819

 [Chapter 206]

[Behind-the-scenes Maneuvering(5)]

There was someone behind this.

Eun-ha was able to uncover that backing with Han Chang-jin and Twenty-five's help.

First, the former Ain Association was secretly receiving sponsorship from Galaxy Group.

It was Choi Jung-hoon who moved the former Ain Association. For some reason, he was attacking Pandora Clan from behind.

Eun-ha wasn't unaware of where Pandora Clan's support base came from.

He also wasn't unaware that Jin Pa-rang would be harmed as Ain society was attacked.

So Choi Jung-hoon's move was clever.

He cleverly made a move to chip away at Pandora Clan's power.

Choi Jung-hoon didn't directly harm Pandora Clan.

But looking at it long-term, it's unknown how that will turn out.

How far ahead did Choi Jung-hoon see?

Eun-ha felt a crisis from Choi Jung-hoon's actions who had been quietly active until now.

But his attention returned to another backer, not Choi Jung-hoon.

It was what Han Chang-jin found out.

'<Abyss > was involved. They did this by drawing in people unrelated to darkness to move while avoiding my eyes.'

Darkness was involved.

No, <Abyss > was involved.

When he heard those words from Han Chang-jin, Eun-ha was enraged.

Choi Jung-hoon was at most <Abyss >'s mouthpiece or collaborator even generously speaking.

The mastermind who instigated this situation was <Abyss > Seon U Hwa-ryeong.

To this, Eun-ha vented his anger once by killing the former Ain Association's representative, and secondly caught <Abyss >.

Worm Hole

Maegu's principle was very useful.

The principle of separating world lines and handling space allowed him to escape Seon U Hwa-ryeong's detection network.

Also, <Abyss > doesn't know how much stronger he's become after defeating Maegu.

Eun-ha caught him off guard and quickly attacked him.

"You're crazy.... Are you really trying to kill me!?"

"Yeah."

Eun-ha swung his sword.

Seon U Hwa-ryeong who was attacked once quickly avoided his position.

But it didn't matter.

Worm Hole

When Eun-ha thrust his sword into the air.

Part of the sword caused ripples in the air and disappeared.

And the disappeared part appeared at the point where Seon U Hwa-ryeong avoided.

"Kuk...!"

Seon U Hwa-ryeong responded nimbly.

He blocked the attack by putting up a barrier targeting his whole body.

Meanwhile, blood was flowing from his left side.

Eun-ha who was hiding in darkness aiming for a surprise attack could clearly see his wound.

His clothes were soaked with blood.

Right then─.

─Ox Step

Seon U Hwa-ryeong stepped on a true angle.

He who was under Baek Seo-jin could also use Ox Step.

His figure disappeared.

Eun-ha wasn't flustered.

He snapped his fingers.

Isolated World

Surely he couldn't have not expected it.

Eun-ha had separated the surrounding space from the world in advance.

In other words─.

"─Why..."

"If you want to run away, defeat me and run away."

Unless he gives permission.

One cannot freely step outside the space where magic reaches.

Eun-ha smiled coldly looking at the old man who appeared nearby dumbfounded.

"You didn't think I'd attack recklessly without preparation to face you, did you?"

Surely he didn't expect to be ambushed like this.

That he would abandon his public image and do something like an assassin.

But an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, there was no more appropriate retaliation than this.

The one who attacked from behind first was Seon U Hwa-ryeong.

So Eun-ha also took the same action of attacking from behind.

Of course, physically unlike Seon U Hwa-ryeong.

And Eun-ha─.

─If you're going to ambush, you should do it properly.

When he resolved to kill someone.

Eun-ha didn't hesitate.

He made thorough preparations.

It wasn't just Eun-ha and Seon U Hwa-ryeong in this space now.

Gift <Shadow Stepping>

Twenty-five revealed himself from under Eun-ha's feet.

He activated his gift.

He had grasped <Abyss >'s mana with the blood he dropped just before.

