Encounter

Brilliant light gathering only the purest after refining black souls.

The moment he saw the spiritual power within the Hollow Eye, Ruin’s words came to mind.

“That eye is said to have the mysterious ability to harbor souls. Hoho, it’s something the old sages spoke of like a joke.”

Ruin had laughed, saying it was merely groundless rumor.

‘It was true.’

The condensed spiritual power invisible to ordinary people whispered to Pernok.

Hurry and draw your soul within.

Take the massive power contained within.

It was a sweet temptation the devil whispered.

A magic that seemed to make him lose his identity the moment he fell in flowed from within the Hollow Eye.

‘Are you trying to test me?’

The moment he sneered at such vulgar level and released his spiritual power—

Bang!

A roar like the earth shaking rang out, and the alien master had already rushed before the barrier.

The master wore an extremely surprised expression.

Understandably so.

The owner of the Hollow Eye was this very master.

Yet feeling crisis surge as Pernok tried interfering with the eye’s Origin, which no mage could do.

“Hu…man…”

At a distance close enough to touch each other’s breath with one barrier between them, Pernok stopped interfering.

‘What is this?’

Previously, Ruin had evaluated the mountain’s master thus.

“When the subjugation force arrived, the mountain’s master had already suffered fatal injuries and was flailing within the barrier. Judging it unnecessary to kill the master, the kingdom only took measures by erecting a monument to prepare for emergencies.”

All to leave the mountain range in its state infected by demonic energy.

“They couldn’t touch the master. The moment they tried causing harm, the mountain range’s demonic energy scattered.”

The master and mountain range are intimately related.

The kingdom concluded thus and only erected the surveillance monument to preserve the mountain range’s commercial value.

“The master has deep wounds. It was the subjugation force’s opinion at the time that they wouldn’t heal even after long years.”

Because even if the master pounded the barrier threatening them, the kingdom could eliminate it anytime.

Wounds that wouldn’t easily heal even as decades passed.

‘There’s a crack in the heart.’

The master’s interior grasped by Observation Eye had injured the core heart, as Ruin said.

But one point differed from the subjugation force’s judgment.

‘It’s continuously absorbing the mountain range’s demonic energy to repair its heart.’

It was like drilling a hole in the summit and relishing with its whole body the demonic energy bursting out like a fountain.

The master became a medium, sucking in the massive demonic energy flow running through the mountain range.

‘The reason this summit is so clear and quiet is because this thing holds all the high-density demonic energy rising to the summit.’

And the meaning of this abnormal phenomenon—

‘Just as I absorb spiritual power and mana, this thing also continuously absorbs demonic energy by merely standing on the mountain range. As long as it fights in the mountain range, its demonic energy approaches infinite territory.’

Even killing the master in the mountain range, the demonic energy rushing to the summit would regenerate him.

“If you wish to kill the wounded master, you’ll need to be at least a level 7 mage.”

Ruin’s final advice echoes like hallucination.

Pernok had also explored various means to kill the master based on information.

But he hadn’t anticipated this variable.

‘I could kill it once. But that’s all. This thing revives again. Unless I erase even the mountain range together, this creature absolutely won’t die.’

That wasn’t the only variable beyond prediction.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

The Royal Guard that should have stayed at 9000 meters altitude climbed to the summit.

‘How can the Royal Guard that can’t leave their zone…?’

That moment, Pernok witnessed with Observation Eye the master’s mana infiltrating below the mountain range.

It intervened in the mountain range’s flow too freely from within the barrier erected to prevent extracting mana.

Like a thorn planted in the monument, it infected demon beasts born from the mountain range’s demonic energy.

A series of smooth processes delivered a chilling speculation to Pernok.

‘If demon beasts regenerated in this mountain range bear its demonic energy, then just as Demon Knights command low-grade demon beasts, the master can also freely manipulate even high-grade demon beasts.’

As if planting certainty in speculation, the Royal Guard unable to leave their position climbed here and surrounded all sides.

‘Everyone thought the barrier was a prison blocking all internal and external mana to confine the master. But what if the master had a method to escape the barrier from the start?’

An era when the demon beast mountain range wasn’t yet teeming with demon beasts.

A single swordsman slashed a monster and sealed it in this mountain range—that is today’s mana barrier erected at the summit.

