Chapter 78
Chapter 78
Mad Black Mage's Tower Strategy
Chapter 78
The Great Cavity's assembly point.
"Well, Section Chief Zhang. I don't think one guild leader's claim is entirely unreasonable."
The voice of Yamato Guild's leader, Kusanagi Kenshin, echoed through The Great Cavity.
At Kusanagi's unexpected intervention, Zhang Wei-an's face hardened slightly for the first time.
Kang Jin-tae also glared at Kusanagi with disbelief.
'Why is that Japanese bastard suddenly interfering?'
He's been causing trouble from earlier, could it be that the Yamato Guild has sided with Taebaek?
Kang Jin-tae's insides boiled with anger, but Kusanagi paid no attention and folded his arms while staring intently at Han So-yul.
As he did so, he recalled the negotiation content that Han So-yul had secretly conveyed through Team Leader Jung just moments ago.
***
Yamato Guild's temporary barracks.
Amidst the bustle of caring for the wounded and preparing for retreat, someone approached Kusanagi's tent.
Team Leader Jung Hee-won carefully approached the closed tent and conveyed Han So-yul's message.
"Guild Leader Kusanagi, I have a message to deliver."
There could only be one reason she came all the way here.
However, Kusanagi dismissed her without even glancing at her.
He had no desire to get entangled in political strife between Mage Towers.
Besides, if other countries learned of a secret meeting with Taebaek, unnecessary trouble might arise.
"Go back."
"Understood."
Though she answered that way, Team Leader Jung didn't obediently retreat.
His refusal to meet was likely due to other Mage Towers' watchful eyes.
Even now, familiar spirits from other countries were prowling around the assembly point.
She could pretend the meeting fell through here while quietly conveying only the information.
SWOOSH-.
Team Leader Jung secretly slipped a magical device from inside her clothes into the tent before leaving.
"......"
Kusanagi glared at the small communication terminal that had squeezed in under the tent, then picked it up.
CRACKLE-.
A voice rang in his ear.
[Nice to meet you, Guild Leader. I am Han So-yul, the Mage Tower Master of Taebaek.]
[I'm hanging up.]
Not worth listening to.
She would try to gain his cooperation by any means necessary.
If he didn't listen, there would be no chance of being deceived.
Just as Kusanagi was about to destroy the communication terminal, Han So-yul shouted.
[Magic nullification!]
[......What?]
Kusanagi's hand stopped instantly, and Han So-yul's voice continued.
[The unidentified person who attacked the Yamato Guild on the Alpha route. We have clues about his identity. Especially about the special ability he used.]
Hearing those words, Kusanagi felt as if his heart had stopped.
[He possessed the power to nullify all kinds of magic. Even if it was Grand Mage Gu-ren's secret technique.]
"......"
A cold sweat trickled down Kusanagi's spine.
He didn't know how she knew that fact, but this was a situation that absolutely could not be overlooked.
If this fact became public, not only would Gu-ren's personal honor be tarnished, but it could lead to questions about the Yamato Guild's prestige and even the absolute nature of magical power itself.
Apart from information about the attacker, just holding information from the battle was tremendous pressure for Yamato.
Han So-yul's message continued calmly.
[If you cooperate in stopping Dr. Kang Jin-tae's rampage, this information will remain secret. Of course, our Taebaek is prepared to discuss future interests in The Great Cavity with the Yamato Guild on equal terms.]
The diplomatic rhetoric that followed.
[You're well aware that the Yellow Dragon Mage Tower's monopoly is becoming quite serious, aren't you? At this rate, not only Taebaek and Yamato, but even the autonomy of mage guilds could be threatened. I'll wait for you to make a wise decision.]
She would keep the Yellow Dragon Mage Tower in check while covering up the Yamato Guild's shame.
This was more of a threat than a proposal.
Though she attached all sorts of rhetoric calling it a proposal, from Kusanagi's position, it was a blatant threat he could not refuse.
He eventually swallowed a bitter smile.
"I have no choice."
***
Kusanagi slowly raised his head and stared at Kang Jin-tae. His eyes were as cold as ice.
"Dr. Kang, can you confidently assert that you're hiding nothing?"
"Wh, what are you saying, Guild Leader Kusanagi! Surely you're not agreeing with that woman's ridiculous claims? We're longtime allies!"
Kang Jin-tae cried out desperately, but Kusanagi's attitude was firm.
"There are no eternal allies. And sometimes there are more important things than that, aren't there."
In the early days of the Tower's appearance, Yellow Dragon and Yamato had joined forces to stop Taebaek's monopoly, but that was a distant memory.
Now there were more important things than that.
"As Guild Leader Han said, confirming what's in your clothes in front of everyone is a very simple matter. If there's nothing there, I too will offer a formal apology to you and the Yellow Dragon Guild."
When even the Yamato Guild's leader personally stepped forward to take Han So-yul's side, the venue began to stir even more.
