Genius Engineer in the Labyrinth - Chapter 105
Only Noblemtl
There are many ways to transport prisoners, and many different accessories to hand them. The most common are handcuffs or ankle shackles to restrict their movements.
For the average person, that would have been enough before magicware became widespread.
But the world has changed. Without training, you can have a body that can overwhelm the athletes of the old days, and even without any combat experience, you can read the memory modifications inserted into your brain extension device and reproduce the movements of others.
It was a story that resonated much more with criminals than with people who had normal jobs and families.
Because violence played a large part in their lives, the body was of the utmost importance.
Thanks to this, the tools for capturing people have also improved. If you just put handcuffs on them like before, they can easily break them and run away.
Ways to neutralize them include nullifying the magical circuits within the magicware, or enchanting it to put the wearer in a negative state.
Alan’s choice was to create impromptu magic tools.
The arms and legs of the man, whose name has not yet been revealed, were bound with restraints, perhaps out of pride, and the runes engraved on the surface gave off a blue light unique to magical power.
[Confusion], [Block], [Weakness], [Slow].
It disrupts the magical power, reduces momentum, blocks circuits, weakens the body by losing strength, and as if that wasn’t enough, it also grants slowness.
There were no damages other than a few missing teeth, so the object was in a very good state of preservation.
“It’s fresh.”
The researcher at the research base on the 23rd floor seemed to have the same idea, as he blurted out words that one would only hear at a grocery store.
The researcher asked Taylor, adjusting his glasses, perhaps a piece of jewelry. As the oldest person, most people who met him for the first time spoke to him first.
“How on earth did you catch a guy who runs away better than a loach?”
“The guy got caught on a fishhook. Not long ago, Lorenzo, umm…”
“You can just call me team leader.”
“I happened to meet Team Leader Lorenzo and had a conversation because of the little finger, and it turned out that he also didn’t have a finger.”
While Taylor and the researcher talked, Alan looked around.
Unlike Breaker, the research base at Essel Tower was a closed facility, accessible only to Tower members and associates.
That’s probably why its appearance resembled a prison. The word ‘research’ must have been added to the front for no reason.
The researcher’s eyes quickly scanned the group after finishing the conversation and stopped behind the box.
“Do you also sell emperor salamanders?”
He pointed to the rolled up cloth on the floating wagon. His keen eye for research must have been sharpened, as he immediately recognized the salamander, even though only a small part of its body was visible.
Alan shook his head.
“No. I have another client.”
“I could pay more, but I can’t help it since we have a contract.”
The fairy didn’t tell him to pick up the salamander and capture it, but to find out why the blood-sal-flower had changed, he needed a creature that had become his garden.
That was also good for Alan, because the better the potion, the faster the magic that was eating away at his body would subside.
Alan’s magical powers were still growing out of control and terrifyingly. Sometimes he had dreams where his body was bursting like a balloon.
Alan recalled the conversation he had with the fairy.
‘Bacteria and antibiotics.’
‘What does it mean?’
‘Antibiotics are bloodthirsty flowers, bacteria are magic. Do you know what I’m saying?’
‘I thought that if my body got stronger, I would be able to handle more magical power, but it seems that as my capacity increased, my magical power capacity also increased. It’s like bacteria becoming resistant to antibiotics.’
‘Smart kids like this. They understand even if you explain it roughly, so there’s no need to keep explaining.’
The blood-salting flower was not a fundamental solution, but rather an act of delaying the ticking clock of a time bomb. Even if you gain some time, if you do not disarm the bomb, it will eventually explode.
It’s a disease that can be cured instantly by destroying Manaheart, but what’s the point of a life away from magic engineering?
Since the escape from Lanka and the events that followed, magic engineering has been a big part of Alan’s life. No, it was its own thing.
Aren’t there people who become addicted to alcohol or drugs to forget their sorrow? Alan was one of those people. Of course, this was a much healthier way to immerse yourself.
The researcher couldn’t hide his regretful expression, but he responded properly.
“You need to talk to Team Leader Lorenzo about the compensation. It will be a few days before you can come, so I will give you a room. You can walk around inside, but you must not enter the passageway with the blue curtain. You will not be able to get through it anyway.”
In an already closed facility, there were additional measures taken. The more security there was, the better it was to keep secrets, so it was a natural result.
The room the researcher introduced was barely big enough to fit a king-size bed.
Still, it was a luxury in the labyrinth. Compared to the tents used when sleeping outdoors, the temperature and humidity were appropriate, and there was no need to mention the sense of stability.
“I thought they were going to cram us all into one room, but they’re giving us a private room.”
Shiva took out a pocket flask, or rather a bottle of holy water, took a sip, and quickly put it back in his bosom. Taylor, who had missed the opportunity to speak, just licked his lips.
“Can the leopard and the box fit? Alan, is it okay if it’s too narrow?”
“You can just wait in the hallway.”
As it happened, Alan’s room was at the end of the hallway, so no one would mind taking up space.
“Then I’ll go look around and you can rest.”
Since I was lucky enough to enter the research facility, I couldn’t miss this opportunity. Although I couldn’t see the experiments, most of the researchers were magicians. In other words, it was a chance to observe the magicware that only they used.
“I need to get some sleep. I’ll make sure to wear the guest necklace.”
“Yes. Go to sleep.”
Alan put on his power suit and left the building. There was an empty space inside the T-shaped building.
Looking at the sign, it seems like the original purpose of the vacant lot was a fitness center, but would wizards, especially those who came to study, prefer to exercise?
They were walking lightly and talking, sitting on benches or lying down and sleeping, or doing something magical on one side.
Alan tried to find a bench in the corner of the playground to sit down, but the seat was already occupied, as if he was a wizard.