"It's done, master. With this, I can definitely track that bastard even if he runs away. I can also mark him to be unconditionally exposed to magic."

"Mark him."

"Yessir."

Twenty-five said grinning.

When he activated magic, a glowing mark appeared around Seon U Hwa-ryeong's body.

It was magic with a similar effect to Eun-ha's Invisible Tracker.

No, it was an upgraded version.

The effect of magic with Twenty-five's gift added was that excellent.

"You really intend to kill me. To even prepare like this.... Yes, is that bastard the one managing your darkness?"

"What good is knowing that. And I have one more thing prepared?"

"...What? Why, my body..."

"There he came out."

Thousand Mile Web

Shadow Stepping

Han Chang-jin who entered Seon U Hwa-ryeong's shadow while he was focused on Eun-ha also revealed himself.

He stepped on Seon U Hwa-ryeong's shadow and entangled him with mana threads.

"Surveillance Bureau Director, please obediently follow our words."

"Han Chang-jin.... Are you forgetting what you're doing now? You're in a position to manage darkness, not be used by someone like this... Kuk...!"

"It doesn't seem like someone who privately used darkness should be saying that."

"N-Noh, Eun-ha...."

"Now you call me by name. Yes, you've realized well that names used in society aren't needed here."

During <Fin de Siècle Destruction>.

Though he was a well-known player as living legend Baek Seo-jin's confidant.

The flow of time couldn't be overcome.

The old man had aged.

And the ambush situation completely caught the old man off guard.

Eun-ha suddenly stabbed a knife into Seon U Hwa-ryeong's stomach.

Then he kicked his knee with his foot.

Seon U Hwa-ryeong made an "ugh" sound and tried to protect his knee.

"Still, we can't be at ease, so let's start by crushing one leg."

Striking the same place several times.

Eun-ha made it so Seon U Hwa-ryeong couldn't use his leg.

Eun-ha who had crushed <Digger > Kwak Woo-hyuk's leg in his previous life wouldn't hesitate to do this.

☆

Han Chang-jin seemed to have a lot he wanted to say.

Nevertheless, he silently devoted himself to his work.

He and Twenty-five completely bound Seon U Hwa-ryeong.

"You bastard..."

"I'm sorry it came to this. But please understand. I was so wary of you that I felt I had to do this much."

Seon U Hwa-ryeong bound doubly and triply.

Eun-ha looked down at Seon U Hwa-ryeong who had even lost the strength to run away with his leg bent backwards.

I shouldn't let my guard down just because I caught him easily.

Though he's old, he's someone who's lived as a power in the darkness for a long time.

In the previous life, <Abyss >'s terror was in his excellent political skills mobilizing darkness as information power.

But he was a player who contributed to rebuilding the destroyed world with the living legends.

Though Eun-ha had never seen his power, he knew he was an enemy he shouldn't let his guard down against just from that.

But even so─.

─To think I'd catch an enemy I wanted to catch so badly but couldn't in the previous life so easily like this....

Honestly, it didn't feel very good.

He was his greatest rival.

An enemy he couldn't catch in his previous life.

But it felt empty to catch that enemy like this while launching a surprise attack.

Nevertheless, Eun-ha didn't forget what he had to do.

"What was your purpose in planning this?"

"Hoho.... You took such measures to find that out? You're more extreme and dangerous than I thought."

"Just talk."

"To think a hero cheered by citizens would casually shed blood... Kuk! You bastard!! You really, have nothing in your eyes... Guheok...!"

"You should know if your leg is broken. The situation for exchanging words while laughing haha hoho has passed."

Hamper Wave

Eun-ha caused ripples on his finger and stimulated Seon U Hwa-ryeong's mana circuits.

Now that he gained the principle of handling space, he could handle magic much more comfortably.

"Kyaaaaaaaa!!!"

"Twenty-five. Mouth."

"Yes."

Though he didn't know what Seon U Hwa-ryeong's power was, almost all players become unable to exert power when the circuits spreading from their heart are destroyed.

