A gigantic pyramid that had been flaunting its majestic presence at the heart of the desert.
This is no ordinary building.
It’s an altar completed by layering abyssal mana over a framework of solid rock—a symbol meant to realize, in reality, the rank of an abyssal entity.
With any half-baked impact, it’s an ultrareal structure you can’t even scratch, much less destroy.
However—
“Wahahaha! Don’t underestimate the deep-sea folk’s technology!”
I laughed loud and vented my mana.
[rumble]
In being “not ordinary,” the [Dragon King’s Ship] is no different.
The [Dragon King’s Ship] was made by the deep-sea folk of Fisherfolk Village using super-magitech dynamics to bring down the [Lord of Murky Waters]—in short, an altar for a god’s descent.
There’s no point in comparing whose tech is superior, but a pyramid slapped together in three days can’t beat the power of the [Dragon King’s Ship], which was prepared with care over decades.
Besides, this isn’t a desert now. It’s the sea. Terrain bonus in our favor—effect boosted!
[rolling thunder]
In the end, the ship’s mana broke through the slapped-together pyramid’s magic ward—
[rumble] [crash]
[KRA-BOOOOM!]
One face of the pyramid collapsed.
But not enough.
“Urgh—so I can’t knock it all down with one ram, after all?”
I did bring it down, but the enemy’s loss is maybe twenty percent? From afar it’ll look like a big hole punched in the pyramid.
Its structural role and its function as a ritual hub are still operating just fine.
Granted, with Cheongho Faction toughs inside as hostages (or living offerings, or maybe cultists), blowing it all away in one shot would be a problem anyway.
“Then we go to melee!”
I tossed the mask I’d prepared into the air and cast.
[Mirror Image]
[Identity Imprint]
[Mass Illusion]
[bzzzt-bzzzt-bzzzt]
The mana-charged masks latched onto the bone golems who’d been hesitating on deck and altered their looks.
Thirteen [Fake Kim Sinhwa] completed, each wearing a differently designed mask.
“They look the part, but...”
Since I made them even more bare-bones than last time, they can’t exceed the base power of the bone golems they’re built on.
Well, a brief distraction is enough—
“Now then! Kim Sinhwas gathered from across the nation!”
Forming a seal with my right hand alone, I issued the order.
“Listen up! Exploit your individual kits to infiltrate the interior. Preemptive attacks forbidden. Counterattacks permitted. Lethal force permitted. On encountering Jung Hyuna, execute [Designated Action 8]. If I am within five meters, execute [Designated Action 9]. Mana is low, so regeneration is forbidden. When done, I’ll retrieve you and fix you. Begin.”
[skreek]
At the end of the order, the [Fake Kim Sinhwa] sprang toward the pyramid in unison.
“Doldol, stash the ship.”
“Grururuk!”
Doldol happily gulped the ship down. I patted the now-pleased Doldol and said,
“Good. Nice work. Now let’s hide for a bit.”
[Shrink]
With the shrinking spell, Doldol dwindled to the size of a ring case; I tucked him to my chest and turned my head.
“And kiddo, climb up onto the pyramid and do what I said earlier.”
“Going—” “Going—” “Going—” “Going—” “Going—” “Going—” “Going—” “Going—” “Going—”
[whip-whip-whip]
The [Child of Darkness] moved dozens of tendrils and climbed the outer wall of the pyramid.
Prep complete.
All that’s left is me to move ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) and...
“Ha, I really don’t want to.”
The moment I’m set to enter the pyramid, my confidence evaporates sharply.
The euphoria that had been forcing my body to move drains away in an instant like a cup of water poured onto the sand.
So tricks like this can’t fully overcome a phobia?
“Damn it. After making all this mess, are you going to run?”
I closed my eyes for a moment.
Darkness.
[exhale]
I opened them again.
All right, not yet.
Hold out a little longer. It’ll be over soon.
A pitch-black, dark corridor stretching long as a deep, deep abyss.
[slither] [skitter]
Unpleasant presences felt from every side.
A tar reek so strong it makes my head swim.
Even as it feels like I’m crawling through a beast’s entrails—I keep going without stopping.
“Hm... but which way?”
Lost again. The phobia is crushing my sensing and judgment far too much.
[System: The penalty trait “Feast’s Offering” activates.]
A horrible crunching snap.
The sound of a bone golem—one of the [Fake Kim Sinhwa]—being destroyed.
Fear surging in.
Together with that fear, a massive dump of information.
“There.”
This time it’s really close.
The intel sent by the destroyed [Fake Kim Sinhwa] is processed the instant it enters my head, branching into several plans and routes.
“This thought will soon get swallowed by the phobia and disappear.”
[vibrating hum]
Before that happens, I convert the revised route and plan into a magical record and push it into the [Silver Bell of the Underworld] in my right hand.
Just think about reaching the objective.
“Anyway, that way, right?”
I pushed forward again without hesitation.
Additional spells to enable an extreme escape from reality.
[Euphoria]
Don’t worry about useless things. Forget the unnecessary. No plan needed.
And at some point—
I realized I’d reached the destination.
“Here.”
A space that widened abruptly.
Holes drilled densely into the floor.
A human silhouette lying in each hole.
“No—these are graves.”
[You have finally reached the heart of the pyramid. What greets you there is a truly bizarre and unfathomable sight. In a wide-open space stretch endless grave-pits (hollows for interring corpses). Lying in each grave-pit is something that evokes an Egyptian mummy—something shaped like a human wrapped in bandages. By the look of it there are dozens—no, hundreds.]