The relationship between Taebaek and Yamato was as antagonistic as with Yellow Dragon.
For Yamato to support Taebaek meant there was some reason behind it.
"Is there really something there?"
"It has been strange how they keep pushing from earlier."
"Is it that hard to just show us?"
"Show us and let's end this cleanly!"
Now the situation was turning greatly against Kang Jin-tae.
Even Zhang Wei-an could no longer protect Kang Jin-tae in this atmosphere.
"Th, this can't be! This is clear defamation! I am innocent!"
Kang Jin-tae screamed like a final struggle, but his voice only scattered emptily.
Then he frantically glanced around with wild eyes.
'Who, who exactly went this far... No, what should I do.'
He clutched his robe tightly so no one could see the scroll inside.
'There's a way, I just need to not let them take this!'
Their claims were nothing but groundless accusations without any real evidence.
He just needed to secretly hide the scroll in his inventory without anyone knowing.
Kang Jin-tae was racking his brains to escape the crisis.
Suddenly his gaze fell on Gu-ren, who was standing blankly to one side.
At that moment.
CRACKLE-.
Dozens of invisible magical threads shot out like lightning from Gu-ren's fingertips.
Those magical threads grabbed something hidden in Kang Jin-tae's clothes before he could even react.
"N, no!"
SPIN-.
What emerged from his clothes as if jumping out was a scroll sealed with antique metal decorations.
The scroll flew through the air in an elegant trajectory like a living snake.
SWOOSH-.
Past the shocked Kang Jin-tae with wide eyes, past Zhang Wei-an, past other expedition members who looked incredulous.
CATCH-.
It settled in Gu-ren's grasp.
Gu-ren gritted his teeth while holding the scroll.
'If I just cooperate with this matter, they said they'd hand over information about the nullification magic that monster used.'
If he could just learn that information, he could get revenge when he met that bastard again.
Gu-ren had cooperated with Taebaek solely for that revenge.
"Here, here it is."
Gu-ren muttered blankly and threw the scroll in his hand to Han So-yul.
THUD-.
Thanks to Gu-ren's efforts, the scroll fell precisely at Han So-yul's feet.
"......"
The center of controversy and decisive evidence of this incident had revealed itself.
So-yul hurriedly picked up the Spatial Coordination Scroll that had fallen at her feet.
'It worked, it worked!'
According to Seo-jin, this scroll had the ability to manipulate The Great Cavity's magical power to cause tremors.
If she could just demonstrate this scroll's ability here, she could publicly expose everything Kang Jin-tae had been doing.
Then everything would be over.
So-yul said.
"Everyone, please pay attention! As I said, the scroll that Kang Jin-tae had hidden in his clothes has been revealed. And now, I will show you what he has been doing through this!"
"N, no!"
Despite Kang Jin-tae's scream-like cry, So-yul injected magical power into the scroll to prove its authenticity.
Just a little. Not enough to greatly affect The Great Cavity.
WHOOOM-.
The scroll glowed blue as it absorbed So-yul's magical power.
But.
"......"
After 10 seconds passed, then 20 seconds.
The Great Cavity didn't vibrate even slightly.
'Did I inject too little magical power?'
So-yul wondered and injected magical power more strongly.
"......"
Still, there was no reaction whatsoever.
As everyone watched So-yul, she sensed something was wrong.
She urgently pressed the communication terminal in her ear and whispered frantically.
"Seo-jin, Seo-jin! Can you hear me?"
***
The center of The Great Cavity.
"Well. Then that won't work?"
Seo-jin, facing off against Lee Seo-mun, replied as if leisurely.
But the reality wasn't like that.
SWOOSH-.
Seo-jin watched Lee Seo-mun's sharp spear blade being withdrawn and swallowed hard.
Each of Lee Seo-mun's spear attacks was sharp and fierce enough to cut flesh.
Every step taken to avoid the spear felt like walking on thin ice.
Moreover, this wasn't just a meaningless series of spear thrusts, but had the greater purpose of continuously restricting Seo-jin's space and reducing his range of movement.
The final strike would have pierced his throat if not for Future Sight.
'Indeed, he's several levels above Kusanagi.'
That was natural.
No matter how much Kusanagi was a magic swordsman, he was essentially a mage.
Mages were no match for Seo-jin.
On the other hand, Lee Seo-mun was a genuine martial artist who had devoted his entire life to martial arts.
Moreover, he had rich combat experience from operating as a top-floor strategy team member.
Not only his basic ability stats but his martial arts proficiency had reached an enlightened level.
Without The Great Cavity's magical power support, he would have been helplessly defeated.
"......"
But Lee Seo-mun, unaware of Seo-jin's inner thoughts, quietly fell into contemplation while withdrawing his spear.
Had there ever been anyone who could so perfectly evade his spear attacks?
'This can't be explained by simple talent or martial aptitude alone.'
The timing of the rising star's appearance, the accumulation of experience that could be inferred considering this.
