Chapter 577: The Conspiracy Begins (10)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 577: The Conspiracy Begins (10)
Mid-slope on Namsan.
An unbelievable sight unfolded before the eyes of the man following his subordinates as they rushed up the mountain.
Kwoooosh!
A fierce torrent of water poured down from above.
To say it simply “poured” wouldn’t do it justice.
It was a colossal flood, the kind one might imagine encountering in a mountainside tsunami.
“R-Run!”
“Spread out!”
“J-Jump up—Ugh!”
“Gurgle…”
The wave swept away not only his subordinates but also the beautiful, towering flowers and trees.
“Tch!”
The man, having instantly flown into the sky to escape the disaster, saw it all.
The torrent that washed everything away wasn't just in this one spot; it was flowing over the entire mountain.
“Ha.”
It was shocking.
‘Just how much mana does he have to be able to cast a spell like this?’
An overwhelming amount of mana, enough to cause a massive tidal wave on an entire mountain.
An absurd casting speed that could create such magic in the blink of an eye.
He was, without a doubt, superior to any mage he had ever seen.
‘A pity.’
From his perspective, the magic unfolding before him was comparable to a natural disaster.
What if that spell had been aimed not at them, but at humanity?
With that level of power, it could have unleashed a catastrophe even in the middle of a city.
But that fleeting thought of regret was short-lived.
In its place, a thick killing intent filled his heart.
He was reminded once again.
‘He must be killed.’
To complete the organization's grand design, Kim Do-jin had to die here today.
Even if it meant they couldn't inflict their desired damage upon this land, as long as they could kill him, it would by no means be a loss.
And for that, he needed them.
Those morons, flailing and dying in the water.
“Foolish things.”
To be killed or injured, unable to dodge something like this.
He was ashamed to call them his subordinates.
But what could he do?
He needed even their help to block the escape routes in case of an emergency.
The man lightly clenched his fist and thrust it toward the massive torrent.
It was a gentle movement, as if reaching for an object a short distance away.
But the result was anything but light.
KABOOOM!
A colossal aura erupted from his fist and slammed into the flowing water.
Water droplets scattered everywhere.
The men who had been struggling in the torrent scrambled up tall trees, gasping for breath.
“Cough, cough…!”
“Gah!”
“Heok, heok…”
“Th-Thank you…”
The men, saved from the brink of death, tried to express their gratitude.
But he wasn't listening.
“There’s no time. Quickly rescue the others and surround the area as planned.”
“…Y-Yes, sir.”
Receiving his command, they began to move, extending a helping hand to their comrades still trapped in the water.
They sliced through the torrent with swords, raised earthen walls to block the flow, and so on.
The total number of survivors, whether by their own strength or with the help of their comrades, was about sixty.
This single spell had resulted in a loss of nearly forty men.
The man shook his head at the pathetic number of troops now surrounding Namsan Tower and muttered.
“A disastrous start.”
He had a bad feeling.
It felt as if they were already half-defeated before the real battle had even begun.
But it wasn't an entirely bad situation.
After all, such feelings were the very driving force that made him stronger.
He issued a final command to his subordinates.
“Hold your positions no matter what. If you let Kim Do-jin escape, I will destroy not only you, but everything you hold dear.”
“Yes, sir!”
His subordinates answered with strained voices, their bodies tensed by the warning thick with killing intent.
Looking down from the top of the tower, Kim Do-jin’s face crumpled into a frown, as if something displeased him.
“Hmm… a little disappointing.”
The number of people gathered in front of the tower was about sixty.
Kim Do-jin wasn't too pleased with that number.
If things had gone as expected, at least twenty more should have died.
The fact that those who should have died were saved at the last moment by a timely intervention was a major factor.
It was undoubtedly the order of their leader.
‘Looks like their leader has a knack for handling people.’
He couldn't help but think so.
Either that, or his sense of camaraderie was so strong that he couldn't bear to watch his subordinates die.
Either way, it was annoying.
Kim Do-jin groaned, pressing his fingers against his throbbing temples.
“Ugh… Nothing is going according to plan.”
A surge of irritation washed over him.
He knew.
He knew that life rarely goes according to plan.
He also knew that if you plan ten things, you should be grateful if even one of them works out.
In that sense, he had a pretty good batting average.
When he planned ten things, at least four or five of them usually didn't go too far off track.
However, every once in a while, a wrench was thrown into the most critical part of his plans.
