Chapter 317: Episode 317

I stood up from my impromptu human throne and glanced around. The other two Official Rank 1s, Seraph and Firefly, were staring in my direction with expressions befitting prey looking at a terrifying, incomprehensible monster.

“Well, it seems the pecking order has been officially sorted out.”

I shrugged and offered them a lazy, relaxed smile.

“From now on, I am the absolute strongest of humanity. If anyone still has objections to my command, feel free to step forward.”

They remained utterly speechless.

They couldn’t even make proper eye contact with me. I had definitively, utterly crushed their will to fight.

Lifting my sleeve, I wiped away the warm blood flowing down my forehead that was blurring my vision with a hazy crimson tint, and continued.

“Rank 1 Gabriel.”

Gabriel, who was sprawled helplessly in the dirt beneath my boots, let out a pained, rattling groan.

His reinforced hunter suit had been blasted to absolute shreds, but true to his title as the former apex predator of the world, he was miraculously still conscious.

“As promised, you will obey my orders unconditionally from now on. This arrangement will continue even after Nemesis ends.”

Gabriel remained silent.

I received no answer, but he didn’t deny it either.

That was enough for me. He wasn’t the type to leave room for interpretation anyway.

“And as for you, rank-1 Franz? I made sure to get a fantastic recording of your disgraceful defeat.”

I held out my hand. The empty air rippled, and a cloaked drone materialized above my palm. Franz’s eyes widened dramatically.

“Naturally, I also recorded that amusing little trick you pulled right after preaching to me about a fair duel.”

I dropped the paralyzing needle I’d kept pinned between my fingers, letting it hit the dirt.

“The internet is going to love it when the footage of you rolling in the mud leaks. Won’t it make for an all-time great meme?”

Franz trembled with rage.

“You little shit! Do you really think you’ll get away with…!”

I delivered a light kick to his face. A few of his teeth flew out, glinting in the sunlight.

“I suppose I should grab a few more humiliating shots.”

I grabbed him by the hair, hauling his head up, and pulled out my phone with my free hand to snap a selfie.

I affectionately captured a memory with Franz, whose face was a swollen, toothless mess, his eyes half-unfocused.

“Wow, these came out great.”

I nodded in satisfaction and tucked my phone away. Crouching down, I met his hazy gaze.

“It’ll be quite a sight watching the stock prices plummet for the countless global guilds under your command, not to mention the psychological devastation of your members. Right?”

Franz fell silent.

“So, what are you going to do from now on?”

“…Yeah, fuck. I’ll follow you. I just have to follow your orders, right?”

Smiling, I shifted my attention to the last fallen man.

Wang Ya, lying in the dirt just like the rest of them, smoothly raised both hands.

“I yield.”

“Thank you.”

I snapped my fingers with a sharp crack. A warp gate opened in front of them, and several mages stepped through.

“This warp leads to a hunter-exclusive hospital. It strictly guarantees patient privacy, so you can receive your treatment with peace of mind.”

The mages supported the battered men and hauled them off to the hospital. The other rank-1s who hadn’t participated in the battle disappeared through their own warps, returning to their respective headquarters.

Now, only the two of us remained. I wiped my sleeve across my forehead, trying to clear the blood that kept obscuring my vision.

“Do you want to challenge me, too?”

Yeon remained silent.

Yeon strode toward me, her golden eyes intense.

“Honestly.”

She pulled out a handkerchief, pressed it against my bleeding forehead, and began to gently wipe the wound.

“Ugh, that hurts.”

“Why are you always so reckless?”

My vision cleared considerably, revealing the deep worry etched onto Yeon’s face. Suddenly, my legs gave out from under me, and I slumped to the dirt.

My blue robes disassembled into shimmering feathers and vanished into the air as Meister Mode deactivated.

“Is the wound severe?”

She knelt beside me, her brow furrowed as she examined the gash.

“I’m fine. I’m just exhausted.”

Yeon supported my weight, helping me sit back against a nearby rock. She retrieved a first-aid kit and an elixir from her spatial pouch, meticulously disinfected the wound, and wrapped it in a clean bandage.

“I’m just doing basic first aid for now. Make sure you actually go to the hospital later.”

