Chapter 18
It felt like I'd finally found a hobby. After checking the gate on Ganghwa Island, I ended up talking with a government official.
"Roughly ten hours until closure. Can you handle it alone?"
"More than enough. I'll process it as quickly as possible, so you'd better line up plenty of transport crews."
"I've heard the stories. The Yongsan incident... You're quite famous."
"If you want it that fast..."
"Ah, no. Take it a bit slower than that. Securing the haulers isn't hard, but getting a bunch of vehicles up here at once is tricky."
The gate was midway up Mani Mountain.
"Can't you just haul them down to the base?"
"It's a popular spot with plenty of hikers. A sudden parade of corpses would have everyone screaming about a gate break."
In the end, I agreed to stack them neatly in blocks off to one side before heading into the gate.
Once inside, I began emitting mana to gauge the number and positions of the monster corpses first and foremost.
Forest terrain made it tough to wipe them all out, huh?
Even with Pathfinders or Trackers, the open fields let them scatter every which way, making a full hunt impossible. That must be why some monsters had escaped, fleeing in terror.
I could sense signs of life from monsters here and there. But with the boss and core dealt with, it wasn't an issue. The gate would close just fine even with stragglers left behind.
Judging it no big deal, I started imprinting patterns onto the scouting mana I'd released.
Using Dead Rise to raise them all as zombies.
Then I commanded them to shuffle toward the gate entrance.
Next, I meticulously scanned for hidden spots or victims, like those left by the previous Doomsday Cult activity.
Zombie movement was glacially slow, so it would take about four hours for all the byproducts to reach the entrance. That's when I calmly poked around.
"Impressive skills, just like the rumors say."
The government official had slipped in after me and struck up a conversation.
"Something you need to say?"
"I wanted to see for myself. The most terrifying black mage. The tales paint you like some three-headed, six-armed monster—hard to picture."
His vibe felt off, and he clearly knew exactly who I was. Not your average bureaucrat.
"What's your goal?"
"Thanks to you, our position's gotten awkward. Our standing's taken a serious hit."
"Doomsday Cult?"
"Bingo. But I'm not some low-level grunt. And... we're chosen by God—not the simple cultists you think."
In that instant, the man erupted with explosive aura.
Blatant trap.
That's why he was monologuing: his hidden allies were revealing themselves all at once.
"Expensive artifact you've got there. Am I really worth that investment?"
"For someone like you?"
Doomsday Cultists are all insane, I thought, clicking my tongue.
As I moved to redirect my scouting mana, a new figure appeared, slamming a massive staff into the ground. The ambient mana froze solid, like it'd been flash-frozen.
"You've probably heard of it. The Mage Killer..."
I'd wondered about the relic's age.
"From the Cataclysm's endgame, huh? But parading around with what was considered bottom-tier trash back then? Embarrassing."
"Nonsense—you don't even know its true value..."
"Why assume I don't?"
I flashed a predatory grin, locking eyes with the glaring bastard.
"Late Cataclysm—nations wanted to weaken each other's bloated forces. Some garbage 'grand sage' wizard cooked up a mage-hunting weapon. First tested on us."
Japan and China wielded it, targeting Korea specifically because too many heroes had survived relative to our size. Dozens of classified 'heroes' down to just seven. That soured relations with the big three powers irreparably. The gap-wideners versus the catch-up artists escalated it, and we're still paying the price.
"I experienced it firsthand."
The reason I survived? Simple.
"Bullshit!! Kill him!!"
Sensing something wrong, they charged.
I scanned the two dozen rushing from all sides like a panorama, then shoved my remaining mana to every limb's tip, imprinting patterns from the extremities back toward my heart.
Internal mana patterning caused excruciating pain, but the upsides were insane.
Been a while—feels brutal.
It started like an ant's nip, escalating to red-hot needles as patterns multiplied, searing my whole body.
But enduring it unlocked absurd spellcasting speed and power boosts.
Before the charging Awakener took two steps, I'd woven a full-body dark pulse spell. A casual mutter from my lips, and everything around me shredded.
"Dark Nova."
The Doomsday Cultists recoiled in horror, their flesh tearing apart on contact with the darkness, screams twisting into agony. Their thrashing was futile; they burst into meat confetti in seconds.
The government lackey, who'd barely distanced himself and shielded up, gaped in shock.
"Impossible!!"
"I never planned to die easy. Just found a way. Underestimating Cataclysm survivors is rude."
I Blinked to seal the entrance, then tallied survivors.
Five left?
Four lucky ones, one who earned it. Confirmed mid-tier Cultists packed real punch. Made me wonder about the detective who'd tipped me off.
Hope he's okay if he's still breathing.
Doomsday Cult meant no loose ends once IDs were blown. With Dark Nova down and the Mage Killer shattered, mana flowed free again.
Two options: soul-extract info post-kill, or Paralyze and torture live?
Doomsday involvement let me bury evidence under 'gate closure.' Or capture them for brownie points and mid-level intel.
"You think we'll go down easy?"
They'd noticed the sealed entrance and flared power as my mana stirred—sensing it.
"Short burst, but hero-level strength. Proof God chose me!!"
Veins bulging like they might pop from blood pressure, he grinned maniacally. The pressure was no joke.
Boom!!
A distant Cultist closed in instantly.
"Dark Shield."
Memorized defense snapped up a murky barrier, halting his charge. A crack split it amid deafening roar and shockwave.
"Think this blocks me?"
"Buying time."
Finger snap—gathered mana imprinted. Pattern surged into spellform, manifesting to ensnare him. He clocked the curse instantly, smashing the ground with his fist.
Krunch!!
Earth erupted with devastating force, mana pulse shoved back just enough for him to slip the noose and close tighter.
Battle-hardened experience?
Too sharp for improvisation. Maybe a Cataclysm vet. I scrapped the plan, extended my hand for the second memorized spell.
"Fatal Shock."
A killing blow, not subduing—pure overwhelming black magic. Dark and lightning fused.
The split-second blast hit his close-range rush like a nightmare matchup.
"Damn yoooouuuu!!"
He poured everything into countering, but sizzles like popcorn preceded his charred collapse.
"Too bad."
"Sh, shi... t... What... are you?"
"You called me the most terrifying black mage yourself. Figure it out."
"God... damn... urban legend... that's all you...!"
"A living urban legend? How delightful."
I patted his shoulder lightly; the shock crumpled him to ash-pile mush.
But four more survivors—
"Guh... For... God..."
"Kuh...!"
"Gaaahk...!"
"God will punish you!!"
They suicided in unison. I clutched my throbbing head.
"Damn Doomsday Cultists... No loyalty. None..."
But work wasn't done. A black mage who commands souls, and they pick death? Limited info, sure—but spilling guts anyway.
Live, they could've endured torture till broken. Dead? Souls shatter like petals underfoot, taking hundreds-fold damage.
Black mage duty stirred.
"Let's begin... Call of Spirit!"
Spell cast swift; countless souls materialized, their ear-splitting wails flooding my ears.
One thing always hit me in moments like this.
I... really love torture, don't I?