< Handover (9) >
Even now, I remember it clearly when I close my eyes.
As I was running through the Charlotte cosmetics factory with Dylan, I was out of breath,
the appearance of a crocodile giant I had never seen before, and the unrealistic strength and viciousness.
And even the cold gaze of the agent who saved Lennok’s life.
A long time has passed and a lot has happened to overwrite all the memories, but there are still some things that do not easily disappear.
Memories that, regardless of their value and importance, are fleeting, meaningless, but ultimately caught your eye.
Dawn past midnight. Green eyes shining brightly under the quiet moonlight.
Even the way he looked at Lennok from under the open field was like that.
“Would it be okay to start in a place like this?”
Lennok asked, looking around with a cigarette in his mouth.
An abandoned field that is believed to have once been a zoo, located at the edge of District 33.
A desolate landscape with old and rusty cages and iron bars scattered everywhere.
But Lennok knew that even this stage was not enough for the two of them.
“If you really want to do it right, this won’t be enough.”
A battle between level 8 super-talented individuals who transcend hierarchy in different ways.
Moreover, it is the fight of a seeker who tried not to give up his humanity even while reaching a certain level.
If either Lennok or Evelyn gave their all, it wouldn’t be surprising if this entire area was swept away.
But Evelyn didn’t seem to care much about that fact.
“doesn’t care.”
Slam!!
Evelyn responded by adjusting the bow of the shortbow mounted on her wrist and pressing down on the visor.
“I believe you will be able to control that on your own.”
“……You mean in this situation?”
“Why can’t I do it?”
“………….”
Lennok couldn’t answer and smiled bitterly at the voice that seemed to ask out of genuine curiosity.
Because Evelyn didn’t actually know what she wanted from Lennok right now.
She doesn’t want to risk her life and fight to the death against Lennok.
I don’t want to feel at ease by beating him into a mess until he feels relieved.
Although she possessed an unrivaled sense of stoic inaction, she did not prefer the use of violence itself.
What drives Eveline Marcia is not the logic of power, but duty and pride for the absolute majority of people.
It was her own will, not anyone else’s, that made an archer like her bound to a special agency called an agent.
It was the result of the judgment that one’s own talent and inaction should be placed under the rules of order.
Lennok never agreed or sympathized with Evelyn’s methods.
Nevertheless, he acknowledged that the base was extremely arduous and noble.
It is dazzling because it is a path that has not been taken, and it is a way to yearn because it is a path that will not be taken.
That’s why Evelyn’s eyes may have continued to be drawn to the wizard who was walking a different path than herself.
“…………”
He looks at Lennok in the middle of the dry grass with a dangerous gaze, as if he will disappear at any moment.
Evelyn’s hesitant lips softly softened as if she had something to say.
“I’m sorry for coming home on my own. “I guess I wanted to hide it.”
“Okay.”
Lennok puffed out smoke and laughed.
“If the best agent in Balkan had to use the Ascendant’s supernormal abilities to get discovered, it would be proof that he was extremely safe.”
“………….”
Evelyn’s visit to Lennok’s mansion was possible because she used the Ascendant’s supernormal ability called Lighthouse.
Even if the lighthouse’s abilities were used, a patroller as good as Evelyn would have to spend a long time using her unique observation skills to find it.
This is nothing more than proof that Lennok’s efforts to hide his laboratory and residence were perfect.
“Rather, I should say I’m sorry.”
“why?”
“Because I knew you were worried, but I pretended not to know.”
Lennok quietly looked up at the night sky.
“Maybe he thought it would be okay to get caught. It is inevitable to leave room in a rapidly changing situation. “Still, I might have arbitrarily expected you to understand.”
“……..”
“I was imagining it without realizing it, understanding it on my own, expecting it, then being disappointed.”
I turn my gaze to follow the falling starlight and make eye contact again.
“You freely conclude that you know what you want.”
“………half.”
He casually picks words that Evelyn doesn’t want to hear and stabs her in the lungs.
To support her who is unsure even after making her own choice. So that Evelyn can do her best at this moment.
It’s so easy to hate someone.
Contrary to how winning someone’s heart is such a difficult task.
