Chapter 275: Kingmaker (2)

Silence fell.

Oren narrowed his brow, staring at Lennok.

From his perspective, Lennok’s proposal must have been quite unexpected.

However, Lennok believed there was no need to complicate matters in this situation.

There were eight families within the fortress. But the power dynamics could be simply divided into two categories.

Lennok intended to gain Samyeong’s cooperation and investigate the internal affairs of the eight families, on the condition that he would play the role of kingmaker in this proxy battle.

At that moment, the shadow curtain that had been blocking out the surrounding noise crumbled.

The warriors, freed from their restraint, urgently tried to rush towards Lennok, but—

“Hahahahaha!!!”

Oren’s roaring laughter brought everyone to a halt.

His previously cold and arrogant expression was gone, replaced by incessant shoulder shaking as he leaned back in his chair.

After laughing for a long time, Oren slowly caught his breath and muttered.

“Hehehe… Listening to you, I really feel how far the prestige of Palgung Fortress has fallen.”

“…”

“How did things come to this… It’s very amusing, utterly amusing indeed…”

As Oren’s eyes, previously unfocused while he mumbled to himself, regained their focus, he coldly retorted.

“But it’s not enjoyable.”

Thud!!

At that instant, the pitch-black shadow rising from beneath Oren’s feet once again enveloped the entire audience hall and transformed.

The ceiling of the wooden palace soared upwards, casting a gigantic shadow over the transforming audience hall.

Whoosh!!

Lennok watched the changing scenery of the wooden palace silently, arms crossed.

To be able to modify one’s abode so extensively using spell constructs—the base-building capabilities of sorcerers truly couldn’t be underestimated.

“Fortress Head!!”

“How dare you be alone with an outsider…!!”

The Samyeong warriors, pushed out of the palace, desperately called out their Fortress Head’s name.

Oren completely ignored the shouts coming from all directions and rose from his throne.

Flutter!!

The rich feathered cloak draped over his shoulders had a sharp appearance, as if embroidered with raven’s wings.

As he stepped forward, long wings sprouted from his back, supporting his body and swaying.

“For a fellow who crawled in from outside the fortress, your conditions are incredibly impudent.”

Hushhhhh…

As he stretched out his hand, the shadows gathered at his feet transformed into an ancient wooden staff.

The moment he gripped the staff, Oren’s mana spread in all directions, swiftly pressing down on the vast palace area.

Woo-woo-woo-woooo…!!

“I will personally verify today whether you have the skill to back it up.”

A clear smile still hung on Oren’s face as he spoke.

Only then did Lennok realize the emotion on his face and chuckled.

“Samyeong Family Head. You weren’t interested in my proposal from the start, were you?”

“…”

“Are you refusing to even talk without first verifying my skill?”

It wasn’t incomprehensible. Changing the cautious policy of a family that had been observing for so long couldn’t be decided by a few words of conversation.

But would it be a mistake to think that the smile on Oren’s lips seemed closer to competitiveness than curiosity?

“I’ve long wondered what level the Cartel’s executives have reached.”

Oren said, laying the staff in his hand horizontally.

“That ‘Thunderous Light’ that supposedly killed a rogue monk… Show it to me with your own eyes!!”

Woo-woo-woo-woooo!!

At that moment, the shadows in the audience hall all surged upwards, coiling around Oren and rotating.

They pulsed like sticky tar, slowly but surely saturating the space and adding color.

Even Lennok, who possessed considerable knowledge and intuition regarding shadow magic, was astonished by the manipulation skill.

It was the first time Lennok had seen a sorcerer control shadows, which were merely traces and remnants of light, with such freedom.

“I had thought something like this might happen one day.”

Lennok also chuckled, raising his mana.

“It was the right choice to come alone.”

The wizard, with vivid blue lightning flashing from his hands, and the Samyeong Family Head clashed almost simultaneously.

Kwaaaang!!

The explosive convergence of lightning and shadows erupting from their fingertips unleashed heavy shockwaves in all directions.

Instead of ending with a single clash, the mana, which should have escaped the sorcerer’s control after manifestation, moved alive, splitting into dozens of electric currents and transforming into hundreds of shadow projectiles.

A relentless torrent of mana.

Without concern for the sharp energy scraping past their limbs, the two sorcerers twisted the mana in their hands.

Dududududududu!!!

[Thunderous Ripples]

[Shadow Beast Release: Dusk]

Thick currents erupting from Lennok’s fingertips instantly dashed through the air, transforming into ground-piercing lightning.

Shadows rising from beneath Oren’s feet rotated in all directions, transforming into gigantic beasts that charged forward.

The ground filled with shadows and the ceaselessly flashing lightning in the air endlessly flickered and subsided, seizing each other’s territory without an inch of retreat.

Kagagagak!!!

Below his left knee. He deflected an approaching shadow blade by sharply bending three shields at right angles, then flipped his fingers to slam a massive ice pillar behind him.

