Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Shadow eye

Seo I-hyeon cleaned up the vinyl he had laid on the floor, showered cleanly, then put on clothes again.

In fact, not even a single drop of blood was on his body. Because the shadow warehouse took it all. Still, it was unpleasant so he washed.

And he went outside.

After coming out of Etherix today, he had moved frantically so he hadn't eaten a single meal.

His stomach was too hungry so he decided to eat heartily.

Seo I-hyeon's regeneration requires massive energy, but since mana bears all that energy, the body doesn't get damaged by extreme hunger or muscles don't decrease.

In fact, even if he starves quite a bit he's fine. He just gets a bit hungry.

Seo I-hyeon also hated hunger. Because it felt similar to pain.

He ate a very late lunch, bought things like kimbap and ramen to eat in the evening at the convenience store, and returned home.

Returning home, he loafed around and played until eating dinner.

He did some internet, watched a movie, rummaged if there were any games to play.

After eating dinner he spent similar time.

While he was loafing around, a call came. It was Jeong Sang-cheol.

"Hello."

- Hyung-nim. I went to Myeongjin Pharmaceutical as hyung-nim said.

"Well done."

He didn't particularly ask how it went. But Jeong Sang-cheol told him on his own.

- The talk went well. I decided to join Myeongjin Pharmaceutical.

"That's good. Still be careful for a while."

- Yes. Thank you, hyung-nim.

Jeong Sang-cheol hesitated for a moment then continued.

- But hyung-nim. How about hyung-nim also coming to Myeongjin Pharmaceutical here? If I speak well it seems like it might work somehow.

"Enough. It'll just make it difficult for each other. Just you be careful and stick well."

- But hyung-nim.

"Stop here. If you're thankful buy me a drink later."

-...Understood. I'll contact you soon.

"Yeah. You didn't talk about me to the company, right?"

- No. I haven't brought up hyung-nim's story yet. I was going to ask hyung-nim first.

"Well done. Absolutely don't talk about me."

- Yes. If you change your mind anytime please tell me. I'll somehow do it.

"Yeah. Take care."

Seo I-hyeon hung up first. As expected, Jeong Sang-cheol resolved well.

"Now I just have to do well myself."

Seo I-hyeon muttered like that and prepared to sleep.

It's not the end just by lying down and sleeping. There's something to do while sleeping.

If he had decided not to, maybe, but since he decided to, he has to do it thoroughly.

Seo I-hyeon took the syringe needle and tube he had placed in the corner of the desk.

It's not something he bought and prepared this time. It's something he prepared together when preparing the vinyl. For reference, he also prepared the chainsaw then.

Seo I-hyeon chuckled while looking at the syringe needle and tube in his hand.

While saying he would live ordinarily, that he would never use things like black magic again, why did he prepare this?

'I don't understand my own heart either.'

Well, what does that matter now. Doing what he can do is important.

Seo I-hyeon connected the syringe needle and tube. And stabbed the needle into the inside of the elbow. Finding the vein and stabbing the needle was something he had done so many times that it ended in an instant. It didn't even hurt.

Seo I-hyeon who lay on the bed like that put the end of the tube into the shadow.

The end of the tube dug into the shadow and was fixed.

Now it's the end, the rest the shadow warehouse will handle.

Blood was sucked out through the needle then flowed into the shadow riding the tube.

The material Seo I-hyeon will use the most from now on is by far blood.

When activating black magic he uses it when drawing magic circles, and also when using simple magic that doesn't need magic circles. Also uses it as a reagent in various situations.

Whatever he does, blood goes in.

So the more blood the better.

When Seo I-hyeon was in the other world, every time he slept he stuck a syringe needle in his arm and slept like this. To gather blood while sleeping.

The blood gathered overnight like that he used without remainder the next day.

'Really... it was hellish days.'

Who uses that blood? Of course the witch.

Whether doing magic experiments or whatever, she used all of Seo I-hyeon's blood.

For reference, the only beings who could use black magic with Seo I-hyeon's body as material were Seo I-hyeon himself, and the witch connected to Seo I-hyeon by contract.

If it could be used more universally, he would have fallen into an even deeper pit of hell.

"The more I think the more pissed. Damn witch."

Seo I-hyeon cursed the witch and closed his eyes. Anyway she's a dead person now. Thinking more is only a loss for himself. Don't receive useless stress and erase it from memory.

'This doesn't adapt.'

The feeling of blood rapidly leaving the body is really dirty. This can also be said to be a pain of a somewhat different kind.

Still it's better than having arms and legs cut. And unlike in the other world, here he won't need to do this every day.

Seo I-hyeon thought that and gradually fell into sleep.

Even while he was sleeping, blood continuously flowed, no, poured into the shadow riding the tube.

* * *

Seo I-hyeon slowly opened his eyes. At the same time he checked the body's condition.

"Condition is good."

Raising his body he pulled out the syringe needle stuck in his arm.

The blood remaining in the tube was sucked into the shadow in an instant. The blood on the syringe needle also all disappeared.

He placed the syringe needle and tube on the desk.

The blood piled up a lot inside the shadow warehouse was clearly felt. But seeing the clumped blood mass, his heart became reassured.

Now there won't be a shortage of blood for a while.

The blood inside the shadow warehouse and some flesh pieces, bone fragments, and one intact arm were clearly felt. As if seeing with eyes.

The shadow warehouse is one of the essential magics for a black mage. Because it is excellent for storing materials.

Once materials enter here, time is fixed.

However, a cost is needed.

What is used as the cost is mainly mana. Considerable mana goes into maintenance. Instead of mana, other things can be paid as cost. Usually it is unholy emotions.

