The Time-Limited Leader Makes the Raid a Success - Chapter 397



Only Noblemtl

Episode 397

#397. Will things go your way?!

The mana that had accumulated to the limit at the gate sucked up the remaining mana in the surrounding area. Then, it exploded with an intense light.

The aftershocks belatedly spread in all directions. The aftershocks of the explosion swept through the surrounding area.

The Hunters who were standing close to the gate were caught in the explosion and torn apart. Mirage and Slayer died equally without any distinction.

The fierce mana even tried to swallow up Mt. Bukak. At this point, Thomas stepped forward.

【Reverse of Power】

【Sealing cocoon】

The outer edge of the mana waves that had been rushing out in all directions rearranged in an instant. Instead of destroying, it became a protective barrier, forming a cocoon-shaped barrier centered around the place where the gate had been.

Mana’s cocoon held back the force that was trying to escape. Thomas staggered every time the angry mana from inside struck the cocoon.

Thomas held onto his senses tightly whenever a major shock occurred.

‘The real work hasn’t even begun yet. If we collapse here, it would have been a total waste to borrow the power of the Golden Eye and forcefully send it back.’

This determination wavered every time the gate’s mana swung.

Wouldn’t it be easier to solve this problem if you just entrusted yourself to Geum-an? Wouldn’t that be the way to protect this place?

‘No. That is a gamble that cannot be guaranteed. If Geum-an is capricious, an even greater disaster could occur. It is dangerous to rely on an unknown entity that cannot be trusted.’

Moreover, if he gave his body to the Golden Eye, he would have to consume all of Thomas’s life force. He had already suffered greatly when the Golden Eye ruler descended in LA. The second descent could be the last.

The waves of conflict gnawed at Thomas’s heart more than a dozen times as he struggled with the gate’s mana.

Thomas’s mind was worn out before his body. It was such a tough fight. It felt like a human fighting a typhoon. Even with S-rank power, it wasn’t easy to stop the gate explosion.

At that time, the nature of Gate Mana changed.

From intangible to tangible. It took on color and form. Blue electric threads rose up and turned into lightning, whipping the cocoon.

Thomas gritted his teeth.

‘It’s finally coming.’

It was the kind of energy that could turn an entire city back to the primitive era.

In the area swept by that brainwashing, the power of modern civilization, such as electricity, radio waves, and gunpowder weapons, will be completely unusable for at least several decades.

If that happened, the metropolis with a population of ten million would become an uninhabitable place.

‘Okay. From now on, I’ll block with all my might… Keuk!’

The impact of the collision with the sledgehammer was beyond imagination. Thomas almost lost consciousness. No, he was already half-conscious.

His eyes lost their light. Then, slowly, they began to glow gold. Thomas, who felt the hot air from the eyes, bit his tongue in surprise. The bitter taste of iron filled his mouth. He swallowed blood and opened his eyes wide.

‘Geum-an, it’s not time for you to come out yet!’

Thomas used his magic again.

【Reverse of Power】

A spell that turns destructive mana into gentle mana that can be used.

It was Thomas’s original magic that applied the counter series magic that returns the enemy’s magic attack and the mana reverse magic that temporarily changes the nature of mana to allow the use of elemental magic that he cannot use.

And then.

【Sealing cocoon】

It was a magic that created a cocoon with mana and sealed away a powerful force or entity that could not be controlled.

It was a magic developed by Thomas, inspired by the magic used by Hunter, known as the Sealing Wizard in Australia, to seal Leviathan.

This magic was a means for preparing for the future battle with the three-headed evil dragon Zumei Gorinich.

‘I didn’t know I’d be holding the gate instead of the dragon. Anyway, it was good that I made it.’

With these two spells, Thomas changed the nature of the gate mana and converted it into sealing magic energy.

The power of destruction becomes the power of protection.

The enemy’s power into my own. At first glance, it seemed like perfect magic, but it was a huge burden for the wizard who was the caster and medium of this magic.

