Chapter 765: One-Man Show (17)
“The Guido Cult’s main headquarters. The Papal Seat, you say…”
Lennok had never expected to see the name of the cult with his own eyes at this point. Moreover, he understood immediately what the Papal Seat signified.
The pinnacle of fanaticism worshipping Outer Gods. It must be the exalted name for the main sanctuary where the Pontiff, who leads the faithful, resides.
The Magic Flow Recreation Module Lennok had been trying to procure through Balitz Corp. The unbelievable revelation was that the Pontiff himself had commissioned this component long ago.
Lennok slowly lowered his phone and then slowly turned his gaze towards Prescott.
“I’m not sure what this term means. Do you, Chief Secretary?”
“…Well, now.”
Prescott replied in a fractured voice, like a broken toy. His head was tilted far forward as he stared at the screen, making his expression unreadable.
“Perhaps… the screen has an error. There’s no such data… in the company database.”
“I see.”
Lennok said, turning to leave.
“So, Balitz Corp. having had dealings with the cult was purely my misunderstanding. Wasn’t it?”
“…”
“Understood. Then I’ll take that as the case, and this transaction ends here.”
The moment Lennok said this and opened the cafe door to step outside.
Click!
Something cold touched Lennok’s forehead.
“…”
The chilling touch of a gun muzzle. And not just a pistol, but a rifle with a multi-magazine. A soldier, with a silenced rifle pressed to Lennok’s forehead, slowly gestured with his eyes.
As Lennok slowly re-entered the studio, following the gesture, Prescott, who had been silently standing by, spoke.
“Didn’t I tell you earlier that I was well acquainted with the building owner?”
“…”
“I also hinted beforehand that no one would be coming near here for a while.”
Prescott slowly raised his gaze, smiling with a grim look utterly unlike before.
“You didn’t listen to me properly.”
Dududu!
Starting with the man aiming the rifle, several more people entered the studio. Superhumans in unfamiliar gear. Each one was a monstrous individual possessing a chilling aura and mana.
They were likely a special mobile combat unit directly operated by Balitz Corp. Of course, for an organization the size of Balitz Corp., it was natural to acquire and manage such superhuman forces.
However, what Lennok couldn’t understand was not the superhumans who appeared before him, but Prescott’s decision to force the issue. If Lennok were to expose this to the media or die here, the repercussions would be immeasurable. Even considering that, was it so critical to keep the facts revealed here a secret?
“I’m afraid, Assistant Professor Vylun.”
Prescott gritted his teeth and grabbed Lennok’s lab coat.
“We must prevent the company’s transaction information from leaking outside, no matter what.”
“So, information about the cult takes precedence over the immediate transaction, you mean?”
Lennok tilted his head.
“Is Balitz Corp. truly subservient to the cult’s doctrine?”
Chae-eng!
At that moment, a sharp blade cleanly sliced through the collar of Lennok’s lab coat. The swordsman, whose neck was instantly exposed, looked at Lennok with a cold expression and spoke.
“Doesn’t the Chief Secretary’s words sound like words? Do you not understand the current situation?”
“…”
“I know you’re a spirit mage. If you try to answer anything other than what I ask from now on, I’ll carve out your lips right here.”
If they were Balitz Corp.’s combat operatives, they would have investigated Evan’s abilities. They would at least know that Evan was a spirit mage. They might even be aware that Evan was the one who suppressed the terrorist group of spellcasters during the Ghost God Palace incident.
“You know a little about spirit magic. But it’s very crude.”
However, Lennok smiled calmly even while listening to the swordsman’s chilling threat.
“Of course, it’s true that summoning spirits through Spell-Words is powerful, but it’s not the only means—”
“Too many words.”
The swordsman twisted his wrist without another word. There were countless ways to make him listen without endangering his life. Prescott would tacitly approve of just cutting off his lower lip.
The moment he lightly thrust the blade he was holding under Lennok’s chin.
Chijijijik…!
Lennok’s facial features began to randomly scramble on the spot. A bizarre shape where eyes, nose, and ears flickered and shifted positions all over his face. It was like a monitor screen with static.
“…!!!”
The swordsman, startled by the strange phenomenon, inadvertently stopped his hand. At that moment, Prescott urgently shouted.
“Subdue him! It’s fine to injure him!”
Chwaaaak!
But Lennok’s form had already vanished without a trace from the spot.
“Wh-where did he go?!”
“Focus. I can sense his presence. He’s still inside this studio!”
