Chapter 505: Mid-Term Settlement (6)

Shhhhhhhk…!!

Lennok thought as he watched the statue’s eyes rapidly bloom open.

‘I need to be careful.’

He had known it from the moment he heard the Doctor’s explanation.

The intermediate settlement, which gathers artifacts and information from the Old World.

He knew this settlement, taking place in Pandemonium, could be a significant opportunity for him.

Others could only participate by searching for Old World artifacts or records, but Lennok was different.

The information of World 1 and World 2 was, none other than, the knowledge from the game Lennok himself had played.

It was still unclear whether the Old World was real history or a world based on the game.

But it was self-evident that those two concepts were strongly linked.

Lennok’s game knowledge, which had been mostly useless in this world, might ironically prove helpful at this very moment.

Yet, even as he was half-certain, instead of rashly blabbing about his game knowledge, Lennok first brought up the information of Amrita’s death.

‘No need to rush. Just grasping the settlement process and atmosphere is enough.’

Considering what the other members said, it was clear that these settlements were held irregularly.

Therefore, rather than revealing his remembered game knowledge first, it was a priority to secure a safe outcome.

The information of Amrita’s death was certainly important from Lennok’s and Pandemonium’s perspective, but—

From the Guido Cult’s perspective, it was such a fatal blow that the secret couldn’t be kept for long.

No matter how powerful the Cult, it would be impossible to completely conceal the fact that Amrita’s Scale spell had been sealed.

Soon, the news of the Guido Cult’s 10th Apostle’s death would spread across the entire continent.

Lennok intended to preemptively leak the information before then, gaining a first-mover advantage over others.

‘Amrita’s death was directly intertwined with external deities, so it will definitely be judged as information related to the Old World.’

The only question was the degree of its variability.

He had blurted it out, wanting to profit before the information’s value decreased, but even Lennok found its importance hard to gauge.

Click, click!!

Five eyes on one of the statue’s two faces rapidly opened, instantly moving to the sixth eye.

“It’s stage 6 or higher.”

“For pure information, the variability should be lower than for artifacts… but even then, it’s that high?”

“It’s going higher.”

“No way. Victor is participating in this settlement for the first time—”

Sabrina’s words stopped as the statue’s seventh eye began to open.

“…Stage 7. It’s surpassed the World 1 numbering Soryu brought.”

“From now on, there’s a possibility it’s information directly related to the world’s fate. We need to confirm carefully—”

“Quiet.”

Maiya muttered.

“It seems there’s more.”

“…!!”

The statue’s reaction, which began to slow from the seventh eye.

Blood Elder, drooling, and drunk Vernon. Soryu, and even Maiya, who had seemed indifferent, fixed their gazes on the statue’s movements.

Even the Doctor, silently observing the entire moment.

Click.

The eighth eye faintly twitched, then stopped.

…

Eight glowing eyes illuminated the dark main hall of the theater.

The statue’s eyes moved for only a fleeting moment, but no one failed to grasp its significance.

Vernon quietly lowered the liquor bottle he’d had to his lips.

Maiya’s face turned coldly stiff, and Soryu held his icy gaze.

A chilling silence fell.

“Stage 8…!!”

“A variability reaching the early stage of 8?”

“This is the first time I’ve seen something like this since participating in the settlement…”

A causality adjustment value that far surpassed all previous settlements.

It was a result that Old World artifacts or high-level artifacts couldn’t even come close to.

Those who understood the meaning of variability stage measurements knew how unbelievable this fact was.

Rather than believing Lennok’s single statement held such a result, it seemed more plausible that the statue’s function was broken.

No one dared to exchange opinions rashly anymore.

They simply focused on watching Lennok in silence.

They understood that what had just happened was an incredibly significant turning point.

“Doctor, what’s the actual value of a stage 8 variability score?”

The Doctor replied to Soryu’s question.

“It’s core information from a war or super-large project that dictates the fate of the Old World. In terms of our history, it would have to be something like the Hundred Demons’ Night Parade of Yorta.”

Lennok didn’t miss the slight tremor in Maiya’s fingertips at the Doctor’s words.

The Doctor likely omitted mentioning Machina’s Ascension Gate out of consideration.

“To put it simply, it’s enough to completely overturn already established theories or premises. I didn’t expect this level of variable to still exist. It’s become troublesome.”

