Chapter 72
Chapter 72
Mad Black Mage's Tower Strategy
Chapter 72
The Yamato investigation team looked up at the ceiling above them in disbelief, dumbfounded.
"Wh-what is this?"
"The magic......"
They too were masters of magic who were renowned within their own country.
There was no way they couldn't recognize the phenomenon unfolding before their eyes.
Especially for Gu-ren, the person directly involved, the shock was indescribable.
His magic had been neutralized so very simply.
And twice at that.
As easily as twisting a young child's wrist.
'This is... this is impossible.'
Gu-ren stared blankly upward.
At first, he thought it was just coincidence, trickery, or perhaps he had seen wrong.
Lightning magic doesn't display its full power against earth-type magic after all.
If one used defensive artifacts related to that, it could produce effects similar to the previous situation.
But this time was different.
'Clearly, the magic was canceled.'
He had shot out some kind of mana wave before the Lightning Storm's mana array could be completed.
And that wave had dismantled the mana array he had been carefully building up in reverse order.
Gu-ren stared at Seo-jin with trembling eyes.
Anger? Of course it surged up.
But greater than that was a fear he had never felt before in his life.
And reverence toward an existence that far exceeded his understanding.
"......How."
He bit his trembling lips.
The current result had shattered not only his pride as a mage but also his arrogance as a genius.
Perhaps due to the extreme shock, Gu-ren's mana escaped his control and fluctuated unstably.
"How......!"
The precursor symptoms of mana rampage.
"Gu-ren-nim, please calm down!"
At that moment, Rei, who was beside him, hurriedly supported Gu-ren.
She too was equally surprised by Seo-jin's overwhelming power.
But now was the time to take care of her lord.
She grabbed Gu-ren's cheeks and said.
"Th-that person is not an ordinary Tower climber. We must retreat for now."
Gu-ren's magical talent was humanity's greatest. This was an undeniable fact.
If there was an existence that could easily Gu-ren, there was a possibility that he was a transcendent being similar to the Tower administrators they had encountered before.
If so, it would be wise to retreat now while he showed no hostility.
Just then.
Step-.
Kusanagi Kenshin, the leader of the Yamato investigation team, stepped forward.
He realized that Gu-ren's condition was not normal, and that the man before them was a powerhouse beyond imagination.
Therefore, he decided to attempt dialogue first and buy time.
He gripped his drawn sword and spoke to Seo-jin in a calm voice.
"Who exactly are you? And for what reason do you block our path?"
At the same time, he signaled Rei with his eyes, instructing her to gather information about that unknown existence and prepare for retreat.
An opponent whose chances of victory he couldn't gauge when clashing with full power.
Rather than recklessly attacking, exploration was better, and if that didn't work, they had to retreat.
"We are an official Great Cavity exploration team belonging to the Yamato Guild. What you just defeated was a target we discovered first and were in combat with. If you have no intention of being hostile, please reveal your identity and explain the situation."
It was a quite polite tone, but Seo-jin only snorted.
"You'd better not know my identity."
Then he deliberately kicked the giant corpse of the Yaogou Xuanchong with his foot.
The sound of crystal carapace colliding echoed through the cavity.
"And, do you call nearly getting eaten 'combat' these days?"
At his shameless and leisurely tone, Kusanagi's brow twitched. But he suppressed his emotions.
"No, we had sufficient capability to subdue it. Moreover, it would have been spoils from the Alpha route we were assigned to. You are the one who intervened without permission and stole the target."
Seo-jin shrugged his shoulders.
"What are you saying? Don't you know the one who lands the killing blow is the owner?"
He crossed his arms and boldly demanded.
"Not only the corpse, but all the crystals it held inside its body - everything is mine."
"Everything?"
Kusanagi's eyes narrowed.
That giant Yaogou Xuanchong's corpse and the massive amount of crystals inside it.
Their value was enormous enough to cover a Mage Tower's operating expenses for several years. To swallow all of that whole.
"Your greed is excessive."
Kusanagi growled lowly.
"I acknowledge your skill. But I cannot accept that demand. Instead, I'll compromise. According to the agreement, we could claim joint ownership, so how about splitting it fairly in half?"
From Kusanagi's perspective, it was a considerably generous proposal.
But there was no way Seo-jin would accept it.
'What is this bastard saying.'
To suddenly demand half the spoils of a monster I defeated alone.
"Get lost."
CRACK-.
"......"
At the repeated refusal, Kusanagi ground his teeth.
The negotiation had broken down.
Then only one thing remained.
"Fine. Then let's decide by force."
SHING-.
With those words, blue-green mana wrapped around Kusanagi's sword, emitting a sharp light.
"A duel with me. If you win, take everything. But if I win, all of that belongs to Yamato."
