Chapter 550: Monster of the Past (2)
A transparent barrier of glass-like mirrors roughly encroached upon and settled in the space, as if encircling everything.
A strange formation that seemed to project light like a prism, splitting it into different wavelengths rather than merely reflecting it.
A dazzling radiance flickered, transforming the sunlight pouring down from above with the Domain’s power, and began to shimmer with rainbow hues, brilliantly engulfing the ground.
Lennok’s eyes chilled, observing how it gnawed into the surrounding landscape rather than completely overlaying and transforming the power plant’s scenery.
‘An encroachment type. And remarkably stable, too. Was she already calibrating her Mind Imprint even back then?’
An encroachment-type Domain. Lennok had encountered this form of Domain before.
Hadn’t the Domain manifested by the black wizard Ermont, after possessing Jaun Audis’s body, encroached upon and coexisted with reality, rather than overlaying it?
It was an ancient technique, dating back centuries, said to have been used by wizards of old when deploying their Domains.
Olivera was now wielding such ancient techniques by integrating them into her Mind Imprint to create her Domain.
Crrrk…!!
The magnificent glass-mirror barrier, unfurled to encircle Olivera’s body, bowed its head as if in worship towards her.
The rainbow-colored light gathered at her extended fingertips spread out, hitting the mirror barrier from all sides, and began to reflect.
The light, split into dozens of strands, reflected, dispersed, shattered, and then curved again through the mirror barrier, converging back at Olivera’s fingertips.
Kiiiiiing!!
A fantastical sight, like a grand wave of light shimmering and dancing around Olivera alone.
A dazzling radiance, born from fractured sunlight, began to converge and compress into a single spot.
Pure radiance-attribute magic, fully achieving the 8-level Hierarchy.
The moment Lennok raised both hands to form a hand seal against the surging, immense power, the light gathered at her fingertips transformed into a terrifying flash.
Radiance-Attribute Unique Magic: Eightfold Cannon Shot [Scorching Light Pierces the Blinds]
A flash that transcended the speed of perception transformed into a torrent of light, sweeping across the ground.
The intent of destruction, warped to its extreme by magic, surged beyond mere power projection, turning into a wave of light.
It swept across the open grounds of the power plant, erupting and obliterating everything in its path.
Kwa-guagagagagaga!!!
Pure attribute magic. And among them, a single strike that pushed its power projection to the absolute limit.
But the wizard who faced that magic head-on did not disappear.
From behind the carapace shield, the only thing left standing after all other spell structures had worn away, Lennok walked forward.
“…”
As Lennok slowly brushed off his shoulder, Olivera’s eyebrows twitched, but conversely, Lennok’s expression also subtly changed.
Hiss…!!
The front of the carapace shield had slightly melted, and acrid smoke streamed from the impact.
The Apostle’s Carapace, which had previously shown no scratches even from Croken Asylus’s attacks.
What did it mean that the front of such a shield had melted, even if only slightly?
It was proof that the maximum power Olivera’s radiance magic could unleash was by no means inferior to Lennok’s own magic.
Confirming this, Lennok massaged his shoulder and lowered his stance, and with Olivera’s gesture, the mirror barrier bowed again.
Crack!
As Lennok’s coat fluttered, lightning extended from his back, flashing brightly.
As if on cue, hundreds of flashes burst from the mirror barrier, raining down like a torrential downpour.
Doo-doo-doo-doo-doo-doo!!!!
The light pouring down from the power plant’s sky was transformed, with the aid of the Domain’s power, into the most intense bombardment imaginable.
The light, distorted and dispersed dozens of times in mere moments within the crystal mirrors, converged and, with the power of mana, turned into a burning light that incinerated matter.
Lennok, too, anchored his body with mana, twisting his mana into strands of thunder and wielding them.
Fzzzt-zzzt-zzzt…!!
He batted away and deflected the rain of light that scorched the ground, seizing the rising tendrils of lightning and throwing them upwards.