The Doctor continued, sounding troubled.

“But first, there’s one thing we need to confirm before that.”

Blue eyes, buried in a pile of white fur, turned towards the wizard standing stonily on the eighth arm.

The masked sorcerer, who had directly caused this entire situation, yet remained entirely unresponsive, draped in a black robe.

Other members also watched his reaction, as if unwilling to miss even the slightest movement.

The Doctor looked at Lennok, and in a strange, amused voice, asked,

“Victor. How did you know that the death of the 10th Apostle Amrita was information related to the Old World?”

…

“Stage 8 variability… it’s only appeared twice since I started this work under the Director’s orders. One of them was brought directly by Croken Asylus.”

“Hmm…!!”

“That man…”

When a name even Lennok couldn’t dismiss appeared, several members began to show sharp hostility.

Anyone who had encountered that crocodile giant, in any way, would have had an unforgettable experience, just like Lennok.

“Although I’ve said that the importance of information isn’t proportional to its variability, this is beyond excessive. I think I’m justified in asking about the related circumstances.”

The Doctor’s eyes shone sharply.

“I’d like to hear your explanation. Can you tell us?”

…

Instead of answering the Doctor, Lennok fell into thought.

He hadn’t imagined that the information about Amrita’s death would be rated with such high variability.

Did that mean Amrita’s death and the full circumstances surrounding it were so crucial in measuring the causality of the Old World?

‘It must be because of Amrita’s immortality.’

Amrita had simultaneously wielded the power of a High Priestess and an Apostle, undoubtedly gaining some power akin to immortality.

Lennok had succeeded in damaging that through his Domain, Mad, Sea-less Palace.

If those circumstances were judged as a fatal variable in Old World information or causality, it wouldn’t be entirely strange.

However, he couldn’t explain such facts to those gathered here.

While Lennok remained silent, others quickly exchanged opinions.

“No, more importantly, is this information reliable? Amrita Fraubel is dead? You mean the Inquisitor I know, right?”

Vernon asked, guzzling down liquor.

“If an Apostle within the top 10 died, that fact couldn’t possibly remain hidden.”

“Exact timing? How long has it been since her death?”

Lennok slowly replied to the questions pouring in from all sides.

“I only know it happened less than a month ago.”

“Unbelievable…”

Chevien, the gangly puppet, sitting with his head bowed, spoke.

“There aren’t just one or two curses on the Cult’s highest-ranking Apostles… Especially if someone like Amrita died, the news couldn’t possibly not have reached Yorta…”

…

Chevien’s doll-like eyes gleamed with an eerie light.

“If you want to present that as information, I think more precise evidence is needed…”

“Evidence, you say.”

“The 10th Apostle, Amrita Fraubel, was a famous Inquisitor even before becoming an Apostle. You know that, right?”

Soryu, turning his cold gaze towards Lennok, added his opinion.

“Considering the total volume of curses placed on her during the Holy War, it would have been normal for the military city of Yorta to perceive the disappearance of the curses immediately after Amrita’s death. Almost all conceptual curses on the continent are observed in Yorta.”

Soryu asked again.

“Considering the strategic value of Amrita’s Scale spell within the Cult, it seems more thorough verification is needed.”

He understood what they meant.

The disappearance of curses, which would undoubtedly have been observed if Amrita herself had died. It was impossible that such a disturbance wouldn’t have been heard within the military city of Yorta.

Soryu and Chevien were demanding additional explanation for the information Lennok had mentioned, precisely because of that fact.

As soon as Lennok heard that, he roughly understood why such a thing had happened.

It probably happened because Amrita died at Lennok’s hands immediately after being reborn by borrowing Isel’s body.

Since the original body of Amrita, which the 2nd Apostle recovered, hadn’t actually died, it wasn’t surprising if the curses on that body hadn’t disappeared yet.

If the mind dies and only the body remains, it’s arguably natural for the curses on that body not to disappear.

However, since Lennok himself was closely entangled in Amrita’s death, he couldn’t explain the full circumstances in detail here.

And if he rashly lied, he might get caught and the situation could escalate.

The answer he had to give was predetermined from the start.

Lennok, with arms crossed and head tilted slightly, replied.

“I cannot say.”

“Where did Amrita die? Where is her body now?”

