Descent Of The Demon Master [EN]: Chapter 2058

‘When was it?’

Wiggins’ consciousness drifted back to a moment in the past.

‘Is this a mana battery?’

‘Yes.’

‘Oh…’

Lee Hyun-soo exclaimed, gazing at the mana battery Wiggins had created.

‘It’s incredible. To create something like this, you truly are my master.’

‘Are you being sarcastic?’

‘Of course not. It’s pure admiration.’

Lee Hyun-soo’s grinning face was strangely irritating.

‘Isn’t it amazing! A mana battery, something no one has ever accomplished before!’

‘Well, it’s not that big of a deal.’

‘Trying to be humble, are we?’

No. It wasn’t just strangely irritating.

It was simply annoying. If he hadn’t just finished developing the battery and been in a good mood, he would have wanted to shove the unfinished battery into that thick skull of his.

‘It’s the truth.’

Wiggins shrugged.

‘The development itself isn’t difficult. The important thing is the concept. The technology to store and preserve mana isn’t that special, but no one thought of it, so it hasn’t been created until now.’

Wiggins wore a subtle smile.

‘If credit is due, it should go to the scientist who first created the battery. Who was it again?’

‘…I don’t think we need to go that far back?’

Lee Hyun-soo’s gaze turned to the battery on the desk.

A battery that could store and use mana….

‘Right now, there’s probably no one who can make it except for my master.’

That’s how all early technologies were. It cost a huge amount of money to make just one. It was something only Wiggins, who could receive the full support of Kang Jin-ho, who had more money than he knew what to do with, could create and use.

But if this battery ever reached a stage where anyone could use it, it could bring about a revolution in magic.

‘A tireless magician… The more I think about it, the scarier it seems.’

‘Indeed.’

Lee Hyun-soo picked up the battery and examined it from all angles.

‘Hey, Master.’

‘Hmm?’

‘This is a battery, right?’

‘Yes.’

‘Then, if we use this, it means I can use mana continuously beyond my limits, right?’

‘In terms of magical stamina, it would be a dramatic improvement. It would increase the number of spells I can use several times over. And if you mix the mana you have with the battery, the output itself would increase, allowing you to use spells you couldn’t before.’

Wiggins grinned.

‘Starting from that concept, I’m thinking of making a rune sword next. A weapon that holds a mana battery.’

‘Hmm, that’s good too, but…’

‘Huh?’

Wiggins looked at Lee Hyun-soo as if asking what was wrong.

‘This, using it continuously, is a concept of parallel, right?’

‘…It’s not exactly the same, but it’s similar. It increases the duration.’

‘Then, is it possible to use it in series? If it’s a battery concept, it seems possible. Then, we could increase the output tremendously, right?’

‘That’s the limit of someone who learned magic from books.’

Lee Hyun-soo’s face contorted at Wiggins’ immediate and cold assessment.

‘No, that’s a bit…’

‘Theoretically, it’s possible.’

Wiggins quickly answered as if he didn’t want to listen to Lee Hyun-soo’s whining.

‘Yes, theoretically. If multiple batteries released their mana at once, you could gain tremendous power for that moment. You could achieve tens of times the output.’

‘R-right?’

When Lee Hyun-soo asked back, Wiggins wore a strange smirk.

‘But what do you think is the reason why that’s not possible?’

‘I don’t know?’

‘The medium.’

Wiggins said, snapping his fingers.

‘Unfortunately, this battery can only be used with a medium. In other words, it means that the one who has to withstand the output of that mana is the human.’

‘Ah…’

Lee Hyun-soo nodded as if he understood.

Unfortunately, this battery wasn’t a real battery. A normal battery was used through a medium called a machine, but using this mana battery was none other than a human.

There was no way a human could withstand an output of mana that was several or tens of times their usual amount. What if a person’s strength suddenly increased tenfold? The moment they used that power, their muscles would be torn to shreds, and their bones would break.

This battery guaranteed the output, but it didn’t increase the durability of the body.

‘The most you can withstand is about twice the output. Anything more is impossible.’

‘That’s a shame.’

‘A shame?’

‘Yes.’

Lee Hyun-soo nodded.

‘If it weren’t for that problem, we could have done something truly amazing. Who knows? Maybe even give the Guild Master a run for his money…’

‘Nonsense.’

Wiggins cut off Lee Hyun-soo’s words as if there was nothing more to say.

‘If output and power were the only factors, then Bator would be the strongest. But in reality, he doesn’t even come close to the Elders, let alone the Guild Master.’

‘…That’s also true.’

‘Martial arts are not that simple. Even in martial arts, the biggest and strongest isn’t necessarily the best, and it’s even more so in the realm of magic. I have no intention of becoming a strong idiot.’

‘Ummm.’

Lee Hyun-soo still looked at the battery with a face that showed some lingering regret.

‘Still don’t understand?’

‘No. I understand. I understand, but…’

‘But?’