Lightning, sprouting from his fingertips, scattered in all directions, blooming into countless thunder flowers, and struck Olivera at close range.
Kwaaaaaah!!
As the hands of the two wizards facing each other crossed, they formed hand seals and unleashed incantations, simultaneously deploying dozens of unique spells.
[Lightning Well] [Swift Execution] [Scattered Radiance] [Blazing Flame]
The lightning and light that bypassed Lennok and Olivera surged like waves, evaporating all the scenery on the ground.
The magnificent facilities and concrete structures of the power plant melted like taffy, turning the surroundings into a hellscape.
Kwa-guagagagagaga!!!
The thick scent of mana permeated his nostrils, and hundreds of flashes of light brushed past his skin and erupted.
Even with distance between them, their hands, aiming for each other’s throats, felt as if they could reach a vital spot at any moment.
Born of will-thought and Mind Imprint. The magic wielded by the two wizards, whose mana acted as their will, lost form and order, crushing into a shape of death.
The roar, erupting as waves of lightning and light clashed simultaneously from all directions, echoed deafeningly, as if it would tear eardrums.
It was difficult to even properly perceive the color and wavelength of the light flashing before his eyes.
Activating his mana perception and Mystic Eye to full power, he analyzed the opponent’s attack patterns, speed, and firepower on the spot, predicting the next move and unleashing a torrent of firepower as if pounding it in.
At this moment, where attribute magic intersected dozens of times, it was impossible to even follow the offense and defense without predicting a few seconds into the future.
This was ultra-high-speed spell combat against an 8-level wizard at the Peak of Extremes in peak condition.
Amidst the seemingly endless projection of mana, it was Olivera who made the first decisive move.
[Radiance]
The moment her Spell-Word fell, a part of the mirror barrier shone brightly, casting dazzling light onto the ground.
Boom!!
And not stopping there, the powerful Spell-Word continued to manifest.
[Light, Shift, Collect, Bloom, Blaze, Shine]
With each word she uttered, various parts of the grand mirror barrier glowed, resonating as if drawing forth power, and pillars of light, driven into the ground all around, began to furiously rotate around Lennok.
Reaching out a hand as if grasping these light clusters, and with the other hand forming a hand seal, Olivera’s incantation rang out.
[Convergent Multi-Resonance Grand Radiance Magic] [White Radiance Curtained Embrace]
Dddddrrt!!!
The pillars of light curved around Lennok, forming the shape of a pure white asteroid and rotating.
The concentrated firepower bursting from its center was an immense heat, enough to overwhelm even high-level superhumans.
But a mighty thunderclap erupted from within the white sphere, tearing apart the light’s radiance and transforming into a massive fist.
Kwaaaah!!!!
A giant of lightning, protecting Lennok’s body, rose to its feet.
The storm of lightning erupting from beneath the giant’s feet, as it rose with a roar of thunder, had not existed for Lennok just moments ago.
Realizing that its source was not Lennok, but drawn from deep underground, Olivera’s shoulder twitched for the first time.
“You may be drawing upon the light of the sky as a weapon, but you’re not the only one with overflowing resources.”
[That’s right. The entire power from the Particle Power Plant…!!!]
Drawing in the uncontrolled power swirling within the Particle Power Plant, Lennok added it to his own mana.
The power and efficiency of the magic unleashed by integrating it into his lightning-attribute unique magic, providing a near-unlimited fuel supply, had already transcended all limits.
He had amplified the power of his magic countless times by drawing on surrounding electricity in this manner.
From the moment he heard that the Particle Power Plant might become a battlefield, Lennok had believed there was no chance of him dying here.
As Lennok slowly raised both hands, the giant of lightning began to mimic his hand seals.
[Thunderous Radiance Coming Forth] [Helmet Clap] [Belted Lightning] [Afterimage Thunder Body]
Fzzzt-zzzt-zzzt-zzzt-zzzt!!!!!
With a violent thunderclap, the giant’s hands clapped together like applause, unleashing a wave of thunder.
