Chapter 283: Light and Shadow (4)

Only then did Oren, understanding everything, stagger with a shocked expression.

“Th-that’s how it was… that’s what it was…”

The actions of the Ilwon Family, who had lost their power as a family and completely fallen under the Ibon Family Head’s control.

The utterly powerless demeanor of Tae-oh, the Ilwon Family Head, and the unusually confident attitude of Ibon.

Was all of that the result of a deal to revive their father’s body?

The Ibon Family Head, after joining hands with the Guido Cult, had conspired and been using the previous Fortress Head’s corpse as a hostage.

Walter’s extremely diminished combat ability must also be due to using a corpse that had been dead for a long time as his physical body.

Perhaps the bishop, who serves as a missionary for the cult, doesn’t even possess a real body.

Unfortunately, there was no time to prove Lennok’s every conjecture.

Because Walter, who had been staring intently at his face, suddenly burst out laughing.

“This is truly remarkable. Isn’t this a deduction based purely on superficial phenomena and intuition, without any need for evidence or anything of the sort?”

“……”

“But you were right about everything. I’ve been acting as the Ilwon Family Head’s proxy until now, using the dead Fortress Head’s body.”

“Walter. What are you talking about?!”

The Ibon Family Head yelled irritably, but Walter shook his head.

“Ibon Family Head. Please just stay still. I’ve waited this long, can’t I have a few friendly words with the friends who put in so much effort?”

“Wh-what…”

Ibon stared at Walter with a dumbfounded expression at his leisurely response.

Although the situation had become chaotic, the basic structure of the two opposing forces hadn’t changed much.

The Ibon Family Head, who intended to sacrifice the lives of the fortress residents, and Oren, who tried to stop her, had simply moved to the front, pushing others back.

The important thing, surely, was which way the balance of power between the two forces would tip.

Practically speaking, only the Ibon Family Head and her escorts could exert force; Walter, at the moment, was almost useless.

On the other hand, Lennok, Oren, and Manson, among others, were slowly encircling them.

Their intention was not to kill them immediately to end the situation, but rather to capture them alive and extract information about what they had done.

If they weren’t going to fight head-on to determine superiority, then it would be a rational choice to retreat immediately.

But Walter was chatting leisurely, as if such a judgment meant nothing to him.

“The reason this situation, which should have ended when I took over the previous Fortress Head’s body, has come this far is, in fact, due to the Ibon Family Head’s personal greed.”

“Th-that’s…!!”

“If you didn’t want to be bound by lifespan, you could have accepted the missionary work like me. Wasn’t it a misjudgment to stubbornly cling to your original body and try to feed on the life of the fortress that led to this?”

Walter’s face was smiling widely. But everyone present instinctively felt a faint anger behind that expression.

“Because you aroused the Samyeong Family Head’s suspicion, we couldn’t reach a consensus in the Family Heads’ meeting, and ultimately had to proceed with a Proxy Battle. We had to take a long detour for something that could have been ended easily. To be honest, this situation itself… doesn’t feel particularly pleasant.”

Silence fell.

Lennok quickly glanced at Oren.

“The situation?”

“The evacuation of the residents is almost complete. My warriors will all return in a little while.”

Oren replied.

“Thank you for keeping your promise.”

Oren’s promise not to hastily start the battle until the safety of the fortress residents was secured.

Lennok shook his head.

“Once things came to this, it wasn’t difficult. Unless they had handed over the initiative in this Proxy Battle.”

At the point when the other Family Heads aligned with Ibon understood the situation, the legitimacy of protecting the fortress lay with their side.

The moment the extremely tense balance of power shattered for the first time.

If they could capture Ibon and Walter here, things would end quickly.

“There’s no longer any reason to listen to that nonsense.”

Oren roared.

“I will severely punish you for reaching out to this fortress with whatever intentions you fanatical cultists, who worship monsters from beyond the sea, harbored.”

Shhhhrraaaak!!

At that moment, the shadows that had covered the mansion and been used to evacuate residents all surged skyward, forming a colossal curtain of darkness.

Oren, who had covered the entire sky visible from the mansion’s VIP seats and instantly darkened the surroundings, floated into the air and spread her wings.

Flap!

“Pay the price for your greed, Ibon Family Head!!”

“The one who acts like a guard dog on the outskirts of the fortress talks a good game.”

Ibon also retorted with a cold expression, drawing up her mana.

“I’ll personally verify today if you have the skill to wag your tongue like that!!”

Kwooaaang!!

With her words, thick tree roots extended from beneath her feet and shot up into the sky.

Her form, climbing along the roots, instantly closed the distance with Oren, who was floating in the sky.