Though invisible, his breathing and presence were faintly perceptible to the superhumans’ senses. He was present in the room, yet his location couldn’t be confirmed with the naked eye.
“It’s not a spell. It’s magic engineering technology.”
The operatives who realized the nature of the technique quickly exchanged glances.
“Is it optical camouflage…!”
“No way. An optical camouflage so precise it can confuse our senses?”
“He’s the creator of anti-gravity technology. It’s not impossible.”
“Disperse. Surround the studio and corner him!”
The studio cafe was quite spacious, but if several people spread out, they could quickly narrow down the search area. To escape from here, he would have to open or break a closed window or door. If they just watched for that, they could quickly corner him.
The superhumans thought so and quickly created distance. At that moment.
Crash!
From afar, the sound of a shelf shattering, and a huge impact shook the studio.
The sight of a man jammed upside down into the wall cleaner in the workshop, and Lennok watching him from close by. In Lennok’s hand was a small taser emitting powerful electric shocks.
“Jerome!!”
“You rat-like bastard…!”
The enraged swordsman immediately sprinted across the studio to kick Lennok in the stomach, but Lennok’s form suddenly dissolved into smoke on the spot. As the blade cut through the air, this time the soldier who had aimed his gun at Lennok’s head was bent backward and slammed into the wall.
“Ugh…!”
A shock strong enough to break his spine by bending it backward. He had probably sustained irreversible damage. The enraged operatives desperately gave chase, but Lennok’s form continued to disappear, only to reappear elsewhere.
Pap! Pap! Pap!
Each time he disappeared and reappeared, his number increased by one. Soon, dozens of Lennoks stood expressionlessly throughout the studio, looking at the superhumans.
The operatives, overwhelmed by the bizarre sight, frowned and slowly tightened their grip on their equipment.
“Th-this damn…”
“What the hell is going on?!”
Prescott, who had been observing the scene from a distance with a sharp gaze, shouted.
“He mixed dummies with optical camouflage! It’s an illusion using diffuse reflection!”
“An illusion?!”
“It’s all just a trick of the eye. There’s only one real body!”
“…”
Even so, all dozens of illusions visible now were so precise that they were indistinguishable with the naked eye. It was so vivid, like a projector was directly shining into their eyes from an unseen location. How sophisticated and立体 an optical camouflage technology must it be to achieve such a feat?
“This is where the unique characteristic of spirit magic, unlike other spells, lies.”
Lennok’s voice echoed from behind Prescott.
“While the possible output is somewhat fixed, the scope for application extends in directions different from the caster, depending on the spirit’s capability.”
Lennok, standing with his hands behind his back and a slight smile, spoke.
“By utilizing the closed cafe studio, an environment where reflective light works well on the ceiling and walls, you can briefly deceive the senses of even well-trained superhumans.”
“You’re saying the optical camouflage you’re using borrows the power of spirit magic?”
Prescott’s expression twisted at Lennok’s words, realizing that he had been conversing with a spirit already summoned from the beginning. Not only had he failed to notice it right in front of him, but he was also annoyed that he had inadvertently created an ideal environment for Lennok’s spirit.
However, Prescott didn’t miss the shadow swaying at Lennok’s feet.
Grasp!
Prescott grabbed Evan’s real arm and screamed at the top of his lungs.
“Got him! Holter!”
“Alright, coming!”
A large man with a metal club landed behind Lennok and swung his club with all his might. Surrounded front and back by Prescott and the hulking Holter, Lennok was caught without a moment’s chance to move.
Thwack!
Lennok’s head snapped forward from the blow to the back of his head, and he collapsed, falling to the ground. Simultaneously, the dozens of illusions hovering around him vanished all at once.
“Haa, haa…!”
Panting, Prescott finally sank to the floor and looked down at the fallen Lennok. With trembling eyes, Prescott motioned to Holter, who was holding the club.
“T-tie his limbs. Tie him so he can’t even breathe without my permission!”
“…Understood.”
Holter, looking tired, pulled out a metal rope and tightly bound Lennok’s limbs. Prescott stared at the back of the bound Lennok’s head and then let out a hollow laugh.
The humiliation of having to madly run away in the very studio he had prepared to meet Evan suddenly came back to him.
“Well, it’s fine…”
Anything beyond this could wait until after this sudden situation was dealt with. Holter, carrying the slumped Evan over his shoulder, stood up and asked.
“Should we return to headquarters like this?”
“…No. We’re going to the Advisory Committee’s headquarters.”
Prescott pondered and shook his head.