Even though I know how to use thousands of spells, I can’t properly answer one person’s concerns, so I’m here.
Surely that’s the only thing Lennok can say right now.
“I said I would hear an answer that I couldn’t convey in words. You’re right.”
Lennok said and strengthened the hand holding the tobacco.
Kiiing….!!
At the same time, a tingling magic bloomed through Lennok’s fingertips and slowly covered his skin.
“No matter how hard you try, there are times when a gesture is more meaningful than a thousand words.”
“…………”
“Come, Eveline Marcia.”
Lennok, who laid back his coat and put one hand behind his back, slowly lowered his posture and said.
“Check for yourself whether what you were wondering about is the answer.”
No answer came back.
Instead, Evelyn’s eyes, reflected through the visor, became infinitely cold.
The moment Lennok realized that it was the hunter’s gaze that went beyond construction and business.
Wedge!!
A flash of light darker than the darkness went wild.
It dances and spins as if twisting in the air, then slams down towards Lennok’s new form.
If you see and react with your own two eyes, you will be late; if you listen and act with your two ears, you will fall behind.
An archer’s move that overcomes Lennok’s five base senses and moves ahead from the start.
As always, the arrow quickly shook off all of her regrets and concerns and ran forward.
[Blinking]
Paaa!!
As he tilted his head to the side and leaped through space, a black flash of light penetrated the spot where Lennok was standing.
An eerie and intense acceleration that causes the entire arrow shaft to sink into the ground and disappear.
If you vaguely try to block it or try to dodge it in a vague way, you’ll just get pierced on the spot.
It makes no sense to spare any means when dealing with someone as talented as her.
Lennok, who avoided the first attack by using blink without any hesitation, massaged his shoulder and looked away.
‘There are three ways Evelyn Marcia uses long-distance shooting.’
Throwing an arrow with bare hands. Rapid fire using a shortbow attached to the wrist. And sniping with a large bow larger than her body.
However, even the first player who just threw the arrow without stringing it is far beyond the capabilities of an ordinary archer.
‘There is no delay between aiming and shooting. The moment you can’t read the trajectory, you might have to prepare for being hit.’
The moment you take out the arrow and hold it is the minimum preparatory action that Lennok can perceive.
If I tried to read more than that, I would lose the timing and give up the initiative in the attack and defense.
Evelyn’s fighting method and style have not changed much, both then and now.
Even before she transcended the hierarchy, she already had a perfect understanding of her talents and aptitudes.
I just refined that talent beyond perfection and made it into a force that is not greatly tied to means and methods.
“…………”
Evelyn looked at Lennoc as he turned around, keeping his balance, and then slowly closed his eyes.
The moment her green eyes, which were shining softly in the darkness, disappeared, her presence was erased on the spot.
wickedness….!!
A presence so vague that even Lennok’s magical power detection can barely detect its traces.
The fact that he can completely erase his presence even after reaching level 8 is proof that he has his power and hierarchy under perfect control.
In the darkness, I can feel Evelyn’s new model accelerating at an invisible speed and changing places in an instant.
Knowing that he could not completely avoid Lennok’s magical power detection, he changed coordinates and direction to confuse his senses.
Tatak!!
The faint sound of footsteps grazing the grass. A light step, not even sure if it landed there.
The moment I felt Evelyn’s fingertips brushing between the rusted iron bars were slightly twisted and her appearance had completely disappeared.
Black arrows were rotated and shot simultaneously from three different directions.
Wow!!
A sound that penetrates the eardrums. Speed and trajectory that exceed air resistance.
Even though it is not limited to demonstrations, its speed is one step ahead of chanting or slashing using intent.
Would it be like this if the archery technique of aiming from a distance and achieving a hit was condensed into a single process?
Whiik!!
Two flashes of light pass below my knees.
There are three arrow shafts deflecting off the spine.
Five are aimed at the sides and ribs.
The number and trajectory of the arrows, falling and increasing like black tears, change constantly, disrupting one’s senses and predictions.
A microcosm of Eveline Marcia, who manipulates inertia to change the arrow’s trajectory and control its speed.
