The Return of The Mythical Archmage [EN]: Chapter 283

Terror Response Team Operations Headquarters.

The team leader greeted Shin Hayul with a displeased expression.

“Please keep your business as brief as possible. You know we don’t have time to waste on trivial matters.”

It was understandable why the team leader reacted this way.

With the Anti-Magia terror attacks causing chaos, it was natural for anyone to react like this when a student who still had milk on his lips [a phrase meaning someone is young and inexperienced] came to them claiming to have something important to say.

‘If it weren’t for the Mado family….’

If it weren’t for the backing of the Mado family, he wouldn’t have even bothered to meet with Shin Hayul.

The team leader’s brow furrowed even deeper.

‘Is he thinking he’s some kind of hero just because the media is hyping him up?’

The team leader had a relatively good impression of Shin Hayul, but it seemed that after today, he wouldn’t be able to see him in a good light anymore.

“It is possible to explain briefly. However, if I do, there’s a high chance you won’t listen to my opinion, Team Leader. That would naturally lead to further arguments, which would be more detrimental. I ask that you invest about 10 minutes of your time.”

The team leader’s already grim expression turned even grimmer.

There were only 2 hours and 17 minutes left.

And he was asking for 10 minutes here?

“Do you even know how important 10 minutes is in this situation?”

In the end, the team leader exploded in anger.

He didn’t care about the Mado family or anything else.

He felt like he needed to unleash his anger on this arrogant brat who was caught up in his hero complex.

“Of course, I know. But….”

Was it because the team leader’s language had become harsh? Or was it because he had been consistently showing his displeasure from the start?

Shin Hayul’s atmosphere changed instantly, turning cold.

“Does it really make a difference if you have 10 more minutes?”

“……What?”

No.

Shin Hayul wasn’t the type to ruin things for emotional reasons.

This cold, mocking tone was a kind of shock therapy.

He was trying to gain the upper hand in the argument by provoking the team leader’s resistance.

“The opponent is Anti-Magia. They are untouchable terrorists that no country in the world can properly deal with.”

Of course, this approach had a fatal flaw: it could backfire and lead to irreversible consequences, as it would further anger the other party.

However, Shin Hayul was confident.

“Do you have a way to capture them? Does having 10 more minutes magically create a solution?”

He was confident that he wouldn’t slip up.

He was confident that he could perfectly persuade them.

“You’re just spouting whatever you want.”

The team leader gritted his teeth and glared at Shin Hayul.

A strange light flickered in Shin Hayul’s eyes.

That expression. The next words from the team leader’s mouth would surely be what he was expecting.

His eyes were filled with such certainty.

“I’ll return those words to you. What difference does it make if I give you 10 minutes?”

Bingo.

“Answer me, you hero-obsessed brat. What will….”

“It will make a difference.”

“……What?”

Resistance and anger make people simple.

And there is no one easier to manipulate than a person who has become that simple.

“If you give me just 10 minutes, no, if you hand over command to me, I can capture Anti-Magia with 100% certainty.”

As they had lost their complex thinking and become simple, they were easy to persuade.

“I can safely rescue 7,000 citizens. That’s why I’m here.”

Because they were focusing all their attention on him, the weight of his words was different.

“So, I’m asking you politely. Please invest just 10 minutes of your time in me.”

He took a step back here.

This would have confused the other party to some extent.

They would be trapped in confusion, thinking only about Shin Hayul’s words.

It was all according to Shin Hayul’s plan.

And here was the final nail in the coffin.

“I, the Mado family, will take all responsibility.”

Shifting responsibility.

He was giving them a new option to reduce their own responsibility in this hopeless situation.

Most people would surrender with this.

“If you put it that way….”

And the team leader of the Terror Response Team was among those people.

“I’ll hear you out for now.”

He still had some pride left, so his tone was rough.

But once it had come to this, the game was already over.

“Thank you. Then, I’ll start the briefing right away.”

Shin Hayul internally cheered and moved to the monitor where the team leader was standing.

“First, I’ll tell you how to neutralize Anti-Magia.”

All eyes were instantly focused on him.

Shin Hayul enjoyed those gazes and cheered inwardly.

‘……7 minutes for persuasion. 10 minutes for the briefing. That’s perfect.’

If he had followed the formal procedures, he would have had to argue for at least 30 minutes.

He had saved a whopping 13 minutes.

‘The remaining time is 1 hour and 57 minutes. There’s still plenty of time.’

* * *

About 10 minutes of briefing had passed.

Silence filled the room.

“That’s all. Does anyone have any questions?”

“…….”

“…….”

No one answered.

“If no one has any questions, can we proceed with the operation as is?”

“…….”

Again, no one answered. Everyone was completely stunned.

“Then, we’ll proceed as such. Team Leader.”

“……Wait, just a moment.”

At that moment, the team leader, who had regained his senses, slowly got up from his seat and approached me.

“How did you analyze the structure of Anti-Magia so perfectly? Has the Mado family been analyzing Anti-Magia from before?”

There were no questions like whether that was true or how he would prove his hypothesis.

Such questions couldn’t even be asked in the first place.

He had invested 10 minutes to prevent such questions from being asked.

“If that’s the case, if there’s someone in the Mado family who has succeeded in completely analyzing Anti-Magia… I would like to be connected with that person. Their affiliation can remain with the Mado family. I would like their advice as a consulting researcher….”

“I’m sorry, but.”

It wasn’t me who interrupted the team leader, but Mr. Seokhyun.

“We don’t have such a researcher in our family.”

