CHAPTER 32

032 - In My Presence

Although lesser spirits were a collective with almost no ego, they still possessed their own instincts, roles, and abilities.

All the information gathered by the pack was collected by the leader, who then relayed it to their master.

This time, however, the leader spirit delivered the information not to its master, nor to the warlock who had subjugated its master, but to Jinwoo.

"This is…"

A cluster of green light rested on Jinwoo's fingertip.

All sorts of information flowed from it: Johann's situation, the Ego Sword he possessed, and even the barrier cast throughout the area.

‘So that’s why the wind felt so unsettled. This is a barrier.’

The barrier, woven by the Wind Spirits with Johann's mana, had now come under Jinwoo's complete ownership.

The terrain and features within the barrier were drawn vividly in his mind. Like a map made from satellite photos, Jinwoo could grasp everything within its confines.

And that wasn't all.

‘I can summon wind, too.’

He could conjure wind anywhere within the barrier.

Normally, the power of lesser Wind Spirits could only produce a breeze equivalent to a slightly strong fan, but it was different now.

The mana Johann had poured into them amplified the lesser spirits' power hundreds of times over, allowing them to create gales approaching the force of a typhoon.

It was truly remarkable. The power of lesser spirits was so faint that it was usually negligible.

Yet, Johann's mana had amplified that power, transforming it into something on par with high-ranking or even supreme-ranking spirits. This was the power of an S-class, after all.

‘Well, now it’s mana I can use.’

Somehow, the situation had turned out this way. Johann was probably furious or dumbfounded right now, having had the barrier he worked so hard to create stolen from him completely.

‘Now’s the time. I have to fight while the barrier is fully active.’

This barrier was a powerful weapon. It was to his advantage to fight immediately, before it dissipated over time.

However, he couldn't just rush out relying on the barrier alone. Jinwoo first made the necessary preparations.

‘First, I’ll hide Cheon Juhyeok inside.’

He hid him in the deepest corner possible to keep him out of the fight. It wasn't a perfect solution, but it was better than leaving him out in the open.

Next, he checked the condition of his sword. He had just maintained it before sleeping, so the blade was sharp and well-oiled, gleaming smoothly. All he had done since was cut the soul chain binding Cheon Juhyeok, so there was no reason for the blade to be damaged.

And finally.

Jinwoo looked at the altar of the God of the Ice Valley.

‘This is the most important thing.’

This was his greatest advantage right now.

According to the information from the Wind Spirits, Johann hadn't found the altar. It seemed the Altar of the Ice Valley God was the only one in this entire area.

To raise his chances of victory even a little, he had to make use of this advantage.

‘Everything. I’ll offer everything.’

He had brought a considerable amount of offerings that the 13 Gods liked, based on the affinity guide from the Hunter Net forum.

He planned to offer all of it to the God of the Ice Valley. He didn't know how pleased the god would be, but if he could receive even one more blessing, it would be a success.

Jinwoo placed all the offerings he had brought onto the altar and prayed for a blessing.

[The God of the Ice Valley is somewhat satisfied. Physical strength is slightly…]
[The God of the Ice Valley refuses…]
[The God of the Ice Valley is so-so…]

The sheer quantity of offerings made the stream of messages just as long.

About half of them elicited no reaction, but the other half granted him small blessings.

Vitality flowed through his body, and his mind sharpened. His concentration intensified, and his intuition for navigating this crisis rose. There were various other effects as well, leaving him overflowing with power.

If it wasn't just his imagination, the God of the Ice Valley seemed to be quite favorable towards him. The effects of the blessings were considerable compared to the content of the messages.

‘Still, this alone is not enough.’

But he couldn't let his guard down. His opponent was an S-class. The same rank as Chartia.

When Jinwoo witnessed Chartia's power during the first Erosion, he had felt a sense of overwhelming distance. He had wondered how long he would have to walk to reach such a level.

The one targeting him now was an S-class Hunter on par with Chartia. No matter how much he prepared, the fact that he was at a disadvantage remained unchanged.

