Chapter 157
Chapter 157
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 157
Chapter Title: Intrusion into the Virtual World
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The opponent's power was far stronger than anticipated. Even with a joint attack alongside Luke, this was the result.
...
Now only six remained.
Lee Seo-jun turned around and gazed at his companions, who were locked in fierce combat with the terrorists.
They held the numerical advantage, yet they were struggling against the enemies' overwhelming strength.
Lee Seo-jun shifted his gaze to Luke and said,
"Let's go help them."
Time dragged on.
The training reached its final stages.
Before long, only a single terrorist was left.
But no matter where it was hiding, it refused to show itself.
I'd searched every inch of the area, but not even a suspicious person turned up. Everyone just looked like ordinary NPCs.
In the end, I gave up the search and rejoined my team.
"There's Kim Seon-woo."
"Didn't find any clues or anything?"
As I approached, Shin Young-jun and Choi Seo-yoon spoke up as if they'd been waiting for me.
"Nothing. I scoured the whole area—there's absolutely zilch."
"Hmm. Why hasn't the last one shown up? Do we need to collect clues to advance to the next stage or something?"
Luke muttered quietly.
"Stage?"
Lee Seo-jun echoed in response.
"If not, why hasn't the training ended?"
"Hm. Makes sense."
Lee Seo-jun nodded.
As we pondered the endless training,
a chill ran down my spine—a shiver of killing intent. My 'Killing Intent Detection' trait had activated.
I whipped my head toward the source.
There stood a building. And on its rooftop, someone was peering down at us.
It was a face I recognized. But since it was someone I hadn't expected, I was a bit startled.
"Something there?"
Lee Seo-jun followed my gaze.
At that moment, the figure on the roof ducked back and vanished.
Lee Seo-jun stared up at the rooftop before turning back to me.
"What're you looking at?"
I shook my head.
"...Nothing."
Lee Seo-jun nodded without suspicion.
I fell into thought for a moment.
That man I'd just seen—he was Jin, one of Jaun's operatives.
He wasn't a fake terrorist conjured by the Mystery.
If he were fake, his features would've been blurry, and no imposter could exude that level of intimidating presence.
Which meant Jaun was aboard this ship...
At the same time, I realized why Han Se-jin's Jaun Subjugation Squad had boarded the Atlantis yesterday.
Because Jaun was on this ship.
My worst fears had come true—the Poseidon hijacking was happening ahead of schedule.
And I belatedly grasped the secret hidden in this training exercise.
The method had diverged from the original story, so I'd been late to notice, but the core concept was similar.
This virtual world concealed a 'key fragment' needed to unlock Poseidon's barrier.
There were probably fragments hidden in various other locations too.
Jin must have come here for that key fragment.
"No, seriously, where's the last terrorist?"
"Is this some kind of glitch?"
Impatient grumbles rose from the group as waiting grew tiresome.
That was when it happened.
Everyone's eyes widened at the sudden announcement.
"Huh? Just like that?"
Flash!
A burst of light enveloped Jin as he returned to reality. He now stood behind the 16th-floor training ground.
He had infiltrated the students' 'virtual world' training simulation using Jaun's relic, the 'Phantom Interferer'.
All to seize the key needed to unravel the hidden barrier around 'Poseidon' in that virtual realm.
And in Jin's hand gleamed a single gemstone.
"...Hm. Impressive, though."
Jin caressed the gem, replaying the events.
Even after concealing all presence and magic power, someone had pinpointed his location.
Kim Seon-woo.
If he'd gone all out to hide, only someone with senses as acute as Kim Jin-cheol or 'that one' would've noticed.
Which meant Kim Seon-woo possessed equally sharp senses.
"Bert takes interest for good reason."
Jin smirked and walked off.
He arrived where his comrades waited.
"You back? Got the key fragment?"
Baek Eun-seong called out, and Jin nodded.
"Yeah. Here."
He dangled the gemstone, drawing a grin from Baek Eun-seong.
"Nice. Mission accomplished proper."
"What, you think I'm you?"
Baek Eun-seong scowled at Jin's jab.
"Damn it. How long you gonna milk that Incheon mess with the Chalice of Life?"
The incident they referenced was when Baek Eun-seong had lost Jaun's 'Chalice of Life' in Incheon.
Ever since, he'd been the butt of their jokes.
"Oh, forever~"
"Just you wait. I'll track that bearded bastard down and crush him—Terri's revenge included."
Baek Eun-seong clenched his fists.
"Revenge my ass. How? You don't even know his face."
"We got our biggest lead, though."
"Biggest lead? What's that?"
"He's from the Rune Clan."
"Ah... Yeah, that's solid."
Jin nodded. Bert, who'd been listening quietly, chimed in.
"Right. Jin, how was the virtual world experience?"
"Virtual world? Meh. Hunting the key fragment was a hassle. Oh, and I saw you guys in there."
"Us?"
Bert's face lit with curiosity.
"Yeah. Faces were off, but abilities were kinda similar."
"Huh. Fun. Terror sim, they say—but shouldn't they get our permission before basing it on us?"
