Ch.173168 – Neutralization

NoName climbed the stairs to the 13th floor after stopping the elevator to avoid crossing paths with the stalker.

She entered Yoon-sul’s apartment through the front door, which was open as expected.

Her gaze slowly moved from right to left across the interior.

The place was a complete mess.

Being a luxury apartment, it hadn’t burned despite the fire magic used, but scorch marks covered much of the furniture.

“Huff… huff… I should’ve just taken the elevator if it was going to be like this.”

Even though her stamina had improved, it was still exhausting.

“What are you doing? Why are you still in Yoon-sul’s apartment?”

She spoke into the seemingly empty space.

Almost immediately, a man wearing a coat emerged from the bedroom with heavy footsteps. His attire was inappropriate for early summer.

His unkempt hair and several days’ worth of unshaven beard added to his haggard appearance.

“Who are you…? Rika’s sister?”

The intruder himself seemed considerably confused.

Understandably so, as the girl’s small stature made even his attempt at intimidation sound harmless.

After enduring NoName’s stare for a while, the man suddenly widened his eyes as if remembering something.

“Wait, aren’t you NoName? How did you…?”

The man couldn’t believe his eyes.

It was NoName’s avatar, whom he’d seen several times during Kariri’s collaborative streams.

For a moment, the intruder even felt like he was connected to virtual reality.

“Then you should understand.”

NoName’s voice leaked out, filled with anger.

“Until the police arrive, you’re going to get beaten within an inch of your life by me.”

The girl’s face showed no emotion as she uttered these chilling words.

“You should pray the police come quickly.”

The man momentarily frowned at her words.

“Police? What have I done to be reported to the police!”

“Isn’t it obvious? After the mess you’ve made.”

A brief silence fell.

Even in that moment, NoName was calculating how to subdue the man.

She deduced he could use fire magic. Though he had an average adult male build, judging by the power he displayed, his skill level wasn’t low.

‘Roughly 3rd circle, or assuming worst case, up to 4th circle magic.’

NoName was limited by her physical body of only seventeen or eighteen years.

Relying on her gaming experience would likely lead to disaster.

Having just used the Arabesque Knot with her peripheral vision, she needed to conserve mana.

Anticipating a prolonged fight, she devised a spell that would use minimal mana.

[Synthesis: Muscimol-Ibotenic Acid Compound]

[3rd Circle Cast: Hallucination]

“You… you were sent by Chena to kill me too! You think I’ll let you cast that!”

The man gasped. He hadn’t expected the girl to know magic.

He decided to temporarily clear his mind of complicated thoughts. His instincts told him this was clearly the signal for combat.

To interrupt her spell, the man charged at NoName with a roar.

He transferred the crackling embers from beneath his feet to his fist and swung mercilessly toward where she stood.

Whoosh-

His fist cut through empty air.

Just as his fist was about to connect, her figure blurred, and only hazy smoke remained where NoName had been.

“How do you expect to hit anything swinging that slowly?”

A mocking voice came from behind him.

The little girl was gone, and in her place sat a woman with exotic features, legs crossed on the bedroom bed.

“Who… who…?”

“I thought this form would be more familiar to you. Strange.”

Long, slender limbs, fine golden hair flowing down to her waist, and burning amber eyes. The man recognized this figure too.

NoName’s World of Arsheria character.

“Ha! So that was the hallucination and this is your true form? This feels more realistic anyway.”

The man nodded slightly. Yes, a child using such magic made no sense.

That appearance must have been meant to lower his guard from the beginning.

This time, the man ignited both fists, increasing the temperature output.

Blue flames crackled, shooting in all directions and blackening the bedroom wallpaper.

“I wonder which is real? This form is more comfortable for me, but I’ve gotten quite used to the child’s body recently.”

“Enough wordplay…!”

The man lunged at NoName again.

With their eyes at the same level, it was easier to aim for her face and throw a punch.

Despite his confident movement intended to crush her jawbone, the woman remained completely calm.

‘Why isn’t she moving?’

Such a question rose in his mind. Perhaps she had some hidden scheme, making his thoughts complicated.

Thwack-!

However, he hadn’t expected his full-force blow to be so easily blocked by the woman’s delicate hand, and his eyes filled with bewilderment.

“How… how?”

“You’re weak. I worried for nothing.”

“What? Weak?”

NoName had touched a nerve.

The man had never been called weak anywhere.

“Yes, too weak. Even the thirteen-year-old maid who used to live in our house was stronger than you.”

“Shut your mouth!”

“That’s not how you use strength. Now, kneel.”

NoName commanded in a low voice.

“What…?”

The man’s expression became severely distorted.

Soon, however, his eyeballs began to tremble with overwhelming fear.

‘What… what is this…!’

His breathing quickened and chills ran through his body.

A fear of being devoured by an enormous darkness dominated him.

Thinking he would die if he didn’t kneel immediately, the man’s knees slowly bent.

“That’s better. It was tiring having to look up at you. Now, lie down.”

“Nnngghh!”

His large frame collapsed onto the floor.

NoName, sitting on top of him, picked up one of Yoon-sul’s hair ties from the floor and used it to tie her golden hair into a single braid.

“I told you, didn’t I? That you should pray for the police to arrive quickly. Seems like they’re taking their time.”

NoName grabbed the back of the man’s neck as he lay face down, unable to move.

“Or you could try to break free from the hallucination with your own strength.”

In the blink of an eye, the room’s scenery turned completely white.

“This… this isn’t magic or anything…!”

The man’s suspicion was justified.

When NoName ordered him to kneel and lie face down, there had been no visible magic circle.

“Damn… I’m still… in the hallucination…”

Belatedly realizing he hadn’t escaped the hallucination, the man struggled.

