Chapter 140. Terror (2)
Two beautiful women in their late twenties were chatting in a cafe.
"Our Sol doesn't seem to love chocolate as much these days? You used to drink three chocolate frappes at a time."
"Well... I found something sweeter than chocolate."
Suck suck.
Im Sol was meeting a friend at the cafe.
Normally, she focused more on research than people, but since it was the festival, she was handling all the appointments she had put off.
Min Yeji, team leader of the Ironblood Guild.
They had originally planned to meet yesterday, but due to a sudden meeting with Baek A-Young, they postponed to today.
Since it had been a while, the two had a lot to catch up on.
"So I had a huge fight with that old bastard from the Association."
"You've been through a lot."
Sip.
"On top of that, the guild master's pushing me to act fast. Ugh, so much work."
"Told you. Guilds always have too much to do."
Usually, Im Sol just responded whenever Min Yeji spoke.
They'd known each other since their cadet days. Im Sol transitioned to a professor after a brief career as an active-duty Hunter for her magic research, while Min Yeji joined a major guild for wealth and fame.
One became a guest professor at Victoria Academy, the other a team leader in a major guild—both had succeeded in their own ways.
"Still, I couldn't be a professor like you... I can't just sit around. I want more money too."
"What is it with you and money? You already have plenty."
"No such thing as too much money."
Min Yeji tapped her smartwatch, probably getting another message from a superior.
Every time she saw that, Im Sol was reminded she was glad not to join a guild.
"Sigh... I should've approached Lee Hoyeon during the festival. You really don't know where he is?"
"Nope. I haven't seen him even once during the festival."
Im Sol hated the idea of getting dragged into something by Lee Hoyeon more than seeing her friend get scolded.
'He's already super busy, and if he runs into her, it'll be a pain in the ass.'
"Damn it. He's not answering calls and nobody knows where he is—how are we supposed to approach him? Bunch of lunatics."
"Calm down. Just pray to the heavens—you'll meet him eventually..."
BOOM! BOOM!
Suddenly, deafening explosions rang out from outside.
"...!"
The two of them stood up at once and rushed outside.
Smoke was rising from all corners of the festival, and people were panicking.
"...It's a terrorist attack. I'm going to help contain the situation."
As a professor at the Academy, Im Sol was obligated to respond.
But just as she started running toward the smoke, Min Yeji stopped her.
"Sol, wait a sec. Something's off."
Min Yeji, a seasoned fighter against the Pandemic, could sense something was wrong.
"For that loud of an explosion, there's barely any smoke. There might be a second wave. We need to assess the situation."
"...You're right."
Im Sol calmed herself and took in the surroundings. No one seemed injured despite the loud noise.
While scanning the area, Im Sol spotted Lee Hoyeon.
"Huh?"
"You see something suspicious?"
"No, over there..."
Min Yeji also turned toward Lee Hoyeon.
Lee Hoyeon, with fire in both hands, charged into the crowd and slammed a fire punch into a security officer's face.
-Kyaaaagh!
The guard collapsed, clutching his face, and writhed on the ground.
"Wh-What the hell?!"
"...!"
Min Yeji and Im Sol rushed toward Lee Hoyeon, stunned.
*
I pushed through the panicking crowd clinging to the security forces.
Thanks to my [Mana Sensitivity], I could sense the disguised demon drawing mana from within its body.
Crackle—!
I didn't hesitate and smashed a fire punch into the demon's face.
"Gyaaaagh!"
"Get away from me! It's a demon!"
Squirm, squirm—
The demon's face began to squirm where my fist had hit. It was starting to transform.
I shouted so the crowd would clear away from me.
I could've yelled that a demon was hiding among the guards, but only about a fifth of them were disguised.
Better to deal with it myself than cause mass confusion.
"Wh-What's happening?!"
"Someone died! Lee Hoyeon attacked a guard!"
"He said it's a demon! Run!"
Sure, people nearby were even more panicked now—but better than getting killed by a demon.
GRAAAH! GURRRRGHHH!
Inhuman roars erupted.
I boosted my firepower at the grotesque, deformed creature.
"Hoyeon!"
A familiar voice called out.
"Professor?"
Professor Im Sol ran toward me.
It was the first time she'd ever called me "Hoyeon," so I was surprised.
The cat-faced woman I'd seen at the award ceremony was with her.
'That must be Min Yeji.'
I remembered her being quite the beauty when I looked her up after all the missed calls.
Seeing her sitting with Professor Im Sol, I figured they were close. But I didn't expect them to hang out privately.
"What are you—huh?"
"It's a demon. It disguised itself as a security officer."
Up close, Im Sol also realized it was transforming.
-KYAAARGH... GURRRGH!
Rip—
The demon's shoulder burst open, revealing a new monstrous form beneath.
How should I put it...
Its grotesquely muscular body was revolting.
-DIEEE! DIEEEE!
The demon, still screaming in pain from the fire punch, tried to grab my arm.
But with Clairvoyance still active, I dodged and stepped back quickly.
"Shit."
I wiped the strange goo off my fist and covered it with flame again.
Too many people were around to use magic carelessly—it was better to fight like this.
'Accelerate.'
I slammed a punch into the demon's stomach, too fast for it to react.
Thud—
"Kugh?!"
Speed meant power.
The demon hit by my Einstein Fire Punch died on the spot.
"Kyaaaaah!"
"R-Run!"
Civilians who saw the transformation started fleeing from the guards.
