◈ Episode 529. Delegates (1)

Anyway, there’s a degree of straightforwardness.

‘I’m going to fall into hell.’

Because they are companions in hell.

“Puh, puheub!”

Also, while writing the nonsensical Bible babble, you’ve fully realized the Grandfell way of speaking. Only Lorenzik, the romantic explorer who knew the truth, stifled a laugh.

“What the hell……?”

Except for Lorenzik.

Everyone else’s faces had gone white.

Well, according to conventional wisdom, hell is where you go when you die.

I swallowed a sigh inwardly.

‘Did you just make a terrible declaration, Grandfell?’

Look, if you were to look at us with disdain at the usual branch managers’ meeting, wouldn’t you be frightened?

But it is not my place to explain to you in detail what [Lycoris Flower from Hell] is, what effect it has, and where I obtained it.

“So I’ll save the questions about that for later.”

See, even here, just be honest.

‘I pushed my body to the point of no return!’

Flickering vision from earlier.

[Blessing of the First World Tree denies status abnormality, ‘Magic Exhaustion’].

[Blessing of the First World Tree denies status abnormality, ‘Stunned’].

[Blessing of the First World Tree denies status abnormality, ‘Chronic Fatigue’]…….

For good reason.

‘I’m exhausted beyond compensation.’

Arcana Continent.

The after-effects of the [Blackening] Grandfell’s rampage on my body, not to mention the fact that I used up all of my magic power to manifest the Reversal Magic in Ogratium. Then there’s the fact that I’m the same person who almost covered Jeju Island with Reversal Magic a while ago.

‘Because something close to infinity and infinity is completely different.’

The power of magic has changed since I ascended to the Ten Thrones.

Add to that the blessing of the First World Tree, and it’s incomparable.

I was the one who could handle such vast amounts of magic power.

‘It really is the limit.’

Tsk.

I shamelessly tried to leave, as if nothing had happened, and I hadn’t even been able to shake the Grandfell of Heaven’s dignity from the podium.

Then I continued.

‘I know you’re all busy.’

I apologize for bringing you all together like this.

“I need some alone time right now.”

Which means I need a break too…….

*

The Great Alliance.

Seoul Branch 1.

Gaon Building.

“Have you seen it?”

Nam Taemin didn’t answer.

But Hisagi nodded slowly.

Closing his eyes.

“You saw it even more clearly than I, with my slender snake eyes and the sharp senses of a fierce beast, Taemin-kun. The Commander-in-Chief is fleeting……. He must have stumbled.”

……nodded.

Nam Taemin nodded back.

Hisagi continues.

“He was definitely out of shape.”

“What.”

“A force that not even the Commander in Chief can control.”

The roundtable was short but thunderous.

From the moment he walked out of the Crystal Hall.

Hisagi blurts out a thought that had been lingering in his head.

“You know what they say, that all power comes with a price?”

“I know.”

“And the Arcana continent was no exception.”

The two had been at the top of the rankings since the days when Arcana was just a game, so no explanation was needed. Hisagi spoke up.

“The power of the Commander-in-Chief must have had its price.”

“…….”

“Actually, it’s not hard to see if you think about it a little bit, because there’s no such thing as power that doesn’t come with a price.”

Hisagi said grimly.

“And that price is…”

I didn’t want to say it, but I couldn’t help it.

“……It is assumed to be life. To be more precise, I don’t mean just the life of a player, but the life of a human being.”

Wasn’t I making too much of an assumption just because he stumbled on the podium? No. Surely the Commander-in-Chief hadn’t said so himself.

“I hope not, but maybe he’s living a life with a fixed end, a life with a time limit, and in that sense, he’s definitely going to hell soon…….”

Nam Taemin interrupted.

“I know.”

That he mentioned hell.

Although we don’t know the exact time.

Maybe…….

Taemin gritted his teeth.

“……Maybe, it’s just a matter of time.”

Why didn’t I notice?

Of course, even if there was no way to know exactly…….

It was a skill of the Commander-in-Chief’s that risked altering not only the smell but also his personality. I should have realized that there was a price to pay…….

Hisagi turned to the self-pitying Nam Taemin.

“We have to be prepared, Taemin-kun.”

“…….”

“The absence of the commander-in-chief that will come someday.”

He meant it.

With blood as cold as a snake.

