Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 1022

The experiences Lenok had in the Central Front, under the guise of a thousand identities, were among the most precarious he had undertaken recently.

He had barely managed to complete his tasks while walking a tightrope in a battlefield where all sorts of forces and powerful individuals were constantly interfering.

The risks and rewards resulting from this were also far greater than Lenok had anticipated.

He had expected the evaluation and repercussions of Thousandfold to be significant, but he hadn’t imagined he would feel it so keenly even before returning to Vulcan.

[While helping with the transfusion of Anathema’s blood to Virgil, I also learned about this matter.]

In the abandoned satellite city of Bairutz. At a cafe table at the far end of the train station lounge, bathed in moonlight.

With a black veil covering her face, she leisurely sips her coffee.

The stiff atmosphere enveloping the lounge was in stark contrast to her, creating an odd sense of incongruity.

[Since this is a transaction, I was directly asked to mediate this matter.]

Madam said, smiling at Lenok, who was sitting across from her.

[To manage the transaction as a broker and be responsible for any conflicts that may arise. Oliviera’s requests are always so brazen.]

“……”

[Hmm, was that a bit difficult for you to understand, since you’re not familiar with the situation in Vulcan?]

“No.”

Lenok, who had been staring at Madam with a blank expression, replied.

“I understand that you came to balance the power that the Cartel’s board of directors alone couldn’t manage.”

[……]

“What I’m curious about is whether you possess that kind of power. I heard you’re not the type to directly get involved in the field.”

[If Lariata Armush has started moving again under the Order, we can’t just stand by and watch.]

Madam said.

[We also want to deal with the Blood Pylon before it awakens… and I’m starting to think it’s time for me to return to the field as well.]

“……”

Saaah…!!

A subtle whisper in the darkness. An eerie and quiet suggestion that was unclear if it came from Madam herself.

A deep, musty scent of blood emanated from beneath her shadow.

The oldest broker in Vulcan. A high-ranking vampire. One of the elders who knew many vampires in the giant city.

However, even under the guise of the Adamant, Lenok had never faced Madam’s own power.

Whether she was an outsider or a mediator close to their side.

It was because Madam had always known her place and had taken a position where she could gain profit from a subtle position, but now that she was directly facing Thousandfold like this—

[Since Oliviera offered some of the Anathema’s blood she obtained as a condition for the transaction, I couldn’t back out.]

Madam said with a relaxed tone.

[The blood of a fallen Apostle. Especially the blue blood of a noble, is an offer that I, as a vampire, cannot refuse.]

“……”

[That’s why Lariata became an Apostle. Searching for better blood, she ended up craving her own blood…]

Madam smiled strangely beneath her veil.

[Well, if you’ve met her, you probably already know. But I didn’t expect you to know about me. Did Angel explain it to you?]

“When I came to Vulcan last time, I looked into the brokers operating in this city.”

Lenok said, raising the pipe attached to his left arm.

“I acquired this array device at that time.”

[A spirit energy auxiliary device used by pyrokinesis users.]

Madam said, glancing at the array device.

[The function of forcibly discharging overheated body temperature is good, but apart from its performance, there are few people looking for it, so the price range is quite reasonable.]

“……”

[However, if you don’t have innate talent, it won’t be of much help, so I guess there wasn’t a problem with that?]

Madam’s response, immediately reciting the performance, conditions, price range, and customers upon seeing the stolen goods.

It was a response befitting a broker who had handled various artifacts in the giant city.

“You talk too much.”

Lenok said, taking out a small case from his pocket and handing it over.

Lenok, who had taken out a container holding the shard of the veil, asked.

“Isn’t this what you came for?”

Faaah…!!

Starlight leaked from the tightly sealed case, illuminating the lounge.

The air in the lounge became heavier with the starlight emanating from within.

Feeling the gazes falling on him from around, Lenok said.

“If you want a transaction, take out the item. I’ll check the price and hand it over.”

[Ivy.]

Whoosh!

