Chapter 664: Karma (6)
Clank, clank!!
The sound of thick chains being fastened echoed in the dark room.
Under the dim light, only the shadows of dozens of people scurrying busily passed by.
Amidst the bustling crowd, a strange silence persisted, with no one daring to speak.
Only feelings of watchfulness, caution, and fear emanated from those observing the entity at the room’s center.
Click.
Far down the corridor, a door opened, and a few people walked into the room.
Without a word, the people exchanged glances and gestured, causing the mass of chains suspended in the room’s center to spread slightly apart.
Chiiiink!!
Amidst the grating sound, a young man in a patient gown emerged from within the pile of chains.
Though appearing somewhat fatigued, his characteristic sharp gaze had not lost its luster.
Flash!!
The moment his face was revealed, the room’s lights flared on, and the young man squinted, as if dazzled.
“This is…”
As his eyes adjusted to the bright light, the young man saw dozens of people watching him.
Each and every one of them was a superhuman, possessing refined magical power and trained physiques.
Superhumans gripping weapons and guarding him at close range, and thousands of muzzles aimed at Lennok from outside the room.
And several people in full-body suits standing before him.
“…I see.”
Only then did Lennok, understanding the situation, let out a small chuckle and stretch lightly.
Clank!
As he tried to move his shoulder, dozens of thick chains pressed down firmly on his arms, entangling him.
Compressed magic surged forward to restrain him the moment he exerted even a slight force.
A long, tombstone-like magic stone was fastened around his neck like a restraint, and his limbs floated, bound in mid-air.
Unintelligible runes were densely carved into the chains and ropes wrapped around his back and secured throughout the room, augmenting their power and restrictive force.
All the materials and restraints binding Lennok’s body were imbued with magical power and spell effects, attempting to trap him within the space itself.
“Narcissa. I may have acted arbitrarily, but…”
Lennok chuckled, making a gesture to lift his unmoving shoulder.
“Now that I’ve returned properly like this, isn’t there any need for such an overreaction?”
“Overreaction?”
The answer came from the person in the suit standing directly in front of Lennok.
A woman’s voice, sharp and high-pitched enough to sting the listener’s ears.
“It seems you think this situation is a joke, don’t you?”
“……”
Hiss!!
A young woman removed her helmet, revealing her face.
The Enforcers standing beside her spoke with nervous expressions.
“Lady Phibia.”
“It’s dangerous. If you show your face to him…”
“Adamant Thunder of Vulcan.”
The woman called Phibia looked at Lennok and spoke with a cold expression.
“The reason you received high-level medical treatment, despite committing numerous heinous felonies, wasn’t because we feared or worried about you.”
“……”
“It was merely a courtesy to secure your testimony for the swift normalization of the city, leaving past events as mistakes.”
Phibia, staring intently at Lennok’s face as their gazes met, muttered.
“To exploit Ex Machina’s directives for finding the best solution in such a way… We expected too much from a mere wizard who used to crawl through the back alleys.”
At her ice-cold words, everyone fell silent and listened quietly.
“From now on, your person will be directly managed by Ex Machina. We will control all your vital signs and magical flow, ensuring that your dangerous power is not used in vain.”
“……”
“The crime of impersonating an artisan and deceiving citizens without permission. The karma of slaughtering the city’s soldiers and spilling their blood. The subversiveness of foreseeing the city’s most dangerous secrets and inciting chaos.”
Phibia stated.
“Until you pay the price commensurate with all those responsibilities—”
“There’s one wrong thing you said.”
Clank!!
The moment Lennok’s words fell, a dozen Enforcers thrust their blades between Lennok’s neck and forehead.
“Silence, Adamant Thunder.”
“A mere wizard who can’t even use magic…!!”
“……”
But Lennok ignored the stinging sharpness he felt on his skin and quietly turned his gaze to one side.
The face of the Enforcer aiming at Lennok’s neck.
He met the Enforcer’s gaze, staring intently into his eyes.
Without any magic, without any presence, simply gazing silently into his eyes.
Yet, the Enforcer’s expression gradually wavered and crumbled, and the tip of the blade he held began to tremble.
“Agh…!!”
The trembling blade lightly grazed Lennok’s neck, and blood dripped down the chains.
