Chapter 172

Chapter 172

Spendthrift Necromancer (172)

Shadow's High Priest.

Lucas had first met him not long after Han Sia was born.

At the time, Lucas had been deeply troubled.

Han Sia's talent was far greater than expected, while the amount Lucas could absorb was limited.

It was also difficult to absorb the deeper talent that could be called its ‘source.’

That was exactly when the High Priest appeared. Lucas could still vividly remember the way the man had emerged behind him like a silent shadow.‘Nearly scared me to death.’He'd genuinely felt his heart stop.

Not only had the man bypassed every security system on the family estate, he'd appeared behind Lucas without making the slightest sound?

That meant he was an opponent Lucas couldn't resist.

Even as the Griff family head, a man who feared almost nothing in the world, that moment had been different.

He'd felt bone-chilling terror.

He thought it was the end.

Until the High Priest smiled gently and spoke.―There is no need to fear. I have not come to harm you.

A strange voice that sounded young and old, feminine and masculine all at once.

Impossible to analyze.

Afterward, the Griff family began changing.

Thanks to the ‘tool’ the High Priest provided, Lucas could drain Han Sia's talent all the way down to its very source.

The family's senior leadership accepted great power.

And Griff's control became several times stronger than before.

Yet as the family's prestige grew, so did Lucas's fear. Why was an organization called Shadow helping them?

Of course, Griff paid certain prices.

Data from human experiments.

The kidnapping of important figures.

Things like that.

But compared to what they'd received, those were trivial payments.

That was why Lucas was afraid.

He had no idea what Shadow would eventually demand.

Or how he was supposed to respond when that demand came.

Ten years passed like that.

Only then did the High Priest finally reveal their purpose.―Someday, upheaval may descend upon the world. Fortunately, there is a solution. We shall build an ark. An ark sturdier than anything else.

Build an ark.

The words were deeply suggestive.―I have observed you for a long time. Now I am certain. You possess the qualification to board the ark. Congratulations. Priest Lucas.

After that, Lucas became a ‘Priest’ of Shadow.

Looking into the crystal orb, Lucas lowered his head respectfully.

“I greet the great High Priest.”―Young Priest. Have you been well?

Gulp.

Lucas swallowed.

Every time they met, he thought the same thing.‘I truly cannot understand this person.’Age, gender, nationality.

Everything about the figure was ambiguous.

There was only one thing Lucas could guess.

He himself was already well past sixty. Yet the High Priest called him ‘young.’

There was a high chance the High Priest was far older than Lucas imagined.

“……

Yes. Thanks to His grace, I have spent each day faithfully.”―No need to be so stiff. Between the two of us?

“No. How could a lowly servant presume to sit at the same table as his master?”

Shadow Apostle Hadronox.

Lucas himself had grown this powerful from receiving only a fraction of its power.

Then what of the High Priest, who was said to communicate directly with the Apostle?

His strength must be beyond imagination.

That had been true when Han Sia was born.

It remained true now.―Haha, Young Priest. You are still drowning in fear. I can see it very clearly. But that is exactly why I chose you. So ask freely. What troubles you?

“……

High Priest. While I was conducting closed-door training, I felt His power surging.”―It did.

“Could this be a sign of the upheaval……?”―Do you sense the coming age of upheaval? The place to which we extend our hand will become its final destination. Whether that destination is destruction or salvation will depend upon your hands.

Cryptic words.

That was when.

A faint smile appeared beneath the pitch-black hood.―In that sense, there is something I would like Priest Lucas to do.

“What is it?”―The road is very busy if we are to build the ark. Yet there is a contemptible creature who keeps tripping us up.

“Who do you mean……?”―You know him as well. Kim Minwoo. That wicked and cunning creature.

“You mean that mere brat dared interfere with Shadow?”

Lucas tilted his head.

Of course he knew Kim Minwoo.

Kim Minwoo was why he'd contacted the High Priest in the first place.

But not because Lucas feared his strength.

A rookie who hadn't even reached Level 500.

From Lucas's perspective, even the battle at the airport had been nothing special.

Of course, he acknowledged that Kim Minwoo was exceptionally strong for his Level.

But that only mattered at the lower stages.

Lucas was one of the world's elite rankers, placed in the top twenties among Mages.

And that wasn't all.

He possessed the Power of Shadow.

Far more of it than Jonas.‘That summon called Merhen does look troublesome…….’Still, if Lucas went all out, she didn't seem impossible to deal with.

The problem was that the locations of his secret facilities had been exposed and public opinion was in chaos.

Yet this brat had interfered with Shadow?

The High Priest had even described Kim Minwoo as ‘wicked and cunning.’

Put differently, that meant he rated Kim Minwoo highly enough to use such words.

Of course Lucas was confused.―It was only a minor clash, but there was indeed conflict. Losing the Korean branch pained me. Han Baekgil. That child possessed truly devout faith.

The High Priest moved his fingers over one arm as though playing a piano.

It was one of the habits Lucas had noticed over the years.

Whenever he was seriously considering something.

He usually behaved like that.―Of course, viewed as a whole, the damage was less than a boil on the skin. But…… one thing is certain. His influence is expanding at a frightening speed.

“Hmm…… the High Priest is correct.”

Lucas nodded in agreement. Whatever else might be true, the fact that Kim Minwoo had achieved all this less than half a year after Awakening was certainly worth guarding against.