Currently, Gu-ren, the vanguard and greatest combat power of the exploration team, was in an incapacitated state.
At this rate, they might have to abandon the exploration without any gains.
In that case, he'd bet on the possibility of winning against that unknown existence.
'The power to neutralize magic structures.'
Before that unprecedented power, mages might be useless, but as a Magic Swordsman, he was different.
Also, while he fought, the exploration team could buy time to retreat.
At Kusanagi's proposal, Seo-jin's eyes lit up with interest.
'A duel, huh. Clean without having to deal with multiple opponents.'
In fact, he didn't have enough mana left to subdue all of them either.
"Good, I accept."
When Seo-jin came down from Yaogou Xuanchong's corpse and stood in front, Kusanagi took a deep breath and lowered his stance.
After staring at each other and probing for a moment, the first to move was Kusanagi.
"Here I come!"
WHOOSH-.
Kusanagi charging at Seo-jin with his sword draw.
Seo-jin drew up mana to activate Future Sight and fell into thought.
WHIRR-.
The blurry afterimage and attack trajectory visible to Seo-jin's eyes.
'Kusanagi's level is in the early 200s.'
Although not a member of the strategy team, he possessed considerable combat power befitting the head of a nation's largest magical organization, a Mage Tower.
Moreover, unlike ordinary mages, he was a 'Magic Swordsman' with multiple classes.
Against him, who was capable of close combat, Dispel Magic couldn't provide an advantage.
Furthermore, it was also difficult to dodge attacks by responding to his speed.
This was a phenomenon caused by basic stat differences, unrelated to Seo-jin's magical talent.
"Throat!"
Kusanagi's mana-infused sword aimed for Seo-jin's throat.
However.
SWISH-.
Seo-jin, as if he had read the attack beforehand, moved his head slightly and easily dodged the sword strike.
Then, Seo-jin's fist struck Kusanagi's exposed side as he raised his sword high to slash.
CRACK-.
"......!"
With a sound like crushing a can, Kusanagi's armor twisted in a whirlwind shape.
"Tsk."
Having allowed the attack, Kusanagi clicked his tongue and quickly retreated backward.
Then he touched his broken armor and hardened his expression.
"......"
For armor inscribed with durability enhancement and magic defense circuits to be crushed so easily.
Moreover.
'All the magic circles inscribed on the armor were destroyed by that single strike just now.'
The lightening magic that reduced the armor's weight, the magic that increased strength, and even the Haste magic that boosted speed.
Just like neutralizing Gu-ren's magic, he had instantly destroyed even the magic inscribed on the armor.
Bone-chilling magic dispelling skill.
'This is nothing but scrap metal now.'
CLANK-.
Having made his decision, Kusanagi pressed a button to remove his armor and faced Seo-jin with his much lighter body.
'Taking off his armor, how perfect.'
Generally a good judgment, but not right now.
His removing the armor was exactly what Seo-jin had intended, clearly a bad move.
In fact, Seo-jin didn't have enough mana left to penetrate that armor and deal damage.
'I've consumed a lot of mana from Glize's summoning ceremony and the fight with the giant centipede.'
Even if the armor had become scrap metal with all its auxiliary magic dispelled, it couldn't be ignored - it was an S-grade defensive artifact for level 200s refined with high-grade enhancement stones and magic stones.
Considerable mana would be needed to penetrate it, but Kusanagi had removed the armor with his own hands.
The advantage had passed to Seo-jin.
***
A moment later.
THUD-.
"Ugh!"
After several exchanges, when Seo-jin's fist struck his solar plexus, Kusanagi screamed and fell backward.
Having fallen while coughing up blood and even dropping his sword.
Kusanagi groaned in frustration and acknowledged defeat.
"I acknowledge... defeat."
It was an overwhelming difference in skill.
He had easily dodged all his sword strikes as if reading them beforehand.
When he tried to use magic in response, the opponent showed god-like power by dispelling the mana array before it could be completed.
He had been thoroughly defeated in both sword and magic.
"Whew."
Seo-jin pretended to be as relaxed as possible while catching his breath.
Kusanagi collapsed in tatters and Seo-jin lightly catching his breath.
At a glance, it looked like an overwhelming victory, but in reality, it was a close call.
TREMBLE-.
His fingertips trembling from mana shortage.
If the time had been drawn out just a little more, it would have been dangerous.
"As promised, I'll take all of this."
Seo-jin declared while looking down at the fallen Kusanagi.
Then he opened his inventory and quickly collected the most valuable items from Yaogou Xuanchong's corpse.
A massive amount of loot was sucked into his inventory.
However, he didn't take everything.
He intentionally left behind the giant torso and lower-quality crystal fragments.
Taking everything would be too conspicuous, and leaving some scraps would make the aftermath easier to handle.
"Still... I'll leave this behind."
