Genius Wizard Takes Medicine [EN]: Chapter 828

A dark, endless void. A desolate field with only black chairs scattered about.

A mock ritual space, forcibly altering the thoughts of the deceased, allowing for the sharing of minds. [This refers to a technique that allows the living to access the memories and thoughts of the dead.]

This was a place recently prepared by Highrea to exchange information about the various disasters constantly occurring across the continent.

Lenok had also visited this place before establishing his magic tower to hear about the movements of Pandemonium.

However, the problem that the members who connected to this ritual space today had to worry about was not that.

Kooong!!

Lenok’s form, swollen and black, was so immense that it seemed like it would burst the ritual space.

Each movement was accompanied by a roar that shook the ground, and his consciousness flickered slowly, as if it were blinking.

Lenok’s figure, alive and writhing like a jet-black monster, was in constant flux.

The intense sense of incongruity, as if his consciousness itself had shed its human form and completely transformed into a different being, caused the others to quickly distance themselves.

Whiooo!!

With just a slight twitch, the beastly figure swept away the chairs in the middle of the void and landed heavily in their place.

The members muttered as they watched the bizarre entity writhing as if pushing up its eyelids from the depths of the darkness.

“It’s no different from a monster… not a normal ritual entity.”

“To look like that in this ritual space. Did that crazy bastard finally give up on being human?”

Some were worried, some were annoyed, some were sneering, and some were analyzing the situation.

“He’s a special trait sorcerer. It’s not strange for him to go mad and break down at any time. His mind might have been corrupted a long time ago.”

“I agree. He was just hiding it until now. Rather, isn’t that form closer to his true nature…?”

Amidst the various emotions and cynicism that flashed by in an instant, Daymus stood up and shook his head.

If left to these apathetic attendees, the situation showed no signs of calming down.

“I know you have business with me, so it would be good if you calmed down first.”

“…”

“Or are you planning to keep devouring this entire ritual space like that?”

Gooo…!!

Instead of answering, Lenok’s consciousness raised its head high and stretched out its body in place.

That alone was enough to suppress and gradually corrupt the consciousness of the other members connected to the ritual space.

Beyond the extraordinary level, the ferocity seemed to indiscriminately devour others, causing mana and thoughts to flash from all directions.

Thud!!

“Victor!!”

Freya, with an annoyed look, tied up her hair and shouted.

“Stop it right now, or we might all get trapped here!!”

Lenok did not respond to Highrea’s booming voice that pierced through their heads.

The dark shadows that were constantly swelling, writhing like a beast, pressed down on Vernon, who was trampled underfoot.

“Ugh… I’m sober!! I’m completely sober, so stop it now!!”

The pressure was so heavy that Vernon, his face flushed from being tipsy, opened his eyes wide and shouted.

Even in the non-existent ritual space, the difference in the density of consciousness was so great that pain could be felt.

Freya, looking up at Lenok with a frown, shook her head.

“It’s no use. It seems like he can’t hear us at all?”

“What on earth is going on?”

Highrea, who had belatedly connected to the ritual space, opened her mouth at the sight of Lenok, who had transformed into a monster.

“Highrea, what happened to him?”

“…I don’t know. There were no signs at all before connecting here.”

Highrea muttered, carefully observing Lenok, who had turned into a monster.

“He looked so fine that it’s hard to believe he just came back from Yorta.”

“He just came back from Yorta?”

Freya turned her head sharply, looking horrified.

“Then, was he the one who destroyed the memorial tower?”

“…I was planning to explain that at this meeting.”

While Highrea shrugged, Daymus calmly organized the situation.

“I could talk to him right after connecting. It seems like something changed after he became aware of his condition.”

“What should we do? Should we destroy the ritual space and expel him?”

“That’s ridiculous…”

A gloomy mannequin, who had been listening to the conversation with bated breath, joined in.

Chebien, who manipulated puppet techniques, chuckled as he rattled his own mannequin.

