Episode 593: Reinforcements (3)
The test subjects whose life signals were cut off tried to use all their remaining strength to cause an explosion.
This bomb used special gunpowder, so even [Silence of Fire] did not work.
However, Ludger watched quietly and swung his sword stick as if showing off.
Shashashak.
The blade of the sword stick, swung quickly in a short period of time, gently cut the elastic body of the test subject.
Muscles, which are tougher than rubber and stronger than most metal fibers, were easily dismantled like meat in a slaughterhouse.
The blade of the sword stick cut through flesh and muscle and cut the lead wire of the bomb device attached next to the heart.
The test subjects even failed in their final self-destruction.
Those whose throats were cut off or whose hearts were pierced struggled for the last few seconds and then gradually quieted down.
Ludger quietly stared at one of the test subjects who had a healthy head.
“You’re watching, right? Nikolai.”
Ludger was aware of the alien gaze that moved like an aperture deep within the iris of the test subject looking up at his reflection.
“I know at least that I am being watched through the test subject. “If you are the one who does not betray my expectations, you will also hear this voice.”
Ludger lifted his leg towards the test subject’s head.
“wait. “I’ll just finish my business and go look for you.”
Kwasik!
Ludger, who had organized all the test subjects, turned his head towards the War Mages.
The war mages felt an eerie feeling as if their whole bodies were submerged in ice water.
Not only did ‘the man’ easily subdue the test subject he was confident in, but he also had a special magic that did not work with explosions, and even an appearance that made you feel psychological pressure just by looking at it.
Everyone gathered at the table had the same thought at the same time.
─That can’t be beaten.
Did they look down on us and fight just because we were one person?
It wasn’t so.
Since they knew that their opponent was a 6th rank wizard, they were fully prepared.
The war mages did the best they could.
Still, he was no match for Ludger.
Is that really a human?
Or is it a messenger who appeared to punish them for their arrogance?
“Okay then.”
The Shinigami opened his mouth.
“Let’s finish the fight.”
To bring death to themselves.
* * *
[Wait. I’ll just finish my business and go look for you.]
Kwajik.
The screen turned black with the sound of something being trampled.
Nikolai, who was quietly watching with his chin resting on his face, turned off the artifact screen with an irritated hand.
“John Doe.”
How dare you? Are you saying that you will leave this body to finish your business and come visit me?
Even in this situation, Nikolai’s pride was hurt quite a bit when he was told that he was not number one.
“Like cockroaches, they survive persistently.”
According to the information I recently received, John Doe was a stronger person than he usually thought.
His level as a wizard is at least level 6.
I wondered if he was this strong, but my doubts were resolved with the thought that this was why he was favored by Zero Order.
Nikolai took that into account and devised a plan this time.
No matter how strong the opponent is, you can definitely defeat him.
This is not a fight.
It was a type of hunting where a wild, ferocious animal was cornered and slowly killed.
At that moment, a wild beast that had escaped its territory entered the front yard.
Nikolai, who could not miss this opportunity, adjusted his plan even more carefully.
‘We suddenly did something crazy by attacking the new magic tower, but thanks to that, it became easier for us to control the wizards of the magic tower that we had a connection with.’
I did that, but what is the result?
‘John Doe is much stronger than I thought.’
The Berom we sent was hit and this operation also failed.
Even though it was the first time and Ludger had company, this time I tried to deal with him separately, but I failed.
That means Ludger should be seen as the strongest player among the top 6 ranks.
Even within the same hierarchy, the gap varies depending on the level of wizards, so his actual combat power must be at an enormous level.
“Whew. This is true. It wasn’t like this originally, but I wonder what happened after I went to Seorn.”
I knew that several incidents had occurred there, but Ludger became stronger amidst the chaos.
“But this time it will be different. “I still have a lot of cards left.”
Nikolai was confident.
I couldn’t do anything about Ludger when I was far away, but this is Isla Machina.
There was hardly a place on the island that Nikolai could not see.
Currently, Nikolai has completely taken control of Isla Machina’s shadow.
Are you saying that warlocks are fighting hard to protect their food bowls?
That is only part of the truth revealed on the surface.
Nikolai had already finished strengthening his power.
Fighting the warlock was only a small part of his forces.
If I wanted to, I could have wiped them all out with overwhelming power, but I didn’t do that for the sake of testing the experimental subjects.
The process of collecting data from experimental subjects and modifying and making them better.
For that, combat was needed, and warlocks were the best fit.
In addition to destroying and absorbing their schools, they also use their materials and assets.
Nikolai stood up and slowly headed towards one wall of the room.
One side of the place was filled with translucent glass, but there was only pitch black darkness and Nikolai’s image reflected there.
“Get ready.”
As Nikolai muttered that, light came on in the space beyond the glass wall.
Red lights illuminated the darkness as if turning on warning lights.
Where the blood-like flowing light reached, there were long rows of test subjects standing in rows and rows.
Humans with pale skin.
As red light poured in around it, it gave off an eerie feeling, like a monkfish that had just emerged from a puddle of blood.
All of the pale-skinned test subjects were wearing red gas masks over their mouths.
A red aura began to hover in the blurry eyes of the lined up test subjects.
Nikolai, who had been watching this with satisfaction, turned his back and this time approached the opposite wall.
The wall was also made of translucent glass, and as Nikolai approached, it automatically illuminated the inside.
This time it was blue light.
The cool blue light reminiscent of the cold North Sea ice illuminated the same group of test subjects as before.
Blue experiments.
The difference from the red test subjects from before was that they wore visor helmets over their eyes instead of their mouths, and ampoules filled with blue liquid were stuck like horns on both shoulders.
“Code red. Code blue.”
When Nikolai called his name, the test subjects on both walls raised their heads.
