Chapter 160

Ikseon’s death had been sudden.

Because of that, speculations from all walks of life were rampant.

Some said she was wrongly caught in a special-grade Gate and encountered an Archduke.

Others claimed she died at the hands of the head of the ‘Black Serpent’s Shedded,’ the worst criminal organization in Ground Zero.

Or that it was a hit ordered by a large guild that held a grudge against her younger sister, one of the wings of the Blue Sky.

Not a single government agency, including the Bureau, had officially announced the mastermind behind her death.

At the time, she had been furious at that reality, but now, she felt she understood the reason a little bit.

“They couldn’t say that the Master of the Black Magic Tower, who died over a hundred years ago, was actually alive.”

If his existence had been made public, Seoul—which already had three Seeds of Calamity—would have plunged into even greater chaos.

A being who transcended the Transcendent Realm and sought to become an Outer God.

Since it was an existence one couldn’t even physically touch, burying the incident must have been the top priority.

“But you know what?”

For everyone else, those might have been three years of peace.

But for No Yeon-hwa, who had entered the Special Unit to avenge her dead sister, they were three years spent sharpening the blade of revenge.

That blade was etched into the tongue that wielded Word-Spirit, sharp enough to cut the inside of her mouth.

She felt herself being consumed by anger, tasted in the faint flavor of blood she felt every time she breathed.

“If you saw your current state, neither Seona nor Commander Ha Yeri would have made such a decision. Because you are crawling on the floor like those rotting tentacle corpses over there, looking pathetic.”

“Get out of the way! What’s over there is my…”

“Shut up.”

She said, locking eyes with the Archduke of Darkness, who was grabbing her by the hair.

“My story isn’t over yet, so shut up and listen.”

If magic is the power to weave laws, Word-Spirit is the power to tailor the world.

It is the most heterogeneous form of ability among all powers, drawing the metaphysical universe—and what lies beyond it—into the realm of cognition.

Within that includes all emotions, phenomena, and even causality, whether humans feel them or not.

And one of the most fundamental among them was death.

“From now on, you will die very painfully.”

No Yeon-hwa poured out all the mana she possessed.

It did not simply mean death as a form.

“No existence will be able to save you.”

Without complex formulas or tricky hand seals, she recited her words clearly, as if vomiting out the sincerity held within her heart.

“After you die, there will be nothing left.”

Her vision blurred, and her ears went deaf.

Her stomach churned and a headache spiked, to the point where it was impossible to even think of the next sentence.

She didn’t know if it was because she had drained all her mana, or if the overwhelming power of the Word-Spirit had affected her as well.

Or perhaps it was because of the grief of losing her sister.

However, she couldn’t stop having come this far, and the thought of stopping had never existed from the start.

“So, die.”

No Yeon-hwa wiped the blood flowing from her lips and said.

“Obey my command.”

“Ah…”

When she opened her eyes again, the Archduke of Darkness was nowhere to be found.

Only a few grayish-white remnants left in her pale, trembling hands proved that he had once been here.

Even those were soon washed away by the sea breeze.

The massive tower that had fallen with him when he was summoned, and the monsters that had poured out from within, had all shared the same fate.

“Cough…!”

No Yeon-hwa, attempting to rise, sat back down, vomiting blood.

The Word-Spirit that had annihilated the Archduke of Darkness must have been so strong that it caused self-inflicted damage, but she felt there was another reason.

‘It’s over now.’

Having achieved her revenge, there was nothing left.

There was no reason to stay in the Special Unit, nor was there any need to return to the Wings of the Blue Sky.

Above all, she had no will left to resist this storm-like power that was driving her existence toward death with every passing moment.

If there was any lingering attachment left, it was perhaps just that she hadn’t completed the ultimate Word-Spirit.

Unlike the Dragon Immortal, who had left behind a treaty to protect the city, her final words had been nothing but a curse born of spite.

The command to disappear without leaving anything behind would likely linger here even after her death, bringing accidents and death to the harbor.

There were almost no beings that could survive the aftermath.

—That’s settled, right? Now we have no more old grudges between us.

Maybe just the strange man whose Word-Spirit hadn’t worked properly since their first meeting.

