Facing the numerous mages in the first-floor lobby of the Magic Tower, it was a pity that he couldn’t kill them all.
‘How many of them are Cultists of Ruin?’
Although An Sang-ik and the government were supposed to take the lead in handling the aftermath, he couldn’t just kill mages indiscriminately.
This had been discussed on the way here, and in fact, the operation was intended to keep almost everyone alive except for specific individuals.
Furthermore, the absence of mages would become a serious problem.
Thus, he intended to subdue them, determine their guilt, and then make them serve as the government’s dogs.
‘An Sang-ik must also know that such an outcome would serve as a far greater benefit. That is why he is prioritizing the assessment of the situation himself.’
An Sang-ik was a highly practical man and was one of the figures who maintained his power and authority without wavering even in difficult political situations because his calculations were incredibly fast.
In the latter stages of the war, as the government nearly collapsed, many hero-class Awakeners rose up to gather and integrate the people; in that process, An Sang-ik was a man who went all-in on seizing military power and saving the country.
And when the war ended, he declared that he would not involve himself in politics at all, while simultaneously demanding a position that would allow him to protect this country until the end.
The result was his rise to the highest military position, the rank of ‘General.’
“H-How dare you invade this place, knowing where it is?!”
The elders of the Magic Tower stood at the front.
“It seems Pi Jin-hyeok has headed to the basement?”
“That is none of your concern! Not a single one of them must be allowed to escape!”
The mages began to move with a firm shout, and countless spells intended to kill them poured down like rain.
Jeong Gil-sun moved first.
After activating a Dark Barrier, he easily blocked or deflected all the magic.
“I’ll have a bit of a scuffle with these fellows and then back out. That’s alright, isn’t it?”
“Can you handle them?”
“Just what do you take me for?”
There were 7th Circle mages present, but with their strength, they lacked the power to do anything against a 7th Circle Master black mage.
If they could unleash at least five times their current power in a single moment, they might have made things difficult for Jeong Gil-sun, but it was impossible with the skills of those currently here.
Had Pi Jin-hyeok been there, it might have been possible to stop Jeong Gil-sun.
‘Where is the path to the basement?’
While Jeong Gil-sun stepped forward and the situation turned into a contest of strength, he examined the central teleportation magic circle of the tower and began to rapidly decipher the formula.
‘It’s a multi-complex magic circle. If I interpret the formula hidden secretly within it, the path to the basement will open.’
Magic language was calculated and interpreted rapidly, and he managed to identify a single spell by filtering out only the heterogeneously double-engraved parts of some magic languages.
‘A short-range leap… It’s interesting that they diverted the path to the basement using a short-range leap rather than a teleport.’
A characteristic of a short-range leap was one-way passage. Literally, it meant it was only possible to enter through here.
It could be a trap, but he had moved knowing that fact from the start.
“I’m going now. Good luck.”
Just then, Han Sang-gil also entered the interior of the Magic Tower after forcing the mages on the upper floors to retreat, and spoke to them as they were about to prepare the short-range leap.
“There are quite a few elders and high-level mages at the top of the tower. I too will buy time with Gil-sun, so go ahead.”
He nodded instead of answering and immediately activated the short-range leap; he marveled briefly as he realized that all the personnel standing on the magic circle were rapidly moved to an unknown space.
“They modified and transformed a sub-space.”
Cheon Jong-un spoke his admiration aloud.
Go Yu-jin and An Sang-ik were surprised by those words.
“Generally, a sub-space can be created by consuming cost within the range of recoverable mana, but sometimes it can manifest in the world itself by borrowing the power of special artifacts. The cost of the Magic Tower itself must be being consumed as a medium.”
“This is a secret place, and the officials brought inside along with Chu Myeong-hun were probably touring an ordinary underground experimental facility.”
Cheon Jong-un nodded.
“I don’t know how many floors it consists of, but a massive mana is fluctuating deep underground; you must be careful.”
“Will you be staying?”
“It will be possible to come here immediately from other floors as well. Right now, no one can easily come down because the situation above is urgent, but over time, this will become quite a brutal place. So someone must remain.”
At that moment, An So-mi slightly raised her hand.
“I’ll stay with Uncle Cheon Jong-un.”
Though Cheon Jong-un was closer to an old man than an uncle, he was a person who always wished to be an uncle, and he nodded with a satisfied expression at An So-mi’s shout.
“I will never let So-mi die, so go ahead without worry.”
Since An So-mi’s life or death wasn’t particularly important, he nodded and then told Go Yu-jin and An Sang-ik to quickly find the place where mana was felt.
Meanwhile, the two old men left on the surface were bickering.
“Just dealing with that fellow Cheon Jong-un irritates me, and now even you intend to nag me?”
“How long are you going to play at power games? Grow up.”
“You damn brat! Is that something to be said by a slacker who doesn’t leave anything behind, doesn’t nurture juniors, and just waits for the day he dies while singing about atonement?”
“Since I forced so much blood, shouldn’t I atone? Should I enjoy wealth and honor for generations?”
“That’s not what I meant!”
Jeong Gil-sun was thumping his chest in frustration, but the problem was that the frustration and pressure felt by the mages—who couldn’t break through the defense by any method despite the two old men’s leisure—was even worse.
Even in a situation where there were five elder mages, they couldn’t believe the reality that they couldn’t overwhelm them; at that moment, seeing the teleportation magic circle glowing, Han Sang-gil spoke.
“I’ll take care of the ones coming down, so make sure to subdue those fellows perfectly.”
“I know that! I was listening too! Do you think I wouldn’t remember?”