Immediately after, dozens of shadow needles shot out, embedding themselves between the ice pillars and transforming into hundreds of ice crystals.

A chilling cold formed from crystallized mana. Lennok inhaled it completely, raising his spirits once more.

Lennok’s left eye had already turned a tumultuous violet.

‘Tricky.’

The sequence of offense and defense that Oren casually threw out was surprisingly not that intense or extreme.

However, the shadow spell itself, which thoroughly mixed offense, deterrence, and counterattack, changed with unparalleled versatility and flexibility, making Lennok’s response difficult.

Sharp thorns extended from a shadow sphere rising from the floor, and from the tip of those thorns, the maw of a beast popped out to bite Lennok.

He understood and wielded the nature of shadows, which had no fixed form, better than anyone.

This was possible not merely due to long training and combat experience, but because Oren’s innate way of thinking was free.

While thoroughly adhering to the fundamentals of combat required of a sorcerer, he enjoyed the privilege unique to shadow spells: twisting their direction at the very end of an assault.

It was a significantly different combat logic from Parden McQueen, who preferred to overwhelm opponents with raw power despite possessing versatile abilities.

“You talk so big, and this is all you’ve got?!”

Not content with manipulating the dozens of shadow masses tied to his fingertips, Oren conversely began to close the distance directly on Lennok.

Exclamations of shock erupted among the other warriors who were gaping at the sight, but Oren paid them no mind.

Kagagagagak!!

[Dark Scythe]

Instead, with movements so fluid that Lennok was slightly surprised, he attached a huge scythe to the staff in his hand and began to exert pressure.

Instead of panicking at the sudden close-quarters combat, Lennok flicked his fingers.

Ice crystals, scattered from the shattered ice pillar, exploded in all directions, unleashing a storm of chilling cold.

Teterterterng!!

“Huuuuup…!!!”

But Oren, instead of stopping, took a deep breath and threw himself into the storm of cold that raged from all sides.

Only then did Lennok realize Oren’s intention and smiled.

Kaaang!!

A massive ice spear slammed down from the air, parrying Oren’s shadow scythe.

Immediately after, an ice shaft of the same size surrounded Oren and plunged down, creating a gigantic ice prison.

Lennok muttered, looking down at the shadow scythe that was inches from his nose.

“Now that I see it, your way of thinking is closer to a warrior’s than a sorcerer’s. Or is it that you’ve lived as a warrior yet possess such magical talent?”

He had roughly guessed it when he saw Hyun, who had picked a fight with him in the Samyeong main family’s domain, but now he was certain.

A warrior’s combat style and a sorcerer’s manipulative ability.

Samyeong Family Head Oren was a superhuman who had perfected himself by achieving mastery in both aspects.

“Interesting. Are all Archmages in the fortress like this?”

“The entertainment hasn’t even begun, what nonsense are you spouting?!”

Oren roared, transforming the shadow blade into a massive hand.

The moment the shadow hand tried to grasp and swallow Lennok—

[Binding Blast]

Kwaaaaaang!!

The ice prison containing Oren exploded entirely, releasing an enormous shockwave.

Lennok casually deflected the aftermath by angling his shield and said.

“But closing the distance means your movements become easier to predict. Why would you narrow your own options when you possess such magical ability?”

To Lennok, who had succeeded in visualizing the observation of divergence points through his Mystic Eye in a localized manner, it was merely a bad move.

But Oren paid no mind to the intense heat of the mana that had erupted around him.

Instead, the cloak draped over his shoulders rose like gigantic shadow wings, enveloping and protecting his body.

Flutter!!

As Oren’s body was revealed from within the cloak, he spread his wings and flew into the sky.

Lennok stared up at him and asked.

“If the goal was to gauge my level, I think this much is sufficient.”

A battle between superhumans who had reached the Archmage stage.

It wouldn’t end unless both sides significantly escalated their power.

But if they were to wield power by adding their Domain or Miniature Universe, this massive wooden palace wouldn’t survive.

While curious whether Oren’s Hierarchy, possessing both warrior and sorcerer capabilities, was perfected towards a Miniature Universe or a Domain, Oren likely wasn’t aiming for that either.

Oren, who had been quietly looking down at Lennok, his lips subtly twisted.

“…Good. I see that your arrogance is warranted.”

He slowly laid his staff horizontally and muttered.

“We’ll decide the winner in the next three exchanges.”

Kiiieeeek…!!

From the tip of the staff extended towards Lennok, shadows twisted and coiled, forming a spiral spear shaft.

Upon seeing this, Lennok immediately raised his mana.

“We won’t even need three.”

Pazzzzzzt…!!

Inside his coat, Davi’s body glowed, assisting Lennok’s spells, and the essence of alchemy melted into his body, obeying his will.

“I’ll prove it with one.”

Creation Magic: Alchemy Application

Double Refinement.

Pazzzzzzzzzzt!!