Creation Attribute Unique Magic: Alchemy Application Quadruple Refinement Complex Resonance [Super-Fusion: Instant]
A phantom seemed to make Lennok’s hands vanish in mid-air.
At that moment, a shockwave erupted from the thunder giant’s palms, transforming into a bluish ripple that burst forth.
[Thunderclap]
Kwaaaaaah!!!!
The thunderclap ripple, compressed to its limit and unleashed, swallowed the sphere of pure white light and swept over Olivera’s body.
Her form was caught helplessly, unable to resist.
Even the majestic mirror barrier standing behind her began to crack and shatter.
Crack!
The cracks began in the Domain and soon reached Olivera’s body.
Her body shattered like breaking glass. But Lennok’s face remained impassive.
[Excellent.]
Crash!
Beyond Olivera’s shattered body, a new Olivera walked out as if nothing had happened.
It was an illusion, yet not an illusion.
A mirage exquisitely formed using the dispersion and scattering of light.
A perfect illusion and clone, so complete that even Lennok couldn’t discern the true body.
This was the reason Lennok chose an omnidirectional projection spell instead of accurately targeting her body from the moment she deployed her Domain.
It was because Olivera was never truly there in the first place.
Radiance magic, which used light mirages to conceal herself and freely wielded power projection by drawing upon the light of the sky.
[You know why I’m not getting hit, don’t you?]
Olivera, stepping out as a new mirage clone, spoke.
[You know me. To be precise, you’re responding boldly and acutely, as if you’ve thought countless times about how to deal with me.]
“…”
[But a gap in information appears at the crucial moment, constantly throwing off our rhythm due to a basic incompatibility.]
Olivera’s two Mystic Eyes emitted a chilling glow.
[As if you’re fighting someone else, not me.]
Surely, she hadn’t truly understood the meaning of her own words when she spoke them.
However, she had instinctively realized that the gap in information and memories between Lennok and Olivera was too significant to be simply a misunderstanding or a mistake.
Instead of replying to Olivera’s words, Lennok slowly caught his breath, lost in thought.
Radiance-attribute magic that projects immense, high-intensity firepower through the dispersion and convergence of light.
And the existence of the Domain, Probing Mirror of Illumination [탐태소천경], which allows her to use such magic almost infinitely and freely.
‘Much trickier than expected.’
It wasn’t that the instantaneous firepower of Lennok’s lightning magic was inferior.
On the contrary, the very fact that he had maintained the offense and defense until now was proof that his lightning magic was momentarily overwhelming the radiance-attribute system.
The only difference was the absurd disparity in sustained power between Lennok, who consumed his own mana, and Olivera, who wielded the light of the sky.
Even though Lennok was drawing power from the Particle Power Plant, the total amount of available resources was different.
To avoid this situation, he should have retreated the moment Olivera deployed her Domain, but Lennok had a reason for remaining at the power plant.
‘Davi, what’s the remaining progress percentage?’
[About 40%…!!]
She seemed so engrossed in her analysis that even answering was difficult.
Interfering with a system by interpreting independent network signals and packets was, in itself, practically impossible.
It was only natural for Davi to struggle, given the incredibly difficult task forced upon her.
At the very least, he needed to buy time for Davi to hack the network by delaying at the power plant.
“Well…”
Looking at Olivera, who was waiting for his reply, Lennok faintly smiled.
“If you want to hear it, why don’t you come out and tell me yourself?”
[…Alright.]
Olivera chuckled, raised one hand, and slowly lowered it, answering.
As she lowered her arm, dozens of afterimages of her arm remained behind, as if frames were skipping, leaving a trail.
The moment she stepped forward, all those dozens of afterimages coalesced into Olivera herself, encircling the surroundings.
Radiance-Attribute Unique Magic: Mirage [Shining Body of Light]
Paah-ah-aht!!
Dozens of Oliveras slowly moved in a circle several tens of meters around Lennok.
Her dozens of voices overlapped, transforming into a strange melody.