He tore apart part of Seon U Hwa-ryeong's mana circuits.

The old man screamed at the sudden pain like his soul was being torn.

Twenty-five gagged the old man's mouth so he couldn't scream.

"Eun-ha, this is a bit harsh..."

"Hyung knows too. We can't know what someone living in darkness might do."

"..."

"If you understand, open <Abyss >'s mouth and check if there's any suicide poison or something inside."

"Okay."

Han Chang-jin who couldn't bear to watch stepped forward.

But when Eun-ha spoke firmly, he couldn't refute.

In the end, he opened Seon U Hwa-ryeong's mouth and looked inside.

There was nothing.

Eun-ha started torturing again.

"Ugh..., kueeeh..."

From Seon U Hwa-ryeong's perspective, this was like a bolt from the blue.

Surely he never expected that he, in the Surveillance Bureau Director position, would be dragged around like a powerless person and tortured.

Still, as someone who placed his footing in darkness, he was enduring the torture well.

By this point, most would have answered the questions obediently with their reason paralyzed by fear.

But Seon U Hwa-ryeong just snickered while in agony.

"...Purpose, you say."

His eyes shone ominously.

It was proof that he still hadn't given up on life even facing death.

He spat out blood pooled in his mouth and answered.

"You, broke the balance."

"Me? What balance."

As if saying 'You really don't know'.

Seon U Hwa-ryeong snickered.

He burst into laughter.

He coughed up blood.

"You..., have too much power. That's not what we want."

"You mean you, not we."

"No, we."

"..."

"Do you know how this country rose up from destruction?"

"..."

"We sacrificed a lot. And we decided to create balance in the world to not lose any more."

"Keep going."

"Do you know what happens when a person gains power?"

That person tries to become a ruler.

Seon U Hwa-ryeong answered his own question.

He continued speaking.

"Due to <Fin de Siècle Destruction>, this country was divided into dozens of pieces and embroiled in long-lasting turmoil. People with power rose up in various places trying to become rulers of this country."

"..."

"I guarantee..., the damage caused by them was greater than the damage caused by monsters."

"..."

"People who each called themselves monarchs! They pushed people who barely survived destruction into war. The long-lasting damage not only caused many sacrifices, but devastated people's hearts."

It was a story Eun-ha knew too.

But Seon U Hwa-ryeong's words who directly experienced that era were more specific.

The world was destroyed and monarchs appeared causing long-lasting turmoil.

That was all Eun-ha knew.

It was a story people who experienced the destruction tried not to talk about as painful history.

Seon U Hwa-ryeong continued speaking.

"What do you think we who lived through that era thought? At that time, we thought... all the people in this country might disappear if things continued like this."

The players who appeared then were the living legends who put an end to the era of destruction and monarchs.

Seon U Hwa-ryeong laughed while bleeding.

"...With this the era of monarchs ended. Nevertheless, players remained in this land. Though living legends overthrew the monarchs, they too were people with power. Someday they might also become immersed in their power and cause disaster."

"..."

"They kept each other in check. Because they worried someone among them might defect."

Equal power distribution between clans.

That saying also arose then.

Seon U Hwa-ryeong added.

"<Iron Fortress> handled that situation very wisely. He thought not that people with power should lead the world, but that people of this country should combine their strength to lead the world."

"..."

"So he waited for someone with <White Silver>'s gift to appear. That person would keep all powers in check while being a neutral existence neither player nor ordinary person. That person was the philosopher! The fairy! The world came to flow like this."

"So what does that have to do with your purpose?"

"A variable called you appeared in a world that had barely found balance."

"..."

"Look at your power, look at your background! You and the clan you lead are breaking the balance right now! Whether by your own will or others' will, you are becoming a monarch. Furthermore, you possess the most dangerous qualities of any monarch that has appeared so far. So!"

"So you attacked our clan?"

Seon U Hwa-ryeong didn't answer.

The silence was the answer.