With Madam’s gesture, a blurry figure that appeared from somewhere placed something down.

Softly brushing a lounge chair with one hand, the figure disappeared at an invisible speed.

Rather than being skilled in stealth, the presence itself was closer to an inanimate object than a human, creating a sense of incongruity.

Lenok, who had found a similar opponent in his memory, tilted his head.

“A druid.”

Madam paused for a moment at those words.

[…Did you just see Ivy?]

“They’ve mastered natural magic to a very high level.”

Lenok, narrowing his eyes, turned his gaze towards the direction where the presence had disappeared.

“If they’re from Larabelly, there’s something I want to ask about that city. I’m willing to make that a condition.”

The World Tree located in the plant city of Larabelly. The origin of the immortal experiments mentioned by Michael Zellich.

If they were a druid, they would know something about the World Tree, called the Navel of the Star.

However, Madam shook her head at Lenok’s question.

[She’s a druid who was exiled from Larabelly. If you want an answer, you’d better look for someone else.]

“……”

[If it weren’t for the Greenbelt located inside Vulcan, she wouldn’t have ended up working under me in the first place.]

Lenok knew that the Greenbelt of the giant city was of great interest to druids from all over the continent.

Even when Lenok had just started living in this city, he had heard about the Greenbelt several times.

Madam, as if trying to divert Lenok’s attention, opened the case that Ivy had placed down.

Click.

A small key and a ring were placed inside the case.

[One of Oliviera Ron Maze’s top-tier collections that she kept hidden in her laboratory.]

The moment Lenok frowned at the familiar energy emanating from the ring, Madam said.

[Gyro’s Vault. Among them, the highest-ranking stolen goods, the No. 5 personal vault and its key.]

“Gyro’s Vault, then…”

Upon hearing those words, Lenok immediately remembered what it was.

The ultra-small personal vault artifact that Sabrina had when Victor was trying to find a way before leaving for the military city.

A rare item with a limited quantity throughout the continent, and it was said that it could only be opened with a specific key because it was locked with a dimensional function.

[I heard that you’ve been wandering around the continent without a proper base since leaving the Azure Eye.]

Madam smiled.

[If you don’t plan to stay anywhere for the time being, this vault will be very helpful to you.]

“It’s not like I’m short on space, even without a personal vault.”

Lenok tilted his head.

“It’s not a laboratory, do you think a wizard would need a vault like this?”

[Gyro’s No. 5 Vault is not a vault for valuables, but a vault for hiding people.]

Madam replied.

[It’s a kind of hideout that will be very useful for a defector like you.]

“…A hideout?”

[If you wear the ring, you can find the location of the hideout, and the key is needed to open the door. If you don’t have either of the two items, you won’t be able to find the hideout.]

Madam, who skillfully continued her explanation, said.

As someone who had been a broker for a long time, she was probably used to explaining stolen goods like this.

“Then does the Cartel also know the location of the hideout?”

[The hideout created using Gyro’s No. 5 Vault is randomly generated within a radius of about 1km of the user wearing the ring.]

“What?”

[The random generation, location search, maintenance, and preservation of the hideout are carried out simultaneously the moment the ring is worn, and it disappears when the ring is removed.]

While Lenok was taken aback by the unheard-of ability of the item, Madam said.

[There aren’t many artifacts better than this for hiding for a short time.]

“……”

The ability to randomly generate a hideout for the user somewhere in a 1km radius of space-time.

Lenok knew that Gyro, the designer of the vault, was a skilled craftsman who could handle dimensional functions, but this was beyond his expectations.

The exact principle would have to be studied later, but it was definitely an item that seemed useful to Evan right now.

“…Okay. Not bad.”

Lenok, who had taken the ring and key, threw the case containing the shard of the veil to Madam.

Madam, who immediately opened the case and examined the inside, had her veil dyed with dazzling starlight.

Click.

[This is…]

A beautiful form that looked as if it had been filled with shimmering stardust.

