Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 369

Kugugugugu!!!

Immediately after, the water that had risen to their feet splashed in all directions, and the ground began to shake violently.

Lenok, his face hardening at the dense magical power that instantly enveloped the surroundings, took a step back.

“He’s insane… This is the closest place to Jintun’s inner world. If he deploys a domain incorrectly, anything could happen.”

It wasn’t for nothing that Lenok and Jaun hadn’t used their domains while clashing with each other.

It might not matter outside the third gate, but this white space was one of the closest places to Jintun’s cradle.

Even in this labyrinth created by the Ascendant’s inner world, it was the most dense and core part.

Even if Jintun had no intention of doing so, the act of projecting his inner world into this space was the same as exposing his domain to him.

Knowing this to some extent, both Lenok and Jaun had done their best without deploying their domains in this place.

However, the man who had newly taken over Jaun’s body didn’t seem to care about such things, and was calmly deploying his domain in front of Lenok’s eyes.

Dududududu!!

The man, standing calmly on the shaking ground, smiled.

“Well, if my partner hadn’t wasted jewels and magic power unnecessarily while fighting with you, I wouldn’t have had to go this far.”

“…”

“It’s true that things don’t always go as planned, but if I have to use the Heavenly Stone that I prepared to replace the Creation Stone, I have no choice, do I?”

Dozens of jewel pillars began to rise from all directions beneath their feet.

Dudududududu!!

“This is…!!”

The manifestation of jewel pillars emitting dazzling light from all directions. It was clear at a glance that they were treasures that had undergone considerable processing.

Only then did Lenok realize that this was a type of magnetic domain used by the man, and his face hardened.

It was not the typical domain deployment that Lenok knew.

Instead of overlaying his inner world onto the surrounding scenery, he was pulling out only a part of the scenery within his inner world into reality.

It was a method that Lenok had never seen from any of the mages he had encountered so far.

Lenok quickly looked around and nodded, understanding the deployment method of the magnetic domain used by the man.

“Instead of overlaying the inner world onto reality, it’s a method of eroding reality. Certainly, with this method, you can use a domain without being affected by Jintun’s power.”

“You’re too quick to notice.”

The man smiled and nodded.

“In the era I lived in, it was a well-established technique as one of the methods of projecting the inner world, but it seems to have been lost in this era.”

“…”

“It’s not that the transmission of the spell was forgotten, but perhaps it was deemed impractical. In other words, it’s a rather old-fashioned deployment method.”

Certainly, the erosion-type domain deployment method used by the man was fresh and surprising, but its practicality was questionable.

For a caster to deploy a magnetic domain was practically a declaration that they would use their full power to overwhelm their opponent.

The amount of magic power and mental strength consumed in deploying a domain was considerable.

To bring one’s inner world out, regardless of scale or range, was an act that consumed tremendous mental power.

But why would one pay such a cost and bring out only a part of the domain instead of deploying the domain into an environment advantageous to the caster?

“Is that a method from a time when the use of magnetic domains was not yet established? The fact that you say that is proof that you are an ancient figure.”

“I was a long-time acquaintance of Jaigis, and before I died, I gave him several of my creations.”

The man said.

“Many things happened, but one way or another, I want to get those things back. That’s all I want.”

“…”

“I have no intention of fighting or competing with you. So, why don’t we forget about the grudge from earlier and cooperate for our respective goals?”

The man glanced at Lenok while placing his hand on a jewel pillar.

In response to that simple action, cracks appeared on the surface of the jewel pillar, and holes began to form.

A scene that was very similar to the Creation Stone zone that stretched out behind them.

Instead of answering the man, Lenok realized why the man had chosen Jaun to enter this labyrinth and nodded.

“I see… The Creation Stones are also a type of jewel. He had a way to open the cradle using his jewel spell in a different way than before?”

“You’re too quick to notice. Well, there’s no need to hide it now, is there?”

The man smiled wryly.

“Originally, to awaken Jintun, you have to find the buoy on the boundary of this space and change the direction of the Creation Stones. The song flowing through the Creation Stones is a lullaby that puts the Ascendant to sleep.”