Seo-jin spoke as if showing mercy, then turned around without regret and disappeared into the darkness.
Only cold silence remained, as if a storm had swept through.
The remaining Yamato investigation team was dumbfounded by the surreal situation.
Rei hurriedly ran to Kusanagi to begin first aid, and Gu-ren stared blankly in the direction Seo-jin had disappeared.
All that remained was the Yaogou Xuanchong's torso that Seo-jin had left behind as if showing mercy.
Gu-ren bit his lips at the humiliation he was feeling for the first time.
'Next time we meet, I'll definitely... kill you.'
***
Meanwhile, at the crossroads gathering point where investigation teams from various countries had assembled.
As time passed, some investigation teams from various countries decided to return.
This was to send the spoils obtained through the Great Cavity exploration up to the surface and to evacuate the injured who had occurred during exploration.
The Taebaek investigation team also decided to return after securing mana storage sacs and leech samples.
Continuing to explore the Gamma route without Seo-jin carried too much risk.
Just as the Taebaek investigation team was preparing to leave the cavity, Kang Jin-tae picked another fight with a sarcastic voice.
"Leaving already? You should know well what significance this exploration holds."
"......"
Of course they knew.
But Taebaek had achieved sufficient results.
Therefore, So-yul ignored his provocation and ordered her members.
"Forward reconnaissance team, please report the route security status. We're returning now."
Kang Jin-tae coughed in frustration at So-yul's dismissal but didn't speak to them further.
Instead, he smiled sinisterly and thought.
'Hmph, let's see how long you can hold out. Something interesting will happen soon.'
SQUEEZE-.
Meanwhile, Kang Jin-tae tightly gripped the scroll he had carefully kept in his chest.
This was an S-grade item called [Spatial Coordination Scroll] that he had stolen from Taebaek's underground ruins.
The Yellow Dragon's research team had discovered that this grandly named item was the wedge that maintained the underground ruins' seal and the Great Cavity's mana uniformity.
This meant that using this item, one could cause mana chaos inside the Great Cavity anytime, anywhere, or put it back to sleep.
'If I use this ability well, I can strengthen Yellow Dragon's influence in this joint investigation team, gain support from various countries, and even pin all the blame on those Taebaek bastards.'
Deliberately cause disasters in the Great Cavity by using the Spatial Coordination Scroll's ability at the right time and place.
Then, protect other investigation teams while gaining their favor and successfully escape from the Great Cavity.
After that, establish a fact-finding committee and reveal only the empty altar in Taebaek Mage Tower's underground ruins and the manipulated exploration traces, and it would be over.
That would also end the long-standing grudge with that woman.
Kang Jin-tae smiled nastily while looking up at the bluely glowing cavity ceiling.
'It's about time.'
Quite some time had passed since he infused mana into the Spatial Coordination Scroll to cause chaos in the Great Cavity's mana.
There should be some reaction by now.
That's when it happened.
RUMBLE-!
Whether by coincidence, suddenly a strong vibration and roar that seemed like it would collapse the entire Great Cavity echoed throughout.
Dirt and small stones fell from the ceiling with a patter, and a strong shockwave was transmitted as if something massive had collided with the Great Cavity.
"Wh-what?!"
"Is it an earthquake?!"
"No, it's a mana collision!"
The investigation teams from various countries remaining at the gathering point were startled and deployed defensive magic.
At the sudden abnormal phenomenon and the ensuing confusion of the investigation teams, a faint smile spread across Kang Jin-tae's face.
'Is the effect finally appearing?'
When Kang Jin-tae sent his gaze, Zhang Wei-an nodded.
"Everyone deploy barriers."
At Zhang Wei-an's command, the Chinese investigation team's mages deployed a wide-range protective barrier.
WHOOOM-.
Magic casting was organized as if they had prepared for it.
When researchers and porters held up artifacts that looked like magic talismans, a large mana shield spread over the magic deployed by various countries' investigation teams, protecting everyone.
"Th-thank you."
"It's nothing."
The investigation teams from various countries expressed gratitude for the Chinese team's wide-range mana shield casting and focused on understanding the situation.
"Tracking results show the Alpha route direction. Strong mana collision reaction!"
"There was no abnormality until just now? And the Alpha route is the most stable area."
"But the analysis results......"
At the investigation team's analysis, So-yul's heart sank.
'S-Seo-jin-ssi?'
Before leaving, he had mentioned that he was heading to the Alpha route that the Japanese investigation team had passed through first.
But an accident had occurred in that very Alpha route, so it was natural to have an ominous feeling.
While the investigation teams from various countries were confused and unable to make a decision.
Zhang Wei-an asked Kang Jin-tae for his opinion.
"Dr. Kang, what do you think about this situation?"
As if the time had come, Kang Jin-tae stepped forward while hiding his nasty smile.