‘Just one…’

Couldn't he get just one more blessing?

He had already offered everything he had. There were no offerings left.

So, Jinwoo asked.

"Can I get it on credit?"

He was asking if the god could give him an advance, which he would repay later.

[The God of the Ice Valley is speechless. It asks what you think a god’s blessing is.]

Naturally, the god dismissed it as absurd. But perhaps its curiosity was piqued? This time, the god asked a question.

[The God of the Ice Valley asks. What will you repay it with?]

That was already decided. Just as one takes out a loan using a house as collateral, there was only one thing Jinwoo could promise in this situation.

"How about the corpse of an S-class warlock?"

A quiet silence fell. There was no further response from the God of the Ice Valley, and Jinwoo assumed his offer had been rejected.

It was a pity, but it couldn't be helped. Just as he was thinking that…

Droplets of water gathered in the air. The collected droplets froze from the center outwards, forming a cold, hand-mirror-sized reflective surface.

A light so bright it could blind emanated from the mirror.

[Do you know what you propose, mortal? That one who has lost a part of their soul is cast out from the normal cycle of reincarnation until that soul is whole again.]

A voice echoed in his head, leaving Jinwoo with a bewildered expression. How could he have known that?

[I can work you for at least 10,000 years.]

With a chuckling voice, a sword inlaid with a blue jewel was summoned and fell before him.

Suddenly, Johann found himself in the position of having to break through the very barrier he had created.

It would have been easier if he had constructed the barrier himself from scratch, but entrusting it to the Ego Sword had been a mistake.

The barrier created by the Wind Spirits was of a completely different system from his own magical knowledge, so he couldn't easily dispel it.

Given a little time for research, he was confident he could decipher it all, but he didn't have that luxury now.

‘I’ll break through with force.’

A barrier containing thirty percent of his own mana. He himself knew best how powerful it was.

But the one who had taken the barrier was an E-class. And not a mage, but a swordsman.

There was no way he could perfectly wield such a massive barrier just because he possessed it.

"Go. Go and strike terror into the heart of my enemy."

At Johann's command, pale figures floated out from the gloomy darkness.

They were the soul familiars he had collected over the years. Normally his test subjects and research material, in battle, they transformed into loyal soldiers who could be commanded with a single order.

Among the souls were those of beasts, and green-skinned races like goblins and orcs. There were elves and dwarves, and of course, humans as well.

‘Even with the barrier, the terrain is to my advantage.’

Johann had a clear grasp of his own strengths.

His biggest advantage was the geographical location—an underground labyrinth.

In a labyrinth of narrow, complex passages, everyone's range of movement was drastically reduced. However, the souls Johann commanded could pass through walls to intercept the enemy.

‘He’ll be screaming and begging for surrender in less than five minutes!’

Johann predicted exactly five minutes.

The time it would take for the massive number of souls he had poured in to completely tear through the spirit barrier and drive the hiding Kang Jinwoo into a panic.

Just because Kang Jinwoo had obtained the spirit barrier didn't mean he became a spirit himself. He would have to run frantically through the passages, and the thousands of souls would hunt him down as easily as slicing a cake.

But a change occurred after just one minute.

Rumble.

Rumble—Rumble—

The labyrinth shook. The vibrations reached Johann's location, as if an earthquake had struck somewhere far away.

‘What’s happening?’

The souls were infused with a certain amount of mana, allowing them to exert physical force.

But that shouldn't be enough to create a tremor that could shake the entire labyrinth… right?

Johann hastily designated one of his familiars and activated vision sharing. And then he saw it.

RUMBLE-RUMBLE-RUMBLE-RUMBLE!

CRASH—CRACK—BOOM!

The spirit barrier was rampaging wildly, unleashing torrents of wind. A typhoon-like gale tore through the barrier's interior, indiscriminately destroying the labyrinth.

At its center was Kang Jinwoo, running rampant with a sword inlaid with a blue jewel.

He cut down every approaching soul while simultaneously slashing at every part of the passages.

