Chapter 1026: Landmark (13)

“When I first heard of it, I wondered if you had truly lost your mind.”

Vulcan, the mega-city. Cartel Headquarters, Underground Laboratory.

Olivera stood with her arms crossed in a space easily large enough to accommodate thousands.

Her face, veiled and hidden as she turned, her elaborate robes fluttering, still clearly showed where her gaze was directed.

The form of a small case, suspended like a spiderweb from a thin strand of mana.

Outwardly, it held no special features, but the starlight leaking from within hinted at its uniqueness.

A Veil Fragment that Lennok had obtained firsthand, fighting a Conjunction Spell Master at the first Gateway.

Olivera snorted and averted her gaze, having silently observed it.

“I cannot deny that your preposterous plan has succeeded beyond expectations.”

“I can’t tell if that’s a compliment or an insult.”

Lennok, leaning on his staff behind Olivera, shook his head.

“Can’t you just say ‘you did well’ without all the fuss?”

“…You know this isn’t the time for self-congratulation.”

Olivera’s eyes, gleaming through the veil, narrowed faintly.

“Though you’ve been secluded in the lab, surely you won’t claim you haven’t heard the news from the Central Front yet.”

“…”

“You must explain what the wizard you defeated has done at the first Gateway.”

With a light step, Olivera’s tall figure instantly closed the distance to Lennok.

Simply by her focusing her attention on Lennok in the middle of the lab, an indescribably powerful pressure was felt.

“Surely, you’re not going to claim you don’t remember what you said at Nox Biblio.”

“…Hmm.”

Before borrowing Celestial Spellcraft from the Archive of Darkness, Lennok had clashed with Olivera, who had refused to explain her methods.

Handling the journey to Kundara without discussion was, from the outset, a means that didn’t guarantee mutual trust.

Naturally, Olivera hadn’t forgotten Lennok’s words then and had kept them in mind.

It was also true that Lennok, conversely, had no words to offer in response to Olivera’s interrogation.

“What kind of deal did you strike with Cheonbeon for him to go to such lengths to retrieve the Veil Fragment? Tell me in detail.”

Olivera’s eyes, gleaming with persistent slowness, met his.

“You’ll need to explain how you maintained a connection with the wizard who nearly died after being defeated by you.”

“I, too, am very curious about that part.”

Claris, who had been nibbling on snacks beside Olivera, her eyes sparkling.

“I thought his reaction was strange when he was learning Alternative Incantation in the studio, but you were already in contact with Cheonbeon back then?”

“Rather than contact, it was possible because I understood the core of pyrokinesis.”

“The core?”

“His magic system preheats and burns even himself, ultimately requiring a ‘Spark’ to replace him.”

Lennok explained.

“He borrows an external heat source to replace himself. I knew he would need a ‘Spark’ even after the battle.”

“Are you saying you could use the Hellfire borrowed from the Archive of Darkness as a condition for a deal with Cheonbeon?”

As expected, Olivera perfectly understood the situation with only a brief explanation.

That was probably possible because she had wielded both systems of power: magic and innate abilities.

“Pyrokinesis and innate abilities are on different tracks, but they are similar in that they easily get out of control. If you experienced that, you can understand why Cheonbeon acted.”

“So the Hellfire you borrowed from the Archive of Darkness was such a valuable ‘Spark’ for Cheonbeon?”

Claris fell into thought at Lennok’s words.

“Considering the rarity of Nether-Dimensional Flame, I can understand why Cheonbeon rampaged in the Central Front, but…”

“Regardless of that judgment, it’s preposterous how things have turned out.”

Olivera, arms crossed, offered a cold smile.

“As a result, thanks to the task you entrusted him with, Cheonbeon’s reputation has risen abnormally. There’s hardly anyone in Vulcan who doesn’t know he left the Eyes of Blue and killed a Conjunction Spell Master.”

“…”

“I could even hear people comparing you and Cheonbeon, trying to determine who was superior… yet you seem completely unfazed by it.”

Olivera gazed at Lennok, her eyes flashing.

Though she didn’t say it directly, her Seven Debts Jewels Mystic Eye was surely activated, observing Lennok.

Lennok knew Olivera’s intent in questioning him and probing for an explanation.

In the battle between Adamant Thunder and Cheonbeon, which had drawn all of Vulcan’s attention, Olivera must have noticed a sense of unease with her unique intuition.