“This place is a ritual space made by processing Agilon’s thoughts. It’s impossible to find such special ‘materials’ again. Once it’s destroyed, we won’t be able to use it in the same way again…”

“Hey, puppet master. Do you want to die? Are you saying we should just leave him like that?”

“I’m just suggesting that we shouldn’t ruin the ritual space for one person… What’s your problem?”

Crack…!!

Freya and Chebien glared at each other almost simultaneously and raised their thoughts.

Both of them were masters of medium techniques, manipulating direct and indirect mediums such as songs and puppets. [Medium techniques refer to magic that uses external objects or forces as a conduit.]

At the same time, they were key figures who reorganized this ritual space into a place where minds could be shared.

If a conflict were to break out between either of them, the mock ritual space would not remain intact, regardless of Lenok’s presence.

At that moment, a dull male voice echoed from under Freya’s feet.

“With Sabrina absent, there’s no need for you to decide on the preservation of the ritual space among yourselves. I hope you avoid unnecessary conflicts.”

As a fluffy white ball wriggled and appeared, Freya turned her head sharply and shouted.

“Doctor!!”

“It seems like there’s a problem controlling the surface consciousness. Let’s wait for a moment.”

Daymus, who immediately recognized the figure, turned his gaze.

“Doctor. You’re here this time. I didn’t see you last time.”

“Since this matter is important, I thought it was necessary to organize the situation for the people involved.”

The Doctor said that and looked at Lenok’s consciousness writhing above the void.

“It’s good that the person in question seems to have arrived safely. Once he calms down, we’ll start right away.”

“It doesn’t look safe at all, no matter how you look at it. Is it okay to wait like this?”

Daymus said, looking at Lenok with a suspicious expression.

“I know how unstable the minds of special trait sorcerers are. Whether it’s talent or environment, it’s a power that blooms while broken.”

“…”

“That’s the most dangerous kind of incongruity among them. In the worst case, it could even affect the consciousness of those gathered here.”

The jet-black consciousness, whose identity even the outlaws of Pandemonium could not guess.

Daymus understood from experience what the empty sense of lethargy, as if looking into the depths of the outer sea, meant.

That was the result of a consciousness that had chosen the most dangerous way of existence in this world.

A power that could only be completed after something with immeasurable talent had been twisted and broken for a long time, and had rotted away.

Just as Daymus was about to speak to explain the ominous feeling he had felt when he saw his enemy before.

“Daymus, you can say that because you don’t know Victor well…”

The Doctor let out a low laugh through the fluffy ball’s mouth.

“That manipulation sorcerer has a stronger self-awareness than anyone I know. The possibility of him going berserk because he can’t control himself is very low.”

“…”

“In my opinion, that looks more like a reaction that occurs in the process of controlling the overflowing surface consciousness.”

Even as he spoke, the darkness that seemed to devour the surroundings was gradually fading in place.

The Doctor smiled as if he could see through the swirling thoughts in the depths of the darkness and asked.

“I think you probably know why this happened, and that should be over by now. Isn’t that right, Victor?”

“…I wonder.”

At that moment, Lenok’s answer echoed from the depths of the darkness that had swollen like a monster.

The writhing curtain of darkness shrank in place, then rotated on its own, reducing its area and height, compressing and shaping itself.

The consciousness, which seemed impossible to control, quickly took shape and transformed into a sorcerer wearing a robe.

Whoosh!!

Lenok, who had instantly regained his original form, adjusted his mask and sat down on an empty chair.

Only then did Vernon, who had been lying under his feet, let out a weak sigh as if he had been saved.

“Ugh…”

“There’s nothing to figure out. It was just a trivial commotion.”

“You almost blew this place up, and you call it a trivial commotion?”

Lenok, ignoring Freya’s annoyed muttering, fell into thought.

‘That was dangerous. I need to be more careful in the future.’

Because of the many things that happened in Yorta, even Lenok found it difficult to guess the cause of his consciousness overflowing now.

