episode_0142

It was that evening.

“Yes, we are all safe, Professor.”

“It’s thanks to the professor taking the lead. a little… It is true that it is very hot, so there are some children who are having a hard time, but there have been no injuries or casualties yet.”

“I see. Thank goodness. I hope everyone takes care of themselves.”

I said that and put down the military receiver again.

It was a daily event to check the condition of the students who were following me, the leader.

Fortunately, there are no casualties yet.

It may be a bit difficult to withstand the extreme weather in Africa, but since you travel in convoy vehicles such as trucks, your conditions will not change much until you enter the deepest part.

Just as I was about to lie down in my barracks with that thought in mind, I noticed someone walking through the tent and coming in this way.

“Oh, hello. This is my first time seeing you in Africa.”

“… You guy. How did you get in?”

A large old man approaches me, pretending to be sly. He was a former executive and collector of a circular church.

He was trying to say something resembling a greeting, but when he looked at me and saw that I was burning with great hostility, he scratched his head.

“No, but we’re still in the same boat, so don’t be so mean.”

“… I asked how he got in. There must be soldiers filling up the area around here.”

“Well, it doesn’t really matter to the general public whether it’s a thousand or ten thousand. No matter how many incompetent people there are, they won’t even interfere with what we’re trying to do.”

Then the collector approaches and sits down on the chair in front of the military table.

As the large man shifted his weight, the chair made a dangerous creaking sound, so I frowned and blinked slightly.

“There is no car. Just hand over your business and go away.”

“You are so cold-hearted. Still, since we are colleagues, I would like a cup of tea… Yes? Do you really not have a car? Well, I can’t help it.”

The collector must be fully aware that he is not welcome anyway, but he acts in a cunning manner.

For some reason, the guy who kept saying nonsense seemed to have finally realized that my outpouring of hostility wasn’t going to go away, so he slowly started to get to the point.

Even though he is said to have left the ring bridge, the guy who is still dressed in a strange monastic uniform looks into his pocket and pulls out a small piece of paper that resembles a photo.

While looking at that, I pressed the area around the horn of the head once and exhaled once.

“If you want to do that, please look at this.”

“What is it?”

I got up and went over to look at it.

And I frowned again because I could see the guy’s body more than the content.

That’s amazing.

There had to be a lot of scars all over his body.

It was my violence that passed through his body. Of course, a simple punch may not sound that fatal, but since the person who did it was Elm, it was not at the level of a weapon, but a violence that was no different from a weapon.

I still vividly remember the sight of this old man’s red and vivid liquid engraved in my eyeballs as he struck him.

For some reason, the memory of Yongin reverting to his true nature as a violent predator and tearing him apart is still vivid.

This guy has all his limbs broken and is no different from an Ottogi Dharma doll. How can he get his shape back like this?

Even if it was restored with the power of magic, at least the scar would have to remain.

Moreover, this guy broke through the tight security guarded by numerous security personnel and came to my barracks.

If you listen closely, you can still feel security drones flying in the sky and soldiers patrolling.

Of course, it was clear that Lee Neung was involved. So what is this guy’s special ability?

This means that it doesn’t just have a variety of abilities, but it also has something that can be used in all of these places.

“What is this? Is it a photo?”

But my thoughts only went that far and then I changed the subject.

These are things you can think about gradually. Otherwise, you could just beat this guy up and ask him why.

All you have to do is take on a heavy mood, distort your face sharply, grab the old man by the collar of his monastic robe, and pin him to the floor with the same force as what happened before, and then interrogate him.

As if he sensed my thoughts, he waved his hand again.

“Hehe… Please don’t be like that. As I said before, I have no intention of harming Northmund. Please don’t be too hasty.”

“… .”

“Yes. In any case, there is nothing good about being in a bad situation with each other when you are in the same boat. haha. Yes, there is no benefit to both sides.”

The old man grinned sinisterly.

He was a more frivolous old man than I thought. I also had no idea why this guy was so annoying.

I have a utilitarian way of thinking and have no intention of harming the cow, but for some reason, I got irritated when I met this old man.

When there was no answer from me, the old man laughed again and pointed to the photo.

“Among the people I know, there are only two funny guys.”

“What do you mean.”

He looked down at the picture, but instead of explaining, this time, the big, frivolous old man actually spoke in a sly voice that did not fit the atmosphere, looking at the dragon-looking person sitting across from the military table.

This time, the corners of my eyes frowned, but the old man pretended not to see it and continued talking.

“One of them is a stupid old man named The One. Well, Northmund has already taken care of that old man.”