“I cannot say.”

“Who killed the 10th Apostle?”

“Well.”

“…And the source of all this information?”

Lennok laughed, clearly sensing the increasingly chilling atmosphere around him.

“I’m afraid I don’t know.”

At that moment, a horrifying killing intent erupted, as if rushing into the theater.

A strong scent of bestiality, like a predator opening its jaws towards him.

Hostility more intense and blatant than any monster or superhuman Lennok had recently faced.

Woosh!!

In an instant, a muscular man, Logier, stood beside Lennok, hands in his pockets, having appeared on the statue’s arm.

The muscular giant lowered his head and looked down at the mask. His face, covered in tattoos up to his eyes, was eerily expressionless.

Logier, lowering his gaze towards Lennok’s unmoving mask, spoke.

“Hey, I’m not in the mood for games right now.”

…

“If you’re going to blab about an Apostle dying, you should have been prepared to explain it. Are you going to keep being uncooperative?”

“I believe the information’s veracity has already been cross-verified.”

Lennok casually retorted.

“If they’ve judged and determined the causality variability, isn’t that the end of it?”

…

“If I cannot say, then I cannot say. If you can’t even properly understand that meaning, then there’s nothing more for me to tell you.”

“Oh really?”

Amidst the rapidly escalating tension, Logier’s lips twitched.

“Then I’ll just have to make you talk.”

CRASH!!!

At that moment, Logier’s arm seemed to vanish from its spot, only to reappear before Lennok’s solar plexus, unleashing a shockwave.

A super-high-speed palm strike, hard to even register the moment it moved. It was a level of force where it wouldn’t be strange for everything above the waist to disappear.

But at that instant, dozens of densely layered magic threads materialized before Lennok, stacking themselves to absorb the blow.

Kiiigik!!

Not only did he directly receive Logier’s preemptive strike, but he masterfully adjusted the tension of the threads, deflecting the impact outward like a wave.

Immediately after Lennok’s robe faintly fluttered, the subsonic air rushing behind him formed a circular ring and slammed into the back of the theater’s audience seating.

BWOOM!!

The colossal two-faced, eight-armed statue faintly trembled from the impact, and the shockwave, launched from its arm, tore through the theater hall in all directions.

Logier laughed, unconcerned by the massive path newly carved through the center of the audience seating.

“Alright, so you’ve got something you believe in, huh?”

As he spoke, the tattoo embedded in Logier’s right hand glowed with a faint red light.

“Keep going.”

“Logier, stop it!!”

ZZZiiiiiik!!!

The moment Logier grasped the bundle of magic threads with his restrained hand, the red tattoo on the back of his hand glowed, shredding the magic threads themselves.

Before Lennok could react to this unexpected phenomenon, Logier’s hand-blade thrust in once more.

His intention was obvious: extending a palm strike from below the jaw, aiming for the vicinity of the mask.

To unmask Lennok and reveal his identity, while simultaneously creating a pretext to force information out of him.

Not even ten seconds had passed from the moment Logier first picked a fight until now.

His actions were quite agile for something impulsive. It was more likely he had been targeting Lennok to some extent from the start.

A corresponding countermeasure was needed.

The moment Logier’s hand, veins bulging as if to smash Lennok’s mask, reached its target, Lennok’s form shimmered at that spot.

Instead, he reappeared in his original spot, gripping Logier’s hand.

Kiiing!!

Lennok seized the hand that had aimed for his mask and, in turn, calmly lowered it.

The moment Logier instinctively tried to strike him in response to that seemingly powerless action, Lennok spoke.

“Spell Imprint, conditional action activation through behavior?”

…!!

“Even with its strong convenience, it’s rare for someone to do something like this while sane.”

Just after Logier launched his preemptive strike, a spell automatically assembled in the air, severing the magic threads completely.

An unusually concise manifestation time for its power. At the same time, there was evidence of a glowing pattern engraved between his knuckles.

It’s a type of imprint used to quickly construct and utilize necessary spells in combat by activating a spell engraved on the skin through specific movements.

While it offers the convenience of using spells without separate incantations or hand signs, it’s difficult to change or undo an engraved spell.

And due to the conditional restriction that a specific action must always be performed, not many spellcasters choose this method.

‘It’s usually not chosen unless someone has a naturally high mana capacity but low mana manipulation ability. There’s no need for it otherwise.’

