Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 1176

“The number of powerful superhumans active across the continent is already countless.”

From the spacious CEO’s office at the Cartel headquarters, the panoramic view of the outer districts of Vulcan was clearly visible.

It was a comfortable space, unlike Oliviera’s study, which was obscured by a hazy veil and piles of old books.

Virgil, who was skillfully pouring coffee for Lenok, who was sitting on the sofa in the CEO’s office, spoke.

“Just the population officially registered in Vulcan is over tens of millions. If you include the outlaws living in the outer districts, it would be even more.”

“…”

“Including the satellite cities near Vulcan, the Sea of Understanding [a region known for its unique geography and culture] and the Philemon Autonomous Territory, and the mechanical city of Machina across the volcanic zone, it would exceed hundreds of millions.”

Virgil, sitting across from Lenok, said as he tilted his coffee cup.

“If you include the entire East Continent, the number of people caught in the network would be several times that.”

“So, this data dump is a report on the power rankings of the most powerful superhumans among them.”

Lenok replied, holding up the data chip Virgil had given him.

“I heard that the power rankings became a hot topic recently… but why are you giving this to me?”

Lenok became aware of the existence of the power rankings just before leaving for Talkerphos.

To be precise, it was just before he went to meet Hairea under Victor’s identity.

It was information that garnered so much attention that the comments on one of the countless posts on the Deep Web exceeded five million, causing traffic to explode.

However, at that time, he was in a hurry to join Pandemonium, so he hadn’t been able to open the power rankings himself.

Since then, he had remembered the existence of the rankings, but he had never visited the Deep Web again to look for them directly.

In the first place, the existence of rankings, as Lenok thought of them, was mostly-

“I know what you’re thinking. There have always been comparisons between powerful superhumans, and attempts to rank them.”

Virgil said, leaning back on the sofa and sipping his coffee.

“But in reality, there have hardly ever been any officially documented rankings. Why is that?”

“…Because the higher the level of a superhuman, the more common it is to hide and deceive about their abilities.”

It was an obvious question, but it seemed that Virgil had information he wanted to convey through this exchange.

Considering Virgil’s personality, which Lenok knew, this moment itself wouldn’t be meaningless.

Lenok put down his coffee cup and slowly folded his fingers as he replied.

“Powerful superhumans often use Gias [a type of magical contract or binding] of specific conditions to stabilize their abilities… so unless it’s for psychological warfare or to further enhance their abilities with a command, they generally don’t reveal their abilities first.”

“That’s right. It’s rare to secure enough information to objectively rank them, which is why these power rankings couldn’t be established.”

Virgil looked at the data chip in Lenok’s hand.

“But the power rankings currently on the Deep Web are different. They contain a lot of dangerous information, so much so that it’s hard to believe one person created them.”

“Is that why I have to receive information like this instead of going directly to the Deep Web to see the posts?”

“No.”

Virgil shook his head.

“The power rankings posted on the Deep Web have already been contaminated by several hacks. You wouldn’t be able to get proper information now.”

“…What?”

“Due to the intervention of an unidentifiable external force, a significant portion of the information in the power rankings has been damaged.”

Virgil said, meeting Lenok’s gaze.

“That includes information about you, Van. The data I’m giving you now is a report based on the rankings that were backed up before that.”

“…”

“The Planning and Coordination Office believes that this incident itself proves the reliability of the information. It means there are forces that resent the information leak.”

So, someone hacked the power rankings posted on the Deep Web, ruined them, and forcibly contaminated them.

Only then did Lenok feel a growing interest in the information Virgil had given him.

Just how sensitive was the information that they would go so far as to hack the Deep Web to prevent its spread?

“The Deep Web administrators wouldn’t have stood still. What happened after that?”

“It seems they’re even mobilizing Mirror Divers [specialized hackers who navigate the Deep Web] to find the culprit, but they haven’t had any luck.”

Virgil shook his head.

“The forces involved in this situation are not one. They’re even considering that the Central Front might have intervened.”

“…”

“What’s more problematic is that the creator of the power rankings is also constantly updating the information. They’re removing the deceased from the rankings and updating the order.”

Virgil, having finished his coffee, got up from his seat.

“Since it’s having an unprecedented impact on Vulcan among the posts on the Deep Web, I hope you’ll check it before it’s too late. As long as you exist as the Chairman’s partner, your power will always be needed by the Cartel.”

“Thanks for the consideration.”

Lenok chuckled and shook the chip.

