Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 666

The vast garden sprawled within the large mansion. Bizarre phenomena of all kinds were rampant across the paths, creating an inexplicable scene. Crack…!! Above, heat haze shimmered, distorted like cracks in space. As everyone’s gaze turned towards it, Lenok explained nonchalantly, “It’s a side effect of the dimensional function co-location experiment. Don’t mind it.” “…Don’t mind it, you say?” [Hehehe… Once it swallows our heads, we won’t have to mind it, I guess.] “Shit, that means we won’t be able to think…” Rustle!! From one corner of the mansion, a pale, eerie glow seeped out, writhing like a snake. Magic light scattered like feathers in various places. “Those are byproducts of artificial mana aggregates. They don’t have intelligence, so it’ll be fine as long as you don’t get too close.” “…” Whoosh!! Unknown particles, shining like a galaxy, floated in the air, drifting like waves. “That was research data mimicking celestial magic… It’s just a hallucination, so ignore it.” “…” Crackle!! Cracking currents stood vertically in the middle of the garden, their shape fixed like a tree. Beneath their feet, ice flowed like a river, lowering the temperature all around. Above, cracks in space shattered, and heat haze resembling starlight rotated. [Koo-ooo~] In all directions, unknown spirits floated leisurely in bizarre forms. [Praise the great spirits~] [Offer tribute, foolish organisms~] Even an unknown spiritual presence seemed to whisper in their ears. Lenok’s lips twitched for a moment as he turned to see the mercenaries’ expressions turning blank. “…Looks like they’re possessed by minor spirits. It’s probably not a meaningful sound.” [Not minor spirits~ Not minor spirits~] “…” “It seems like we’re having a conversation, though…” “It’s a delusion.” At Lenok’s firm reply, Suyeon quietly closed her mouth. Whirr, clank!! “Wh-whoa, that scared me.” Loud mechanical noises echoed from all directions. The forms of various mechanical devices writhed. Various mechanical devices moved busily around the garden near the mansion, carrying objects. Dylan, already tense from all the bizarre phenomena, asked as he watched the form of an unknown mechanical arm moving above his head, “Ban, what the hell is that?” Lenok looked at the mechanical arm moving above his head and turned his gaze away. “I piled up the delivered items, and the surroundings got messy. I’m just cleaning up roughly for now.” “These are the delivered items?” Before the group’s eyes, metal parts, piles of thin saw blades, hundreds of talisman papers, and leaves emitting a strange fragrance disappeared into the mansion in a row. Each item was suspicious, hardly something one would order for delivery. “I had a lot of things to do, so it was hard to pay attention. I’m just starting to organize things little by little.” “…Things to do, huh? It seems like you caused quite a stir in the Machine City. Are you feeling okay?” Dylan’s eyes gleamed behind his mask. “I didn’t know you had the dexterity to work as a craftsman. No, more than that, how did you hide your nature and infiltrate the Machine City?” Lenok chuckled at Dylan’s innocent question. “Nature? I see how you usually think of me.” The rumors about Kyunroe had been growing more and more exaggerated, and now even Lenok’s acquaintances were reacting this way. Aside from being decisive in battle, he didn’t think he had ever shown off enough to spread such a bad reputation, which was strange. From Lenok’s perspective, who had faced many real madmen who treated humans like toys, the rumors were incomprehensible. Only then did the other members of the group relax somewhat and start asking Lenok about various things they were curious about. “Hey, Ban. So, do you usually live in this kind of environment?” “I usually handle most of my work in the lab. I just leave the byproducts of my research outside.” “I see, so it’s not usually this chaotic?” “Hey, Mila. Chaotic?” Suyeon hurriedly grabbed Mila’s shoulder and coughed. “No, I’m just too curious. Look at this right now.” The moment Mila pointed below, a pale glow flashed behind her. The ground shook slightly from the spatial rifts and mana explosions flowing everywhere. “You invite us to this magical realm and say you’re going to have a party. I need to find out right now if Ban is mistaking this party for something like a tournament.” “It’s not good to get too close to the fragments of truth. Our lives are practically in Ban’s hands now…” Lenok, who had been listening to the two whispering, retorted as if dumbfounded. “I don’t know what you’ve been talking about since earlier. Do you think I’m going to kill you here?” “…” Silence followed. Lenok, who had quietly turned his gaze away, spoke again. “…Of course, I won’t say it’s not dangerous at all, but there’s something you guys can definitely do.” “I’m getting out of here.” “Ban said it’s dangerous. We’re all going to die.” “Jenny, answer the phone. Save me!!” [Have