Chapter 47
A vessel radiating a violet light.
Kankun’s pupils trembled faintly at the sight of the relic Park Chan-woo held.
It was not something weak humans could have obtained.
‘How?’
Kankun knew that the intermediate relic was hidden where the floor guardian resided.
But the floor guardian was a monster impossible to defeat without Kankun’s help.
Did they actually face that monster and retrieve the relic?
‘…No way.’
Impossible.
That was a monster so powerful that even surviving for a second against it would be considered a miracle.
The magical energy emitted by the floor guardian was so intense that Kankun could sense it from far away.
Even now, the fierce magic was threatening Kankun to the point his skin stung.
Still, there was no mistaking it.
What Park Chan-woo held was definitely an ‘intermediate magic relic.’
A relic guarded directly by the floor guardian.
‘They didn’t just secure the relic.’
And there was something just as unbelievable as retrieving the relic.
‘…They all came back alive.’
Though they looked much more haggard, not a single person was left behind.
All fifty humans had returned safely.
And at the center of it was Park Chan-woo.
“Did you manage to overcome the death magic?”
Before he knew it, Park Chan-woo stood right in front of Kankun.
The look in his eyes and on his face showed not an ounce of fear in front of Kankun—it could be called arrogant.
But he had kept his promise and proven his worth.
“…How did you bring it here?”
“It took some work.”
Park Chan-woo shrugged.
He was fairly familiar with the Tower of Arrogance’s strategies.
Because there had always been so much talk and controversy about the tower, records up to the eighth floor remained quite detailed.
Kankun spoke with eyes full of disbelief.
“It must have been filled with countless barriers and traps…”
“There were a few times we almost died.”
He spoke as if it was no big deal.
But in truth, they’d nearly died about three times.
Twice, it wouldn’t have been surprising if they’d all been wiped out.
‘The condition to avoid the floor guardian’s gaze was trickier than expected.’
The magic-beast animals that lived on the first floor.
If you skinned those beasts and wore their pelts, you could avoid the floor guardian’s detection as long as you didn’t get too close.
If you could just avoid the floor guardian’s attention, it was possible to get past the barriers.
The problem was the traps set on the path to the relic.
If you caused a commotion, the floor guardian would notice, and then their annihilation was guaranteed.
That was why Park Chan-woo led the Seoul Union group there.
It took time to disarm or bypass traps.
It was a trial that could only be completed if many people worked together.
Also, risking their lives to get the intermediate relic wasn’t simply because of the bet with Kankun.
‘Once Kankun hunts the floor guardian, the intermediate relic disappears.’
Normally, intermediate relics could only be obtained on the fifth floor or above.
Though there was an ‘intermediate magic relic’ on the first floor, it was only valid while the floor guardian was alive.
People in the past didn’t know this condition.
So they had no choice but to watch the relic vanish before their eyes.
Park Chan-woo clicked his tongue at Kankun’s chest as if disappointed.
“But… Kankun, it seems you couldn’t overcome it.”
Kankun’s heart area was stained black.
A sign that his life was fading away.
In the end, Kankun hadn’t been able to overcome the death magic on his own.
It was as expected.
If he could have overcome it, he would have done so long ago.
“…….”
Kankun closed his mouth.
Even with ten mouths, he had nothing to say.
No matter how much he struggled, the death magic was unyielding.
It was killing him, embedded in his heart.
But what about the humans, especially Park Chan-woo?
‘Wasn’t it all bluff?’
He’d said he’d make them win.
…He thought it was all empty talk.
Of course, he believed they could never retrieve the relic.
He hadn’t even considered the possibility.
Yet Park Chan-woo overcame the impossible.
Just as he’d boasted, he proved himself.
But Kankun had not.
Park Chan-woo waved the relic in front of Kankun.
“If I put this relic on the altar, the ‘death magic’ will disappear. Do you want that?”
He meant it literally.
A single intermediate relic was worth dozens of lowest-grade relics.
The moment it was displayed on the altar, the death magic would vanish completely.
If he wanted to live, he’d have to beg to have it displayed.
“…Never display it.”
But Kankun shook his head.
He simply couldn’t do it.
His pride as a warrior would not allow it.
He’d rather die than receive sympathy from a human.
Kankun hardened his expression and spoke.
“And there is still time left.”
About twenty-one hours had passed out of twenty-three.
There were only about two hours left.
But Kankun burned with his final will.
He couldn’t accept such a hollow defeat.
—
As soon as Kankun began his training.
They distanced themselves from Kankun and rested.
“Wow… my whole body aches.”
“Feels like it’s a miracle we all made it back alive.”
“If anyone asks me to move again, I’ll just drop dead!”
Most of them collapsed right there on the floor.
