Chapter 1051: Western Continent Inland Route (2)
Late at night.
Midnight, as the massive form of the War-Mage Tower, flying through the clouds, was bathed in moonlight.
Lennok stood in the spacious guest room, holding a small lamp.
The soft light illuminated the room, but an even more brilliant radiance filled the space.
Olivera, her veil lowered, had her back to Lennok, turned away.
Lennok rubbed his eyes with a tired expression and spoke.
“After being treated as a distinguished guest by Thorben all day, have you only now thought of an errand for me?”
[If I had intended to exploit you for such a trivial reason, I wouldn’t have chosen this time.]
Olivera’s voice, tinged with a cold smile, echoed as she responded.
[There is one thing… I must tell you in advance.]
“What is it?”
[As you know, I have put a great deal of effort into mastering The Seven Debts Jewels Mystic Eye for a very long time.]
Olivera replied, still with her back to Lennok, to his question.
[In the process of enhancing the Mystic Eye’s abilities and suppressing its backlash, I also had to give up many things I possessed.]
“……”
Lennok remembered that whenever Olivera, who had secluded herself in her laboratory, appeared in public, she looked unwell.
He had thought her condition had improved at some point, but perhaps the problem hadn’t been completely resolved.
Lennok was aware of it but had tacitly ignored it, thinking it was her private matter and not pressing her for details.
[From now on, I intend to use Anathema’s remains to adjust the limiter I placed on the Mystic Eye.]
Olivera turned her gaze, and her unveiled face was slightly revealed.
[This is the process of raising the output of the Mystic Eye’s abilities, which were originally bound and suppressed within a Domain, by making them coexist with my Root Mindscape.]
“You mean you need to prepare to amplify the power of The Seven Debts Jewels Mystic Eye.”
Lennok asked, crossing his arms.
“Adjusting it only now, does that mean you can only attempt to adjust the Mystic Eye’s output after moving away from Vulcan?”
[That’s right. I suppressed the Mystic Eye’s backlash by borrowing the power of my Domain, so conversely, I can only attempt the adjustment after moving far away from that Domain.]
Olivera answered.
[This is a preparatory process to twist Kundara’s Veil, as you wish… You haven’t forgotten why you involved me in this, have you?]
“……”
The Seven Debts Jewels Mystic Eye was the culmination of all the spellcraft Olivera had acquired.
It not only held seven different abilities in its two eyes but also possessed the power to forcibly observe and ‘fix’ the causality reflected in those eyes.
It was a new possibility she had obtained, even sacrificing 8th-level Radiant Magic once and enduring a drop in her hierarchy.
She was reminding Lennok that he had asked for her help because he believed that power would be necessary in Kundara.
“I understand what you’re trying to say.”
Lennok countered, crossing his arms.
“So, I just need to guard you until the adjustment ritual is complete?”
[Quite the opposite. You are to ensure that no intelligent being approaches me until the adjustment is finished.]
Olivera retorted.
[The adjustment of the Mystic Eye is, in essence, a process that encompasses the space it reflects. Should an anomaly occur, even this flying vessel could be caught in it.]
“……”
So, it wasn’t about protecting Olivera from external interference, but protecting the War-Mage Tower from her?
In a way, it was a demand truly befitting Olivera.
However, if it was necessary to increase the Mystic Eye’s output, Lennok also needed to cooperate.
Lennok, having heard the approximate time required for the adjustment from Olivera, immediately left the guest room.
He would ask Lyraiel to restrict access to the guest room starting tomorrow, and Lennok standing guard in front of it would suffice.
There was one last thing he wanted to take care of before going to sleep.
Walking down the unlit stairs of the tower, he arrived at the deepest part of the War-Mage Tower’s underground power core.
Lennok opened the door to the Lightning Scripture Archive, set down his lamp, and pulled out a grimoire from his pocket.
“‘All-Thunder Bright Blade Gate,’ ‘Lightning Realm Immortal Path,’ ‘One-Principle Piercing Heaven True Gate’… Were they all stacked around here?”
The grimoires from the Lightning Scripture Archive that Thorben’s Tower Lord had given Lennok, one after another.
