Chapter 700: The Uninvited Guest (1)

The story of the black wizard Baegon and Adamant Thunder, who killed him.

The agenda Hylaea, who had gathered the Pandemonium members, brought up was a topic Lennok couldn’t simply ignore, but there was something he needed to confirm first.

Lennok immediately distorted his voice, asking in a chilling tone:

“Hylaea. What is the meaning of this?”

The message he received from Hylaea was merely to prepare, as there was something that required his presence.

Lennok folded his arms, gazing at the chair set in the darkness and the gaze piercing him from across the way.

“I have no intention of showing up to an appointment that wasn’t notified in advance.”

“Victor.”

“You’re handling things like this even after a warning. Ah, then again, if you had understood it in one go—”

Whoosh!!

A Magical Thread shot out from Lennok’s folded arms, instantly coiling around Hylaea’s arm.

At his smooth manipulation of the Magical Thread, the others, who had been silent, quietly lit up their eyes.

Lennok watched Hylaea’s hesitant expression and spoke coldly.

“Then there would have been no need for a warning in the first place.”

“……!!”

At that moment, a flash of purple sword light shimmered towards the Magical Thread wrapped around Hylaea’s arm.

Swoosh!!

“Master Mage. Please withdraw your will-thought.”

Blocking Lennok’s path with a sword was a tall knight clad in purple armor.

Long hair peeked out from beneath his concealed helmet. His stance, with the sword held to the side, was precise.

An ascetic and noble armor, completely out of place in this gloomy space.

The knight spoke.

“This matter is not at Hylaea-nim’s discretion. Why do you seek to place undue responsibility upon her?”

“Responsibility? I have no interest in such things as responsibility.”

Lennok countered.

“I’m merely saying that a broker who is slow in conveying information can be removed without issue. Did you not understand this difference?”

Saying so, Lennok gestured with his eyes towards the sword the knight was holding.

“Of course, that’s why you wouldn’t know the state of your own sword, would you?”

“……!!”

Only then did the knight realize that the Magical Thread was tightly coiled around the blade in his hand, and he fell silent.

The skill to simultaneously cut the Magical Thread binding Hylaea and, conversely, bind the knight’s sword.

Those who belatedly recognized the outcome muttered.

“Incredible manifestation power… Even if it’s not reality, is this even possible?”

“Perhaps it’s only possible in a space like this. It must be proof of how robust that sorcerer’s mental fortitude is.”

“They said he deals with unique-attribute spells, so his mental world must be unusual too.”

Their expressions showed no interest in whether Hylaea lived or died in this place.

Seeing their calm reaction, instead showing interest in Lennok’s Magical Thread, made the fact that this was the heart of Pandemonium truly sink in.

Lennok hooked a finger on the Magical Thread binding Hylaea, and just as he was about to pull, before the knight could react—

“Victor. That’s enough, isn’t it?”

At that moment, the woman leaning back in a chair in the darkness spoke.

Her voice was natural, as if she had met him before.

But the moment a hint of annoyance mixed with her voice, a resonating echo vibrated throughout the hollow space.

Boom!

An incredible Sound Mage, whose very voice carried power.

Lennok immediately recognized her identity upon hearing the tone and turned his gaze.

“Freya.”

Freya Karlins. A world-famous diva, and a magic user renowned as a powerful Sound Mage.

She possessed a monstrous talent, capable of scattering enhancement and curse spells over a vaster area than anyone Lennok had ever seen.

“I’m busy, so I need to leave soon. You said you had something to say, so let’s finish this here.”

She was sprawled languidly in her chair, indifferently manicuring her nails.

But none of the others pointed out her indulgent attitude.

Perhaps it was because they knew of her fame, or had worked with her before.

Once you’ve worked with her, you couldn’t possibly misunderstand the value of Freya’s abilities.

Freya glanced at Lennok and said,

“You can deal with her later, separately.”

“Right. She won’t even die here anyway. At most, there will only be some damage to her consciousness.”

Sabrinah, the woman sitting next to Freya, nodded indifferently.

