Chapter 290
Chapter 290: The Black Silhouette
“Let’s move . ”
The black silhouette led Lee Ji-Tae away .
“Pausing time is not an easy feat for me too . ”
“T-That means… I can survive . . . ”
“Don’t make me repeat myself . ”
“ . . . ”
“Didn’t I tell you already that you are too important to die here? Well then, let’s go . ”
The black silhouette then grabbed Lee Ji-Tae’s arm .
Flas.h.!.+
With that, the two of them vanished . Time began to pa.s.s again, and the headquarters collapsed .
***
“Woah! This is just . . . ”
On Zeppelin, Kwak Jung was standing on the bow, watching the Itaracia castle fall .
“Kueh… absurd… absolutely absurd… does this insane firepower even make sense?”
It wasn’t an exaggeration . Valhalla Kingdom’s firepower was terrifying . The fortress in Itaracia might have been small, but to demolish it in 10 minutes was quite jaw-dropping .
“Well then, since the mission is complete… shall we begin the base construction?”
Base construction . Any soldier would dread those words . However, Valhalla had people who were specialized in such laborious tasks . . .
Werber Engineer Brigade, and Mithril Engineer Brigade!
Kwak Jung shouted through the loudspeaker .
Yes, commander-in-chief!
Yes sir!
Several soldiers who were riding on Zeppelin and Temeraire replied . They were not humans . The Werber Engineer Brigade comprised ants, while the Mithril Engineer Brigade comprised Dwarfs .
In other words, they were made of ‘genuine laborers!’ And thus, they possessed 20 times the efficiency compared to an Engineer Brigade comprising humans .
Begin the base construction immediately after the battlefield has been cleaned up!
Kwak Jung commanded .
You have three days . Construct a more durable fortress than the previous Itaracia fortress! Can you do it?
He was asking for the moon . How could a fortress be built in just three days?
Yes, commander-in-chief!
Three days are enough!
However, these professional laborers didn’t even flinch .
We will try to finish it in two days!
That’s right! Two days are enough!
In fact, they even deemed the three days to be too long .
T-those crazy b.a.s.t.a.r.ds!
Kwak Jung was absolutely astonished . He was certain that if they went to Earth, many human laborers would be jobless and might starve to death .
Oh well, that’s settled then .
Heh .
Kwak Jung smiled . The Itaracia Fortress located in the Chamonix mountains was a gateway that bridged the northern and central region of Baldur . It was a crucial location to restrict Atal Ramanujan’s growth .
How could his people survive? Despite an exponentially increasing population, his territory lacked cool weather and fertile land to harvest food .
100,000, no, 1,000,000 people may starve to death… but . . .
From a humanitarian point of view, what Kwak Jung was doing (Kang Chul-In’s idea, of course) was absolutely s.a.d.i.s.tic .
One should always eliminate any source of danger . Yup!
Kwak Jung was cold-hearted . He was the tactician of the Supreme King of the West . To make Kang Chul-In’s ambition – to conquer the whole of Pangaea – a reality, Kwak Jung had to devise brutal strategies as such .
Was it too harsh? No, it wasn’t . Atal Ramanujan was a serious threat . For that reason, it was crucial that Shatyameba fall . If Kwak Jung tried to be compa.s.sionate, then the Valhalla Kingdom might collapse instead . This was the law of the jungle . The weak were the prey of the strong in Pangaea .
***
“W-What!?”
Dorian, who was fighting the Shatyamba soldiers with great force, stopped moving when he heard a huge explosion .
“Kang Chul-In!”
He knew who the culprit was immediately .
Who else could create such an explosion?
“W-What is it?!”
“Bombardment, huh . ”
“Eek . . . ”
The startled Shatyameba soldiers also stopped moving .
“What the h.e.l.l did you do… Kang Chul-In…?”
He was lost for words . Dorian was much stronger after consuming 40% of the Dragon Heart, but he still could not comprehend what just happened . Well… even Kang Chul-In himself was shocked by the incredible destructive power of the Overpower Bracelet . It was natural for the others to be astonished .
“Hmm . . . ”
The cause of the explosion, Kang Chul-In, observed his surroundings, now covered in a thick veil of dust .
“Hmm… for my investment to be brought to naught… welp . . . ”
Kang Chul-In smacked his lips . Despite being the one who displayed this destructive strength, he was regretting breaking the cormorant’s neck .
It was a pity . Kang Chul-In had no way to find out how Brynhildr got hold of the Sonic Ring . More importantly, how was he supposed to find that item now? Well, he could if he really wanted to, but Kang Chul-In was a busy man who often slept little and ate sandwiches for meals in the office . He didn’t have time to look for the Sonic Ring .
In fact, he didn’t even have time to attend to his family vacation due to his hectic work schedule .
“That’s why I warned him . . . ”
Kang Chul-In mumbled as he glanced at the fan-shaped destruction he had caused ahead of him .
Chuk!
In front of the collapsed inner castle, a knight in white armor was struggling to get himself up .
“Kang… Chul-In . . . ”
“ . . . !”
“It’s not… over… yet… I… won’t… die… from this . . . ”
Brynhildr survived .
He barely got his foot on the ground and ignited his fighting spirit .