Kiiieeeek!

The tentacle corpses, what they were she couldn’t tell even after seeing them with her own eyes.

Hayan muttered something while peeling off a piece of a large, pinkish tentacle and giving it to the dark, slimy tentacle corpses.

As the ringing in her ears vanished and only the silence of death lingered, No Yeon-hwa could hear their conversation clearly.

Kiiieeeek!

—Four major social insurances and staff discounts for the Necropolis hot springs (breakfast included)… What? You say that’s not enough yet?

Kiiieeeek!

—You want me to let you eat the corpses of the humans who died here? But I don’t see a single mage. Come to think of it, where did everyone go? Did they get roasted by the Archduke of Darkness’s magic?

Hayan, who had just come out of the tower, didn’t know, but in fact, the mages had safely evacuated to another location.

It was thanks to Ha Yeri, who had received word of the Archduke’s emergence and dispatched a rescue team including Kang Ha-neul, who had recently awakened to the Transcendent level.

Among them, Kang Nabi, who arrived in Busan first, had utilized her ability to its fullest upon seeing the situation, succeeding in moving almost all the mages at the harbor to other locations before the Thundering Lament could strike.

All that remained was for Ha Yeri to drop the tactical nuclear weapon she had been saving on Busan, but she hadn’t been able to make the decision yet due to Mayor Park Mak-rye’s desperate persuasion.

—Ah, you mean Yeon-hwa.

Kieek!

The tip of the tentacle, which had become a colony and formed the shape of a black hand, pointed toward her.

Just before she lost the fading thread of her consciousness.

No Yeon-hwa saw Hayan’s reaction.

Hmm…

Ummm…

Uuuuuuuuuuum…!

Why are you agonizing over it!

And it’s too long!

“Ah, so you were alive?”

“Die.”

“Gah!”

She immediately rose from her seat, walked over, stepped on his foot, and kicked him in the shin.

As a bonus, she fed him a dose of Word-Spirit, causing Hayan to vomit blood and collapse.

“Ugh, I think this is the end for me. I’ve already raided a grave in Tapgol Park to prepare a spot for myself, so when I die, make sure to…”

“I know you’re not dead, so stop with the theatrics and get up.”

No Yeon-hwa, who pulled him up, found a towel inside Hayan’s robe to wipe his messy face.

And she looked coldly at Hayan, who was fawning over her, claiming he had seen all of her brilliant performance.

“But, you know.”

“Yes?”

“That guy, doesn’t it seem like his condition wasn’t right, no matter how you look at it?”

“Um… well?”

Apart from the first activation of her advanced Word-Spirit, No Yeon-hwa knew how to objectively evaluate what kind of enemy she had faced.

For a man once called a Tower Master and an Archduke, it was a decidedly lackluster end.

Surely he should have had two soul restorations left?

When No Yeon-hwa shot him a suspicious look, Hayan hurriedly pulled his tentacles back and said.

“It seems to be thanks to you brilliant people who gathered from each Magic Tower putting in a lot of seasoning… no, forcing the Archduke of Darkness to the brink of death.”

“Those people didn’t even touch a hair on his head and were all routed, so what are you talking about?”

“Oh… then that means you must be exceptional, Yeon-hwa. I heard your Word-Spirit earlier, and I almost jumped into the sea myself!”

“So you’re saying I almost died trying to use Word-Spirit on a corpse that was crawling around with only an upper body?”

“…”

Hayan had been hiding his strength to some extent; No Yeon-hwa had been certain of that since their first mission together.

After all, it was No Yeon-hwa who had encouraged Hayan to promote to Middle Level through the promotion evaluation.

In a world where you never knew what might happen, everyone usually hid about 30% of their true power, so she hadn’t bothered to dig deeper until now.

But this time, it was different.

“Yeon-hwa, you seem to be suspicious of me.”

“I am suspicious, so what.”

“I, Sae Hayan, the Light Mage, am working day and night to ensure the safety of citizens and win the Monster World Championship, but I’m not yet world-class to that extent.”

“And a person like that caught an Archduke? Even a mage who mastered Black Magic?”