"Not the Association's setup. Probably Poseidon's wild illusion."
"Mm. Could be. So, who killed me?"
Jin chuckled at Bert's question.
"Kim Seon-woo."
With all training over, we returned to reality.
The Mystery's blessing had slightly boosted our magic power, but rather than celebrate, everyone still puzzled over the abrupt end.
Students began questioning the instructors.
But the instructors were clueless too, merely repeating that it seemed like a Mystery glitch.
These facilities weren't affiliated with the Sorcerer Academy, so they had no way to know.
The instructors promised to check with Atlantis's training staff.
But I had a vague idea of the cause.
One of the generated terrorists must've been a fake Jin.
His real intrusion into the virtual world likely glitched the Mystery.
A minor hiccup from virtual and real overlapping.
"What time is it?"
"Five PM."
"Whoa, already? What's next?"
"Dunno. Heard there's a relic instrument concert at eight. Wanna go? Supposedly gives a blessing buff for hours."
"Blessing? Wild."
Lee Seo-jun and Shin Young-jun chatted nearby.
"Shall we all go?"
"Sure, I'm in."
Choi Seo-yoon jumped in, and Song Seung-ah nodded eagerly.
Then all eyes turned to me.
"Kim Seon-woo, you're coming too, right?"
I shook my head.
"Nah."
"Huh? Why?"
"Tired. Gonna rest."
Now that I knew Jaun was aboard, I couldn't afford to slack off.
Choi Seo-yoon sidled closer.
"Then let's find a spot to chill together. Like the spa."
"Spa? Not my thing."
"Where then? I'll tag along."
Her expression turned serious.
With all these eyes around, she no longer cared about appearances. Lee Seo-jun and Shin Young-jun shot me weird looks.
"My cabin."
"Cabin?"
Choi Seo-yoon blinked, then her mouth fell open.
"...Yeah, tagging along might be awkward."
What a disaster waiting to happen.
"You call that appropriate?"
"Tch. We're already here—might as well hang out."
She mumbled at the floor, disappointed.
"Yeah, she's begging—let's hang."
Lee Seo-jun piled on.
Even if I wanted to, Jaun's threat made it impossible.
Sure, what could I even do right now with them gunning for Poseidon? But thinking and moving from now might yield something.
"No. I'm beat. Heading out."
Lee Seo-jun nodded at my firm tone.
"...Fine, whatever."
The instructor announced,
"Training's over, everyone. The rest of the time is free. Get some good rest."
7 PM.
Elrin walked the underground with her five comrades.
This was sublevel 2.
Known as Atlantis's engine room, but the holy relic 'Poseidon' was actually hidden here.
"Security seemed lax... Guess they had something to rely on."
Elrin muttered at the translucent barrier blocking their path.
"Plus illusion magic layered on—super complex."
"Hm? That impressive, huh?"
Everyone hung on her words.
From the previous test, they'd learned Elrin was an exceptional support sorcerer.
"Can you dispel it?"
Alex, the brown-haired man, asked.
"Mystery-infused barrier. Poseidon's Mystery, no less. No way to crack it."
"Tch. Holy relic security's no joke."
"Probably needs a key to open. Mystery barriers like this usually do."
"You know your stuff."
"I've seen one just like it."
Elrin recalled the barrier over her clan's village.
Though Jaun had broken it somehow, stolen their Mystery, and fled.
"No need to force it anyway. Wait around here, and those guys'll show up themselves."
"True, but this place is huge. Paths might not cross. Oh, right—why do they want Poseidon anyway?"
Alex muttered curiously, then continued.
"Heard Jaun doesn't chase Mysteries blindly. Only ones they need."
Elrin nodded at Alex's words.
Jaun targeting only useful Mysteries was well-known.
But Poseidon was infamous for limited utility among holy relics.
It could only be used at sea.
"Guess they got sea business."
"Sea business? Hm, what could it be?"
Alex rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Let's head up first. No point camping here."
"Yeah. And this isn't the only way to the engine room."
They climbed back to level 1.
Crowds filled the area.
Then a man caught Elrin's eye.
"Huh?"
"What?"
The man vanished in an instant. Elrin stood frozen, dazed.
"That guy just now..."
He strongly resembled the bearded man from the social event.
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 160
Chapter Title: Relic Instrument Concert
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A delightful melody filled the vast plaza.
The orchestra before the conducting sorcerer, 'Antony Walter', played as if they were one living entity.
An array of colorful instruments.
But these weren't ordinary—they were relic instruments infused with Mystery power.
These instruments resonated with the harmony of music and the player's magic, amplifying the ambient natural magic power.
"Whoa, my magic power's really surging."
"Fatigue's vanishing too."
Lee Seo-jun felt the music's magic invigorating his body.
Music magic was a first for him too, making everything feel novel and wondrous.
"Man, Kim Seon-woo's missing this golden chance. Tsk tsk."
Shin Young-jun clucked his tongue sympathetically.
Choi Seo-yoon, listening glumly, nodded in agreement.
As they refocused on the music, Song Seung-ah let out a wistful sigh beside them.