Evelyn has already been giving her all from the moment she started this fight.
However, even though Lennok realized this, he slowly raised his magic power with his eyes closed.
Wow!!
Compared to the speed of the arrows rushing in front of us, the slow beat can almost be considered as not moving.
However, what is important in dealing with horsepower is not the concept of relative speed or reaction.
The moment you recognize it, it is already there. The moment you understand it, it starts already.
The magic power and thoughts spinning inside have already surpassed the concept of speed and reached the realm of preemption–
Fababat!!
Flashes twice. Three steps backwards. And fifteen perfect dodges and six collisions.
The arrows that seemed to pierce his entire body wrapped around the magician’s new form, twisted, crossed, and bounced off.
Gagagagagagak!!!
At the same time as the noise of glass breaking, Lennok’s body came out as if shimmering among the paths of countless arrows.
A miracle that destroys all attacks launched by a level 8 archer with three blinks and five shield chants without even a single counterattack.
The moment when the shattered shield fragments and the shadows of the arrows became entangled and rained down on Lennok’s head.
Kirik….!!!
From beyond the darkness, Evelyn raised her hand toward Lennok.
It is not aimed at Lennok properly, but the hand is lowered and the back of the hand is exposed.
I could tell without having to hear the sound that the string of the shortbow hanging from my wrist was pulled tight.
A simple weapon that sacrifices all other advantages and features except for the ability to fire arrows.
A tool that allows her, a natural archer, to perform the minimum actions that can be defined as ‘archery’.
However, the moment he aimed it at Lennok, he realized that he might not be able to avoid this attack.
A wizard’s intuition, perfected by innate reason and honing all of his talent and experience after countless battles.
Wow!!
He chanted a summoning spell at an invisible speed and summoned a huge shell shield before his eyes.
The moment when the arrow fired by Evelyn collided with the shell fragment of Apostle Martinez.
“……..!!!”
Lennok felt that his intuition beyond his five senses was responding and he raised his magical power with all his might.
Immediately after, a dark flash flashed from inside the shield, passing by the back of the neck and shattering the shield.
Let’s go!!
Apostle’s Shell Shield. The inviolable barrier that only Croken Assilus had been able to damage until now was penetrated.
However, Lennok was able to recognize on the spot what method Evelyn used through magical power detection.
“Multiple shots. “Does this mean I’m gaining momentum once again inside the shield?”
Evelyn’s Microcosmic Inertial Deflection is the ability to distort and deflect the inertial force applied to an object with the power of thought.
The imagery does not end with the line that deals with her body, but also applies to the arrow that leaves her fingertips.
‘The penetration power was increased by overlapping inertia within the shield more than five times. The fragment that even lost its shape as an arrow was used as a weapon.’
There is not even a trace of the arrow left where the shell shield was pierced.
Evelyn initially predicted that the arrow itself would be blocked by the shield and crushed the arrow immediately after impact.
By concentrating all the inertia of the scattered fragments at one point, the penetrating power was raised to the limit.
As a result of overlapping the process over five times in a split second, only a single fragment thinner than a hair penetrated the carapace shield.
But that alone was enough to send a chill down Lennok’s spine.
‘Know.’
Evelyn knows how to deal with Lennok’s quick, imperceptible first move.
He is also aware of the magic and equipment used by Lennok and the way he handles and wields them.
Van and Evan. The only comrade and powerful superhuman who fought alongside those two identities.
She truly understands what kind of wizard Lennoc is, as they have saved each other’s lives over and over again.
In that case, the next thing to prepare after taking the time through the performance of penetrating the shield is
‘ultra-long-distance sniping using a great bow.’
Faaah!!
Realizing this, Lennok used Blink to step back and began to put his hands together and make a hand sign.
The most powerful weapon of Evelyn, a natural archer, and the ultimate magic bow that is like a sacred weapon.
Unlike just shooting with a shortbow, you should not assume that you are blocking from the front.
Keyee!!
It spreads its magic perception widely and shallowly to listen to all movements around it.
In order to avoid sniping that begins without even a warning, you must read the direction and trajectory immediately after launch and move to get ahead in the battle.
