‘…What an ill-fated encounter .’
Kim Satgat, looking down at U-jin and Einstein from atop Shuten's head, puffed on a long pipe he'd lit at so point and recalled a distant mory.
『Are you really not going to co with ? No matter how I look at it, you're the only one who's caught my eye, Satgat-hyeongssi.』
『…Isaac, I'm not sure where you're asking to go. But I've already decided where I belong. It's too late to back out now.』
『Hmm. Besides you, hyeongssi, the rest are all just vermin… Well, can't be helped.』
『…….』
『I'll go alone. If you change your mind later, co find . You'll always be welco, Satgat-hyeongssi.』
That was the last conversation Kim Satgat had with ‘Isaac Einstein’ during his ti as a Hero.
After that conversation, which took place after Isaac was officially ordained as a Hero.
The news he heard of Isaac no longer held the title of ‘Hero’, but unfamiliar ones like ‘Demon King's Army’ or ‘Traitor’.
As they were once the closest of companions, various emotions flickered in Kim Satgat's gaze as he looked at Isaac.
Huuu-
Exhaling his regrets along with a puff of hazy smoke, Kim Satgat then turned to look at U-jin's face to his right.
‘…….’
There was a resemblance.
Top of the Gateway Zone.
The Chosen One.
And.
Swish-
‘I ca because he told to, but…’
His extraordinary path of taking a ‘Vampire, a Titled Demon, and a Demonic Species’ as his companions.
Shake, shake-
“…I can’t tell if we’re looking for a Hero candidate or a traitor candidate.”
The two of them definitely had a resemblance.
‘…I hope he doesn’t walk the sa path.’
Perhaps it was the guilt of being unable to stop Isaac's path, despite having been so close to him, that still lingered.
Kim Satgat couldn't quite shake off the resemblance he saw in U-jin.
The thought that U-jin might, like Isaac, walk the path of a heretic kept surfacing.
Of course, his reverie didn't last long.
【Shall we have a go? It’s been a while, hasn’t it?】
Because of the opponent he was facing.
Isaac was not an easy opponent.
No, he wasn't an opponent who could be asured and simply described as ‘not easy.’
Now he was known as the ‘Strategist of the Demon King's Army’ instead of by his na, and his title was often preceded by ‘Traitor’.
But back when he was a Hero candidate and up until his ordination as an official Hero, the modifier attached to Isaac's na had been ‘a genius who appears once in a millennium.’
Even without that, the demonic title of ‘Count’ he possessed was proof of his skill.
‘…This is going to be a tough one.’
Though he usually didn't use his full power for trivial matters due to hiding his true weight class for certain reasons, this ti, even Kim Satgat couldn't just gloss over it.
Swish-
Tucking his long pipe back into his sleeve, Kim Satgat began to unravel the pure white bandages wrapped around his left wrist.
And then.
He tapped the floor (the crown of Shuten’s head) and spoke softly.
Tap, tap-
“Hey there, big-headed friend.”
“…….”
“Take that demonic lady and that gloomy-looking bat friend over there and get out of the way.”
“……?”
Hearing Kim Satgat's words, Shuten montarily frowned and looked up.
The reason was simple.
His body was currently bound by two separate restraints.
Thanks to Isaac Einstein's activated , the Darkwing sigil was still pulsating, binding his body.
And Einstein's Mana Chain, which had been layered over U-jin's crude magic chains, was also restraining him.
Therefore, to Shuten, Kim Satgat’s words telling him to move his body and take care of the two others couldn't help but sound absurd.
It was an impossible task.
…However.
That question was soon answered.
Paaat-
“I’m counting on you.”
Srrrk-
The mont he blinked from his spot, the magic chains enveloping Shuten's body dissolved into particles and vanished.
KWAAANG-!
Because imdiately after, an imnse wave of mana collided before his eyes, and at the sa ti, the pulsation of the Darkwing sigil also stopped.
“……!”
Written down as a sentence, it seed like a very simple task.
To reverse-engineer and dismantle Einstein's skill, ‘Mana Chain’, which had been wrapped around Shuten's body.
And to generate a mana wave so overwhelming that Einstein couldn't handle both it and the Darkwing's Authority of Domination at the sa ti.
But Shuten knew.
The number of people who could do those two things simultaneously.
‘…….’
…was very few, even in this vast Upper Plane.
* * *
【Khahahaha!】
A laugh filled with joy burst from the corners of Einstein's mouth.
【This is it…! This is a real duel.】
Kim Satgat and Einstein.
The formless mana leaking out from the wills of the two n clashed in the empty space between them, sending countless sparks flying.
A battle of mana itself.
In addition to that, their fists and feet struck at the openings.
Compared to the sparks from the clash of mana, the specific tension created by their physical blows was lesser, but their fight could not be judged by such simple trics.
A battle of wits that far transcended the basic frawork of ‘hit, block, and dodge’ was taking place between them.