The first things that came to mind were accepting the thoughts of the outer sea through the Gwangramuhaegung [Likely a place or artifact related to accessing forbidden knowledge] and receiving the modified mana circuit from the central city noble.

The problem was the reaction of the members who had witnessed it, apart from the consciousness that could somehow be controlled.

“See, that guy isn’t human. Right?”

“I asked Sabrina about it, but she didn’t answer. It must be…”

“He must be a completely different being from birth. There must be a clue.”

There were those who openly discussed Lenok’s origins as if they had noticed it, and those who reacted calmly as if they already knew.

Although he had denied it, he did not expect to be able to silence Agneta and the clown.

Without even trying to stop them, Lenok, who had swept down his mask, gestured to Daymus.

“Sit down. I think we have things to say to each other?”

“…The affairs of the 4th Legion are not under my jurisdiction. I’ll say that in advance.”

Daymus replied, sitting down on a chair with a blank face.

Having heard about what happened in Yorta, he could understand what explanation Lenok wanted.

“Regardless of you turning Yorta upside down, it was not a wise decision to pressure Lieutenant General Mirva.”

“…”

“She’s a soldier. And a career soldier who is extremely obsessed with performance and evaluation.”

Daymus spoke quickly, with the members who were connecting to the ritual space one by one behind him.

It was probably because he wanted to finish this conversation before the meeting started.

“Because of your hostage situation, she had to withdraw the legion without entering Yorta, so she retaliated by revealing your identity.”

“Retaliation, you say.”

“If you had killed Commander Songha on the spot, she would have been delighted. Lieutenant General Mirva is that kind of person.”

Daymus’s words, mentioning murder and annihilation without hesitation against a general of the same Deadrise. [Deadrise is likely a military organization or faction.]

Was this attitude, which thoroughly straddled both sides and maintained balance, an act, or was it his true feelings?

“Is there a way to prevent information leaks?”

“Since the relevant information has already been passed on to the central front media, it’s practically impossible.”

Daymus shook his head.

“The matter has become too big since the memorial tower collapsed. It was never information that could be hidden in the first place. If you wanted to hide your tracks, you should have been careful until the end.”

“You know that wasn’t possible…”

With Kraken’s intervention, the collapse of the memorial tower was virtually inevitable.

The fact that the commotion in Yorta was known outside was also an unavoidable result.

Daymus’s words were close to the truth, but in the end, they were of no great significance to Lenok right now.

The Doctor opened his mouth as if he had noticed Lenok’s thoughts.

“Victor, it’s not impossible to keep the Yorta incident completely secret.”

The Doctor, who had jumped onto an empty chair as a fluffy white ball, said.

“If we deal with the media personnel who received information from Deadrise with a sacrificial ritual, we can cover up the related rumors without a trace.”

“A sacrificial ritual?”

Lenok frowned behind his mask and replied.

“It’s not murder and annihilation, so why do we have to deal with it with a sacrificial ritual?”

“The central media are very afraid of getting involved with the Order.”

The Doctor laughed.

“If we use human sacrifice appropriately, we can easily handle things by relying on the Order’s notoriety.”

“…”

“Since Kraken Asilus is involved, I’ll help you as if I’m doing you a favor, if you want.”

Originally, the Doctor was not the type of person to get involved in the aftermath of such incidents, or to volunteer to step forward.

Nevertheless, the fact that he was stepping in at this point and saying that he would help Lenok was probably because this incident was related to Kraken.

However, Lenok rejected the Doctor’s proposal without a moment’s hesitation.

“That’s a pointless act. I’m not trying to prevent leaks because I’m worried about troublesome notoriety.”

“Then?”

“I’ve finished talking with the Yorta leadership. Officially, I won’t be named as the culprit who destroyed the tower. However…”

Lenok’s gaze flashed coldly behind his obsidian mask.

“Apart from the responsibility, I was just trying to clarify where this information leak started.”