Two Archmage-level practitioners, among the Eight Families’ Family Heads, whose individual combat prowess could easily be counted on one hand within Palgung Fortress, clashed with all their might.

Puh-buh-buh-buh-bung!!

Blades of shadow poured down like bombardment from the sky. In response, dozens of branches blooming near the roots rotated, scattering wood fragments.

Separate from the two Family Heads’ spells clashing in the sky above the mansion, the two Family Heads themselves unhesitatingly charged at each other.

Doo-doo-doo-doo-doo!!

Palgung Fortress was renowned as the foremost cradle for training warriors among The Triad.

The two Family Heads at its apex were also warriors as formidable as their spells.

Oren and Ibon’s hands and feet intertwined chaotically, instantly striking at each other’s vital points.

Exquisite and incredibly seasoned close-quarters combat.

It was a showdown between two superhumans unafraid to engage in battle using their physical bodies.

Simultaneously deploying spells in all directions to control space and seize the initiative, they struck their opponent hard with mana-infused blows.

An incredibly precise battle between monsters, where a wizard’s combat and a warrior’s close-quarters fighting intersected dozens of times in an instant.

Where do the gazes of these superhumans, who have lived for decades after completing their Hierarchy, land?

In an instant, thick black clouds and mist spread, and flashes of light ceaselessly flickered within them.

Kwa-gwa-gwa-gwa!!

[M-mad old hags…]

Manson muttered grumpily, looking up at the sight.

This was likely because someone of Manson’s skill could roughly gauge the course of the battle happening in the shadow-shrouded sky.

[To have such power and wait for so long, how meticulous are their personalities?]

“Let’s hurry. We might not be able to hold out long.”

[…What?]

Instead of replying, Lennok immediately drew up his mana.

Oren must have expended a considerable amount of mana to evacuate thousands of residents.

The reason she, despite her depleted mana and mental strength, charged at the Ibon Family Head first, was because she judged that Lennok was more suitable to deal with Walter than herself.

It would be better to entrust the capture of the bishop to Lennok, whose insight and intuition were far superior, rather than herself, who had failed to see through Walter’s secret.

The judgment was to tie down the Ibon Family Head until Lennok could subdue Walter and join in.

Oren had gauged the balance of power in this situation in that short time and thrown herself into it.

Lennok instantly understood that series of judgments and acted simultaneously.

His gaze was fixed on Ibon’s escorts and Walter Martinez, who was grinning among them.

They had to finish this quickly and then confront Ibon with Oren. There was no time to hesitate.

He stepped forward and simultaneously flicked his finger.

Piiing!!

At that moment, a single strand of mana thread extending from Lennok’s feet was pulled taut.

And from that single strand, hundreds of dense threads rose from the ground and poured towards Walter.

Chwarararaaararak!!

The number of mana threads indiscriminately assailing from all directions was unusual.

The Ibon Family’s escorts were helplessly swept away in the visible wave of threads, clearly discernible even to the naked eye.

“U-uwaaaagh!!”

“How on earth did he set up such a trap…?!!”

Lennok, spotting Walter’s form amidst them, quickly reached for his wrist.

The mana threads, whipped like a whip from all directions, drew sharp circles and entangled Walter’s body.

Wheeerik!!

“Ugh!! You weren’t just standing around idle, were you…?”

Walter, bound tightly by the mana threads entangling him from all sides, chuckled.

“To have laid out this many mana threads while we were briefly talking.”

“Talk as much as you like.”

Lennok retorted, and then sharply pulled something out from his wrist.

The spatial confinement artifact, Charm of Earth’s Embrace, which he had obtained as compensation for helping with the Autonomous Region’s affairs.

Last time, he couldn’t use it because he had exhausted his energy searching for Walter’s main body, but this time was different.

If he could just put the artifact around the bastard’s neck, all of this could be ended at once.

“I don’t know how you took over the dead Fortress Head’s body, but you can’t keep running forever.”

Contrary to popular belief, techniques that interfere with the laws of the world, like magic or spells, are not that convenient.

The costs that must be paid to achieve desired results often deviate from the practitioner’s expectations, and precisely aligning those conditions is impossible without accurately measuring the gap between oneself and the laws.

What if the practitioner’s body, which must use the spell, is already dead?

It’s certainly different from how the Rebatenon situation where Ranfei’s body was taken over for embodiment.

“I, I know, what you’re thinking.”

Walter, who was being flung around while bound by Lennok’s mana threads, said.

Even with his body restrained and his head upside down, his face looked serene.

“For a wizard, as, skilled as you, it must be, easy to gauge, another’s spellcasting, ability.”

“And?”

