Chapter 1023: Landmark (10)

As Evan Martinez, the events at the Central Front were among the most perilous Lennok had faced recently.

Given that he barely managed to conclude the task, walking a tightrope amidst a battlefield swarming with various factions and powerful individuals, the resulting risks and returns had also significantly exceeded Lennok’s expectations.

He had anticipated that Evan Martinez’s reputation and the aftermath would be considerable, but he never expected to feel their impact even before returning to Vulcan.

“While assisting with the transfusion of Anathema’s blood into Virgil, I also learned about this recent incident.”

The abandoned satellite city, Bailuts. At a cafe table at the edge of a train station waiting room, bathed in moonlight.

Madam, her face obscured by a black veil, leisurely sipped her coffee.

A peculiar sense of incongruity, as if she alone was detached from the rigid atmosphere pervading the waiting room.

“Since it was a transaction, they personally asked me to mediate this time.”

Madam, smiling at Lennok who sat opposite her, spoke.

“To oversee the transaction as a broker and even take responsibility for conflicts if necessary. Olivera’s requests are always utterly shameless.”

“…”

“Hmm, was that a bit too complex for you, someone unfamiliar with Vulcan’s affairs?”

“No.”

Lennok, gazing at Madam with an impassive face, replied.

“I understand that you came to balance the power, which the Cartel’s executives alone couldn’t manage.”

“…”

“What I’m curious about is whether you possess that much power. I heard you’re not one to directly engage in the field.”

“If Lariata Armush has started moving under the Cult again, we can’t simply stand by either.”

Madam said.

“There’s also a desire to deal with it quickly before the Blood Emperor awakens… and I’m starting to think it’s time for me to return to the field myself.”

“…”

Shaaaa…!!

A secret whisper echoed from the darkness. A chilling, silent insinuation, whether from Madam herself or not, was unclear.

A damp, deep scent of blood, its origin unknown, emanated thickly from beneath her shadow.

The oldest broker in Vulcan. A high-ranking vampire. One of the elders known to many of the city’s vampiric species.

Yet, Lennok, even as Adamant Thunder, had never directly faced Madam herself in combat.

Whether she was an outsider, or a mediator closer to an ally.

It was likely because Madam herself knew when to step forward, maintaining a position where she subtly reaped benefits.

But now, having directly confronted Evan Martinez in person—

“Olivera had put up some of Anathema’s blood, which she had obtained, as a condition for the transaction, so I couldn’t back out.”

Madam, answering leisurely, said.

“The blood of a fallen Apostle. And noble, blue blood at that—it was an offer even I, a vampire, couldn’t refuse.”

“…”

“That’s also why Lariata became an Apostle. Seeking better blood, only to end up coveting her own…”

Madam offered a strange smile beneath her veil.

“Well, if you’ve met her, you’d already know. But I didn’t expect you to know about me. Did Angel explain?”

“When I came to Vulcan last time, I looked for brokers operating in this city.”

Lennok said, raising the pipe attached to his left arm.

“This Arrangement Device was also something I acquired back then.”

“A psychic aid used by a pyrokinetic, I see.”

Madam glanced at the Arrangement Device and said.

“Its function of forcibly expelling overheated body temperature externally is decent, but apart from its performance, few people seek it, so its price is quite reasonable.”

“…”

“However, it wouldn’t be of much help without innate ability aptitude, but it seems that wasn’t an issue for you?”

Madam’s response, instantly reciting the item’s performance, conditions, price range, and potential customers upon seeing the stolen goods.

One might call it an answer befitting a broker who had handled numerous artifacts in the megacity.

“You talk too much.”

Lennok said, taking out a small case from his coat and offering it.

Lennok, holding the case containing the Veil Fragment, asked.

“Didn’t you come to take this?”

Fwaaat…!!

Starlight leaked from the tightly sealed case, illuminating the waiting room.

The air in the waiting room grew even heavier with the starlight emanating from it.

Feeling the gazes from around them, Lennok said.

“If you want the trade, present your item. I’ll confirm the payment and hand it over.”

