Genius Warlock-Episode 545
545. archive (1)
Eternal Puppet.
Oliver's first finger.
He took Oliver's hand..
Oliver, who had not noticed his presence until his hand touched him, was quite embarrassed by his appearance..
No matter how much I was focusing on the Swan Prince, it wasn't to the point where I couldn't see my surroundings at all..
And that wasn't the only thing that bothered me..
‘That corpse doll... I saw it in the Gallos sewers..’
Sunken cheeks, straw-like hair, a bushy beard, and a naked figure wearing only rags... The corpse doll that Puppet is currently using was the corpse doll that was seen when the human meat chef caused an uproar in Raville..
A beggar he met while helping Jane in the sewers..
Even back then, I thought it was not an ordinary corpse doll, but ironically, now that I know more than then, I can see that it is even more unusual..
The evidence is the strong magical power emitted from the body and the presence that was not recognized until the hand was held..
Feelings of confusion and admiration rose in Oliver's mind, followed by feelings of doubt..
I didn't understand how the puppet suddenly appeared here..
That's because the puppet's presence was not detected anywhere, not only in the dense forest, but also in the Sleeping Forest, which is the princess's domain..
There was a possibility that a puppeteer's level of skill could have been hidden, but not this time..
In order to summon Sleeping Beauty, Oliver used his blood to visit the entire Sleeping Beauty..
Thanks to that, I was able to bring out the castle where the princess lives. At that time, there was no place for the puppet to hide..
Then, there is only one conclusion that can be drawn.
It was outside the Sleeping Forest, and it appeared here using space magic..
However, it wasn't easy either..
Even though spatial magic was possible inside the Sleeping Forest, it was not at all easy to use spatial movement magic from outside the Sleeping Forest to inside..
Inside and outside the barrier were different worlds, and the Sleeping Forest was more than that..
Even if a puppeteer's level of skill could force their way into the Sleeping Forest, appearing exactly at the desired location was a completely different story..
The owner of this sleeping forest was a princess..
However, such doubts were soon resolved as we followed the twisted magic felt by the puppet..
“······Mr. Puppet.”
“huh?”
“Claude. Mr. Bay, Mr. Plague Merchant.... Aren’t they all Puppet’s students??”
Oliver asked as he looked at Claude, Bay, and the Plague Merchant, who were bleeding from their eyes, nose, and mouth and became the ingredients for the summoning spell..
They died silently, shedding a large amount of blood, and the large amount of blood that came out was entangled with each other like a single living thing, forming a living magic circle..
The puppet appeared here through that magic circle..
Through a complex technique of blood magic and human sacrifice using three outstanding warlocks,.
At this level, it was understandable that the puppet appeared here..
The puppet was impressed by Oliver's question..
“Hoo······. You've changed.”
“······.”
“If it was usual, how are you? I would have said hello.”
It was a short and concise answer, but it contained a lot of meaning..
Oliver answered this.
“I heard why Claude, Bay, and the Plague Merchant came here..”
“Why did you say you came??”
“He said he came to get a gift for Puppet..”
I remembered the conversation we had when Oliver was about to move with Claude and his group..
The reason they took the risk to come to the dense forest was not simply because of the legacy of the human meat cooks..
It was true that they were trying to get their hands on the inheritance, but it was not for them, but as a gift for Puppet..
This is unusual for a warlock who places the highest value on his own sacrifice. So it might have been impressive.
“What kind of watch did you hear? I couldn't ask for details. I'm a little busy. but······.”
Oliver, who had been speechless, opened his mouth again..
“······My thoughts for Puppet were sincere..”
“Well then, that's a relief.”
“······?”
“Whatever it was, it was useful to me..”
At that moment, the puppet's magic power fluctuated, and Oliver shook off his grabbed left arm and pulled it back. Preparatory movement for punching.
