[System: The trait Enhanced Vigilance has been activated.]
What?
As soon as the trait was activated, I instinctively raised my magical power.
[Guests from the Underworld] was a quest I had cleared several tis before.
Back then, there had been no incidents that gave off such an ominous feeling.
There were adjustnts, like changes in the number of ghouls that appeared based on the difficulty settings or previous branches of the quest.
But now, it was completely different.
The ominous aura and magical power that filled the construction site.
This was not the level of pressure a few ghouls could generate.
It was as if
[System: The penalty trait Feasts Offering has been activated.]
[The beings of the abyss are showing interest in you.]
Ah, this again?
It seed one of the beings from the Abyss was showing unnecessary interest.
Irritation and discomfort, along with an overly sensitive sensation, caused a slight feeling of nausea.
Phew Haah Suu
I paused for a mont and took a deep breath.
Phew
Things were becoming troubleso.
With things turning out this way, the situation was now completely different from the quest I rembered.
I had co here thinking it would be simple; perhaps I should have prepared more?
The quest hadnt officially started yet.
But there was still ti to prepare.
I took deep breaths, maintained my posture, and concentrated my mind.
My arms loosely hanging at my sides with a relaxed stance.
To an onlooker, it might have seed like I was just lost in thought during a walk
But my gaze transcended physical limits and my eyes were peering into an entirely different space.
The location where the ghouls had erged was the underground parking lot beneath the apartnt complex.
This ant that right under the ground where I stood, monsters could be lurking.
Lets see what kind of creatures and how many are gathered.
[Remote Detection]
[Curse Detection]
[Life Force Detection]
[Magical Power Detection]
[Trap Detection]
Pop, pop, pop!
From the tips of my hands that were dangling towards the ground and from beneath my feet, fluorescent lines of magical power burst forth.
The magical power imbued with the abilities of detection, analysis, and observation, seeped into the ground and started sensing, analyzing, and observing the entities lurking in the darkness below.
[Detection Complete]
The number of ghouls that appear usually ranges from 10 to 30, and the number is generated randomly.
[The number of curses matching the conditions is 2.]
[The number of traps matching the conditions is 5.]
[The number of life forms matching the conditions is 129.]
Ah, shit.
129? Is this so kind of joke?
For a mont, I seriously considered abandoning the quest and returning to the motel.
After finishing this quest, I could achieve the feat of slaying 100 ghouls.
Huh? Butwait a minute.
The information provided by the system only went so far, but my magically enhanced senses, which had evolved beyond that, detected several unexpected pieces of information.
It wasa unique sensation that I had not experienced when playing the ga.
Humans.
Among the ghouls moving underground, there was clearly a presence with a different kind of magical power.
So there were humans among the underground ghouls.
Four humans, then five, and one more.
A total of six.
[The number of life forms matching the conditions is 128.]
One had died.
The magical presence I had detected disappeared.
[The number of life forms matching the conditions is 127.]
Now there were only five humans left.
Ah, wait, wait, wait!
[The number of life forms matching the conditions is 125.]
Another one, no, two people died at once.
The remaining survivors totaled three.
Stop, you!
I hastily stretched my hand towards the ground.
I poured my magical power indiscriminately toward the underground, but there was no ti to construct a complex form of magic anew.
I transford and strengthened the nature of the magical power lines sent down for detection.
The form was
[Chains of Domination]
[Spell Enhancent: Range Increase]
Papapapapapabang!!
I gathered the intangible lines of magical power into a few strands of chains with physical force.
Then, moving these chains
Euchachachacha!
It was hard to grasp the situation, but anyway, I beat up all the ghouls that had sward around the presud human magic source.
Screeech!!!
Grrrrrr!!!
The ghouls shrieks echoed eerily from beneath the ground.
I could feel the ghouls, battered by the magically endowed chains, scattering in all directions.
I did it! Wow, Holy Shit!
Wow, this actually worked? Do I get an achievent for this?
I remained on all fours, waiting for a mont, but no ssage window appeared.
It seems it wasnt the kind of action to warrant an achievent.
Instead of a ssage window, I heard a human voice from an unexpected direction.
Magenim?
A womans voice tinged with bewildernt. Soone had co near after hearing my cheers.
But this was reallysuch an inconvenient timing.
The humans still hiding underground were in a situation where it was difficult to change their situation completely.
I had no choice but to speak to the woman.
Just a mont, please wait a little longer; Im almost done!
[Enhanced Vigilance] wasnt sending any alarming signals from her direction, so she probably wasnt hostile.
And roughly at this point and in this place, hearing a womans voice, I had a guess who it might be Its alright.
I once again summoned a massive amount of magical power and began to pour it towards the underground.
The magical power emanating from both hands and the soles of my feet began to draw a huge magic circle under the ground according to my will and command.
The intricately glowing lines of magical power and the high-density magic circle radiated an imnse light in all directions.
Except for the fact that I, the caster of the magic, was in a sowhat awkward posture, the scene around transford into one of spectacular and mystical beauty.
In any case, I cast the spell with the help of the magic circle.and the effect wasnt just amplifying its range but this was almost to the level of remote activation.
