◈ Chater 96. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth (1)
Big stature.
Angular hips.
A pale face.
The interrogation led by Marcelo was surprisingly intense.
To the point where I don’t regret letting it go.
Especially since it was about Magic Tower.
There was no mercy.
“I am asking you about the whereabouts of Karimzeva.”
“I told you I don’t know, and you’re asking because you think that arrogant old man is going to tell me where he’s hiding?”
“Let me see if you’re serious about that.”
“Ew, ew, ew!”
Fajijizik─!
A magic that sent shivers down the spine.
Marcelo didn’t change his expression, and neither did Jang Hyun.
No, they tortured the devil.
I realize once again.
The wizards of the Magic Tower are not to be messed with.
‘In a way, it makes sense that there was no blood or tears.
Of course, this interrogation.
It’s not my place to say anything as I stand by and watch.
I can’t help it.
Do I, Grandfell, feel sympathy for the demon?
It was impossible.
“What, say something……!!!”
There’s no point in looking at me like that.
I summarize the information I’ve gleaned from my interrogation.
“Akampatam, Named Demon.
The Akampatam was the demon that possessed Jang Hyundo.
It sounds like a big deal to call it Named Demon, but it’s not much different. Among the demons, those categorized as named monsters were the demons of destiny.
‘Stronger than demons of the same level.’
Named monsters.
I’ve seen them many times in the Rift [Predator Swamp].
Normal monsters, when they’re named, their patterns are f*cking crazy.
Demons are supposed to be even worse.
“As you may have heard, I had no intention of cooperating with Karimzeva, the old man, in the first place, though I did think about stabbing him in the back. I don’t want the High Demon to be resurrected either!”
Akampatam agreed.
“Especially that f*cking snout.”
The last thing the Magic Tower wants is is not a small pup like himself.
Karimzeva, the demon worshipper.
He realized that from Marcelo’s question.
It was a cunningly worded argument.
“I swear. I’ve told you everything I know.”
Karimzeva fell for it.
As if that weren’t enough, he almost got shot in the back of the head.
Well, at least we know what Karimzeva’s plan is.
“Create simultaneous cracks…….”
And so it was.
Karimzeva is preparing a summoning ritual for the High Demon.
Just as Frost and Decarabia had done.
The sacrifice would be needed to resurrect the High Demon.
Karimzeva and the other demon worshippers will open the rift.
They planned to use the rift to fulfill the sacrifice.
“You mean Senior Vanguard was about to become a sacrifice.”
How dare you take the senior mage of the Mage Tower… …
Marcelo’s eyes came alive once more.
Marcelo coldly assessed the situation.
“Now that the two demon worshippers except Karimzeva are trapped in the void. He won’t be able to control as many rifts as he had planned.”
I’d have to agree with that.
But even with less rifts than planned.
I can guess at the appropriate level of those rifts.
[Broken Dimensional Rift]
[Recommended Level: Lv.900]
Of course, it was a trap for Senior Mage Vanguard.
Perhaps the appropriate level was unusually high.
However, Karimzeva was a bigger variable than the appropriate level.
“Suppose there’s a Karimzeva waiting in the Rift.”
The moment players enter?
They’ll just go straight to the top of the sacrifice line.
The problem was, there was a good chance Karimzeva would do just that.
He’d confided in Akampatam about his plans.
Karimzeva was cornered.
“I just couldn’t win against the threats… … ! The only thing I had to do was to hand over information about you, Lee Ho-yeol. Then you’ll know how the magic tower rolls. But damn it. Why is the succubus… … ?”
As Akampatam said.
If I hadn’t been contacted by Baek Yi-Seol, I would have ended up a long way behind. but it was also me who made him a person through the [Exorcism Ritual].
In that case.
‘Well done, Lee Ho-yeol.’
I can only praise my past self once more.
My iron skin is now thicker than ever.
This is something I can’t do anymore, not even on a self-pitying axis.
As if to prove it, I am overwhelmed with emotion.
‘It would have been terrible before. Really.’
The possibility of a vast number of high-level rifts appearing simultaneously all over the world, the possibility of a monster called Karimzeva lurking in those rifts, and even the possibility of a higher-level demon being summoned if you can’t clear them.
……Wow. That’s scarily dark, isn’t it?
As if that wasn’t bad enough, I’m only level 324.
I don’t even know where to start.
It’s a scale I can’t even begin to fathom.
But I wasn’t alone anymore.
Well, at least I was authorized.
“As of this moment, I’m granting the senior mages access to the rift. Marcelo.”
Yes, I had full authority over the mages’ access to the tower……!
Karimzeva is the High Sinner of the Tower.
I’m here to secure him.
It’s not a license to go against protocol or pride.
Yes, I am more confident than ever.