Didn’t even Pernok, unable to forcibly break the mana barrier, bring Baudelaire’s mana control device?

But if there’s a method to break through from inside a barrier impossible to enter from outside?

Pernok turned his gaze to the monument.

The monument detects impure flows.

And a thorn resembling the master’s demonic energy is embedded in this monument.

Meaning the mountain’s master mixed thorn-like impurities into this monument to manipulate and prevent abnormal phenomena from leaking out until now.

“Interesting.”

Pernok mocked the master baring fangs.

“Once that heart’s wounds heal, were you planning revenge on those who imprisoned you by releasing all the mountain range’s demon beasts?”

As if affirming the finally reached conclusion, the master roared.

Kraaaaaak!

A cry like a scream shook the summit, and hideous demonic energy flowed from within the barrier.

Though massive power that could easily devour Pernok’s mana burst out, the monument doesn’t ring.

Had he not come and seen directly, the claim that the mountain’s master interferes with demon beasts outside the barrier to ‘manipulate’ them would have sounded absurd.

‘Large amounts of demonic energy detected below the summit. The area around 8500 meters altitude I thought safe will be covered with demon beasts.’

Pernok looked at the master indifferently.

‘If I break the barrier in this state, not only guild members but even the unprepared castle will all be swept up by demon beasts.’

He might have started battle if confident he could perfectly kill the master.

But backed by the mountain range, the master would revive no matter how many times Pernok killed it.

A fight between himself alone and the entire mountain range.

As unforeseen variables burst out successively, Pernok had no choice but to revise his plan.

‘Wars of attrition favor this thing. No need to engage on its home ground.’

The master was provoked by Pernok from the moment he interfered with the Hollow Eye.

No need to emotionally clash with the master reeking of killing intent to kill him here and now.

He newly revised in his head the path toward summit conquest.

The moment he thought even deploying Spiritual Law couldn’t counter the master’s variables, Pernok calculated all situations anew and threw new groundwork leading to victory.

‘I’ll draw this thing down to a battlefield favorable to me.’

Pernok transformed spiritual power into small form and shot it at the Hollow Eye.

Boom!

The master’s neck snapped back then immediately returned.

The barrier only blocks mana, not spiritual power.

Only one being here can shock the Hollow Eye.

Imprinting that fact, the master’s eyes widened.

“A worthless creature that can’t even come outside the barrier without using demon beasts. That treasure embedded in your head is wasted.”

Pernok, who’d smiled, smashed the monument, grabbed one fragment, and immediately broke through the Royal Guard.

Kraaaaaak!

The enraged master’s roar echoes from behind.

Not having fully repaired its heart, it seems unwilling to emerge from the barrier.

But that’s only a matter of time.

It will definitely descend dragging its incomplete body.

Because it tasted the threatening means called spiritual power.

‘Named alone isn’t enough.’

He needs power to firmly guard his back so he can wage battle with the master descending the mountain range without worrying about anything.

He must conceive a new subjugation force.

Bang bang bang!

Pernok, who’d descended to 8500 meters altitude in one breath, discovered guild members struggling against high-grade demon beasts.

The zone they’d felt safe had indeed transformed into a battlefield threatening humans from the moment the master sent the Royal Guard to the summit.

If Pernok had engaged the master as is, all guild members would have been annihilated here.

“Guild leader!”

“Did you kill the master?”

Pernok pressed high-grade demon beasts in one rush and shouted.

“Descending the mountain!”

“The summit…!”

“Impossible now!”

That moment, everyone began descending in formations optimized for escape.

Pernok, who’d deflected pursuing high-grade demon beasts with Over Impact, ran alongside the executive staff.

Sallio asked.

“Was the master difficult for even you to handle, guild leader?”

“Its demonic energy surpasses my mana several times over.”

“Then…”

“If it were merely strong demonic energy, I could have killed it sufficiently. But an unanticipated variable intervened.”

All executive staff watched Pernok.

“The master can leave the barrier. It also commands demon beasts while continuously absorbing and spreading the mountain range’s demonic energy. Moreover, that body will regenerate infinitely as long as the mountain range’s demonic energy isn’t depleted.”

“That can’t be! If it were such an absurd creature, the first subjugation force would have desperately tried to kill it!”

