## Chapter 1257 – 1257. Dark Moon
“Drink up! Drink up!”
“Bring more booze!”
“I want more meat.”
“Any women around?”
I clenched my fist.
I’d splurged on a first-class train ticket, but the noise from the seats behind me was unbearable. How could a first-class cabin, which was supposed to be a private room, have such terrible soundproofing?
Unable to take it anymore, I called the train attendant.
“Did you call, sir?”
The attendant, dressed in uniform, bowed politely.
I pointed behind me with my thumb.
“Puhahaha! What’s with that dance!”
“It’s a dance that’s popular in Divine France these days! They say they perform it for rituals.”
“With that kind of whore-like dance? Is it a comedy for the gods! Hilarious!”
The attendant’s face hardened at the voices from the back.
“You hear that? It’s been noisy since a while ago. Go and tell them to be quiet.”
“…Sir, if you close the window, the noise will be reduced.”
“Why should I close the window because of them? It’s not me who’s lacking manners, it’s them.”
The attendant didn’t act despite my words. Instead, he sighed deeply and bowed his head to me.
“I’m sorry, sir. The people in the back are members of the Pluto gang. Please bear with the noise. You know it’s not good to mess with gangs.”
“I see. If you can’t do it, I will.”
“Pardon?”
I reached out towards the wall. A magic circle appeared on the wall.
[Air Boom]
Kwaang!
I smashed through the wall and entered the back cabin. Seven rough-looking men, who had been drinking, turned their heads to look at me.
“Who the hell is this?”
“Looks like an attack, boss.”
“No. How can some kid attack us? And without a weapon.”
“Well… we can ask him. I’m a pro at this. Just wait three minutes. Hehehe.”
A lackey next to the boss grabbed a pistol from the table, aimed it at me, and pulled the trigger. The bullet flew towards my thigh but bounced off.
“Huh? A barrier…?”
“Shit! What are you doing! He’s a mage! Kill him at once!!”
The gangsters jumped up from their seats and started firing their guns.
Ting ting ting ting ting!
The bullets couldn’t penetrate the barrier and bounced off. It was a level 5 barrier. Ordinary bullets wouldn’t even make a dent. There seemed to be some magic bullets mixed in, but they weren’t powerful enough to break the barrier.
Click click.
The gangsters’ faces turned pale as their bullets ran out.
“Is the welcome over? Now it’s my turn.”
[Air Boom]
I activated a series of Air Booms with extremely reduced power.
Pop! Pop pop pop pop!
The gangsters’ limbs exploded. Their arms and legs flew through the air like fireworks, spraying blood everywhere like a sprinkler.
“Aaaaaaah!”
Screams filled the air.
I walked forward. Thanks to the barrier, not a single drop of blood touched my body.
Thud.
I stepped on a corpse lying on the floor.
“You, burn.”
The gangster’s torso burst into flames. The gangster screamed horribly.
“You… drown.”
A large water bubble enveloped another gangster’s head. The limbless gangster couldn’t even resist.
“You, freeze to death.”
I killed the gangsters in different ways. Finally, only one, who seemed to be the highest-ranking, remained. The guy, buried in his chair, reeked of urine.
“M-Mage. W-Why are you doing this? D-Did another gang hire you?”
“Shut up. You guys were too loud. Haha.”
I laughed without realizing it.
Yeah. I know.
Being loud is just an excuse. I was just annoyed, and these gangsters were just targets for my anger because they were loud.
“Thanks. You guys made me feel a little better.”
“Y-You crazy bastard…!!”
His voice was full of fear. I flicked my fingers and used telekinesis. His body floated into the air. I spun his body like a top. I didn’t do anything else, just spun him.
“Uwaaaaaaaa!”
The spinning man sprayed bodily fluids everywhere. It was a disgusting sight. After about 15 seconds, he stopped screaming.
I kept spinning him.
Thump thump!
The hallway became noisy, the door opened, and armed forces rushed in.
“Don’t move… Holy shit!”
“This is the London Guard. Drop your weapons and surrender!”
“Headquarters! The opponent is estimated to be at least a level 3 mage! We need backup!”
I threw the gangster’s corpse I was spinning onto the floor and used magic on the train window.
[Air Boom]
Kwaaaaaang!
I jumped out of the train through the window.
“Shoot!!”
The London Guards fired their guns. Of course, they couldn’t penetrate my barrier.
Using telekinesis to envelop my body, I landed on the ground without difficulty. It was a wasteland. Only hard rocks greeted me.
‘Messing with the London Guard is troublesome, unlike the gangsters. I guess I’ll have to walk to Neo London. It’ll take about four hours.’
The train disappeared into the distance in an instant. Following the railway would lead me to Neo London.
“Heh.”
I laughed.
“Hehehe.”
I was bewildered. I didn’t think it was funny, but I kept laughing.
“Hehehe, hehehe… Hahahahahahaha!”
I walked along the railway, laughing like a madman.
I still don’t know why I was laughing. I just laughed.
How long had I been laughing?
In the distance, I could see 12 bikes approaching. The guys on the bikes, dressed in a post-apocalyptic style, were gripping the handlebars. They seemed to be bandits operating in this area.
“Hahahahahahahahaha!”
I laughed, regardless of whether they were coming or not.
They stopped their bikes, blocking my path.
“Is he crazy? Or is he pretending to be crazy? Either way, you’re done for now that you’ve been caught by us. We’ll take everything you have, and then sell you as a slave.”
A mohawked guy with green sunglasses said. He had charisma. He seemed to be the leader of the bandits.
