Chapter 652
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Patzzt…!
Pachichik!
Sparks of blood scattered in all directions.
Unfathomable Mana surged from the wrist guards and hair ornaments engraved with ornate patterns, from the necklace and rings set with jewels never seen before.
“……”
Alice stared straight ahead.
Ruby-red eyes and snow-white silver hair formed a fantastical contrast.
[Alice von Ataraxia’s ‘Full Armament’ is deployed.]
Immense Mana swept over everything.
An absolute being—one who made even the strongest in the Tower bow their heads in awe.
This was the moment the weight of the name Alice von Ataraxia was revealed without restraint.
In the center of the raging storm…
…Alice slowly lifted her hand.
Kukukukuku!
Droplets of blood gathered at her fingertips, shaping themselves into a bizarre skewer.
It wasn’t a simple Blood Spear. It looked as though the blood itself was burning.
“How can this be….”
Unknown’s voice trembled.
Ataraxia’s vault should have been hidden where no one could ever find it. There should have been no way for Alice to fully restore her prime.
That was why he had planned to exclude her from the variables and focus on capturing her alive—only to use her as a trump card to subdue Jinhyuk.
But—
All of it had been a misjudgment.
A monster now stood before him, one that made his mouth go dry just from facing her.
“From now on… it’ll be a little different.”
[Alice activates ‘Apocalypse of Revelation’ – Blood Eclipse!]
A red line appeared once more.
A line on an entirely different level than before—vivid enough to sear itself into the air.
At the same time, newly formed skewers ripped through space.
“……!!??”
Unknown urgently activated Infinite Archive.
Layers of shields formed from Glacial Sculpting wrapped around him.
Kwakwakwakwakwakwakwakwang!
Thick shards of ice exploded outward.
Each impact was so heavy it made the atmosphere tremble.
“Kugh!”
Unknown forced out Mana with everything he had.
The thought of measuring Alice’s power was long gone. He was barely hanging on against the storm of blood.
Jjeojjeojeok!
As the Eclipse crashed down, thick ice was cleaved clean through.
Red heat rose from the severed surfaces.
Unknown, who barely managed to dodge, clicked his tongue.
“To cut through that in a single blow… In some ways, she’s even more troublesome than Kang Jinhyuk.”
He understood Jinhyuk’s skill usage and attack patterns well—after all, they used the same abilities. He had worked relentlessly to emulate him.
When it came to Jinhyuk, he’d studied and refined his understanding to the point it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call him an expert.
But Alice was different.
Her patterns, her timing, her instincts—even her state of mind.
He only knew the basics. He had no developed counter-strategies.
“The game has only just begun for me, yet you’re struggling with a simple greeting.”
The attacks didn’t stop.
Unknown activated defensive and evasive skills in rapid succession.
“I haven’t even started either!”
Books flew out of the Great Archive. Beams of light erupted in every direction.
[Unique Ability ‘Triple Magic’ is activated!]
[Unique Holy Spear ‘Cascadia Slav’ is activated!]
[Unique Holy Spear ‘Wheel of Heaven’s Reversal’ is activated!]
[Unique Holy Spear ‘Thunder God’ is activated!]
[Unique Ability ‘Earthquake’ is activated!]
Energy poured in from a vast reservoir of Mana.
So many abilities activating at once was surreal. The ground surged, the sky seemed to collapse.
Lightning and magma twisted together. Red flames burst from the shattered earth.
Alice faced the oncoming natural disasters and clasped her hands together.
[Full Armament ‘Blood Bracelet’ is activated!]
[Full Armament ‘Black Night’s Sigh’ is activated!]
Wuuuung!
The Sacred Relics adorning Alice glowed with a subtle red light.
[Special Skill ‘Pureblood Sanctuary’ is activated!]
The moment the skill activated, a massive circle rose around Alice.
Red lines connected at frightening speed within the circle, spanning a full kilometer in diameter.
Points flickered. A complex formula began to assemble.
It looked like perfect embroidery being stitched into existence.
Only for an instant.
From that formula—completed in the blink of an eye—a pillar of light beyond conventional standards erupted upward.
Kwakwakwakwakwakwakwakwa!
From the ground to the sky.
The red pillar pierced the atmosphere, then punched through the ceiling itself.
A huge hole opened in the Barrier that had sealed off the outside world.
And Unknown, standing at the epicenter, had to take the full force of the most powerful blow head-on.
⁕⁕⁕
The sky, its clouds melted away.
Chiiiik!
Where the storm had swept through was desolation itself.
No living creature should have been able to exist inside a crater where even stone had been burned away.
But—
Staggering.
The masked being endured.
“Kuaaaaa!”
The mouth of the mask split long and wide, and red blood poured out from within.
Enduring it without a scream was impossible.
But what was more terrifying than the pain boring into his brain was the Noble of the Night approaching with dignified steps.
[Alice activates ‘Blood Spears’!]
Skewers—sickeningly familiar—locked onto Unknown.