“Ivy.”

Whoosh!

With a gesture from Madam, a blurry figure appeared from somewhere and placed something down.

The silhouette gracefully swept a waiting room chair with one hand, then vanished with invisible speed.

Rather than exceptional stealth, its presence itself felt inorganic, closer to an inanimate object than a human.

Lennok, finding a similar opponent in his memories, tilted his head.

“A druid, then.”

Madam paused for a moment at his words.

“…Did you just see Ivy?”

“She has mastered Nature Spellcraft to a very high degree.”

Lennok, narrowing his eyes, turned his gaze towards where the entity had vanished.

“If she’s from Larabelli, there’s something I’d like to ask about that city. You can make this a condition.”

The World Tree located in the plant city, Larabelli. The base material for the Immortal Body Experiment mentioned by Mikal Zelih.

A druid would surely know something about the World Tree, also known as the “Navel of the Star.”

But Madam shook her head at Lennok’s question.

“She’s a druid who was banished from Larabelli. If you want answers, you’d best look for someone else.”

“…”

“If it weren’t for the Greenbelt located within Vulcan, she wouldn’t have ended up working for me in the first place.”

He knew that the megacity’s Greenbelt was of considerable interest to druids across the continent.

When Lennok first started living in this city, he had heard about the Greenbelt many times.

As if to divert Lennok’s attention, Madam opened the case Ivy had placed down.

Click.

A small key and a ring lay inside the case.

“One of Olivera Ron Maize’s top-tier collections, carefully hidden away in her lab.”

Just as Lennok frowned at the familiar aura emanating from the ring, Madam spoke.

“Gyro’s Coffer. And among them, it’s the #5 personal safe, said to be the highest-grade stolen item, along with its key.”

“Gyro’s Coffer, you say…”

As soon as he heard those words, Lennok also remembered what this item was.

A miniature personal safe artifact that Sabrina had possessed when Lennok, as Victor, was devising a plan before heading to Military Spirit City.

A rare item with a fixed quantity across the continent, locked by a dimensional function and only openable with a specific key, so he was told.

“I heard that since you left the Eyes of Blue, you’ve been wandering the continent without a proper base.”

Madam smiled.

“If you have no immediate plans to settle anywhere, this coffer will be of great help to you.”

“Even without a personal safe, I’m not short on space.”

Lennok tilted his head.

“It’s not a research lab, and do you think a wizard needs such a safe?”

“Gyro’s #5 Coffer isn’t a safe for valuables, but a safe for hiding humans.”

Madam replied.

“It’s a kind of hideout that would be extremely useful for a defector like you…”

“…A hideout?”

“Wearing the ring reveals the hideout’s location, and the key is needed to open the door. Without either of these two items, the hideout cannot be found.”

Madam, continuing her explanation with practiced ease, said.

For her, having been a broker for so long, she was surely accustomed to explaining stolen goods in this manner.

“So, does the Cartel also know the hideout’s location?”

“The hideout created using Gyro’s #5 Coffer is generated randomly within a 1km radius of the user wearing the ring.”

“What?”

“The moment the ring is worn, the hideout’s random generation, location detection, maintenance, and persistence occur simultaneously, and it vanishes when the ring is removed.”

While Lennok paused at the ability of an item he had never heard of, Madam said.

“For temporarily hiding oneself, artifacts better than this are rare.”

“…”

The ability to randomly generate a hideout for the user somewhere within a 1km radius in spacetime.

He knew Gyro, the coffer’s designer, was an excellent craftsman capable of handling dimensional functions, but this was beyond his expectations.

The exact principles would require future research, but it was undoubtedly an item that seemed useful to Evan right now.

“…Alright. Not bad.”

Lennok, having taken the ring and key, tossed the case containing the Veil Fragment to Madam.

Madam immediately opened the case, and as she inspected its contents, her veil was tinged with dazzling starlight.

Click.

“This is…”

A beautiful form, as if shimmering stardust had been carefully collected and piled within.

“Oh…”

Even Angel, who was seeing stardust for the first time, couldn’t quite hide his admiration.