The moment Lennok thought so, he immediately opened a barrier to advance and chanted around himself.
“Are you going to keep hiding it like that?”
Evelyn’s quiet voice rang from behind.
A light gesture of twisting the shoulder and shooting a black arrow while holding it backwards.
Just as Evelyn’s hand was about to shake away Lennok’s shadow.
Lennok’s image disappeared and reappeared on the spot, changing his posture and direction to avoid it.
“……!!”
Fababat!!
The shadows of two people flashing in the air, intersecting and disappearing.
Just by repeatedly blinking in place, you narrowly avoid Evelyn’s close-range attack, which is invisible to the eye.
A fluent close-range reaction and evasion that Evelyn had never seen from the Lennok she knew.
With just that, Evelyn’s magical power, which distorted her mouth, spun strongly for an instant, and the arrow that left her hand surpassed the speed of sound and stuck under Lennok’s chin.
A predictive projection that uses blinking and then hits the spot where it reappears.
Paaaaaaaa!!!
At that moment, Lennok’s divine form scattered and disappeared, then reappeared right in front of Evelyn.
Evelyn’s attack missed as it passed through the air perfectly, and her green eye glow wavered gracefully.
“Whoa…!!”
Feigenbaum’s ring obtained from Jindun’s Cradle.
An artifact that forces the user to move into imaginary space for less than a second and avoids all attacks.
Just now, Lennok used an item with a cooldown of nearly a month to avoid Evelyn’s attack.
But that wasn’t because Lennok couldn’t read Evelyn’s attacks or judgment.
On the contrary, Evelyn’s movements were unreasonable and did not follow the combat logic known to both sides.
“…….you.”
Immediately after piercing Lennok’s shield and diverting his attention, the decision Evelyn should have made was to use the great bow to shoot at an ultra-long distance.
It is the most powerful attack she can prepare and the only means of protecting the distance that opens up immediately after the battle begins.
However, instead of using the great bow to start sniping, she chose to close the distance and engage in close combat by swinging the arrow shaft directly.
At first glance, it seems like a surprise attack, but it is not very effective against a battle wizard like Lennok.
A battle wizard who has reached the level of Lennok does not waver even if the distance is narrowed.
It was possible to turn the situation around by hitting with a quick-fire, long-distance, high-firepower revelry that could be used at close range.
There is no way Evelyn doesn’t know that there are plenty of ways to avoid and save lives.
In fact, Lennok was able to launch a fatal counterattack immediately after dodging Evelyn’s attack using Feigenbaum’s eye.
However, the reason she did not move first even though she was aware of the loopholes she had exposed was because she knew the reason why Evelyn acted like this.
“…………”
Evelyn is not standing here because she wants to kill Lennok or inflict an equally fatal wound on him.
If that had been the case, there would have been no conversation like this, just a sniper shot from the archer from thousands of meters away.
What she wants is something else.
Even though it was said that level 8 superhumans should stick together properly, the stage was set in this area where the aftermath of the surroundings had to be taken into consideration.
It is also important to close the distance to the archer to a disadvantageous level and not use large-scale techniques to go wild.
I guess that’s because what Evelyn wants to show and what she wants to see isn’t that kind of thing.
I think Lennok, who has not used lightning magic until now, would also know and understand it long ago.
“You can do more.”
Evelyn spoke with an unwavering voice.
She was already sure.
“You can do much better than this.”
“…………”
The closer people are to Lennok and the more deeply they know him, the more they value his abilities and talents.
Human imagination cannot catch up with the vessel to be inflated by popular rumors, and the standards cannot measure the limits to judge it by external evaluation.
Because I realize that all of Lennok’s actions and times, as if he were breathing, are not possible without becoming more than his reputation.
And Evelyn was one of the people who watched Lennok closely.
Anytime, anywhere, in any situation and against any opponent.
Lennok can do more than you can imagine and more than is expected of him.
Lennok’s efforts to be independent of environmental and location conditions have long been bearing fruit.
That’s why-
“……Okay.”
The moment Lenok nodded and put his thumb and index finger together.
Sarak….!!
The black magician flowed down his fingertips and began to eat up space with an eerie and ferocious force.
