Chapter 138. Annihilation Zone (1)
Even after hearing Yenzen's words, Riman just stood there quietly.
Seeing that appearance, Yenzen said to Riman once again.
“Did you not hear? I said get lost.”
“Why?”
“You ask why? I'll tell you clearly. Because I don't want to increase the number of missing persons here any further. Do you understand now?”
“That won't work.”
“What?”
“No, didn't you say both pioneering and searching are currently at a standstill? Yet seeing a person who ca on his own feet saying he'll help, you say what? Get lost?”
“Yeah. That Lancelot guy was exactly the sa as you. He ca saying he'd help, acted up, and then went missing like an idiot. Thanks to that, in a situation where there's already too much work, only more burden has been created. Now, I won't say more. Get lost.”
“Ho-oh.”
It was a strange thing.
The Lancelot Riman knew was absolutely not the type of human to act up.
Even less the type to run wild overestimating his own power.
In a field like this, he was a human who would move thoroughly following the investigation team leader's instructions.
So Riman found it difficult to readily accept Yenzen's words that ‘Lancelot went missing while acting up.’
‘...What on earth happened.’
However, it didn't look like he would answer right away if asked.
So Riman also just went strong.
“Unfortunately, I can't get lost for you. I also have desperate circumstances where I must find Lancelot, you see.”
Since if Lancelot dies, he becos eternally bound by the contract and loses his freedom.
Yenzen said.
“Whatever circumstances those are, it's none of my business.”
“Then your circumstances are none of my business either.”
“.......”
“.......”
Yenzen and Riman glared at each other intently.
A suffocating silence filled the tent.
Eventually, the side that opened their mouth first was Yenzen's side.
“...Can't be helped. If you go out, my disciples will guide you. Follow them.”
“Sure.”
Leaving behind the battle of nerves that sohow ended blandly, Riman ca out of the tent.
Indeed, three young wizards were waiting for Riman.
One of them asked Riman.
“The investigation team leader asked for ‘guidance’, right?”
“Ah, yes.”
“Follow us. This way.”
Riman moved following them.
However, a while later, Riman stopped.
Because the direction they guided was not the direction Riman expected.
Riman asked.
“Wait, I don't think we should go this way.”
“No, it is correct.”
“What do you an correct. It's the opposite direction from the Walled City.”
“Haa.”
With an annoyed sigh, they looked back at Riman and said.
“Just follow us. Don't waste each other's energy. We said we'll ‘guide’ you, didn't we?”
“One can refuse unwanted guidance, you know.”
“No. Refusal is refused.”
CLACK, CLICK!
The guides deployed the dolls they possessed.
Three dolls made by intricately intertwining tal and wood.
In the dolls' gazes directed at Riman, minute killing intent like the tip of a knife was embedded.
Scanning those dolls, Riman muttered.
“...Dolls I all know.”
“What?”
“Elaborately and sturdily well-made dolls. But isn't it a bit wasteful to consu them in a place like this? When there's still a mountain of things to investigate?”
“Consu? You speak as if you could beat us or sothing?”
“Yeah, that's right.”
“Thi......!”
At that ti.
“Wait.”
The man who looked the oldest among the three stepped forward and said.
“Your words are right. No need to use dolls for sothing like this.”
“Still, there's one person whose head works.”
“I an it's a waste to even use dolls on you.”
A chant flowed from the man's mouth.
“Falling fruit, satellite, sealed library.”
That was the incantation for [Weight].
Amplified gravity pressed down on Riman.
WHOOSH!
A sensation like a boulder pressing down on his shoulders engulfed Riman.
But Riman wasn't flustered.
Sword against sword, word against word.
A counter incantation flashed in Riman's mind.
‘Astronomy student's awakening, disassembly of the center, materialization of optical illusion.’
That was the incantation for [Anti-gravity].
ZING......!
It offset the weighted gravity and completely nullified the opponent's magic.
“Wha......!”
“M, magic with chantless......?!”
And Riman's magic didn't stop there.
Riman's [Anti-gravity] didn't stop at offsetting [Weight] but devoured it entirely.
Soon the direction of gravity began to reverse.
The wizard who used [Weight] on Riman felt his body becoming rapidly light.
His body floated up, and his feet left the ground.
Losing footing, his body montarily lost balance.
“Uh uh......!”
A staggering and reeling body.
With such a body, he couldn't respond to the impending attack.
Only a future of being helplessly beaten remained.
DASH!
Riman closed the distance with him in a single breath.
And placing his fingertips on his chest, he thrust in a small amount of mana.
[Discharge]
CRACKLE!
Suppressing a wizard who hadn't even turned on a barrier wasn't difficult.
“Guk......!”
The electrocuted body tumbled onto the floor.
With this, one of the three was suppressed.
Looking back, Riman said.
“Want to do more?”
“This bastard......!”
WHOOSH!
One doll swung a large iron mace and pounced.
Judging by its mass and speed, an attack capable of easily smashing a concrete wall.
But the action Riman took was rely extending one hand.
The hand wearing a glove.
The iron mace flew into Riman's palm.
And with a barely audible sound, the iron mace stopped.
THUD.
A palm that seed thin and frail stopped the iron mace.
The doll's owner was flustered.
“Wha......?”
It's called shock absorption, kid.
Muttering inwardly, Riman brought his opposite fingertips to the doll's solar plexus.