It wasn’t that bad of an injury, honestly. If it had been severe, she probably would have hoisted me over her shoulder and shoved me into an ambulance herself.

Finishing the treatment, she tucked the kit back into her pouch.

“You really are amazing, Yusin.”

“Amazing, my ass. You could have done exactly this whenever you wanted, if you’d just set your mind to it.”

“Crushing people with sheer force just isn’t my style.”

I let out a bitter laugh. Notice how she didn’t say she couldn’t do it.

The only reason I had been able to beat the Official rank-1s was all in the details. I had meticulously analyzed them one by one, mobilized every magical countermeasure they wouldn’t expect, and viciously dug into their weaknesses.

With Gabriel, I used a sonic wave to rattle his brain.

With Franz, I exploited the brief delay in his ability usage and warped him straight into the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

With Wang Ya, I cut off his oxygen supply with a vacuum barrier, beating him to a pulp while he was powerless to spark his specialty flame abilities.

Naturally, they weren’t the kind of opponents I could just swallow whole with a single spell. Even with the upper hand, it had taken considerable effort to put them down. I figured Yeon would have defeated them much faster.

“Let’s head back,” I said, pushing myself up to my feet. “I’ve claimed the title of humanity’s strongest, and I’ve solidified my authority. I have a lot of preparations to make.”

“Yusin.”

Her golden eyes locked intently onto mine.

“Why haven’t you been able to look me in the eye since earlier?”

“…Huh? What do you mean?”

“Is there something you’re keeping from me?”

I squeezed my eyes shut.

How could I possibly stand here and tell her that she’s destined to destroy the world—and that I’m the one who has to kill her?

“No, it’s just… Nemesis is coming soon. The thought that the world might end is just making me a bit restless.”

She remained silent.

An awkward silence stretched between us.

Did I say the wrong thing?

Just as I was about to speak, she beat me to it.

“I guess I haven’t convinced you that I’m someone you can trust yet, Yusin.”

“…Where is this coming from all of a sudden?”

“I know I’m not a member of the Magic Tower, and we haven’t lived together all this time… but I’ve always tried to be completely sincere with you.”

She placed a hand over her heart, her gaze earnest.

“I know you want to save the world more than anyone else. I feel the exact same way. If there’s anything I can do for you, I’ll help. I don’t care what it is.”

I couldn’t find the words to respond.

“Please tell me. Even if you have to wait until later.”

She turned and started walking toward the warp gate. I swallowed hard, my throat suddenly dry.

“Yeon.”

She stopped in her tracks.

“It’s not that I don’t trust you. Just… give me a little time.”

She paused.

She turned around and walked back. Without a word, she took my hand, lacing her fingers through mine, and gently pulled me along.

“Okay. Let’s head back.”

Her beaming smile felt even more heartbreaking than usual today.

*

After wrapping up my obligations at the headquarters, I finally returned to the Magic Tower.

The fact that I had to fight her all over again right after seeing her in person was agonizing, but it couldn’t be helped.

I challenged the eighth floor’s trial.

And…

“You are not yet ready.”

I was spectacularly crushed.

I died to the illusion of Yeon four times in a row. Violently ejected from the trial’s magic, I sprawled flat on my back against the floor.

“Ah, damn it… How am I supposed to just not let it bother me?”

I shouldn’t have met with her today. Now she was stuck in my head, making me hyper-aware of everything for no reason.

Even if I gave the trial one hundred percent of my effort, it was a toss-up whether I’d win or lose. But because my mental state was so thoroughly shaken, I was making uncharacteristic mistakes left and right.

“Ea, I’m going in for a fifth attempt.”

-…You are pushing yourself too hard. Please promise me that this will be your final attempt for today.

“I promise.”

I steeled my resolve and initiated the trial once again.

The now-familiar sight of the desolate ruins materialized around me.

Plan F.

I activated the Wing Golem and took to the sky at maximum speed.

If I stayed at the starting point, Yeon would spawn within three minutes.

My plan was to put enough distance between us, then wipe out this entire terrain—Yeon included—with a full-power Armageddon.

However…

It doesn’t feel like I’m getting any further away.