Eun-ha snorted.

It was ridiculous.

"You attacked because I'm dangerous?"

"That's right."

"You've been using schemes from behind continuously even before I became like that, what nonsense."

"What are you saying?"

"Why did someone claiming to protect balance think of means to worsen the Fairy's position?"

"...Kyaaak!!"

"Twenty-five. Hold him properly."

"Yes, master."

"Or perhaps as you said, you too were consumed by power and gave in to greed?"

What position was Seon U Hwa-ryeong in before the regression?

He was the Minister of the Mana Management Organization, the head of the 3rd generation Twelve Seats, and the last representative of the 1st generation.

Such a person turned his back on the Fairy and established an independent power base.

Though he didn't have the Fairy's position, he essentially performed the Fairy's role.

It was absurd for someone like that to dare discuss being a guardian of balance before him.

"I'm really curious what balance you're thinking of. Why are you trying to shake the Fairy you people recommended and selected?"

"That too..., is for balance. Even if the Fairy's power is strong it's dange... Guheok...!"

"Then why are you trying to weaken the Fairy's power when it's already weak."

"You, don't understand what you're saying..."

He had to consume considerable mana to maintain the Isolated World.

He couldn't keep dragging out time.

Eun-ha clicked his tongue.

He had to give up on finding out more from Seon U Hwa-ryeong.

Instead, he decided to destroy Seon U Hwa-ryeong's mind to find out even a little more information he could learn.

 Stygian Eye

"Hah.... A brainwashing spell?"

"Yeah."

"Do you think I'll fall for such magic?"

"If I destroy your mind, you will. Though I won't be able to get all the information."

"Then I'll really die."

"You know well. I told you, didn't I? That I'd kill you. How could we go back to how things were before when our relationship has become like this."

"Hah..., that's true too. But can you really kill me?"

Eun-ha placed his hand on Seon U Hwa-ryeong's forehead.

He used the brainwashing magic.

Then, the old man sneered weakly.

"You, can't kill me. Darkness is behind me. If I, who am also the Surveillance Bureau Director, die a suspicious death in a place like this, do you think you can avoid being tracked?"

"..."

"Absolutely, absolutely not. No matter how great your darkness is, darkness will surely find you."

"Maybe so."

"What do you think will happen then? The same goes for you, <King of Shadows>. You two will pay the price to the <King of Darkness>. Though they say Baek Seo-jin has fallen to the state of a neglected old man, would he stay still if I died?"

"..."

"So you absolutely can't kill me. If you know Baek Seo-jin's terror, you absolutely..."

"I'll just explain things well to Teacher Baek Seo-jin later. I wonder what Teacher's face will look like when he learns you were a traitor."

"A traitor! What nonsense..."

"It doesn't matter if you weren't a traitor. Dead men tell no tales, after all. But, you probably were a traitor."

"You.... You're really dangerous! To distort the truth like that, do you really intend to become a monarch... N-no... Ugh..."

Stygian Eye

While destroying the mana circuits.

Seon U Hwa-ryeong's mana resistance dropped sharply.

Eun-ha destroyed his mind.

He intended to turn him into a doll that answers questions to get whatever information he could.

It was then.

"...Uh...ugh...ku...r...kkeul kkeul..."

Seon U Hwa-ryeong's reaction changed.

In the midst of his mind collapsing, he suddenly creaked like a broken machine.

It was a reaction Eun-ha had experienced before.

Soon Seon U Hwa-ryeong regained consciousness.

The old man looked at Eun-ha and chuckled.

"I never thought I'd see you like this. This wasn't in my plans at all. Kkeul kkeul."

"Somehow I thought it might be like this. I thought you might be behind it."

Seon U Hwa-ryeong's mind was destroyed.

The being whose consciousness dwelled in that body instead was Armageddon.

Eun-ha showed little reaction even after realizing the old man's existence.

He had expected it to some extent.

The only part that differed from his expectations was that <Abyss > wasn't a Ma.

That was all.