And returned the shock absorbed just a mont ago exactly as it was.
The shock exploded.
CRASH!
A crater blood where Riman's fingertips touched.
The doll's carapace crumpled as it was, and parts scattered in all directions.
Like that, its function as a doll was shattered and tumbled.
“No... No way.......”
The doll's owner froze just like that.
Because his brain couldn't properly understand what just happened.
Blocking a shock of ton units with one hand wasn't enough, he explodes shock just by touching?
At least among the magic he knew, there wasn't even anything similar to this.
“Th... Uh.......”
“What will you do?”
“Yes?!”
“Will you guide
properly, or will you continue like this?”
“.......”
One was electrocuted and fainted, and one lost a doll.
And the remaining one witnessed all this spectacle right before his eyes.
And they imdiately made a rational choice.
“...Where shall we guide you?”
“Kowloon Walled City.”
“Co this way. We will guide you.”
Indeed, being from a Magic Tower, they were smart.
To learn manners in such a short mont.
Anyway, Riman followed them and approached Kowloon Walled City again.
Although a fence was set up at the entrance, as he went with the students, the guards easily made way.
Like that, finally, Riman stepped into the territory of Kowloon Walled City.
“You must not go ahead of us. You might really suddenly disappear.”
“I'll keep that in mind.”
Kowloon Walled City.
It was fascinating from afar, but bizarre up close.
Ti had beco sticky gri clinging to the building surfaces, and haphazardly installed signboards filled the view.
Sidewalk blocks ssy from lack of maintenance, broken windows, graffiti sprinting towards 0% artistic content, and even the eerie aura wafting from inside.
It felt like seeing the result of so crazy sculptor painstakingly expressing the word ‘bleak’.
“You see the red line drawn on the floor there, right? You absolutely must not cross that line.”
Riman looked where the student pointed.
Indeed, red lines drawn irregularly in long strokes were visible.
Riman asked.
“What happens if I cross?”
“You disappear.”
“Is it a feeling of being sucked sowhere?”
“No, literally disappear. As if you weren't there from the beginning.”
“Hmm.......”
Riman picked up a brick fragnt rolling on the floor.
And threw it over the red line.
WHOOSH.
The brick fragnt flying through the void crossed the red line.
Then, at so mont, the brick disappeared from the air.
It really disappeared as if erased by an eraser.
“See, it's true, right?”
“Have you tried putting in drones or golems or dolls?”
“We tried that first thing.”
“What happened?”
“From the mont they disappear like that, all links are cut. Naturally, communication cuts off too.”
“So observation isn't possible even through indirect thods like machines or dolls. Ah, did you try putting sothing in tied to a string?”
“Of course. Thinking to check the interior and then pull it out again.”
“What happened?”
“It goes in, but it can't co out. No matter how much we pulled, it wasn't dragged out.”
“Aha.......”
“So we call the area beyond that line the . Because entering is practically no different from annihilation.”
“Then let
ask one more question.”
“Feel free.”
Riman tapped the ground where he was standing with his foot and said.
“Up to here where we are standing now, ‘pioneering’ is complete, right?”
“Yes, that is correct.”
“That ans, this place too was once an ‘Annihilation Zone’.”
“That is also correct.”
“Then how did you pioneer the Annihilation Zone and make it into a safe zone like this?”
“That was a truly accidental opportunity.......”
The student pointed to a spot on the building's outer wall behind them and said.
“It was when this area was still an Annihilation Zone too. A ti when no one even thought of entering here. Back then, we succeeded in observing from the outside that sothing was stuck exactly at that spot.”
“What was stuck?”
“Sothing pitch-black, sticky, squirming... and having dozens of mouths.”
“An evil spirit?”
“We are estimating so for now.”
“So what did you do with it?”
“...We poured firepower from the outside and annihilated it.”
“Not harvesting or capturing alive......?”
“Because the probability of being annihilated if we approached carelessly was too great. But it was too strong to capture alive. Anyway, after annihilating it like that... it beca like this.”
“Huh?”
“After eliminating that evil spirit, this area imdiately turned into a safe zone.”
“...Ho-oh.”
Riman nodded and said.
“...So if you kill the evil spirit inside Kowloon Walled City, the place where that evil spirit resided changes into a safe zone?”
“Yes. However.......”
“The wizards who entered the Annihilation Zone with that thought must have all gone missing.”
“......!”
“Right?”
The students nodded with stiff expressions.
Riman said.
“That evil spirit was probably bait. Bait giving hope that the Annihilation Zone could be eliminated.”
“...We didn't know back then.”
“I understand. Even I would have been like that.”
STEP, STEP.
Riman began to approach close to the red line.
Seeing that, the students freaked out and shouted.
“N, no! If you just approach like that......!”
“Don't worry. I won't cross the line.”
“The Sword Saint said that too! And then he just crossed over as he pleased!!”
STOP.
Riman stopped his steps and said.
“...Lancelot, that human, walked into there on his own feet?”
“Yes? Ah, yes. I'm telling you he suddenly went inside as he pleased. No matter how much we called from behind, he didn't even answer.......”
“.......”
Riman looked beyond the red line again.
Beyond that line is the Annihilation Zone.
As of now, there is no way to know what state it is beyond there.
Even if found out, there is no way to return and report the content.
“...Ah.”
“What is it?”
“There is a way.”
SWISH.
Riman reached out his hand towards the Annihilation Zone.
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