Whoooosh.
My mana road activated.
The premonition of the air becoming unstable always felt good.
“Gasp! Fucking-shit! Th-This is…!”
The leader was shocked. He seemed to have felt the premonition. He was probably a mana awakener of at least level 3.
“This goddamn feeling of my hair standing on end…! He’s a level 5 or higher lightning mage! Run away now!!!”
The leader shouted.
It was already too late.
No matter how hard they accelerated, they couldn’t escape my sight in this wasteland.
“Hahahahahahahahahaha!”
[Thunder Bolt]
A huge lightning bolt struck from the clear sky. The leader and some of the bandits were caught in the attack. A huge crater and residual lightning remained on the ground.
[Thunder Bolt]
Kwaaaaaaaang!
Another lightning bolt struck the wasteland. Its power was greater than a missile hitting the ground.
[Thunder Bolt]
“Hahahahahahahahahahahaha!!”
I laughed and continuously activated Thunder Bolts. I struck the fleeing bandits with lightning. I felt a refreshing sensation that made my chest feel clear.
After using Thunder Bolt six times in a row, I collapsed on the ground. I had used up all my mana. I was so exhausted that it was hard to move. My overworked mana road was burning as if protesting.
“Shit. My body is exhausted, but I feel great!”
The emptiness I always felt was gone now. Of course, the emptiness would return tomorrow.
“Ah, I want to have sex!!”
•••
A week ago, after entering Neo London, the first thing I did was find a house.
Neo London was divided into districts. A to Z. A total of 26 districts. The closer to district A, the wealthier the area, and the closer to district Z, the poorer the area.
I bought a house in district S.
District S was a place where the middle class and the lower class coexisted. It was the district where the lowest of the middle class lived, and the highest of the lower class lived.
It was an old two-story house with a basement. The previous owner said it was only 20 years old, but in my opinion, it was 35 years old. The price was 48 million credits. I used most of my savings.
‘I’m going to set up a workshop in the basement. It’s good because there’s at least some security. There are no gangs nearby, so it’ll be quiet.’
The reason I pushed myself to buy a house in district S was also because I wanted to focus on my workshop.
The problem was that after repairing the house and buying appliances and furniture, I only had 700,000 credits left.
Of course, a mage’s workshop needed magic materials and magic tools. And those things were ridiculously expensive.
‘Shit. I’m short on money. Money. I spent too much money on house repairs, so I could only furnish the bedroom. I need money to do magic research, and I need money to start a business. Money. Money…. Should I rob a bank?’
I immediately shook my head.
This was Neo London.
There were plenty of people stronger than me. Even if I covered my face with a mask, my identity could be easily exposed by magic or superpowers. Robbing a bank was a crazy idea.
And I couldn’t make a lot of money by working a normal job like everyone else.
‘I have a few ideas… I need to think about it.’
I went outside.
I’ve been taking daily walks to familiarize myself with Neo London’s geography and clear my head.
Neo London’s cityscape was strange. When you left the residential area and entered the commercial district, you were greeted by dazzling neon signs. Airships floated in the gloomy sky, and meaningless advertisements were constantly playing on displays mounted on the walls.
What was absurd was the carriages running on the roads of London.
In Neo London, which was said to be the most technologically advanced city in the world, citizens were absurdly riding horse-drawn carriages instead of cars. Of course, the carriages had a futuristic feel.
To drive a car in Neo London, you had to get permission from the city hall.
The citizens’ clothing was reminiscent of early 19th-century fashion. Men wore suits like gentlemen, and women wore dresses. That was the basic attire.
‘…I already knew this from the original work, but seeing it in person is overwhelming.’
And you could easily see butlers and maids on the streets.
A butler with cat ears and a maid with elf ears walked around the streets without any fuss. Most of the butlers and maids were armed. There were butlers carrying cannons on their backs and maids with swords at their waists.
In Neo London, butlers and maids were highly skilled workers. Their salaries were over 300,000 credits as a base. There were even separate certifications for them. Elite butlers and maids had a base salary of at least 1 million credits.
“Newspaper! Get your latest newspaper today!”
A boy wearing a flat cap was walking around the streets. Newspapers. It was an item that didn’t fit in this age of advanced internet. But newspapers were selling like hotcakes. The citizens of Neo London seemed to think it was elegant to read paper newspapers.
“Hey, handsome mister. Do you need a newspaper?”
“I don’t.”
The newspaper boy was flustered by my firm words and ran away.
After the newspaper boy, a girl selling flowers appeared. The girl, wearing a pretty dress, offered flowers to passersby.
“Oppa. Do you need a rose?”
I nodded.
“I was just in the mood to smell a rose. Give me one.”
“Thank you, handsome oppa!”
I paid with my smart watch.
Neo London, where the latest technology and old-fashioned culture coexisted, was interesting to see. Especially the Big Ben in the center of London, which could be seen in the distance, was impressive. The Big Ben, made of steel, was sparkling with holograms and neon signs. The words “Neo London” were clearly visible on the surface of the Big Ben.
While strolling through Neo London, I stopped when I spotted a woman.
A maid caught my eye.
She was a silver-haired maid, pulling a black suitcase with one hand and holding a black umbrella in the other. She had such outstanding beauty that she caught the attention of everyone around her. She had a knife on her apron.
As soon as I saw her, I felt a sense of familiarity. I couldn’t take my eyes off her.
Our eyes met. She smiled and approached me. I also approached her as if I was possessed by something.
“Hello, Master. Do you happen to need a maid?”