“Oh…”

Even Angel, who was seeing stardust for the first time, couldn’t hide his admiration.

However, Madam didn’t show any reaction and closed the case before sealing it tightly.

Chiiik!!

After biting her finger and drawing blood, she smeared it on the crack of the case.

The moment Madam, who had finished marking in an instant, held up the case as if handing it to the air,

Whoosh!!

A blurry figure took the case and disappeared from the spot at an incredible speed.

“You should be careful with that.”

Lenok said with a smile, crossing his arms.

“I had quite a hard time getting that this time. I won’t be able to get it again.”

[I suppose so. Who could even guess why Thousandfold shattered the first gate?]

Madam, who had taken her coat from the chair, slowly turned around and said.

Madam’s eyes, looking at Lenok, were dyed an intense red.

[So, let me give you a clear warning here, Evan Martinez. It would be better for you not to get involved with us in the future.]

“……”

[Because of this incident, you have gained tremendous fame in the Central. That influence will make even your defeats pale in comparison.]

Madam said, unfolding her parasol as if to block the pouring moonlight.

[I don’t know what you wanted that made you take on this task, but it’s blind and excessive. I don’t think it will be helpful to each other.]

“That’s an interesting thing to say. Why is that?”

[Because the Adamant and you are different yet similar.]

Madam turned her steps, and the sound of her shoes echoed in the quiet lounge.

[Apart from your unattainable talents, you are similar in that you are incomprehensible in crucial aspects. That’s why you might be standing in completely opposite places.]

“……”

That was probably a statement possible because the Cartel and Madam herself already recognized that they were on the Adamant’s side.

While standing in a position opposite to the Adamant, it was evidence that they were wary of a wizard who could match the Adamant’s power.

The Adamant, who had the most heinous reputation in Vulcan, and Thousandfold, who was highly regarded in the Central.

A freelancer who perfectly handled all tasks, and a watcher who would burn down a city for their master.

Two wizards who were so different that nothing could be compared except for their talents, yet Madam understood that they were similar in that very aspect.

That must be because Madam has lived for so long and experienced things that cannot be judged by reason or logic.

[Well, you can think of it as an old vampire spouting nonsense.]

Madam, who had opened her parasol with one hand, burst into laughter.

[It was a good deal, Thousandfold. I hope we don’t have to see each other next time.]

“……”

[I also don’t want to hold onto a wizard favored by the Lighthouse Keeper for too long.]

The moment the black parasol covered Madam’s body, her presence disappeared from the spot.

Whoosh!

The desolate lounge, lit by moonlight. The Cartel’s superhumans still stared at Lenok in a stiff atmosphere.

Meryl, chewing gum, was about to say something but closed her mouth, and the young man holding tonfas watched Lenok intently.

The board members in suits. Unique magic users who seemed to be Madam’s freelancers.

But none of them spoke first, persistently waiting for this silence to end.

And then, Angel, who had turned his back on the board, stood in front of Lenok with a serious expression.

“Well, then… I guess this is the end here.”

“It would have been much more difficult without your help in the Central.”

From meeting Bernard through his connections with the Ability Awakening Task Force to entering the operating room. It was true that Angel’s assistance had been helpful to some extent.

Lenok, who answered softly, nodded.

“You’ve worked hard. If we meet again next time, I’ll spare your life once.”

“Ha, is that supposed to be some kind of reward?”

Angel, who smiled bitterly, shrugged and turned away.

“But I guess so. I have to agree that we shouldn’t see each other again.”

Crack…!!

Angel, who had placed his hand on the window and turned his body into cold frost, turned his head.

“Unless the Chairman’s will changes, we will ultimately have to be on your side.”

“……”

“I don’t want to throw my life away unnecessarily either.”

Although he was frivolous, Angel’s attitude of joking around alone was quite pleasant.

Even though he said that, it was probably evidence that Angel had also felt some kind of camaraderie with Evan while experiencing the events in the gate city.