A powerful Spell-Word Sorcerer, and an ability user who assisted with the settlement during the interim report, using Spell-Word.

She was a formidable individual who had even conducted private information trades with Lennok.

“How about you two just sort it out cleanly later?”

“Hehehe… I think the unique-attribute sorcerer is right.”

A doll sitting slumped in one of the chairs rattled and chuckled.

Chebiyen, the puppeteer who had participated in the interim settlement in Bailuts with Sabrinah.

He was someone who operated solely through a tall doll, and Lennok himself had never witnessed his true form.

“That woman isn’t even one of us from the start, is she? It wouldn’t be bad to find an opportune moment to handle it without any repercussions…”

“Chebiyen. Hylaea was chosen as the Eastern Continent’s facilitator not because of her origin, but solely due to the Director’s decision.”

Sabrinah said, as if it was unthinkable.

One of the other members, hidden in the darkness, naturally picked up the explanation.

“Given her background, she might lack experience, but Hylaea’s talent for ‘Duality’ is rare.”

“…”

“For my part, I’d prefer if she continued to take on troublesome tasks… since someone has to do it anyway.”

At the mention of the Director’s name, Chebiyen also shrugged without another word.

“Is that mage the one who filled in for me during the last settlement?”

Meanwhile, one of the people Lennok hadn’t seen before naturally spoke up.

A man with a rock-hard face, adorned with a flamboyant feathered hat and amulets like an Indian, and strange markings all over his body.

Sabrinah smiled.

“That’s right, Kangara. He’s the gracious individual who took your place when you were captured by the Headro Warlords.”

“Hmph. That was merely a mistake.”

The young man called Kangara snorted.

“It was the fault of that Agilon fellow, who didn’t follow the sacred will of the tribe. It’s not my fault.”

“That’s an interesting excuse. Did you have to pawn off a dead guy’s name to assign blame?”

Kangara, unfazed by Freya’s ridicule, stroked his chin and said,

“But it is intriguing. To be able to maintain such a strong image of a Magical Thread in a consciousness space like this—I suppose it’s truly befitting a unique-attribute sorcerer.”

“Consciousness space?”

“They forcibly transformed the consciousness of the dead into a simulated consciousness space capable of mediation and sharing.”

Hylaea answered Lennok in a calm voice.

“The Doctor said they initially created it for the interim settlement but changed its purpose after hitting a limit.”

A simulated consciousness space, she said.

That alone allowed Lennok to understand that the people gathered here were not in the same physical space.

Did it mean they had summoned only their consciousness here, reforming it into a hub for remote meetings?

Given that Hylaea had become the mediator of this space, it was surely meant to be an experiment for issuing Pandemonium’s tasks.

Recalling past memories, Lennok spoke.

“Did you say there were a few missing persons with unique abilities during the interim settlement?”

Though Kangara was present now, it was said that Agilon, like him, had gone missing during the operation at the time.

He remembered the Doctor lamenting that it would have been good to recover even a corpse, given Agilon’s rare abilities.

Considering the events of that time, it was clear whose “consciousness of the dead” Hylaea was referring to.

“You’ve processed Agilon’s consciousness to construct a consciousness space capable of remote sharing. Did you borrow the power of other sorcerers for that?”

“Agilon had some rather unique mental abilities, you see. You could call him a shared consciousness entity capable of direct interaction with external information.”

Sabrinah shrugged, explaining.

“Perhaps the Doctor thought his constitution was too valuable to discard, so he messed around a bit with Agilon’s corpse.”

“…”

Only then did Lennok survey the members gathered in this space and nod.

Freya of Sound Magic, Sabrinah of Spell-Word, Chebiyen of Puppetry.

Wouldn’t they all be sorcerers specializing in manipulating or handling mediums other than themselves?

He had wondered why these three, seemingly so unalike, had gathered in one place, but there was a good reason for it.

Perhaps this Indian, Kangara, also possessed similarly unique abilities.

As Victor, he was unfamiliar with the knight and the two other figures shrouded in shadow.