Since he had read and mastered all the grimoires the Tower Lord had given him, there was no need to keep the originals.
He had returned the Falling Thunder Confluence Script to Razaart, so he would just return the remaining grimoires to the archive.
“‘Single-Person Resonant Thunder,’ ‘Six-Directional Lightning Scroll Gate,’ ‘Heaven-Crushing Demonic Barrier Scripture’…”
He scanned the bookshelves, picking out grimoires or cultivation methods with intriguing titles.
There were many unfamiliar titles, but thanks to his experience doing similar work in the Archive of Darkness, choosing the necessary books was not difficult.
Just as Thorben had recommended before, these were grimoires left by unorthodox wizards who didn’t follow the tower’s lineage.
Among them were books containing lightning magic so severe in its backlash and side effects that it was almost akin to black magic.
Lennok sat at a desk in one corner of the archive and began to read with intense focus.
Lennok’s face, illuminated by the small lamp, had become incomparably serious compared to before.
‘The intensification of the Penalty. Forbidden armaments crafted from the body… This is not something that can simply be dismissed as an anomaly.’
Because the Tower Lord had been watching, he had ended it by sealing his left arm and locking his abilities.
But Lennok understood how serious the situation was with his left arm.
The moment he tried to transform his body into a Celestial Lightning Body, the power of the Penalty began to affect his physical form from the outside.
The materialization of the Penalty itself, something Lennok, who had studied and trained in all sorts of spellcraft and magic, had never seen before.
It was the power of the Penalty, both the foundation and the restraint of Lennok’s transcendent talent and intuition.
There was no need to explain how fatal and dangerous this secret was to Lennok himself.
‘I know that my aptitude cannot be completely unrelated to my physical body. But…’
What troubled him was the result itself: that the Penalty had strengthened by him tampering with his body.
Lennok’s transcendent mana manipulation and mana sensitivity were talents separate from his physical body.
However, for a superhuman who has surpassed a certain hierarchy, it’s impossible to separate the body, mind, and mental image.
It was unavoidable that tampering with the physical body would affect the mind and mental image to some extent.
But he had never imagined that the Penalty itself, which he possessed, would directly overwrite his body and manifest.
‘If I cannot directly tamper with the Penalty, then I must further deepen my understanding of the Celestial Lightning Body and lightning magic.’
Lennok thought so, carefully turning the pages of the book with a solemn expression.
‘First, I will examine the tower’s research records on the Hall of the Thunder God and prioritize finding the necessary materials.’
The strong manifestation of the Penalty’s power in his left arm was not entirely negative for Lennok.
It meant that he could investigate and research his Penalty, which he had vaguely feared until now, in a more concrete form.
If he could solve the side effects by directly researching the operating principles of the Penalty himself, without external spellcraft or assistance.
Perhaps that itself might be the path for Lennok to reach the answer, he vaguely considered.
Just like that day, long ago, when he sat in Vulcan’s City Library, frantically searching for a solution.
In the quiet silence, Lennok’s hand, turning the pages of the grimoire, suddenly stopped.
“If you have something to say, come and say it directly.”
Lennok, who had been looking at the grimoire with his head slightly bowed, spoke.
“Or do you intend to watch me like that until I leave the archive?”
“……”
Between the bookshelves of the silent, dark archive, stood a young man wearing a blue mask.
A presence so cold it was chilling. A wizard with an unusually alien atmosphere, even within the tower.
An 8th-level Saint Wizard, and one of the powerful individuals Lennok had never directly fought.
Conversely, he was also the one who had helped Lennok gain access to the Hall of the Thunder God’s sanctuary.
He, who had not appeared at all during the journey to the Western Continent, was now before Lennok in the Lightning Scripture Archive.
“I heard that most of the tower’s high-ranking wizards are focused on reinforcing the engine’s output.”
Hwa-reuk!!
Lennok closed the grimoire, lit his lamp, and turned his gaze.
“Did you intentionally choose this time to meet me?”
“The Tower Lord…”
The man’s subdued voice resonated softly from behind the blue mask.
“I understand why he favors you.”
“……”
“Most of the grimoires in this archive probably don’t meet your standards of knowledge.”
