Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 521

Research, Adjustment, Improvement (2)

A new way to use the Uroboros magic system.

It wasn’t for nothing that Lenox was agonizing over this theme, going through trial and error.

The problem he recognized when trying to operate Uroboros and the Magnetic Domain simultaneously during the final battle with Amrita Frauvel, the 10th Apostle of the Order.

“Amrita wasn’t trying to stop the Magnetic Domain, but rather, she was trying to stop the power of Uroboros, even to the point of self-harm.”

Lenox’s gaze turned cold.

“It’s not just because the power of Uroboros felt more dangerous.”

Unlike the Kaleidoscope Domain, which observes and projects branching points, Uroboros is closer to a power that converges and grasps surrounding possibilities.

The Kaleidoscope Domain, which starts from within Lenox and radiates outward, cannot be perceived or blocked.

However, the Uroboros magic system, which dismantles and analyzes the opponent’s power and psyche, provides a near-death sense of déjà vu just by activating it.

Naturally, the target will try to stop the activation of Uroboros by any means necessary.

There’s no need to use this technique against an opponent who doesn’t recognize the power of Uroboros in the first place.

And an enemy strong enough to warrant using Uroboros will surely notice the danger of this technique and try to interfere.

A fatal flaw that effectively seals its use in battles against powerful opponents.

When Uroboros was used against Gye Baek, it was possible because the fallen Ascendant himself was not interested in his surroundings.

But when facing a monster with high intelligence like Amrita, using it would likely be more detrimental to Lenox.

In the battle with Madrich Onion, where Uroboros was first used, it was only successful because the battlefield itself was Madrich’s domain, allowing Lenox to exploit the gap.

If the gap between the power of the magic system and its effectiveness in actual combat is not resolved, it will inevitably become a useless burden.

Lenox, recognizing this fact, had bought out an entire set of research equipment to delve into proper magic research, aiming to alter the very way the Uroboros magic system operates.

A completely new magic system that unfolds at a level transcending hierarchies.

To handle its output, research equipment used in large-scale magical engineering facilities would be necessary.

“It’ll be difficult to finish everything before the expo starts, but I want to set the direction.”

[Magic power synchronization is complete.]

As Lenox extended both hands and drew up magic power, Davi read Lenox’s thoughts and synchronized.

Following the operation of the cybernetic spirit, dozens of pieces of equipment in the lab began to rotate simultaneously, moving around Lenox.

Woo-oong!!!

Ignoring warnings and system outputs, the magical engineering facilities moved busily in all directions, adjusting Lenox’s condition.

Forcibly stabilizing the flow of magic power, they suppressed the backlash erupting from the Uroboros magic system, forcibly creating and opening a path.

Kugugugu!!!

The impact caused the entire research lab in the basement of the mansion to vibrate, shaking as if an earthquake had struck, but he didn’t pay it any mind.

For a high-level mage, a research lab is not just a space for studying and practicing magic or spells.

It’s a place to synchronize the environment of an entire space to the same conditions as the mage’s own body, to observe their own spells.

A process to take out the images and magic power that only flowed and assembled within Lenox’s body, adjust and stabilize them in real-time, and find the optimal state.

The space of this massive research lab itself is treated and operates as the same concept as Lenox, the caster.

The fact that Oliviera’s research lab had transformed into a domain containing her own ideal was also proof that she had long observed herself in that space.

What Lenox is trying to do now is not much different.

To stabilize the dazzling flow of Uroboros’s magic power, all sorts of research equipment moved rapidly, emitting various magic powers.

And at the center, Lenox boldly took out an old magic book from his chest.

The relic of the First World obtained from the mid-term settlement of Pandaemonium, the Five Laws of the Extreme of the Fate’s Balance.

Lenox, who had boldly flipped through the secret magic book containing the extremes of five different systems, opened the page with the extreme magic of the [Harmony] system and raised his gaze.

Lenox’s eyes, looking at the brilliantly shining snake ring, gleamed sharply.

“I’m going to build a new order into the magic system. Let’s begin.”

* * *

Murphy’s Hospital.

After extracting the medical records through Ars Nova’s biometric data, Lenox visited the clinic again after almost a month.

“Adjusting the detailed specifications took longer than I thought.”

Murphy, who had been tinkering with something with his back turned, spun around and handed Lenox the device he was holding.

“I made it with a design similar to the one you used before. The staff form is definitely convenient to carry, and it suits a mage well.”

The shape of the staff resembled a rising stream of water.

The difference from the life support device that had been transformed through Penterect was that the gem embedded at the end of the staff was a deep black color.

As Lenox received the staff, faint lines appeared on the black gem, writhing.

“It’s a lifeline.”