And always by bastards who were united by their pure, unadulterated malice toward him.
But they needed to know something, too.
“It’s the same for me, you know.”
When it came to hating them, he was no slouch either.
They weren't quite irreconcilable enemies who couldn't live under the same sky… but he certainly didn't want to live under the same sky as them.
So he planned to exterminate them.
To purify the air, just a little.
He would snuff out the breaths of those who had swarmed him like a pack of dogs.
Every last one of them.
“Fwooo.”
He took a deep breath to endure the throbbing headache and the building heat, steadying his mind.
Then, he prepared a spell.
The most suitable magic for enemies who looked like drowned rats.
Crackle!
A deep blue current sparked at his fingertips.
He aimed it at the men gathered below the tower.
「Thousand Thunder」
A single bolt of blue lightning shot through the air and began to split.
Pzzzzzt!
One became two, then four, eight, sixteen…
Until finally, there were a thousand.
Just as the rain of lightning was about to fall upon everyone’s heads…
“Tsk.”
The man who had been watching clicked his tongue, flew up, and threw a punch.
“Azure Dragon Ascends to Heaven.”
The energy that burst from his tightly clenched fist took the form of a giant dragon.
It held a wish-fulfilling jewel in its mouth, its long whiskers fluttering as it soared toward the sky.
The blue dragon twisted its long body as if coiling in the air.
The lightning bolts that touched the dragon’s scales vanished without a trace, while those that managed to evade its domain struck the innocent ground below.
“……”
From top to bottom.
From bottom to top.
The two men’s gazes locked in mid-air.
And at the same moment, they both felt it.
The immense presence slumbering within the other.
However, their understanding of it was different.
‘He’s stronger than what’s known.’
The man simply mistook it for a part of Kim Do-jin’s hidden power.
But Kim Do-jin clearly identified the true nature of the power sleeping within his opponent.
‘An Apostle?’
He was an Apostle.
The energy sleeping within him, the punch he had just thrown—it all proved it.
It wasn't simple mana, but the power of a Divine Authority, imbued with a god’s grace.
Kim Do-jin felt it.
Not because of Gluttony, but with his own innate senses.
Though their perceptions differed slightly, their assessment of each other was identical.
‘This won’t be easy.’
‘This is going to be rough.’
Their thoughts were of difficulty.
But their expressions were anything but.
They were the type whose blood boiled all the more when faced with a challenging opponent.
The man flew up, reaching the top of the tower where Kim Do-jin stood.
Landing a short distance away, he spoke.
“I’ve wanted to meet you at least once.”
“Are you a fan of mine?”
“A fan… In a way, that might be true. There was so much talk about you within the organization, I was curious what kind of person you were.”
“Ah… so they talk about me a lot in your organization?”
As Kim Do-jin asked, as if fishing for information, the man readily obliged.
“Of course. Since the organization’s founding, you are the only one who has disrupted our plans to this extent.”
“Oh, really?”
He mentally replayed the moments he had thwarted their plans.
There weren't that many.
‘For them to praise me so highly despite that…’
Either the organization called Hexagram was one that had rarely experienced failure…
Or he had interfered with them without even realizing it.
‘It’s probably the latter.’
It would be strange for a global organization like this to have been built with few failures.
“You are the organization’s number one target. And ‘number one’ means that, given the chance, your assassination is the top priority, no matter the sacrifice.”
He stepped forward, continuing.
“Today is that day.”
His words were not empty; they carried a powerful, unyielding will.
The absolute will to kill him, no matter the cost.
Fights against beings like this always ended in one of two ways.
Either the opponent died, or he did.
It was an obvious truth, but Kim Do-jin had never lost such a battle.
Not even once.
He shook his head lightly and asked.
“Let’s at least exchange names before we fight.”
“Hm?”
The man’s expression seemed to ask why that was necessary. Kim Do-jin grinned playfully in response.
“I should at least know who it is I’m killing, right?”
The man’s face hardened at the confident reply, which seemed to already assume victory.
“Right… It’s only proper that you know who killed you before you go.”
He introduced himself.
“My name is Jincheon. I am the man who will kill you, and the Apostle chosen by the Goddess of Envy.”
The aura rising from the man’s back grew more and more sinister.
“I hate you, and I hate everyone.”
The very pinnacle of all jealousy and loathing for his fellow humans was now aimed squarely at Kim Do-jin.