But Madam, without any change in expression, closed the case and sealed it tightly.

Chiiiik!!

She bit her finger until it bled, then smeared the blood onto a crack in the case.

The moment Madam, having finished the marking in an instant, lifted the case as if handing it into the air,

Whoosh!!

A blurry figure, holding the case, vanished from the spot with incredible speed.

“You’d best guard that carefully.”

Lennok, crossing his arms, said with a smile.

“I went through quite a bit of trouble to get that this time. I won’t be able to get it again.”

“Indeed. Who could possibly guess why Evan Martinez destroyed the first Gateway?”

Madam, taking her coat draped over the chair, slowly turned and spoke.

Madam’s eyes, gazing at Lennok, were dyed an even deeper red.

“So, let me give you a clear warning right here, Evan Martinez. It would be best if you don’t get involved with us anymore.”

“…”

“Because of this incident, you’ve gained immense renown in the Central Region. That influence will overshadow even the defeat you suffered.”

Madam, opening her parasol as if to shield herself from the pouring moonlight, said.

“I don’t know what you desired to take on this task, but it’s blind and excessive. I don’t think it will benefit either of us.”

“Interesting words. Why?”

“Because Adamant Thunder and you are different, yet similar.”

As Madam turned to leave, the sound of her shoes echoed through the quiet waiting room.

“Apart from your untouchable talents, even your incomprehensibility in crucial aspects is similar. That’s perhaps why you stand on completely opposite sides.”

“…”

That was a statement only possible because the Cartel and Madam herself perceived themselves as already aligned with Adamant Thunder.

It was proof that while standing in opposition to Adamant Thunder, they were wary of a wizard whose prowess could rival his.

Adamant Thunder, who bore the most heinous infamy in Vulcan, and Evan Martinez, who was highly regarded in the Central Region.

A freelancer who handled all tasks perfectly, and a Watcher who would burn a city for his master.

Madam understood that these two wizards, different in every way except for their talent, paradoxically shared similarities precisely because of that.

This was likely because Madam had lived for so long, experiencing things that could not be judged by reason or logic.

“Well, you can take it as an old vampire spouting nonsense.”

Madam, opening her parasol with one hand, burst into laughter.

“It was a good trade, Evan Martinez. May we not meet again next time.”

“…”

“I don’t wish to detain a wizard favored by the Lighthouse Keeper for too long either.”

The moment the black parasol obscured Madam’s body, her presence vanished from the spot.

Whoosh!!

The silent waiting room, bathed in moonlight. The Cartel’s superhumans still watched Lennok, maintaining their rigid atmosphere.

Meryllda, chewing gum, started to say something but then closed her mouth, while the youth gripping tonfas kept his eyes on Lennok.

Executives in suits. Unique magic users who appeared to be freelancers under Madam’s command.

But not one of them spoke first, persistently waiting for this silence to end.

Then Angel, turning his back to the executives, stood before Lennok with a decidedly serious expression.

“Yes, well… this concludes it then.”

“Without your help in the Central Region, things would have been much harder.”

From meeting Bernard through his connections with the Ability Awakening Warband to entering the Operating Theater. Angel’s assistance had certainly been helpful to some extent.

Lennok replied smoothly, nodding.

“You did well. If we meet again next time, I’ll spare your life once.”

“Ha, what kind of reward is that?”

Angel chuckled wryly, shrugged his shoulders, and turned to leave.

“But I suppose so. I have no choice but to agree that we shouldn’t see each other again.”

Crackle…!!

Angel placed his hand on the window, transformed his body into cold frost, and turned his head.

“Unless the Chairman’s will changes, we will inevitably remain on Van’s side.”

“…”

“I also don’t wish to throw my life away needlessly.”

Though frivolous, Angel’s self-deprecating demeanor was quite cheerful.

Though he said that, it was likely proof that Angel had also developed a certain camaraderie with Evan through the Gateway City incident.

Or perhaps, Lennok simply had a personal liking for people of this nature.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Lennok chuckled, rested his chin on his hand, and shook his head, whereupon Angel grinned and gave a slight bow.