That was why, even at this moment, she was looking at Lennok with her Mystic Eye, trying to discern the facts he hadn’t spoken.

But Lennok, knowing this, responded calmly.

“What’s important isn’t the movements of the Central Front, but the successful acquisition of the Veil Fragment.”

“…”

“However, when heading to Kundara, it would be best to avoid the direction of the Gateway. Getting caught in unnecessary disputes would only be a waste of time.”

No matter how powerful the Seven Debts Jewels Mystic Eye was, it couldn’t penetrate Lennok’s Targeted Resistance.

It was one of Lennok’s most powerful and transcendent talents, a resistance ability he would never reveal under the identity of Adamant Thunder.

Regardless of the unease Olivera had perceived, she wouldn’t be able to confirm the truth immediately.

“If you’re convinced, let’s start right away. There’s no need to hesitate now that the Veil Fragment has been secured.”

Clack. Lennok, who had stepped forward leaning on his staff, walked past Olivera.

He looked up at the containment case suspended by a thin strand of mana in the center of the lab and murmured.

“Manifesting the Miniature Garden using Celestial Spellcraft. Placing the Veil Fragment inside and observing its reaction. Finally, confirming if it assimilates with the Veil.”

Lennok looked back at Olivera and Claris, then immediately surged his magic.

“For now, shall we begin by manifesting the Miniature Garden with Celestial Spellcraft?”

“Adamant Thunder, wait…!”

Claris, abruptly coming to her senses, tried to say something, but Lennok immediately expanded his consciousness explosively.

The Celestial Spellcraft, created by Chicheon, an Ascendant of the Old World, was a power close to the original source of the Domain.

Though less efficient than a Domain because it didn’t imprint a Mind Imprint, its autonomy in arbitrarily configuring space vastly surpassed a Domain.

The power to distribute the rules of the garden as the caster willed, depending on what materials were filled within the Miniature Garden.

Since it was a space expanded based on the caster’s consciousness, Lennok’s consciousness could easily cover the entire lab—

“Ah.”

Paaaat!!!

At that moment, Claris’s body glowed with a pure white light and explosively slammed down onto the spot.

An overwhelming weight, heavy enough to shake the entire lab with a deafening roar.

Kwoooong!!!

Lennok, seeing the gigantic form of a divine beast appear in the middle of the lab, belatedly halted his will-thought.

“I believe I told you clearly when I was teaching Celestial Spellcraft…”

The gigantic divine beast, clad in clouds like armor, sighed as it looked down at Lennok with blue eyes.

“The moment you expand the Miniature Garden beyond what’s necessary, you force a similar level of consciousness expansion on the other party, thus—”

“Forcibly pulling out the main body of a Long-lived Being. As always, such a sluggish appearance.”

“I’m not sluggish!”

Olivera, interrupting Claris who had forcibly returned to her true form, averted her gaze.

“So, this is the garden you constructed using Celestial Spellcraft?”

“…”

The quiet and desolate landscape of the headquarters laboratory had, in an instant, subtly changed.

Beneath their feet, tall grass swayed, and the sky shimmered faintly.

The scenery of sunlight filtering through colossal trees and leaves scattered throughout the garden.

Knowing it was all a ‘model’, they couldn’t help but feel a vitality that shouldn’t exist.

“Indeed. This feels less like a testbed and more like…”

Was it a coincidence that the garden contained both sky and earth, with mountains, rivers, and plants growing within it?

Olivera murmured, staring at the Miniature Garden Lennok had unfolded for a long time.

“It’s as if an entire ‘world’ has been pushed into your consciousness. Is this the form of the garden you envisioned?”

“I merely thought that to emulate the [Veil] within the Miniature Garden, it would be best to project the Central Front where the Veil is located.”

But Lennok responded with an indifferent expression.

“I can visualize the landscape of the Central Front’s outer perimeter. It would be good to practice matching the internal environment of the Miniature Garden as closely as possible to reality.”

“Practice, you say…”

Olivera offered a cold smile.

“It seems to me that your Celestial Spellcraft has already reached a level where practice is unnecessary.”

“…”

She wasn’t wrong.

If it were for offensive use, perhaps, but unfolding the Miniature Garden had been mastered the moment he learned the knack from Claris.

How much arduous practice had he repeated to control his Domain at will after awakening the Root Mindscape of his Kaleidoscope?

