
'I've let them exhaust enough strength, so I should bring down the curtain on this drama.'
Seo-jin raised his head to look up at the walls, and Leila, whose eyes met his, spoke.
"Our god Pontos, shine your divine light."
Simultaneously with her recitation.
Flash-.
White chains burst from the body of Behemoth that Baduki had mounted, binding Leviathan's body.