Chapter 79
Chapter 79
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 79
Chapter Title: Unprecedented Awakening
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Right after Jeon stepped through the Awakening Gate.
Tree roots erupted from the ground around the portal-shaped Awakening Gate, wrapping around it like a cocoon.
"Huh."
Luke, who had been watching the Awakening Gate, had a peculiar expression on his face.
"Is there something strange about it?"
Morgan cautiously asked Luke, reading the change in his expression.
Luke slowly nodded at Morgan's question.
"The level of activation of the Awakening Gate... seems very different from usual."
"Different how...?"
"The cocoon is continuously growing larger and denser. Plus, the amount of mana being consumed is enormous compared to normal."
The Awakening Gate creates a virtual world inside the user's mind.
The larger that virtual world is, and the more numerous or powerful the beings within it, the bigger the cocoon grows and the more mana it consumes.
"At the very least, it's the largest one I've ever seen."
The Awakening Gate was made to help mages who had hit a wall.
As such, a great many people had passed through it over the years.
Ralph alone had gained enlightenment through it and derived the concept of the Distortion Field.
But even geniuses of the ages, elite mages raised with top-tier education, or high-circle mages—none had elicited this kind of reaction from the gate.
Yet here was a mere 3rd Circle young mage stepping through, and the gate was putting on a historically grand display.
"I wonder what kind of world is unfolding inside...!"
Luke's eyes gleamed as he watched the cocoon expand even further.
"Listen, Morgan."
"Yes."
"If that kid successfully completes the Awakening Gate and returns, you and I might just witness a moment in history."
"A moment in history...?"
"We might see one of the great strides of a grand mage who will lead not just a generation, but an entire era."
Morgan turned his gaze slowly toward the cocoon that Luke was staring at, rather than responding further. Luke's eyes sparkled with genuine conviction.
'For Luke to say that much.'
Luke was an 8th Circle grand mage.
A man who had reached one of the pinnacle realms in magic, more than worthy of being called a grand mage who could lead a generation.
Yet such a man was evaluating Jeon as the timber for a grand mage who would lead the era.
'...I can't even begin to imagine.'
Morgan, who had long stayed by his side, knew better than anyone that Luke didn't mince words or flatter idly.
For him to praise like this.
Morgan himself had reached a level where no one would call him lacking anywhere.
Yet he couldn't grasp the weight of Luke's assessment.
So Morgan fixed his eyes even more intently on the cocoon.
'I really want to see him break out of that thing successfully.'
At this point, Morgan was curious too.
Would the boy who had walked into the Awakening Gate truly emerge from that cocoon and leave footprints as a grand mage leading the era?
He wanted to witness that moment with his own eyes—a moment that might truly become part of history.
There were two days left until the all-out war with the Luin Church.
Baek Eun allocated one full day for everyone to prepare as they saw fit.
And though they were all part of the same Baek Eun, they spent that time in various ways.
Some meticulously checked and rechecked every piece of gear and luggage.
Others packed only what they needed and immediately rested.
Some trained vigorously with constant movement, while others sat still in meditative, static practice.
Amid them, Jeon was one sitting quietly.
But he wasn't meditating—he was holding out his palm and testing various spells.
'Definitely feels just like reality.'
First check: standard spells and even Rune Magic—all usable.
On top of that, his unique mana absorption technique through his arms worked perfectly too.
'Just missing artifacts.'
Aside from his earliest days learning magic, Jeon had always carried artifacts.
From the blood-red gem artifact to mana stones, silver-infused ones, Elderlake, and its evolution, Lunarlake.
'Still, good chance to focus on other things.'
It'd be a lie to say he didn't feel empty, but he wasn't regretful.
They weren't gone forever anyway.
Being without them let him pay attention to things he'd neglected.
'The goblin mage's magic.'
After testing various spells, Jeon now floated a spherical mana orb on his palm, morphing its shape this way and that.
It was the magic used by Zarka, whose name he still didn't know—the magic of manipulating raw mana.
He'd practiced steadily since acquiring it, but lately, research on Ralph's Distortion Field and creating Lunarlake had made him slack off a bit.
'This has huge potential for sure.'
He hadn't realized it at the time.
But what Zarka unleashed at the end was clearly a 'Mana Field'.
And the mana filling that space had taken on various forms across it at the user's will.
In a way, it had even greater potential than Khalid's or Chiron’s Mana Fields.
"Hey, Jeon. Aren't you nervous at all?"
As he quietly manipulated the mana, someone sneaked up and spoke.
"Oh, Tyron."
A familiar face.