Murphy said.

“It’s a function that shows a comprehensive assessment of heart rate, magic power stability, and the flow of nutrients in the body.”

Murphy turned his head and fiddled with a computer placed on one side of the clinic, adding.

“It’s impossible to restore your broken body itself, but maintaining the current state won’t be difficult.”

“I see.”

“That’s only under the assumption that you’re absolutely stable. Of course, you should avoid combat at all costs.”

“……”

There was no need to mention how many battles Lenox had fought before coming back to this clinic.

Murphy stared at Lenox over his glasses.

“If the balance is broken even once, it will be irreversible. You know that, right?”

“To some extent.”

“It’s even more so for a high-level mage like you. The higher and more elaborate the tower you’ve built, the more uncontrollable it becomes once it starts to shake. I have a rough idea of the life you’ve lived so far, but from now on, you’ll have to change everything.”

It wasn’t wrong.

After all, the fact that Lenox had survived and was sitting here was because he hadn’t collapsed, even if he had been shaken.

A single fatal defeat. An irreversible mistake. He had to move forward, even while acknowledging the fear that might come someday.

“Well, it was a wise choice to come to me, even if it was late.”

Murphy, who had been looking at Lenox with a blank face, chuckled.

“So you can come back right away if you need adjustments. It’s a very delicate item, so if you don’t take care of it often, it’ll be worse than useless.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

After that, Lenox paid Murphy the agreed-upon production cost and left the hospital.

Lenox, who was tapping his hand with the staff, tilted his head.

“I think I need to check the sensitivity without taking the medicine…”

He had improved his condition by taking the Tears of the Archangel, and he was constantly injecting all sorts of drugs into his body, so it wasn’t easy to feel the difference.

Perhaps Lenox’s sense of his own body was already half-broken, making it difficult to feel any changes with ordinary measures.

Lenox fiddled with the staff for a while, then picked it up and immediately started walking.

In the end, what was important was to make it known that Kyunroe had been injured through the life support device.

Since the time he spent acting as Ban had decreased, it was a measure to create an alibi for it, so performance wasn’t important.

Lenox immediately walked with the staff in plain sight towards District 49, where Jenny’s bar was located.

Even in the somewhat chilly atmosphere of District 49, the high-rise building area was unusually crowded.

After several renovations and expansions, the entrance of the bar, which was now unrecognizable, was constantly being entered and exited by dozens of people.

Inside the bar, which had expanded its lobby hall, freelancers and organization members were whispering among themselves in the dim lighting.

Avoiding the smoke rising from various places, Lenox arrived at a table and waved his hand at the old man approaching him.

“Ban.”

Without a word, he placed a glass in front of Lenox and skillfully mixed a cocktail.

Lenox naturally tilted the glass, and his brow furrowed slightly at the bitter taste that spread in his mouth.

“…This is quite a taste. What exactly is this?”

“It’s a medicinal liquor made by mixing mugwort, garlic, and ginger. It’s a liquor with a recipe that was created outside the continent. They say it’s good for the body, so drink it up.”

“Mugwort and garlic, you say?”

Was someone planning to create a new human being?

Anyway, since it was said to be good for the body, he drank it without complaint.

Jorden laughed as he watched Lenox swallow the medicinal liquor with a slight frown.

“I’ve been hearing a lot of bad rumors. Jenny bought the recipe and ingredients separately from the deep web and made it.”

“……”

He had informed Jenny in advance about the circumstances of his injury from the battle with Madrich Onion, before the rumors spread.

However, even so, since he had not visited the bar directly since then, Jenny would have no choice but to be somewhat concerned.

“I’m thinking of selling it as a new menu if the reaction is good, but what do you think? You hardly ever comment on the taste of alcohol, so it’s hard to know your preferences.”

“It’s a refreshing taste. If you market it with the theme of boosting energy, there will be people who will look for it.”

While Lenox was drinking the remaining liquor with a frown, Jenny came out quickly from behind the bar, pressing her temples.

Her face, with dark circles deeply set under her eyes, lit up when she saw Lenox.

“Ban…!! Are you okay?”

“Enough to walk around.”

Jenny, who immediately sat across from Lenox, took something out from inside the bar table.

Thump!!

“I’ve gathered all the elixirs you ordered, scouring the auction houses and the deep web.”

“Thanks.”

“I also had a doctor from a famous clinic in the city center brew some medicine, so take it with you if you need it.”

It seemed like he would have to tell Jenny later why these rumors were circulating.

For now, he had no choice but to resolve the matter that brought him to her.

Above all, it was Jenny’s request, not Lenox’s, that had set up the appointment today.

“Shall we go upstairs first? A guest is waiting.”

