Chapter 1053: Order Alliance Leader (1)

The Order Alliance.

The largest collective of spellcasters on the continent, boasting the most formidable scale and history on the Central Front.

They were the subject of a grand aspiration: to weave together all the spells of this world and forge the answer to the next.

Among the spellcasters dedicated to this great aspiration, known as the Great Connection, were countless geniuses whom even Lennok could not disregard.

What did it mean to connect all the spells and spellcrafts in the world? What was this grand aspiration that even a monstrous Conjunction Spell Master had cooperated with them?

Born with a talent for magic and spellcraft, Lennok had consistently kept them in check and, at the same time, found them intriguing—

But he had never imagined he would confront the leader of that very Alliance in such a place.

The leader of the Order Alliance, the master of the war currently being waged in an all-out battle against the Guido Cult and on the Central Front.

The head who sat atop countless geniuses and spellcasters.

And the Glass Garden itself, where the Alliance Leader resided, existing as the world’s rarest and most unique case.

‘Thorben’s Tower Lord’s words weren’t exaggerated in the slightest.’

Lennok’s gaze, which had been admiring the beautiful Glass Garden, naturally drifted upward.

His eyes, directed at the softly glowing night sky, became subtly complex and clouded.

‘He said the garden itself was the closest place to the Boundary Line of the World, didn’t he?’

The night sky, radiating beautifully above the garden, was no artificially crafted illusion.

It was, quite literally, a landscape that perfectly projected the Outer Sea, located beyond the stars.

Proof that this Glass Garden was situated closer than anything else to the Boundary Line between reality and the Outer Sea.

The Boundary Line of the World, which even an Ascendant like Chogyeon could not enter with their true body.

Proof that the owner of this garden had manifested that environment, where the boundaries of all physical laws and concepts blurred, solely through their own abilities.

Crack, crackle, crack…!!!

Flowers blooming in the transparent Glass Garden turned their buds to look at Lennok.

Space fractured like glass, spreading cracks and dyeing the garden in a transparent radiance.

An immeasurably colossal presence seemed to peer deeply into Lennok right beside him.

“……”

Given his Targeted Resistance, he wouldn’t be affected, but the Alliance Leader might feel a sense of incongruity if they couldn’t perceive Lennok within their own garden.

Considering that, just as Lennok was about to speak first to the Alliance Leader to divert their attention—

“Regardless of my inability to read the origins and causality of your spellcraft, something is protecting you.”

A calm, subdued voice echoed from beyond the shadows.

“Is it the spectral decomposition ability of The Seven Debts Jewels Mystic Eye?”

“……What?”

The Alliance Leader mentioned The Seven Debts Jewels Mystic Eye, not Targeted Resistance.

But the Alliance Leader did not respond to Lennok’s retort, instead deepening their presence.

A peculiar sight, as if having summoned Lennok’s consciousness to this Glass Garden, then falling deep into thought alone.

“……”

Lennok intensified his will-thought, gazing at the Alliance Leader seated in the chair beyond the shadows.

‘This is a Transcendent with authority comparable to an Ascendant. Perhaps they are an Ascendant.’

He had received an invitation once, long ago, under the identity of Evan Vylun, but Lennok didn’t know much about the Alliance Leader.

A Transcendent leading the largest collective of spellcasters on the Central Front.

The Alliance Leader themselves was highly likely a spellcaster who had reached an impossibly high level, a monster in their own right.

Even a slight moment of carelessness could lead them to detain him with unexpected spellcraft or authority.

Since he had no idea what kind of spellcraft the opponent used, he had to be cautious above all else.

What system did they use? What were the omens of their spellcraft? Was this Glass Garden their Jurisdiction? Had they already reached a rank comparable to an Ascendant?

But the Alliance Leader paid no mind to Lennok’s wary reaction and eventually spoke.

“I heard about you from Thorben’s Tower Lord.”

“……”

“Lightning that has crossed the Horizon of Thought. The master of a power that reverses perception and speed, they said.”

The voice spoke leisurely, leaving Lennok in silence.

“It’s not uncommon for that careless noble to be distracted, but I didn’t expect to meet you so soon.”

‘Will-thought is…’

Lennok, listening to the Alliance Leader’s voice, unconsciously frowned.

The presence of the Alliance Leader, seated beyond the shadows, was very different from what he had expected.

It wasn’t overwhelmingly powerful enough to make even Lennok feel pressure, nor was it alien enough to make its origin unfathomable.

It wasn’t even distorted or broken like someone who had transcended humanity or failed in ascension.

Ordinary.

It was as if he was simply facing an ordinary human with no magic or power.

A calm voice and presence. Flat tone and cadence.

An unexpected ordinariness, unbelievable for the owner of this beautiful Glass Garden, for a Transcendent like the Alliance Leader, was present.