Some even fell asleep on the spot.
The aftereffects of the forced march.
They had pushed their bodies and minds to the limit, so it was only natural.
It had been a series of situations where a single mistake could have meant everyone’s death.
The fact that they survived was a miracle.
“…….”
Lim Chang-yeol looked at Park Chan-woo with a strange expression.
‘Park Chan-woo… He acted as if he knew everything.’
It felt as if everything had gone exactly according to Park Chan-woo’s plan.
From start to finish, everything flowed as he wanted.
He provoked Kankun and made a bet, moved Lim Chang-yeol and the Seoul Union to secure the intermediate relic.
Even the process of retrieving the relic had been unusual.
‘Bold ideas, bold execution. Where did this guy even come from?’
Even the idea to kill the beasts on the first floor and wear their pelts was astonishing.
It’s a hunter’s method for confusing prey, but the ‘floor guardian’ was no ordinary prey, was it?
Even more, Park Chan-woo personally set the example.
He crossed the barrier where the ‘floor guardian’ was by himself and convinced them.
That boldness, carrying out his thoughts without the slightest hesitation, was almost awe-inspiring.
It was something not just anyone could do.
How many people could move without hesitation in an unknown situation where their life was on the line?
If it were him, could he have done it?
‘No.’
Lim Chang-yeol shook his head inwardly.
At the very least, he knew the value of his own life.
But Park Chan-woo was different.
He acted as if there was no tomorrow.
Things had just happened to fall into place miraculously, but if even one thing had gone wrong, they all would have died instantly.
No matter how he thought about it, Park Chan-woo was not meant to live a long life.
……However.
If, by some chance, he did survive for a long time—
‘A great person. Someone who will leave their mark on history.’
Perhaps he would become a person recorded in history.
If there are great people, they must be of this type.
Of course, only if they survive.
At least Lim Chang-yeol had never seen someone who rushed forward with such reckless abandon live for long.
“…What happens if Kankun dies like this?”
Suddenly, Kim Byung-han asked with a pale face.
If Kankun failed to overcome the death magic,
If he refused to have the intermediate relic displayed in the showcase, would all their efforts have been for nothing?
Park Chan-woo replied nonchalantly.
“The Tower of Arrogance will end and everyone will be forced out.”
“After all that suffering?”
“He’ll overcome it.”
Kim Byung-han frowned.
He didn’t know where that confidence came from, but so far, Park Chan-woo had never been wrong.
“…Fine, let’s just wait and see.”
With a whatever-happens-happens attitude, Kim Byung-han lay down on the floor.
He, too, was exhausted from the forced march.
If Park Chan-woo was wrong, they could scold him then.
For now, rest came first.
‘Unless he changes, he won’t overcome it.’
But contrary to what he said, Park Chan-woo was thinking the exact opposite.
Kankun fears magic.
He avoided the Death Witch.
There was no way he could overcome that fear in such a short time.
Perhaps he would never overcome it.
At the brink of death, the only way would be to rely on the intermediate relic.
But that was not the ending Park Chan-woo wanted.
If Kankun couldn’t stand up on his own, even climbing the tower would ultimately end in defeat.
‘Magic is not something to be feared or loathed, Kankun.’
—
…I can’t lose.
Not to mere humans.
Not to magic!
‘I am the great Orc Master Kankun.’
A being worshipped and revered by all.
An absolute being who did not know defeat.
There was nothing in this world that he could not overcome.
‘Anyone who bows to magic is not a warrior?’
That human.
Park Chan-woo had said it.
If he gave up here, he would be admitting, just as Park Chan-woo said, that he was not a warrior.
‘I am a warrior. A warrior greater than any other!’
Gritting his teeth, Kankun sent energy to his heart.
He struggled desperately to overcome magic, but every time he tried, the apparition of the Death Witch Adora flickered before his eyes.
The magic Adora wielded was truly wondrous.
It was a type and power of magic he had never experienced before.
Adora had shattered his sword in an instant and seized his heart.
‘Magic is… loathsome and ominous.’
However, sword and magic cannot coexist.
Especially for orcs, who could not use magic.
Magic had always been considered something ominous to them.
Kankun was no different.
He had received the same teachings from birth.
If anything, he was even more negative about magic than other orcs.
“What do you think magic is?”
At that moment—
Suddenly, Park Chan-woo appeared.
“…I told you not to disturb me.”
Kankun frowned.
It had only been an hour since he’d threatened everyone to stay away.
Regardless, Park Chan-woo just said what he wanted to say.
“Is magic manifesting complex formulas with mana? Or is it simply an incomprehensible phenomenon? Or is it an ominous power used only by ominous beings?”
“What exactly are you trying to say?”
“You use magic, too.”
