Chapter 504. Enlightenment (2) |
'If it were usual, he would've regained his composure by now and started smoking again...'
Was it denial? Or was he in shock because the true nature of the alien he knew differed from the form that had just unfolded? Still, as I had thought, this level of consternation was within the range of normal behavior. I opened my mouth immediately.
"Please don't be startled."
For my first line, I chose a gently persuasive tone.
"This is all just a skill. It's no different from the wondrous effects of the [Skill Stones] you've obtained and used in countless dungeons, Hunter Kang Changho."
It might have sounded cunning, but at any rate, it wasn't a lie. No matter how great a miracle was performed, the act I executed was ultimately the result of using mana, no different from the primitives.
"But what exactly did you see with Dragon's Eye that you've been reacting like that?"
From here on out, the real investigation begins. There was a simple reason I spoke those words while watching the face of the inferior mammal. Come to think of it, Kang Changho had encountered something presumed to be a dungeon creator, and if he had even killed it himself, he would have faced a monster's soul one way or another.
"What did you see exactly? Please explain."
"Even Esther, who lacks the Dragon's Eye, instinctively sensed the will of the core itself."
Therefore, I had deployed the drastic measure of [Soul Embodiment] party to gauge the level of the dungeon creator. Incidentally, this body was currently in a condition where I could thoroughly save my physical mana and rummage through the opponent's head as much as I wanted.
But I had no desire to fight without cause, so I first chose to speak as a gentleman.
"Anyway, knowing Kang Changho's usual personality, he might start beating around the bush strangely again at this point..."
The result was surprisingly satisfactory.
"No?"
What came back was a sentence with considerable nutritional value. After being frozen with that shocked expression for several seconds, Kang Changho hurriedly blurted out this response.
"I saw that you are completely different from the things that made the dungeons."
Oho.
"By the silhouette of the mana that gathered just now, that's one thing I can truly confirm for certain."
Unbelievable. This was unexpected good news. If the hunter, who was relatively knowledgeable about aliens, said so with such conviction, the burden on the Archmage's heart was certainly lightened.
"So the dungeon creators are not a species that freely removes and inserts souls."
Still, one question remained.
"Then why didn't you use improvement?"
Back when I was wandering around in my soul state, Kang Changho hadn't activated any remarkable technique—he hadn't done anything at all.
"That's..."
At my question, he swallowed dryly before answering with difficulty.
"I told you before. I already secured a new sacrifice in China midway through the contract... instead of you."
"Ah."
That's right. I definitely knew that information, but the fact that Kang Changho was the possessor of skill-stealing was so deeply etched into my mind that I forgot the related story at the crucial moment.
Now there truly seemed to be nothing bothering me. Though it was a bit awkward for the opponent to maintain such a servile posture.
"Hunter Kim Giryeo, I'll swear right here."
"Hmm?"
"I will never harm you from now on."
The man named Kang Changho suddenly raised both hands. In earth terms, it was a typical sign of surrender.
"Never, ever! Including never maliciously getting on your nerves, I will never show an aggressive side."
"From someone like you?"
"In any case, just as I've been glancing at you with the [Dragon's Eye], wouldn't a psychic of your level naturally have a way to detect my lies conversely?"
Kang Changho's lips began to curl up again. However, this time the quality of the expression was different from his usual one.
"All this time, when I received difficult questions, I answered ambiguously just so I wouldn't get caught by that judgment of yours."
The man in his thirties shook his head with a hollow laugh, as if he had just witnessed something absurd.
"Dodging questions by a hair's breadth. That much was within the expected range. Besides, since I also always used peculiar speech patterns to hide that I was a cosmic lifeform, there was no reason to get angry."
Yet the mixed-blood man before me seemed deeply worried about something. He maintained a highly defensive attitude, bowing repeatedly.
"But from now on, I'll speak honestly about anything. No matter what you ask, I'll tell you everything. I'm even willing to promise it under the [Knight's Oath]."
"Hmm."