Where he slashed, flowers of ice and crystal grew at an explosive rate, covering the sturdy passages. On top of that, the barrier's typhoon descended, completely shattering the labyrinth.

‘You maniac! Do you have any idea how much mana I collected for that?!’

It was a reckless rampage, with no consideration for mana efficiency or delicate control.

If he knew how hard Johann had to slave away to gather the thirty percent of mana that went into that barrier, he would never have committed such an atrocity.

But no matter how much Johann stomped his feet in frustration, from Jinwoo's perspective, it was a massive amount of power he had gotten for free. It would be a waste not to use it all up.

Jinwoo intended to completely grind down the labyrinth within the barrier and turn it into a great cavern.

In the end, the collapse of the labyrinth could not be stopped. They were lucky not to be buried alive.

The labyrinth within the barrier had completely crumbled, creating a massive cavern the size of several soccer fields combined.

In that great cavern, Johann, covered in dirt and dust, and Jinwoo, holding the blue-jeweled sword, faced each other.

"You madman! Do you have any idea how much I had to suffer to gather the mana you just blew through in three minutes?"

"..."

"It takes three months of meditation alone to gather that much mana! Of course, there are faster ways to gather it, but the point is that it's an immense amount. And you spent three months' worth of mana in three minutes?"

"..."

"Dammit. Unbelievable! Swordsmen are all the same. Ignorant brutes who just throw their bodies around, with no appreciation for the value of mana!"

Jinwoo didn't answer. Johann was passionately ranting, veins popping on his neck, but he neither provoked nor pressed him.

"I don't speak English," Jinwoo said, his pronunciation completely off.

He didn't know English. He could pick up a few words here and there, but when someone spoke that fast, he couldn't understand a thing.

Johann, who had been in the middle of his tirade, clamped his mouth shut. Jinwoo's pronunciation was so terrible it was hard to understand, but Johann managed to get the gist.

His face contorted, flushing red with shame.

"I'll kill you!"

Unable to hold back any longer, he pulled out a wand and swung it. It was a fifteen-inch wand made of oak.

As he brandished the baton-like object, numerous souls swirled around the cavern, letting out horrifying screams.

KYAAAAAAAAAK!

KIEEEEEEEEK—!

The sound, like nails scratching a steel plate, was not only unpleasant to hear but also carried an actual curse.

The curse of souls that had suffered for countless ages at the hands of the warlock Johann. Even a decent A-class Hunter would find it difficult to remain unaffected by these screams, but…

[The God of the Ice Valley blesses you. Your mind shall be as solid as ice.]

Jinwoo had the blessing he received from the god.

The blessing that hardened his mind and protected him from wicked arts and curses was one he had obtained by offering shaved ice.

A blessing obtained from a mere 150,000 won worth of shaved ice was completely blocking the curse of an S-class warlock.

"Grrr!"

Johann ground his teeth. If the curse didn't work, he would attack directly.

His mana, seeping into the darkness, spread throughout the great cavern like thorny vines.

Originally, the wind barrier that had become Jinwoo's was spread here, but most of its mana had been consumed in leveling the labyrinth.

Therefore, there was nothing to stop Johann's mana from permeating the darkness.

From that darkness, arrows and spears materialized and rained down indiscriminately on Jinwoo.

BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM!

Magic with enough physical force to demolish a castle wall rained down endlessly.

No matter how many blessings he had received from the god, none were powerful enough to block magic of this magnitude.

Imagining his opponent reduced to a pulp, Johann slightly lowered his wand, when—

Whoosh.

He felt an ominous gust of wind from his side.

Somehow, Jinwoo had closed the distance and was charging toward him, sword in hand.

"Damn swordsman!"

Johann hastily moved his souls to block Jinwoo's path, but it was useless. The sword Jinwoo swung cut through all the souls, absorbing their essence.

‘Don't tell me that's…!’

Only then did Johann understand why the soul that had bound Cheon Juhyeok never returned. Jinwoo had the ability to cut and absorb souls.

For a swordsman, not a warlock, to possess such a dark, magic-like ability!

