Chapter 2385 – 2385. Modern Magic War
I didn’t leave immediately after killing Kim Mu-hyung. He was waiting for Remegeton, after all. I was planning to kill the Remegeton coming to Korea this time as well.
But even after waiting for several hours, Remegeton didn’t show up.
‘That bastard Kim Mu-hyung… did he lie? Or did Remegeton sense my presence and not come?’
Either way, I just wasted time waiting.
‘If I had known this would happen, I should have kept him alive until Remegeton came…’
I clicked my tongue and tore a space-movement scroll.
• • •
The day after I uploaded my resignation video.
I woke up yawning in a secluded country mansion far from Seoul. It was 2 PM. I drank some water and checked the internet on my smartphone.
It was still a mess. The enraged public showed no signs of calming down.
My reaction? It was a hot topic for a while, but most of the public didn’t pay much attention. There were a few more serious issues than me.
「Military Unit, Preparing a Coup?!」
「President Says, “The current state of Korea is like a lamp before the wind. Special measures are needed. Martial law is one of them.”」
「T Corporation Attacked by Terrorists! What Terrible Things Did T Corporation Do?」
「The crime rate in Korea is fluctuating due to the resignation of Sung Yu-jin, the commander of the 8th Anti-Demon Unit. Is Korea really finished?」
「Terrorist Threat at Gwanghwamun Demonstration Site!」
‘The world is such a mess that my resignation announcement got buried.’
Still, I could check public opinion. There were opinions that it was a good thing, opinions that supported me and worried about the vacuum, and opinions that remained neutral.
The dominant opinion was that it was a good thing. People were afraid of me. On the internet, they were calling me Tactical Sung Yu-jin, equivalent to a tactical nuke.
Uncontrollable Tactical Sung Yu-jin. That was the public’s assessment of me.
I was enjoying the messed-up world while browsing the internet when a video appeared and quickly became a hot topic.
It was a battle video of Park Son, the commander of the 4th unit, and a foreign man presumed to be Remegeton.
The battle ended without a winner or loser. When Yu Min-ha, the commander of the 3rd unit, intervened during the battle, the Remegeton man left without hesitation. The video ended there as well.
‘This isn’t a video uploaded by the Anti-Demon Unit, but by Remegeton.’
Would the Anti-Demon Unit be crazy enough to upload a video exposing their power on the internet? It’s also unlikely that a third party filmed it. They’re not idiots; they would have noticed the presence of a camera filming them.
‘Do they want to break Korea’s morale by showing that the Anti-Demon Unit isn’t that special?’
Is there a need for that? Korea is a mess to anyone who looks at it. Frankly, even during the broadcasting station incident, the Anti-Demon Unit suffered almost no damage compared to Remegeton’s involvement. Even considering that the Anti-Demon Unit has potions.
‘I still don’t know what Remegeton’s real purpose is. It’s definitely not revenge for Sage’s death.’
I shook my head and checked the battle video again.
Park Son, the commander of the 4th unit, uses flower magic that doesn’t match his muscular appearance. Specifically, it’s magic that summons magical flowers.
The magical effect varies depending on the type of flower summoned. For example, sunflowers explode like grenades, and lilacs emit poisonous smoke. It’s one magic, but also 100 different magics.
‘On the other hand, the opponent’s magic is to temporarily create weapons?’
Swords, spears, shields, guns, bombs.
From cold weapons to modern firearms. He handled them very skillfully. He also created hundreds of swords in the air and dropped them on his opponent. It’s not quite telekinesis. It feels more like launching, closer to ejection.
‘…Wait a minute. Ejection? Is it really magic that creates weapons?’
Feeling something was off, I focused more on the video.
I carefully looked at the weapons created by Remegeton, not the Remegeton mage.
‘Looking closely, the weapons show signs of use. There are scratches and wounds. The bottom of this shield is slightly broken.’
It’s not magic that creates weapons.
It’s magic that brings weapons.
‘In other words, it’s highly likely to be subspace magic. Similar to the subspace I’ve been looking for.’
I felt my heart pounding.