“…”

Even if Victor’s notoriety or reputation spread in a bad direction now, it didn’t matter.

From the moment he joined Pandemonium, he had assumed that he would be branded as a criminal.

He didn’t expect to become a terrorist who destroyed the memorial tower, but it was a notoriety that started from Deadrise’s information leak, not Yorta’s official designation.

It would be enough to hold the commander of the Deadrise 4th Legion accountable for it later.

Lenok had clearly understood that and wanted to meet Daymus here to inform him of it.

“Well, that’s…”

“That’s just like you. You’re going to punish the Deadrise commander directly?”

“With that temper… It’s something that no one would even try to do because it’s too troublesome against such a military power.”

“Well, in a way, it seems like you’re becoming more and more like Myung…”

Chebien and the other members nodded as if they had expected it, and sneered.

Daymus, who had a subtle frown, shook his head.

“Lieutenant General Mirva is a commander with considerable influence within Deadrise. It seems inevitable that you’ll be at odds with her.”

Lenok scoffed.

“I’ve already caught their commander once, so it’s not impossible.”

“…”

In the chilling atmosphere, the Doctor spoke without concern.

“That’s a shame. It would have been fun to use the sacrificial ritual to put pressure on them and watch their reaction. When we covered up the Machina’s secret history before-”

“Doctor.”

Thump!!

At that moment, a white hand that appeared in the air grabbed the fluffy ball.

A cold-looking executor walked out from behind the Doctor and glared at him, causing the Doctor to shut his mouth with a wriggle.

“Ah, Maiya. You arrived early. I heard it would take a little longer.”

“…”

Maiya Lenslit, who had disappeared after the events in the machine city, was also here.

The Doctor and Maiya, Freya and Chebien, Daymus and Highrea. Besides them, there were Vernon and about three unfamiliar faces.

While talking with Daymus, the seats had filled up, and the members were all looking at them.

“Let’s put the Deadrise story aside and start the meeting soon.”

“The time we can maintain the ritual space is not long. If you’re curious about the Yorta incident, please ask Victor directly later.”

Highrea said, clapping her hands lightly to turn the attention of those around her.

“However, the Machina incident is completely different from the Yorta incident, which is under our jurisdiction. You all know that, right?”

So, the purpose of convening the meeting was the massacre in Machina.

Other members, having heard the news, immediately began to bring out information from the scene one by one.

“How many years has it been since the 2nd Apostle moved directly? There’s practically no official record since the Holy War, I believe.”

“Since the Order’s Apostle killed half of the Supreme Council, it will probably turn into a major diplomatic issue.”

“Did you hear that the central mercenaries are heading towards Machina? There’s even talk that the machine city is participating in a new war…”

“Tokerphuz is also noisy because of that. There are already gamblers who are betting on the assumption of war.”

“I don’t know why the Order is increasing its enemies at this time. Do they really want to wage war against the entire continent?”

Lenok also sat with his arms crossed, silently listening to their conversation.

As many of them worked on the front lines of various parts of the continent, the information they exchanged was often far ahead of media reports.

Unlike the media, which only reported on the massacre and destruction of Machina, here they were seriously discussing the follow-up measures and the possibility of the machine city’s participation.

However, the most sensitive and important information was for those who were directly or indirectly related to Machina.

Maiya, who had been silently observing the situation, threw out a shocking fact as if she were throwing it away.

“The Order Alliance’s delegation visited Machina.”

“…!!”

“The Yehasulju himself stepped forward. He’s a disgusting piece of trash, but if a guy who’s famous for being heavy-bottomed moves, it’s not a bluff.”

What did it mean that the Alliance, which was at war with the Order, had visited Machina?

It meant that another war, which had only existed as vague rumors, was beginning to be presented as real evidence.

“Currently, the war between the Alliance and the Order is being waged in the form of Suljus and Apostles engaging in combat and expanding the front lines.”

