Chapter 150

Chapter 150

Chapter 150

Erosion of Reality

*** Last Mission & The Calvary ***

Splash!

In a part of the sea with no land in sight, a person was sitting on the surface. They looked to be a young man with a robust physique who wore a wide-brimmed red hat and robe. This was Merlin.

“Phew….”

He breathed out lightly and immersed himself in meditation. Even though the sea was undulating chaotically with waves, a mirror-like surface without any disturbances surrounded Merlin.

Whoosh.

And then, something strange happened. A massive shark saw Merlin and attacked, shooting through the water with its mouth wide open as if to swallow Merlin in one bite!

Crackle.

However, before the shark’s teeth reached Merlin, five or six water droplets floated up from the sea and instantly froze in the shape of arrows.

Then, those icicle-like arrows accelerated.

The incredibly sharp arrows made of seawater ice pierced twelve holes in the shark’s body.

Plop!

The shark’s carcass fell into the sea with a splash, but not a single drop neared Merlin. While this happened, Merlin sat atop a surface of unwavering cement-like seawater and maintained a calm expression as if he hadn’t even noticed the shark.

Crack.

The sapphire on the back of Merlin’s right hand cracked with a sound akin to cracking ice, but the gem didn’t break. Instead, the color began to change, starting from the tip of the initial crack.

Woong!

The previously-blue jewel became red in a nearly instantaneous process. Merlin’s magic system design was completed beforehand, so all he had to do was fill it with magic power.

/Your Sapphire has evolved into a Star Ruby!/

And finally, Merlin’s jewel changed into a red ruby, but it was no ordinary ruby. It was a Star Ruby, which took the shape of a star with six moving white patterns on the bottom.

“If I sell one of these, someone’s going to have to fork over a fortune.”

The Star Ruby’s purity was so high that it was almost transparent, and the six distinct patterns seemed as if they’d been drawn on. Altogether, this gem was a rare sight to behold in the real world, and that was if it existed in the first place. If the jewel could be brought into reality, it would instantly become an invaluable treasure; the seller could ask virtually any price for it. Yet, of course, the jewel was valuable for its ability to store enormous amounts of pure magic power, not as an ornament or jewelry.

“However, my magic power capacity hasn’t exceeded this 172-point limit. It seems like I’m under some restriction.”

Merlin’s internal energy capacity had grown to 78 years or 128 points. Since Merlin was Level 6, his maximum point capacity was 300; hence, this was split between 172 points in magic power and 128 points in internal energy.

“You should have chosen to go down the path of magic power alone. No, wait, why didn’t I just raise my level?”

Merlin grumbled to himself, but what had passed had passed. Since he decided early on that he’d pursue both internal energy and magic power, he had to accept the penalty. Suppose Merlin possessed the Converter skill, which allowed one to innately understand the nature of mana and convert it into another power. In that case, he could practice both powers without any restriction. Alas, despite his many different skills, Merlin didn’t possess this one.

Ding Dong~!

Along with the chime of a doorbell, a window popped up before Merlin. It was a notification that signified that he had received a whisper. Merlin opened his inventory and retrieved his Beholder.

“What’s up?”

[It’s regarding the last mission. I received a message stating that I’d been set as the party leader.]

The whisper was from Arthur. Since they had been on a mission together, Merlin and Arthur now spoke comfortably. However, Arthur was technically two years older than Merlin, so the latter still replied in a respectful tone.

“I believe that’s correct. When should we meet up?”

[They’ve only started notifying us now, so I don’t think we need to rush. I’ll see you in the meeting room in two hours.]

“Alright.”

The whisper session ended there. Since Arthur probably needed to contact the other members of the party, Merlin kept his exchange brief before checking the time.

“Uhm, master… is everything alright?”

Quiet Heaven had been quietly observing Merlin from the side when it cautiously asked a question. Being an eagle, Quiet Heaven didn’t really have any facial expressions, but even so, one could tell that it was nervous.

“Of course, everything is alright. I don’t know why you’re so on edge.”

“W-well… your manner of speech and behavior has changed so much. And that weird magic that you used earlier….”

Quiet Heaven saw the annihilation of thousands of fighters firsthand, from the dwarves’ Steel Cross Division to the fairies’ Black Forest Division and the human’s holy knights. Though the Howling Spell was also powerful, the mysterious area-of-effect (AOE) spell which came afterward went beyond anyone’s common sense, imagination, and ability to comprehend.