In the end, Johann allowed Jinwoo to get close. The fate of a mage who gives up their distance to a swordsman was singular.

Jinwoo's sword shot up, severing one of Johann's arms.

"Keuk!"

Johann's expression twisted. He was an S-class, and his opponent was an E-class.

So what was this? Wasn't his opponent overwhelming him instead?

Of course, his opponent had several advantages. He had cut off and taken a part of his soul, stolen the wind barrier he had spent thirty percent of his mana on, and was wielding a blue-jeweled sword that held a power even he, an S-class, couldn't take lightly.

But what did any of that matter? No matter what advantages he had, the fact remained that he was an E-class.

A Hunter's rank was merely an arbitrary designation for classification, but it was a different story when it came to the S-class.

Being S-class meant that one could be used as a national strategic weapon. To put it simply, in a city without another S-class, they could single-handedly devastate it to the point of ruin.

But look at the reality now. He was being overwhelmed by an E-class.

"…I didn't want to use this."

Johann's face, which had been boiling with rage, suddenly turned cold.

He would no longer think of his opponent as an E-class. He would assume he was at least an A-class, no, an S-class just like himself, and would not hold back his power.

His true trump card, something that not even his few friends, like David, knew about.

"Don't tell anyone about this. Of course, I plan on making sure you can't say a word."

"I don't speak…"

"Shut up! I know!"

Cutting Jinwoo off with a shout, Johann deployed a magic circle. A large-scale magic circle that spread throughout the entire cavern.

Since he already controlled all the darkness here, the deployment of the magic circle was fast, and it was summoned in an instant.

The most powerful being among all the souls he possessed.

The absolute soul he had barely managed to obtain on the 5th Floor through immense hardship, deception, betrayal, and submission.

KRAAAAAAAH!

The soul of a blackened dragon erupted from the ground, letting Johann mount it before soaring into the air.

Simultaneously, the surrounding landscape began to change. A black aura flowed like a waterfall from the black dragon's soul. Like Erosion, it settled into the cavern, taking control of the surroundings.

No, it really was Erosion.

‘…He’s spreading Erosion?’

Even Jinwoo couldn't help but be surprised by this.

Erosion was an unknown phenomenon that consumed the life force of a planet.

Not a single person had ever been able to fully explain it, and there was no prospect of ever figuring it out. Even among experts, the consensus was that it was a riddle humanity would never solve.

And that Erosion was now spreading from the familiar Johann had summoned.

"Hehehe, you look surprised. Let this be a lesson to you. When a warlock who deals with souls seeks the ultimate end, they inevitably end up dabbling in Erosion."

A warlock deals with souls. They are beings who extract, absorb, and process souls to handle them as they please.

As a warlock endlessly honed their craft, the study they would eventually become engrossed in was that of Erosion.

Because in this universe, there was no existence that could steal the souls of life and planets more surely than Erosion.

"If I had my way, I'd love to take your power and study it, but…"

In Johann's eyes, Jinwoo's power didn't seem all that different from Erosion or a warlock's.

Though the principles might differ slightly, their roots were similar. Perhaps the man's past life was related to a warlock who studied Erosion, or maybe even to Erosion itself.

Normally, he would have been a prize specimen to be drooled over and dragged back to the lab.

‘But I don't have the luxury for that. He doesn't seem like the type to become research material easily.’

Capturing Jinwoo alive seemed a bit too difficult. After all, he was an opponent who had pushed him so far back that he had been forced to reveal his trump card.

He had to be killed, no matter what, to silence him.

Meanwhile, Jinwoo was surprised for his own reasons.

The fact that Johann had unleashed Erosion was surprising in itself, but he was surprised by something else as well.

‘A Black Flame.’

The dragon's soul was burning an intense black. To Johann, it looked like a soul filled with dark energy, but to Jinwoo's eyes, it burned blacker and darker than anything else.

It signified the Core of Erosion.

‘He’s pulling out a Core of Erosion in front of me?’

Jinwoo's eyes gleamed at the fact that he had revealed it in his presence.