Even with transcendent intuition and talent, he had always chosen far more difficult methods and means to handle mindscapes and consciousness.

The strength of his mind and reason. When it came to self-suggestion and will alteration, there might be those comparable to Lennok, but none who surpassed him.

Controlling his consciousness to depict a specific landscape felt easier than breathing.

“The scenery of the garden is faint, but the space itself is terrifyingly stable.”

Claris, perhaps sensing the extraordinary nature, tilted her long neck and surveyed the consciousness space where the grassland stretched out.

Despite her immense bulk pressing down on the garden, it absorbed the weight without even a slight tremor, displaying remarkable stability.

The fact that the garden was more stable than the reality of the lab seemed quite impressive to the Long-lived Being.

“Even a Arch-wizard’s consciousness should be somewhat weakened… I guess you truly are a stubborn one.”

“Didn’t your apprentice work with him and not know? Stop your idle chatter and look at this.”

Olivera retorted, then knelt down and plucked at the swaying grass beneath her feet.

“Even after the grass is pulled, its form remains. It even implements external interventions and variables individually.”

“Hmm, I see. Whether it’s post-calculation or pre-processed, we should confirm that too—”

“Won’t you stop critiquing my Miniature Garden and just begin the experiment?”

The two of them seemed intent only on observing Lennok’s Miniature Garden, showing no signs of starting the experiment.

“Ahem, my apologies.”

Claris, finally coming to her senses, cleared her throat and turned.

“I was just too curious about what kind of Root Mindscape the most talented wizard in Vulcan possessed.”

“You were the one who explained that Miniature Garden and Domain are different.”

Lennok pointed to the side of Claris with a cold gaze.

“First, let’s get the person next to you who is still being rude back on their feet.”

“…”

Olivera, seemingly ignoring Lennok’s words, swept her hand across the ground.

She fondled the veil draped over her face, unconcerned by the astonished gasps of the divine beast.

Was the space Lennok had constructed with his own consciousness truly that interesting to her?

“…”

No, Lennok confirmed that wasn’t it, seeing her face glimpsed through the slightly parted veil.

A strange expression that implied a deeper longing than simple interest.

As if assessing whether the Miniature Garden Lennok created could align with Olivera’s own objectives—

Having confirmed that much, Lennok immediately released the deployment of the Miniature Garden.

Paaang!!

With a pop, like bubbles dissipating, the inorganic landscape of the lab reappeared.

“…What was that?”

A moment of silence. Olivera turned, her expression unreadable, and Lennok shrugged.

“Someone’s coming to the lab. By their aura, it seems to be one of the executives.”

“…Ah!”

Claris, hastily returning to her human form, exclaimed as if remembering something.

“Maize. Of the Elder Council…!”

“…Has the time come already?”

Olivera, quickly regaining her composure, pulled down her veil and rose.

Heading towards the entrance without hesitation, she glanced back at Lennok.

“It’s your turn, Adamant Thunder. There are beings you need to meet, so prepare yourself.”

“Beings I need to meet?”

“An old rule we couldn’t concern ourselves with while you and I were focused on the Central Front.”

Olivera took a step closer, looking down at Lennok.

“If you’re lucky, a day will be enough. This matter involves both our responsibilities, so it would be difficult to resolve without your direct involvement.”

“My responsibility, you say.”

The fundamental reason Olivera had been late for this meeting.

Considering her personality, he had assumed it was a serious matter, but was Virgil’s remark about Lennok being involved true?

But what issue, at this point, would require Olivera and Lennok to handle together?

If it was something important enough for the Elder Council to intervene and halt their schedule—

“When a noble of Ars Nova dies, other noble families move to perform the funeral rites.”

“…That is.”

At Olivera’s unexpected words, Lennok’s reply momentarily stopped.

Olivera’s eyes narrowed, immediately recognizing what Lennok’s reaction implied.

“Judging by your reaction, you already seem to know. Have you heard about that old law?”

“…”

As Olivera said, Lennok had indeed heard about that [funeral procedure] once before.

On his way back from meeting the Second Apostle at Duris Workshop.

Among the news he confirmed about Anathema through media reports at that time, there was definitely talk about other nobles handling the funeral—

“Nobles from the central region, having heard of Anathema’s death, have already arrived in Vulcan.”

Olivera nodded towards Lennok.

“They wish to hear directly from you about the demise of Anathema, who fell as an Apostle.”