As they went up to the top floor office of the company located next to the bar, the figure of a giant sitting in one corner of the sofa immediately caught his eye.

The figure of a bird-headed giant, sitting with his arms crossed and his back straight, with his eyes closed.

As soon as Lenox entered the office, the giant opened his eyes wide and jumped up from his seat.

“Ban!!”

“Felix, it’s been a while.”

Lenox couldn’t help but chuckle at his welcoming demeanor.

Felix Magath. The director of the Antares Mercenary Office and a warrior of Saint-rank, a face quite familiar to Lenox.

“Are you feeling any better?”

It had been quite a while since they had last met, but he remembered the events of that time quite vividly.

The defense force rebellion. The warrior who fought alongside Lenox against the Kraken that appeared while smashing the aerial fortress.

In the process, he had used a battle hammer imbued with the magic of the Ascendant’s arrival and had been hospitalized in a coma.

Lenox had gone to the Hanghasa Labyrinth after receiving the call of the Azure Eye, making it difficult to hear any more news, but it seemed that he had recovered to some extent in the meantime.

“That’s what I should be saying, Ban.”

Felix laughed as if he was dumbfounded.

“I heard that you fought a level 8 military sorcerer and fell into critical condition, are you in a position to worry about others?”

The eagle’s strong gaze turned to the staff Lenox was holding.

“I thought there were ominous rumors going around, and it seems that Jenny’s concerns were not wrong. Many people in our office are also concerned about your health.”

“From your office?”

“The sponsorship contract between the Antares Mercenary Office and your distribution company has just been officially confirmed.”

And behind Felix, a cold-looking, short-haired woman appeared.

Her face, exhaling smoke while holding an e-cigarette, was still in Lenox’s memory.

“From now on, try to take care of your health. We have enough workaholics with our director.”

“…Stella.”

Stella Gryen. The deputy director of the Antares Mercenary Office, whom he had met when Felix was hospitalized.

If Felix and Stella were here, it meant that the two decision-makers of the office were directly at Jenny’s company.

Jenny had succeeded in signing a sponsorship contract with the Antares Mercenary Office, receiving their full support in her business.

Today’s meeting was to secure a contract of such a large scale that it required the direct participation of Lenox, who had been neglecting company matters.

In name, Lenox was also the president and co-manager of this company, so there were procedures to go through.

“You’ve been steadily continuing your broker work while growing your distribution business like this.”

Stella said while Lenox was stamping a few documents with the temporary seal that Jenny had prepared.

“With your achievements in both freelance manpower and distribution network construction, our office’s mercenaries are also very interested in prioritizing Jenny’s requests.”

So, they had agreed to a sponsorship contract to prioritize the requests that Jenny brought.

In name, it was a deal between two equal organizations, but in reality, it was an approval for the full cooperation of the Antares Office’s mercenaries.

Lenox knew what it meant to be able to borrow the power of one of the top mercenary groups in this industry first.

“Does Antares know?”

“Ah, our director…”

“Well, I don’t think we need to hide it, it seems like he already noticed?”

The two people exchanged meaningful glances and laughed.

While Lenox was shaking his head at them, Jenny tapped the table and said to the two of them.

“Okay, okay, now that the agreement is over, get out. I have something to talk to Ban about.”

“No, you should listen too.”

“What?”

Jenny turned her head sharply at Lenox’s words.

“At the point of signing a sponsorship contract with the Antares Office, there’s no need to keep it a secret. The information will spread to the Balkans soon anyway.”

“What are you trying to talk about…”

“Interesting. Does it have something to do with our work?”

Stella smiled, puffing on her e-cigarette with a languid expression.

“Well, if you share information with us, we have no intention of refusing.”

It wasn’t for nothing that Lenox had accepted Jenny’s request and visited the company and bar after a long time.

The circumstances and latest information of the continent that he had heard from both the Azure Eye and Pandaemonium.

Among them, there was information directly related to the megacities.

Jenny was a business partner who worked with Lenox, but she was also a broker in the shadows who connected freelancers.

It was obvious that the more they knew this information in advance and acted on it, the more they could maximize their gains in the chaotic situation.

“…The main force of Dead Rise is coming back?”

But it was only natural that the three people’s expressions stiffened at what Lenox had told them.

“It seems that such rumors are circulating as the front lines have stabilized due to the truce between the Order and the League of Mages.”

“Is it reliable information?”

“Probably.”

“……”

Felix and Stella quietly looked at each other at Lenox’s calm answer.

“This is a bigger problem than I thought.”

“…Should we have said we’d listen?”

The two of them knew why Lenox was telling them this story.

But Jenny didn’t care about that reaction and immediately started typing on her laptop with a calm demeanor.