Both sides were so fast that I couldn't tell who moved first. The only thing that is certain is that Oliver's fist, which also crushed a giant fist reminiscent of a giant, flew towards the puppet, and the puppet blocked it by massing the atmosphere through its powerful magical power..
Jeokjeok!
When Oliver's fist collided with the air barrier, a aftereffect reminiscent of an explosion occurred, and the invisible barrier cracked..
It almost seemed like a crack had appeared in the air, and hundreds of people who saw it were amazed and confused at the same time..
Should we admire Oliver for swinging a fist like that, or should we admire Puppet for blocking a fist like that?.
What was certain was that Puppet and Oliver were now on the same level. Equal Warlock.
Kkugu Soup······!
Oliver strengthened his fist, and the void in the air became wider..
Just as Oliver was about to wrap the black suit around his arm, Puppet, noticing something was wrong, increased the output of his magic power and pushed Oliver away..
Power enough to turn the floor over.
But Oliver flew back only a few steps and landed on his feet..
“I'm not being sarcastic, I'm serious..”
The puppet suddenly said.
“That it was useful to me. I think I kind of know what they're here for, but it's fake..”
“······It's fake?”
Oliver asked back. He risked his life to come here, and in fact, the item that Claude, who lost his life, was aiming for was fake..
It was a cruelly vain fact..
“Okay, what watch did you say? I kind of know what it is. But that's fake. I know it because I saw it when the human meat chef had it. It's fake. I didn't tell you the story.”
“Why didn't you tell me??”
“Human meat chef. Even if I tell that grumpy guy, it'll just be a bother..”
“No, the question I asked was to Claude... Then you wouldn't have come here..”
The puppet tilted its head..
“? Ask the opposite. Why should I talk? I didn't order it, I just did it on my own..”
“······Aren't you Puppet's disciple and member of the organization??”
“There are enough of them that a disciple would be kicked, and they are not members of my organization. I don't work hard like a meat cook. Let everyone do what they want. There are times when I ask for help when I need it..”
I felt like I knew roughly what he meant. Unlike the human meat chef, Puppet did not tie his students into one organization, but rather left them free, maintaining the form of a gigantic point organization. still······.
“······It was for Puppet..”
When Oliver talks about puppets, he thinks of the feelings of Claude and his companions..
On the surface, they said they were there to receive more teachings, but they were really here for the puppets..
Suddenly, I remembered Glip, the puppeteer I met when I was in the beggar gang..
A black magician who was Puppet's disciple, but was not recognized, and tried to join the Black Hand on his own in order to be recognized. Even though the method was to offer the beggar as a living sacrifice to the Black Hand,.
However, regardless of his efforts, the puppet did not remember him at all. Because he lived for hundreds of years and had countless disciples.
‘It's not wrong, but······.’
Oliver sympathized with Puppet's words, but at the same time felt a subtle emotion that was difficult to explain. Sad? regret? or not-
“-Do you sympathize with them??”
The puppet suddenly said.
“······.”
“Then I say there is no need for that. Bay is the guy who sold bombs to criminal organizations, anti-government groups, and warlords, and the plague merchant is the guy who sells diseases instead of bombs. The number of people who have died from their products is probably in the four digits. If you look at it objectively, they are trash worthless of sympathy..”
Sincerity.
“Well, instead of using dangerous items like bombs or plagues, Claude turns women and children into dolls and sells them to rich perverts, so although the harm is less, he is still trash not worthy of sympathy..”
Puppet's words were sincere and correct. Do you look at it with common sense or objectively?.
No, most of those who came to this forest in the first place were involved in the underworld and risked their lives..
Even if I died for some reason, I wouldn't feel resentful or resentful..
It's strange to even ask this. Oliver didn't understand why he was reacting this way. What I'm saying now.
Maybe it was because the emotions I felt when dealing with puppets were the same as those of beggar kids looking at Cant..
a loving guardian.
“······I heard that Puppet raised them. Taken from the orphanage until they become adults..”