Including the members gathered here, Lennok, and Hylaea, that made about nine people.

“…Alright.”

Lennok slowly retracted his Magical Thread, watching those who had quietly observed him until now.

Seeing Hylaea nod, the knight retreated with a sullen expression, and Lennok, taking a seat in the empty chair, folded his arms and nodded.

“Make it brief.”

As soon as Lennok spoke, Hylaea began.

“Today’s gathering is partly an experiment for the simulated consciousness space, but also to briefly share several matters that have gone out of control.”

“…”

“Since Myeong has withdrawn from Pandemonium’s affairs, some of the arrangements they made have run into problems. The first of these is…”

“You mean the matter of Baegon, then.”

Without waiting for Hylaea’s answer, the others began to interject.

“I never liked that guy from the start. He was always puffing out his chest like he was someone important.”

“I’m curious about that magic amplification ring he had. Do you know where his body is buried?”

From Sabrinah and Chebiyen’s indifferent attitudes, it seemed Baegon had maintained a rather consistent demeanor even before this.

“Wasn’t it Adamant Thunder of Vulcan who killed him? I haven’t met him, but I already have a good impression.”

“Why don’t we just recruit that mage, Adamant Thunder, instead of Baegon?”

Baegon’s impression was so negative that they were now positively evaluating Adamant Thunder.

While Lennok sat silently, head tilted, Hylaea spoke again.

“It’s well known that Gravediggers are arrogant by nature, so it’s not surprising.”

“Gravediggers… you say?”

“A group of sorcerers who wander the Black Cat Forest in the Northern Continent. Many highly skilled practitioners of dark intent magic reside there.”

As the knight tilted his head, seemingly not understanding, Sabrinah explained.

“They’re known for rejecting outsiders, having strict and ascetic rules, and being quite stubborn. And, something we’ve learned relatively recently…”

Sabrinah whispered quietly, as if amused.

“They worship Myeong as a god, they say.”

“…”

Hylaea nodded.

“Baegon, a former Gravedigger, had been traveling the Eastern Continent after contacting Ermont. The problem lies thereafter.”

“What’s the problem with a guy who’s already dead?”

“He secretly used Myeong’s Black Coffin to increase his power and attempted to secretly create a new coffin to fill the vacant position.”

At that moment, the hollow space shrouded in darkness fell into a strange silence.

Their reaction indicated they couldn’t easily believe what Hylaea had said. The fact that someone had dared to touch the Black Coffin must have been astonishing.

Chebiyen muttered incredulously.

“These days, even suicide attempts are quite creative…”

“No, then that’s why he was trying to make a new Black Coffin with Ermont?”

“That’s right. Ermont secretly helped him, and apparently confessed after nearly dying at Adamant Thunder’s hands.”

Hylaea answered calmly.

“The Doctor found out about this while searching for Ermont at Soryu’s request and told me to inform everyone of the full story.”

“You think this isn’t just a matter that ends with Baegon.”

Kangara, immediately grasping her intention, asked,

“Do you believe the Gravediggers are behind this?”

“We’ve informed the Gravedigger elders, but there’s been no response. We’re already cutting off our contact lines with them.”

Hylaea’s eyes seemed to gleam coldly.

“The rare catalysts produced in the Black Cat Forest are a shame to lose, but we have no choice but to withhold judgment until we understand the full situation. Especially if it’s connected to Myeong.”

“I see…”

Like the others, Lennok, who had been listening to Hylaea’s explanation, was also deep in thought.

He had thought that Baegon couldn’t explain the situation because Myeong’s mind had problems, but it turned out there were more complicated circumstances.

Lennok had never even imagined that Baegon would use the Black Coffin for his private gain.

‘That’s why Baegon summoned Myeong immediately after completing the Black Coffin.’

During the battle in the underground ruins, even while being overwhelmed by Lennok, Baegon had tried to summon Myeong for help.

He had thought it was because Baegon considered Myeong his master, but in reality, it was because he thought Myeong wouldn’t notice the void once he had created a new Black Coffin.

