Chapter 362
Chapter 362
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 363
Chapter Title: The Chairman's Interrogation
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From Kim Jin-cheol's very first question, I was thrown into complete disarray.
Where did you come from?
It seemed like an ordinary question, but it was anything but ordinary.
Because I was an outsider from another world.
If any other character had asked me that, I might have brushed it off without a second thought...
But Kim Jin-cheol was different.
He was the chairman of the Mage Association, the one who knew the most information and secrets in the world.
This might even be a question because he'd already figured out my true identity.
As I fell into thought for a moment, Kim Jin-cheol spoke up.
"By the way, it's best not to lie. Unless you want to turn the Association against you with just one falsehood, that is. You're here to clear yourself of suspicion for belonging to a 'criminal organization'."
It wasn't a simple threat.
Now that my connection to Jin Cheon-woo had been exposed, I was indeed under suspicion as a 'criminal', just as he said.
And from the pressure and aura emanating from him, I could tell he was scrutinizing every tiny change in my nerves to detect any lies.
Of course, this was something I could easily dodge by activating [Overimmersion].
But if I showed no tension at all, maintaining the exact same emotions and fluctuations, Kim Jin-cheol would dig into that even more.
"Then I'll ask again. Where are you from?"
I couldn't answer. Speaking about my original world was blocked by the constraint.
"Is it a constraint preventing you from answering?"
"Yes, I cannot answer."
Kim Jin-cheol stared straight into my eyes at my response, then nodded.
"It's the truth. Well, 'I cannot answer' is a kind of answer in itself, carrying information. Just keep responding like that from now on."
Kim Jin-cheol showed a surprisingly cool reaction. I'd expected him to probe further.
"Then let's move to the next question."
"Have you ever observed the future?"
This question startled me again. But I couldn't pinpoint his exact intent.
In this world, there were four main ways to observe the future.
Having the power of 'prophecy', undergoing 'regression', using the 'Mystery of Prophecy', or seeing it in the form of a 'novel' like I did.
"......Yes, I have."
"Then did you know you would meet me today?"
"No. I didn't know that."
"You didn't know about meeting me...... Then, can you explain how you observed the future?"
"I cannot explain."
Kim Jin-cheol stroked his beard.
"I see...... So you don't possess precognition abilities."
It seemed Kim Jin-cheol planned to probe me by asking these questions one by one.
"Then the next question. Did Jin Cheon-woo impose that 'constraint' on you?"
"I don't know the nature of this constraint."
"You don't know?"
"Yes, I only learned about it recently."
"Hmm. You don't know, huh."
Muttering to himself, Kim Jin-cheol continued.
"That...... I have a bit of a rude request."
Kim Jin-cheol trailed off, and the shift in his atmosphere and tone made me suspicious.
What kind of request could it be?
"Could you perhaps show me what happens when the constraint activates?"
"......Pardon?"
I was caught off guard and found it absurd in an instant.
What nonsense was this old man spouting?
As I stared at him in bewilderment, he chuckled heartily.
"If I see the moment it activates, I think I can figure out what kind of constraint it is. Aren't you curious yourself? About what constraint is on you? Heh heh."
"......When the constraint activates, mana backlash nearly killed me."
"Don't worry, I'll make sure you don't die. I can handle that much."
I knew that already...... The problem was the excruciating pain during the process.
"What if the constraint's power grows stronger than I expect and kills me?"
"Then I'll take responsibility and resurrect you. Even if it means stepping down as chairman."
His words were sincere.
It wasn't something you'd expect from the chairman of the Mage Association, who upheld justice.
"......Alright."
I was curious about the nature of this constraint too.
Thinking back to the previous mana backlash made cold sweat break out in fear, but uncovering my secrets took priority.
Above all, Kim Jin-cheol was as trustworthy as any major character.
Satisfied with my answer, Kim Jin-cheol smiled faintly.
"Heh heh. Good. Ah, but I still have many questions, so we'll save that suspicious constraint for last."
"Yes, of course."
"Then onto the next question. Do you know about the laws of the world...... or the law of causality?"
"I have a vague idea."
Stroking his beard at my answer, Kim Jin-cheol said,
"A vague idea...... It seems you don't yet grasp what it means to know even that much about the world's laws."
"Pardon?"
"Once you learn the underside of the world, you've acquired a nature different from ordinary people."
A different nature? What did that mean?
As I made a puzzled face, Kim Jin-cheol continued.
"The laws of the world aren't something you learn through transmitted knowledge or study. They're a kind of 'qualification' bestowed upon the rare few humans who harbor endless questions about the world and pursue them relentlessly."
"Qualification?"
At that moment, a scene flashed in my mind.
It was the conversation between the Mystery of Necromancy and Lee Seo-jun in Aporia.
—Why can't I hear their conversation properly?
[Because you don't have the qualification yet.]
—Qualification?
[I can't tell you the details. Research it yourself and figure it out step by step.]
The Mystery had definitely said that.
That Lee Seo-jun lacked the qualification.
Now I finally understood what that meant.
Kim Jin-cheol, lost in deep thought, fiddled with his beard.
"Hmm, how peculiar. You seem more deeply connected to the world's laws than anyone, yet you know nothing...... I thought you might be a regressor, but that's not it?"
I am a regressor, though.
Muttering to himself, Kim Jin-cheol looked into my eyes and said,
"But one thing is clear. You're no ordinary 19-year-old punk."
After that, Kim Jin-cheol's barrage of questions continued relentlessly.
About my relationship with Jin Cheon-woo, about Kim Chang-hyun.