"So please calm down, and for now, don't take any action."
It's not like I have any intention of sticking close to a mammal anyway.
"What exactly do you mean by 'don't take action'?"
"I've done quite a few things that might have irritated you."
For a moment, an astonishing level of self-awareness followed.
"I'm saying this in case Hunter Kim Giryeo was preparing some retribution for that. Especially after seeing such immense power, the story becomes even more difficult..."
The reason I showed the silhouette of my soul was to clarify that I was different from the dungeon creator. If Kang Changho had captured a third cosmic monster with his eyes, this would be very good information.
"Good. He won't provoke me needlessly anymore."
But unexpectedly, the additional effort brought by the technique was great. The distinct-featured mammal, who had actually been quite stuck-up, submitted from his very core. His mana revealed a confusion he couldn't hide, so it was certain.
Therefore, feeling a sense of relief from the series of events, I continued.
"Why are you so frightened?"
If one had successfully broken the other's spirit, the next necessary step was negotiation.
"Calm down. First of all, I am not your enemy."
"_ _"
"The reason I showed you such a special effect was because you, Kang Changho, suggested we build mutual trust. So, following those words, I first honestly revealed a skill I had kept secret."
"_ _"
"But as you can tell from the power you just saw, if I were some kind of monster that lives off the chaos of the world..."
"_ _"
"I mean, realistically, if I were involved in the creation of the dungeons, how would you still be alive?"
Threatening people. Binding them with a [Knight's Oath] that causes death ten years later. The question was how a person with such a rude personality could have maintained his life in front of an anti-human creature.
—Boom.
As I spoke these principled words, I added a slight special effect. I shot out pure water at an incredible speed. For the record, the jet of water generated in a straight line grazed right past the opponent's earlobe.
"His eyes clearly tracked it reflexively, but he didn't react at all?"
Of course, since Kang Changho still didn't show any wall-to-counter-attack. I calmly continued.
"In any case, I have never used an attack like this against you."
I wondered if this was enough persuasion for the mammal to feel at ease. I checked the opponent's reaction for a moment. No matter how much he bowed the head of his heart, the adult male named Kang Chang-ho didn't do things like cry out in surprise because of the information he learned this time.
To do something like losing his mind... Kang Chang-ho had already sensed the existence of aliens to some extent on his own.
"I understand everything."
The dungeons, no matter how much one thought about it, were a medium threatening humanity. If a creature powerful and malicious enough to have created such places existed, there was no reason it would overlook the acts of provocation, lying, and observation of the nearby 5-rank hunter had committed at that time.
This was logic that fit both Kang Changho's perspective and even from mine. Because of this, the conversation flowed shortly.
"No longer... will I treat you as a dangerous element and follow you around."
Korea's third 5-rank hunter nodded with a face that accepted it all.
"Are you truly stopping the stalking? Even just looking at my mana occasionally with the [Dragon's Eye]?"
"I'll do as you wish."
"That's a relief."
"I will absolutely never offend you again."
But I didn't know the b*stard would keep his promise like that.
***
"Mm."
It was about 24 hours after that.
[Ring, ring, ring, ring.]
I was standing for a moment in a city on Earth, holding an electronic device to my ear.
[The person you are calling is unavailable. Please leave a message—]
As the automated voice indicated, this attempt had failed.
"Hehehe."
And the last time, and the time before that—none of the communication attempts had succeeded. Korea's certain 5-rank Awakened was, surprisingly! Once again in a state of non-responsiveness.
"This is truly... not the behavior of a normal human."
What on earth does this guy want to do with me? I revealed the form of my soul. Even so, we ultimately didn't each other as enemies. I thought I had shown a favorable attitude as mildly as possible for a cosmic lifeform, yet that specific Earthling I planned to use usefully in the future suddenly stopped answering the phone.
To make matters worse, the hunter with the surname Kang reached the point where he would sneaky flee whenever his body approached.
"Why do mammals lack moderation."