Was that why this space was called the Ascendant’s cradle?

The man continued without waiting for Lenok’s answer.

“But if I use my knowledge and my partner’s jewel spell, I can artificially replace the Creation Stones and change the rhythm of the lullaby. The fastest way to wake Jintun is in my hands.”

“…”

The man glanced at Lenok, who was hesitating, and continued to speak.

“We weren’t the only two who entered this space together. Before Maiya Lenslit moves, wouldn’t it be better to enter the cradle as quickly as possible?”

At that soft persuasion, Lenok couldn’t help but burst out laughing.

“If you wanted to say that, you should have told me the situation the moment you first contacted me in the labyrinth. What’s the point of saying that now that we’ve come this far?”

“It’s not a lie. Until now, I was respecting my partner’s wishes…”

“No. I think I know why you’re trying to send me to Jintun first.”

Lenok interrupted the man.

“Jaun said that your grudge was trapped in a huge jewel. You didn’t die, you just postponed your death for a while. You came back to the labyrinth to get a new body, using the person who found you as a collaborator, didn’t you?”

“…”

“If you think about what the most necessary thing for you, who is parasitizing the existence of Jaun, would be, the answer is simple.”

Lenok smiled as he looked at the silent man.

“If you are truly the creator of the consciousness transfer spell, then I can explain why you said you would open the way to the cradle even if you didn’t meet Jintun first.”

Lenok spoke, trying not to miss even the slightest expression on the man’s face.

“You’re not waiting for Jintun himself, but for the moment after Jintun’s death… Are you planning to take over the Ascendant’s body?”

Either way was fine. The moment Jintun was alive and focused on the conversation with Lenok, or the situation where he was already dead and only his body remained.

He must have judged that there would be no problem in taking over the Ascendant’s body in either case.

Considering the risks of the consciousness transfer spell that Lenok knew, it was also possible to explain why he had been parasitizing Jaun’s body until now for the sake of a few opportunities.

“…”

There was no answer.

The man, who had lowered his head, slowly raised his gaze after a long time.

The gentle smile that had been on the man’s lips had turned cold.

“Huhu… It seems I talked too much while trying to stall for time. Did you deduce all that from just a few words of conversation?”

The man, who glanced at Lenok, immediately infused magic power into the jewel pillar and muttered.

“It seems the young people these days are too quick-witted.”

Kwaaaang!!

There was no further answer.

The lightning that Lenok had thrown into the air exploded dozens of times, and began to drop lightning bolts one after another above the man’s head.

Dudududu!!

His whole body and eyes burned as if they were on fire with the immense heat and flashes of light.

The lightning that poured out as naturally as breathing relentlessly struck the man’s body once more, whipping his mind and body that had not yet recovered from the aftermath of the battle.

Each time a pillar of bright blue light poured down, it twisted and bent dozens of times, piercing through the jewel pillars and bursting out.

Lenok had indulged in the conversation to recover his magic power from the previous battle with Jaun, but there was no more time to hesitate.

Before he could use this erosion-type domain to escape the predicament, he needed to step on the bud in this place and move on to the cradle.

However, the man also began to receive all the lightning bolts that Lenok was pouring out, rotating his magic power between the jewel pillars.

Tatatatatang!!

Just by rotating the magic power around the jewel pillars, the spell was activated. Powerful barriers and walls rose around the man, protecting his body from the firepower of the lightning.

It was hard to believe that his true nature was that of a black mage, given his skillful use of jewel spells.

However, instead of being surprised by that sight, Lenok immediately began to prepare for his next attack.

A monster who had survived for hundreds of years.

If he was a black mage who had reached a high level, he would have some knowledge of completely different types of spells.

Moreover, the man had been parasitizing Jaun’s body and had been watching the process of him using jewel spells for a long time.

Now that he had taken over the body of that jewel mage, it was not strange that he was exhibiting spell abilities comparable to Jaun.

‘But there’s no counterattack.’

Even so, he had no intention of leaving the man, who was just crouching between the jewel pillars, alone.