The other Enforcers’ expressions drastically changed upon seeing blood on Lennok’s body.
“Taiven. What are you doing?!”
“Snap out of it!!”
Of course, they weren’t worried about Lennok being hurt or bleeding in that spot.
The blood of a high-level wizard was in itself a potent magical concentrate, and a material that could serve as a catalyst for spells.
Moreover, wasn’t their opponent a monster who wielded his talent unreservedly even without using magic?
No one could predict what kind of variable Lennok’s spilled blood might introduce in this situation.
But despite the other Enforcers’ shouted reprimands, the Enforcer named Taiven didn’t stop.
“Ah, ah…!!”
Instead, unable to tear his gaze from Lennok’s eyes, he trembled faintly and merely took a step back.
At the same moment, Taiven, who had inadvertently created distance from Lennok, regained his composure, his face turning pale.
“Th-this is…!!”
Realizing belatedly what kind of disgraceful display he had made, Taiven stammered, then gave up and bowed his head deeply.
Only then did Lennok avert his gaze, smile, and turn his head toward Phibia.
“You said you didn’t do it out of fear?”
“……”
At Lennok’s sarcastic remark, Phibia was silent for the first time, unable to retort.
Because that very reaction had revealed exactly what those gathered here thought of Lennok.
Just one step back.
But what if that was the result of overwhelming an elite Enforcer without using any magic?
Just a single glance, a mere look, caused them to tense up, tremble, and reveal an opening.
This reaction was impossible without an ominous conviction that Lennok’s actions were not bluff, but part of a miracle that could manifest at any moment, and would undoubtedly reach them.
Because Enforcers were more sensitive and talented in their magical perception and intuition, and because they knew well what kind of wizard Lennok was, they overreacted.
“It’s not strange. Theoretically, too many prerequisites are needed to bind a high-level wizard.”
Lennok, who had diffused the tense atmosphere with a single exchange, smiled.
“It would have been difficult to even attempt this without the talents or technology from when the Pedigree City was in its prime. Unless you brought that kind of psychic here.”
Capturing a high-level wizard alive, especially one who has transcended Hierarchy like Lennok, is virtually impossible.
A state where one transcends Hierarchy and begins to manipulate space as a result.
How much human capital and investment would it take to not kill such individuals, but to capture them alive and keep them restrained?
It’s something that even equally skilled individuals, with numerical superiority and all conditions met, couldn’t be confident in achieving.
“Aoshu Spero has withdrawn from the field due to an outburst of innate abilities.”
The man in the full-body suit standing next to Phibia answered instead.
“As someone who participated by the arbitrary judgment of a few Ex Machina committee members, he will not participate in your interrogation.”
“Then, first, I’d appreciate it if you’d remove these heavy chains.”
Lennok looked at him and smiled.
“Knowing it’s meaningless, must we really go through such an uncomfortable process with each other?”
“To convince all members of an organization, appropriate procedures and justification are necessary. This situation is no different.”
The man, as if amused, stepped past Phibia and walked forward, speaking.
“Putting you in the Special Detention Facility. Your mind not collapsing even after confronting Spero. Don’t all these seemingly trivial arrangements lead to a predetermined outcome?”
“A promise, huh…”
“I think I understand why the Enforcers fear you so much.”
The man whispered.
“Overwhelming firepower and astonishing skill. Battle experience gained from countless battlefields. But what’s most dangerous is the transcendent intuition itself residing in that head.”
“……”
“There is something that frightens warriors more than dying in battle: the unpleasant sensation of one’s entire self being unearthed and thoroughly scrutinized… As we investigated your actions, we inevitably came to know a certain fear.”
“Your flattery is long-winded.”
Lennok replied indifferently.
“What is it you want to say?”
“Instead of Vulcan, which doesn’t acknowledge you, would you be willing to work for Machina?”
Click!!
The man who removed his helmet and revealed himself had the face of an elderly man, covered in countless scars.
His appearance, weathered by all kinds of hardship, and his murky, distorted grey eyes, hinted that he was a soldier who had survived many battlefields.
“Though you wield magical talent, you are a man closer to a warrior than anyone. Even if you’re not a soldier who follows orders, you are someone accustomed to battles that always yield the best results.”