I’ll be able to wield the power of the tower.
“The Tower Quest is standard.”
In securing Karimzeva, you’ll also clear the Rift.
“The experience and loot you’ll gain from him will be nothing to sneeze at.
Of course, my selfishness was never obvious.
Marcelo replied.
“I will hasten my preparations, Karimzeva will find out soon.”
Hmmm.
I looked at Jang Hyundo, who flinched.
He’ll find out?
Find out what?
Didn’t I just tell him the whole truth?
Jang Hyundo. No, Arkampatam had a questioning look on his face.
I looked at him coldly.
‘What’s the point of running your mouth?’
I don’t have a clue.
.
.
.
Pfft-
Akampatam lowered his head and gritted his teeth.
‘I’m going to …… kill you.’
Thanks to the deal he’d made with Karimzeva.
He was less wary of himself.
Akampatam was relieved.
“At least I’ll be alive.”
Despite the relief, he couldn’t help but shiver.
“Crazy mage bastards.”
Like Karimzeva, and so with this bonehead.
They’re all ignorant.
They wield this kind of power and show no emotion.
They had no awareness of the power they were wielding.
In that case, it didn’t make sense.
“What is it?
Lee Ho-yeol.
He didn’t feel the same magic as Karimzeva or Bonehead.
The Akampatam knew the mages well.
If they wanted to show off their power, they showed it off.
A mage never hides his power.
But…….
Is he hiding his power?
Or is it that he doesn’t have the power?
Either way, neither made sense.
‘That’s right, from a while ago.’
Isn’t this bonehead saying honorifics to Lee Ho-yeol?
As if that weren’t enough, his attitude is very polite.
I didn’t sense any negative emotions.
It was a sincere gesture.
“Forget it, it’s none of my business.”
Thinking about it further would only make things more complicated.
Akampatam dismissed the idea.
Instead, he rolled his head in the direction of confidence.
“By the way, there’s nothing I can’t say in front of you, Akampatam.
Lee Ho-yeol and Bonehead, Marcelo.
I had a general idea of the situation thanks to their conversation.
“They are trapped in a space called Void.”
Karimzeva.
The fellow demon worshippers he was looking for.
That was a surprise, even for an Arkampatam.
One of Karimzeva’s allies, no doubt.
He must have magic power that rivaled him.
“You mean those monsters were subdued?”
How did this place come into existence, this tower?
To think that I was drawn to such a place.
I was creeped out again, but…….
Regardless, I had gained valuable information.
“It’s okay to go back with this.”
Now that I had revealed Karimzeva’s entire plan.
I hadn’t the slightest desire to meet him.
But he’s not the kind of man to stay put.
When Karimzeva came to me.
I knew I had to say something to save my life.
“Of course, you’ll have to keep what happened today a secret.”
Fooling Karimzeva?
I was confident.
I don’t care how great he is.
He’s just a man who’s already been fooled once.
The second time would be easier.
“To do that, I must keep my mouth shut for now.”
Akampatam held his breath.
Yes, just to get out of here alive.
Then he heard a voice.
“I will hasten my preparations, Karimzeva will find out soon.”
“?”
He’s going to find out?
He’ll find out what?
I’m supposed to keep my mouth shut about this?
“!”
Akampatam looked up in surprise, then made eye contact.
with Ho-Yeol.
And then he remembered.
It was a voice that seemed to pass through him.
-“I do not speak to my prey.”
It was true.
It was the gaze of a natural enemy upon its prey.
Akampatam’s pupils turned pitch-black.
“You, you?”
A rattle.
The tongue, which had been intact even in the presence of the fire dragon, Karimzeva, refused to speak.
It could not utter the cunning words that had deceived even Karimzeva.
Even the head stopped thinking.
Yes, it was an irresistible tremor.
It was fear.
To such an Akampatam, Ho-yeol said.
“I see it.”
“……?”
“That foolish illusion.”
An illusion.
I realized immediately what he meant.
“It was an illusion to think I could get back alive……?”
But I couldn’t say anything.
You don’t “talk” to your prey.
It was as if he had just made a one-sided declaration, not a conversation.
There was no hesitation in Ho-Yeol’s actions.
Akampatam was stunned.
“This is how it ends, for me, Akampatam?”
abruptly.
Of course, he couldn’t even let out his astonishment.
*
“It wouldn’t do any good for him to know what’s going on inside.”
Marcelo erased Jang Hyundo’s memory.
How far, I don’t know.
I hope he wiped as much of her memory as possible.
Until it’s too late.
“Jang Hyundo is known for other things.”
Drugs, drunk driving, thievery.
Even before he was possessed by Akampatam, Jang Hyundo was in the news for all sorts of things.
I want that asshole to get out of the way and reinstall it.