So ordinary black mages often struggle to maintain the shadow warehouse. Because bearing the cost that goes in is not easy.

The expedient used then is to attribute the warehouse to another existence.

A method of paying the mana of the one who attributed the warehouse, not one's own mana, as the cost.

Usually a black mage's slave takes charge of the warehouse.

When he was in the other world, the witch also used Seo I-hyeon's shadow warehouse together. He even did warehouse shuttle.

Well, the materials the witch used were things detached from Seo I-hyeon's body anyway.

Anyway such a shadow warehouse is not omnipotent. Especially Seo I-hyeon's shadow warehouse is even more so.

First, items stored in the shadow warehouse cannot be confirmed. Once stored, it's the end. You have to accurately recognize the stored item to take it out again.

If there is an exception, it is materials that came from one's own body. That can be confirmed anytime.

So items other than materials must be recorded separately. If not remembered, that item is no different from lost.

And items that do not contain Seo I-hyeon's mana decay after a certain time. No, rather than decaying, the existence itself blurs.

What happens if existence blurs. Eventually it disappears.

It means you have to repeatedly take it out and put it back in periodically.

Even if you take it out and put it back right away it's useless. You have to fill the presence again from outside.

It's a really extremely picky warehouse. However, materials that Seo I-hyeon's body entered are okay. Just by paying the cost they can be stored infinitely.

The reason he didn't put the syringe needle and tube in the shadow warehouse and placed them on the desk is because of that.

Still, excluding that, it is a really useful magic. Because various applications are possible.

Ah, living beings cannot be put in. The same for plants.

Sometimes among items made of wood there are ones with extremely faint life remaining, and those also cannot be put in the shadow warehouse.

Seo I-hyeon roughly washed and went outside.

Perhaps because he slept early yesterday, he woke up quite early.

'I wonder if there's a restaurant that opened.'

Walking, before he knew it he arrived at the subway station. Fortunately there was an open restaurant nearby so he also ate.

Since he ate, he has to do what he has to do.

Seo I-hyeon took the subway and got off at the station where Etherix is.

He didn't hurry.

Seo I-hyeon sat down by the window of a coffee shop where the Etherix building is visible. With a cup of coffee in front, he quietly looked at the Etherix building.

Today is Sunday.

So if it was an ordinary company there would be almost no people who went to work.

But Etherix was not like that. During the about one hour Seo I-hyeon watched, dozens of people entered the Etherix building.

It seems they are also proceeding with that side gig Seo I-hyeon was going to do yesterday today.

The side gig of forcibly extracting human mana.

'Come to think of it, I didn't even receive the side gig pay.'

It stings a bit inside. Well, since he didn't do the work properly it's natural not to receive money, but still thinking that he couldn't receive money of 2 million won doesn't make him feel good.

Anyway the reason he came here today is to examine Etherix. Whether there are many people or few doesn't matter. Because he didn't come to see people.

The timing was also just right. Why would he come here in the morning right after eating breakfast.

Right now is the time when the sun is still tilted far to the east. So it is the time when shadows stretch long.

The shadow of the Etherix building stretched like that was cast even inside the coffee shop where Seo I-hyeon was seated.

Seo I-hyeon placed his foot on that shadow.

One eyeball bulged out on the shadow. It is an eye that is not visible to ordinary people's eyes. It was almost transparent, and there was even an eyelid made of shadow.

The eyeball slid and crossed to the building's shadow.

And sank into the shadow again.

Seo I-hyeon leaned his back on the chair, drank coffee, and turned his gaze forward.

The field of view the shadow eye sees came to mind.

It was a sensation as if seeing two screens at the same time. For now since it was inside the shadow it was pitch black.

When he was in the other world there was almost no occasion to use the shadow eye. So since it was magic he was using after a really long time, some adaptation time was needed.

As soon as the eyeball bulged out above the shadow, the Etherix building is visible. And the appearance inside the coffee shop is also visible together.

Even though the two screens overlap and are seen, the sensation of being recognized separately was truly strange.

Anyway repeating like that a few times, he could adapt soon.

The shadow eye entered inside the Etherix building riding the shadow.

The shadow eye can go anywhere as long as there is a shadow.

How far from the mage who used the shadow eye it can go differs depending on the quality of the materials used when first making it, the aptitude and ability of the mage who made the shadow eye, and the mana of the mage using the shadow eye.

The range of the shadow eye Seo I-hyeon uses is about a radius of 100 meters. It means it is impossible to check very far places.

100 meters is a longer distance than expected. To the extent that a building across the street can be sufficiently included inside it.

In the other world there was almost no occasion to use the shadow eye. But in this world it will become a really useful magic.

Anyway the shadow eye safely entered inside the Etherix building, repeatedly coming out above the shadow and going back in, continuously showing the internal appearance to Seo I-hyeon.

In the 1st floor lobby waiting people were visible, and the appearance of someone appearing and leading some of them to take the elevator was also visible.

Those guys will go up and charge mana into that strange machine. For a while their mental power will bottom out and they'll see some hallucinations and hear auditory hallucinations and have restless dreams, but still they won't die.

Anyway what Seo I-hyeon wanted to see wasn't that. The eyeball that entered the shadow again this time moved quickly and went up to the topmost floor.

From there he planned to go down step by step and check the entire building.

It will take quite a long time, but it's okay. Because today is Sunday.

There was nothing special on the top floor. There was Etherix's representative office, but other than being wide, well decorated, and well organized, there was nothing.

The floor below that, and the floor below that also had nothing special.

They were still pulling strings and charging mana, and the rest were mostly empty, all ordinary offices.

Only after going down to the basement like that could he finally find something special.

© Kim Kang-hyeon #12i09