It wasn’t just a matter of him hiding a single killing blow.

As proof, there wasn’t a single scratch on Hayan’s body after the battle.

No Yeon-hwa didn’t like this dark side of him that occasionally surfaced alongside his troubled expressions.

“Yeon-hwa…”

“Oh, for the record, the trick you used before won’t work on me.”

“Trick?”

“You cast a similar hypnosis on me before, didn’t you?”

It had been a long time since she had ascended to Upper Level and recovered those memories as well.

Though the most crucial details still remained.

Especially while in the underground prison, the identity of someone who had been with her was still a mystery.

She clearly remembered that it was a girl with white hair, but what they had talked about was the problem.

“Don’t even think about making excuses.”

“But…”

“And don’t even think about taking your foot off mine.”

“Hiiing.”

Thinking she had to get to the bottom of this here, No Yeon-hwa didn’t let him go.

Hayan, who had his foot pressed down firmly, finally opened his mouth.

“The 41st Tentacle.”

“You…!”

“I’m sorry, Yeon-hwa. I still cannot reveal my secret…”

“Yaaaah! Savior Punch!”

Just as he was about to cast hypnosis again.

Suddenly, a mage in a white robe popped out from the debris next to them.

“Gack!”

“I, I caught him…!”

She shouted triumphantly, having planted a punch packed with mana into Hayan’s stomach.

“We of the White Magic Tower caught the Archduke of Darkness! With this, no one will be able to ignore us anymore!”

“…”

“Huh? Who is this person…?”

A moment later, an ambulance arrived to transport the collapsed Hayan.

The paramedic who loaded Hayan and the White Magic Tower mage onto a stretcher asked No Yeon-hwa, who was standing nearby.

“Are you the guardian?”

“Yes.”

“Should we transport him to the nursing hospital?”

“Just a moment.”

After pondering, No Yeon-hwa pulled out her smartwatch.

And she left messages for two people, neither of whom were even on her friend list.

I think luck was on my side.

For some reason, my condition was unusually good that day.

—You’re making excuses that won’t even work again?

—No need to listen. I know Hayan well; even if he fell into water, only his mouth would be floating around.

—That’s true. But did you know there was a space like this in the basement of the mansion? The bed is soft and the lighting is pretty.

Please save me.

Mala-nim, Mala-nim, where are you?

Pardon? A nursing hospital?

You ran away to save only yourself again, you cowardly and pathetic Tentacle Outer God.

This won’t do, Digestion. You’ll be with me at least, right?

Digestion?

—It’s still a prison, no matter what. There’s even electricity running through the iron bars.

—This is a place specially prepared for Hayan. It wasn’t built with the intention of having so many people enter.

—It’s better than it looks; I want to build one too, can’t you tell me the contractor?

That’s right, in fact, I am an Apostle of an Outer God.

I am the terror of the Archdukes who bring chaos and destruction, and I am your apocalypse!

Lower your heads and bow!

I will make you taste the humiliation of not being able to move a single finger!

—What is that again?

—It’s, it’s a restraint frame…

—What!? They sell things like that too?

—Y, you can get them if you go to the Ground Zero black market.

—Looking at the size, it’s for women, right? Aha… you pretend like you’re not that way, but your tastes are quite something.

—Y, you aren’t in a position to talk about others! You run away whenever Hayan comes onto you!

Kieek!

Kiiieeeek!!

Mom!!!

Commander Ha Yeri!!!

—Ah, don’t thrash about, you guys!

—You have no idea how hard it was for me to cover up for you when you revealed you were from the Black Magic Tower to the Tower itself. Just stay still.

—You, shut up. It won’t be good for you if Commander Ha Yeri finds out either.

—Wait a moment, if I press this switch…

Keeeeeeng…!

“Finally, it’s quiet.”

“Hayan talks too much.”

“So…”

Yoo Se-byeol, Cheon So-baek, and No Yeon-hwa.

“Who do you want to talk to first?”

When I, having been knocked out by the ‘Savior Punch’ thrown by Moon Ah-rin’s fervent follower, finally opened my eyes.

The three women gathered in the basement were sitting in chairs surrounding me.