The Importance Of A Single Stroke

There was a magic circle that had not been used in the last war and still remained intact, a one-time-use circle that would be finished once activated.

Because it was Baek Da-gyeong, who had been active in Busan, she knew of this secret magic circle, and having kept it maintained without dispelling it because she thought there might come a time to use it, she now began preparing to use it for a surprise strike on Tsushima.

With her personal relic, the Mobile Magic Tower, she intended to cross over to Tsushima together with a small number of black mages who followed her and strike the warships that had transported the Japanese army.

“But can we really do this on our own?”

“It’s more than enough. It’s not as if we’re trying to destroy every ship, only to destroy some of them.”

Baek Da-gyeong, a great black mage, was convinced that with herself and four 6th Circle black mages under her command, it was not beyond their abilities.

The problem, however, was that Japanese warships always had mages stationed aboard, so if they ended up losing too much time, there was a great risk of a counterattack.

‘The total number of spells I can prepare with Memorize is only up to two. That means I have to destroy a whole lot of warships in just those two moves, but is that possible while the mages are interfering?’

Although she was called a ‘great mage,’ she was not someone with ‘Master’-class skill, so there were many things weighing on her mind.

It was at the moment she was deeply troubled, because the gap between User-class and Master-class was far greater than one might think.

“Please allow us to help as well.”

The Tower Master of a regional Magic Tower based in Daegu had come and joined the conversation.

The operation was already being steadily prepared, and the goal was to bring several high-level experts along to protect them while also preparing large-scale magic.

But an unexpected figure had spoken up, saying he wished to participate as well.

‘The Tower Master of one of the three great regional Magic Towers….’

As an 8th Circle Beginner, he was one of those being discussed as a candidate for the next Magic Tower Master. She immediately understood why he was stepping forward.

‘So, you want to gain fame.’

“It may not be a pure intention, but if it is for your own advancement, you’ll still do your utmost, won’t you?”

“Of course. Petty people like us stake our lives on things like that.”

It was the Magic Tower Master of the regional Magic Tower, openly revealing his ambition. Rather, it was this kind of person who devoted himself wholeheartedly. So Baek Da-gyeong nodded and answered.

“Let’s do it. How many can you mobilize?”

“Seven including myself. A 7th Circle Beginner and Users. Unfortunately, there’s no Master-class expert.”

He said it was unfortunate, but they were by no means weak enough to be ashamed of. Since this was a situation requiring the operation to be carried out with a small elite force, they were more than welcome, and she pointed at the Mobile Magic Tower as she said,

“You just need to go inside and prepare your magic.”

“I look forward to working with you.”

Then the mages who had moved with him entered the Mobile Magic Tower together. Afterward, Baek Da-gyeong let several additional Awakeners into the Mobile Magic Tower, then shrank it and held it in her hand.

“So, are you going now?”

Baek Da-gyeong nodded at the question from Kim Cheol-jung, the government military commander who had been designated as the person in charge of the Gyeonggi-do front.

“It will not be an easy operation. And if it becomes a dead end, Japan may not retreat after all.”

“I know. That’s why I understand we have to destroy things in moderation.”

“I’m counting on you. In order to change the atmosphere of this front, your role will be very great.”

Since she already knew all that, Baek Da-gyeong nodded as if it were nothing much in reply, and then Kim Cheol-jung told her that permission had come down from above to proceed with the operation and wished her safety.

And so, she moved to the magic circle inside the evacuation facility prepared beneath Daegu.

“The operation will be carried out. We have been instructed to act accordingly.”

At the story delivered to Han Sang-gil by a colonel from Operations Command, he looked down at the operations map and asked,

“Where are we supposed to push down through?”

“We must reclaim Jinju. The order is to prevent the enemy from concentrating toward Suncheon.”

“How interesting, but I hear the situation in Jeolla-do is unfolding strangely?”

“Ah, the government has hired mercenaries and is stopping the Chinese 3rd Fleet that is entering Jeolla-do.”

“Hoh, so there’s a mercenary with that level of skill? Who is it?”

“It is someone Great Mage Han Sang-gil knows very well.”

At that moment, Han Sang-gil thought of one person. Then his expression hardened as he asked,

“…Are you saying that man agreed to Kim Dae-san’s request?”

“I do not know what kind of relationship they have, but I hear he was hired as a mercenary with a rather enormous sum of money.”

At the words ‘enormous sum of money,’ Han Sang-gil had no choice but to click his tongue.

Recently, it had strongly felt as though Geum Seong-chan was craving money and relics, and Han Sang-gil was not unaware of where those were flowing.

That did not mean he opposed it.

That was because the treatment black mages had received had been the worst of the worst.

If they had at least had financial power to support them, they might have somehow used public opinion to respond, but even that had been crushed by the vested interests, leaving them no choice but to bow their heads and be dragged along.

The Black Mage Association and the Black Tower had only been able to exist because many black mages, whether domestic or abroad, had supported them by gathering funds little by little.

‘What a shackle…. It looks as though we are going to end up owing that fellow a great debt….’

“Do you know the operation situation?”

“It seems they will achieve a great victory. And before Jeolla-do, they had already won a great victory in one other place.”

“I did watch the speech…. So he was involved in that as well?”

“He is an extremely powerful Awakener.”

He was an 8th Circle Beginner black mage. No one here knew what kind of miracle he might be capable of.

It was because it was a realm regarded as an unprecedented and unexplored domain.

Somewhere, someone might already have reached that realm and be moving on toward the next stage, but Han Sang-gil had never seen an Awakener whose growth surpassed Geum Seong-chan’s, and when he thought of the man still growing without any end in sight even now, it felt strangely as though he had become an old man consigned to the back room.

“So all we have to do is stop the enemy advance, is that it?”