“Yeah, miss me with the Egypt talk.”
They are lying wrapped in bandages, but this has nothing to do with ancient Egypt’s funerary culture.
In fact, not just Egypt—Christianity, Buddhism, and Tibet have already all been arbitrarily distorted like this.
[vibrating hum]
Readying for an ambush, I triggered several spells and slowly stepped into the interior of this grotesque mass grave.
“Wait—these are alive?”
And these...
[You realize they are alive and reel in shock. With quick judgment you also realize they were originally members of the Cheongho Faction. Perhaps, through “Spell Mastery,” you’ve also inferred where “Scaled Stratagem” has been sourcing its mana.]
Right.
I wondered where it was drawing mana—turns out it offered all the Cheongho Faction personnel as living sacrifices. Same mindset as Heo Joo.
The message is that a few living believers are enough.
The rest are used as batteries to draw mana until they die—and then probably raised as undead.
A ritual scent wafting from all sides.
“Myrrh and herbs from the pawnshop. And bitumen.”
Items Jeong Eun-taek from the Geumchon pawnshop had been preparing.
They’re basic reagents applicable to all sorts of rites, so it didn’t click back then—but sure enough, Hyuna must have ordered them.
They’re the materials for “mummy-making.”
“Then where were the silver ingots used?”
It was a sizable amount. Not a mummy-related item.
[vibrating hum]
Carefully I extended my senses—to see where the mana extracted from these human mummies was flowing...
“Is it the real Kim Sinhwa this time?”
Hyuna’s voice.
“Yes. We meet again after three days.”
A summer-event-only skin?
I’d have preferred an outfit good for diving into the sea, but Hyuna was wearing a dress of gorgeous hues that evoked a swallowtail butterfly.
[click]
She has legs.
A matter of grave import.
But why is it important that Hyuna has legs?
“I met people who looked exactly like you earlier.”
Ah, so that’s why she asked if I was real.
“Those ones are fakes.”
“I see. Are you the real Kim Sinhwa?”
A philosophical question.
Am I really Kim Sinhwa?
“Yes, I’m the real Kim Sinhwa.”
“Why did you even come here?”
“I came to rescue you, miss.”
Hyuna’s two reptilelike eyes fixed on me.
“You’re late.”
“As I said three days ago—sorry I’m late.”
“Same as with my dad. You’re always late.”
“I’ve got no excuse. But this time, I’ll force it back no matter what.”
“Isn’t this just reckless? Do you have the confidence to face fear—and madness?”
“No. That kind of thing is useless no matter how you prepare. No matter what you do, scary things are scary, and what you hate, you hate.”
Hyuna reached out to me with a gentle smile.
“That’s right. There are things ordinary humans cannot overcome. You are ordinary. Fighting beings with cosmic power is impossible. Give up now and rest.”
A whisper sweet beyond measure. If I do as she says, it really feels like everything will be solved. Right—why did I have to do any of this in the first place?
“I cannot.”
Jung Hyuna tilted her head slightly.
“Why not?”
Hyuna gazed at me with huge, red eyes without whites.
[slither]
A monstrous presence manifested to break my will.
“Because I’m a mage.”
[System: The trigger condition for a pre-charged spell has been met. Per the preset configuration (Designated Action 1), the spell activates.]
[Auto-Cast: Euphoria]
[Auto-Cast: Shock]
Confidence swelled with the effect of Euphoria.
Shock? Who’s that targeting?
[crackle]
“Aaagh!”
The target was me.
[System: Due to physical impact on the body, your confusion weakens temporarily.]
Aah! That snapped me awake!
[System: “Heightened Vigilance” activates.]
A giant tentacle lanced for me—no, that’s a serpent tail!
“Gah!”
[Leap]
Whoosh—my body popped up unsteadily. Barely dodged. I added a support spell to adjust my posture.
[vibrating hum]
Dazzling arrays of spell diagrams unfurled in every color.
Where did Jung Hyuna go?
She’d vanished at some point. Where? My senses shrank to an extreme under my fear of snakes.
“‘What have you done?’”
Hyuna’s voice, braided with a bizarre metallic rasp.
What else? Something so crazy even an abyssal entity would be shocked.
Direction of the voice... the ceiling? Hiding on the upper level, then.
[slither] [slither]
[System: “Heightened Vigilance” activates.]
My vigilance suddenly jerked in a wrong direction. No—Hyuna’s above, so why down—gah!
From the grave-pits packed into the floor, an enormous number of cobras crawled out.
Ah—I see the pattern. A powerful close attack, then leave the map to hide—then summon adds?
So if I use an AoE to clear the adds, she’ll come out again?
Right, this is a game. A game—a game—
[A massive number of snakes surge at you. Your mind cannot accept this situation. Willpower check...]
Huge eyeballs set on frills by the neck. Flat human incisors instead of sharp fangs. Human fingers in place of tails.
Truly, disgustingly made.
[Failure!]
Why am I failing over and over?
Where did all my clone friends in my head who used to help me go?
[System: The penalty trait “Feast’s Offering” activates. The tendrils of “Abyssal Entity — Scaled Stratagem” crawl into your head... exerting powerful influence on your mind.]
So, it used that ability to control the form my confusion would take.
Stupid crocodile. You think I’ll fall for the same trick again?
[System: Confusion occurs.]