“If you just knew what spell I was casting, you could escape, you know?”

[Innate Magic – Estasha Style Fourth Form – Medusa]

Hallucination magic itself is generally impractical.

If the opponent has even a rough idea of what magic is being cast within the illusion, the magic won’t work.

This is because it borrows the principle of ‘pseudo-casting’ in a virtual space rather than actually casting magic.

Alternatively, someone with excellent aura control could protect their body from hallucinogenic substances by surrounding themselves with a barrier.

“I could tell from your stance. You didn’t seem to have any professional fighting experience.”

Conversely, for someone who meets neither condition, hallucination magic can be extremely threatening.

Thanks to NoName’s excellent spell selection, the intruder was completely neutralized.

His neck turned to stone, and the petrification gradually spread.

Torso, arms, legs, and finally to his toes.

The man could only watch with his eyes as his body turned to stone, leaving only his head untouched.

“Now, stand up.”

“Mmph! Mmph! Mmmmph!”

His head received the command to stand up.

However, his completely petrified body couldn’t fulfill the order, and as a penalty, extreme fear dominated the man.

His eyes became bloodshot to the point where capillaries burst, and NoName sneered at the sight.

“Perfect. Just stay like that and listen. Answer my questions occasionally too.”

“Nnnggh…! Please… just spare…”

“Of course I’ll spare you. But you must pay for your crimes.”

“No… no…”

“Why did you come to Seol Yoon-sul’s apartment?”

“…”

The man just continued trembling violently.

Displeased with his response, NoName stood up abruptly and kicked the man’s right arm.

Crack-

“…! AAAAARRRGGGHHHH!”

His petrified arm shattered into pieces, and his body tilted over the debris.

“Does it hurt?”

“Nnnggh… hnngg… NNNGGGHHH!”

Despite feeling no sensation throughout his body, the pain of amputation was transmitted perfectly.

He wanted to scream but couldn’t open his mouth.

With pain exceeding his tolerance threshold, his facial muscles contorted violently, and all the man could do was clench his teeth tightly.

“Yes, it hurts… it must hurt. I know what this pain feels like. How much better it would have been if you’d answered promptly. Don’t you agree?”

“S-sorry… please just spare… nnngghh…!”

“You shouldn’t apologize to me, but to Yoon-sul. You’re an attempted murderer. You tried to push a girl who can’t even use magic from the 13th floor. So why did you come here?”

“Nnnggh! Hnn Chena… Chena came and told me to kill Rika… repeatedly…”

“Hmm. I can’t hear you well. Should I balance the other side too? That might make it easier to talk.”

NoName nudged his other stiffened arm with her toe.

The man, desperately enduring the pain, squeezed out his last strength to confess the truth.

He couldn’t bear to experience such hellish pain again.

“I’ll… I’ll tell you everything… I’ll tell everything so please spare me, officer… nnngghh… I didn’t want to do it, but Chena… Chena sent DMs… every night asking me to kill Rika. Yes, Chena controlled my body to come here! I really didn’t want to go that far, but she kept asking… I came from Busan Station, which burned down in the great fire of 1953 but was reconstructed in 2003 so I could safely find my way AAARRGHH…!”

“What?”

“Y-yes, CCTV! There are CCTVs in the house…! 189 CCTVs following and monitoring me constantly, so I really had no choice… Otherwise, Chena said she would kill me and my family… AAARRGHH MMMPPH-!”

“I think you can stop talking now.”

“Mmph… mmph…!”

NoName completely petrified the man up to his neck.

She sighed deeply and looked around briefly. The faint sound of police sirens could be heard through the window.

Then she crouched in front of the man lying on the floor and looked into his eyes.

“All that matters is that I should be more frightening than any delusion your mind can create. Right? It’s such a simple thing.”

Rustle-

“Death is something you never get used to no matter how many times you experience it, but there is one thing that improves. Do you know what that is?”

To the man, whose mouth first, then eyes, and finally every hair on his head had completely turned to stone, NoName delivered a death sentence.

“It’s being able to control your life flashing before your eyes. It’s truly a shame I can’t teach you how. Try your best.”

The man could only stare blankly.

NoName placed her palm flat against the top of his head.

In what felt like an eternity, mana swirled around her hand like a vortex.

The condensed mana seeped into the stone like rainwater.

As the cold condensate spread throughout his body like ant tunnels, she quickly clenched her fist.

[4th Circle Cast: Rapid Cooling]

‘I’m… dying…!’

The rapidly cooled liquid caused cracks in the stone.

The man had to endure silent screams until he lost consciousness from the pain of his entire body crumbling.

* * *

“There’s no one here!”

Police officers in full protective gear stormed into Yoon-sul’s apartment.

“Did you check the bedroom? If he’s not here, he must have escaped to the roof via the stairs!”

“Found him, Chief! Huh? Is this really the guy…?”

The intruder discovered in the bedroom had collapsed with foam at his mouth.

Finding this suspicious, the officer quickly handcuffed his wrists.

As the female officer took out her radio to request a stretcher, the closet behind her creaked open.

“Suspect apprehended at the scene. Requesting one stretcher support- AAAH!”

Startled, her hand reflexively moved toward her taser.

But what approached the officer was a young child who appeared to be about six or seven years old.

The child ran over and threw herself into the officer’s arms, burying her face.

“A strange man came in, and I’ve been hiding! Thank you for coming to save me, Officer!”

“Huh…?”

“*cough*”

Blood leaked from the child’s mouth.

“Child, you’re bleeding…!”

The girl, who had swallowed the blood welling up in her mouth by pressing her chest firmly, explained with trailing words.

“Ah… that man hit me!”

The place the girl pointed to was, of course, the collapsed intruder.