### Chapter 363 – Room 205, The Cursed Room – ‘The Absolute Master’ (12)
—
– Lee Eunsol
The first round ended with the Empire’s victory.
The leader of the Baehwa Sect, perhaps thinking it wasn’t yet his moment, didn’t show his face even when three out of the thirteen core masters went down.
Ironically, this was clear evidence that they still had options left.
If it were their last resort, Jo Wonhong would have fought with his life on the line.
And three days later, a strange tower began to rise over the plains seized by the Baehwa Sect.
Fortunately, there was someone among us who could shed light on the tower’s identity. According to Elena, it’s called the ‘Sky Tower’ within the sect.
“It’s a tool for some kind of summoning ritual.”
Ija Seong responded to Elena’s words.
“Summoning what? As the First Apostle knows, the Baehwa Sect can summon more than one entity.”
“We can’t confirm specifics, but… in this situation, we should assume it’s the strongest entity they can summon.”
Cha Jinchul looked uncomfortably worried.
“I was hoping it would just be a fight against people, but it seems monsters will be summoned. What’s the strongest monster?”
“The firstborn of Asha’s firstborn. The eternally blazing prince of azure flames, Kardamos… it seems.”
Kim Mooksung interjected: Don’t show that you’ve memorized everything too much with Ija Seong next to you.
Elena: I’ll be careful.
“Kardamos? It’s hard to grasp what kind of entity just from that name.”
“Descendant of the heavens, a being with divine blood. To put it simply, it’s a sort of phoenix.”
Cha Jinchul: Kind of feels like the Thunder Wolf from the cinema?
Elena: Perhaps?
At that moment, Ija Seong lightly tapped the table.
“Seems the Harmonization Master has some peculiar skills, though I wish you’d share them so I could hear too.”
“…”
“I was going to pretend to be oblivious, but you’re so obvious about it.”
“Be cautious.”
A sigh escaped me.
He didn’t look at the chat window, but perhaps he had an astute sense in this stage with a communication tool like ‘transmission.’
Ija Seong was definitely difficult to deal with in various ways.
For now, he was on our side, but I couldn’t predict how long this precarious balance would last.
— Tap!
Grandpa lightly tapped the table, drawing everyone’s attention.
“Master, the people in the imperial family must also have their own struggles, so there’s no need to press them too hard.”
“…”
“More importantly, First Apostle, how do we stop Kardamos from being summoned?”
“It’s simple. Just destroy the Sky Tower.”
As those words registered, I recalled Seungyub.
If you broke a massive structure observable from the outside with a sacred sword, it would be a monumental task.
But isn’t it easier to just flick your finger from a distance for the Final Flash?
The chat window blinked again.
Kim Mooksung: If it’s the Final Flash, it might break it in one shot…
Lee Eunsol: The problem comes after using the Flash.
Considering the distance between the battlements and the Sky Tower, no matter how powerful the Final Flash is, it couldn’t guarantee effectiveness if shot from the battlements.
In the end, we all knew—at least Seungyub had to abandon the battlements and head into the plains occupied by the Baehwa Sect to fire the Final Flash.
However, the Final Flash is an artifact that takes quite a while to recharge after use.
Thus, after destroying the Sky Tower, we would be in a position with one less artifact, likely facing an attack from Jo Wonhong on the plains without any escape route.
In this situation, was there any way for us to survive Jo Wonhong’s onslaught?
There is.
Cha Jinchul: If Ija Seong protects us, we’ll be fine.
Lee Eunsol: Honestly, it’s hard to trust him.
Cha Jinchul: Didn’t he save your sister the other day?
Ultimately, the fate of our current situation relies on the absolute master, Ija Seong.
A clear grudge tormented by the royal family for the deaths of his daughter and disciple, alongside ominous keywords that may overshadow that grudge.
I gazed at Ija Seong filled with complex emotions.
And then Ija Seong let out another deep sigh.
“Please, say something to me. We’ve been blinking at each other for ten minutes without a word; I wonder if this is some bizarre prank.”
“… Sorry.”
It’s so tough to hold a meeting with someone you can’t trust.
At that moment, Cha Jinchul made a sudden outburst.
“Just say it honestly.”
“How refreshing to hear that.”
“The Sky Tower the Baehwa Sect is building, we have a way to destroy it.”
“Oh?”
Lee Eunsol: Hold on!
Cha Jinchul: The Sky Tower is still being built at this moment. The longer we wait, the worse it gets.
“The problem is, to use this, we need to move to the plains…”
With that, Ija Seong immediately grasped the situation.
“Some must stay behind at the palace to protect the emperor, but splitting your already weak force to go down under the battlements is dangerous? Jo Wonhong will ambush you.”
“You got it immediately.”
“It appears you doubt my ability to protect you.”