Or perhaps, it was just that Lenok liked people with this kind of personality on a human level.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Lenok, who chuckled and rested his chin on his hand, shook his head, and Angel smiled and slightly bowed his head.

The Cartel’s superhumans, who had been watching Lenok in the dark, slowly concealed their presence one by one.

At the same time, the countless presences that had been surrounding the entire Bairutz revealed themselves, then quickly faded away.

Whoosh!

The train station lounge, which had become quiet in an instant.

Lenok stood alone in the middle of the wide square.

Lenok, who had been looking at the moonlight shining below his feet for a long time, slowly grabbed his knees and stood up.

“Well, then…”

The fragments of the barrier were also handed over to the Cartel, and he had received compensation for it.

The Cartel’s personnel had also left, and he was left alone in this place.

There was one last thing to take care of.

* * *

District 49 of the great city of Vulcan. The top floor office of the Adamant Tower.

“Van!!”

Jenny shouted, bursting into the office without knocking.

“If you’re at work, you should tell me. There are documents that need to be paid under your name that have been piling up for days—!!”

Jenny, who was putting down the papers she was holding in her arms, stopped talking when she saw Lenok.

The wizard was leaning back in his chair with an eye patch on, looking exhausted.

Jenny, feeling awkward at his appearance, coughed dryly.

“…Ahem, I know you’ve been busy with research. But we can’t even start the project to expand the item business to District 48 without your consent—”

“Pen. Please.”

Jenny obediently took out a fountain pen from her arms and handed it to Lenok.

Only then did Lenok get up from his seat and begin to sign the documents Jenny had brought.

“You…”

Jenny, seeing the dark circles under Lenok’s eyes, was about to say something but then closed her mouth.

Scribble, scribble.

The artifact that was only recognized as legitimate authority when Lenok signed it himself.

Most of the work was handled by Jenny, but there were some matters that required the direct approval of the Tower Lord.

Lenok, who had finished signing in an instant, handed the fountain pen back to Jenny and opened his mouth.

“Sorry for being late. Is there anything else left to do?”

“…No. That’s it. I was a bit careless.”

Jenny, who was watching Lenok’s expression, asked carefully.

“Is it because of the recent collaboration with the Cartel?”

“Something like that. There’s been some involvement with them.”

The day after returning to the tower after finishing the work in the gate city.

After running around the central front for several days, the fatigue weighing down his body was unavoidable.

It was fortunate that his injuries were not severe thanks to the doctor’s consideration.

How far the things he had done to obtain the fragments of the barrier had escalated and been resolved.

Now that Evan’s identity had been sorted out, the burden was somewhat less, but this was not the end.

“Even without that, the Cartel’s secretariat contacted me.”

Jenny said, taking out a small letter from among the documents and handing it over.

“The Chairman is looking for you. They asked for an immediate reply, what will you do?”

“Tell them I’ll go right away.”

Lenok said, leaning back in his chair.

“I’ll just check the news from the outside that I haven’t been able to check and then leave.”

Outwardly, he had just come out after focusing on research, so he had to take care of the things he had put off.

Felix and Feisha’s training, as well as the development of the mobile phone app entrusted to the Bylon Research Institute.

The deep web search engine that Dabi was developing, and the optimization of the various artifacts and formulas that Lenok had acquired.

Decisively—

“Ah, the news from the outside…”

Jenny, who also seemed to know, avoided his gaze with a troubled expression.

After hesitating for a moment, she sighed and shook her head.

“Well, you should know too, Van. I’ll send you the data I’ve collected about the central front.”

“Data?”

Bang!

Instead of answering, Jenny left the office, her presence quickly leaping across the tower’s staircases.

The Lightning Connector, a space transfer system installed in the tower.

It seemed that Jenny, who had mastered the Uroboros magic system, had begun to skillfully use the tower’s functions.

“……”

It would take some time for Jenny to gather the data she had mentioned anyway.

Even if he kept his eyes closed here, he wouldn’t be able to rest properly and would only be tired.