“I’m just letting you know one more time, so don’t take it to heart. Being old is sorrowful enough, isn’t it?”
“That slacker?!”
Even while fuming, Jeong Gil-sun quickly prepared a curse spell, and Han Sang-gil, like Jeong Gil-sun, began to use a Dark Barrier to trap the numerous mages who would teleport down to the first-floor lobby.
Soon, when numerous mages reached the first floor, Jeong Gil-sun’s curse magic was applied to the very space where the mages were driven, and it spread as if it were a plague, gnawing at the mages’ mana and seeping deep into their bodies.
Then, he watched them collapse vainly as if admiring the sight; at that moment, Han Sang-gil, like Jeong Gil-sun, also began to strike down many mages with curses in what was close to a surprise attack.
The two master-class black mages subdued all the mages on the first floor by pushing in more mana as if competing.
Meanwhile, Geum Seong-chan, who was moving toward the deep underground, asked An Sang-ik.
“What do you plan to do if the Magic Tower’s corruption is revealed?”
“It’s already… enough. I am witnessing evidence that shouldn’t exist.”
In fact, on the way down to the lowest floor, they were seeing many experimental subjects trapped and undergoing transformation.
Among them, there were experiments that were unfamiliar yet familiar.
‘Are they making humans themselves into artifacts?’
It felt as if they hadn’t stopped at offering sacrifices, but had found the principle and were capturing Awakeners to turn them into artifacts.
Just as he was wondering why they hadn’t grasped the Magic Tower’s actions until they committed such atrocities, they arrived at a fairly wide plaza; having identified where this was through the video, An Sang-ik spoke with a deep sigh.
“Just what prosperity did they hope to gain by committing such an atrocity that outrages heaven and man?”
An Sang-ik’s anger was due to the four experimental subjects who appeared as if they had been waiting.
“Baek Tae-ho, Jeon Myeong-ju, Kim Gi-tae, Hong Bong-hun… I searched for you all so desperately. You were the hope that… should not have been forgotten and exploited like this!”
As if his anger was boiling over, the surroundings seemed to distort because of An Sang-ik, who couldn’t control his aura.
The adjutant advised that he should calm down, but An Sang-ik spoke to Geum Seong-chan.
“You two, go ahead… Although it might be a burden, please eliminate Pi Jin-hyeok and the remaining experimental subjects as much as possible. We will guide these people to peace and follow soon.”
Replying with a nod, Geum Seong-chan and Go Yu-jin naturally passed the four experimental subjects using Blink; at that moment, the experimental subjects tried to follow Geum Seong-chan as if they wouldn’t allow it, but in that instant, a powerful aura burst from An Sang-ik’s clenched fist and caused a massive explosion with a roar in the body of one of the experimental subjects.
“Do you know that it is the regret of my life that I lost the title of ‘Iron Arm’ to my friend Dae-san?”
Despite being a mess from the explosion, the experimental subject rolled away but soon recovered at an eerie speed and immediately turned to rush at An Sang-ik.
At that, the other experimental subjects also rushed toward the Awakeners targeting them, and the plaza instantly transformed into a scene of carnage.
Meanwhile…
‘The path to the basement is not that complex. The structure itself is made in the form of a long hallway to buy as much time as possible.’
Moreover, it started with a small circle and the diameter of the circle gradually increased. He shuddered at the sight of experimental subjects lined up all the way to the deep underground.
“The risk is too high. Is it alright?”
He knew what the concern was. However, he gestured with his chin at the surroundings. The answer would be sufficient.
It was because at least 2,000 to 3,000 Awakeners were trapped in large flasks as experimental subjects and were undergoing transformation.
Go Yu-jin ground her teeth, and they continued moving without a word.
Looking at the whole picture, Pi Jin-hyeok must have taken the lead in this work, and judging by the mana felt secretly everywhere, he could also tell that research mages were watching while holding their breath.
However, his goal was Pi Jin-hyeok.
‘Bak Hyeok, I really want to hear how it feels to be swallowed by the monster you created.’
He was a figure who had actively supported the persecution of black mages.
It was no different from confirming with his own eyes what kind of end he had come to meet, but he was itching to actually see the situation.
With that, while recognizing that the battle wasn’t easy as massive roars echoed consecutively behind them, he headed to the lowest floor of the basement and finally reached the place where the final experimental subject, who had appeared at the end of the video, was located.
Clap, clap, clap. Along with the sound of clapping, he saw three people standing there; facing Bak Hyeok, who was half-transformed into metal, Wang Sun, who looked as if lizard scales had been implanted all over his body, and a delighted-looking Pi Jin-hyeok, he spoke.
“What is so enjoyable?”
“Didn’t you see it on your way here? The masterpiece created by our great and deep will.”
“Black mages are ugly because they covet corpses, but white mages are miserable because they are steeped in hypocrisy.”
“That’s a delightful compliment. But we have made an investment for the future. There are too few strategic weapons in this small country; at most, artifacts of the old era are everything, and newly, there are only Awakeners with powerful strength like us. But that number is also absurdly small, so I became certain that someday we would have to taste a new despair at the desires of Japan and China.”
“I didn’t come to hear pathetic excuses. The conclusion—that is all I want.”
“Heh, do you think the Cultists of Ruin in this land will disappear even if you eliminate me?”
“That will certainly never happen. But for now, I can wash away the filth I see, so I don’t care.”
“I see, those are good words. Then, shall we begin?”
With a light gesture, the scale-covered Wang Sun began to move forward first.
His body had grown larger, and an outer skin that looked very hard had sprouted on Wang Sun; he wondered just what kind of great abilities he could showcase to be spoken of like a hope for a new era.