That mage used a large number of weapons. The capacity is much larger than my inventory.
‘Weapons appear as if summoned, and the used weapons automatically disappear through reverse summoning. Just like my item summoning skill. This is exactly the ability I want.’
I already have the hassle of having to go back and forth between different worlds if it’s not a pre-designated item due to the capacity pressure of the inventory. I coveted the subspace that mage had.
‘The source of magic in this world is grimoires. If I kill that mage and take his grimoire, I might be able to use that magic too. The probability is… less than 1%, but.’
Just because you have a grimoire and magic power doesn’t mean you can use magic.
‘Even if it’s less than 1%, there’s still a possibility, so it’s worth a try, isn’t it?’
I contacted Im Hyun-ah with a light heart.
“There’s someone I want to find.”
• • •
With Im Hyun-ah’s help, I found the guy with subspace magic. According to Im Hyun-ah, she was able to track him because he showed his face in the video. If he had covered his face with a mosaic, Im Hyun-ah wouldn’t have been able to track him.
The guy was camping in a scenic spot with a stream flowing through it. When I arrived, he was sitting on a rock by the stream, leisurely fishing.
Sensing my presence, the guy stood up and dropped his fishing rod. The fishing rod disappeared in mid-air just before hitting the ground. The guy turned around. He looked to be in his early to mid-30s and scratched his chin as he spoke.
“I didn’t expect the famous commander of the 8th unit to come here in person… This is unexpected. No, since you resigned, you’re not the commander of the 8th unit anymore. But you’re wearing the Anti-Demon Unit uniform. What’s going on?”
“Unfortunately, the head of the Order Bureau didn’t accept my resignation.”
“Ah, I see. I’m Marco Colan. A member of Remegeton… but that’s just a facade. In reality, I’m CIA. An American. I’m spying on Remegeton for my country, for the world.”
I think I know why this guy didn’t appear in the original story. He was already exposed and killed by the time Remegeton appeared in the original story.
“Is it okay to tell me such important information?”
“If you kill me here, I’ll die in vain without completing my mission. Do you understand? I’m not Remegeton, so I have no reason to fight you.”
“Do you think I’ll believe you so easily?”
“If you want, I can let you talk to the CIA director. The CIA is also keeping a close eye on you, Sung Yu-jin… You might even get a pretty good offer. How about becoming an American?”
“Enough with the nonsense. I have a few questions, so answer them. What is Remegeton’s purpose? If revenge for Sage is the goal, shouldn’t you be targeting me? You’re being too hesitant.”
“That purpose is secondary. Remegeton has been aiming for one goal since ancient times. Do you know the meaning of the name Remegeton?”
The origin of the name is so famous that even ordinary people know it.
“The Key of Solomon.”
“That’s right. The collective name for the five grimoires that Solomon wrote in the distant past. Remegeton’s goal is simple. To recreate Ars Goetia, one of the grimoires that King Solomon possessed in the past, the ultimate grimoire, in modern times. Remegeton is the group that doesn’t hesitate to overthrow nations for that purpose.”
“I think some Remegeton guy mentioned an old witch’s prophecy or something. What does that mean?”
“Oh. How did you find out about that? You’re quite impressive. To answer you… I don’t really know either. Only a few executives in Remegeton know the really important things. I’m not an executive yet.”
“You’re useless.”
“Hey… aren’t you being too harsh?”
“Why did you film and upload the battle video?”
“I don’t know. Remegeton told me to do it. I guess they were inspired by Luminus’s actions. Because of that, Luminus is now treated as a martyr group, not a terrorist group, in Korea.”
“Where are the other Remegeton guys?”
Marco shook his head again this time.
“I don’t know that either. I’m just waiting here under orders. Remegeton doesn’t usually operate as a group.”
“I see.”
“Are you done asking questions? Then I’d like you to disappear now. If Remegeton finds out you’re here…”
I swung my hand. A blade of wind flew towards his neck. Marco was startled and ducked to avoid the wind blade. He has a decent level of magic power detection.
“Hey! What are you doing?!”