It would be better to quickly take care of the pending tasks while walking around the tower.

Lenok, who rubbed his heavy eyelids, immediately picked up the phone in his office.

[Yes. This is Dylan~]

“Dylan. It’s me.”

[…Van?]

“Where is Wayan right now?”

* * *

A snowstorm raged across the snowy field.

A group of people wearing thick fur coats were walking through the snow that reached their knees.

Thud!!

“Kuh…!!”

A man who had tripped over a rock hidden in the snow raised his head, his shoulders shaking.

A face covered in pain, anger, and cold. A long, unstitched wound ran across his trembling hand.

The man, glaring at the group walking ahead, opened his mouth with difficulty.

“Yacha. How much longer do we have to walk…!!”

“Just a little more, Blaber Tower Lord.”

Only then did one of the group walking ahead turn his head with a nonchalant expression.

A tall young man with a fierce impression. The whites of his eyes, looking at the Tower Lord, were dyed black.

The young man, who was staring at the Tower Lord with reversed eyes where the colors of the whites and irises were reversed, spoke.

“Soon, we’ll be in the territory of the Stasis Master. His formula is the only thing that can suppress the runaway of your combustion organs.”

“I’ve been walking for 40 hours without rest since escaping the gate city… I can’t endure it anymore.”

The Tower Lord gasped for breath, clutching his stomach with difficulty.

“Because the wound was arbitrarily stitched, my organs are falling out… It feels like my intestines are being cut off.”

The Tower Lord, who had escaped the operating room before the defeat of the Suture Master was confirmed, was not moving alone.

With the help of officials under the Order Alliance, he was moving to a place where he could recover his body.

However, the forced march that continued without properly completing the surgery was a hardship that was difficult for the Tower Lord’s body to endure.

The fact that he had come this far with this body that needed stability was proof of the Tower Lord’s superhuman mental strength.

“I, if it’s hard to move… S, shall I help you?”

A pale-faced woman standing next to the young man turned to the Tower Lord and asked.

The woman, who opened her mouth while stuttering, raised her hand.

“W, if you die completely, I can m, move your corpse with my formula…”

“……”

“Corpse Master. Stop it.”

While the Tower Lord was speechless at the absurd answer, the young man called Yacha shook his head.

“He has to be taken to the Alliance Leader alive. If he becomes your corpse, the work we’ve done for days will be useless.”

“B, but even now… he’s s, slowly being caught by my formula… ?”

“Yes… Alliance Leader.”

The focus returned to the Tower Lord’s fading eyes.

“Alliance Leader… Let me meet the Order Alliance Leader. I will meet him directly and negotiate.”

“…Blaber Tower Lord.”

Yacha, who had approached the Tower Lord, looked down at him and said calmly.

“With the death of the Suture Master, a significant gap has occurred in the axis of the Great Connection. The burden of bearing it is the responsibility of the remaining Great Masters.”

“……”

“The reason why the Stasis Master cannot move is because of his formula, but also because he, as a Great Master, is directly adjusting the axis of the Great Connection.”

Thud!

Yacha, who grabbed the shoulder of the Tower Lord who was losing strength and falling forward, said.

“The military parade of the legion will be held soon. Until then, we have to finish adjusting the Great Connection, so please understand with a generous heart.”

“I, I think he’s already fainted…”

“Ah, is that so? The wizards of the tower are really difficult to handle.”

Yacha, who lightly lifted the Tower Lord who had lost consciousness and fainted onto his shoulder, moved his steps.

“After all, most of the towers are essentially closer to research institutions. That’s why I wanted Torben, not Blaber.”

“T, Torben’s Tower Lord…”

“I don’t like the nature of that old wizard who is full of self-love, but his ability alone is worth acknowledging.”

Yacha’s gaze passed over the snowy field and headed towards the end of the horizon.

“But since that wizard, who couldn’t concentrate at all, is finally heading to Vulcan… I think it’s worth looking forward to a good spectacle this time.”