Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 143

“This is the only way to treat the leader’s injury,” the man said, his short blonde hair swept back, as he looked at Lenok, who was exhaling smoke. “Originally, if we had just obtained the Medicine Master’s charm at the auction house, there wouldn’t have been any problems. We never imagined that the appraisers at the auction house wouldn’t recognize the value of the charm and would leave it on the first-floor display, but it was all the same to us.”

“………”

“To prepare for all eventualities, we even brought the ‘Archangel’s Compassion’ [a valuable artifact] and staged a childish charade to draw attention, but we never imagined that someone would steal the item before the bidding even ended.” The man spoke, his lips trembling with anger.

“Such is the way things are handled in this dirty, filthy city.”

Lenok understood the man’s feelings to some extent. To think that they had finished all the preparations and started the operation to get the desired item, only for things to go wrong due to an unexpected variable. Moreover, if that item wasn’t even attracting much attention from others, the sense of futility would be doubled. No one here would have imagined that Liam’s small favor would come back in this way.

The man took a deep breath and muttered, “Give me the Medicine Master’s charm. I’ll give you anything you want.”

“………”

Lenok focused on smoking his cigarette without a word, as if telling him to keep talking.

“It would be best if we could end this with a clean transaction. If we could just pretend that everything that happened didn’t happen and go our separate ways, that would be it. Even that woman over there, who’s busy making calls in the car, could end up without a scratch. Wouldn’t that be good for everyone?”

“………”

“I’ll give you as much money as you want. After all, you also stole the item through some means, didn’t you? Unless you specifically need to meet the Medicine Master, you’d prefer to be compensated in cash.”

“Are you done saying what you wanted to say?” Lenok flicked off the ash from the end of his cigarette and adjusted his coat collar. The tips of his fingers, roughened by the cold night air, were trembling slightly. Unable to bear his leisurely attitude any longer, the man asked, “…I don’t know what you want to hear. Do you want an apology for our aggressive approach? If that’s the case, I can give you as many as you want. Please, give us a chance to treat our leader…!!”

As he said that, he knelt down and bowed his head deeply. The other members of the exploration team behind him had different expressions on their faces, but they didn’t stop the man. That meant that saving the exploration team leader, Irina Fesfield, was that important to them.

“Leader Irina is a talented and indispensable person in terms of relic excavation, to the point that she has received official cooperation requests from the Balkan City Government. It’s absurd that someone with such talent would be caught up in an unexpected injury and die! Please…!! I’ll give you anything you want!!” The man’s desperate cry was almost pathetic. However, Lenok didn’t even raise an eyebrow.

“If you say it like that, it makes me sound like a heartless villain.”

“I would never think that…”

“What’s your name?”

“……Brook. Brook Powell.”

“Brook. Has everyone who needs to be here gathered?”

“What?”

“You’re making all sorts of nonsense and gathering people in this area. Do you think I didn’t know that and have been listening to your nonsense until now?” Brook’s expression after hearing Lenok’s words was truly bewildered, as if he didn’t know anything. However, Lenok chuckled and pointed to the other colleagues standing behind him. “You’re good at acting, but the guys standing behind you can’t control their expressions. Still don’t get it?”

“What are you…!!” Brook unconsciously reacted to those words and turned his head, but at that moment, Brook realized that he had fallen for Lenok’s trick and clicked his tongue. He turned his head because he didn’t trust the members of his own exploration team in the first place. That was the same as confirming Lenok’s words just now.

Lenok smiled as he confirmed the approaching presences with his vast magical power detection ability, which covered a radius of several kilometers. “Twenty… no, about thirty. The amount of magic power is insignificant, so it seems like you hired other freelancers to block the escape routes in case of an emergency. You said you didn’t know much about this city, but your actions are incredibly sly.”

“It was just a measure to have a proper conversation. We really need that item that much. Our desire to save the leader is not a lie,” Brook quickly retorted, but Lenok wasn’t interested in such excuses. From the moment he realized that they were after the Medicine Master’s charm, a transaction was never going to happen.

“Do I really have to explain it in words for you to acknowledge it?”

“What the hell are you…!!” Lenok cut off Brook’s protest with a single word. “If you have other skilled healers, the reason you’re specifically looking for the Medicine Master, who never reveals a patient’s secrets, is obvious. It’s because Irina Fesfield’s injury is something that should never be revealed, or there’s a situation that should never be disclosed to the outside world.”

“………”

“You threw the entire auction house into chaos to meet such a Medicine Master… and now you’re saying you’ll let us go unharmed?” It was hard to even listen to such an absurd lie. Lenok looked at the members of the exploration team with a cold sneer. “You were only thinking of killing us from the start to shut our mouths, but you’re talking too much.”

Brook’s expression, which had been clueless, was now as cold as ice.

Exploration Team (2)

It wasn’t strange. Considering the excellent charade they had shown at the auction house, it was clear that they were excellent actors from the start. Brook, who was glaring at Lenok with cold killing intent, asked, “You knew everything, and you were playing with us?” His voice no longer contained any other emotion.