Lenok couldn’t do the crazy thing of entering the jewel pillar zone with his exhausted body, but he couldn’t just leave him alone to prepare something.

‘Is he waiting for a one-shot reversal?… Then.’

Thinking that, he began to slowly form hand seals inside the shadow obscured by the flashes of light.

“Do you know why a jewel mage’s magnetic domain is made up of this kind of scenery?”

The man, surrounded by dozens of brilliant jewel pillars, asked.

He continued, stroking the pillar next to him.

“These jewel pillars are not things that appear whenever the caster wants them without any resources or compensation. The inner world of a jewel spell that transcends systems by using jewels as consumables cannot be that convenient.”

Lenok no longer answered the words.

He simply stepped lightly on the rippling water beneath his feet and created a huge wave.

Puhwaaaak!!

The wave that swept through the jewel pillars pressed down on the man’s head, but the real aim was the shadows created by the wave.

By manipulating the shadows that changed in real time, he would pierce the man’s vitals and cut off the life of his body in one go.

Kagagak!!

The moment the shadow hidden by the wave twisted and rotated into a sharp blade beneath the man’s feet.

“A jewel mage’s magnetic domain, these beautiful jewel pillars… are the materialization of the caster’s own emotions and thoughts.”

The man grabbed the jewel pillar he was stroking and crushed it.

“If you materialize the joy and sorrow, hatred and obsession, regret and lingering feelings that humans are born with, and use them as catalysts for spells…”

Paahhh!!

The jewel pillar shone brightly, and at the same time, the corners of the man’s mouth stretched out.

“Can you really call that a human?”

At that moment, the large wave fell between the jewel pillars, and immediately after, the shadow blade pierced the spot where the man had been.

Kwaaaaaa!!

The scenery of the magnetic domain, swept away by the wave, disappeared without a trace.

However, it was not due to the destruction caused by the water-type magic that Lenok used.

The domain, which should not have moved from the place where it was deployed, had moved dozens of meters along with the man’s body, avoiding all of Lenok’s attacks.

“Domain movement… No, did he just push it away with force? He used an entire jewel pillar to press down on the ground with output…!”

“As I said before, it’s not a lie that I have no intention of fighting you.”

According to the man’s words, it was a spell that was activated by consuming one of the emotions existing in Jaun’s inner world.

Instead of counterattacking, he had used it to avoid Lenok’s attack, at the cost of sacrificing one of the important emotional centers of a human.

No matter what, he was also a black mage who would use any means necessary to achieve his goals.

“There’s no need to fight here. My old friend will meet everyone who has reached this point at least once, even if we don’t do that.”

The man, who had moved the erosion-type magnetic domain dozens of meters, turned to look at Lenok.

The place where he had newly appeared was in the middle of the pillar zone where the stone pillars made of Creation Stones were erected.

That heterogeneous space created by the chaotic mix of stone pillars and jewel pillars.

However, the moment Lenok saw that sight, he realized that the man had planned this from the beginning.

The reason why he had only summoned a part of the jewel pillars in the form of eroding reality instead of projecting his inner world with full power.

It was to move the entire scenery of the domain and move to the middle of the Creation Stone pillar zone.

Uuuuuuung!!!

As the jewel pillars vibrated as if trembling, the Creation Stone pillars standing between them also began to vibrate.

The rhythm that had been constantly echoing slowly changed, and the moment it echoed above their heads.

As if it were a key, the space filled with mist slowly cleared, and the scenery beyond it revealed itself.

Saaaaaaaah…!!

A huge white palace floating on a white lake.

Lenok’s mouth slightly opened at the sight of the huge house with its antique design and massive wooden pillars.

The scenery of the palace was truly magnificent. The magic power flowing from within was at a level that was not enough to be called earth-shattering.

A transcendent being who had surpassed the limits of life and death. A conceptual domain created by a dreamer who truly had the qualifications to challenge ascension.

The deepest part of the Hanghasa Labyrinth, the Ascendant’s cradle, had finally revealed itself before Lenok’s eyes.