I had no choice but to sit in the middle. The power suit didn’t attract much attention because it lacked the impact of the magic exploding from the other side.
That’s what Alan wanted. He pretended not to exist and observed his surroundings.
‘I understand why wizards are ranked in the top 3 among professionals.’
First of all, the magic power itself was extremely pure. The controllability was also excellent, so it was almost impossible to see any wasted mana. Above all, the most shining part was probably the high intelligence.
“If you try to synthesize different magical elements, energy will burst out like the annihilation of matter and antimatter.”
“yes.”
“But magic power has no mass.”
“so?”
“I thought about it, and I think it might be because it originates in the imaginary dimension. The mass is left there, and we only experience the effect. Should I say it’s superimposed like a hologram?”
“Then what about the Cosmic Tree hypothesis? In order to absorb negative magic power and release it as positive magic power, the magic power must exist in the real dimension.”
“Let’s just go eat.”
Of course, they are also human and are not free from desires.
The passing wizards tilted their heads at Alan, but after seeing the guest necklace, they just passed by.
The gaze he gave her wasn’t very good. It was as if he was looking at someone one level below him.
Talent was the most important thing to become a wizard, and as such, the perception that you were chosen was strong. For that reason, the prevalent sense of being a chosen people has existed since ancient times.
It goes without saying that the power of magicians has grown with the advancement of magical engineering.
However, Alan’s attention was elsewhere. On the left side of the playground, humanoid automatons were fighting each other.
Kwajik!
bang!
There was a constant sound of something breaking and shattering. Solid metal slid across the floor, sending grass flying everywhere.
A passing wizard also took a quick look, and round faces were stuck on the windows of the building like bunches of grapes. It must have been a visual pleasure that relieved the fatigue from research.
The thunderous noise from the clash and the dynamic movement of the artificial muscles visible through the outer armor were exhilarating even from Alan’s perspective.
“Will Hammer get his revenge today?”
“Last time, I got stabbed by a leech with a joint machine.”
Automatons resembled living things and had joints, but their range of motion was much freer. This meant that they could turn their necks like an owl without breaking.
‘But it’s a joint machine···.’
Alan carefully examined the bodies of the two machines. The joint structure was almost human-like rather than automaton-like. The movements were also similar to those of a professional martial artist.
‘You captured the motion and put it into memory correction.’
Thanks to this, the martial artist’s movements were recreated on the automaton’s body. It was so detailed that it could be mistaken for a real person if only artificial skin was covered.
Alan stroked the back of his neck. There was no socket for the brain extension device, only smooth skin and hair.
‘I wish I could move like that too.’
Thinking about the shameful way I had acted in defeating Terragula myself before arriving at the lab, I felt embarrassed even though I didn’t express it out loud.
If such a move were possible, I would have taken care of it in one go, using the speed at which I was sliding down the anthill slope.
However, this required a brain expansion device.
Alan had no intention of attaching it, so he had to link it to his power suit. It would be a much more difficult task, since he had no brain to adjust for the disparity between his body type and that of a martial artist.
The difficulty wasn’t an issue for Alan, as the arduous process itself was enjoyable.
Alan got up from the bench and went back to his quarters.
“Sir, it’s time to check your magic wear.”
“You originally did it all at once on the ground, right?”
“Now that we have some free time, it’s better to do it. We use our bodies.”
There happened to be a good reference book by his side, who had endured decades in the labyrinth and worked as an instructor. He said that he had a hard time because he felt the limits of his talent, but to others, it was amazing.
Alan checked out the MagicWare and tinkered with the sensors that detect malfunctions.
“It’s over. I’m fine.”
“As expected, you are the only one who thinks of me.”
Alan kept his mouth shut and quickly returned to his room, thinking that he should visit Western Sky more often.
Of course, even if you copied Taylor’s movements, you couldn’t always move like that. What happens if you shake a raw egg hard? The yolk breaks.
It was a boring time for some, but a fulfilling time for Alan. Two days later, Lorenzo returned to the lab.
Alan never looked at him directly. When he asked the researcher, he only got the reply that he was handling important work.
While sitting on the bench and observing the wizards as usual, Alan felt a chill and turned his head.
Lorenzo was quietly looking at me from about 20 meters away. He met Alan’s eyes and started walking towards me with a steady stride. Despite being a wizard, he had a sturdy and large physique.
“You have a good feeling. Even though my face was covered with illusionary magic, you still recognized me and came all the way here…”
“I guess I get it when I see it.”
“Sports skills···. Ah···.”
Perhaps because I often hear the humble words, “You were lucky,” from my subordinates, I misunderstood Alan’s answer.
“Are you done talking to the maggots?”
“Okay. I won’t say much about compensation. 200 million. We’ll take care of the taxes, so you don’t have to worry about it.”
“I will use it well.”
I caught a big fish while fishing and made 200 million won. I wanted to do it often if I had the chance.
“But why did you come to me? The other two people must have been much closer.”
“You are the center. Even though you are the youngest, you will have a lot of decision-making authority.”
Lorenzo’s assessment was correct. Although Alan was usually quiet, he played a significant role in determining the direction of the expedition.
“Can you see that?”
“I see, I get it.”
Lorenzo repeated what Alan had said, although Alan, unlike him, did not make a slip of the tongue.
“For simple communication purposes, you could have just used your subordinates…”
“Do you think you would like to take on this request?”
“A request?”
Alan just blinked quietly. It meant that he had such overwhelming power that he was asking why they were using us.
“Even a tiger has a hard time catching a baby mouse. But it’s a bit different with dogs and cats.”
The tone was full of arrogance and pride, but the actual meaning was that the face was sold, or the maggots were hiding too well to be found.
Alan wasn’t very interested in this.
“Get to know other people.”
“······.”
End