Chapter 346: To Do List (5)
Even after using a teleportation item—he was still there.
"Huh...?"
It was the ultimate betrayal by what he trusted most. A tool that had always taken him to safety in the blink of an eye—failing at the most critical mont. In a situation like this, it would be rare for anyone to remain calm.
"What the... Why isn't it activating?"
What followed was a rather ordinary reaction. When the [Teleportation Stone] failed to activate, Andy Oliver froze in shock, overwheld by panic.
"I had a feeling, but still..."
But the real misfortune lay in what ca next.
"I never thought that precious escape artifact really existed."
Even the other person seed to have so idea why this situation had arisen...
"By the way, do you speak Korean?"
He had gotten it completely wrong. When Kang Chang-ho stopped at the entrance and that other Awakened entered the bunker alone, Andy Oliver had briefly considered whether this was so kind of canary-in-the-coal-mine tactic.
Now, his judgnt has shifted. No matter how he looked at it, that mysterious intruder was no re canary. And just as the cartel boss of the underworld fell into an uneasy silence, gripped by an inexplicable discomfort—the pale-colored man finally broke it, striking up a conversation.
"Do you speak Korean?"
Although he used the [Vampire's Mirror], the hunter had overlaid a form that closely resembled his original build for ease of movent. Perhaps because of that, his appearance felt strangely familiar to foreign observers. The intruder was perfectly mimicking the gestures of South Korean espers often seen in international news.
"As expected, that awakener really is Kim Giryeo."
But that was as far as the conversation went.
"Ah."
This bunker, strictly speaking, also served as soone's workplace. As such, the close-protection bodyguards stationed by Andy Oliver's side moved without delay.
Swish.
However, among the three awakened individuals who charged in like lightning, one was unusually recognizable—a user of a particularly famous piece of equipnt.
"That's..."
[Dragon's Eye]. An item that allows the wearer to visually perceive an enemy's power, while also enhancing eyesight and mana capacity. Only two of these exist worldwide, and one of the five S-rank users wearing the [Dragon's Eye] was here. Upon discovering this, the intruder, Giryeo, imdiately thought.
"Now that I think about it, a mage like that really is perfect as a mammalian bodyguard."
It was a rather pointless thought.
"Even in places without CCTV, even in the dead of night, they'd still have a decent sense of detection. But this ti, weren't we just lucky that he happened to not be looking our way?"
But really, is it even reasonable to let your thoughts wander like that when a blaze-style bodyguard is charging at you from the front? No matter how powerful you are, it's hard to afford that kind of leisure when you're all alone on an alien battlefield.
More than anything, ti is too precious for that.
So, the mont the one disguised with sand-colored hair sensed the opponent's movent, he sprang into action. Just like boxers assuming their stance right before a round begins, he, too, simply prepared for the fight as a matter of course.
"Ti to start using proper magic."
The archmage unleashed his magical power.
But at this point, there's sothing that needs to be reconsidered. The one charging from the front was equipped with the [Dragon's Eye], and...
Flash!
Kim Giryeo had only released his restraint after observing that person's movents.
"Ugh!"
The very mont the intruding archmage's disguise was lifted.
The foreign bodyguard leading the charge suddenly cried out in pain, clutching his head and turning away. Kim Giryeo had rely been preparing himself for the upcoming fight—but in the process of releasing the power he had kept hidden, it ended up reflecting with imnse brightness in the [Dragon's Eye].
"Aack!"
Even if they managed to sohow discount the one bodyguard who went into shock due to the item, the condition of the remaining guards wasn't exactly ideal either.
"Huh...?"
"...?"
All the living beings guarding the room were suddenly struck by the sa sensation. It felt as if their guts had abruptly sunk deep inside their bodies. An inexplicable, chilling unease quickly washed over and consud them.
"What on earth is this?"
"What is it?"
But thinking about it calmly, the one blocking them at the entrance of the room wasn't a beast.