He also asked about requests for ritual interpretations, dimensions, Lee Seo-jun, Jin Cheon-woo, and more.
I answered his questions honestly.
I answered what I knew and held back on what I didn't.
When the long questioning session finally ended, Kim Jin-cheol's face still held many unresolved doubts.
"......The more I learn, the deeper into a maze I fall."
"I've answered everything I could."
"I know. That's why it's even more confusing. What the hell are you?"
Tsk.
Kim Jin-cheol fiddled with his beard.
"So, are the questions over now?"
"No, there's one last question."
Last question?
Somehow, I had a feeling it wouldn't be ordinary.
Kim Jin-cheol seemed to ponder, then opened his mouth.
"You said you know future events to some extent?"
"Yes, that's right."
"Then, is there anything about future events you'd like to warn me about?"
This question was more serious than any before.
I sank into deep thought.
Something to warn about future events....
I could brush it off as nothing, but the man before me was Kim Jin-cheol, chairman of the Mage Association.
There was surely something to be gained from this.
After much deliberation, I spoke.
"There is a disaster-grade mana beast called the evil dragon Cruas."
The evil dragon Cruas.
Right now, it was more of a priority to me than 'Jin Cheon-woo' or the 'King of Demons'.
The cause of my regression was 'Lee Seo-jun's death', and fundamentally, that was due to the 'evil dragon Cruas'.
But with my current power, I couldn't stop it.
And I'd seen its strength directly through [Dimensional Observation].
It was overwhelmingly powerful.
To the point where I doubted if I could defeat it before 'Lee Seo-jun's death'.
What concerned me most was that future events were accelerating.
Which meant Lee Seo-jun's death might be coming sooner too.
"It's dangerous. We need to eliminate it as soon as possible."
But Kim Jin-cheol was different.
He was the strongest mage in human history, an absolute symbol of justice that no villain could oppose.
If Kim Jin-cheol moved personally, he might resolve the Cruas issue easily.
At my words, Kim Jin-cheol's eyes showed surprise for the first time.
Surprisingly, he already knew of the evil dragon's existence.
"......An evil dragon. Why must it be eliminated?"
"That's—"
Right then.
Thump!
My heart sank. Cold sweat poured, and my breath tightened.
An unforgettable sensation I'd experienced once before.
......This was the constraint.
A message appeared before my eyes.
[Disclosure blocked due to insufficient causality.]
[You do not qualify for the authority, 'Deus Ex Machina.']
[A major change in the future has been detected.]
[The law of causality increases by 1.5.]
"Urk!"
Feeling the mana in my body surging backward, I curled up.
What? Why did the constraint activate?
I'd only tried to explain Lee Seo-jun's death.
As I raised my head amid the horrific pain, Kim Jin-cheol looked down at me with a contemplative expression.
"......Is this the constraint? Fascinating."
"Urk! You're...... watching...... instead of......"
Panting roughly, I shouted desperately at Kim Jin-cheol.
Yet his expression remained leisurely, like a scientist observing an experimental animal.
He soon raised his hand and placed it on my forehead.
"......A peculiar constraint. It's not a ritual, nor driven by an oath or curse."
"Cough!"
I vomited blood. The floor began to stain red.
A momentary terror of death loomed.
"......It resembles the world's restraining force but differs. A form of constraint I've never seen before."
"Urk!"
As I glared at Kim Jin-cheol, he chuckled softly.
"......This should do."
At the same time, Kim Jin-cheol's mana began penetrating deep into my body.
It then swiftly untangled the twisted mana within me.
In that process, I was astounded by Kim Jin-cheol's mana control.
Could a mere human control mana to this degree?
About five seconds passed like that?
The pain subsided, and my body returned to its normal state.
It was like magic.
......No, wait—it was magic.
"Huff...... huff......"
Breathing raggedly, I lifted my head.
Kim Jin-cheol looked down at me and smirked.
"Sorry. It was more intriguing than I expected."
"......It's fine. So, did you figure out the constraint's nature?"
"From the surface, it resembles the restraining force created by the world's laws."
The restraining force created by the world's laws.
The world's punishment that arose when divulging its secrets or attempting to arbitrarily alter a predetermined future.
But I had doubts.
Wasn't I free from the world's laws?
As I felt momentary suspicion, Kim Jin-cheol spoke.
"But delving deeper reveals differences. A chaos incomparable to the world's laws......"
Chaos?
As I made a puzzled face, Kim Jin-cheol shook his head.
"......No. Don't mind it."
"What is it?"
"It's a concept I've never seen before, so I can't explain it in words. This is sincere."
I was momentarily dumbfounded.
I'd endured the pain hoping for some hint.
Then, a sudden curiosity arose.
The existence of the evil dragon Cruas.
It was supposed to be revealed roughly four years from now.
But Kim Jin-cheol clearly knew about Cruas.
"I have a question."
"What?"
"Did you already know about Cruas's existence?"
At my question, Kim Jin-cheol stared at me silently before nodding.
"Yes. I learned the name long ago from someone's research journal."
In that instant, one person came to mind.
As if reading my thoughts, Kim Jin-cheol nodded and said,
"You're thinking right. It's Jin Cheon-woo's journal."
Muttering to himself, Kim Jin-cheol continued.
"I never imagined hearing that name from your mouth again."
Kim Jin-cheol turned and walked to the window. Whether it was my imagination, his footsteps felt heavy.
"The evil dragon, Cruas......"
Muttering quietly, Kim Jin-cheol added,
"I'll handle that lizard myself."