you reached level 8?] Manson was the one who broke the noisy, fussing atmosphere. “M-Manson!! What are you saying!” “Shit, if you ask that directly…!!” Suyeon and Mila were horrified and tried to stop him, but they couldn’t stop Manson, who had taken on a pair of male and female bodies. [If a monster like you had to cause a ruckus in the Machine City, there must be a good reason.] “…” [Since when? Tell me honestly, I’d believe you if you said you reached it a long time ago. We’ve come too far to be surprised by that kind of thing.] Manson’s two bodies tilted their heads in different directions. [The mage who handled the Cigar Bang Gang’s affairs has grown so much. Hehehe… Did you go all the way to the Machine City and cause a ruckus to deal with the backlash from your growth?] “Manson.” Lenok replied with a smile. “You’ve become too normal, haven’t you?” […What?] “I think you were better when you were a little more out of it.” While Manson was silent at the sudden criticism of his tone, Mila also nodded quickly, as if she inwardly agreed. “That guy is just acting. He’s a fake madman who suddenly becomes normal in front of us.” [I can’t say anything. It’s just that my language system has stabilized to some extent due to the personality program update.] Manson scoffed lightly and refuted Mila’s words. [I gave too difficult of an explanation to a machine idiot who is ignorant of programming. Now that I think about it, it’s my fault.] “Oh, so you drank some gasoline and your head grew a lot, huh?” [It was always bigger than your blockhead.] Lenok, watching Mila and Manson bickering without being able to hold back for even a moment, chuckled and turned his gaze away. “We’re all here. Since we have to wait for the others to arrive anyway, I’ll do some more preparations.” “Preparations? No, what is that…” Dylan checked the object Lenok was touching over his shoulder and closed his mouth. The others also belatedly checked the identity of the object and silently turned their gazes away. Thump, thump…!! Even in the middle of the vast garden, its size was quite noticeable. Various parts and circuits were mounted on the platinum-colored metal plate, emitting a clear mana glow. A strange shape, as if a large box had been made and its thickness had been inflated several times. From within, a ghostly, whitish form, mana split like roots, ash-gray darkness, and the sound of time rewinding were leaking out. They realized that a significant portion of the countless bizarre phenomena and mana glows that were writhing and occupying all sides of the mansion were leaking out from within that box. “…Ban. What the hell is this?” Behind the machine, hundreds of thick wires were densely plugged in, neatly arranged towards the mansion’s basement. Lenok glanced back and replied, tightening a screw embedded in the machine. “I’m making a random box.” “…Random box?” Mila’s mouth hung open blankly at Lenok’s completely unexpected answer. The other companions also couldn’t hide their bewildered expressions and looked at each other. [Random box… Is it what I think it is?] “That kind of thing they sometimes use for events at venues?” “I didn’t think a great mage like Ban-nim would consider relying on luck.” “No, more than that, you’re actually making a random box with mana mixed in?” Dylan asked again, as if dumbfounded. “Is this what you learned in Makina for?” Those gathered here knew the circumstances of Lenok infiltrating the Machine City as a craftsman and causing a ruckus. Even if they hadn’t heard the specific details of the incident involving the Ascension Gate inside Makina. The fact that Lenok had made a name for himself as a craftsman was something they had heard through their respective connections. That’s why the fact that Lenok was suddenly making such a device seemed different. “A high-ranking mage learning craftsman skills and directly making a mana device…” “It’s quite grand for an event prize for a party…” “We really did gather for a party, right?” “I’ll explain later. As I said, I won’t make you do anything dangerous.” Lenok lightly nodded his head at the group, who were asking questions with a slightly uneasy look, and pointed to the garden. On one side of the mansion, folding tables and chairs were piled up roughly, still in their packaging. “Can you help me set up for now?” “Ah, sure. We also bought some drinks and food.” “Hmm, I don’t have experience with this kind of thing… Would it be okay if I helped with the heavy lifting?” Dylan and Mila, with a familiar air, arranged the tables and set out the various foods and drinks they had brought. Suyeon set up a tent that was nearby with clumsy hands, and the two Mansons cleaned the garden halfheartedly. [It doesn’t hurt as much as I thought when I touch it.] “It’s not dangerous, so Ban’s words were true.” “Hey, look at this. It reacts when I poke it like this?” While the group, who had inadvertently touched various things while cleaning the garden, gradually relaxed and