“So, when do I have to look at this and return it? If it’s a report made by the Planning and Coordination Office, it shouldn’t be leaked carelessly.”

“Unfortunately, I’m about to go to an executive meeting for the headquarters relocation project planned for the next quarter.”

Virgil smiled and turned around.

“It can’t be helped if someone secretly takes the data chip I left in the CEO’s office in the meantime.”

“…”

Thud!

As soon as Virgil closed the door and disappeared, Lenok stood up.

Davie, who had been quietly listening to the conversation from inside his pocket, peeked out.

[I like how you handle things, Master, unlike those other weird vampires.]

“…I don’t want to hear that I’m hanging out with those weirdos.”

Lenok naturally approached the desk computer in the CEO’s office.

“Let’s open the power rankings right here. You can do it like before, right?”

[Of course. But the report that the Cartel gave you is also slightly contaminated, you know?]

Davie said, stretching out his front paw from inside Lenok’s pocket.

[I have an original backup that I organized to show you later, Master. Shall we open it with that?]

“Sure, it would be in order to look at the original Deep Web post first, and then the Cartel’s risk report.”

Lenok replied, turning on the monitor.

[If we look at the original, we can also check the comments below it!]

“…Let’s look at the rankings first and then think about it.”

Pop!

As soon as Lenok finished speaking, Davie scanned the internal information and displayed it on the monitor screen.

A post from the Deep Web’s Diamond-tier bulletin board.

It looked like an archive that had preserved the title, content, and comments intact.

[Title: East Continent Superhuman Power Rankings] + 6,135,832

“…”

The number of comments seemed to have increased a bit since the last time he saw it.

Looking at the absurd number of comments, Lenok grabbed the mouse and scrolled down.

※ Caution: This power ranking is based solely on the author’s personal opinion.

※ Warning: The author is not responsible for any consequences arising from the misuse of this information.

※ Notes

1) Lists superhumans who have been active or recorded in the East Continent within the last 5 years.

2) When updating superhumans currently active in other continents or the Central Front, the reason will be specified.

3) Ascended beings are not included in the ranking list.

※ Current 34th update version. 35th information update in progress.

“…Why are there so many disclaimers?”

[When I read it before, it seemed like the author has a very meticulous personality.]

Davie wagged his tail.

[If they didn’t have that kind of personality, they wouldn’t have put so much effort into creating the rankings so inefficiently.]

“Inefficiently?”

Lenok, who had been saying that, suddenly closed his mouth.

Even though he had scrolled down the post, the scroll bar had barely moved.

“Wait a minute, what’s the capacity of this post…”

[The evaluations for the rankings start from around 200th place, so shall we start there? The higher the ranking, the more detailed the explanation.]

“…”

With Davie’s words, the scroll bar moved quickly on its own and stopped near 200th place.

A schematic of the power rankings with the ranking, name, and a brief description.

Surprisingly, Lenok was able to find a familiar name nearby.

[Tatiana Chiglett. Level 7 Pyromancer. Blaber Magic Tower Flame Master.]

=A pyromancer specialized in large-scale firepower battles. Skilled in amplifying firepower with spell-infused weapons.

=Gained the nickname “The Witch of Firepower” after playing an active role in several large-scale battles on the Central Front.

=Left the Blaber Magic Tower due to injuries and is now living in seclusion in Vulcan. There are rumors of a conflict with the Tower Master.

=Ranked lower than her reputation due to the above reasons. Possibility of future updates.

“…I see.”

As soon as Lenok saw the four lines written about Tatiana, he understood why Virgil had said this information was dangerous.

The Witch of Firepower’s origin, specialty, abilities, and current status. A method of ranking by simply summarizing where she is and what she is doing.

But the most surprising thing was its accuracy, which was close to the correct answer, even though it was somewhat mixed with speculation.

If someone who held a grudge against Tatiana had this information, it would be possible to abuse it in some way.

[Most of the rankings are Level 7 Saint-level ability users. Among them, there are many organic beings belonging to the East Continent.]

Davie explained.

[If you want to find a name you know, you’ll have to go up to around 50th place.]

“Shall we look at that area first?”

From the beginning, he had no intention of looking at all the rankings of hundreds of people one by one.

It was a priority to check the top ranks first and confirm any names or information he knew.

Lenok scrolled down and quickly stopped when he found a familiar name.

[Yanicus Barbaria. Level 8 Physical Ability User. Lord of Kaiush.]

=Injured.

=Presumed to be recovering after undergoing surgery from a grafting surgeon at the first gate.

“…”

The explanation was not just strangely lacking in effort, but openly perfunctory.