Ultimately, the shock that occurred during the process of changing power immediately returned as a risk.

Blood flowed out of Thomas’ mouth as he cursed. Now, even thinking was burdensome. It seemed as if a creaking sound could be heard from his body that had reached its limit.

As time passed, his hair gradually turned white. It was a tug-of-war that was literally eating away at his life.

Soon blood was running from his nose and Thomas’ hair had turned completely white, when the Gate Mana changed once again.

The lightning that had been striking Mana’s Cocoon quieted down and became thin like a thread. Then it disappeared without a trace.

The remaining mana still swirled fiercely within the cocoon, but its power to turn civilization back thousands of years had waned.

Thomas couldn’t stand it any longer and released the hold. To be exact, he fell to the ground, unconscious.

The moment he let go, the remaining remnants of Gate Mana exploded. As the binding power disappeared, it went berserk and blew up half of Bukaksan Mountain.

If Thomas hadn’t opened half of the roof before losing consciousness, the aftermath of the explosion would have engulfed the Blue House and Samcheong-dong, and even blown up Gyeongbokgung Palace.

Thomas muttered as he looked at Mt. Bukak, which had flown away during the crash.

“I haven’t been to Bukaksan Skyway yet… What a pity.”

These were the words of the hero who protected Seoul.

* * *

As the Bukaksan incident reached its climax and was nearing its conclusion, another battlefield was also heading towards its end.

The final blow between Illusion and Jusea turned Seoul Forest into a wasteland rather than a ruin.

Since the two S-ranks collided head-on without looking back, the aftermath of the explosion was no less than that of the gate explosion.

The vibrations spread so far that even the hunters who were surrounding Seoul Forest from afar and trying to stop the monsters from spreading out staggered.

It was such a great clash that even the Seongseonje inside the epicenter would not have been safe.

However, Seongseonje moved at the moment when the two hunters had their final clash. The place he moved to was behind the gate.

‘There is still no means in the world that can destroy the gate with one blow. Even two S-ranks can’t destroy it.’

The Seongseonje used the gate as a shield.

As he had expected, the gate was unscathed from the tragedy caused by the clash between the two S-ranks. And the Seongseonje behind it was also able to hold out somehow.

Of course, it wasn’t completely fine. The gate blocked direct hits, but it couldn’t avoid the powerful clash of mana shaking the Seongseonje’s internal organs.

“Coolerhuck!”

Seongseonje licked the blood on his lips with his tongue and spat it out along with his saliva.

I was careful because the swords I held in both hands were imbued with the power of Death Wish.

He turned his head beyond the gate.

Illusion slumped to the ground, seemingly unable to stay afloat. His appearance was an indescribable mess.

On the other hand, Joo Se Ah looked mostly fine. However, she was only fine on the outside, but inside she was a mess. Considering her monstrous resilience, she would return to the scene much sooner than Illusion, but for now, it was necessary to assume that she was taking as much damage as Illusion had received.

Seongseonje watched the two S-ranks facing each other and waited for an opportunity.

They were talking about something while keeping their distance from each other, as if they were too busy to move.

While they were talking, Illusion suddenly burst into laughter. He raised his hand and shouted something. Joo Se Ah screamed.

After that, there was silence, and Illusion’s smiling expression suddenly distorted.

He was lost in thought, repeating over and over that something was wrong.

This was the opportunity.

Seong Seon-je ran out. Illusion found him late. Joo Se-ah’s screams brushed Seong Seon-je’s ears, but he couldn’t hear what was being said.

Seongseonje was only looking at the illusion. His mind was filled with thoughts that if the Death Wish contained in this sword could defeat the illusion, he would finally be able to go over the wall.

“Die, illusion!”

“No to the Holy Spirit!”

Late, Joo Se Ah’s voice struck my ears.

‘what?’

Seongseonje’s black… couldn’t reach Illusion.

【Foodra Dragon】

“Cough!”