“I made a big mistake. The company won’t cover this level of information leak.”
“…”
“Here, we’ll use the Committee’s influence to resolve Evan’s situation, and then report back to headquarters.”
The members of the Advisory Committee, like him, were influential figures in their respective fields. He had to rely on their help to manage the situation, and only then report to headquarters to salvage anything.
“Among the Committee members, some will surely be curious about what’s inside this brain.”
As Prescott said this and grabbed Lennok’s head with a cold gaze.
“Ah, that won’t do.”
Lennok’s voice echoed from behind Holter. The contradiction of Lennok’s voice coming from behind Holter, when he was lying unconscious on the ground. Realizing this, Holter gritted his teeth, spun his club, and swung it forcefully behind him.
Crack!
Holter’s body, which had absorbed an immense amount of electric shock, trembled and fell forward.
“Ugh…!”
The hulking man’s eyes rolled back as he convulsed, foaming at the mouth. The pain was so intense that even Prescott, watching from the side, felt a chill down his spine.
And in the spot where Holter had been sent flying, Lennok stood, holding a taser the size of his forearm.
“Because the place I wish to visit today is the Balitz Corp. headquarters, not the Advisory Committee.”
“You, you…”
Evan, who had been hit on the head and collapsed, and Evan, who stood perfectly fine before Prescott’s eyes. Both were unmistakably the real person, existing tangibly.
Prescott’s lips quivered as he mumbled.
“It-it wasn’t optical camouflage… He-he’s been toying with us from the start…!”
Lennok didn’t wait for him to finish, immediately pressing the taser to Prescott’s temple. Only after seeing Prescott fall unconscious did Lennok release the Guide’s Ghost and look around the studio, saying,
“Things got complicated. I originally intended to stall for a bit, then pretend to be kidnapped.”
He had played around with diffuse reflection illusions applied from the Fox Spirit Palace technique, and finally, even faked unconsciousness with a clone made from the Guide’s Ghost. However, things got twisted when Prescott tried to take Lennok to the Advisory Committee instead of Balitz Corp.
If he handed Evan’s clone over to the Advisory Committee’s technicians, they would realize the clone wasn’t a real human. That wasn’t what Lennok wanted.
“Perhaps it can’t be helped, a plan improvised for the situation. Maybe I should have looked like I was losing more…”
[Why are you trying to get kidnapped by these stupid organisms anyway?]
Davi grumbled.
[You just need to hack the module blueprint and finish the paper right away.]
“If that module is related to the cult, the story changes a bit.”
Lennok said, rummaging through the unconscious Prescott’s pockets.
“Moreover, the fact that the Papal Seat directly custom-ordered the module I was trying to procure a long time ago… that’s something I can’t just pass over without confirming. And look at this.”
Lennok shook his head after emptying all the personal items from Prescott’s pockets.
“There are no items or artifacts symbolizing the cult, not even a common tattoo. This man is not a cult member.”
[Then…?]
“Balitz Corp. has done business with the cult, but it’s not an organization subservient to the cult’s doctrine.”
If they were openly posting data of direct dealings with the Pontiff on their internal security network, what could be the reason? Lennok felt a very strong need to confirm this fact before searching for the module blueprint.
“Alright. I’ve decided.”
Lennok mumbled, picking up the touchscreen device from Prescott’s pocket. It was the terminal Prescott himself had used to access the internal security network. If he could inject Davi’s ability into this device, which had been used to obtain the Magic Flow Recreation Module’s data…
He might be able to obtain the minimum information Lennok needed immediately. He could worry about resolving this situation afterward.
“Davi, prepare.”
Lennok, who had passed the biometric authentication by placing Prescott’s hand on the screen, drew up his mana.
Wooooong!!!!
“It’s the network of a mega-tech company, one of the top three in the mega-city. We’ll go all out from the start.”
[I’m ready!]
Kiiiing…!
Domain Expansion
Cybernetic Hierarchy Conceptualization
[Dream State Electro-Intent Mirror]
Paaahhhhh!
The Cybernetic Spirit, which had instantly grown massive beside Lennok, expanded its Domain, pushing its cybernetic abilities to the limit. The moment the spirit’s power, whose essence and meaning existed not in the material world but in cybernetic space, rapidly amplified and reached the Saint-rank.
It shattered the boundary of the independent network and forcibly invaded its database.
Pazzzzzzik!!!