Even Hisagi wasn’t ready for it yet.

“Being prepared is one thing, but dealing with it is another…….”

“More than that, Leonie, where did that go?”

Hisagi knew but didn’t answer right away.

‘I’m sure Ms. Leonie needs some time to think about it.’

To say that Leonie didn’t know what they had found out was to underestimate her. And at this moment, she was away. She was away at this moment, meeting with Jesse Heinness.

“She’s probably still at the Magic Tower.”

“The Magic Tower? What’s a slacker doing in the Magic Tower?”

“That nickname, I’ll give you that nickname.”

“No, I’m just kidding.”

“This is not the time for pranks.”

“Oh, for real……!!”

This was the moment when the two of them got out of character and started to argue.

Suddenly.

The master room door opened.

Not many people could open the master room unannounced.

“……?”

It was Nam Cheolmin.

But Nam Taemin was dumbfounded.

His brother’s face was different than usual.

Where were his glasses?

Frowning, Nam Cheolmin said.

“Did you guys see the article?”

“The article? What article?”

“It’s starting to shake.”

“……!”

Shaking, I could feel it in my gut.

Something had leaked out from somewhere.

Something about Jeju Island.

“I’ve been over Jeju Island, I can assure you. No camera, no skill, no way to observe the interior from the outside.”

Jeju Island was isolated by the vast amount of black magic power.

But there were players who had gotten inside.

Hisagi cuts to the chase.

“The information the Holy War Alliance relayed to the AAU must have gotten out.”

“What?! Anyway, there’s always a few scumbags mixed in everywhere, isn’t there, Commander-in-Chief? If we do them a favor, they’ll cross the line like this…….”

“True, but that’s not the whole story.”

If that was all I had to say, I wasn’t even pissed. I knew early on that the AAU had a few loaches in the mix. It was the testimony that was the problem.

As Hisagi said.

The testimony of a player who was inside Jeju Island.

It was a testimony from a player in the Holy War Alliance.

“The unnamed ranker said. Lee Hoyeol, the leader of the Holy War Alliance, was shaken. Most of all, I was concerned that he could not distinguish between enemy and ally. That is why Commander-in-Chief Lee Hoyeol declared that he had behaved in a disgraceful manner……. Who the hell are you, you bastard……?”

The latecomers that pass by in my mind.

Second Sun, Bohemian, Antithesis, Shinhwa, Warriors…….

They used to be rivals, but they thought they’d found mutual pride in joining the Holy War Alliance. Honestly, Nam Taemin felt a tingle in the back of his head. He replied.

“Judging by the reaction to the comments, no one really believes anyone yet, and yeah, under normal circumstances, I wouldn’t care one bit, but…….”

A few sentences are already stuck in my head.

『Lee Ho-yeol, Commander-in-Chief of the Holy War Alliance.

Unable to distinguish between enemy and ally.

The reason why he declared that he had shown indecency.』

Nam Cheolmin let out a sigh.

“The game may change from now on.”

“I agree.”

“How does it change anything?”

Shrugging, Hisagi looks toward the skyscraper across the street from the Gaon Building.

“I’m saying that the cracks in the Holy War Alliance may be coming from within, as changes, large and small, have begun to emanate from the seemingly unshakeable Commander in Chief.”

Seoul, the land of anomalies.

The imperfections of the Commander in Chief.

It didn’t matter which was the bigger or smaller change.

It wasn’t as if I couldn’t understand their feelings.

But as I said before.

Understanding and action are two different things.

Nam Cheolmin asked.

“So, what did you talk about at the roundtable? I wanted to attend, but when I saw the real article, I couldn’t sit still.”

“That’s why I can’t stand it, hyung.”

“……What’s that supposed to mean?”

He takes off his glasses and leans in closer to see his brother’s face. His face was contorted in a terrible way.

It was contorted with a level of anger he’d never seen before, not in the face of a dangerous rift, not in the face of a monster, not even in the face of a demon.

“That anonymous player, that asshole, I want to kill him with all my heart.”

“……!”

Even.

Even Hisagi, who would normally have restrained his brother.

His eyes narrowed.

Realizing the gravity of the situation, Nam asked seriously.

“…… Tell me. What was said at the roundtable.”

*

Magic Tower.

The higher your rank, the higher floors you can access.