The man’s gaze seemed to turn towards the grimoires in the archive, from behind the mask.
“Even with such a blessed talent, you don’t neglect your studies.”
“If you have something to say, sit down.”
Lennok pointed to the chair opposite him with an expressionless face.
“I’ll spare you a moment.”
“……”
The man was silent at that, then slowly moved and sat in the chair Lennok indicated.
Instead of facing Lennok, he leaned back slightly, tilting the chair, appearing precarious.
Lennok, leaning back in his chair, abruptly asked.
“You’re not human, are you?”
“……”
“You’re trying to imitate it, but your mana flow and patterns are fundamentally different. You’re not even breathing properly to begin with.”
Lennok tilted his head, leaving the silent man.
“Not breathing through lungs is one of the characteristics of non-humans. Does that mask serve as a respirator for you?”
“Your intuition is remarkably sharp. I felt it last time, too…”
The man replied with a subdued voice.
“You’re guessing facts that can’t be known through normal deduction, relying on intuition and inspiration.”
“……”
“That’s probably because your spiritual sensitivity and resonance have reached a level entirely different from other humans.”
Saying that, the man slowly reached for his mask.
“But it would be wise to choose your words carefully from behind the veil.”
“……You.”
“No matter how correct your words, those who have lived long will not easily accept advice from a mortal.”
The man’s face, now unmasked, was expressionless, as if devoid of all emotion.
Aside from his blue hair, which emitted an alien light, his external appearance was almost identical to a human’s.
But Lennok did not miss the small, gill-like structure located behind the man’s ear.
“At least, the Long-lived Beings of the Outer Tribulation City you’re currently heading to are like that.”
“……”
Lennok, staring at the man’s face, asked.
“I wondered why you chose this time to tell me something… So, you’re from Kundara’s Long-lived Beings?”
“Karnis of the Water God Clan. A descendant of the cursed Sea Dragon.”
The man, who called himself Karnis, replied.
“I am a defector who escaped from that Outer Tribulation City.”
“It’s not strange to have an aptitude for magic with such a lineage, then.”
Lennok, finally understanding Karnis’s intention, raised his gaze.
“Why are you telling me this now?”
“……”
He understood that Karnis had revealed his identity after discerning Lennok’s destination.
Being a Long-lived Being who left Kundara, he must have realized that Lennok intended to twist the veil and head to Kundara.
Although it was possible because Lennok hadn’t deliberately hidden the fact that he was going to Kundara,
What was Karnis’s reason for approaching Lennok at this point and revealing this information?
“……”
But Karnis did not answer Lennok’s question immediately, remaining silent for a long time.
He seemed to be pondering whether it was alright to tell Lennok this fact now.
At his incredibly troubled demeanor, unbelievable for a wizard who had transcended hierarchy, Lennok fiddled with the grimoire for a moment.
“My father is the leader of the Water God Clan, one of Kundara’s Eight Great Dragon Kings.”
Karnis said.
“And he is one of the guardian deities who settled in Kundara’s outer waters, protecting the sea for eons.”
“……”
“If you try to lift the veil and head to that city—”
Karnis’s eyes, looking at Lennok, shone sharply.
“You will certainly meet him. He will personally interrogate you about your entry.”
“……”
Lennok, who had silently bowed his head, opened his mouth.
“It sounds like you’re saying I absolutely shouldn’t fight him.”
“I know how strong a wizard you are. You are an extremist, skilled in combat, among all the spellcasters I’ve seen.”
Karnis said calmly.
“But my father is virtually unrivaled within his Deep Sea Domain. He is, in effect, the being who controls the entire ocean currents of Kundara’s waters.”
“……”
“Considering the Tower Lord’s situation, I advise you. If you value your life, never fight him on the sea. And if possible, don’t talk back to him.”
Karnis, leaving the silent Lennok, stood up and said.
“He was a man who would never tolerate defiance, even from his own child.”
“……Thank you for the advice.”
The vivid advice, as if experienced firsthand, made it unnecessary to ask whose experience it was.
Perhaps he thought there was no need to hide what he knew from Lennok, who was heading to Kundara.
It seemed quite flexible in that regard, unlike a Long-lived Being.