Wiggins quietly looked at Lee Hyun-soo. Although he lacked talent, his brain was second to none. He was curious why someone like him kept clinging to the impossible.

‘The body can’t withstand it, so it’s impossible…’

‘That’s right.’

‘But that means it’s possible, right?’

Wiggins looked at Lee Hyun-soo with a dumbfounded expression.

‘I never thought I’d have to teach you logic again.’

‘No, no. That’s not what I mean…’

Lee Hyun-soo scratched his head.

‘It’s impossible to withstand that output, but if you’re willing to risk damage to your body, you could overclock for a moment, right?’

Wiggins closed his mouth.

It was a statement that didn’t deserve a response before even considering its feasibility. For him, magic was a means, not an end. There was no means that he should try at the cost of his future.

‘So, I was just curious.’

Lee Hyun-soo said with a chuckle.

‘If I used that theory, I wondered if I could become a real powerhouse like you for a moment. I wonder what that would feel like.’

After saying that, Lee Hyun-soo glanced at Wiggins and shrugged, as if embarrassed.

‘Well, I wouldn’t mind not being able to use magic as a result, even if others might. It’s not like I’m that different from an ordinary person anyway.’

Wiggins silently stared at Lee Hyun-soo.

‘Umm, I don’t know what to say, but…’

‘It was just a thought, so don’t feel sorry…’

‘Even if you gain an output greater than mine, with your level of magic, it’s impossible for you to become a mage of my level. It would be faster for an ant to become an elephant.’

‘So, stop talking nonsense and bring me the samples.’

‘Yes, yes, I will!’

Wiggins’ eyes narrowed as he watched Lee Hyun-soo, who began to move while grumbling.

‘For a moment…’

Of course, it wasn’t worth researching. There was no reason to give up everything for a single moment. It might be worth researching how to temporarily withstand about three times the output within the limits of what the body could handle, but….

‘But…’

For a moment, it might really be possible. If you were willing to give up the ability to use mana again, and even risk your life, you could achieve an over-output state for just a moment.

Of course, the price would be incredibly terrible, but it might actually turn Lee Hyun-soo into a mage like himself. A mage who didn’t have great magical knowledge or operational skills, but who could overwhelm everything with just output and destructive power.

‘What am I thinking…’

Wiggins chuckled softly.

It was just absurd. It wasn’t a thought worth dwelling on….

But….

Wiggins’ gaze turned to the mana battery on the table.

‘Theoretically, it’s possible…’

That’s right.

Everything in the world starts from theory. The goal of a researcher is to bring that theory into reality.

That’s why he suddenly became curious.

If he could turn Lee Hyun-soo, who hadn’t even reached the level to be called a mage, into the best mage… what about himself?

If he could increase the output for a moment with a sufficient mana battery?

For that moment….

‘I must be getting old. I’m having such ridiculous thoughts.’

A self-deprecating voice came from Wiggins’ mouth.

‘Yes, that time…’

A laugh mixed with blood escaped from Wiggins’ lips.

‘Heh heh.’

The dazzling light.

The dazzling light emitted from his rune sword seemed to blind even Wiggins’ eyes.

‘Curiosity is what kills the cat, after all.’

The moment Lee Hyun-soo said those words, and the moment Wiggins heard them.

Perhaps the current conclusion was already predetermined. If he hadn’t thought of it, it might have been different, but he couldn’t avoid doing something he knew.

Taboo, forbidden, worthless.

A study that encouraged one’s own destruction just by researching it, a study that should never be done.

Yes, he knew.

He knew exactly how foolish and fatal it was. It was just throwing himself into the fire of destruction.

But because of that, because of that….

‘How can I not research it?’

How could he refuse that temptation? How could he turn away from the sweetness that the devil whispered in his ear?

In the first place, humans are….

‘They’re the kind of people who have to do what they shouldn’t do to be satisfied.’

And Wiggins was also human.

He was a human who couldn’t resist delving into a study that would lead to his own destruction.

Whoooosh!

A subspace opened.

Before Wiggins could even touch it, a dozen mana batteries appeared from within.

And at the same time, metaphysical patterns were engraved on the surface of the rune sword.

Whoooosh.

Blue lines began to be drawn on the surface of the rune sword, which was shining white. The blue lines, engraved like tattoos, did not stop at the sword but crawled up Wiggins’ hand and into his body.

And….

Whoooosh!

The blue lines extending from the rune sword began to pierce the mana batteries floating in the air one by one.

‘This is the Guild Master’s fault.’

The last circuit he added to his rune sword. Perhaps this result was predetermined from the moment he engraved this circuit.

‘No, no. In the end, I would have chosen this path.’

Why?

It was simple.

He wanted to reach it at least once. An area that he could never reach in his entire life with normal methods.

So….

‘I’ll pour it all out. Without leaving a single one.’

Kiiiiiiiiiiiiing!