“Did you also talk about that??”
Oliver nodded..
“under······. I guess you really liked it. I don't like stories about their crappy orphan days..”
“It's true. At one time, he ran an orphanage and raised many children. That too well.”
“There was something I wanted to test, so I did it. And now, I spent that life because I needed it. Did you get the answer??”
Oliver felt like he didn't know how to explain it. He has no reason to be like this. He and Claude have only talked a few times. but······.
‘hmm······.’
Oliver groaned inwardly, because he didn't even know why he was doing this..
“It really has changed. There are more emotions than when I saw it before. Although it's just a little bit.”
Oliver asked, unable to see his own feelings..
“······What am I feeling??”
“Don't you know? Well, when it comes to emotions, you are the one who doesn't know the most. That's the beauty of emotions. It's unpredictable. Because it's ridiculous that you can hate and love at the same time..”
The puppet said something unintelligible. I couldn't tell what that meant, but there was a bone somewhere..
“You're not bad either... However, let’s postpone that story for now. I came because I had something to see..”
The puppet finished speaking and pointed to the Swan Prince..
“Can I take that back??”
Puppet called the Swan Prince, who single-handedly absorbed and overpowered hundreds of superhumans, his name..
Oliver asked.
“Were you familiar with the Swan Church??”
“I am friends with many people. From the self-proclaimed noble people who sit high up there, to the scum at the bottom of society. However, that is not the case now. I am familiar with the Swan Church, but we are not even close friends..”
“then?”
“By necessity.”
“Is that need related to Puppet's research? humans-”
“-I think I've said it before, but don't bring up other people's stories carelessly. If you don't want to show your true feelings, you shouldn't reveal other people's true feelings..”
“······sorry.”
It was true, so Oliver apologized. He had one of Oliver's bad habits. He couldn't quite fix it though.
With that momentum, Puppet asked for a favor..
“Thank you for your apology. In that sense, can I take that with me? Because I need it.”
The puppet pointed to the Swan Prince and asked again..
He was clearly a predator just a few minutes ago, targeting even Sleeping Beauty, but now he has become a mid-day trophy..
Oliver answered while looking at the Swan Prince..
“That might be troublesome. I also have business to see you..”
“That's troublesome. If we have different opinions, we have to fight, but unfortunately, I'm afraid of fighting with you. Especially when you have bare hands.”
Puppet looked at the quarter staff stuck among the broken remains of the monster..
Oliver also followed the Puppet's gaze and saw the quarter staff, and taking advantage of the attention, the Puppet raised a powerful magic power that even Oliver had never felt before..
The familiar magical power made the surrounding air particles vibrate, and beyond simple vibration, it created a crack in the air..
Space magic using air. A number of corpse dolls appeared between the broken cracks..
A warlock whose entire body swelled and exploded like a drowned corpse - a corpse doll.
A golem-corpse doll that unites dozens of warlocks in the form of a giant scarecrow..
A horse-riding equestrian doll wearing cotton skin all over its body and a beheaded human head wrapped around it like a necklace..
But it didn't end there.
The corpse doll, whose body had bloated and burst open, split open from the lower abdomen to the neck as if it had been cut with a knife, and rotting rats, maggots, and flies poured out from the gap.,
4A golem that seems to be just over a meter tall is holding a staff with a huge bell attached! Dang! A number of manipulation-type black magic spells that cause mental and physical weakening effects were activated within the range of the shaking sound..
The equestrian doll, covered in cotton, very naturally picked up the flesh knife wielded by the Swan Prince and used it as his own weapon..
This was proven by the fact that the flesh knife changed its shape to suit its new owner..
The appearance and power of each one cannot be ignored..
However, despite the appearance of such a corpse doll, Oliver's eyes were fixed on the first corpse doll in the form of a beggar..
Because in his hands was a book with the same magical power as Merlin..
That corpse doll. It was made from an archive..
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