Just as Lennok was about to open his mouth to say something to Karnis.
Kwoo-woo-woo-woo-woong-!!!!
Suddenly, with a tremendous roar, the entire War-Mage Tower shook violently.
“……!!!”
A shock strong enough to make an aerial fortress, easily hundreds of meters long, sway.
Lennok exchanged glances with Karnis and used Flicker to rush out of the Lightning Scripture Archive.
Pa-at!!
Lennok, instantly landing on the deck, his expression hardened as he saw the landscape spread before him.
“This is…”
The massive form of the Thorben War-Mage Tower, flying in the night sky.
Dozens of fighter jets, at least, were flying low, encircling the Magic Tower.
Kwa-aaaaa!!!
The forms of the fighter jets, flying at supersonic speeds and unleashing harsh sonic booms.
But what caught Lennok’s eye were the unpleasant blood vessels plastered all over the fighter jets’ surfaces.
Veins, like living things, clinging and wriggling between the wings and fuselage of the fighter jets.
Someone’s bizarre laughter, echoing with a heavy rumble.
[Khehe, hehehet…!!]
[Hehehehek!!!!]
Kwakwakwakwa!!!
Inside the half-open cockpit of the fighter jet, no pilot was present.
Only a monster, a mixture of eyeballs and flesh, completely filling the seat, grinning and gleaming with bloodshot eyes.
A terrifying sight of war machines, human pilots and all, having degenerated into monstrous beings.
[Thorben War-Mage Tower, all personnel, prepare for combat. The Headro Warlords’ combat air squadron has launched an assault.]
Giselle’s stiff voice resonated over the deck’s speakers.
[More than 40 signatures detected. The ones commanding the squadron are—]
As the fighter jets formed their formations and pushed through the clouds,
Something as massive as Thorben’s War-Mage Tower appeared above the clouds.
Kugugugu!!!
“That’s…”
[A Commander-class entity…!!]
An aircraft carrier, which should only exist on the sea, was floating in the air, dominating the land below.
Its hull was covered in thick blood vessels, thicker than most humans, writhing.
The entire carrier had become monstrous, transformed into a flying creature.
An overwhelming size, large enough to accommodate dozens of fighter jets simultaneously.
The Headro Warlords’ Commander-class entity.
Its true identity was the aerial aircraft carrier itself, a facility as massive and well-equipped as the War-Mage Tower.
Go-oh-oh-oh!!!
The colossal aircraft carrier, plastered with blood and flesh, floating in the night sky.
The moment its grotesque eyeballs, stuck all over its surface, glared at the War-Mage Tower and drew forth mana.
The outer walls of the aircraft carrier’s hull simultaneously opened, scattering vast magical light mixed with blood.
Tu-tu-tu-tu-tung!!!
The magical barrage, erupting from beneath the carrier’s hull, poured down towards the ground in hundreds of overlapping volleys.
The Thorben War-Mage Tower was engulfed in intense lightning radiance, firing thousands of Orb Lightning Cannons.
The two battleships, flying hundreds of meters in the air, exchanged thousands of volleys almost simultaneously.
Puh-buh-buh-buh-buh-bang!!!!
“Kuk…!!”
A blinding light, so intense it distorted one’s vision.
The night sky brightened like day, and a hellish heat crushed the space.
The War-Mage Tower shook wildly, and the tower’s War-Mages shouted roughly, dashing across the deck.
“It’s an attack!!”
“Load the main cannons! Activate the Lightning Siege Cannons!!”
“Barrier formation damage rate over 58%…!!”
The Headro Warlords’ combat air squadron had attacked the Thorben War-Mage Tower, which was heading to the Western Continent.
They were once a large military organization in the Central region, but the entire warlord faction had fallen to forbidden rituals, becoming monstrous beings.
Now, they were monsters designated as public enemies and targets for subjugation across the entire Central Front.
‘The pilots and fighter jets have been entirely turned into monsters.’
Lennok quickly surveyed the fighter jets violently flying all around.
‘They’re much stronger than the tank-type monsters I saw at the first Gateway. Is there such a power gap even within the warlord faction?’
The chaotic battle that occurred immediately after he killed the Conjunction Spell Master at the first Gateway.