Even if it weren’t so, I’d be so crazy that I’d probably just roll over…….

“There’s so much of it, man.”

It’s not like they’re discriminating against people who don’t know magic. Leonie glanced at the mages coming and going, but didn’t let the cursing that was rising in her mouth.

“I apologize. Only the senior mages are authorized to invite outsiders to the upper floors of the Magic Tower! But next time, I’ll make sure to be the senior mage, because that’s the way it’s done.”

“……what?”

Leonie was dumbfounded by Jesse’s straightforwardness.

Aren’t senior mages supposed to be pretty awesome?

And you’re going to treat me right?

Does that mean she’s going to be a senior mage?

“……Ehem.”

Leonie coughed, hoping for the best.

“Hmm, so what is it you want to talk about?”

“About Chief Lee’s time limit.”

“Hey, you can’t say that in a place like this!”

Jesse snapped her fingers.

“I’ve used magic to hide our conversation! The only people who can hear it are probably Chief Lee and Mary, and it’s not something I’d want to hide from them.”

“Oh, yeah……?”

I knew a mage was a fraud, but a berserker who gains a new scar on her body every time she fights is different, a whole new level. Leonie paused in her rambling.

“You’ve noticed it too, haven’t you?”

“I think anyone familiar with Chief Lee’s way of speaking would have understood.”

“Yeah, well, he has a way with words…….”

After a long silence, Leonie asked.

“……You, do you know anything?”

I didn’t want to ask, but I had to.

This was Jesse Heinness, after all, the same mage, same Magic Tower, same Hidden Class, and surely Jesse would know more about him than I did.

But Jesse pushed back.

” …… Isn’t that what I wanted to ask you, Ms. Leonie?”

Jesse was surprised, because she’d been with the Great Alliance since its inception, raided the Rift with him, attended Holy War Alliance meetings with him, and inwardly wondered if Leonie knew more about him than she did.

“Huh.”

“Ugh.”

They both spit out a laugh at the same time.

“I guess we don’t know the same things.”

“I see. Because that’s the kind of person he is.”

“……Dammit.”

Leonie gritted her teeth with a complex, nuanced emotion.

Though she didn’t show it, Jesse was too.

That was why she’d taken off her cone hat, not wanting to give away her secrets.

If they both knew nothing, there would be no conversation.

“Well, let’s get going…….”

Leonie was the first to rise from her seat.

Jesse had just dismissed the magic manifestation when Leonie heard the noise around them.

Leonie turned to Jesse.

“So, is it always this loud in here?”

“No.”

Jesse shook her head.

It’s basically a rule of the Magic Tower to keep things quiet.

It had gotten even stricter since Chief Lee had taken over.

In that sense.

“I think something’s happened.”

Jesse moved quickly.

She grabbed the apprentice mage, who was dragging his robes across the floor.

The apprentice mage gasped.

“Jesse Heinness, Archmage?! You must be Jesse Heinness, right? I’m from the Arcana continent, but I have the greatest respect for you……! It’s an honor to meet you…….!”

“Is that so? Thank you. But more than that.”

“Oh, yes!”

The apprentice mage, having regained his composure, soon states his reason.

“They say that the Senior Mage, Matisse Dean Karl, has responded to the outpouring of requests for proof, and that proof begins now in the Crystal Hall……!”

Proof of what at a time like this?

The words stopped Leonie in her tracks.

More than that, who was Matisse Dean Karl……?

After a pause, Jesse explained.

“Matisse Dean Karl, Senior Mage of Black Magic.”

“That can’t be……. that all-black guy?”

“Yes, and that Mr. Matisse can attest to that…….”

Jesse’s face hardened.

“Probably to validate the black magic that Chief Lee manifested on Jeju Island.”

“……What?”

That’s right.

Whether or not Chief Lee’s black magic was truly manifested to harm the lives of his allies, only Senior Mage Matisse, the founder of Black Magic, would be able to determine.

‘But I’m sure the Magic Tower can ignore such a request.’

Jesse replied with a look of resolve.

“I’ll come with you, Ms. Leonie.”

“Huh? Me?”

“Of course.”

“Huh.”

There you go.

No matter what.

I don’t have the confidence to get through something like a magic proof without falling asleep?!

*

“I swear before the Everlasting Truth.”

Me, Matisse Dean Karl.

“I will declare only the truth here.”