{Then why don’t you try to find me yourself?}
Kiiiiiing!!
Dazzling light began to converge again at the fingertips of the dozens of Oliveras she had raised.
Lennok gazed at the light clusters and slowly raised the hand seal he had formed, bringing it to his eyes.
As he completed the hand seal over his closed right eye and opened it, pitch-black magical light began to stream down.
“Alright. I’ll find you.”
Lennok smiled, fixing his gaze on Olivera with his right Mystic Eye, now stained pitch-black as magical light dripped down.
“I just figured out how to kill you with that.”
Only irregular beeping sounds echoed in the underground power room.
_Beep, beep…!
Kaiser, who had been staring blankly at the mechanical device spread out like a giant flower petal, suddenly lowered his gaze.
“I saw your face in an old archival record.”
The spear’s blade faintly vibrated against his neck.
A woman’s voice from behind him.
“Kaiser Vajur. How are you here…”
“…”
A tone that tried to be calm but couldn’t hide the emotion.
It meant that seeing his face in this place, at this moment, was that shocking.
The woman quickly composed herself and calmly brought the spear’s blade to Kaiser’s neck.
“…Put down everything you’re holding, and raise your hands above your head. You’ll have to follow my instructions from now on.”
“Are you the wizard’s comrade?”
“If you move, I’ll cut you.”
At Ilya’s cold words, Kaiser quietly began to walk out of the power room, following her lead.
Kaiser pondered for a moment, then chuckled faintly.
“No, you’re not the wizard’s comrade.”
“…”
Leaving Ilya, who didn’t respond, Kaiser continued.
“Even by chance, you couldn’t have targeted me at such a precise moment. You must have been hiding in the power plant, waiting for an opportunity, at roughly the same time as the wizard.”
Kwoo-oong…!!
A tremendous impact and roar reverberated from the ground above his head.
Kaiser subtly glanced up, and Ilya flinched.
“If they were a normal team, a comrade wouldn’t be timing things so conveniently while another is fighting for their life like that.”
Ilya did not reply.
She, as a seasoned warrior, knew that reacting to those words was a ploy to unsettle her.
Kaiser, undeterred, subtly turned his head to look at Ilya’s face and spoke.
“Olivera is one of the strongest wizards I know. I can barely imagine her losing to anyone.”
‘Olivera…?’
Ilya knew only one powerful wizard with that name.
Kaiser, whom she believed dead, and Olivera, whose presence here was utterly impossible.
Her eyes, dimly widening as she realized the truth she had only vaguely suspected, more clearly than any other method.
Kaiser didn’t miss even that faint sign.
“As expected, you know less than the wizard.”
Kaiser muttered, raising his hand and grasping Ilya’s spear bare-handed.
“Then I have no business with you.”
“Wait, where are you…!!”
It wasn’t that she had shown a weakness just by hearing Olivera’s name.
Ilya, reflexively moving her spear shaft, swung her arm to subdue Kaiser.
At the moment the agile strike aimed for the back of Kaiser’s neck.
Slice!
“Are you the wizard’s comrade?”
Ilya was standing, facing Kaiser’s back again.
Ilya’s mouth, staring at his back, moved on its own.
“If you move, I’ll cut you.”
“No, you’re not the wizard’s comrade.”
“…”
“Even by chance, you couldn’t have targeted me at such a precise moment. You must have been hiding in the power plant, waiting for an opportunity, at roughly the same time as the wizard.”
She had heard these words somewhere.
It was definitely a conversation she remembered.
A powerful sense of déjà vu piercing Ilya’s brain.
“Olivera is one of the strongest wizards I know. I can barely imagine her losing to anyone.”
She remembered the words that would come next.
“As expected, you know less than the wizard.”
The next words to be heard were…!!
“Then I have no business with you.”
“No…!!”
Clang!!
With the sensation of her surroundings shattering, Ilya screamed and swung her arm on the spot.
Kwaaang!!
The sensation of the super-vibrating spear slipping from her grip.