After a sudden shower of rain, which lasted about ten minutes, every being was annihilated. Even the Class 7 Mage, Lieutenant General Tain, couldn’t withstand the downpour. Of course, Merlin put some additional focus on Tain during the AOE spell to finish him off, but still, an AOE spell had killed such a powerful opponent. The destructive power behind that spell was immense, to say the least.

“I realized it late, but I was always capable of using that type of skill. Speaking of my behavior, it’s obvious why I’ve changed. I’m an individual with two different personalities.”

“Different… personalities?”

“Yeah, different personalities. For someone as talented as me, this shouldn’t even count as something unique or special.”

“…”

Of course, Quiet Heaven knew that someone having two different personalities was unique. It was also abnormal for someone to state this so openly. Didn’t people usually keep things like this a secret? However, Merlin spoke in a cold, matter-of-fact tone without any changes in his expression.

“You don’t have to be nervous. I’m not planning to be awake for too long. Even though I have two different personalities, they’re both from the same individual.”

“T-then, I shouldn’t be too nosy about it… but….”

Hearing this logical explanation, Quiet Heaven couldn’t continue its line of questioning, so it just accepted the situation. From the beginning, all Quiet Heaven knew about Merlin was that he was from Earth and possessed a wide variety of talents and abilities. Since Merlin was explaining things so succinctly, Quiet Heaven didn’t think it would be right to inquire any further.

“Let’s see. For the last mission, the guards in Starting were the ones who sent us into the meeting rooms.”

After mumbling, Merlin stood and took a few steps forward.

Poof!

The surroundings around Merlin suddenly changed. He was now in Starting.

“How can-”

Quiet Heaven was flabbergasted when Merlin effortlessly used teleportation as if it were akin to breathing. However, Merlin didn’t pay any attention to Quiet Heaven’s astonishment and simply walked into the crowd gathered in the streets. In a place with tens of millions of users like Starting, users weren’t surprised to see a mage teleport into the city. Each day, thousands of mages teleported into Starting. However, if they knew that Merlin had just teleported 1,000 kilometers, they would have screamed in shock, especially if they had any magic-related knowledge. Yet, no one knew that this occurred. Outwardly, Merlin looked like any other run-of-the-mill mage.

“Quiet Heaven, if I want you to participate in a battle, what do I need to do?”

“H… hmm? You’ll need to use EXP points at the Exchange Center to reduce my cooldown time or increase the number of attacks I can use. It’s not an enhancement but a release of restrictions, so the limit is my main body’s innate power level.”

“Then, we’ll have to release all those restrictions first. If I don’t, you’ll always be stuck watching me fight without being able to interfere. You’re okay with this, right?”

“Hmm? Oh, sure, yeah. I’m okay with it.”

Quiet Heaven couldn’t help but tilt its head and acquiesce at this logical argument. Then, Merlin looked at the time.

“Arthur said to meet in two hours, so we have plenty of time. Let’s release all your restrictions first….”

As he said this, Merlin smiled.

“… and raise my level.”

***

Tap. Tap.

Even after DIO started permeating every aspect of modern society, society’s core information terminal remained the PC. Although data transmission in DIO was possible and had infinite uses, the platform was a completely new type of virtual reality; its underlying technology was unproven and unreliable, as a majority, if not everything, was shrouded in mystery. Small businesses to large corporations were reluctant to enter DIO since they were concerned that their trade secrets might be leaked. Groups that valued confidentiality, such as national institutions or agencies, had no way to properly contain important information in a virtual world.

“Ms. Oh, have you organized the documents?”

“Yes, Team Lead. I’ve checked off the errors in the message file, so please review them.”

With her straight, black hair now grown to her shoulders, Eunhye wore a tailored business suit. This was a fashion style from the city that Yongno had never seen Eunhye appear in before. Then, as if satisfied with Eunhye’s looks, Paulett Kelly nodded.

“You’re quite quick. You’ve joined us recently, but you fit right in. Good job.”

“Thank you.”

Eunhye possessed grace, an elegant appearance, national-level athletic ability, and high intelligence. In all, these were all high enough for her to be employed in an industrial enterprise under the control of a secret organization in the US called [Machine]; however, the one thing she lacked was sociability. Basically, her facial expression almost never changed, she never talked privately with anyone, and she surrounded her body with an iron-like barrier that even veteran researchers would find difficult to break through.