‘He’s far more… dangerous than I thought.’

But as soon as Lennok realized that fact, he further heightened his will-thought, firmly protecting his mind.

The Order Alliance Leader was a Transcendent to whom even the Conjunction Spell Master Avesta Chapman swore unwavering loyalty.

There was no possibility that the Alliance Leader was truly powerless.

It was more likely that they had hidden their power and presence in some way, making it impossible for even Lennok to perceive.

The mere fact that they could accomplish such a feat, eluding Lennok’s senses, undeniably proved the Alliance Leader was a transcendent spellcaster.

The ordinariness, unsuited to the time and place, ironically created a sense of incongruity that made the Alliance Leader even harder to read.

Whether the Alliance Leader had intentionally created that incongruity, or if Lennok was merely reading and reacting to that gap on his own accord, he couldn’t tell—

“There’s no need to be so tense.”

The Alliance Leader, observing Lennok from within the shadows, said.

Their answer came naturally, as if they had predicted Lennok’s thoughts.

“I also didn’t expect you to so easily attune to my garden. If anything, the responsibility for this situation lies with both of us.”

“……”

“I highly value your understanding of the moment’s significance and your alertness, but precisely because you are such a talented spellcaster, I do not interfere.”

The Alliance Leader’s voice echoed calmly over the serene garden.

“If a talent blooms on its own, it will naturally yield a beautiful flower without the need for others’ hands.”

A transparent, glass-like finger briefly peeked out from beyond the shadows.

A fragile and precarious form, as if it would shatter at any moment.

That was all that was visible of the Alliance Leader, whose face remained unseen, beneath the starlight of this garden.

“This garden itself was a repository for spellcraft collected by the Alliance.”

Lennok briefly looked up.

“Did you summon my consciousness to the garden and speak to me because of the Corpse Ghost Spell Master’s matter?”

Though the Alliance Leader explained nothing, Lennok already understood what had happened to him.

The Corpse Ghost Spell Master had extracted the power of a General-grade entity from the Headro Warlords as spellcraft and uploaded it to the Glass Garden.

Lennok’s consciousness, observing this firsthand, had attuned and resonated with it, sensing the presence of the Glass Garden.

The Alliance Leader, upon confirming Lennok’s consciousness attuned to the garden, had then spoken to him.

Three facts could be deduced from this:

Firstly, this Glass Garden, close to the Boundary Line of the World, was being used as a repository for the Order Alliance’s spellcraft.

Secondly, executives of the Alliance like the Corpse Ghost Spell Master could connect to the garden through a specific ritual of offering.

Thirdly, the Alliance Leader making direct contact with Lennok was an extremely rare occurrence.

“Regardless of the reason, if you sensed and attuned to my garden, that in itself is a significant event.”

The Alliance Leader replied, as if affirming Lennok’s words.

“As talented spellcasters always have the potential to reach the Great Connection, I choose not to easily pluck that flower.”

“……”

“The matter of the Corpse Ghost Spell Master is also such.”

The Alliance Leader, seated in the chair, gently stroked a flower blooming at their feet.

With a soft chime, the glass-like petals trembled.

“Her talent is a rare case even within the Alliance. At the very least, the concept of a Corpse Ghost itself is undoubtedly a very novel phenomenon.”

Snap…!!

They lightly flexed their wrist and plucked the flower’s stem.

The Alliance Leader, holding the plucked garden flower, raised it in the shadows and asked.

“Don’t you think it’s too beautiful a flower to be plucked and withered in a place like this?”

“Are you trying to persuade me not to kill the Corpse Ghost Spell Master?”

Lennok, realizing the intent behind the Alliance Leader’s question, offered a cold smile.

“An interesting turn of events. I didn’t expect a Transcendent like you to plead for someone’s life in such a way.”

The Alliance Leader, who had not intervened at all when Lennok killed the Conjunction Spell Master, who was building the Great Connection, was now trying to intervene in the Corpse Ghost Spell Master’s life and death.

Was it because Lennok had attuned to this Glass Garden that they intervened, or had they simply not been particularly interested in the Conjunction Spell Master’s life and death in the first place?

Either way, the reaction of the leader of the Order Alliance felt like nothing but an incomprehensible proposal to Lennok.

But as soon as the Alliance Leader heard Lennok’s question, they slowly flicked a finger.

Tapping the armrest as if choosing their words, they slowly opened their mouth.

“You are riding on an immeasurably colossal current.”

“……”

“I am not the subject of the Great Connection, but merely the one who sets the stage.”

The Alliance Leader said.

“Because it is a miracle created without borrowing my power, it holds even greater value to me.”

“Are you saying you want to maintain a state of not directly intervening in the Great Connection?”

“Among the great failures, only two people truly transformed their own answers into truth.”

The Alliance Leader replied to Lennok’s question.