No matter how fast I flew, it felt like I was trapped on a treadmill. The same ruined scenery kept repeating endlessly beneath me.

-Confirmed that coordinates are locked via space-time magic! You cannot escape!

…They really threw the kitchen sink at me for this one, didn’t they?

As I circled in the air, the distinct sound of footsteps echoed from the darkness below.

Yeon was approaching. At the same time, the ambient mana in the environment was being aggressively sucked into her, treating her body like a black hole.

The mana drain had begun again.

My mobility was completely sealed, leaving me trapped in a confined space. I was being actively stripped of my mana, and given who my opponent was, my mental state was wavering.

It was an absolute nightmare.

I tried not to blame my environment, but I couldn’t help feeling that this setup was fundamentally unfair.

Moreover, all the trials up to this point had presented a clear goal. But I couldn’t figure out the underlying objective for the eighth floor’s trial at all.

What were the intentions of the First Master who designed this floor? Was it merely an exercise in killing the corrupted Guardian?

Suddenly, a wave of profound irritation washed over me.

I roused the magic power throughout my entire body. I wasn’t casting a sixth-order or a seventh-order; I was just endlessly pouring out raw, unfiltered magic power.

This was an unwinnable fight in the first place.

This trial wasn’t designed to be cleared normally.

<Kim Yusin Original – Deformation Meister>

I spread my wings, shifting my attire into the signature blue robes. Without holding back, I squeezed out every last drop of my magic power, scattering radiant feathers in all directions and letting them cascade to the ground.

The feathers disassembled upon impact, morphing into overlapping magic circles that blanketed the entire floor.

They were all the exact same type of spell.

-Tower Master! What is this…!

<Cancellation> ×100

The nearby ground rippled with volatile blue waves. Without saving a single ounce of strength to actually fight Yeon, I completely wrung out my mana reserves.

“Activate.”

Massive blue pillars erupted from every magic circle, shooting high into the sky.

My goal wasn’t to defeat her. It was to tear down this world. To completely break the trial’s magic.

-This is too reckless! If something goes wrong with this world, there is no guarantee you will make it out safely, Tower Master!

“Even so, this is the only way,” I grunted, gritting my teeth against the strain.

From now on, my enemy isn’t Yeon. It’s this world itself.

Framing it that way made things so much clearer.

I will shatter the rules set by the First Tower Master. I’ll destroy the trial’s magic entirely.

The exact moment that realization fully crystallized in my mind—

My eyes widened in shock.

A massive tsunami of knowledge violently flooded into my mind. My jaw dropped at the sheer, ocean-like vastness of the information tearing through my consciousness.

Don’t tell me… this was the trigger?

I had experienced something similar once before.

It was exactly like when the previous Tower Masters had passed down the sixth-order to me during the fifth floor’s trial. Only this time, the sheer quantity of information was on an entirely different level.

“Now, you are finally ready.”

The fabric of the trial wavered, and Anton materialized beside me.

“Master Anton!”

“Becoming truly conscious of one’s environment is much harder than you’d think,” he said softly. “People naturally tend to focus on the immediate tasks at hand, their relationships with the people standing beside them, and the fulfillment of their own desires.”

“And making an absolute enemy of that environment is even harder. But do you have any idea how laughable it is to watch people squabble amongst themselves within the neat little boundaries drawn for them? The true key is whether or not you have the courage to step completely outside those lines.”

I looked back at him, and he met my gaze evenly.

“Generations of mages struggled through that exact contemplation. And by breaking free from the rigid limits of the orders, they finally grasped ’Chaos.’”

“Chaos?”

“Indeed. A third attribute that fundamentally shouldn’t exist. Do you understand what that means?” Anton smiled faintly. “Chaos is the power to create an entirely new world.”

While I was still agonizing over the sheer volume of knowledge flooding my brain, a blinding red flash shot out in a perfect straight line from the darkness, piercing right through my chest.

I was violently thrown out of the trial once again.

I panted heavily, clutching my chest as I glared at the trial’s magic portal. My mind was a jumbled, aching mess, but there was one thing I knew for absolute certain.

I had just acquired the theoretical foundation for creating a world.

…Is this really possible?

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