Long-standing Ill Fate (3)

The stabilization of the mine was quite difficult.

However, I consumed a vast amount of mana, and by using the mana amplified through the Necronomicon to practically rebuild the entire skeleton of the mine, the fissure began to stabilize quickly.

“…This is exhausting.”

My currently available mana was enough for only two area-of-effect spells; if I faced an enemy like Wang Sun in this situation, I would have to make a terrible choice.

Either abandon everyone and flee to seek a future opportunity, or burn myself out right then and there.

The worst case would be to hold out by turning myself into an ‘undead,’ but this method was one I was reluctant to use as the aftereffects were severe.

As cold sweat covered my entire body, people began to walk up one by one from below; realizing they were the ones who had been buried, I pointed toward the Gate entrance and spoke.

“If you follow the path straight out, you can reach the exit, so please move calmly. Do not run so as not to create excessive vibrations!”

I gave instructions to the people in a stiff tone, and because it was a life-or-death situation, they followed my words well.

Due to the fact that their numbers were significant, I worried whether there would be any major issues until all these many people were evacuated; then An So-mi entered the Gate and spoke.

“A large number of regular troops have arrived outside. It seems they couldn’t ignore the commotion.”

“…That is a relief.”

“You look very exhausted; are you alright?”

An So-mi took out a handkerchief and handed it to me. I accepted it and spoke.

“Did you have this kind of kindness in you?”

“Just what kind of woman do you think I am?”

“Whew, thank you.”

In fact, if not for Go Yu-jin and An So-mi, the interior would have begun to collapse in earnest due to the shockwave caused by Wang Sun.

“You even say things like that?”

“I am human too. I know how to be grateful, how to give thanks, and I know how to feel ashamed. I was agitated. I should have been more composed.”

“It was enough. It was a wonderful response, and you minimized the damage, didn’t you?”

I hadn’t expected to be comforted, so I looked at An So-mi somewhat blankly, and she continued talking with a sense of pride.

“No need to be that touched. Ahem.”

Shaking my head at my cooling emotions, I watched the people evacuate. After watching for some time while repeating the work of handling cracks as they appeared, my mana was gradually being depleted.

Jeong Do-bin appeared to be coming up as if she had finished some level of work below, and upon spotting me, she asked.

“Just… what on earth happened?”

She seemed to be asking because my appearance was a mess. When I briefly explained the situation from earlier, Jeong Do-bin’s expression stiffened.

“…So he finally caused trouble, didn’t he?”

I felt I knew who she was referring to with those words.

She had surmised that Pi Jin-hyeok was behind this.

Since there was no physical evidence, I couldn’t push him as the culprit. I had even dispatched two elder mages to help prevent the situation from reaching its worst.

If I were to counterattack with claims of slander in such a situation, it would be our loss instead.

Although it was unfair, I had to remain silent.

“There are less than 500 people left now. Most are coming up, and after working on the very few people buried below, my grandfather will come up too.”

“…Is it alright if I don’t give any help?”

“He sent me up first because there’s a risk of collapse.”

It was the heart of an old man caring for his granddaughter. Thus, I said to Jeong Do-bin.

“I want to check the Core; can you take charge of this place?”

Since An So-mi was there as well as Jeong Do-bin, I thought the two of them could at least prevent the fissure from becoming severe.

And she nodded without hesitation.

After leaving behind a request for them, I took a mana potion out of my sub-space, put it in my mouth, and moved my steps to head down to the basement.

“Heh, hehehe… I was hit good. The Worst, are you saying you’re still alive and well?”

It had been a long time since Wang Sun felt such agonizing pain that his senses were completely shaken, so Wang Sun painfully pulled his body up and began to channel his aura.

He wanted to run to the Gate right this instant, break that damn golem, and shake the Gate, but having taken a direct hit from a spell of an unbelievable scale, even keeping his balance was not easy.

So for now, he tried to hide himself by suppressing his presence as much as possible, but it was Pi Jin-hyeok who stepped out from the darkness.

“Your appearance is pathetic.”

“…Pi Jin-hyeok, how did you find this place?”

Then he held something up to show him; it appeared to be a location tracking device.

Wang Sun had expected that he might have placed a tracking device somewhere on his body, and he frowned fiercely and asked.

“Why would you attach such a thing? What were you planning to do?”

“I just couldn’t bear to see a person of your stature dying a lonely death in a foreign land.”

“…Heh, so are you going to try something?”

“You know well.”

It was at that moment when he tilted his head in wonder.

Ping. Startled by the sensation of the world spinning, Wang Sun hurriedly channeled his aura, but when his aura wouldn’t budge, he glared at Pi Jin-hyeok and questioned him.

“What did you do to me?”

“It seems you didn’t think that everything you ate and drank from me would become a single restriction for you.”

“…What is it you want!”

“Don’t shout. I just wanted to have a calm conversation.”

Wang Sun ground his teeth.

At that, Pi Jin-hyeok simply released mana to create a chair out of ice, sat down, and asked.

“You guys must have it too—the method of creating artifacts by using humans as sacrifices.”

“Heh, hehehe, it seems you’re planning to use me as a sacrifice.”

“Correct. So, what kind of artifact do you want to become?”

Having seen a devil in the smiling figure of Pi Jin-hyeok, Wang Sun laughed hollowly. Then, after laughing for a long time, he lunged at Pi Jin-hyeok with an explosive movement, but Pi Jin-hyeok made Wang Sun unable to move a muscle just by lightly kicking off the ground.