“Can’t you tell? I’m performing my duty.”
“You bastard…! I told you! I’m with the CIA!”
“Well. All I see is a terrorist bastard.”
“…Did you come to kill me from the start? Did you know I was with the CIA? That can’t be… What’s your purpose?”
I didn’t answer. It was too bothersome to answer a guy who was going to die anyway.
Five wind blades were created simultaneously and flew towards Marco. Marco summoned a shield. It was a large shield, bigger than himself. Kiiing! The wind blades couldn’t penetrate the shield.
“Just like the public assessment. You’re a crazy bastard! You don’t belong with the Anti-Demon Unit, who fight for justice!”
“Shut up. Are you going to keep talking even after you’re dead? You only have one chance, so give it your all.”
I didn’t plan to kill Marco right away. I was curious about Marco’s abilities.
But as the battle continued, my disappointment grew. Marco couldn’t even properly use the numerous weapons he took out to suit the situation.
‘He only knows how to swing a sword, and the shield is only for protecting his body. A spear? He doesn’t even know how to hold a spear. Most of the weapons are for ejection.’
Weapon ejection consumes a lot of magic power, so he can’t use it often.
‘The only thing that’s somewhat decent is… guns.’
Pistols, assault rifles, machine guns. He takes them out in an instant and pulls the trigger. It was a bit dangerous when he took out a bazooka and fired it. He also knew how to use grenades and landmines appropriately.
But it was bad that his opponent was me. It’s easy to block bullets with an electromagnetic barrier. Hidden landmines or bombs? They were all detected by electromagnetic waves.
“When are you going to use Ars Magna?”
“…Ha. Only a few mages can use Ars Magna, which draws out the true power of the grimoire. Not all mages are monsters like you!”
A flying anti-tank missile. I dropped lightning on it and made it explode in mid-air.
“…If you have nothing more to show, then that’s enough. Die now.”
Swish.
Marco’s head was cut off by a wind blade.
I approached his corpse. I used only wind, avoiding fire or lightning as much as possible, to obtain the grimoire intact.
‘He fought Park Son, the commander of the 4th unit, on equal terms, so I thought he was a commander-level… Was it just because of modern weapons?’
Park Son basically prefers close combat, while Marco prefers to keep his distance and attack from mid- to long-range. If Park Son had used Ars Magna in that battle, the battle would have ended with Park Son’s victory.
‘Even if you strengthen your body with magic power, bullets are still threatening. This guy’s grimoire is… this?’
I searched the body of the headless corpse and found a metal cigarette case with a hexagram engraved on it. I could feel the unique magic power of a grimoire from the cigarette case, so it was definitely it.
I stared at the cigarette case for a while and clicked my tongue.
‘The gacha failed. I don’t have compatibility with this grimoire. It would have been nice to know what kind of ability Ars Magna, the true power of the grimoire, has. But… it’s a waste to throw it away like this. It’s also annoying to look for something similar to subspace in other game worlds. …Should I do it?’
After hesitating, I decided to do it.
My intuition was telling me. Do it right now. Strangely, when I felt this kind of intuition, there were never bad results.
I took out a blank white card from my inventory. It hadn’t even been a minute in this world, but it took about 10 minutes in the real world to rummage through the container box.
[Blank Card.
Can be exchanged for one item in the random draw shop.
Price: –
※Caution
Only one item can be exchanged.
Blank cards can only be obtained as rewards.]
[Use the blank card to exchange for skillification.]
[Skillification
Acquire the ability of an item as a skill in the game life app.
Price: 5,000,000 points
※Caution
The ability may change during the skillification process. The item that has been skillified will be destroyed.]
A whopping 5 million points. Honestly, it’s crazy to buy this by collecting points. In a way, it could be said to be exclusively for blank cards.
[Do you want to skillify the target?]
[Skillifying the target.]
[Acquired skill, Inventory (Lv.1).]
[Inventory (Lv.1) is linked to the game life app’s item menu.]
[The item summoning ability of Random Summon (Lv. Master) is transferred to Inventory (Lv.1).]