“Yes. It would be troublesome if the Japanese army broke through into Jeolla-do and targeted the rear of our forces opposing the Chinese Communist army.”

“Understood. Let us prepare.”

After that, Han Sang-gil and two other great mages headed to the front accompanied by many black mages, and at the same time, Baek Da-gyeong also moved to Tsushima and began carrying out the operation.

The southern front was about to erupt into violent urgency.

Meanwhile, everyone running across the sea toward the Chinese fleet was bewildered by the reality that one person’s power could create a miracle like this.

“Guild Master, this really is reality, right?”

“Shut up and run. That person merely gave us an opportunity.”

It was the Gwangju Guild Master, now looking up at the black mage calmly cutting through the air at the very front, and at those words, a guild member who had also turned his gaze upward spoke carefully.

“With power like that, it feels like he could just handle everything alone. Why do you think he’s going this far?”

“Maybe he’s trying to bring about unity?”

“Unity, huh. If we really end up dealing with the bastards who invaded us with our own power, the solidarity will definitely be tremendous.”

“That won’t be all. He won’t just want a simple victory. If that were all, he would have handled it all alone.”

It certainly seemed there was some hidden intention, but that was not important for the moment.

From the many ships visible in the distance, those who looked like enemies were jumping down.

Just from the fact that they were not immediately running toward this side and were instead gathering beneath the ships, no one could take them lightly, so everyone tensed up, but the closer the distance with the enemy became, the stranger the situation looked, and everyone was bewildered.

‘…Why are they all crawling on the ground?’

It was a situation no one could understand, but the Awakeners had no intention of waiting until they finished regrouping like this, so each used their own powers and charged at the enemy.

But the problem came after that.

“Su, surrender!”

“We will defect!!”

“Please spare us!!”

Urgent cries erupted.

Because once awakened, one could understand all languages, they could tell with what emotions the enemy was surrendering, but many Awakeners, their eyes blazing, charged in as they were and began killing the Chinese Awakeners. Only then did the Chinese army realize the situation was not flowing the way they wanted, and they resisted, but they had already lost their momentum, and for some reason they could not even properly use their strength, so they began dying helplessly.

The Korean Awakeners had no choice but to falter before the resistance of those who looked to be powerful high-ranking Awakeners, but then a gigantic earth golem appeared, and it was Go Yu-jin throwing herself forward as if burrowing straight into that place.

Thud, thud! Every time it stepped on the ground, the ice cried out as though it would shatter, but as if she had no concern for such things, she rushed toward the enemy and attacked them.

That momentum was so tremendous that even the Korean Awakeners, who had been hesitating, raised their spirits once more, and at that moment someone was seen rising up into the air. The Gwangju Guild Master saw Geum Seong-chan also closing the distance to that existence and exchanging words.

‘A duel between high-ranking mages?’

There was also a Magic Tower in Gwangju, and in fact many mages from there had gone out to support the Gyeongsang-do region, so that was the current situation.

They were people he knew little by little in ordinary times, so he knew what level their strength was, but he instinctively realized at once that the two people floating in the air right now felt beyond all standards.

‘I need to pull everyone back from near there.’

“Jeong-min, pull the people back from around those two mages.”

Bak Jeong-min, having received the order, hurriedly pulled people back, and in that moment a flash of light burst in the air, and they saw the Chinese mage attack Geum Seong-chan.

But Geum Seong-chan, as though it were nothing, raised his hand and created a black veil that deflected the enemy’s attack, and at the same time they saw him instantly close the distance by using Blink-type magic and stick to the enemy mage.

They could see the enemy panic, but in the next moment, an enormous amount of mana burst outward and filled the air, and as the high-ranking mage fell straight toward the ground, the Gwangju Guild Master keenly realized just why Geum Seong-chan was called a ‘great mage.’

Meanwhile, Go Yu-jin was also unleashing a fierce offensive against high-ranking Awakeners.

“You attack even when we are surrendering, and you still call yourselves soldiers?!”

“We are not soldiers. We are merely civilians in the sense of a militia defending ourselves against invaders!”

“Nonsense! There is no way beings with this much power are civilians! You spew such nonsense because you intend to kill us all!”

It was a Chinese general who, at a glance, appeared to hold quite a high rank.

She remembered that he was of the rank of Lieutenant General, but his rank was not important to Go Yu-jin.

That was because, though they were few in number, all of the resisting Awakeners were very powerful beings.

At the very least, she was certain that if Geum Seong-chan had not used cold magic to inflict status abnormalities on them, the state of the battle now would not be what it was.

But just then, a very powerful mana surged from the air, and Go Yu-jin curled the corner of her mouth upward as she saw the Chinese mage falling straight down.

“We do not accept surrender!”

This might become a problem later, but if not a single one were left alive, then that was all that mattered, thought Go Yu-jin as she began pouring mana into the golem.

Then she quickly patterned the golem’s mana and began reinforcing it, and using the fact that the golem’s body, now granted various enchants, had become incomparably swifter and stronger, she charged at the enemy.

“Capture that damned woman alive and negotiate with her. Neutralize her no matter what!”

At the Chinese Lieutenant General’s order, dozens of high-ranking Awakeners rushed forward. But Go Yu-jin simply clenched her fist as though it were nothing, then swung it at the enemies charging head-on and activated the enchanted magic.

In an instant, the fist exploded and spewed countless fragments in all directions. The enemy, startled, tried to defend themselves, but those at the front were swept up by the countless fragments and reduced to tatters, swaying limply, and Go Yu-jin, as though she had no intention of missing this chance, plunged even deeper inside and from the center of the enemy formation, with her whole body stained red, shouted.

“If you think you can catch me, then try. It won’t be easy.”

With that relaxed shout, a massive explosion erupted.