He might be a brat now.

That didn't mean he'd remain one forever.

“Then the task you wish me to perform is…….”―Priest Lucas is also in some difficulty right now, yes?

“That is correct.”―Sometimes the straightest path is the fastest. And in my view, this is one of those times.

“The straightest path?”

A smile appeared beneath the hood.―Priest Lucas. I want you to dispose of Kim Minwoo. Personally.

“Understood. I will obey your comman…….”―Ah, I am not telling you to take on a murder charge or anything like that. No need to look so grim. Would I ever demand such cruelty from a faithful lamb?

“……?”

Lucas tilted his head.

Wasn't he simply being told to go kill him?

Kim Minwoo was holed up in Korea. To kill him, Lucas had naturally been prepared to accept criminal charges.

Of course he was willing.

It was the High Priest's command.

That was how he would remain aboard the ark.

But that wasn't what he meant?―You are an Awakened yourself. Surely you know the Duel system.

“Du……

el? Ah!”

Lucas's eyes lit up.

A Duel governed by the System.

The consequences agreed upon within it, even death, were legally recognized.

It was one of the world's universal rules.

“You want me to challenge him personally?”―If Kim Minwoo accepts, good. If he refuses? Also good. We can damage the image he has built.

Lucas nodded in understanding. The only thing worth considering when issuing a Duel challenge was public reputation. Kim Minwoo had Awakened less than half a year ago.

Lucas, meanwhile, was practically a hardcore veteran.

Normally, if the latter challenged the former, the veteran would naturally become a laughingstock.‘But who cares.’It wasn't as though Lucas had a good reputation to protect.

Nor did he live for praise.

If his name was already dirty, splashing a little more filth onto it hardly mattered.

And he had justification.

Kim Minwoo had damaged the family's honor.

As Family Head, Lucas couldn't ignore it.

If you're that confident, fight me.

Bet your life.

That was enough.‘If he refuses…….’He would instantly become nothing more than a loudmouth.

Why had Kim Minwoo become famous in the first place?

His insane spending was one reason, but the biggest was his confidence.

That fearless confidence even before giants like the U.S. President, Chinese President, and Saudi King.

But if he tucked his tail and retreated because the enemy was strong?

The weight behind Kim Minwoo's words would plummet.

Of course, that wouldn't solve the secret-facility scandal by itself.

Even so.‘An excellent move.’It was clearly a tactic worth using to escape the current crisis.

Lucas's eyes gleamed.* * *He'd been extremely busy lately.

Countless broadcast appearances had been scheduled.

Each time, he appeared and exposed another one of Griff's dirty secrets.

It was only possible because he knew so much information.‘This is why being a hardcore veteran is great.’Griff couldn't catch its breath as information kept popping up like a game of whack-a-mole.

International pressure had intensified even further.

After all, if you stopped a hundred random people on the street and asked, ninety-nine would probably call Griff a bunch of bastards.

International society might run on power, but there were limits.

Trash this rotten couldn't be packaged prettily.‘They should be making a move by now.’The reason Griff kept getting hammered.

Family Head Lucas was in closed-door training.

More precisely, they had no head.

The chief steward was the second-in-command, but the old man lacked both the ability and stature to control a crisis like this.

Maybe once that ancient Mage finally lifted his heavy ass.

“Looking at this material here…….”

He was revealing yet another piece of information, determined to keep hitting them until Lucas emerged.

That was when the host spoke urgently.

“Uh, one moment. Guild Master?”

“Yes.”

“We just received a message from a German broadcasting station. Family Head Lucas has appeared in person…… and they're requesting a live connection between the two of you. Would that be possible?”

The host's eyes glittered like jewels.

The Griff family's head had personally appeared and wanted to confront Kim Minwoo, the man exposing his family's crimes?

Even with them separated by enormous distance, it remained a massive scoop.

“Sure.”

“Yes, we'll connect you immediately.”

Before long, Lucas's face appeared on the broadcast screen.

A Mage with skin as pale as plaster and a body withered to the bone.

No one would mock him based on appearance alone.

Among the billion Awakened scattered like stars across the world, this was an Archmage worthy of being called a true heavyweight.

Ranked 27th among the world's Mages.

And that record had been measured five years ago.

Lucas, head of the Griff family, stared directly at Kim Minwoo from the screen.―I hear you took my daughter. As if that weren't enough, you've been insulting my family.

“Strange. It's not like I fabricated anything. Does your conscience not bother you?”

―I won't waste words. Return my daughter. And you'd better stop that bullshit.

“What if I don't?”

Lucas smirked from the screen.―Awakened prove themselves through strength, not words. Kim Minwoo, I challenge you to a Duel. If you're confident, accept. We'll wager our lives.

The host's jaw dropped.

What the hell had that crazy old monster just said?

He was issuing a Duel challenge?

A world ranker who had been Awakened for decades?

How shameless did someone have to be to force his point through raw strength in a situation like this?‘……

Well, he can just refuse.’From the host's perspective, Kim Minwoo had nothing to gain by accepting.

He knew Kim Minwoo was strong.

But that was by rookie standards, not world-ranker standards.

For now, it would still be an egg striking a rock.

No.

Maybe this was the rock trying to smash the egg.

Of course he'd refuse…….

“Sure. Let's do it. A Duel. Let's set the time and date.”

“What?”

The host's eyes bulged.

What the hell did I just hear?