Saying so, Lennok released Logier’s hand and stepped back.

On Logier’s hand, a glass tube was burning with a strange sizzling sound.

Chiiiiik…!!

The moment Logier fully registered the object’s presence, an explosion erupted in his hand, instantly engulfing his body and turning into a sphere of light.

KWA-AAAAH!!!

Lennok, who had descended from the statue, evading the explosion he himself had caused with a flicker, dusted off his robe.

Mana Resonance Area Control Resonant Incendiary Bomb (MAPHI). Commonly known as ‘Mafia,’ a custom-made item from the Machine City.

As Victor, he had used it once even in the jungle, so there was no burden.

The small explosion, with its aftereffects thoroughly controlled, precisely enveloped Logier’s body, unleashing its full destructive power.

Ignoring the other members, who were speechless at his drastic countermeasure, Lennok casually turned his gaze back and smiled.

The explosion caused by the Resonant Incendiary Bomb rapidly diminished in size on the spot.

Where the sphere of light vanished, Logier reappeared, clutching the glass tube in both hands, smoke billowing from his entire body.

“Hwooooh…”

Logier had instinctively known he couldn’t evade the explosion the moment Lennok detonated it, so he grabbed the small incendiary bomb with both hands and suppressed its recoil as much as possible.

It wasn’t a matter of reaction speed or judgment, but purely the realm of beast-like instinct. Yet, that instinct prevented Logier from taking fatal damage.

Lennok watched Logier and calmly stroked the bottom of his mask.

“That wasn’t firepower a bare body could withstand. Incredible durability. Or perhaps…”

His body rapidly became covered in black fur and began to swell.

“Or perhaps he wasn’t human to begin with?”

“Grrrrrrrr…!!!”

In an instant, a colossal figure nearly 3 meters tall. A silver werewolf, transformed into a half-human, half-beast form, looked down at Lennok, letting out a low growl.

Logier’s body, bathed in moonlight streaming into the theater stage, shimmered with dazzling silver light, and simultaneously vanished from the spot.

Like a flash of lightning, he flipped his body half a turn in mid-air, and just as he was about to slam his transformed beast-like forepaw into Lennok’s lower back—

Jjjeong!!

The werewolf’s arm was encased in a massive block of ice, stopping it dead.

A chilling cold instantly swept in from all directions.

At its source, Soryu, a young man with a cold expression, extended his hand and spoke.

“That’s enough.”

“Soryu…”

Logier growled lowly, shattering the ice block clinging to his hand.

“Are you trying to interfere?”

“The answer ‘I cannot say’ might be literal. He could be bound by a Geas or oath, unable to reveal the secret.”

Even with the fierce beast’s roar, Soryu didn’t bat an eye, turning his gaze towards Lennok.

“It’s possible he simply doesn’t want to speak, but it would take too long to find out. Seeing your earlier exchange, it’s clear.”

…

“Since everyone gathered here has been judged, settling the results according to each person’s achievements is the priority. If you want to fight, do it later on your own.”

“You’re going to let the guy who brought news of an Apostle’s death get away without any explanation? Are you insane?”

Kwooong!!

The werewolf, stomping on the shattered ice block, strode purposefully in front of Soryu.

Logier, his large wolf face staring at Soryu, bared his teeth and said,

“I can’t stand not asking that bastard about it right now.”

The atmosphere was sharp, as if a fight could break out any moment.

But no one in the theater tried to stop them.

Perhaps because both Logier’s and Soryu’s arguments had reason, and both were considered legitimate.

Lennok, watching from the side, clapped his hands together and said,

“Then let’s do this. I have a good idea.”

“You’re in no position to blab with that loose tongue of—!”

The moment Lennok clapped, he activated Compassion of the Archangel as a trigger.

Pababak!!

Immediately after, five or six bluish-glowing glass tubes filled Logier’s maw.

Lennok laughed, watching the immediate change in reactions around him.

“Let’s muzzle a noisy dog for now.”

“Wait, f*ck, that’s not a muzzle…!!”

Sabrina shrieked, realizing that what filled Logier’s mouth was the bomb Lennok had just detonated.

KWA-AAAAH!!!

With a dazzling brilliance, the werewolf’s body was engulfed in a massive flash of light.