Only the brief pauses between their exchanged words proved the profound level of their battle.
【…Over here, it's all just guys who fight by stupidly taking hits or guys who try to crush you with their stupid amount of mana, so I lost interest in duels a long ti ago.】
Paaat-
“You haven't changed either…”
【…As I thought, my only rival is you, Satgat-hyeongssi.】
“…….”
【I wasn't wrong about you… As expected, those vermin from The Order have no eye for talent. You, Satgat-hyeongssi… are not soone who should be stuck in the East doing nial chores…】
“…Thanks for the complint.”
【How about coming over to our side now? If it's you, Satgat-hyeongssi… I could even set you up in a pretty decent position.】
Paaak-!
An especially large spark flared, and the magic chains binding U-jin’s limbs wavered for a mont.
“I'm sorry… but my answer is the sa as it was back then.”
【…….】
“I’ve already decided where I belong. Once a man has set his mind to sothing, shouldn't he see it through to the end? Hahaha.”
Psst-
【…I really don't get you. I heard you're in the Beggars' Sect village now.】
“…….”
【All you're doing there is probably changing the diapers of so Murim imperial family brat. Hiding such great skill…】
Shaking his head and muttering, Einstein suddenly raised both his hands.
And then.
【Give up.】
At the sa ti, the sparks that had embroidered the air subsided, and Einstein's magic chains binding U-jin and Shuten began to fade.
Shrug-
【…Then and now.】
“…….”
【I can't beat you when it cos to playing around with mana, hyeongssi.】
As Einstein shrugged his shoulders and admitted defeat, Kim Satgat let out a hearty laugh and muttered.
“Hahaha… Can't beat ? Isn't that thing of yours not even your real body?”
【…….】
“Even so, it wouldn't do to lose to a re clone that's just an empty shell. I have my pride to think of, you know. If I talk a big ga and then lose, I'd lose face in front of our friend over there, wouldn't I?”
Shrug-
【…If I’d known I was going to et you, hyeongssi, I would have prepared properly. I never imagined I'd run short on mana just playing around with one has-been.】
…That was right.
The Einstein who had appeared here was, in fact, not his complete, original self, but rely a clone created with a portion of his main body's power.
This was also why The Order's Allied Forces hadn't been able to confirm anything specific, despite a strategist who could be called one of the real powers of the Demon King's Army having crossed the border.
By using a clone to exquisitely reduce his pie of power and applying various magical treatnts, he had been able to enter the Kunlun zone without any problems.
…Of course, the mont Kim Satgat intervened, all those efforts beca futile.
Smiiirk-
But surprisingly.
The expression on Einstein's face as he scattered into particles wasn't disappointnt or annoyance, but a smile.
【…Well, it's a bit of a sha to just leave my junior here behind.】
The reason was simple.
By chance.
He had discovered sothing far more interesting than dealing with a discarded pawn like Shuten.
【…So you really did have a backer.】
“…….”
【Junior.】
For the first ti in a long ti.
…for the first ti in a very long ti, he was satisfied that sothing had appeared to stimulate his own curiosity.
‘The Chosen One’ from The Order, just like himself.
The one who tad a Succubus in the Gateway Zone.
The planner of the ‘Demon King Hunt’.
The one with the Trait of the Vampire clan.
And.
Pfft-
“…Well now. To call this man a backer, he seems to have stepped forward a bit too openly.”
The fact that he was connected to ‘Kim Satgat’.
Every facet that made up U-jin was adorned with interesting things.
For Einstein, who had been stuck in a rut, doing nothing for a while due to the sluggish and incoherent developnts of the War against Demons, there could be no better news.
Einstein, who had been silently staring at U-jin, asked as if to confirm.
【You said Demon King Hunt earlier, right?】
“…….”
U-jin didn't bother to answer the question, but Einstein, shrugging and nodding as he pleased, turned his fading body and left a final farewell.
【…I'll be looking forward to it, junior. Let's et again.】
…Of course, from U-jin’s perspective, that farewell was hardly welco.
With those last words, Einstein's fading form completely vanished without a trace.
Swaaa-
‘…….’
A wave had passed, and silence fell upon the surroundings.
A situation where they had barely escaped with their lives from Einstein's clutches.
It was a situation that could truly be called a narrow escape from death, where it wouldn't have been strange for anyone to let out a sigh of relief.
Jerry.
Shuten.
And even U-jin could not breathe a sigh of relief.
The reason was simple.
‘…Can I do it?’
They all knew.
It was true that the wave had passed, but the one that had just brushed past, wetting the collars of their clothes, was rely a prelude to the coming storm.
That an imasurably great danger was lurking before them with its jaws wide open.
They knew it instinctively.
Swish-
Kim Satgat, who had been observing their faces, broke the silence that had held the area for a long while.
“For now…”
“…….”
“It seems we need to sort things out.”
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