“Ah, so it wasn’t research from the Mado family. Then, is it research from the Blue Magic Tower? If so, then I’ll contact them….”

“It’s not from the Blue Magic Tower either.”

“Then who….”

Mr. Seokhyun slowly turned his head towards me.

“It was Young Master Hayul here who analyzed Anti-Magia.”

The team leader stared at me with wide eyes.

“He looked at the analysis report of Anti-Magia and finished the analysis on the spot. And he even came up with a solution right there.”

“That’s… does that even… make sense?”

“Whether you believe it or not is up to you. I’m just telling you what I saw.”

“…….”

Laughter could be heard from around the room.

Everyone had expressions of disbelief.

“Since you’ve… shown us the results directly… I have to believe it… but still….”

The team leader stared intently at me.

His eyes were filled with heat as he looked at me.

I could roughly guess what he was thinking.

‘If what he said is true, then we might be able to perfectly respond to the terror attacks that we haven’t been able to deal with properly until now.’

Judging from his earlier talk about a consulting researcher, it seemed he felt a great sense of responsibility for stopping the terror attacks.

He must be thinking something like that.

“Then….”

The team leader slowly opened his mouth.

He was probably going to ask if I could help him.

“Later.”

But now wasn’t the time to be talking about that.

“Let’s talk about that later, after this incident is over. Isn’t that not what’s important right now?”

“…….”

The team leader’s eyes instantly turned sharp. He had quickly grasped the situation from my words and had become alert.

“……You’re right. Then, let’s start preparing for the operation as briefed.”

Before I knew it, the team leader was using polite language instead of casual speech.

“Yes. Please do.”

The team leader nodded and gestured with his chin towards his team members.

The team members immediately got up from their seats and gathered in groups of three or four, heading somewhere.

They were moving to carry out their respective missions.

“Then, I’ll head to the site first.”

“Please do.”

And with that, even the team leader disappeared.

Only Mr. Seokhyun and I were left in the headquarters.

“Mr. Seokhyun. I’m counting on you.”

“Yes. Leave it to me. For the next 30 minutes, I won’t let even an ant enter this place.”

Mr. Seokhyun bowed his head with a determined expression.

“Yes. I trust you.”

I bowed my head to Mr. Seokhyun in gratitude.

And then, I headed to the deepest part of the operations headquarters.

Tap, tap!

The moment I entered the team leader’s room in the deepest part, all the lights in the room went out.

Not just the lights, but all the systems went down.

As planned, Mr. Seokhyun had shut down all the control systems in this room.

With this, the worry of my current appearance being recorded was gone.

“Hoo.”

I took a short deep breath and took out Aeth [likely a magical artifact or item] and put it on.

And then, I held the ‘Ignis’s Medium’ and ‘Umbra’s Relic’ that I had put inside in each of my hands.

“I didn’t plan to do this so hastily….”

And then, I slowly focused mana into Umbra’s Relic.

In the room where all power was cut off, pitch-black darkness descended.

Darker shadows than the darkness began to spread.

I felt the shadows in the center of those shadows.

‘Temper Umbra’s shadows with Mythical Magic.’

Mimir had already found a way to temper this with a medium of Mythical Magic.

I just needed to take control of Umbra’s remnants according to the method Mimir had found.

‘With my current state, about 10% is the limit. It’s a bit disappointing.’

Originally, I was planning to perform the Mythical Magic transformation after reaching the 7th Circle [a level of magical power].

That way, I could take away a little more of Umbra’s control.

If the control I could take away now was only 10%, then the control I could take away after reaching the 7th Circle would be about 20%.

That was a difference of almost two times.

That’s why I had postponed Umbra’s Mythical Magic transformation….

‘What can I do? The situation is like this.’

To completely subdue Anti-Magia, Umbra’s power was absolutely necessary.

It was better to use it now than to let it go to waste.

And well, honestly, even if this situation hadn’t happened, I probably would have done this anyway.

The 7th Circle was too far away.

‘Let’s think about how to take away additional control later.’

The method I was using now was one-time use, and I couldn’t use it twice.

After reaching the 7th Circle, I would have to think again about how to take away additional control.

‘By then, Mimir will be back by my side.’

With Mimir. If we think about it together, we’ll find an answer somehow.

I was certain of that.

“Hoo…”

I took another deep breath.

The shadows wriggled in response to my breath.

They were putting up a fierce protest, as if trying to swallow me, as if refusing to acknowledge me.

It felt like a wild animal that was on high alert.

If I got any closer, it would attack.

I could strongly feel that will.

“I have no intention of backing down.”

I ignored the warning and poured a little more mana into it.

My mana flowed into the shadows through Umbra’s Relic.

A little more, a little more.

When I had poured about half of my mana capacity, my vision reversed.

And when my next vision returned.

I was standing in the center of a world made up of only white and black.

“How foolish.”

In front of me, a woman, also made up of white and black monotone, was sitting.

She sat on a throne that seemed to be made of shadows, crossing her legs in a seductive manner.

“In any era, men are so greedy. Would it have been so bad to quietly back down when I warned you?”

She had an expression that showed she was very displeased with me for ignoring her warning.

“But still. Well, since you’re a guest who has come after a long time. I should welcome you.”

At the same time, light returned to the surroundings.

The light that had been illuminating only me and the woman expanded, and the monotone world became wider.

“Welcome. To my temple. To the sanctuary of shadows.”

The woman leaned her body sideways, resting her chin on her hand while crossing her legs.

“I, Umbra, the god of shadows, will welcome you.”

Umbra.

She smiled leisurely.

“So. What will you offer me in exchange for power?”