“I don’t know what judgment stood then. They might have ignored anticipated danger to industrialize this mountain range. No point examining the past. What’s important is that we alone can’t overcome all these variables now, and it’s completely impossible in the mountain range.”

“Then…”

“The first step is dropping it from this mountain range. Then we must eliminate all variables and finish it in a place we’re most confident.”

Thinking their appearance flailing caught by demon beasts held Pernok’s ankles, the executive staff nodded with heavy expressions.

Pernok glanced at their reactions and changed subjects.

“Did you secure high-grade demon beast materials?”

“Yes. We organized them before you came.”

Pernok nodded and shouted.

“The moment we return to the castle, we’ll refine our combat power! Prepare for battle with high-grade demon beasts!”

* * *

After gathering remaining guild executive staff to discuss the summit events, Pernok immediately summoned Baltus and Borden.

“Did the summit matter conclude well?”

“No, much went awry.”

Pernok explained the summit events to both.

Especially Borden denied with a disbelieving expression.

“When the previous king withdrew the subjugation force, he erected a monument there! A surveillance network made by gathering the world’s cleanest stones to detect even minor anomalies at the summit—how could it not notice the master’s changes!”

“Did you check if the monument functioned properly after the subjugation force?”

“Of course! By linking with the barrier stone here…”

Pernok placed monument fragments on the table.

Borden’s eyes widened discovering the royal crest.

“The barrier stone can only detect if the monument sends proper signals down. But if the monument itself is contaminated and doesn’t transmit signals to the barrier stone, how can we know the summit’s situation?”

“…”

“Even though I destroyed the monument, did signals ring at the barrier stone?”

Borden’s expression hardened stiffly.

“Everyone was mad with money-making, ignoring truly important dangers. No matter how money-crazed, they should have thoroughly conducted safety inspections.”

Pernok curled up his lips.

“In the end, didn’t I make a wasted trip?”

“Then what should we do now?”

“Summon the knight order and gather mercenaries the association can deploy to the field.”

Baltus asked with a serious expression.

“If we don’t touch the summit?”

“Then the master will grow overwhelmingly strong, tear through the barrier and emerge. By then, no one here can stop that creature.”

“Aren’t you here?”

“How much longer do you think I’ll stay here?”

Baltus swallowed a groan, and Borden exhaled a faint sigh.

“If the scale grows, the situation complicates.”

“Why?”

“When just your guild moved, I could conceal the summit conquest on my authority. Everyone expected summit conquest to fail. But if the castle and association intervene to organize a large-scale subjugation force, will the nation just watch?”

The summit conquest success rate rises dramatically.

“If it’s because of the claim that killing the mountain master will immediately wash away the mountain range’s demonic energy, inform them there’s absolutely no need to worry. The master merely rides the mountain range’s flow to scatter its demonic energy or absorb the mountain range’s demonic energy. Killing it won’t eliminate the mountain range’s inherent demonic energy.”

“You don’t understand those above at all. Those people won’t concede even trivial things related to their interests and hate the word ‘variable’ very much. If you’d secured a position in the kingdom while saying such things, perhaps, but didn’t you refuse most invitations? Many factions in the kingdom are wary of Named.”

Borden coughed and carefully continued.

“I can’t conceal more than this with my power.”

“If the royal court dispatches forces to stop me, how large would that scale be?”

“They won’t need many forces. One person alone would suffice.”

Borden inhaled deeply.

“The court Magus or Royal Guard Knights will move.”

Three Magi supporting Rezhen Kingdom.

Two of them belong to each organization.

“They’re cruel figures who’ll do anything that benefits the nation.”

“Rough-handed?”

“Didn’t I tell you? Stubborn people who absolutely proceed with decisions once made. If necessary, they’d raze Named to the ground and more.”

Pernok grinned.

“I like them.”

“What?”

“A Magus who’ll rampage recklessly is coming directly.”

“Whichever of the two comes will endanger you!”

“That’s only before the situation changes.”

The memories of the Lord of Despair, skilled in schemes, whisper.

Turn weapons pointed at allies into weapons to wield against enemies.

“I was just thinking castle forces alone were insufficient—this works perfectly. I can comfortably exploit high-quality skilled labor.”

To the two who didn’t understand, Pernok wore a meaningful smile.