“Like the Savior’s ‘coincidence’ and the God-Slayer’s ‘inevitability’, only an answer that transcends sameness and difference can overcome right and wrong…”

“……That is.”

“That is a miracle that was never permitted to me in the first place.”

As a faint sneer mingled with the Alliance Leader’s calm voice.

Lennok felt a chill settle in his chest.

“Therefore, I seek to transcend him by not holding myself within myself.”

“……”

He knew.

This person, who seemed the most ordinary among all the Transcendants Lennok had met.

They were the one who clearly understood the true nature of the Pontiff and the Director.

Uttering the most unbelievable truth in this world as a casual aside.

Lennok now realized that this itself was proof of the Alliance Leader’s own transcendence.

“……”

Even while telling himself to be wary, had he let his guard down in this ordinary, normal conversation?

Or was even the incongruity of this moment an implicit hint at the Alliance Leader’s true nature?

The presence hidden in the shadows was infinitely transparent; he still couldn’t read their emotions or appearance.

Therefore, Lennok, feigning composure more difficultly than ever, opened his mouth.

“For a reason not to kill the Corpse Ghost Spell Master, you’re speaking in excessively fundamental terms.”

“……”

“Your explanation for not intervening in reality isn’t primarily about the Corpse Ghost Spell Master’s matter, is it?”

The Alliance Leader had spoken of the Corpse Ghost Spell Master’s talent, saying such a gift should be cherished.

Yet, that same Alliance Leader had casually plucked a flower blooming in the garden.

A contradictory expression: the Alliance Leader themselves showed no attachment to the Corpse Ghost Spell Master’s life or death, nor any intention to hide that fact.

Lennok understood that this itself was merely a pretext for the Alliance Leader to explain why they didn’t intervene in reality.

“The Corpse Ghost Spell Master’s matter is just a pretext. You’re gauging the ‘extent’ to which you can intervene in reality through me.”

Lennok asked, sharply looking at the Alliance Leader.

“Was it because you wanted something that you first spoke to my consciousness attuned to this garden?”

“To be precise, I intended to confirm if you were an individual who met the criteria.”

The Alliance Leader stated calmly.

“Most of those who earned the epithet ‘Apostle-Slayer’ are excessively aggressive, making them unsuitable for discussing important matters.”

“……”

“However, your composure in this situation is commendable. That is a talent separate from your spellcraft aptitude, so I think it’s time to speak.”

The Alliance Leader was felt to lean back in the chair.

The Alliance Leader, who had been gazing at the night sky of the Glass Garden, then slowly opened their mouth.

“Soon, the Alliance will begin a new reconstruction of the Great Connection.”

“Reconstruction of the Great Connection?”

“It is the process of filling the vacant Grand Spell Master position, which arose due to Chapman’s death, with a new candidate.”

The Alliance Leader said nonchalantly.

“The next Grand Spell Master candidate has been decided, and all that remains is the ritual to formally connect their spellcraft to the Great Connection.”

“……”

He had heard of it.

Immediately after defeating the Conjunction Spell Master at the first Gateway, he had learned of the Great Connection’s reconstruction from him.

Was it part of a massive process to designate the next Grand Spell Master and adjust the Great Connection to their spellcraft?

While Lennok was deep in thought, comparing the Conjunction Spell Master’s last words with the Alliance Leader’s explanation, the Alliance Leader continued.

“As soon as the reconstruction of the Great Connection is complete, I intend to eliminate a troublesome adversary of the Alliance.”

“……”

“I am seeking a very powerful deterrent that can assist in that moment.”

Only then did Lennok understand the Alliance Leader’s words and cross his arms.

“You were looking for a spellcaster who could serve as a powerful asset for the Alliance.”

“I know that even a thousand treasures are insufficient to purchase the time of a spellcaster like you.”

The Alliance Leader said.

“I will ensure the payment is ample.”

“……”

Coming from none other than the leader of the Order Alliance, it didn’t sound like mere nonsense.

It wouldn’t be strange if the offered price or the risks of the plan far exceeded ordinary expectations.

However, beyond merely refusing or accepting the Alliance Leader’s proposal, a more fundamental question remained.

“Considering the Order Alliance’s power, there seems to be no reason to rely on an outsider’s strength.”

Lennok asked after a moment of thought.

“Who do you intend to face that requires your direct involvement?”

“It has been a considerable time since the Alliance and the Guido Cult began their cycles of truce and renewed conflict.”

The Alliance Leader replied.

“We can manage an all-out war spearheaded by the Apostles, but there is a monster within the Guido Cult that cannot be dealt with by ordinary means.”

“……No way.”

“The First Apostle, seated to the Pontiff’s left.”

As Lennok’s expression subtly changed, the Alliance Leader calmly stated.

“I intend to bring down the Second Apostle from the Apostle’s Seat.”