This was her power, and she still hadn’t unleashed the entirety of her Full Armament.
It wasn’t for nothing that even the ancient beings avoided confronting her head-on.
‘In a direct fight… the odds are only about fifty-fifty.’
Even if he used every reserve he’d saved for Jinhyuk, that would be the limit.
And if he exhausted everything to fight Alice, he wouldn’t have the strength left to deal with Chun Yuseong or the others.
They were formidable as well—strong enough to become variables the moment they found even the smallest opening.
A pinhole would become a crack, and the crack would collapse the dam.
In other words—
The fight that had been advantageous had completely reversed.
All because one person had fully returned to her original power.
—
At the same time.
In a hidden place high in the Tower, six high-ranking administrators and 157 mid-level administrators had gathered.
Nearly every high-ranking administrator, along with the minimum number of mid- and low-level administrators needed to keep the Tower functioning, were all in one place.
There was a reason this unprecedented meeting had happened.
The Apocalypse Covenant had been activated, and the Tower itself was collapsing under the interference of its major powers—and even the ancient beings.
“What the hell is going on?”
“A Tower that was relatively peaceful has become impossible to predict even an inch ahead.”
“Who’s arguing? At this rate, the authority of the administrators will be dragged through the mud.”
“Keep it down. The higher-ups must have their own reasons.”
The mid-level administrators fidgeted.
They knew better than to raise their voices, but their unease wouldn’t settle.
The reality they knew.
The reality they’d always believed would last forever…
It felt like it was about to vanish.
The high-ranking administrators felt the same anxiety.
Inside a mansion built atop a colossal tree root, the six high-ranking administrators sipped freshly brewed tea.
“To build something this luxurious in the middle of all this… you really are something.”
Rick, the only one drinking coffee, tossed out a joke.
As he said, the log mansion perched on the root was hundreds of square feet, decorated with antique wooden furnishings, and undeniably beautiful.
It was the result of the ability of Baskerville, a high-ranking administrator selected from the plant-based ‘Life Seed.’
“Luxurious mansion, my ass. Did you come here just to spout nonsense?”
Kwang!
A manager who looked like a red mountain goat slammed the table.
It was Haeteis, Hasting’s successor, now a high-ranking administrator.
He’d finally risen to the highest seat, only for everything to threaten to turn to dust before he could even enjoy it—and the frustration had him seething.
“Enough.”
“That’s right. This isn’t the time for us to fight among ourselves. Especially you three—Baskerville, Bendivia, and Rick.”
The clash that had erupted at the floating stone hadn’t been resolved, but now they had to set it aside for the sake of the Tower.
“I think we should first confirm how the situation is progressing. Isabel. Can you do that?”
Kundala, another high-ranking administrator, spoke.
“Yes. I can.”
Isabel— the only one who could freely peek into every floor—summoned a translucent mirror.
Wuuuung!
[‘Mirror of Dawn’ is activated.]
Inside the mirror, the alliance led by Jinhyuk and the covenant led by Unknown were locked in battle.
A tense situation where not even an inch ahead could be predicted.
Until Alice fully awakened.
“How can this be….”
“Hoo.”
Exclamations spilled from the high-ranking administrators.
The balance had shattered in an instant, and the scale had tipped hard to one side.
If they pushed just a little more—if they added even one small variable—
The war’s outcome would be decided.
That was when—
“What do you all think about us helping Player Kang Jinhyuk’s side at this timing…?”
Bendivia, who had been silent until now, offered a dangerous proposal.
That high-ranking administrators—who were supposed to remain neutral—should intervene to end the covenant.
It was a suggestion to violate the rules of the Tower to preserve the Tower itself.
Normally, everyone would immediately object.
High-ranking administrators were supposed to set the example.
But the situation was abnormal. And if they didn’t stop the ancient beings from rampaging, the Tower truly would collapse.
“We have to step in too…”
“You’re saying we should bet on Kang Jinhyuk.”
“Come to think of it, Bendivia has always been particularly fond of that human.”
Barrier Experts.
For that reason alone, Bendivia had watched Jinhyuk’s actions for a long time.
She believed that human… might reach a place she herself never could.
And that prediction had been correct.
Jinhyuk had stepped into a realm no Barrier Expert had ever reached.
“What do the others think? If even one person disagrees, we scrap this.”
“I agree.”
“Me too.”
“Can you guarantee we’ll minimize evidence of our intervention?”
Haeteis, who had been weighing it carefully, asked.
“I plan to handle that with utmost care. We’ll move from the least visible place possible, providing only indirect support.”
“In that case, I’ll join as well.”
“What about Rick?”
All eyes turned.
“I have no reason to refuse.”
Rick clinked his coffee cup in agreement.
“Then it’s decided.”
The administrators’ opinions united.
Only execution remained.
But right then—
Something happened that defied every expectation.
Wuuuung!
[A gate is opening.]
A third party appeared inside the meeting place they had kept strictly secret.
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