But what was more surprising was the name written in an even higher rank.

[Grisha. Level 7 Shaman. Watcher of the Blue Eye.]

=The highest-ranking nature shaman who assists the Lighthouse Keeper. From a minority tribe in the southern great forest.

=Has lived for hundreds of years and possesses a vast amount of shamanic power, one of the largest in the entire East Continent.

=Recently, the Self-Magnetic Domain Southern Vine Map (南蔓圖偕景) [a powerful shamanic technique or artifact] played a huge role in the Paradox Green siege, resulting in a high ranking.

=Her true achievement is known to be Level 7, but there is a possibility of future changes.

“…”

Shaman Grisha.

The last time he had faced her was when he was in the identity of a Stalwart during the awakening of Lapis Falshier.

He remembered that her innate shamanic power was enormous, but he didn’t expect her to be rated higher than Jevbek.

While lost in thought, Lenok, who was scrolling down the post, asked Davie.

“There are cases where there are no numbers written in the rankings. What does that mean?”

[Ah, they said they deliberately didn’t write numbers for those with similar skills or rankings.]

“Then there’s no point in ranking them, is there?”

[Originally, everyone had a ranking, but there were so many complaints in the comments that they seem to have merged the ones that were controversial?]

“…”

It was absurd, but that was why it was more understandable.

Otherwise, it seemed impossible for there to be millions of comments in the first place.

The more he scrolled down, the more unfamiliar names he knew slightly appeared.

High-ranking transcendents that Lenok had interacted with for a short time, or had faced directly.

Monsters who had existed as transcendents since before Lenok woke up in this world were located in the upper ranks.

[Habaek. Level 8 Swordsman. Head of the Shie Sword Sect (示解劍宗) [a renowned sword school].]

=One of the giants of the light who agreed to the Vulcan Prohibition Edict.

=Blind. Possessor of swordsmanship that cuts through time.

=Closed the Shie Sword Sect and went into seclusion after the death of his disciple.

=Presumed to be involved in the death of Anathema.

……

[Amon. Level 8 Angel Contractor. Watcher of the Blue Eye.]

=Possesses an angel organ.

=Not a human.

……

[Innocent Claude Azlan. Level 8 Lancer. Guardian of the Twin Lotus Gate.]

=A match for a thousand. A powerful warrior who made a name for himself during the Vulcan Civil War.

=Was of a belligerent nature, but is presumed to have developed mental issues.

……

[Maiya Lenslit. Level 8 Executor. Pandemonium.]

=Machina’s greatest executor of all time. One of the best technicians on the continent.

=Currently missing. Ranked lower than before.

……

[Betagron. Level 8 Magitech Engineer. Member of the Designers.]

=The continent’s best military engineering expert.

=Possesses a mechanical legion made up of equipment he designed.

=Recently became a Slayer of Apostles, resulting in a higher ranking.

Instead of looking at each line, he skipped over the long explanations, reading only one or two lines.

The unfamiliar list of information was now familiar to his eyes, and the speed at which he checked the rankings increased.

He quickly checked only the names and explanations that he couldn’t skip over and headed to the top ranks.

[Kiriya Ubertz. Level 8 Swordsman. Affiliated with ■■■.]

=Former commander of the Cavahim Knights. Known to have been exiled for having demonic energy in his body.

=His talent as a medium is extremely high, but he does not want to bloom.

=An expert in personal combat comparable to Maiya Lenslit.

=Famous for consistently receiving recruitment offers from various powerful forces due to his unique talent.

……

[Gapseon Dreyfus. Level 8 Talisman Master. Watcher of the Blue Eye.]

=One of the continent’s greatest eccentrics who has been wandering the Western Continent alone for decades.

=The best talisman master and the highest-ranking barrier master. User of three or more multi-system spells.

=The Immovable Barrier (不動障壁) [a powerful defensive technique] he uses is considered the most powerful defensive spell in the entire continent.

=Born into the Corrupted Tribe (腐族) [a tribe known for their shamanic abilities and physical decay], who are destined to have their bodies decay due to their excellent shamanic aptitude.

……

[Conqueror Baitan. ? Level Trait Ability User. Lord of Wargear.]

=A warlord who is invading and conquering cities near the coast of the East Continent.

=Raised an army in the northeast and advanced to the outskirts of the Central Front. Specific combat power unknown.

=Captured 7 city-states. Beheaded all five Level 8 superhumans who ruled those cities.

=Presumed to possess a very special type of growing spell or ability.