Not a tiger. Not a crocodile. Certainly not a whale. If anything, the intruder—disguised as he was—resembled more of a dumb livestock sheep, the kind that couldn't even manage its own wool.
And yet, just eting those powerless sambaegan eyes...
Thud. Thud. Thud. Thud.
Why have they been screaming like their veins are about to burst since a while ago?
The S-rankers hired by Andy Oliver experienced sensations they had never felt before from even the smallest movents of the intruder. However, bound by the contracts that shackled them, they couldn't run away. This ant that, aside from the owner of the [Dragon's Eye] who had gone into shock, the others imdiately attempted to strike back.
"Okay. Got it. Nobody here knows Korean."
Of course, the disguised Kim Giryeo effortlessly took down the attackers in a surprisingly simple manner.
He gently clenched his right hand. Using it like a hamr.
He swung his fist. To describe it in more detail, he tilted his hand back slightly, then thrust it forward with a sharp snap, as if striking out.
Boom!
But around the mont the enemy who got hit was sent flying like a bullet, the man with a hazy expression covered by leather showed a brief mont of confusion. That's because Giryeo's original plan had been to strike the opponent's shoulder—then, while the mammal writhed in pain, cast a proper spell.
"Huh?"
Unbelievable.
"This isn't the end, is it?"
How could an Awakened who only showed a asly 33Aw level possibly slam an S-rank into the wall like that?
"Logically, it's impossible."
Andy Oliver, the unspoken leader of the bunker, suddenly lifted sothing. Unable to comprehend the power this intruder was exerting, he had instinctively turned on the asuring device without realizing it.
[Beep.]
But Andy Oliver regretted his choice in just a few seconds.
[...112088.70...]
Whoosh.
The awakening level shot up so high it filled the entire panel of the asuring device.
"Is this a nightmare?"
Now, it physically hurts—like his heart genuinely aches. And to make matters worse, upon careful reflection, he could just shake the thought that perhaps this disaster has been foreseeable...from the very mont they first detected the intruder.
Andy Oliver paused for a mont, thinking about sothing.
[Verification Needed]
[Case 1: Comparative Test Error]
[Case 2: Comparative Test Error]
To be exact, it was very test conducted earlier.
There was, in fact, one more possible error case in that comparative test used to identify an Awakened's true nature. But until now, it had never actually occurred even once—so it had slipped his mind. However, faced with this fellow guard being slamd into the wall, the seizing mont when fear gripped them all, the intruder smoothly proceeded to the next phase.
"Alright then—how about I let you guys figure out how to use the Korean-English translator from now on?"
Magic, by its very nature—the bigger it is, and paradoxically, the smaller in scale it becos, the more energy it tends to consu.
The sa goes for Earth's science. No one can definitely claim that manipulating matter at the molecular level is easier than building a massive dam to hold back vast amounts of water.
And so, that's why Giryeo had sustained that humiliating injury during the previous [mory Scan]...
"Hmm."
Still, it's fine when using this level of magic.
"Now I finally understand—why Earthlings hate rainy days."
Whoosh.
Giryeo raised the hand that wasn't tucked in his pocket into the air.
"I wondered why they enjoy showers yet avoid the natural phenonon of cool rain falling."
After that, he gently pushed the raised hand forward as if fanning the air, activating the magic. Although it might seem insignificant, every single action like this contributes to conserving resources.
"Co to think of it, the most commonly used tools on this planet just happen to be completely incompatible with heavy rain."
So then, what exactly was the spell this man just cast? In truth, it was a technique as simple and brute-force as it gets—a spell known on Earth as [Water] was now beginning to take physical form.
Water. Water. Water.
The entire second floor of the underground bunker—spanning dozens of square kiloters—
was soon completely subrged in moisture.
...
Alright. If that's the case, now that the surroundings have been flooded, most technology that originated on Earth should be useless now.
"I don't know the exact science, but I heard electronics don't do well when water gets in."
Grrrr.
I could hear the sound of the surging tide all at once receding. I had raised the water in the first place to neutralize the shareholders of PIXY. And after soaking everyone like this, my plan was to follow up with a second strike—just in case anyone tried to fight back.