“But faith in God cannot be measured by such calculations!”

Walter suddenly screamed.

“Behold!! The miracle of God, bestowed even upon a body whose life has ended!!”

Whoooooong!!

At that moment, a powerful spiritual energy swirled behind Lennok and was sucked into Walter, causing his body to glow palely.

‘This is…!!’

The spiritual energy flowed from none other than the Family Heads of the Ibon faction, such as the Sagun, Yukryeong, and Chilhyun Families.

Not only Ilwon and Ibon, but had he already taken measures with their bodies long ago?

Those who had been observing the situation from a step back instantly lost their vitality and rolled their eyes back.

Although life had ceased, it was the body of the previous Fortress Head, once a powerful expert counted among the top in the fortress.

There was no need to explain the meaning of regaining some of their physical abilities from when they were alive by stealing their vitality.

Doo-doo-doo-doo-dook!!

Walter, who had stolen vitality from the Family Heads’ bodies, exerted slight force, and all the binding mana threads snapped.

As if on cue, Walter’s body, which had landed on the ground, shot towards Lennok.

The distance to Lennok, who had approached to use the artifact, was within arm’s reach.

Before one could blink, Walter, who had closed the distance as if cutting through space, raised his hand, and the pale light gathered in his fist rotated, drawing an eerie sharp edge.

Wiii-iiing!!

“Die–!!”

[Oh, you cultist bastard!!]

Kwaang!!

Just as the pale light was racing straight towards Lennok’s heart.

Manson and Soo-ryun, who had dashed from Walter’s side, simultaneously plunged the blades and glaive in their hands into Walter’s body.

They, too, had not simply stood by, but had been waiting for an opportunity to intervene on Lennok’s behalf.

Ood-dud-dud-dud-dook!!

“Van. Quickly…!!”

Soo-ryun shouted, pressing down hard with both hands on her glaive.

“His strength is not ordinary… We might not be able to hold out for long!!”

It was clear how powerful the previous Fortress Head’s physical strength was, partially restored through some method.

Lennok also focused on quickly activating the prayer beads.

“…5 seconds until warm-up is complete. Hold on!!”

There was a reason he hadn’t put the prayer beads on Walter’s neck until now.

True to an item used by Cheongyeon, it was an artifact that ravenously consumed mana and required a crazy warm-up time.

Moreover, the activation time for its restraint ability wasn’t long either, so he had to time it precisely.

Wiiii-iiing!!

The prayer beads in his hand slowly glowed, receiving Lennok’s mana, and formed a circular ring.

Just as he was about to use Compassion of the Archangel to transfer the artifact directly to Walter’s neck.

Something fell straight from the sky, piercing through the dark curtain of shadows.

Kwooaaang!!!

The impact caused Soo-ryun and Manson, who were barely holding onto Walter’s body, to lose their balance and release Walter.

“Ugh!!”

“Everyone, step back.”

The voice that echoed through the furiously flashing magical storm was not Oren’s.

“If you don’t want to see this old hag die.”

The black-haired woman who had landed between Lennok and Walter surveyed her surroundings, gripping the collar of a bloodied Oren.

Oren, who had lost consciousness, had her head bowed deeply and remained unresponsive, a truly wretched sight.

The great decisive battle between the Family Heads that would determine the fate of the fortress.

The victor was decided much faster than anyone had anticipated.

“Damn it…”

It went without saying that Oren was at a disadvantage in the fight.

The power difference between Ibon, who had conserved her condition, and Oren, who had expended a large amount of mana evacuating the fortress residents outside the mansion.

But even accounting for that, Ibon’s victory came too quickly.

Proof that Ibon’s capabilities, having gained youth at the cost of others’ flesh and blood, were far beyond what Oren had assumed.

It didn’t take long for despair to appear on the faces of those who realized this fact.

The unscathed Ibon Family Head and Walter Martinez, who had controlled his body by absorbing the Family Heads’ vitality.

An overwhelming victory. A starkly imbalanced power dynamic.

The fate of those gathered here, and indeed the residents of Palgung Fortress, was as good as sealed.

But Lennok, undeterred by the chilling atmosphere, continued to move his hands.

“I don’t know what nonsense you’re talking about.”

Wiiii-iiing!!

“It’s not over yet.”

With that calm retort, Compassion of the Archangel glowed from inside Lennok’s coat, and the Translocation ability activated.

The prayer beads he held vanished.

Clank!!

The prayer beads, appearing through spatial Translocation, were not around Walter’s neck, which was his original target.

Lennok had transferred the already warmed-up restraint artifact, Charm of Earth’s Embrace, to the right forearm of the Ibon Family Head, who was gripping Oren’s collar.