Code Red’s test subjects have blood-red eyes.
Code Blue’s test subjects have blue eyes inside their visor helmets.
“It’s your turn to step forward.”
Nikolai looked at the group of test subjects with a confident face.
The Red and Blue who have lined up now are the ones created by combining the data they received while dealing with the warlocks so far.
‘of course.’
Experiments with room for further development were still ongoing.
“I’m curious.”
Nikolai grinned and sat back down.
The desk where he sat was filled with all kinds of experiment reports submitted by his subordinates.
Even though the report was submitted after sifting and sifting and sifting, the numbers pile up on the desk.
But all Nikolai paid attention to was chapter 3.
first.
“The eye of God that allowed us to take control of Isla Machina.”
A tool to hack all surveillance system equipment items and artifacts and make them your own.
Second,
“A heart of steel that drives a gigantic power source called Isla Machina.”
An ultra-high-performance core steam heart that supports the central island of Isla Machina itself and sends enormous power.
And last.
“The supreme being that carries it all.”
God of machinery.
It won’t be long before it will be completed.
* * *
After clearing the scene, Ludger quickly left the place.
Because of the commotion caused by the fight, pursuers are chasing from afar.
Above all, Ludger was not the only one in danger now.
Even if reinforcements were sent to Cravat, if the opponent’s power was at a level that could not be ignored, this side would not be able to avoid damage.
Ludger, who moved quickly with the intention of providing support, eventually had no choice but to stop in a narrow, deserted alley.
‘It’s a hole.’
There was a round hole in the center of the alley.
A pitch black hole as if it had been precisely cut out with something sharp.
Ludger looked at it and jumped down without delay.
Ludger landed slowly using flight magic, and what he saw was a huge underground facility.
Inside an underground passageway with pipes and wires everywhere.
Perhaps because it was an abandoned area, most of it was rusted or corroded, and it was full of traces of fighting.
Fist and foot marks and traces of curses engraved here and there.
And corpses.
‘The wizards of the New Magic Tower, the mercenaries they hired, and Nikolai’s minions.’
Corpses were lined up along the direction Ludger was walking.
As we headed inwards, the traces of the fight became stronger and the owners of the corpses also changed.
At first it was full of broken remains of automatons, and later it was filled with human corpses.
And at the end, the War Mages of the New Magic Tower decorated the finale.
“I’m here?”
Upon arriving at the destination, Ludger was greeted by a Cravat with a goat horn mask on his face.
It must have been a difficult fight, so the black robe he was wearing showed signs of being torn or scorched in various places.
However, there were no wounds that could be called fatal.
The reason I was able to do that was probably thanks to the wizard who protected me by my side.
“Long time no see.”
A beastman wizard wearing a steel mask on his face.
Iron Mask Loteron recognized Ludger and greeted him.
Ludger released Ather Nocturnus and received Loteron’s greeting.
“Long time no see. “Lord Loteron.”
“It’s like that when you meet face to face like this. I was surprised when I first heard the news. “I never thought something like that would happen on Isla Machina.”
And Loteron continued with a small smile.
“You’re telling me your plan to raid the New Magic Tower to openly show the other faction’s shame. “What do you think would have happened if I had told this to someone else?”
“So, aren’t we facing each other like this? “Because I didn’t tell anyone.”
“I needed confirmation. “If it had been said by someone else, I wouldn’t have even listened to it, but if it was Mr. Ludger Chelisi, it’s a different story.”
Loteron had his own level of trust in Ludger.
No, to express it in its own way would probably be quite rude to Ludger.
Comrades who fought together in the capital. And a teacher who teaches his half-sister, Iona.
To Loteron, Ludger was a person he could trust and entrust his back to more than most people.
But more than that, he was also a man whose identity I was curious about.
It still is.
Ceorn’s teacher made a plan to raid the New Magic Tower on Isla Machina.
Moreover, the person joining hands is Kravat, the head of the ancient curse school of warlocks.
The fact that a wizard was with a warlock was enough to draw criticism from the public.
Even if it was Loteron, there was a need to hear what the situation was like.
“So what happens now?”
“Are you aware of the recent developments on Isla Machina?”
“yes. “It’s vague, though.”
A fight taking place on the first floor of Isla Machina.
Did you say it was a turf war between a warlock and an emerging power?
Because of that, there have been rumors going around recently that wizards from opposing factions within the New Magic Tower are making a lot of money.
If you’ve come this far, it’s not a rumor but a fact.
Moreover, there is a truth hidden there that is much darker and dirtier than what is known to the public.
“Then it would be easier to talk about.”
Ludgar briefly explained to Loteron what was happening.
The experimental body army led by the emerging power Nikolai is trying to take control of Isla Machina, and its companions are a large faction of the New Magic Tower.
“Has it happened this far?”
Even though Loteron heard the shocking truth, he did not deny reality.
In fact, he also vaguely knew about the opposing faction.
Even in Loteron, which has no interest in such political strife, unwanted news sometimes reaches the ears of a Rexorer-level wizard.
Ludger’s story was just the final piece of a puzzle that had already been 90% put together.
Even so, there was a clear difference between the painting before completion and the finished painting.
“If half of the New Magic Tower and the entire backworld of Isla Machina join hands, then a new empire that no one can stop will be born.”
“That’s why I asked Lord Loteron for help.”
“But will I be the only one? “We are confident that we are not weak, but the scale of our opponent’s power is much greater than that.”
“I guess so.”
Ludger shook his head and answered.
“It would be nice to have at least one person to help.”
“…maybe there is a way. “At the same time, another Lexor-level wizard has arrived on this island.”
“Another Lexor-level wizard?”
Loteron’s voice sounded low from inside the mask.
“However, it will not be easy to invite that person. He is a difficult person to meet.”