Countless tree branches and roots that sprouted from all directions had bound Wang Sun.

Wang Sun tried to break free from this and crush Pi Jin-hyeok’s head somehow, but Pi Jin-hyeok took something out of his sub-space and threw it; the moment it flew and shattered against Wang Sun’s face, emitting smoke, Pi Jin-hyeok conveyed his final intentions to Wang Sun, whose consciousness was fading.

“Since you are a strong vessel, I hope you become a disaster-class artifact. See you later.”

That was Wang Sun’s final memory.

Meanwhile, the fact that personnel deployed from China had caused trouble, and that a black mage had stepped forward to actively protect the Gate and the people, became known to the world.

The media began to continuously carry information about the black mage in question, and as it became known that the black mage had also been involved in the recent Gate Break incident, things began to stir constantly with questions as to why such facts had been kept secret.

“Damn it, isn’t the situation flowing more seriously than expected?”

Kim Dae-san looked around at his staff and began to discuss how to quell this disaster; ultimately, the conversation flowed toward defining it as a terrorist act committed by a Chinese war hero who had come to this land to settle a grudge with the black mage in question.

At that, Kim Dae-san asked while agonizing.

“How many do you think will believe that?”

“…There will be more who trust it, but there will be a significant number of those who do not. Still, I believe it is a better decision than letting the situation reach its worst.”

“It’s exhausting. How much effort have I put in to suppress black mages all this time… for such a disaster to occur!”

Although Kim Dae-san’s resentment was palpable, another advisor slightly raised his hand and spoke.

“Actually, taking this opportunity to promote only that specific black mage as a hero might not be a bad alternative.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I’m saying we should emphasize the grand cause. Doesn’t the banner you’ve held all this time lie in the grand cause, Mr. President?”

Kim Dae-san was a war hero and a person who had protected this country.

Because he was a hard worker who had deeply ingrained the perception that he had made the current Republic of Korea possible through so much sacrifice and effort, the adjutant was conveying the meaning that they should express this part together to stimulate the public.

“Are you saying we should talk as if he also had the same roots as me, and that I actively support him?”

“Half of that is correct.”

“Half, you say… What about the other half of the intention?”

“We cannot bury what the black mage did during the war, and in fact, many citizens know that truth. So we will subtly blend truth and lies.”

“Explain it.”

“First, we explain the reason why I was absolutely necessary for this rescue operation. By highlighting this part and announcing that a high-level black mage had no choice but to be deployed for the operation, we will emphasize your Excellency’s transparent management of talent.”

Kim Dae-san nodded. At that, the emboldened aide continued speaking.

“In such a situation, we frame it as if a long-standing grudge suddenly caused this disaster. Thanks to that, we will see the effect of quelling the atmosphere of hero-worshipping the black mage, while simultaneously showing that many people almost died and it actually caused massive losses to the city center.”

“Hmm… Certainly, if not for their grudge, this disaster wouldn’t have happened, and it will be possible to frame it clearly so that it’s not a failure of my administration. Good!”

The staff began to discuss additional details separately, and Kim Dae-san was simply relieved that all these situations were being resolved well nonetheless.

‘The state of the Gate Core is serious. I didn’t think it would be ground into powder like this.’

There are several ways to destroy a Gate Core, but the most certain way among them is to create a simple fissure.

Since stimulating the core further to add impact could inadvertently cause a massive explosion and lead to a serious collapse of the Gate, it is considered the standard practice to create a simple fissure and then stably continue the recovery of materials for 24 hours; however, the core here appeared to have been thoroughly crushed with the aim of complete collapse.

While I was examining the debris here and there, an investigator who introduced himself as a person dispatched from the government approached and asked.

“Does something come out if you look into it?”

“It’s better to look than not to look.”

“I see. So, did something come out?”

I shook my head.

The investigator curled his lips with a fishy smile as if to say ‘of course,’ but rather than taking issue with his attitude, I examined the surroundings.

‘To blow up a core to this extent, a fairly strong force must be exerted. But was there anyone in the Gate capable of producing such force?’

Since I couldn’t think of anyone no matter how much I thought about it, I was recalling the list of names when a message magic flew in.

-Life rescue is all finished, so please come out. You’ve worked hard! -

It was a message from Jeong Do-bin, and after sending a reply that I understood, I asked the investigator.

“Are you the only one dispatched here?”

“Since manpower is lacking and it’s a dangerous area, even I barely managed to come down. Why?”

It was at that moment when I looked at the man before me and lightly released mana.

“Heh, I really wanted to see you. The Worst, Geum Seong-chan.”

Knowing me was a common thing for an Awakener.

However, it was at that moment when I thought the atmosphere was a bit strange.

“Only this moment is an opportunity given to the chosen one. It was a pleasure. As God wills!!”

Along with those words, the investigator was a person whose whole body burst with light, and realizing immediately what he was trying to do, I straight away used one of the memorized spells on him.

I used the ‘Damage Spread’ spell, which is a spell that spreads impact over a wide range.

Boom, boom, boom!

A thunderous roar and shockwave tried to spread out, but every bit of the impact being transmitted was scattered somewhere by the used magic; leaving behind the charred and torn pieces of flesh that were sticking and stretching over the magic, I began to run straight out to exit the Gate.

‘The fissure is becoming severe. I hope I’m not too late…’