He knew from the Awakening Gate's info dump, but this was the Tyron who had woken him from sleep in the meeting room.
"Whew... This is my first time fighting the Luin Church head-on. Why can't I calm down?"
"Just think of it as the usual."
"How? They say every one of those Luin Church bastards is vicious."
Tyron took deep breaths beside him as he spoke, but his rhythm was all over the place, nearly fraying Jeon's nerves too.
"Deep breathing's good, but keep a steady tempo. In for 5 seconds, out for 5, like that."
"Oh, yeah?"
At Jeon's advice, Tyron finally started breathing steadily.
"Whew, now I can breathe."
After a few cycles, he visibly calmed and turned to Jeon.
"Oh right, Lelia said to bring you."
"...Why tell me now?"
"Too nervous, forgot. Hey, get up quick. We're late."
"What the..."
He'd come to fetch him, yet forgot why amid nerves.
'What a scatterbrain.'
Jeon wanted to scold him more, but no time.
Lelia—one of Baek Eun's two leaders—had summoned him.
No dawdling when already late.
"Lelia, I brought Jeon."
The place was a small room, cramped for an office.
Lelia wasn't alone; Vincent was there too.
"Good work, Tyron. You're dismissed."
"Yes, ma'am."
Tyron bowed after delivering Jeon and left.
Now just Baek Eun's two leaders and Jeon remained.
"How about it, Jeon? Feeling shaky?"
"No. I'm fine."
Jeon answered Lelia's casual probe calmly.
"As expected. You seem to know why we called you."
Vincent nodded knowingly at Jeon.
And as Vincent said, Jeon had a rough idea why the two had summoned him.
'They need someone with combat experience.'
In this scenario from the Awakening Gate, his Jeon was young but battle-hardened.
Plus, drawing from real experience, he even had 'fought a 7th Circle grand mage' on record.
"Right. In the upcoming all-out battle, the key is handling their top powerhouse—the Apostle. We called you because we want your help with that."
Essentially, an elite strike team.
While other Baek Eun members engaged the Luin Church and targeted their relic transport, this team would tie down the Apostle, their supreme force.
"Of course, both of us will join the Apostle fight. But even together, we can't guarantee victory, which is why."
Lelia looked mid-to-late 20s outwardly, but was actually a 7th Circle mage over 50.
Vincent was similar age, at the cusp of 6th Circle.
A 7th Circle grand mage and a near-6th Circle high-rank mage.
Power enough for national-level treatment anywhere.
Yet even they lacked confidence against the Apostle—a monster beyond specs.
"Against that freak, raw circle rank isn't everything. We need someone experienced fighting alongside us, perfectly in sync."
Before an Apostle, 3rd or 4th Circle meant little.
Only Lelia and Vincent could face it head-on; others supported.
Jeon's 3rd Circle wasn't top-tier here, but his combat experience earned the offer.
"Sure."
Jeon accepted without hesitation.
It was exactly what he wanted anyway.
"...It could mean risking your life. Really okay?"
But his quick reply made Lelia ask again, seriously.
The Apostle was a monster.
No matter the experience, a mere 3rd Circle could die to a single gesture if they slipped.
Lelia was reminding him of that.
'...She's a good person.'
He had basic info on Lelia from the gate, but meeting her, she seemed far more considerate than expected.
Purely for battle, his agreement ended it.
But she worried he might be deciding too lightly or just obeying leaders blindly.
"Yes, really okay."
So Jeon nodded emphatically to convey his resolve.
Perhaps reassured, Lelia's serious expression softened as she nodded.
"Good. Looking forward to working with you."
"Me too."
"Jeon, thanks for accepting."
"I'm grateful for the offer."
Thus, Jeon's spot on the Apostle strike team was set.
Time flew, and soon Baek Eun clashed with the Luin Church relic transporters.
Men clad head to toe in pitch-black garb traversed the rugged rocky mountains.
After trudging long along the harsh terrain, they halted as a new landscape unfolded—a stark change.
"This the canyon?"
"Yes, exactly."
The burliest among them eyed the canyon ahead; a hunched man quickly stepped forward from behind to confirm.
"Hm, perfect spot for some chaos."
"Yes. All rock, so Balak can unleash fully."
"You always pick just what I like, Eckron."
"Thank you."
Eckron bowed his already curved back deeper at Balak's massive frame's praise.
"Finally today, we'll crush those fox whelps."
"They probably think they've lured us into a trap."
"Heh, Eckron, you know my tastes. Smashing their smug faces when they think their plan worked—that's the best part."
Balak's face bore a deeply satisfied smile as he spoke.