It forcibly breached the firewall and acquired authority. It bypassed packets, intercepting crisscrossing signals and information mid-flow. It broke down every security procedure deployed to protect the database before they could even fully activate, then pieced them together with other data, smashing them through.
Chiiiiiik…!
The touchscreen Lennok held in both hands grew so hot it began to emit faint smoke. The device itself was overloaded and melting, unable to handle the amount of information being processed internally.
But Lennok, knowing this, focused on observing the database while keeping his Domain active.
Pabababababat!
Lennok watched the countless files, images, and data folders flashing across the screen at incredible speed and asked,
“How far can you go?”
[Up to the area this organism connected to, about 2 minutes… Beyond that, I’ll need more time.]
Davi replied urgently.
[Among all the networks I’ve connected to, this firewall is the strongest…!]
“…”
Davi, a Cybernetic Spirit, had only encountered difficulty connecting to a network when hacking the terminal network personally designed by Kaiser Basure. Did this mean Balitz Corp.’s self-built internal network protected its data with even stronger security and firewalls?
As long as he was borrowing the power of the Domain, hacking itself might be possible given enough time, but the problem was that the terminal wouldn’t last. Once Prescott’s terminal broke, he would have to find a way to access the network from scratch again.
He had to choose whether to just grab the module blueprint and leave, or dig deeper. As Lennok hesitated for a fleeting moment, lost in thought.
[Welcome, Assistant Professor Evan Vylun.]
Someone’s message appeared on the screen.
“…!!”
A message directly addressing Evan. It wasn’t a prerecorded message. Someone on the other side of the network was watching Lennok’s actions at this very moment.
[My apologies for the late greeting. It’s thanks to Prescott Viner, Chief Secretary’s connection being forcibly cut, that we noticed your visit.]
“…”
[We originally intended to simply observe, but your exceptional skill, Professor, forced us to make a decision.]
“Skill?”
As Lennok mumbled inadvertently, the message continued immediately.
[You are the first hacker in nearly four years to delve this deeply into our company’s security network.]
“…”
[It’s intriguing that Vulcan’s most prominent scholar also happens to be such an excellent hacker, a fact not yet revealed, but…]
At that moment, the firewall that Davi had been desperately trying to breach vanished as if by magic. The screen, which had been covered in noise and firewall messages, cleared completely, instantly revealing the data located further down.
[Before that, it seems we need to resolve the immediate issue at hand.]
Someone, presumed to be a high-ranking official of Balitz Corp., had voluntarily disabled the firewall and opened the gate. As Lennok paused his hand at this fact, the message continued.
[If we don’t clarify the relationship between our company and the cult here today, problems are bound to arise later.]
“…”
[So, instead of hiding, we will show you everything. In return, after you verify this video, could you meet with our Vice President?]
Upon confirming Davi’s hacking ability, they judged that hiding anything would be pointless. Were they planning to disable all database security and allow Lennok access to the information he wanted? This audacious, even reckless, response was difficult to understand, but it was plausible if one considered it the ambition of a colossal corporation with its reach across all of Vulcan.
As Lennok thought this and manipulated the melting terminal to bring up the screen.
[The schedule of the Papal Seat’s first and last visit to Vulcan.]
A very old video, heavily laden with noise, began to play on the screen.
[And, this video contains the last official activity of the Guido Pontiff.]
Chiiiiik…!
A grand procession of thousands in pure white priestly robes. The human tide, flowing through the entire city, swelled like a massive wave, shaking the entire street. Even though it was an old video, the strangely unified movements conveyed an undeniable fervor of fanaticism.
And, at the center of that procession, a huge, pure white throne moved. On the beautiful throne, veiled on all sides, someone leaned back weakly.
Fingertips cracked and crumbled. A motionless body, whose breathing was uncertain. A quiet yet eerie presence, as if a corpse had been seated on the throne.
But all the citizens watching the procession stared mesmerized at that corpse-like body.
“…”
Lennok, who had been staring blankly like the citizens in the video, suddenly snapped out of it and drew up his mana. The Pontiff Lennok knew was no ordinary human. Moreover, he was a monster whose origin and mode of existence differed from even transcendent beings who defied reason. Even if it was just an old video and record, once it started to perceive an outside gaze…!!!
[Your acting has improved greatly…]
Too late.
The slumped body. The crumbling fingertips.
A feeble voice, as if dying, began to precisely address him.
[Mimicking another self was not strange for us.]
The Pontiff, turning his head beyond the veil, was faintly smiling as he looked at Lennok.
[That’s why I repeatedly told you that you shouldn’t meet me yet.]