“I don’t want to hear those words from the guys who threw rocks at a perfectly good car.”

“Hoo…” Brook sighed deeply and shook his head. “I tried my best to kill you painlessly, but you kicked it away with your own feet… How foolish. No, is it because you’re smart that you make foolish choices? Either way, there’s no reason to know the truth before you die.”

“……..”

“Well, whatever. It would be a deception to act like that now. I’ll kill you and go meet the Medicine Master. That’s all I have to do.”

“Yeah. It would have been so much better if you had come out like that from the start?” Lenok smiled as he looked at Brook, who had finally revealed his true colors. “You couldn’t have done this on your own, so it’s safe to assume that Irina Fesfield is a cold-blooded person, unlike the rumors.”

“……..” Lenok nodded as he looked at the silent Brook. “Well, I understand. It’s not that surprising that a famous explorer is a cold-blooded person who doesn’t bat an eye at the sacrifices of others.” As he said that, he flicked his finger. At that moment, something whitish hanging from the tip of his finger moved at high speed and instantly brushed past Brook’s back.

Swoosh!! A clear sound of flesh and muscle being torn apart. Brook turned his head with an expression of disbelief. The neck of the young man called Miles was cleanly severed and falling off. “Leader…?” An expression of not understanding why he was dying until the moment of his death. Lenok looked at that scene and muttered with a smile that had completely disappeared from his face, “This way, I don’t have to feel any unnecessary unpleasant emotions.”

“Aaaargh!!”

“M, Miles!!”

“No, no!!”

“Miles!!” The exploration team’s reaction to the death of their colleague was extremely violent. Some were wailing and calling out Miles’ name, while others were glaring at Lenok with expressions stained with anger. One of them seemed to be close to Miles, as he ran towards his corpse while shedding tears, but Brook shouted with a horrified face, “Jensen!! Don’t go near him!!”

“Too late.” Swoosh!! Jensen’s upper body was completely severed as he was running. Unlike Miles, Jensen’s face, which was splattered with blood, was etched with terrible agony. “Ugh, ugh…!!” Jensen, who couldn’t even scream properly, twitched and died. The expressions of the exploration team members changed completely as they confirmed Jensen’s death. Only then did they realize that there was an invisible trap set near where Miles had died.

“If I caught two, it’s better than I expected,” Lenok thought as he shook his gloved hand, cutting off the dozens of magic threads that were connected. Whoosh!! At that moment, the magic threads that had been firmly fixed around Miles were released all at once, swirling around and creating a vortex of sharp edges. It was inevitable that the other members of the exploration team standing nearby would be caught up in it.

“Aaaah!”

“M, my arm…!!”

“Be careful!! It’s an invisible blade!!” The others, realizing the situation, quickly distanced themselves from the two corpses, but they couldn’t avoid getting minor scratches in the process. “Everyone, don’t let your guard down!!” Brook shouted, gritting his teeth. “That guy is a manipulation-type mage. He was just playing along with the conversation to buy time to prepare his magic!! Everyone, be extremely careful and vigilant!”

“……..!!” Perhaps because they were not lacking in combat experience, they quickly calmed down and began to concentrate at Brook’s encouragement. Judging by the resolute killing intent in their eyes, they were also masters of combat who had killed a considerable number of people. And Brook’s insight was also considerable, as he recognized that Lenok was a manipulation-type mage just by seeing him deploy the magic threads for a brief moment. However, the number of tricks Lenok had prepared was not just that.

“If you noticed that, you should have run away right now.” Crackling!! At the same time as he stretched out his five fingers, the huge rock that had landed next to the car began to wriggle. At the same time, it collapsed with hundreds of cut surfaces, as if it had been cut a long time ago. Before the others could react in shock, Lenok moved his fingers.

Boom!! The hundreds of rocks that were shot forward like an explosion instantly covered the dark night street. Brook’s expression, which had been different from before, was collapsing miserably as he confirmed the magic threads attached to each of those rocks. He muttered as he lightly clenched his outstretched hand, “[Explode.]” The words that came out transformed into a spell, becoming a verbal command. The magic contained in the countless split and extended rocks reacted as it was, causing a huge chain reaction. It explodes.

Boom boom boom boom!!! A wave of bright red flames covered the wide lane and created a sea of fire. Who would have expected an explosion that would take over the entire space and burst out? The exploration team that appeared after the explosion was a mess. “Ugh…!!”

“We have to kill him now. Right now!!” Although not many additional members died, no one was unharmed. Everyone, now with not just simple killing intent, but with desperation, began to draw their weapons and aim at Lenok. It was not a problem that would end with just shutting their mouths. They were beginning to realize that if they didn’t kill Lenok here, they might be the ones who would die. Brook, who walked out of the flames with the most intact complexion, also drew a blue sword of light from the air and began to gather his magic power.

“Don’t miss the timing,” Brook said, glaring at Lenok with eyes burning with flames. “Like when hunting monsters, we’ll go step by step.”

“Not like when hunting humans?”