Two streams of lightning leaked from Lennok’s grasp, twisting into a double helix and transforming into a harpoon the size of a forearm.

The lightning, boasting an intense luminosity that would be enough to blind one’s eyes, flashed.

[Biased Thunder], designed solely for penetration and afterimages, mixed with the common spell [Alpha Light], began to emit a white, auroral glow.

Paaaaaaaah!!!

At that extraordinary luminosity, the shadows covering the courtyard were completely swept away, and even the shadow itself moved to avoid it.

The faces of the warriors watching from all directions changed in an instant.

“…”

Oren’s lips twitched for a moment, but neither sorcerer stopped their spells.

Their will dashed through the air, preempting space, and mana followed their will a moment later.

Two spears, aimed in different directions from sky and ground, connected head-to-head like magnets.

Chrr-chrr-chrr-chrr!!

“Ughh!!”

“Everyone hold your ground!!”

A spectacle of light and shadow seemingly dividing the space into two distinct lines.

The shock brutally shattered the air in the vicinity, sending heavy winds in all directions, and other warriors struggled desperately to secure their vision.

In that fleeting moment, Lennok’s composite magic, which had burrowed inside the shadow spear, transformed once more.

[Pierce]

Wooo-dududududu!!

A single flash of light penetrated all the way through Oren’s shadow trace, which was struggling to maintain its form.

Far from losing its power, it accelerated, dashing relentlessly past Oren at close range.

“Hmm!!!”

The flash of lightning grazed Oren’s shoulder by a hair’s breadth, tearing through the atmosphere and soaring into the sky.

The unstoppable flash of light, soaring upwards, shattered the ceiling of the wooden palace that had risen into the sky, revealing the clear sky to the courtyard below.

Paaaaaah!!

Immediately after, the intense light Lennok had unleashed shattered into pieces in the sky, casting a small aurora over the wooden palace.

“…!!!!”

Only then did Oren’s eyes widen, realizing that Lennok’s magic hadn’t been aimed at him from the start, but it was too late.

The sunlight projected by the aurora’s light began to relentlessly consume Oren’s shadow.

“I also have some expertise in shadows.”

Lennok muttered, looking up at Oren’s frozen face.

“Among all spells, it’s the special manipulation type most susceptible to environmental influence. Can’t its weaknesses be hidden, but not eliminated?”

Unlike black magic, which intrinsically draws upon inner darkness, shadow magic is a spell manifested using existing concepts as catalysts.

Compared to typical black magic, it’s easier to manipulate, has higher mana conductivity, and is relatively more compatible with special spells.

However, even with those advantages, it’s a clear fact that it’s relatively more difficult to cope with environmental limitations and sudden changes in the battlefield.

The immediate weakening of Oren’s shadow wasn’t the problem.

Lennok had effectively shown Oren that he could overturn the playing field with a single gesture at any moment.

Oren, who had instantly lost all his spell catalysts and become vulnerable.

The warriors also began to move.

“This arrogant bastard, how dare he!!”

“Everyone protect the Fortress Head!”

“Stop!!”

The relaxed atmosphere instantly became taut, on the verge of escalating to an extreme.

Oren’s shout stopped everything.

“F-Fortress Head…?”

“Why, that wizard…”

“Everyone, don’t move.”

He ignored everything else moving around him, staring at the floor of the wooden palace where the shadows had vanished.

Even if the sky were completely filled with bright aurora, the existence of shadows could not be avoided as long as objects existed.

But what if the faintly remaining shadow formed a specific pattern?

If one combined the real remnants of the aurora with the invisible flow of mana in their mind, a single image would emerge.

The shape of a dragon with a shark’s head.

A remnant of one of the gods worshipped by the Guido Cult.

Along with the form of the Eye of Destruction that black wizard Craig had left behind when Lennok fought him, there was another pattern.

Lennok had deliberately shown Oren a part of his knowledge, confirming it directly to him.

What was the true identity of the force manipulating things behind this fortress?

“…”

How much did Oren truly know?

How much could he infer from the message Lennok had just conveyed to him?

Was he truly the right person, as Lennok had thought, to thoroughly stir up the rigid stage of this fortress?

Lennok’s deeply sunken eyes met Oren’s gaze.

“Hehehe…”

Oren chuckled darkly and let go of the staff he was holding.

He looked down at the staff that had scattered and vanished into the shadows, then sighed deeply and slowly descended to the ground.

“I’m getting old too. In the old days, I would have seen things through to the end every time something like this happened.”

As he muttered, the shadow wings fluttering from his shoulders showed not a single ripple.

Even under this courtyard, bathed in intense sunlight, the shadows he controlled maintained a solid form, as if unaffected by the environment.

Regardless of his surprise at Lennok’s aurora, it was also proof that Oren had perfected his spells to a level where they were largely unaffected by the environment.

But even with such power and status, his expression still seemed complex.

“Follow me.”

Oren abruptly turned his back and headed towards the rear of the audience hall, and Lennok slowly followed.