Chapter 228: Episode 228

“An interesting argument, Tower Master Kim Yusin.”

Marcello broke in with a sunny grin.

“You make it sound as if the Magic Tower can provide that power and competitiveness.”

“Yes. That’s exactly what I’m saying.”

Marcello picked up a sheet of paper.

“However, I can’t help but doubt the Magic Tower possesses such influence. Let’s see here… Your guild roster shows one Official Rank 3, eight Official Rank 5s. Ten members in total.”

Lowering the document, Marcello met my eyes.

“And your leader is a novice who has only just become Official Rank 2. What exactly do you think you can offer us with a lineup like that?”

“What’s on paper isn’t everything.”

I shrugged lightly and went on.

“Bishop Marcello, how many members does the Holy Knights have?”

“We currently have 315.”

“I see. Then let me ask you another question.”

I let my lips curl into a slight smile.

“How many people in the world right now do you think are learning magic?”

“…Hmm!”

“Sixty-two billion views on the Circle lecture videos, three hundred and twenty million members on magic lecture websites, and the BBC’s estimated projection of sixty million people who have achieved First Circle. All of them are the source of the Magic Tower’s power.”

I spread my arms wide.

“Magic is the future. It’s the new trend. The number of people who want to learn magic is about to explode. The Hunter Alliance? There are countless international organizations in this world—the M10, the European Union, APEC, ASEAN. But the Magic Tower, the source of magic itself, is irreplaceable.”

I spoke with fervor.

“Alchemia, the Magic Tower’s subsidiary, exports potions to twelve countries. Our golem and warp businesses are also ready to enter the global market. If the Magic Tower becomes a member of the World Guilds, you will be able to exert direct influence over that many people and nations. I don’t believe that’s a losing proposition in any sense.”

Leaning back, Marcello smiled in satisfaction. Sham stepped in again.

“Such influence is of little concern. The issue is operational capability. Can you truly fight demons with such a small headcount?”

“Yes. To summarize our recent results… those demon research bases that were recently discovered destroyed? We were the ones who took them out.”

“…!”

There had been three research facilities where demons were developing potions to turn humans into monsters.

I had destroyed two of them. The remaining one had been taken down by the Lord of the Sky Castle, who was sitting right here.

“And there’s this.”

I pulled a list from inside my jacket and unfolded it.

“What is that?”

“A list of the two hundred demons I’ve personally eliminated recently.”

Their eyes widened.

Demons rarely exposed their identities, so capturing even one required a significant investigative effort. A tally of two hundred was an enormous number.

“Furthermore, by digging into the personal networks of the deceased, we’ve identified additional suspected demons.”

I added a new list to the first one and handed them both to Sham.

“…Hmm.”

“If the Magic Tower becomes a World Guild, we’ll have the investigative authority to dig into this properly. For now, I lack that power.”

As she scanned the list, Sham’s eyes suddenly widened.

“Clint…! A particularly troublesome demon. You actually tracked him down.”

“I got lucky.”

I had now highlighted the benefits of the Magic Tower joining, its future value, and our track record. I felt I’d done everything I could.

At that moment, Albert, the Lord of the Sky Castle, who had been sitting quietly, extended a hand toward Sham.

“I would like to see it.”

Looking faintly surprised, Sham passed him the list. With a blank expression, Albert began to read down the names.

After that, Han Yoonjeong and Marie each asked one question, but I answered both without much difficulty.

“We have heard you, Tower Master Kim Yusin.”

Sham lowered the documents and spoke.

“We will now proceed to the vote.”

The moment of decision had finally arrived.

If three out of the five votes were in favor, I would become the master of a new World Guild.

“Those in favor of admitting the Magic Tower into the World Guilds, raise your hand.”

Two hands went up. Han Yoonjeong and Marcello.

Sham, Marie, and Albert remained motionless.

’Damn, it wasn’t enough…!’

So close.

It seemed my words hadn’t fully reached them.

They had every right to vote no. It simply meant my persuasion had fallen short. There was no point in demanding to know why.

Though I regretted it, I had to accept the result. I bowed my head.

“Thank you for the opportunity. In that case…”

“Wait.”

It happened then.

“I would like to make a proposal.”

Albert spoke up. Even his voice was an eerily beautiful tenor.

“The Magic Tower’s future value is intriguing, but your operational capability remains in doubt. Therefore, I will give you a chance to prove it.”

A strange light flickered in his blue eyes.

“If you resolve one calamity of my choosing, the Sky Castle and I will gladly cast our votes in favor.”

“…Ah!”

Once three votes were secured, the remaining two wouldn’t matter; the Magic Tower’s admission into the World Guilds would be guaranteed.

This clearly hadn’t been discussed beforehand. Sham stared at him, her expression hardening.

“Lord of the Sky Castle…”

“Do you accept?”

I had nothing to lose. Grinning, I answered.

“I accept.”

* * *

Republic of Malta, Gozo Island.

The place was a living hell. The defensive line was collapsing under the relentless assault of swarming monsters, and the city’s residents were screaming as they scrambled onto boats or clung to the ladders of rescue helicopters.

“Colonel! The monsters are closing in! You must hurry and evacuate to the main island of Malta!”

“Damn.”

Colonel Joseph clenched his fist in frustration. If even Gozo Island fell and became a monster nest, there would be no way to guarantee the safety of the main island.

“We must hold this position at least until all the civilians have evacuated! What about reinforcements?”