Adding the stat gap with himself made it even more impossible.
Moreover, the final strike he had just shown wasn't the kind of attack that could be "seen and avoided."
He had something else.
Whether it was innate eyesight that could read anything, talent for predicting muscle or magical power movements in advance.
Or even precognitive abilities to read the future.
He didn't know what method was used, but the attack had definitely been read.
Lee Seo-mun trembled slightly with chilling excitement and thrill.
'Interesting.'
To think a climber who was only climbing the 11th floor possessed such potential.
Just thinking about how strong he would become later was both frightening and exciting.
He had no intention of crushing such a remarkable talent, but he wanted to test where its limits lay a bit more.
Lee Seo-mun, who had been quietly contemplating, suddenly thought of one method.
'Then how about this.'
This would gauge whether his ability was future sight, excellent eyesight, or something else entirely.
"Huuu."
Lee Seo-mun lowered his stance and took a deep breath. He drew up his energy while infusing his spear with magical power and killing intent.
Power filled with the karma and resentment accumulated from living as a martial artist for long years.
Calling its name to release the history and accumulated power contained in that weapon.
"Cry out, Blood Spirit."
FLARE-.
Instantly, blood-red energy formed at his spear tip and blazed fiercely like flames.
Then.
[Three Absolute Imperial Breaking (Samjeolpahwang)]
SLASH-.
With an illusion of space being cut, the trajectory of the red spear blade appeared in Seo-jin's [Future Sight].
"......!"
Unlike before, the trajectory shown in Seo-jin's Future Sight wasn't one but three.
The spear blade aiming for his throat was flying through three different attack paths simultaneously.
Seeing this, Seo-jin's eyes widened.
'Three branches?'
But even Lee Seo-mun couldn't make three attacks simultaneously.
This meant.
'Feints and real strikes.'
A technique that made it impossible to distinguish truth from falsehood through attack afterimages and energy distribution.
Against such attacks, even Future Sight couldn't fully grasp which was truly the threatening strike.
Future Sight ultimately only showed a moment's vision, without providing enough information to distinguish magical power flow and truth from falsehood.
If Seo-jin had been a reckless fool who only relied on Future Sight, he would have failed to react to this attack and had his throat severed.
However.
FLASH-.
When Seo-jin's magical power touched the Eye of Insight, one more vision opened.
The opened Eye of Insight perfectly 'discerned' which were feints and which was real.
Having read Lee Seo-mun's attack, Seo-jin unhesitatingly threw his body to the right.
"......!"
SWOOSH-.
The two feints scattered hazily as Seo-jin's body touched them.
Seo-jin maintained his momentum and dove into Lee Seo-mun's embrace, throwing a punch filled with Mixed Origin power.
[Mixed Origin Fist]
CRACK-.
"Kuk."
Seo-jin's fist dug into Lee Seo-mun's solid abs.
Though it felt like punching concrete, Seo-jin detonated the Mixed Origin energy contained in his fist and sent Lee Seo-mun flying.
"WHOOSH."
Lee Seo-mun rolled on the ground once and got back up.
Dusting off his abdomen and standing up, he didn't seem particularly damaged.
Considering his stamina stats, equipment, and Seo-jin's strength stats, this wasn't strange.
But separate from physical impact, the mental shock Lee Seo-mun received was tremendous.
'......He perfectly read my spear technique.'
This was the realm of understanding or insight beyond simple prediction.
That movement just now couldn't be shown without understanding or discerning his spear technique.
What madman would throw his body at blazing red energy?
Seo-jin's movement was filled with strong conviction.
Conviction in himself for distinguishing feints from reality.
"Magnificent. Truly magnificent."
Lee Seo-mun's voice contained faint admiration along with even more intense and burning fighting spirit.
"But!"
His eyes gleamed like an old predator discovering prey.
"This old man has one more move left."
STEP-.
Lee Seo-mun repositioned his spear grip and lowered his stance even further.
The aura emanating from his entire body condensed to an incomparable degree compared to before.
RUMBLE-.
A sense of unity as if he had become a giant spear itself.
The Great Cavity's dense magical power seemed to scatter around due to his pure fighting spirit.
"If you can handle even this, I'll acknowledge your victory."
Seo-jin looked at Lee Seo-mun preparing his final strike and broke into a cold sweat.
'That damn old man. He doesn't know when to moderate himself.'
To attack so desperately on first meeting.
No, was it his own fault for provoking his competitive spirit while knowing his personality?
If he had just lost appropriately, this wouldn't have happened.
But inwardly, Seo-jin was also heated up by this fight.
A battle with a true powerhouse.
When else would there be an opportunity to fight freely without magical power and stamina constraints?
"Good, come at me."
Just as Seo-jin gestured with his hand and finished preparing to receive his strike.
CRACKLE-.
So-yul's urgent voice came through the communication terminal attached to Seo-jin's ear.
[Seo-jin, Seo-jin! Can you hear me? We got it!]