He had seen Headro Warlords’ monsters in the battlefield where various forces from the Central Front had intervened.
But the tank-fused monsters Lennok had seen then didn’t possess such a terrifying presence.
Jjeo-eop!!
The fighter jet’s wings spread wide, and the blood vessels covering them wriggled wildly.
At the same time, missiles mounted beneath the fighter jet’s wings were launched, slamming down towards the War-Mage Tower at tremendous speed.
Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwak!!!
Not only the fighter jets, but also the missiles they launched, were fully monstrous, covered in blood vessels and eyeballs.
The moment the missiles directly hit the tower’s outer barrier, they exploded, scattering blood.
Kwoo-woo-woo-woong-!!
An attack piercing the tower’s weak point, while it was engaged in artillery combat with the Headro Warlords’ Commander-class entity, the monstrous aircraft carrier.
The massive form of the War-Mage Tower, unable to withstand the impact, shook violently, lost its balance, and tilted to one side.
“Don’t fall!! Grab onto something!”
“Draw forth mana and prepare for the bombardment!!”
“The barrier won’t hold much longer. We need to take action ourselves!”
The War-Mages guarding the deck immediately responded.
The very fact that the War-Mage Tower was shaking from the bombardment was proof that its protective barrier was unstable.
This was happening because the War-Mage Tower, half-destroyed in the battle with Lennok in District 49, had not yet been fully repaired.
Seeing the wizards begin preparations to intercept the missiles falling from all directions, Lennok immediately turned his steps.
He had already checked all the awakened presences within this War-Mage Tower.
Buh-reok!!
“Adamant Thunder.”
The moment he entered the command center, Lyraiel, who had been watching the radar, turned her gaze.
Had she also climbed onto the deck to assess the situation as soon as the attack began?
Lennok, who immediately approached the radar Lyraiel was watching, asked.
“The Headro Warlords have launched an attack. What do you intend to do?”
“Currently, the high-ranking wizards, who are the tower’s main combat force, are supplying mana to reinforce the engine’s output.”
Lyraiel replied calmly.
“As long as we continue flying at this altitude, engaging in combat will only cause us more damage. Prioritizing getting out of the battlefield as quickly as possible is key.”
“Battlefield?”
“Look at the ground. The Headro Warlords’ attack is not a coincidence.”
Lyraiel said that, pointing to the monitor next to the radar.
As the camera installed in the lower part of the tower showed the ground, a dense forest appeared below.
Pa-seu-seu-seu-seu!!!
The forest, writhing like a living creature, covered the ground, and monstrous tank units sped through it.
Lyraiel saw this and said.
“The Larabelli Druids and the Headro Warlords are engaging in combat. We have, unfortunately, intruded into their battlefield’s airspace.”
“……”
“It seems the Druids’ Nature Spellcraft was completely concealing the battle happening here. We’ve had bad luck.”
Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwak!!!
No sooner had Lyraiel finished speaking than the Magic Tower shook violently.
The bombardment poured by the Headro Warlords’ monsters began to break through the tower’s barrier and strike the deck.
“They want us to abandon flight and land on the ground.”
But Lyraiel said, without even blinking at the shock.
“It seems there are still intelligent entities among the Headro Warlords capable of inducing an opponent’s actions.”
The artillery battle unleashed by the Commander-class entity, the entire aircraft carrier turned into a monster.
For the War-Mage Tower to endure it, its high-ranking wizards needed to assist the insufficient engine output.
If they abandoned flight and landed, the high-ranking wizards could intervene, but on the ground, Druids and the Headro Warlords were already clashing.
Attempting to land in the middle of that battlefield at this point would inevitably make them targets for both sides.
If they encountered trouble with other factions on the battlefield, it wouldn’t be strange for their schedule to the Outer Tribulation City to be delayed by several days or more.
“Maintain flight altitude and focus on increasing speed.”
Having thought that far, Lennok rolled up his coat sleeves and turned around.
“I’ll help you pass through the battlefield without landing on the ground.”
“Are you planning to directly withstand the carrier’s bombardment?”
“No.”
Lennok replied, drawing forth mana.
“I’m going to kill that monster, the Commander-class entity.”