Seongseonje flew through the air.

* * *

Although he was unable to determine a winner in the final match against Joo Se Ah, Illusion smiled. Even though his body was a mess, his mind was clear.

“What are you splitting up for?”

Joo Seah said bluntly, as if she didn’t like it.

Illusion knew she was bluffing. She knew that even though her strong body looked fine on the outside, inside she was a mess, even more so than she was.

‘I twisted my strength to protect Seongseonje. If I had just struck down, I would have been in danger.’

In fact, if it had been a head-on fight with no one involved, Illusion would have lost.

But Illusion didn’t care. Even if he lost, it wasn’t a loss. Individual battles weren’t that important to him. If he had been a tyrant who was obsessed with winning, he wouldn’t have been able to survive in Europe, where every S-rank was after him.

He had a clear goal, and that goal was now about to be achieved.

“This is the end of my dealings with you, Joo Se-ah.”

“Huh? It’s already this late? Is it time to go to the afterlife? Thank you for playing with me, my child. Instead, I’ll make sure you have a comfortable journey.”

“I’ll miss that gift of gab. I wonder if you’ll be able to open your mouth even after Seoul flies away.”

“What are you up to now?”

“The gate will explode in a moment. Seoul will become a remote part of Africa. Tens of millions of people will panic, and countless people will die. This is my victory, Joo Se Ah!”

The illusion caused a huge commotion.

“Will it really go as you wish?!”

“Hahaha! The preparations were already finished. You were busy blocking the open gates everywhere. Even if Kang Moo-hyuk noticed, it would have been too late. And now! The celebratory cannons will go off to announce my return here right now!”

Illusion raised his hand.

“… … .”

But contrary to his declaration, nothing happened.

The streetlights in the distance were still on. The lights of the forest of buildings that were pushing away the darkness were still on.

“Can you wait a little longer?”

Joo Sea crossed her arms and grumbled. Illusion looked around with her eyes wide open.

“This can’t be happening. This can’t be happening… . There must be something wrong. Something went wrong with the explosion time or something… .”

“I guess your subordinate failed?”

“That can’t be true. Doris is a very capable woman!”

“Then, it seems our leader is more capable than your subordinate. As you can see from our phone conversation earlier, he’s not just good with words.”

“That’s ridiculous… … .”

Illusion tried to send a message to Doris, but the distance was too far and he couldn’t reach her.

I wanted to make a phone call, but my smartphone was destroyed during the battle.

I couldn’t know what was going on until I saw and heard it in person.

That was when.

I felt a chilling energy behind my back that I had momentarily forgotten.

Before Illusion could even look back, Joo Seah shouted first.

“Stop!”

Joo Sea’s warning was aimed at Seong Seon-je. Illusion was a bit late in recognizing Seong Seon-je, but it was enough time to react.

It was not only because S-Rank’s cognitive ability far exceeded Seongseonje’s expectations, but also because Seongseonje’s body was not in good condition.

Unlike his mind, his slow body gave Illusion enough time to respond.

“Die, illusion!”

“No to the Holy Spirit!”

Before Joo Se Ah could react, Illusion reached out and Brain Dragon struck Seong Seon Je.

Seongseonje flew through the air like a kite with its string cut. Joo Se-ah flew up and caught him.

The Angerbadil in Seongseonje’s hand rolled on the floor. The Death Wish energy contained within the sword danced around as it pleased.

Seoul Forest, which had become a wasteland, is now beginning to transform into a deep valley reminiscent of the Grand Canyon.

Death Wish dug through the ground and broke rocks mercilessly.

Illusion couldn’t avoid that energy. It was exposed to the death wish that stretched out at will and rolled to the other side of the castle.

The situation was the same for Joo Sea. The blind sword struck the master. Joo Sea hugged Seong Seon-je tightly to protect him and was hit with Death Wish on the back. Joo Sea flew far away with the sound of a drum.

It all happened in an instant.

Soon silence fell over the wasteland.