N.O.B.I. production plants were scattered throughout Old Seoul.
Yang Jin-Mu attacked one of them.
He killed every employee and hired mercenary in the facility.
Then he began working the control panel.
"Damn it. Biotechnology isn't my field."
After some grumbling, Yang Jin-Mu finally broke into one section of the system and freed three N.O.B.I.s.
Then the factory wall exploded inward.
A massive truck came barreling through.
Caught completely off guard, Yang Jin-Mu was struck head-on and sent flying.
'Oh my science...! There's only one lunatic who would pull something like this...!'
The bombs packed inside the truck detonated all at once.
Flames swallowed the factory. The ceiling was blasted open, exposing New Seoul above them.
Alice shouted at Yu-Han.
"Yu-Han!? Did we really have to go this far?"
"What a stupid question.
The only thing I regret is not having enough money to invest even more."
Just then, Yang Jin-Mu appeared behind Yu-Han.
He tried to erase Yu-Han in an instant with his magic, but vermilion mana wrapped around Yu-Han instead.
"You bastard... the Rüdiger Limit!"
The Rüdiger Limit.
A legendary form of mana capable of canceling any magic and breaking it down into pure mana energy.
Yet only a vanishingly small number of people could wield it.
And not merely because it was difficult.
"Kuh—!"
Yu-Han was the one who began coughing up blood.
The Rüdiger Limit also disrupted the mana flowing through its user's own body.
A single lapse in control could endanger the user's life.
Anyone with a shred of sanity would never attempt to use such an unstable technique in actual combat.
"Pummel him while that moron keeps holding on!"
Lee Sang-Deok shouted as he began beating Yang Jin-Mu with a steel pipe.
Alice followed close behind, slashing him with her beam sword.
Yu-Han shouted encouragement from the side.
"As expected! No matter how powerful you are, deep down you're still a nerdy scholar!
Everyone knows nerds are weak against group beatdowns!"
"That statement is unscientific!"
After refuting Yu-Han's nonsense, Yang Jin-Mu converted the entire ground beneath them into waves and made it disappear.
Yu-Han and Lee Sang-Deok sensed it coming and leaped high into the air with magic.
Alice was not so fortunate.
She plummeted into the opening below.
"...That's one."
Yang Jin-Mu restored the ground from its wave state, turning it solid again and burying Alice beneath it.
Lee Sang-Deok yelled at Yu-Han.
"Hey, Yu-Han! Your robot couldn't even dodge something that obvious!?"
"She's a robot, so she's probably still alive. As long as she's alive, she'll dig herself out eventually."
While the two were talking, Yang Jin-Mu had already risen into the air.
'Have I already exhausted the mana I received from Mr. Lee Nam-Yong...?
At this rate, even escaping from them will be difficult.'
In truth, Yang Jin-Mu's mana had never recovered after being consumed in his previous battles.
He was not truly alive.
Magic was only temporarily holding his unstable existence together.
'If I can't escape, then I'll use the mana I have left to kill as many of them as possible before I go!'
Yang Jin-Mu gathered his remaining mana and focused.
They had already prepared countermeasures against both his radiation magic and his high-heat rays.
That left him with only one option.
He would have to unleash his ultimate move.
A technique built from every scrap of physics knowledge he possessed!
Lee Sang-Deok shouted up at him.
"We're not idiots! You think we'll just stand here and watch!?"
Lee Sang-Deok drew a pistol and opened fire on the airborne Yang Jin-Mu.
Yu-Han, meanwhile, was just standing there like an idiot.
"Why are you standing around, moron?"
"You know why. I don't have a firearms license."
"Then shoot an arrow or something, damn it!"
"...Can't you see what shape I'm in?"
The Rüdiger Limit had already left his body a wreck.
In the end, Lee Sang-Deok was forced to keep Yang Jin-Mu occupied by himself.
But Lee Sang-Deok was a wise elf.
He quickly realized that bullets had exactly zero stopping power against a ghost.
"Damn it. Don't tell me I have to use that here.
I didn't want to resort to it...
The ultimate secret art said to be usable only by those who have reached the very pinnacle of elfkind...!"
As Lee Sang-Deok spoke, the ground beneath them began to tremble.
Yu-Han's eyes gleamed with anticipation.
"Just preparing to use it is making the ground shake...
Just how powerful is this technique, damn it!?"
"...What? I haven't done anything yet."
At that moment, the ground literally erupted.
Lee Sang-Deok and Yu-Han nearly lost their footing.
Radiant orange flames burst from the fissure splitting the earth.
It was the legendary divine beast—the Phoenix.
[I have come as commanded...
However, Contractor, I would prefer that you summon me somewhere open next time.
Rather than beneath a pile of dirt.]
"I couldn't... help it..."
Alice grumbled as she clung to the edge of the fissure and hauled herself up.
The moment Yu-Han saw the Phoenix, his face twisted into a scowl.
"Alice. When did you make another contract with that 'buldak'?"
"It was the one who asked me."
Alice's answer made Yu-Han glare at the Phoenix with open suspicion.
"...I find this deeply suspicious and unpleasant."
[Mortal, allow me to offer you a piece of advice drawn from my ancient wisdom.
Harboring such ugly emotions will only shorten your lifespan.]
Having said its piece, the Phoenix immediately flew toward Yang Jin-Mu.
It seemed to know exactly what needed to be done.
Perhaps its claims of ancient wisdom were not entirely baseless.
[You there.
You are attempting to use dangerous magic.]
"Even a summon has come to harass me? This is getting excessive."
The Phoenix did not bother replying.
It immediately unleashed its holy flames.
Yang Jin-Mu tried to dismiss them as mere fire.