The Doctor also brought out the information he knew, as if adding to Maiya’s words.

“If the Alliance asks Machina for help, it’s highly likely that the focus will be on magical engineering technology to attack the Apostles.”

“The machine city’s goal is to kill the 2nd Apostle who massacred the Supreme Council, so the Alliance will try to extract as much technology as possible using that as bait.”

“…”

Lenok remembered the 2nd Apostle who had appeared immediately after he had defeated the 10th Apostle Amrita in the Far East branch of the Order and introduced himself as the second.

Considering the tremendous presence he had felt at that time, he was probably a major power within the Order that was at the top of the priority list.

If a monster that could disrupt the balance of power just by its existence had stepped forward directly, they would not have failed to consider the reaction and repercussions.

Even now, within Pandemonium, they were discussing and being wary of his intentions.

Then, why did he, who was called the most perfect Apostle within the Order, stir up Machina even while taking such a backlash?

After that, the meeting moved on to other topics, mentioning the Machina Supreme Council faction and the war situation of the Alliance, which was slightly losing.

“We mentioned the first magic tower in Vulcan last time. I wonder if anyone remembers…”

The puppet master, Chebien, started talking while rattling his mannequin.

“A crazy magician in a giant city has started building a magic tower and producing results. However, the aftermath is unusual…”

“It seems like you’re talking about the common magic system.”

At that moment, a middle-aged man whom they had never seen before opened his mouth.

At the words of the man who had been listening to the meeting without saying a word, Highrea turned to the man as if surprised.

“Professor Raphael, do you know about Gyeonroe?”

“Rather than knowing Gyeonroe… I know a researcher who belongs to that tower.”

The middle-aged man called Raphael hesitated and said.

“The common magic that Evan Bailon announced has become the most sensitive topic in academia. Now, Vulcan has been noisy for weeks because of the existence of common magic.”

A professor belonging to academia. And a person involved in theoretical magic.

While Lenok memorized the name, the Doctor said as if he had suddenly remembered something.

“I met him right before he announced his third paper. I had something I wanted to ask about common magic.”

“Re, really!”

Raphael, with his eyes wide open, stood up from his seat and looked at the Doctor.

“Wh, what did he say about common magic? Why did he publish such a paper? Did you hear about it?”

“No, rather than hearing about it… I checked it a bit.”

The Doctor chuckled and wriggled the fluffy ball towards Raphael.

“It wasn’t a conversation that was meaningful enough to tell you here.”

“Th, that’s…”

Leaving Raphael, who was clearly disappointed, the Doctor changed the subject without any concern.

“However, the fact that Gyeonroe and Evan Bailon made contact through the magic tower is very interesting… As a result, they filled each other’s lacking positions, and a lawless zone was created that even the city council could not easily touch.”

“Ah, that’s right.”

Freya, who had been looking at her nails with a bored expression after the Machina-related topic ended, suddenly turned her head as if she had remembered something.

“Hey, Deadrise. Come to think of it, you were talking about touching Gyeonroe’s magic tower last time.”

“…”

“What was it? You said you were going to send Peisha Grisburn to deal with it, didn’t you?”

Freya laughed mockingly, as if she understood, at Daymus, who was silent.

“Seeing that the magic tower is still intact and has even announced its results, it seems like you failed in the end. You guys are really funny, even sending a noble and not getting any results-”

“Peisha is dead.”

“…What?”

Freya asked back, looking flustered.

Daymus answered with a calm expression.

“After fighting Gyeonroe one-on-one and losing, we lost contact with her. It’s been a few months already.”

“…”

“To be honest, the conflict between the 4th Legion and Victor is not an issue that the headquarters needs to worry about right now. Since Commander Songha has returned safely, there’s no reason to discuss his critical condition.”

In the quiet meeting room, Daymus looked around and answered.

“What the headquarters is most concerned about right now is Gyeonroe’s movements themselves. I participated in this meeting to inform you of this fact.”