“ . . . ”
Kang Chul-In was lost for words . He was in awe . There was no conceivable reason for his opponent to be so persistent . Where did this man’s endless fighting spirit come from?
“Well, but thanks . ”
Kang Chul-In smirked and thanked Brynhildr .
“What?”
“For being alive . ”
“A-are you worrying for me?”
Brynhildr was surprised .
That demon was worried for him . Pigs might fly .
“Of course . ”
Kang Chul-In nodded .
“I almost killed the goose that lays golden eggs, how could I not be worried?”
The problem was that his worry originated from greed .
“I was scared that you might have died . ”
“ . . . ”
“Thank G.o.d you have a durable body . ”
How could one be so shameless? Kang Chul-In nearly killed Brynhildr, and now he was thanking him for being alive .
“Kang Chul-In!”
Brynhildr growled .
“That sort of . . . ”
“Go!”
Kang Chul-In cut Brynhildr off .
“Come back stronger!”
In the end, Kang Chul-In decided to let Brynhildr off again . A merciful heart indeed . He was almost the Buddha himself . Their first encounter, the second time in Baldur’s forest, and the third time here in Zolushka . This was the third time he was letting Brynhildr off!
“A-are you not going to kill me, again?”
“This is the last time . ”
Kang Chul-In emphasized .
“No more mercy . ”
“ . . . ”
“Challenge me one more time, and I will kill you without hesitation . ”
A final warning . Of course, he planned to visit Brynhildr the moment he got the Sonic Ring . It was a special service .
“Ah, also . ”
Kang Chul-In added .
“Let me request one thing . ”
“Request?”
“Can you relay this message to Vilhelm?”
“ . . . ?”
“Tell him that marriage is a crazy thing . ”
“ . . . ”
“It’s up to you to tell him . ”
Kang Chul-In sn.i.g.g.e.red . A demon’s grin .
***
“W-Where is this…?”
Lee Ji-Tae looked around .
“Where else?”
The black silhouette replied .
“We are in Atal Ramanujan’s territory . ”
“ . . . ?”
“To be precise, we are in a remote area in Shatyameba . ”
“Ah…!”
Lee Ji-Tae exclaimed . He had escaped from that collapsing Itaracia fortress!
“Who are you, by the way?”
Lee Ji-Tae turned to face the black silhouette .
“Do you want to know?”
The black silhouette asked .
“Alright then . It’s no secret, anyway . ”
“ . . . ”
“I’m Milenius, the last Agnaga . ”
“ . . . !”
“I’m the controller of time . ”
Thump! Lee Ji-Tae could feel a shudder .
Ba-dump! Ba-dump, ba-dump!
It was a sense of kins.h.i.+p and instinct . They were of the same kind . As only a few Agnagas existed in the whole universe, Lee Ji-Tae felt a special feeling when he encountered his own kind .
“Milenius… the controller of time . . . ”
“Do you know who you are?”
“Me…?”
“As I said earlier, you are the only one who can command our army . ”
“W-What are you talking about…?”
“You are Cereb, the great mind of Agnaga . ”
Incomprehensive words .
“I don’t get you . ”
“Of course not . ”
The black silhouette agreed with Lee Ji-Tae .
“But you will soon figure it out, anyway . I don’t see how my explanation will change anything . ”
“Figure it out anyway?”
“Just a matter of time . Be patient . ”
“ . . . ”
“You won’t appreciate whatever I say now . Just focus on developing your abilities for now . ”
“My… abilities?”
“I’m referring to this . ”
The black silhouette tapped his own head, which was covered in a hood .
“Your incredible intelligence is the sole reason for your existence . Once you develop it, you will realize everything yourself . ”
“How…?”
“Your appet.i.te . ”
“ . . . !”
“You didn’t think that your overwhelming appet.i.te exists just to tear the skin and meat off of humans, did you?”
“ . . . !”
“Hey, Cereb . ”
The black silhouette explained .
“We Agnagas are advanced . How could a lame desire like appet.i.te exist in us?”
“T-that means!”
“Your appet.i.te exists not for survival . It exists to develop your abilities . ”
“I don’t understand . . . ”
“Cannibalism . ”
“ . . . !”
“I’m sure you didn’t just eat your human preys’ meat and blood . ”
Tap tap .
The black silhouette tapped his own head again .
“The brain . ”
“ . . . !”
“You probably found the human brain to be particularly delicious . ”
“ . . . ”
“You would’ve eaten the brain and all of its cerebral fluids, even if you left unfinished bits elsewhere . ”
That was true . Lee Ji-Tae definitely did that .
“By consuming human brains, you can become the true Cereb . ”
“That means . . . ”
“Now that you know the method, I hope you won’t just stay still . ”
“ . . . ”
“Eat as much as you want . And awaken your true abilities . This land has plenty of humans . There’s no better place for your growth . ”
The black silhouette began to walk away .
“When you’ve finally developed your abilities, we shall meet again . ”
“W-wait!”
Lee Ji-Tae shouted .
“Who are you, really!?”
“Who am I, you say…?”
The black silhouette pondered for a moment .
“Curious?”
Then… the black silhouette turned around .
Flick!
The hood came off .
“Argh!”
Lee Ji-Tae screamed the moment he realized the silhouette’s true ident.i.ty .