The Cartel’s superhumans, who had been watching Lennok from the shadows, slowly began to conceal their presences one by one.

Simultaneously, countless presences that had surrounded the entire Bailuts region revealed themselves, then instantly faded.

Whoosh!

The train station waiting room instantly became silent.

Lennok stood alone in the middle of the wide plaza.

Lennok, who had been staring at the moonlight illuminating his feet for a long time, slowly grabbed his knees and stood up.

“Well then…”

He had handed over the Veil Fragment to the Cartel and secured his payment.

Now alone, with the Cartel’s associates gone.

One last task remained to be handled.

Vulcan, Megacity, Sector 49. Adamant Thunder’s Magic Tower, top floor office.

“Van!!”

Jenny burst into the office without knocking, shouting.

“If you’re at work, you should say something! There are documents that need your signature that have been piling up for days—!!”

Jenny, who was about to put down the armful of papers she was carrying, stopped speaking when she saw Lennok.

The wizard leaned back in his chair, an eye patch covering his eyes, clearly exhausted.

At his appearance, clearly unable to hide his fatigue, Jenny cleared her throat awkwardly.

“…Ahem, I know you’ve been busy with research. But without your approval on the proposal to expand the item business to Sector 48, we can’t even start—“

“Pen. Please.”

Jenny obediently took a fountain pen from her pocket and handed it to Lennok.

Only then did Lennok stand up and begin signing the documents Jenny had brought.

“You…”

Jenny, seeing the deep dark circles under Lennok’s eyes, started to say something but then closed her mouth.

Scrriiibble.

An artifact that only gained legitimate authority when Lennok himself held it and signed.

Jenny handled most of the tasks, but some matters inevitably required the Tower Lord’s direct approval.

Lennok, finishing the signatures in an instant, returned the fountain pen to Jenny and spoke.

“Sorry for the delay. Is there anything else that needs to be done?”

“…No. That’s all. I was a bit thoughtless.”

Jenny, observing Lennok’s expression, asked cautiously.

“Is it because of that recent collaboration with the Cartel?”

“Something similar. There were a few things involved with them.”

The day after returning to the Magic Tower, having finished the Gateway City business.

Having run around the Central Front for days, the crushing fatigue in his body was unbearable.

Perhaps it was a blessing in disguise that, thanks to Myeong’s consideration, his injuries weren’t severe.

To what extent the events he instigated to acquire the Veil Fragment had escalated before being resolved.

Now that he had settled Evan’s identity, the burden was somewhat lighter, but this was not the end.

“As a matter of fact, the Cartel’s secretariat contacted me.”

Jenny said, pulling out a small letter from among the documents and handing it over.

“The Chairman is looking for you. They asked for an immediate reply, what should I tell them?”

“Tell them I’ll go right away.”

Lennok said, leaning back in his chair.

“I’ll just check the news from outside that I haven’t been able to confirm, then I’ll depart.”

Publicly, he was supposed to have just emerged from intense research, so he needed to catch up on deferred tasks.

This included Felix and Peshia’s training, and the development of the mobile application entrusted to the Vylun Research Institute.

Also, Davi’s development of the deep web search engine, and the optimization of various artifacts and spellcraft Lennok had acquired.

Crucially—

“Ah, as for the news from outside…”

Jenny, apparently not unaware, averted her gaze with a troubled expression.

After a brief moment of thought, she sighed deeply and shook her head.

“Right, Van, you naturally need to know. I’ll send you the data I collected on the Central Front.”

“Data?”

Bang!

Instead of answering, Jenny’s presence, having left the office, instantly traversed all floors of the Magic Tower.

The Space Transfer System: Lightning Connector installed in the tower.

Was Jenny, having mastered the Ouroboros magic system, now adeptly using the tower’s functions?

“…”

It would take some time for Jenny to gather the data she mentioned anyway.

Staying here and trying to rest would only make him more tired without any real rest.

It would be better to move around the Magic Tower and quickly handle the pending tasks.