If Baegon had known that Myeong’s mind was unstable and tried to exploit the repercussions, it wouldn’t have been impossible.

However, Myeong, upon responding to the summons, immediately became aware of what Baegon had done and, conversely, seized power from him.

But if this situation didn’t end with Baegon’s death and was connected to a group called the Gravediggers, who worshipped Myeong…

It was also understandable why an already concluded matter was being discussed in this meeting now.

“So, what will we do now? Do we just kill them every time we encounter these Gravediggers?”

“Since we can’t get Myeong’s answer right now, the situation itself is on hold.”

Hylaea said.

“Since they worship Myeong, there might not be a big problem, but…”

“Worshipping a black wizard and actually listening to a black wizard are completely different stories.”

Freya nonchalantly interjected, manicuring her nails.

“My fans don’t always listen to me either.”

“…”

A reply based entirely on personal experience.

But Freya’s words, more than any explanation, plainly demonstrated that the Gravediggers could not be trusted.

“It would be good to keep the Gravediggers in mind. Understood.”

At Kangara’s reply, the knight, who had been sitting stiffly upright next to him, nodded.

His attire and demeanor somehow seemed utterly mismatched with the atmosphere of this hollow space.

But the other members, seemingly uninterested in the knight’s reaction, continued their conversation.

“But how strong is that Adamant Thunder mage to have single-handedly crushed both Baegon and Ermont?”

“Considering both of them were high-level combat mages, he must be someone accustomed to high-tier combat.”

The topic naturally shifted from Baegon to the mage who dealt with him.

The others, apparently not entirely uninterested, naturally began to add their own comments.

“I’d like to see him for myself… I’m so curious what kind of magic he learned to be so brutal.”

“Don’t even think about it. He’s designated as the most dangerous mage in Vulcan. They say he went completely mad as the price for transcending Hierarchy.”

“Considering he withdrew from Ex Machina’s affairs even with the Machine City matters going on, hasn’t he already reached an irreversible state?”

“…”

While Lennok silently listened to these slanders against himself, Sabrinah spoke.

“Now that I think about it, Hylaea, aren’t you in Vulcan right now? You should be careful not to run into him.”

“That’s not wrong. Adamant Thunder’s reputation has become so heavy that it’s difficult to move freely.”

Hylaea, too, seemed to inwardly agree, replying naturally.

“I’m spending quite a bit on vigilance, but it’s hard to track his movements, like when he returns to the city to operate.”

At her reply, the other members fell into thought.

“Troublesome. Even if Hylaea gets into danger, the mega-city’s position is too important to exclude.”

“If Adamant Thunder’s temperament is truly as rumored, it wouldn’t be strange for a conflict to occur during a rendezvous.”

“Victor. Do you have any information about Adamant Thunder?”

Meanwhile, Sabrinah, who had exchanged information with Lennok a few times, asked.

“They say powerful sorcerers often hear news of each other unintentionally. That’s how the Order Alliance was formed, wasn’t it?”

“I have no interest in pure spell-formula mages.”

Lennok replied coldly.

“Hmm…”

“I admit his work is not bad, but being obsessed with fighting isn’t my style.”

Lennok’s reply, calmly self-aggrandizing. Those who knew Victor naturally accepted it.

“Indeed… you weren’t really like that.”

“No, isn’t that actually a huge compliment?”

“This is the first time I’ve seen Victor acknowledge another sorcerer.”

They seemed more interested in Lennok’s assessment of himself.

As Lennok, realizing this strange bias, furrowed his brow, the ninth figure, who hadn’t spoken until now, opened his mouth.

“I’ve heard a few things about Adamant Thunder. If it’s alright, I’d like to share them here.”

“Deimus.”

“Did Deadrise get their hands on some information?”

Deadrise. The moment Lennok heard that word and looked intently at Deimus.

Deimus glanced at Lennok and said,

“They say the owner of the new Magic Tower to be built in Vulcan is Adamant Thunder himself.”