The Collector slammed his palm on the table and spoke again.

“That idiot’s world is small. I’ve told you the reason before, so I’ll avoid saying it again. What is that superhero movie that comes out often these days? Aren’t you trying to do something similar to the stereotypical villains that appear in those places? It is natural to be defeated.”

“… Don’t talk too much.”

“Hehe, and the other one is the idiot demon that was connected to that guy. Although the races are different and the locations are different, there is no fundamental difference at all. Now that you have already met this person, you know who I am talking about.”

“… Alexstras.”

I lowered my gaze down there.

The picture depicted something black, humanoid, similar to the dark figures I had encountered in Romania.

“Yes, this is his appearance. In fact, since demons do not have a physical body but an etheric body, it is meaningless to distinguish them by appearance, but I don’t think they will make the decision to change their appearance and hide when the final battle has been declared. Yeah, I guess he’s not that bad of a guy.”

“Um.”

“His magic stone is located in the lower right corner of his body. In humans, it would be around the cecum. The magic stone must be recovered. You should never break it. That’s the material needed for the final step.”

I lightly squeezed and opened my hand, my eyes cooled, and I looked at the guy in front of me.

“How do you know so well? How do you even know the location of Alexstras’ magic stone? You too must have received powers from someone evil. Why are you betraying him?”

“Hehe, that’s a sharp question.”

“The devils know that they can retrieve the powers they have given themselves. How is it that you are completely unharmed while you are completely destroying their plans? Are there internal strife even among demons? Then whose gatekeeper are you?”

“Kkkeolkkeol. Please calm down.”

okay. For some reason, that may be the reason why I feel uncomfortable when I see him.

Although he said nice things about being a colleague and all, he didn’t say anything about his true intentions. There is no way such a shady guy will continue to do good things for others.

The possibility that the true intention is that it is better for me to rule the world than Alexstras, which is the superficial reason, is close to zero.

So, with the intention of getting rid of all the unpleasant feelings that had been lingering in my head, I asked him about all of those accidents as if I were cleaning them up and brushed them off.

I planned to judge what kind of thoughts this man had by listening directly to the words that came out of this scum’s mouth.

Of course, there was only one most fundamental idea. The situation was like this, but I had no intention of being a colleague or rubbing shoulders with a guy like this.

“Yes, that is correct. Even among devils, opinions differ. They are not noble beings, but are intelligent beings with their own thoughts. Hehehe.”

“Is there an internal dispute?”

“Even if it’s not an internal conflict, it’s just that there are people with different opinions. Since Alexstras is so powerful, he can’t openly oppose it, but there are some guys who secretly have different thoughts.”

“So the demon wants me to achieve Alexstras’ goal? What would he benefit from if I became the ruler of this world instead of him?”

The collector and I looked at each other with displeased faces.

There was silence for a moment. The old man seems to have no idea what to say when he is asked a question about it.

‘There are definitely other plans. After all, I can’t completely trust him.’

I have already concluded that. Well, the reason is not that the content contains malicious intent or is negative, but it may just be that what they have to say is not organized. It may be that they are choosing their words to make it easier for me to understand.

However, the slight hesitation in answering here was enough silence to make me doubt his true intentions, so I nodded slowly.

“… no. You seem to be suspicious of something, but it’s not what you think, Mr. Northmund.”

Perhaps because the silence was awkward, the old man spoke first with a slightly embarrassed expression.

That sight only made me more annoyed.

“First of all, I want to make it clear that the devil’s goals and my goals are not always the same. What… That devil isn’t always chasing you around like your mother-in-law and achieving results.”

“Are you saying you split up with him too? Why can’t I speak clearly?”

“It’s not like we split up. But for now, my contract demon would prefer Northmund to rule this world. Even if the direction is slightly different. One thing I can tell you clearly is that it will never cause any harm to Northmund.”

The guy shrugged his shoulders and muttered.

*

Quang! The sound of heavy drinking rang in my ears.

A few weeks have passed since he came to Arpika. It was a very busy day, and I didn’t count the days one by one, so although it’s not clear, I think it may have been more than a month.

The screams of monsters being torn apart by the explosion can be heard and the shouts of battle can be heard.

The appearance of soldiers moving in an orderly and professional manner was clearly different from when they had just arrived here.

“We have reached the FEBA point adjacent to the dark fog. From now on, it’s a fog zone.”

As I was sighing after shooting chain lightning and killing several monsters that had resisted to the last, an officer shouted loudly and gave me the rank of captain.