Lennok, rubbing his heavy eyelids, stood up and immediately picked up the phone in his office.

“Yes. This is Dylan~”

“Dylan. It’s me.”

“…Van?”

“Where is Weian now?”

A snowfield ravaged by a blizzard.

A group of people, bundled in thick fur coats, walked through snow that buried them up to their knees.

Splat!!

“Gah…!!”

A man, tripping over a hidden rock in the snow, shook his shoulders and lifted his head.

His face was a mess of pain, fury, and cold. A long, unstitched wound ran across his belly, which he clutched with trembling hands.

Gritting his teeth, the man glared at the group ahead, then finally spoke with difficulty.

“Yacha. How much longer do we have to walk…!!”

“Just a little longer, Blaiver Magic Tower Lord.”

Only then did one of the group walking ahead turn his head with an unconcerned expression.

A tall young man with a fierce countenance. The whites of his eyes, as he looked at the Tower Lord, were stained black.

The young man, his eyes inverted with black sclera and colored irises, gazed at the Tower Lord and spoke.

“Soon we’ll reach the Domain of the Stasis Spell Master. Only his spellcraft can suppress the rampage of your ignition organ.”

“We’ve walked non-stop for 40 hours since escaping Gateway City… I can’t endure it any longer.”

The Tower Lord clutched his belly with difficulty, gasping for breath.

“Because I arbitrarily stitched up the wound, my organs are spilling out… It feels like my intestines are tearing.”

The Tower Lord, who had escaped the Operating Theater before the Conjunction Spell Master’s defeat was confirmed, was not moving alone.

He was being transported to a place where he could recover, with the help of associates under the Order Alliance.

However, the forced march, continuing without proper completion of his surgery, was an ordeal difficult for the Tower Lord’s body to endure.

That he had led his body, which required stability, this far, proved the Tower Lord’s superhuman mental fortitude.

“If, if you can’t move… sh-shall I help you?”

A pale-faced woman standing next to the young man turned towards the Tower Lord and asked.

The woman, struggling to speak properly and stuttering, raised her hand.

“W-well, if you were to die completely, I-I could move your c-corpse with my spellcraft…”

“…”

“Corpse Ghost Spell Master. Stop it.”

While the Tower Lord was speechless at the absurd reply, the young man called Yacha shook his head.

“He must be kept alive and brought to the Alliance Leader. If he becomes your corpse ghost, the work of the past few days will be useless.”

“B-but he’s already… gradually f-falling under the influence of my spellcraft anyway…?”

“Yes… the Alliance Leader.”

Focus returned to the Tower Lord’s fading eyes.

“Alliance Leader… Let me meet the Order Alliance Leader. I will meet him directly and negotiate.”

“…Blaiver Magic Tower Lord.”

Yacha, approaching the Tower Lord, looked down at him and spoke calmly.

“With the death of the Conjunction Spell Master, a significant void has appeared in the Great Connection’s axis. Bearing that burden falls to the remaining Grand Spell Masters.”

“…”

“The Stasis Spell Master cannot move, partly because of his spellcraft, but also because as a Grand Spell Master, he is directly adjusting the Great Connection’s axis.”

Thud!

Yacha, catching the Tower Lord as he lost strength and fell forward, said.

“Soon, the Legion Parade will be held. We need to complete the adjustment of the Great Connection before then, so I ask for your generous understanding.”

“H-he already seems to have fainted…”

“Ah, is that so? Tower wizards are quite difficult to handle.”

Yacha, lightly slinging the unconscious Tower Lord over his shoulder, resumed walking.

“After all, most Magic Towers are fundamentally closer to research institutes. That’s why I wanted Thorben, not Blaiver.”

“Th-Thorben’s Tower Lord…”

“I don’t care for the narcissistic personality of that old wizard, but his abilities alone are commendable.”

Yacha’s gaze passed over the snowfield they had traversed, extending towards the horizon.

“However, that wizard, who could never focus, is finally heading to Vulcan… so I suppose we can look forward to a good spectacle this time.”