A dull sound like striking heavy flesh, and the impact of something being slammed away.
Simultaneously, Ilya’s severely narrowed vision shattered, and a new scene emerged from within.
The burning landscape of the power room.
Kaiser, bleeding and collapsed far down the corridor.
He had been helplessly injured, unable to avoid the very blow Ilya had just swung.
“Cough…!!”
Kaiser, unable to hold back, coughed up a mouthful of blood and chuckled.
“I thought that hit pretty well, but you got out too fast. It’s too much of a gamble against a Completer-level superhuman, after all.”
“What did you do…!!”
Ilya, floating four spears in the air, roared and strode towards Kaiser.
Kaiser slowly watched Ilya approaching him, changing his position with difficulty while still collapsed.
“Nothing much. Just used language as a trigger to forcibly revert your subjective perception of time… Cough!!”
Kaiser wiped the blood from his mouth and panted, answering.
“I used almost all my mana on this research, so all I can do right now is something like stalling for time. Phew…”
“…”
Ilya immediately understood the meaning of Kaiser’s words and wore an astonished expression.
A spell that used a few words spoken to her as a specific branching point, forcibly reversing her entire subjective perception of time.
While he called it ‘subjective perception of time,’ time was ultimately relative.
Subjective perception of time was also a kind of time sense that a living being recognized.
Kaiser had as good as admitted that he had directly tampered with her time.
“Powerful illusion magic that uses the concept of time… You mean you still wield that much power at this point?”
“Still? That’s a bit of a wrong statement.”
Kaiser, lying comfortably, retorted.
“I was broken from the start. Nothing’s changed.”
“…”
“That last attack probably ruptured half my internal organs, but now I don’t feel much. No pain either.”
Kaiser rubbed his stomach, watching Ilya slowly grasp his collar and pull him up.
Due to his mana flowing in reverse, undoing life activity, his internal sensations and nerves were already completely disintegrated.
Rather than feeling and perceiving something with his five senses, he merely understood in his head that such a fact had occurred.
The heaven-sent curse bestowed upon one born with the mana of Defying Heaven.
“I’m just walking towards the end, in a sensation of being cut off from the world. Have you ever thought about what that feels like?”
“No. I’m not interested.”
Ilya replied coldly.
Grasping Kaiser’s collar and lifting him, Ilya immediately began to move, supporting him.
“We’ll hear the details once we secure your person outside the power plant.”
Kaiser’s words about being numb to sensation or pain.
His ability to directly intervene with time was shocking, but Ilya didn’t forget the essence of the situation.
Even at this moment, Lennok was on the surface, risking his life to buy time against monsters beyond imagination.
That wasn’t merely stubbornness from not wanting to lose, but surely from his trust that his teammates would recognize this situation and somehow help.
Ilya had no intention of betraying the wizard’s expectations.
While he risked his body to draw attention and time, Ilya had to secure the most important objective of this operation.
The instigator and apparent culprit of the events in this sealed zone, the ruler of the underworld.
It wasn’t too late to think after first securing Kaiser Vajur’s person.
As Ilya thought so and immediately dashed towards the door leading out into the corridor to exit the power room.
“My mana’s finally returning…”
Gurgle…!!
The blood that Kaiser had been profusely leaking began to flow back into his body as if in reverse.
The extensive wound on his abdomen vanished, and the bloodstains on his mouth disappeared.
A strange phenomenon, as if time itself was reversing on the spot, making the injury appear as if it had never happened.
In the split second of unconcealable astonishment on Ilya’s face, who was watching him from right beside him, Kaiser spoke.
“Are you the wizard’s comrade?”
“…!!”
These were the words he had used as a trigger for his illusion.
Ilya immediately pulled back and gripped her spear, but the next words never came.
Kaiser merely smirked, as if he had expected it, struggling to his feet.
“I knew you’d react. The timing was right.”
Fooled…!!
A giant hand appeared behind Ilya and slammed her body out of the power room.