His appearance was scratchy due to not being able to wash properly due to the long expedition, but his eyes were filled with venom.

I experienced quite a few battles on my way to this point. Of course, there are several times more battles than the number of fingers and toes added together.

In the beginning, it was an expeditionary force that advanced without any significant damage, easily eliminating monsters thanks to the magic rifle.

As it gradually entered the deep area, the damage gradually began to increase.

It was already close to impossible to intercept and deal with them all from a distance before they approached.

As they gradually advanced from the outskirts to the center, the volume rose to a level that even bombing could not handle.

In particular, as they entered the central jungle area, the problem of monsterized plants caused by the fog that covered this area in the past continued to be a problem.

What looked like an ordinary tree suddenly started biting nearby soldiers, killing them with leaves as large as weights.

However, since we could not advance while burning the entire continent, we had no choice but to proceed slowly and with as much caution as possible.

Although it is unfortunate, many soldiers passed away, so it is safe to say that those who survived until now have become seasoned elites.

“Now it’s time for those with special abilities to step forward. Thank you for your hard work.”

The voice of the officer reporting to me was full of relief that I could not hide, so I nodded and accepted it with a wry smile.

Ordinary people who cannot use magical power cannot enter the fog.

So, the only people entering it were the academy students I had raised and the special equipment that could operate within the fog, so it seemed like the expedition force thought it was safe.

‘I don’t think so. Well, there’s no need to say it out loud.’

Alexstras is a really petty guy, so he will keep sending monsters towards the place where they are stationed.

Although they will no longer have to go on an arduous march every day, they will have to play a defense game to fend off the monsters that flock every day.

It is impossible to withdraw troops. Shouldn’t they serve as a relay outpost?

Their work is not done.

“How long will it take for the convoy of people with special abilities to arrive here?”

“The convoy is following at a distance of approximately 50km. We’ll arrive here in about an hour or two.”

“I see. If so, establish a frontline base here.”

The officer nods his head at my words and disappears.

It will be a fairly large base. We will have to build a temporary runway to transport troops and supplies, and we will also have to build a barrier to block monsters.

Roughly speaking, our location seemed to be somewhere between Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Although the country has already disappeared. Nevertheless, we have regained our old land, at least temporarily.

Since I haven’t memorized all of the place names in Africa, I don’t know the exact name of the area where we will be setting up camp, but it still seemed to be a village of some size.

After that, I took a leisurely breath and sat down on the chair on the cafe terrace that still maintained its shape.

Everyone disappeared under the cover of dark fog, and the building was completely cracked, disheveled, and ruined, but it was still easy to guess that it had originally been a fairly old-fashioned store.

It would have been a household where people with a little more wealth than ordinary people would come to spend some time leisurely, to put it simply, people from the upper class would come here.

Is this a rare case in Africa? If you look at it that way, the place we are in now may have been a place where some of the wealthiest people in Africa lived.

‘Hmm.’

I don’t know if it was too leisurely given that the soldiers were busy moving around, but if possible, I suddenly felt like pouring tea into the unbroken teacup in front of me and drinking it.

I missed the taste of the tea that Helen used to make in the dean’s office. Once the supply stabilizes, I will contact Elada and ask them to bring some.

“But in the end, it ended up like this.”

Although it may have looked like the original, when I looked into the interior of the cafe from the terrace, the inside of the cafe was completely broken and a mess, with some old-fashioned decorations, giving off a somewhat eerie and eerie atmosphere. I smiled slightly with a bitter expression.

As I was spending some time thinking nonsense like that, Yongin’s magic sensor began to detect mana from afar, so I opened my eyes.

It was a huge amount of magical power. To be precise, it feels like it is not a lump of pure magical power, but a large number of particles gathered together.

‘… ‘You’re here.’

Now that I think about it, it’s been quite a while since I haven’t seen everyone’s faces. I always cleared the path from the front, and my students were escorted from behind, so there was no chance for them to meet each other.

At best, the only thing I could do was to talk to their representative over the phone before the roll call to say anything special or say hello.

“Northmund, a convoy is approaching.”

“I understand. Let’s go meet them.”

It looked like he was going to burst into laughter with joy, so he pretended to be dignified and got up, shrugging his shoulders in an emotionless response.

However, when I followed the gaze of the officer who was smiling in my direction and saw that my tail was wagging happily, I cleared my throat and frowned.

“… Go quickly.”

“Yes, Northmund.”

I clicked my tongue at the officer’s voice, which spoke calmly but seemed to contain a hint of laughter.