“All the Alliance troops stationed in the north have been wiped out! We’ve completely lost contact with the reinforcements from Spain.”

“We need hunters, hunters! Where the hell is the Alliance?!”

Colonel Joseph shook with rage.

The moment the calamity was discovered, they had urgently requested aid from various countries, but their ally Italy had remained silent, and Greece and Spain had only sent token forces.

’So this is how the world works now.’

Everyone only cared about calamities that occurred on their own soil; they acted as if their neighbors’ fates didn’t matter.

Screech!

All the monsters were converging on this location. The barricades they had set up earlier were on the verge of collapse.

“C-Colonel!”

An aide called out to him.

“What is it now? I’m busy as hell!”

“A hunter has accepted our request for aid! An Official Rank 2! He’s on his way right now!”

Colonel Joseph’s face lit up.

“Rank 2? A Rank 2 hunter is coming all the way out here? Who is it?”

“It’s the Master of the Magic Tower, Kim Yusin!”

Colonel Joseph froze.

“Huh? Kim Yusin? Isn’t he… Asian?”

“Yes, from South Korea…”

Colonel Joseph scratched his head furiously in irritation.

“Damn it! How long is it going to take him to get from there to Malta? Those damn Alliance bastards! They just want to score political points like this, then when the island is completely destroyed, they’ll pretend there was nothing they could do…”

Colonel Joseph’s rant cut off mid-sentence. A warp gate suddenly opened in midair, and a man in a navy suit stepped out.

“Hello.”

Yusin greeted him with a bright, easy smile.

“You received the message, I presume? I’m Kim Yusin.”

“…Ah! Tower Master Kim Yusin!”

Stunned for a moment, Colonel Joseph hurriedly snapped to attention and saluted.

“Colonel Joseph, commanding officer of Gozo Island, Malta Army!”

“Looking forward to working with you.”

When Yusin extended his hand, Colonel Joseph accepted the handshake with utmost formality.

’A hunter! And an Official Rank 2 hunter at that!’

“I’ve been briefed on the calamity. What’s the situation?”

“Underwater monsters are landing from all sides of Gozo Island and attacking the city! We’ve counted at least three thousand! Civilian evacuation is at seventy percent! HQ ordered us to focus on the evacuation and abandon this island for Malta.”

“No. We’re not abandoning this island.”

Yusin cut him off firmly.

“Who’s the overall commander of this operation?”

“Brigadier General Silvio. Among the hunters, Official Rank 4 Matera is in charge.”

“Understood. Patch me into the comms channel.”

“Yes, sir!”

After receiving the channel information from Colonel Joseph, Yusin immediately switched on his headset mic.

“This is Official Rank 2 Hunter Kim Yusin. As of this moment, I am assuming tactical command.”

Cheers erupted from all directions.

“No major changes to current orders. Evacuation remains top priority. I’ll handle the monsters converging on the center. Concentrate your main forces on protecting the evacuees.”

Acknowledgments came in from all over. Once Yusin ended the call, he turned his head.

’So that’s the core of the calamity, huh?’

Right in front of Yusin stood a large, suspicious-looking flower.

Its petals were patterned in a strange, serpentine way, and instead of a bud in the center, a black crystal jutted upward.

Gozo Island had come under monster attack after this flower bloomed. More precisely, every monster was rushing in to shatter the crystal at its heart.

’Seed of Sealing.’

It was commonly referred to as a “Sealing Realm” calamity.

In the early days of the Overlay, hunters who didn’t know any better had directly destroyed this crystal and had learned a hellish lesson for their trouble.

Boss-monster-class enemies had appeared immediately, and the number of swarming monsters had multiplied several times over.

After several such painful lessons, the Alliance had established guidelines for dealing with Sealing Realm calamities.

First, concentrate all available forces on preventing the monsters from breaking the Seed of Sealing.

Once it was safely secured, you investigated other clues and worked your way toward a method of clearing the calamity. That was the basic approach.

The Maltese side had followed the guidelines well. They had erected multiple wide monster-proof fences around it and concentrated their military forces there.

Headquarters had apparently wanted to let the monsters destroy the Seed and flee to another island, but Colonel Joseph’s stubbornness had saved this one.

’So, what now?’

Most of the soldiers were seeing an Official Rank 2 hunter for the first time. Every eye was fixed on Yusin.

He, meanwhile, was looking over an empty stretch of ground, raising his arms or holding up his fingers as if measuring distances.

“Good.”

At last, he lowered his arms and spoke to Colonel Joseph.

“Could you step aside for a moment?”

“Sir? Ah, yes!”

When Colonel Joseph moved back, Yusin stretched out both arms and drew up his mana. In the open space, mana began to swirl violently.

“Whoa!”

“What kind of magic is he about to use?”

The vortex grew larger and larger, then suddenly dispersed on the wind and went still.

In its place, a massive magic circle spread across the ground.

[Coordinate calculation complete. Ground conditions optimal. Mana reserves within the Magic Tower confirmed sufficient.]

“Samia, are you ready?”

[I am always ready, Hunter Kim Yusin.]

Yusin stopped guiding the coordinates and stepped well back. Then he thrust both arms sharply upward.

Rumble!

Above the magic circle, light shimmered and something enormous began to take shape.

“Holy…!”

Everyone stared, dumbfounded, mouths hanging open. Colonel Joseph even let out a disbelieving laugh as he ran a hand through his hair.

Right in the middle of the Republic of Malta’s territory, a towering spire had appeared.

* * *

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