“I’m sorry, Team Lead, but if it isn’t a bother, can I ask you a question?”

“Oh, my. It’s rare for our princess to ask a question.”

Paulett smiled brightly and looked at the break room located on the other side of the building.

“It’s lunchtime, so shall we take a break together?”

“… That would be fine.”

Eventually, Eunhye organized her notes and made some coffee, offering some for Paulett. After accepting this, Paulett sat down and crossed her slender, perfect legs, which were dazzling.

While Paulett leisurely sipped her coffee, Eunhye slowly asked her question. Eunhye knew that this blonde beauty in front of her was a professionally-trained intelligence agent, unlike what her flamboyant and alluring looks may imply. Although it would have been more convenient for Eunhye to dig up information from a less savvy opponent, Eunhye nevertheless decided to face Paulett head-on. Eunhye needed Paulett’s help to make things easier in the future. If Eunhye hid her true intentions here and there, she’d inevitably be misunderstood for having different goals.

“Hmm, it seems Ms. Oh is interested in strange things. Of course, as you work, you’ll get entangled in various things, but it’s rare for someone in general society to know about ‘that side.’”

“There have been some circumstances.”

“A matter of circumstances… If I express my curiosity, would it be unpleasant for you?”

“It’s my privacy.”

Paulett laughed provocatively in response to Eunhye’s calm reply. With her appearance, killer body, and sexy movement, men would lose their minds over her, but obviously, Eunhye wouldn’t be interested in those superficial things, so she didn’t waver when provoked.

“Hahaha, well, that’s fine. What I know about ‘that side’ isn’t considered too special.”

Paulett put down her coffee and continued.

“The group Ms. Oh is referring to is most likely called [The Institute]. Like us, [Machine], [The Institute] is a government-run organization that does a lot of unreasonable things, so our side has warned them several times in the past.”

From the name alone, one could easily surmise that [The Institute]’s main purpose was experiments and research rather than executing actions or missions. Additionally, just like most other groups that operate in the dark, their research and experiments delved into many dirty, gray areas.

“Is it possible… to receive some information regarding [The Institute]?”

“They’re a secret organization, so there’s probably not much we know about them. However, even if we did have that info, I don’t think Ms. Oh has the clearance to access that information, no?”

Eunhye also knew she wasn’t in a position to access this level of information. While she had joined this corporation, it was under the direct command of the US government’s [Machine] operation. Since she had only been an employee for a month, she didn’t have clearance or access to many things.

“That’s fine. If it’s too much trouble….”

“Did you perhaps join our corporation to access that information?”

Paulett gave a brilliant smile. Her eyes didn’t seem to have any inkling of malice in them. However, from her gaze, Eunhye could sense that Paulett was closely inspecting her. Paulett had been given extensive training to know when someone was lying, so in front of her, Eunhye couldn’t make any hasty moves.

“Yes, I’m sorry.”

“… Hmm. You’re so honest that I don’t know how to follow up.”

The conversation had reached its most critical point. Eunhye’s attitude conveyed she wasn’t only willing to leave the corporation due to her behavior but that she also understood she’d live under constant surveillance from this moment. However, Eunhye didn’t start this conversation without thinking. She had only decided to approach Paulett after carefully examining her character and behavior over the past month.

“There’ll be no harm to the company. It is, after all, a personal matter.”

“Of course, that’s why you’re asking this honestly. It’s a little infuriating that you’re trying to use me, but… Well, I don’t really have any loyalty to that side.”

Paulett stood and sat down beside Eunhye. Then, she pulled out a USB from her coat pocket and moved some files to Eunhye’s PC.

“Team Lead?”

“You know you’ll have to work hard in the future, right? Also, if this gets out, it’ll come back to me, too, so memorize the content and then delete it.”

Eunhye clenched her jaw as Paulett gave her a beaming smile. Naturally, Paulett wasn’t a philanthropist. She would never help Eunhye with any good intentions. If Eunhye felt true thankfulness for what Paulett did just now, she’d pay the price manyfold later.

At the same time, it was also true that Eunhye had no way of knowing about [The Institute] without Paulett’s help since any and all information regarding [The Institute] was wrapped in complete security and secrecy.

“Thank you. I’ll definitely pay you back.”

“Come now; it wasn’t much. Please make sure to delete it.”

Without hesitation, Eunhye sat in front of her computer as she watched Paulett turn and walk out.

‘I finally got my hands on a clue.’