“…”
Ija Seong then suddenly drew the sword at his waist with a calm voice.
“What—”
Cha Jinchul gently grabbed my shoulder to stop me.
The old man spoke with a serious tone.
“In a life-or-death situation, it’s hard for both of us to trust each other completely. I understand.”
“…”
“However, remember one thing. Since Ija Seong emerged in the martial world at seventeen, there has never been a moment I was ashamed of this blade.”
“…”
“I have no more to say. Harmonization Master, make your decision. Shall we waste time here at the battlements and face the descendants of deities, or will you trust me and we destroy the tower?”
An inexplicable strong intuition struck me.
Could this decision be the most important moment of this round?
*
– Yu Songee
About twenty minutes had passed since we started along the forest path.
Sweat was slowly accumulating on my forehead, yet it was still hard to determine where to search for Kain oppa in this vast mountainous terrain.
Just then, Miro, bouncing around in protective gear like a kindergarten kid, approached the herbalist.
“Mister, do we have to go much farther?”
“Y-Yes. But this route is much quicker than taking the main road. The path is rough, but it’s a shortcut—”
“Yawn! Mister.”
“Yes?”
“Can you hang on that tree over there for a sec?”
“Eh?”
“Hey! I need to pee!”
“Ah, I understand!”
The sudden mention of needing to pee caught the herbalist completely off guard as he turned away to lean against the tree.
And— the clock popped out!
What’s going on?
— Clunk!
The hands spun around, and there appeared Kain oppa out of thin air.
What is happening right now?
Miro silently pointed at the herbalist while Kain nodded and pulled out a magic book.
Moments later, the herbalist turned around and started tilting his head.
“W-What’s going on—”
“Songie, be quiet for a bit.”
“What the heck? What’s happening?”
“Kain is taking over that person’s body.”
“Why? Why? Why why why?”
Ahri had a tired look on her face.
“Didn’t you notice yet? He’s been leading us to a strange place.”
“Shortcut—”
At that moment, Miro chimed in lightly.
“Wasn’t it weird since the castle earlier? Everyone was panicking and crying, yet he pretended to be scared while sticking to us?”
“Yeah, it did seem suspicious. Songie, I feel like it’s a mystery why you’re still alive in the hotel.”
Ahri sent a serious vibe that completely threw me off.
The most shocking fact was, if someone as perceptive as Ahri picked up on things, that even Miro had caught on to the herbalist’s oddity before me!
Ahri calmly approached the herbalist.
“Did you find something?”
“…”
“Are you still reading the information? Hurry up—”
The next moment, Ahri suddenly performed a backflip, dodging the opponent’s attack.
Miro, who had been mockingly toying with her, was caught off guard and turned around just in time—
The herbalist’s shiny eyes gleamed as he stared at Kain’s fallen body beside Miro.
“This power… it seems beneath what it could be yet resembles the force of an evil spirit’s power. Moreover, the author’s body closely resembles that of one possessed by evil spirits!”
“Y-You’re resisting possession? How on earth—”
“How many centuries have passed since evil spirits dragged the world into chaos? If we continue to be passive, it’d be our laziness. But… it’s tough to endure.”
In the next moment, a shining dagger emerged from the herbalist’s hand and—
“Graaaaah!”
He plunged the dagger into his own shoulder!
Is he fighting with Kain oppa under the control of his own body?
I was so confused I couldn’t even figure out the situation, but one thing was certain: this was no time to just sit tight.
With the power of multiple perspectives, I twisted the opponent’s senses and shoved him into a roaring flame.
“Ugaaah!”
As the man rolled on the ground, unsure of what to do, Ahri made her move, rushing forward to slash his neck.
…
As the tension passed, Kain oppa reawakened next to Miro.
“Ugh!”
“Oppa! Are you okay?”
“No, why are there so many resisting possessions? This hasn’t happened in a long time…”
Ahri let out a light sigh.
“They say an evil spirit has been rampaging for centuries. Seems he has mastered techniques befitting a palace guard.”
“Now I understand.”
“Hmm?”
“I finally understood what I meant when I told Miro to resist possession. It wasn’t just some abstract expression; it was a literal meaning.”
“… Two-Minded Technique?”
“What’s that?”
“It’s a way of splitting one’s mind. It seems you’ll need to learn the method.”
“How? The enlightenment I just received will fade in time.”
“That’s true. By the way, did you figure anything out? Is this guy the one from the two masters mentioned in the warning?”
“Correct. It would have been tough had we confronted him head-on, but we managed to deal with him easily through a surprise attack.”
“And the other one?”
“I have no information on that person.”
Upon hearing this, Ahri immediately gestured for Miro to dispel Kain oppa’s possession.
Just before disappearing, Kain oppa wore a somewhat disappointed expression.
“We’ve taken care of one, so now just one remains.”
—
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