adapted, others began to arrive one by one. “It seems like the address Ban mentioned is correct. Hmm, but it seems like something is already seriously wrong.” “…Looking inside the garden, it seems certain. Is it possible that Ban is trying to kill us all?” “Belita, this is not the time for this. We need to recover the losses from investing in Makina’s workshop business stock…!!” “Belber, no one is curious about the investment money you lost, so shut up.” The stock-crazed mercenary twins, Belber and Belita. Jorden entered, carrying simple drinks and snacks one by one. Seeing the various bizarre phenomena that still hadn’t disappeared in various parts of the garden, even the always calm Jorden stopped walking for a moment. “I came here on a company holiday. I want to have a drink quickly… Where is this hell?” “Ban!! I heard you caused a ruckus in the Machine City, tell me about it… Huh?” “This is the mansion where a high-ranking mage resides. Can I go home now?” Dre and Wayan, along with the employees working at Jenny’s distribution company, arrived late, sweating profusely with pale faces. “It’s not that dangerous, so don’t be scared and come in, you idiots.” “Hmph… You pathetic fools. Don’t go around saying you work with Ban.” […] Having completely forgotten their own previous appearance, Dylan and Mila, with faces of steel, gave a sarcastic remark. Seeing the mercenaries who had arrived earlier working naturally, they adapted without difficulty. Even though Lenok didn’t say anything, they started to chat noisily, sharing the food and drinks they had brought. They would often approach Lenok with a glass in hand and ask him various questions. Meanwhile, Felix, the bird-headed giant, and Jenny belatedly opened the mansion door and walked in. “There are a lot of people. Has it already started? Ho… This is another interesting stellarium [a place where celestial bodies are observed].” “Ban!” When Jenny called out to Lenok, Lenok finally straightened up and turned to her. Jenny, who had walked up to Lenok, glanced up at him. She didn’t seem at all surprised by the various magic and light rifts that were raging all around. “What the hell did you do in Makina? And where did you get this fat refrigerator?” “A fat refrigerator…” Lenok chuckled at the unexpected idea and shook his head. “I’m making something much more interesting than a refrigerator. It’s also the reason why I asked you to gather people today.” “So it was just an excuse… I knew it.” Jenny, letting out a small sigh, lifted the hem of her dress with both hands. “Then I wore this for nothing. I thought maybe it was a real party since you invited me to the mansion, but I should have just worn something comfortable.” A long, pitch-black dress. It was a rare sight for Jenny, who preferred casual attire as a broker, to wear such clothes even once a year. She also seemed to have prepared herself just in case, having heard the word ‘party’. Most of the invited guests had similar thoughts as Jenny, with most of them wearing suits and dresses. Of course, most of them had thrown off their ties and hats and started a drinking party as soon as they realized it wasn’t that kind of party. Lenok didn’t pay much attention to that and chuckled. “That dress. I think I’ve seen it before.” “What?” “You wore it when we went to the auction house together before.” Jenny’s expression changed slightly at Lenok’s calm words. “…You remembered?” The memory of secretly infiltrating the Teina auction house with Jenny, disguised as a customer, to obtain the Archangel’s Compassion. They had tried to steal an artifact from the Arashark Relic Exploration Team, got caught in a chase, and escaped with Jenny, hadn’t they? It was before Lenok had even properly completed his hierarchy. A memory that felt like a long time ago. “I don’t forget such things easily.” Lenok said that, put down the hammer he was holding, and got up from his seat. The other people who had been chatting noisily here and there stopped talking one by one and turned to look at him when they saw Lenok get up. The mansion garden quickly became quiet, and gazes gathered around Lenok. Dylan, who had been hiccuping, used mana to dispel his drunkenness and asked. “Ban, are you finally going to explain to us?” “As you all know, we didn’t gather here to celebrate something.” Lenok said that and snapped his fingers, and the machine behind him began to slide into the middle of the garden. Whirr!!! A huge rectangular machine like a refrigerator. Lenok, with one hand on the device that had risen with hundreds of wires attached, looked around and said. “It’s to confirm the results I obtained in the Machine City and to show their meaning to others.” “How about just admitting that you wanted to do research or experiments on us?” “That’s right. If you’re honest, we might even help.” “I know what you think of me, but it’s not a lie.” Lenok laughed at Mila’s indifferent reply. “This [Gate] is the most important asset I obtained in the Machine City.”