[Fla Eruption]
[Spell Enhancent: Range Increase]
The ghouls, undeterred even after being battered by the chains of magical power, were suddenly engulfed by flas pouring down from the ceiling above them.
The humans I saved there were three in total. Fortunately, it seed they were still alive.
Though they were still standing in one place without moving, they didnt look like they were going to die any ti soon.
[Protective Circle]
[Spell Enhancent: Range Increase]
This should be enough.
I brushed off the dirt from my knees and palms and stood up.
What did you do?
I turned my head to look at the woman who had spoken to .
That voice and that appearance.
She may not have recognized , but she was a pleasantly familiar figure to . She was soone I had t many tis in the ga.
Hello. Im Kim Shin-hwa, the fixer you contacted through Caf Vasilisa.
Ah Yes.
She hesitated for a mont, struggling to continue her sentence.
It seed that she was confused by the sight of my face or rather my mask.
However, her discomposure didnt last long, and she responded to my greeting.
Hello. I am Moon Seung-hee, the director of Yeonam Construction.
Shes one of the main NPCs from [Cthulhu World].
My first impression of Moon Seung-hee in person, not just as an image on a monitor but as a living, breathing human being, was like seeing a sculpture.
Its not just a complint or an assessnt made simply because of her beautiful appearance.
Indeed, no one could belittle her looks.
Her face was literally as neatly and finely lined as if it were carved and polished.
Yet her eyes and expression were cold and firm, like those of a stone or doll, not a living creature.
An unnatural and awkward beauty that seed to have been artificially created by soone.
That was the impression I got from her appearance.
She couldnt hold back and pressed again.
May I ask what you were just doing?
Since I couldnt ignore the sa question thrice, I explained what I had done.
There were still people alive. I saved them.
What?
A mix of confusion and astonishnt surfaced on her face.
So you used magic toNo, not that. People? Did you say there were living people there?
Yes, thats right.
And you saved them?
Yes.
A new emotion flickered across her face, one that could roughly be described as hope.
Who were they? A woman? Was it a woman?
At the sa ti, she approached with excessive excitent. Wait, thats too close. Why is she acting like this?
No, hold on. Could you step back a bit?
Oh Yes.
Following my request, she took a few steps back. But she was still restless.
Excuse . Mage-nim?
No, I dont know.
It seed like she would be happy if I said I had rescued a woman, but I didnt know that much.
You dont know?
Yes. The distance was too great, and there were obstructions. I could only tell if they were alive or dead.
It would have been easier if it was the first basent level, but the person I sensed was in the second basent.
It was too far.
Moreover, the malevolent energy filling the basent greatly reduced the accuracy and effectiveness of my skills.
But what do you an by you saved them?
Distrust, doubt, anticipation, and confusion.
I was able to reach out the place with my magical power. I pushed the ghouls away from the people and erected a barrier around them.
That sounds absurd but I have no choice but to believe you.
Absurd you say?
Our organizations magic advisor said that due to the malevolent energy and the influence of surreal entities in the basent, nothing could be confird without going down there in person. In reality, they couldnt do anything.
When she ntioned that the magic advisor was unable to do anything, Moon Seung-hees expression turned noticeably darker.
When I played the ga, the position of Moon Seung-hees magic advisor was vacant.
It seems they were attacked by ghouls.
Yet, the fact that you were able to confirm survivors or use magic without even entering thats astonishing.
Although she said this, Moon Seung-hees expression still carried traces of distrust and doubt.
Well, its unreasonable to expect her to believe my words unconditionally. After all, weve only just t, and I havent shown any proof yet.
Whether Moon Seung-hee believes or not, my magic is still active.
I was late in responding, so I could only save three people, but as long as my magic remains, they will stay alive.
After I explained the situation briefly, Moon Seung-hee seed to ponder for a mont before continuing.
How long can you maintain that magic?
I can sustain the magic as much as you want.
Hmm
Even though I was only speaking the truth, it seed Moon Seung-hees distrust of only deepened.
Additionally, there was a hint of skepticism. It seed she was wondering to what extent she should believe the words of this braggart.
Well, leaving that aside, the peoples magical power and life force are weak. They cant hold on indefinitely. How long have the people been down there?
Its been 24 hours since the ghouls were first discovered. And about 14 hours have passed since people entered to rescue those taken in the early stages of the incident.
Then its difficult to expect them to endure much longer.
Moon Seung-hees expression beca noticeably darker.
Whether she believes my words or not, the condition of the people underground remains dire.
There might be injured among them, and the environnt is far from ideal.
While I can protect their bodies to so extent, I cannot safeguard their minds.
Youve done a great job as soon as you got here, and Im sorry to have to tell you this, but can you get started on. right away?
Of course.
I said this and then pondered who Moon Seung-hee was doing this for.
Even in the ga, several people were caught up in the ghoul infestation and died, and several were kidnapped.
I had always thought there was no way to save the kidnapped people, regardless of how early we intervened. I believed there was no route to rescue them.
But unexpectedly, the condition turned out to be sothing as bizarre as You can only save them by using magic remotely before rushing inside.
No, thats not it, is it?
I realized that I had been thinking about sothing wrongly.
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