I don’t think Karimzeva would stand for that.
Akampatam’s memory had been erased.
There’s no way they can talk to each other.
He could take out his anger on Jang Hyundo.
Of course, that depends on whether or not he’s reformed.
It depends on how much of his memory remains.
“By the way.”
[Natural enemies].
And when he activated the [Exorcism Ritual], he felt it.
‘I shouldn’t have said that out loud.’
Apparently, I had grown quite a bit while clearing the [Predator Swamp].
Of course, there were no demons in the Predator Swamp.
The effect of [Natural Enemy] being triggered after a short period of time would have been dramatic.
Even with that in mind, I couldn’t believe how easy it was to hunt.
I checked the status window.
Akampatam, Named Demon.
I gained 9 levels by killing him.
[Name: Grandfell Claudi Arpheus Romeo]
[Title: The Last Adventurer]
[Class: Demon Hunter]
[Level: 333]
[Stats]
Strength: 60 / Agility: 65 / Magic: 271 / Luck: 6 / Aesthetics: Low]
[Points Possessed: 9]
Based on the amount of experience gained.
Akampatam must be at least level 560.
To kill a creature like that.
I didn’t even need any fancy magic.
──────
Silver Mastery (81%)
──────
Just to get my skill level up.
I simply attacked with my shapeshifting silver.
But then I landed an unexpected critical hit.
[A ‘critical hit’ occurs on Akampatam, Named Demon].
Was I just lucky?
Or maybe it’s because I invested points in luck.
I could have shrugged it off and moved on.
But I knew.
In [Natural Enemy]. It’s not just the activation radius that’s increased.’
The higher the level.
Just like the activation radius of the [Natural Enemy], it became more and more enormous.
It means that the [Natural Enemy] between me and the Demon has also become stronger.
‘It means that I’ll have an even greater advantage in the battle with the demon.’
I said shamelessly.
“But I can’t be satisfied.”
It’s not that I’m greedy, I’m just not there yet.
I didn’t have far to go.
In the [Predator Swamp].
I fought a crappy battle.
I’m not even good enough with a sword.
Riding a lotus leaf for lack of magic.
I’ve taught pure spirits the bitter taste of hierarchy…….
“That’s why I can’t be complacent.”
I don’t know about the ever confident Grandfell.
I’m saying you have to keep cool until the end.
It is important not to forget to understand the subject.
In that sense, I was thoroughly prepared.
Myself–
The words on the parchment.
──────
The enchantment of your requested tool has been successfully completed.
──────
Sipping─
Teacup set down.
[The effect of the elixir, ‘Starflower Root’, increases your Intelligence by 1 point].
The preparations to dispose of Karimzeva.
I’m sure the senior mages at the Tower are as well.
So, I resolve once again.
I understand the situation.
I will make good use of the support I have in Magic Tower.
I have no desire to get caught up in a whale fight and die a horrible death.
.
. https://pindangscans.com
.
Yeah, that’s what I told myself.
I didn’t ask for this kind of overwhelming treatment.
‘…… It’s overwhelming, beyond overwhelming.’
But as usual, I can’t hold back.
I looked at the middle aged man across from me.
He smiles at me with a gentle smile.
“This is the first time we’re having this conversation, so let me introduce myself.”
He’s small for a man.
But the transcendent magic that radiates from his body reminds me of who he is.
Reminds me again.
But there’s no bending.
“F*cking pride.”
That’s why I beat the shit out of him.
Despite the echoing resentment inside me.
I opened my mouth to speak, cockily.
“No, I’ll skip the introductions.”
“Oh?”
“Senios, the Elder Mage. Tell me what brings you to me.”
Noblesse oblige.
To the current state of the tower.
Two elder mages who had done nothing but stand by and watch.
The pride of Grandfell would not be pleased.
It would be impossible to say anything decent, let alone respectful.
I felt like rolling my eyes.
‘If you ask the boss… … . Even if I get fired, I have nothing to say. really.’
I wonder if they have retirement benefits at Magic Tower.
If so, what will they give me?
What happens to the tools I borrowed?
But the answer was not what I expected.
“It’s simple. It’s for a permit.”
……Wait, permission?
What kind of permission does the elder wizard need from me?
I thought, and then I remembered.
I was given the power of the Tower.
Senios smiled and continued.
“Elder Mage, Senios formally requests permission to go out the Tower.”
As if he meant it.
According to procedure.
He added the purpose.
“The purpose is to execute with my own hands the high criminal of the Tower, Karimzeva.”
……No, you’re way overqualified for reinforcements, aren’t you?
I’m surprised enough to let out a nurturing huff.
I can’t keep a straight face.
Sip─
I said, nonchalantly setting down my teacup.
“I’ll need a more specific reason.”