At this point, the buried suspicions began to creep up. Come to think of it, when the [Misaligned Corpse] first appeared that 5-rank hunter with bluish-purple hair had said something about being late to deploy because he was sleeping.
'At that time, my intuition analyzed and it wasn't a lie, so let it go thinking that could be the case. But now it seems that man intentionally avoids contact whenever he wants.'
This damn secret phone number. The block had been lifted once he left for the U.S., but calls had never connected properly. If I ever catch Kang Changho, I'll have to question him carefully about the Red Gate incident.
I turned my head with those thoughts. In fact, since I had started tracking his location the moment the target returned to South Korea, I could always know exactly where Kang Chang-ho was.
"Augh. How annoying."
The problem was that even knowing his location, I couldn't meet him now. There was truly no helping it. This is something I haven't mentioned yet. Actually, I had gone a step further and left Seoul itself.
"Kim!"
"Yes, I'm coming. I'm on my way."
This was a certain country on the continent of Oceania, and I was in a state where I had come here in a single bound to perform emergency relief activities.
The appearance gate of the [Misaligned Corpse] that spewed out nightmare substance. However, since the boss there was a fish monster that required an enormous number of veteran hunters, the series of events naturally led to a massive disaster.
"Do you want me to clear away all the water here as well?"
To speak frankly, the capitals of several countries on Earth had been hit by water bombs. It seems they were exposed to the hardship because they couldn't deal with the boss entity due to a shortage of hunters or other reasons.
"Humans are quite genetically distant from marine life. Just having water touch the residence is the end..."
Transport vehicles totaled. Electronics evidence ruined. Beyond this, a desolate landscape where the civilization built for people to live well had rotted or broken.
"The 5-ranks of this country all have soulless faces."
For the record, it's said that China had no major damage because an Awakened named Zhan performed greatly—more accurately, because they found out the boss grows weak when water is taken away. At any rate, it seems humanity had room to break through if their ability to manipulate water was stronger than that fish.
However, separate from the boss's weaknesses being further known, capitals with few hunters were driven almost to the brink of ruin.
'In the early stage of mana's appearance, population size really is everything. Unless there's some anomaly like alien d*escent in Korea...'
Kind acquaintances are one thing. But truly, occasionally, the whole of humanity is pitiable beyond words. Because I felt that way, I began travelling to various countries to help restore cities.
But now, like a proper 5-rank hunter, I was always extracting proper business trip fees.
'The bank balance that hit rock bottom is building up again. I should set aside the money for next year's taxes in advance and start thinking about which artifacts to purchase.'
Splash.
Returning the waves that had come up to the land back to the nearby ocean. After finishing this easy task, I could just sit in a chair and count money.
—Tap tap tap....
My second life is literally a smooth road to success, and now I'm even getting this kind of attention.
'Is that the one who spoke to me earlier?'
While working along a coastline in Oceania, at some point, a man dressed like a businessman approached with an offer.
'Asking me to become a hunter for his country.'
I still vividly remember the [Dragon's Heart] that a person named Brooklyn Morgan had brought. Furthermore, now even larger rewards are being presented to the point where the proposal I received back then seems laughable; honestly, I can't hide my sense of pride.
"I'm sorry. I don't have any plans to move for the time being."
I quickly rejected the scouting proposals that had started pouring in again. However, every time people in suits approached to persuade me, I felt good thinking, 'Everyone is quick-witted enough to recognize and revere this body.'
This mood would have lasted a long time if the person who asked me to immigrate hadn't sweated profusely while pulling out their phone.
'Bowing and apologizing in English to the caller...'
If he failed the task assigned by his superior, reprimand would follow. And it would hardly reflect well in his personnel evaluation.
'What a pitiable laborer. But it's not like happiness would suddenly spring up if this Archmage were to submerge the workplace, so it's ambiguous to help...'
This goddamn competence. I looked pitifully at the victim who had eventually been created because of this body's genius career.
Author Thoughts Hi, from now on, I will update this novel 3 chapters/week. Thank you for all your support so far:)