“Nonsense! I don’t use such things.”
“Do you think the Sword Qi you wield is not magic?”
“Sword Qi is the ultimate technique, attainable only by a warrior who has reached the pinnacle.”
“No, that too is magic.”
Park Chan-woo denied it.
Anything that arises from using mana is magic.
Sword Qi was simply mana imbued into a sword and made manifest in a tangible form.
It was just that without a set formula, it was difficult to infuse and shape mana into objects.
Warriors who reached the pinnacle did so instinctively through long experience.
“Huh. If what you say is true, then everything in this world would be magic.”
Kankun scoffed.
It wasn’t even worth listening to anymore.
If Park Chan-woo were just an ordinary human, he would have crushed his skull by now.
“Great warrior Kankun. Magic is nothing special.”
Park Chan-woo nodded as he spoke.
He had realized something from observing the dragon race and experiencing Sephiro, the Dragon God.
He had realized that magic was nothing special.
Everything that exists in this world is magic.
Therefore—
“Don’t be afraid of it, don’t find it difficult. Only magic can erase magic, so just cut it down naturally, as you do with Sword Qi.”
Magic is perception.
It is the power of words, the domain of belief.
You cannot erase magic if you deny it.
Only those who wield magic can face magic.
Of course, that was easier said than done.
Especially for Kankun, it was even more difficult.
Without an awakening that could change his perception, nothing would change.
“That’s odd. You’re not a mage, are you?”
Kankun spoke.
To him, this human did not seem like a mage.
Park Chan-woo neither affirmed nor denied it.
“Orc Priest Yan said it.”
He simply added a bit of a lie.
At the mention of his kin, Kankun’s expression relaxed slightly.
“…What a mad orc.”
“Yan became a lich and continued to protect the altar and the spirits of the warriors.”
“Even as a lich…?”
“He overcame death in that way. Isn’t he truly a great warrior?”
To become a lich meant using dark magic.
It meant an orc had used magic.
Of course, Yan had been forcibly turned into a lich.
It was because he took on the role of gatekeeper, guarding Han Shin’s arrangements.
But even with a bit of embellishment, Yan’s will was genuine.
And for someone, such a story could bring a great shock.
If an ordinary human had said this, it would have gone in one ear and out the other, or been met with a snort.
But Park Chan-woo was no ordinary human.
He’d fearlessly challenged the Orc Master to a bet, made the impossible possible, and was accompanied by the souls of countless orcs.
“A great warrior, an orc, used magic…”
Brrrrrr!
For a brief instant, Kankun’s body trembled.
A tiny, yet greater than any before, shift in perception.
Kankun closed his eyes.
‘I am using magic too.’
What is magic?
Had he thought it too difficult because of the prejudice that orcs couldn’t use magic?
If Sword Qi was also magic, then he was both a warrior and a mage.
If Orc Priest Yan had wielded and overcome death magic, there was no reason Orc Master Kankun could not.
‘Magic can erase magic.’
Kankun raised his mana.
Soon, Sword Qi formed inside his body.
‘Cut the heart with Sword Qi…’
A thought he never would have had before.
But now, Kankun was within the realm of realization.
That everything in the world is magic, and it is that natural.
If so, then the death magic cast by Adora was likewise nothing special.
‘This is not Sword Qi. It is magic. It is my belief, my will.’
Don’t find it difficult, don’t be afraid.
Kankun lifted his sword within his mind.
And slowly, he cut his own heart.
‘Ahh!’
Crash!
A wall collapsed.
The death magic Adora had cast was cut away from Kankun’s heart.
But it wasn’t enough.
It was impossible to cut away the death that had reached right to the edge in a single stroke.
‘It’s a shame…’
Even though he’d attained realization, it was too late.
If only he’d had a little more time.
If only he’d realized a bit sooner!
‘Still, I’m not afraid anymore.’
Kankun accepted death.
Magic, the Death Witch Adora, no longer frightened him.
…At that moment.
Fwoosh!
A light appeared in his darkening world.
When he opened his eyes, Park Chan-woo’s hand was shining brightly.
Then the ‘Flower of Life’ bloomed, beginning to devour the death that had come for him.
‘This power… the power to devour death…!’
…Was this a dream?
This was a power no human could possess.
It was a divine power not permitted to mortal beings.
How could a mere human possess a power even Kankun had never dared to dream of?
That was as far as Kankun’s consciousness went.
In his fading awareness, Kankun looked at Park Chan-woo.
It seemed he had no choice but to acknowledge it now.
His defeat.
But what shone in Kankun’s eyes as he looked at Park Chan-woo was not just recognition of defeat.
In the eyes fixed on Park Chan-woo, there was unmistakable ‘awe.’