Giants of the light. Watchers of the Blue Eye. Even a divinity that Lenok had never heard of.

Names that he had forgotten in his memory or had never heard of before popped up in various places in the rankings.

There were even names that he never expected to see in the East Continent, so Lenok naturally became focused on reading them.

[Euphria Aosel. Level 8 Life Shaman. Top Member of the Kundara Elder Council.]

=One of the highest-ranking long-lived species of Kundara, sweeping across the continent.

=A commander assigned to the Eastern Front and a pioneer in charge of opening the path between the two continents.

=Overwhelming life spells that are incomparable to humans. Unparalleled killing ability.

=A cold and exclusive personality. A typical true-blooded species that is not friendly to humans.

=Presumed to be a user of primordial magic, which is a very small minority among the long-lived species.

“…Kundara Elder Council? The highest-ranking long-lived species are out all over the continent?”

Are the members of the Elder Council, one of the two pillars supporting the outer city of Kundara, along with the Eight Dragon Kings, moving directly?

Looking at the descriptions, it seemed that each member of the Elder Council was achieving tremendous results on the Central Front.

He seemed to have heard about it in passing, but he didn’t know they were being rated this highly.

“It’s not the Eight Dragon Kings, but the Elder Council is moving outside of Kundara, is there a reason for that…”

The long-lived species of the Kundara Elder Council that Lenok knew were Regnus, Maleon’s godfather, and Nibex, who had handed over his true blood.

The other members of the Elder Council had not shown themselves directly even when Kundara was falling, so Lenok had never seen their faces.

However, he thought that if there were any long-lived species active outside of Kundara, it would be the Eight Dragon Kings rather than the Elder Council.

Could there be a reason why the top members of the Elder Council are moving across the continent and wielding their power?

His thoughts were long, but no suitable conclusion was reached.

Rather, the almost finished scroll only drew Lenok’s gaze back to the monitor.

The rankings within the top 10, which were revealed only at the very bottom of the power rankings, on the last page.

“10th and 9th place. Unknown names. 8th place is…”

Lenok paused briefly after seeing the name written in 8th place.

[8th Place. One-Eyed Ollinic. Level 8 Metallurgist. Lord of the Machine Marrow Palace (機髓身宮) [a place known for its advanced metalworking].]

=A giant of the light who accepted the Vulcan Prohibition Edict. A regulator of metals. A one-man fortress. A hero of the civil war.

=A great spellcaster who uses metal-biased spells and a skilled blacksmith.

=The furnace of the deepest spring (沈泉) [a legendary forge] on the lowest floor of the Machine Marrow Palace is one of the best forges in the entire continent.

=Uses an unidentified weapon called the Full Wheel Golden Sphere (全輪金球) [a mysterious and powerful artifact]. In the teachings of the church, this weapon is described as the worst sealing tool, surpassing even forbidden weapons.

=Has been inactive for a long time, but his ranking was updated recently due to his involvement in the death of Anathema.

“…”

Was Ollinic’s power and status in the East Continent at this level?

He knew that he was a powerful transcendent with a unique personality and appearance, but even so, his evaluation was very high.

But more than that, Lenok focused on the phrase written at the very bottom of Ollinic’s description.

“He was excluded from the rankings due to inactivity, and his ranking was restored due to the Anathema incident…”

Lenok muttered.

“If Ollinic’s ranking was updated, there might be more transcendents who are not included in the rankings right now.”

[It seems like the disclaimer at the beginning was for this reason from the start?]

He seemed to understand what he meant.

Powerful transcendents who participated in the Vulcan Civil War in the past. Or those who were not in the forefront, there would be those who remained somewhere.

However, the author seemed to have judged that the effectiveness of the rankings would be too low if all of them were specified.

Judging from the fact that it was said to be updated regularly, it was a ranking created to rank only the most recent information.

Considering that, the ranking itself could be seen as reasonable, but-

That was not the important thing.

Two names that came into view only after scrolling past the top 10 and into the top 5.

The name and identity that Lenok was looking for were right there.

[5th Place. Thousandfold (踐燔) [a title or epithet] Evan Martinez. Level 8 Pyromancer. Unaffiliated.]

“…”

Lenok, who had skipped the ranking and immediately checked the description, tilted his head silently.

The description was so long that the section explaining the reasons for the ranking was folded into a (+more) state.

Evidence that the evaluation of Thousandfold far exceeded the amount that the ranking author usually specified.

But after seeing the ranking of the Stalwart that followed, Lenok had no choice but to harden his expression.