"Everyone! Stay close to the guards! Don't scatter!"
Professors appeared from somewhere to manage the chaos, but handling this many people with just a few was nearly impossible.
Most people didn't even recognize them as professors and just panicked.
"Hoyeon. What is all this...?"
"Professor, I'll teach you how to identify the demons. Please help me. You too, Ms. Min Yeji, even if this is our first time meeting."
Even among the executives of the Pandemic, each one has unique traits.
Some smash through everything with brute force, while others are meticulous tacticians who act precisely according to plan.
This terrorist attack was clearly prepared with great care.
Among the early-game executives, there's only one this meticulous.
Gil Steven.
"What? Did you just say you can identify demons?"
Professor Im Sol looked doubtful.
"It's not a perfect method. I can only identify the ones here on the scene."
It's impossible to spot a demon who's perfectly hidden.
That's why the war with demons in this world has never ended.
But Gil Steven's underlings are different.
They all have the same magic circle engraved near their heart. If you know the pattern, you can identify them.
I immediately drew a magic circle in midair.
I had identified it just moments ago while killing one of the demons.
"Any security officer with this magic circle is a demon. I'll head elsewhere, so please take care of this area, Professor and Ms. Min."
"Hoyeon! Wait a second!"
"Lee Hoyeon?!"
I heard them call out to me, but I couldn't miss this chance.
Gil Steven.
He's one of the brains of the Pandemic, always cooking up troublesome schemes.
If I can take him out early, that'd be a huge win.
His operations are always clever and unexpected, but they have one fatal flaw.
His obsession with perfection.
He always wants to execute his plans flawlessly and puts effort into fixing any mistakes for next time.
And to feel the realism that you can't get at a desk, that bastard always watches his operations from the field.
Right in the center of the battlefield.
Knowing this, I kept scanning with mana detection during the fight and already located him.
"Ugh... ngh."
"Sir, are you alright?"
"Oh dear, please help this old man..."
I approached an old man lying in the middle of the chaos, seemingly injured by the explosions.
With a concerned look, I helped him up. He groaned as he took my offered hand.
"Heugh!!"
At the same time, he stabbed at me with a dagger in his other hand.
Crack—
It was fast, but my prepared Cotton Guard blocked the dagger effortlessly.
"...When did you know?"
"From the start, of course. Mr. Gil Steven."
I sneered at the startled face of the old man.
The surprised faces of smart-ass types always crack me up.
"How do you even know my name? Hardly anyone in Pandemic knows my real face. Do you have a spy?"
"Not your business."
Thump.
My heart sped up a little.
[Combat Sense] had kicked in faintly.
As I thought—this was the real deal.
The first executive to appear is someone I can take down easily.
My growth rate has already far outpaced the original storyline.
Flick—
Gil Steven stood up and began summoning mana.
"For my Master... I will take this sacrifice before me."
"You insane bastard."
Most of the Pandemic executives are fanatics like that.
It's all because of Maestro's ability.
Gil Steven's body flushed red as his surging mana flared.
But I wasn't tense at all.
"Die...!"
Gil Steven's magic surged and a magic circle appeared.
Tap—
I touched the circuit core of his magic circle, and the spell collapsed.
"W-What?!"
"Hmm... I wanted to use this as case material for my thesis, but it's too low-level to be useful."
"What bullshit are you spouting?!"
Realizing his magic was useless, Gil Steven turned and ran.
He physically felt the level difference.
"Well, I'll give you this—you know when to run, like a rat."
Gil Steven stopped in front of the Academy's auditorium by the central fountain. I followed.
"Just give it up already, yeah?"
I was stalling, hoping to squeeze some info out of him, but it felt like a waste of time.
"Kuh, kuh... I will burn my last flame. For my Master!"
"...."
As he spoke, the mana in his body began vanishing rapidly.
'What the...? A trap?'
He was standing in front of the Academy's Hall of Honor.
That place displayed statues and portraits of famous alumni, and also housed Academy-owned artifacts...
'Artifacts?'
I immediately used mana detection on the Hall.
Since the terror attack had started about an hour ago, people had already evacuated.
Fortunately, no one was inside. But I sensed mana turbulence—the flow of a huge magic circle.
"If my death brings thousands of sacrifices... then it's worth it."
Gil Steven smiled calmly, as if he had accepted death.
He was clearly trying to trigger something through his own sacrifice.
'What could he do with artifacts?'
I combed through my memory. Artifacts... I remember something from the original story.
"Got it."
Artifacts are equipment filled with mana.
There's a way to weaponize that mana.
Force the mana to run wild and turn it into a bomb.
That tactic definitely showed up in the original. It was only mentioned briefly, but I remembered it.
And with that knowledge, I could now understand the magic circle inside the Hall of Honor.
A circle designed to convert artifacts into mana and trigger an explosion.
'I have to stop it.'
In the original, even if this plan existed, it was probably never triggered—kept as a failsafe.
The spell demands a massive amount of mana and would inevitably require Gil Steven's life.
Now that he's going to die anyway, he's decided to take others with him.
'No wonder he ran the moment he realized the power gap.'
What should I do?
I calmly ran the calculations.
If bombs are scary, then disarm them before they blow.
So, how do I deal with artifact bombs?
'What if I just destroy the artifacts before they're used as bombs?'
Artifact mana only functions if the item physically exists. Destroying them doesn't let you absorb the mana like a potion.
I started gathering mana into my hand.