“……”
“In the name of Ex Machina, I will sponsor you, create a position, and entrust you with a unit. I will give you the authority to freely utilize the city’s resources and talents. If you wish, you may even ascend to the head of the enforcement agency.”
“G-General…!!”
The surprised Enforcers inadvertently called out General Carrasco’s title, attempting to stop him.
It meant that the General’s offer was so extraordinary, and so thoroughly possible, that it could shake the Enforcers.
“Even a part of that ability, if used for Machina, would be sufficient. I’ve seen that much potential in you.”
“Potential, huh…”
Lennok muttered, repeating the words, then bowed his head slightly.
Dozens of superhumans surrounded him, and hundreds of officials watched him through screens.
Everyone watched his movements, waiting for Lennok’s lips to part.
In the quiet silence, Lennok lifted his gaze and spoke.
“Right, I understand your side’s thoughts. Next?”
“…Next?”
“The Machine-Headed Faction and the Steel Heart Faction. Didn’t you each convey different positions?”
Lennok asked, looking at Phibia and the General with an expressionless face.
“Then I should hear what the War Hammer has to say.”
“……”
“……”
Ignoring the two speechless individuals, Lennok found precisely one person among those standing in suits and posed a question.
“Narcissa. Aren’t you ready yet?”
“…You knew from the start.”
Narcissa, her helmet removed, walked forward and looked at Lennok, asking.
“When did you figure it out?”
“Hmm… Perhaps from when the committee members deliberately concealed their faces and walked in?”
Lennok replied calmly.
“Some seemed to have hidden their appearance because they had met me before, but such suits cannot conceal them.”
As Lennok’s penetrating gaze fell upon them, the committee members who still had their faces covered all flinched their shoulders.
“Weight, gait, breathing rate, heart rate, even the twisting of joints… There are facts that reveal themselves even if they aren’t seen.”
“……”
Did he mean he remembered the habits of the committee members he had met before and identified them by comparing them through their suits?
At his preposterous words, the committee members and Enforcers were speechless.
Lennok ignored their reactions and asked Narcissa, who had approached him.
“So, what does the War Hammer want to say? Judging by your actions so far, I suspect your will represents that faction’s position.”
The three factions that define Ex Machina.
The scholars’ Machine-Headed Faction, the warriors’ Steel Heart Faction, and the artisans’ War Hammer.
Among them, Phibia of the Machine-Headed Faction pressured Lennok, while the General of the Steel Heart Faction, conversely, tried to win him over.
An artificial courtesy: despite showing opposing stances and attitudes, they didn’t intervene while Lennok was conversing.
Lennok confirmed this and realized that at this very moment, the three factions were simultaneously expressing different positions to him.
“The fact that the Machine-Headed Faction rejected me, while the Steel Heart Faction tried to win me over, is amusing, but neither is what I desire.”
Lennok smiled, even as he saw Phibia and the General’s expressions twist with different emotions.
“Now, I’d like to frankly hear what you desire. Otherwise…”
“Maiya Lonsdale requested a plea bargain.”
“…What?”
A name so unexpected that Lennok, who had been silent, had to ask again.
Narcissa, without concealing her displeasure, answered while crossing her arms and looking at Lennok.
“In exchange for your amnesty, she provided some of the information she possesses as an advance.”
“……”
“Our War Hammer, considering Lyman’s contributions to the city as an artisan and the utility of the plea bargain… intends to propose a deal.”
In the quiet silence, only Narcissa’s voice echoed.
“In exchange for special amnesty and identity protection, we request your cooperation in all general tasks necessary for the city’s recovery, including maintaining secrecy, appearing as a witness, and cooperating with the trial.”
“…I see.”
At that moment, the chains tightly wrapped around Lennok’s body began to unravel in reverse.
As if the powerful constraints that had bound his body until now were an illusion, the chains fell powerlessly to the floor.
Simultaneously, the runes and binding magic carved into the chains shattered like glass, rising above his head like a shimmering haze.
Craaaash!!
With a strange tearing sound, the surrounding space rotated and crumbled as if shattered.
Lennok, unfazed, lowered his arms and settled down from the center of that rupture.
At the sight of the wizard, who seemed unbound by any restraints from the start, everyone’s faces turned pale.
Lennok walked down to Narcissa, looked at her, and smiled faintly.
“Now, these are some proper terms. Aren’t they?”