“The entry records of mercenaries and soldiers at the central front are decreasing. It’s reasonable to assume that they’re reorganizing their forces.”

“……”

“The dramatic increase in exports from the Paradini Republic, the sharp decrease in sales of northern industrial cities… I can roughly estimate it.”

Every time she tapped on the laptop, all sorts of news and articles began to appear through the projector.

Was she gathering related information and comparing it in real-time at this place just by hearing a single word from Lenox?

It wasn’t something that could be done just by having excellent data collection or calculation abilities.

The ability to quickly grasp specific trends through the know-how and experience gained from handling work in the shadows, compare the facts, and infer the big picture.

A business partner with a quick judgment and know-how that was second to none compared to anyone Lenox had worked with.

It was because she was so good at her work and quick that she was able to not only get involved in the distribution business but also take over the underground market.

Stella added her opinion, slightly impressed by Jenny’s work.

“They’ve been too inactive for too long. They’re not the type of guys to just sit around. If there was a hint that the main force was coming back, it makes sense.”

“A decision that was made before the central front stabilized?”

“No, rather… it would be more accurate to say that they knew about the truce in advance.”

Jenny brushed her hair back as she answered Felix’s question.

“There’s someone among the Dead Rise leaders who has a close relationship with the Order or the League of Mages. That’s definitely it.”

“You’re sure of it.”

“Because I know them.”

Lenox tried to say something, but he stopped himself.

Jenny’s face, staring at the laptop, was filled with a complex expression.

“They are people who have the ability and the heart to do so.”

“……”

The core leaders of Dead Rise were capable individuals who had been close aides to Kaise in the past.

For Jenny, Kaise’s granddaughter, it was not unusual for her to know them.

If Jenny, who didn’t care even when her grandfather’s name came up, reacted like this, it meant that their abilities and personalities were extraordinary.

“Do you think it’s dangerous?”

“…I don’t know. The people I remember never move without a reason.”

Jenny answered, pressing her temples with both hands.

“If they’re returning to the city at a time like this, it’s not just because the front lines have calmed down. For now, I’ll focus on observing their movements.”

Jenny, who quickly started investigating both the deep web and the public information network by operating her laptop, turned to Lenox and said.

“More than half of the underground distribution network is already in our hands. Even if the main force of Dead Rise returns and moves, we can detect and stop the signs from the beginning.”

“……”

“Don’t worry. We’re also focusing on building our forces and securing manpower. We don’t need to borrow the hands of the injured.”

“…No, it would be better to focus on flexibly responding to the situation rather than my condition.”

“Why?”

Before answering, Lenox lightly gestured to Stella and Felix. The two of them immediately understood and disappeared out of the office.

Lenox, who had deployed a magic field to block the surrounding senses, said.

“It’s true that I was injured in the battle with Onion at the time, but it’s not that serious.”

“…Not that serious?”

“Yes. If combat is necessary, it would be better to say that there’s no need to postpone it-”

Lenox’s words were immediately cut off by Jenny’s reaction, who jumped up from her seat.

Jenny, who had boldly taken out a piece of paper from the shelf and slammed it down, crossed her arms with a cold face and stared at Lenox.

[A Guide to Recuperation that the Patient’s Guardian Must Read and Understand]

“The doctor in charge of your treatment sent this, and you’re still saying that?”

“…Where did you get this?”

The moment Lenox asked, slightly bewildered, after confirming that it was Murphy’s medical record.

A voice was heard from behind Lenox.

“I got it for her.”

“……”

“It’s been a while since Jenny directly requested something from our office. I used a little bit of my power for the first time in a while.”

A young man wearing a thick fur coat was leaning against the office window, looking this way.

Despite having his long hair casually swept back, his impression was surprisingly neat.

Unlike his calm demeanor, the force of magic power seemed to be raging violently within him.

Lenox sighed quietly as he confirmed the face and stood up.

“…Antares, do I need to explain why I deployed a magic field? You have no intention of waiting your turn.”

A level 8 physical ability user. The director of the Antares Mercenary Office.

A transcendent fighter who was one of the best in the shadows, a traveler who had accumulated countless achievements and honors.

A prophet who had obtained a fragment of omniscience but accepted an unavoidable end.

Antares had been here from the beginning, and Lenox had already been aware of that fact.

Antares smiled faintly and nodded to Lenox.

“I’m sorry for interrupting during an important conversation, but I don’t have much time either.”

“Time? Who has so much time that they-”

Lenox’s words were immediately cut off as soon as Antares opened his mouth.

“I have something to talk about regarding the expo. Do you have a moment?”

It was an answer that was completely out of place in the current situation, but at the same time, it was an answer that caught Lenox off guard.