But the instant the flames touched his body, searing pain tore through him.
"Aaargh...! What is this fire!?"
[I have already seen through the fact that your body is no ordinary human vessel.
But before my flames, which burn the soul itself, that distinction means nothing.]
Yang Jin-Mu was forced to abandon the ultimate move he had been preparing.
Instead, he began a spectacular aerial battle against the Phoenix.
The three people on the ground watched the sight unfold.
Lee Sang-Deok turned to Alice.
"For a robot, you keep quite an impressive pet.
Hey. Care for a cup of green tea while we watch?"
Alice stared at him in disbelief.
"Green tea in the middle of a fight...? What are you thinking!?"
"It's not as though there's anything we can do.
All that's left is a tedious war of attrition, so loosen up."
While they were talking, Yu-Han had already spread out a mat and begun arranging the teacups.
He turned a solemn expression toward Lee Sang-Deok.
"Hey. You didn't bring milk or sugar, did you?
That would be «contamination»."
"Ha! What are we, children?"
The remark left Alice feeling personally attacked.
Tea tasted awful to her without sugar.
She always dropped several cubes into her cup.
And now they were calling that childish...
Meanwhile, the exhausted Yang Jin-Mu finally noticed the three of them pouring and drinking tea.
He was appalled.
"Do I look like that much of a joke to you!?
How dare you drink tea right in front of me!"
Naturally, Yu-Han never let an opportunity to answer back go to waste.
"This is the difference in caliber!
Your brains may have made you a decent fighter, but you're no true warrior!
You lack patience, courage... and whatever else!"
"You have the nerve to say that after fighting three against one!?"
"...Could you call it the strategic use of a numerical advantage?"
Yu-Han calmly slurped his tea.
Alice suddenly spoke in alarm.
"This isn't the time for that nonsense... The mana keeping the Phoenix summoned is...!"
"What?"
Alice's strength gave out.
The Phoenix vanished from sight in an instant.
Yang Jin-Mu was finally convinced of his victory.
"This is over, Yu-Han!
My ultimate move will obliterate everything around us!
None of you will escape!"
Yang Jin-Mu attempted to gather his mana once more.
Then his body froze mid-motion.
His entire physical form was beginning to corrode.
"What... is this!?"
An arrow pierced Yang Jin-Mu's heart.
This time, it did not pass harmlessly through him as though he were a ghost.
It lodged firmly in his chest.
Yang Su-Hyeon had fired the arrow.
She had arrived with Yi Rang and Kim Ga-Eun supporting her.
"...Let's stop now, Oppa."
"I see.
So that was when..."
When Yang Su-Hyeon had fought Yang Jin-Mu, she had not merely sprayed him with poison gas.
She had generated mana substances and allowed them to seep into his body.
Then she waited for them to precipitate into a solid residue.
Yang Jin-Mu finally crashed to the ground.
Alice watched him fall.
"I wonder what his ultimate move was."
"Alice, it's much better to kill an enemy without ever seeing that."
As Yu-Han and Alice talked, mana vapor began pouring from Yang Jin-Mu's fallen body.
Before long, only a translucent Yang Jin-Mu remained.
Alice stared at him.
"Has he been released... from the magic sustaining him?"
The word released immediately put Yu-Han on guard.
"Don't tell me he has a second phase."
"...There is no need for such caution.
I have merely become a powerless soul..."
Yang Jin-Mu's translucent form was visibly fading.
Before he disappeared completely, Yang Su-Hyeon questioned him.
"...Who brought you back, Oppa?
And why?"
"A man named Lee Nam-Yong.
He said he would resurrect souls consumed by resentment and obsession, and pass judgment on Korea..."
"Was he controlling you?"
"...No.
Everything I did was of my own will.
I wanted to test it.
To see whether Koreans truly deserved to be judged..."
"Apparently they didn't.
You were stopped by us, after all."
"...Some truths can only be proven by following the wrong path to its very end.
Honestly, I'm glad it was all of you who stopped me."
Yang Jin-Mu turned toward Yu-Han and Alice.
"...But none of this will be complete until you stop Lee Nam-Yong and the rest of Thanatics.
Will you truly be able to defeat them?"
"Of course!"
The exact same answer burst from Yu-Han and Alice at the exact same time.
They immediately turned and glared at each other.
Both wore the same expression: Why are you copying me?
Yang Jin-Mu watched them with a contented smile.
"I see.
Then I suppose I no longer need to worry about my sister living in this world."
"You tried to kill me, and now you're worried about me?"
"If the world ever became too painful for you to live in, I was going to kill you myself."
"You never needed to worry.
So... goodbye."
Yang Jin-Mu's soul grew fainter and fainter.
Then it disappeared completely.
---
After it was all over, everyone returned to where they belonged.
Yang Su-Hyeon went home as well.
With Yu-Han supporting her on the way.
"Are you really sure you don't need to go to a hospital?"
"I don't have the money. Are you going to pay for it?"
"No."
Yu-Han turned to leave, but Yang Su-Hyeon spoke behind him.
"I've... already forgiven you."
"What are you talking about?
Why would you forgive someone who hasn't even apologized?
Just keep hating me—"
"Are you going to tell me not to forgive you again?
I said I forgive you.
So shut up, accept it, and live with it."
Having said that, Yang Su-Hyeon irritably rolled over in bed and turned her back on him.
Yu-Han spoke toward her back.
"...I'm sorry."
He left only those words behind and silently slipped out of her home.
"If you were going to say it anyway, you should've said it sooner, moron."
Yang Su-Hyeon lay in bed and grumbled to herself.
"...What kind of moron apologizes only after being forgiven?"