"To be precise—with that beloved electrical technology of yours."
The situation had shifted. As unlikely as it seed... the whole thing really had ended with just the first strike.
"Cough, cough!"
"Keu-gh."
"Keugh."
I didn't expect them to be so easily subdued.
"Everyone's getting weak."
However, the truth is that spells of the water elent originally had this kind of characteristic. Fires are perceived as dangerous because of the image of smoke and flas billowing up. But in reality, a flood leaves nothing behind in its wake.
Summoning water out of thin air ant the caster was effectively a mage who could manipulate mass itself. So, when I used a [Water] skill of almost tidal wave size, the enemy's formation was quickly swept away by the weight of the current and completely destroyed.
"Keugh...!"
Overall, it's a rather unimpressive scene. But, after all, work is often better when it's that straightforward.
"Take this."
Mythical hardships are only necessary in the dia. From the perspective of an alien just trying to start their life of unemploynt as soon as possible, it's enough if everything just goes smoothly.
"Put it on your ear and quickly sort and translate it into Korean."
Tuk.
I picked up the item I had been eyeing since the mont I first entered this place. Then, I tossed it over to the other side. It's here PIXY's flagship product—the international translator—specially protected to keep it from getting wet, and I had just handed it over to Andy Oliver.
"Th, this room—how on earth did you..."
For reference, the answer to this question could be sumd up with [Teleportation]. But since there's no reason to answer, I'll just move on.
"First, how about dealing with that Awakener who was trying to latch onto ?"
The owner of this bunker had sent trackers to eliminate the intruder. So, for any smooth conversation to happen, those pursuers would need to be stopped first.
"...Understood."
Who could easily refuse when the man who caused the flooding is at you with those intense, sambaegan eyes right in front of you?
"As expected."
A mont later, Andy Oliver hurriedly operated sothing like a radio—thankfully, it seed to be waterproof—and said sothing in English. He had made all of his subordinates stop.
"Hmm?"
And at that very mont, I finally realized that a large number of Awakeners had gathered near the entrance on the first floor of the bunker.
"Huh? What's that now?"
This was literally a case of bad timing. Judging from the mana information coming through, my driver at the entrance wasn't dead after all. So, for now, I had no choice but to ignore that side. Anyway, it was a relief that they had stopped.
"So of the Awakened had been moving in odd directions... Turns out, not all of them were coming to attack after all."
After a quick round of basic traffic control, I got straight to the point.
"Let's see. I have a lot of questions to ask."
I was just preparing for a more honest conversation.
"Alright then, why don't you start by putting this around your neck and saying sothing?"
For reference, the item I just pulled out is a mid-tier artifact called [Fairy's Promise]. And the condition for it to activate this ti was this...
"- I promise that whenever I lie to the owner of this necklace, I will receive an [Electric Shock], and if I remain silent for more than 15 seconds in response to their questions, I will receive the sa punishnt.' Now, repeat after ."
Fairy's Promise initially takes the form of a collar, and once the wearer perfectly recites the conditions of punishnt, it transforms into a tattoo on the skin. So I forced the collar onto Andy Oliver and demanded he recite the vow. At that mont, he hesitated—delaying his response for a brief pause.
"..."
It was, of course, a condition that would be hard to accept on the spot. But the negotiation didn't drag on for long.
"Do you not want to make a promise?"
I'll keep it simple. I bound Andy Oliver with telekinesis and began all sorts of threats. Just so you know, any escapes with teleportation systems have already been blocked with Archmage's skill, which I'm sure anyone could figure out just by sensing the atmosphere.
"This is what we call Alpha-uri style disruption. At least within this bunker, I'm now the only one who can teleport."
Moisture soon stread from Andy Oliver's eyes. As the alien-style torture began, he ended up agreeing to my proposal at a fairly quick pace. Now, Andy Oliver can't lie. I've already saved about 100 tis more money than if I had used the [Justitia].
User Comments
0 comments from readers