The powerful force demolished the robust barrier, propelling Lennok's body backward, yet he remained unruffled.
Anticipating that the man would track him through his mana usage, Lennok had strategically prepared multiple layers of protection.
Furthermore, Lennok intentionally configured each barrier to disintegrate upon impact, rather than reinforcing them with additional mana.
With the right knowledge and preparation, even anti-tank weapons can be managed.
As the man's arm accelerated at an astounding pace, Lennok's shields crumbled one after another, but his body emerged unscathed.
"Mister Wizard!"
The terrified mercenaries sprang into action, but the man didn't flee; instead, he launched another ferocious swing of his arm.
He firmly believed that eliminating Lennok now, even if it exposed him to the mercenaries' assault, was better than squandering this chance.
The lightning he had unleashed was exceptionally potent, a rarity among fellow mages.
Why would it be challenging to breach a fractured barrier a second time?
Breaking through Lennok's remaining defenses and pressing his five fingers against the wizard's heart seemed entirely achievable.
Yet, Lennok neither backed away from the man's aggression nor invoked additional protective spells.
He merely lifted the revolver he had been gripping.
Ever since utilizing [Thunder Calling], mana had been impeccably readied, shaping a lucid concept akin to a lightning bolt surging through his left hand.
Woo-woong…!
In a split second, the handgun took on a blue hue and started to quiver, yet it felt steadier than before.
With Lennok's current capabilities, double casting standard offensive spells was unattainable, but support magic—particularly shooting assistance magic, with its comparatively low consumption and capacity—refined through practice, was another matter.
He recalled the proper sequence for arranging the support spells to maximize efficiency and potency, as well as which spells were suitable for various firearm types.
[Aiming Correction]
[Trigger Acceleration]
[Recoil Control]
[Rapid Fire Adjustment]
Four support spells tailored for shooting accuracy.
Employing just one of these spells merely amplified the shooting power, but when all four were combined, the outcome was entirely different.
The amalgamation of the four support magics in a single shot significantly amplified the bullet's potency.
Tadadadadang!!!!
Five azure flames erupted from the muzzle like lightning, striking the man across his body.
Two rounds hit vital areas, two struck below the abdomen, and one connected with the head.
At close range, the activated [Aiming Correction] unerringly targeted only the most vulnerable and lethal spots, instantly neutralizing the man's assault.
In stark contrast to the man's dark-tinged arm that fruitlessly sliced through the air, Lennok's shots lodged precisely in crucial locations.
"Kuaaahhh!!"
Within moments, the man was subjected to five retaliatory strikes, causing him to abandon his offense and contort in agony.
While his skin had been fortified enough to easily deflect ordinary bullets with the aid of black magic-infused substances, it appeared that the impact was only dampened, and the nullification of his physical prowess was inescapable.
Lennok seized the opportunity and swiftly accumulated mana to finish off his opponent.
At such close quarters, the most effective attack was apparent.
His vulnerable body, prone to perishing from a single misstep, yet his cool rationality fully comprehended that close combat was sometimes inescapable.
Ching!
Lennok clasped the man's lower jaw with his shield-coated hand, firmly gripping and amassing mana.
Nothing had altered since his initial escape from the factory.
Lennok had been surviving on the edge of life every moment and would persist in doing so.
This spell was merely an extension of Lennok's determination.
[Bolt]
Zzzzzzzzzzzzzz!!!
A dense, blue electrical current, unparalleled to when he first learned magic, coursed through his five fingers and squirmed.
The brilliant blue sparks that even obscured Lennok's sight erupted and directly struck the man's head.
"Ughhhhhhh… Aaaaah!!"
A high-intensity firepower spell designed to incapacitate, its power had been amplified to the utmost.
It would be no shock if an ordinary person's head was incinerated with a single strike.
Yet, the man continued to writhe and rage even after being hit by the bolt spell.
"Still going?"
The instant Lennok realized he couldn't subdue him in one blow, he pushed the man away with an unnerving calm and quickly withdrew.
If a monster could catch a bullet with its eyelid, there was no reason one couldn't withstand electrical magic to the head.
Ever since encountering the superhuman Croken Asilas, Lennok had been confident he wouldn't be unnerved by any adversary.
[Reload Acceleration]
Before the man could regain his composure, Lennok rapidly reloaded his revolver and fired once more.
Bang! Bang!
He shot one round into each eye, with one bullet grazing his forehead.
Regardless of how extensively he had fortified his body with black magic, it seemed he couldn't strengthen his eyeballs, as the sound of his eyeballs rupturing after piercing his eyelids could be heard.
"Aaaaaaaaah!!"
Even in that condition, the man desperately flailed his arm to land a blow on Lennok, but Lennok didn't engage him this time and calmly gazed down at the man.
Squish!! Splash!!
That was because the mercenaries who had charged in had skewered the man's back with their bayonets and pinned him to the ground.
"This bastard…!"
"Everyone hold him tight!"
Thud thud thud thud thud!!
"Arrrrrrgh!!"
Even as the other mercenaries fired bullets at him and bayonets penetrated his limbs, the man only howled in pain but didn't lose any strength and persisted in his struggle.
His power was so immense that even the other mercenaries restraining him were momentarily shaken.
An entire magazine's worth of bullets had been unloaded on the man, and the mercenaries clucked their tongues at his unrelenting demeanor.
It appeared that their gunfire, not targeting the man's eyes like Lennok's had, didn't inflict any pain on him.
"What a monster…"
"Can we even kill him here?"
"Captain, what are we going to do?"
The mercenaries cast fervent glances at Dray.
Many of their comrades had already perished at the hands of the man. If they couldn't resolve this situation here and now, nothing would be more exasperating.
Dray, gripping the man with a sword plunged into his left shoulder, glanced at Lennok after a moment's hesitation.
With his limited understanding of magic, accurately evaluating the man's current state was impossible.
Only one person present could offer insight into the drug the man had consumed.
"Mr. Wizard, is there any other way?"
At Dray's inquiry, all the other mercenaries fell silent and turned their attention to Lennok.
Lennok's three displays of electric magic in the previous battle had demonstrated to them the true capabilities of a genuine wizard.
The ability to summon blue lightning from the arid sky was certainly not an illusion or a deception.
"Black magic," Lennok replied.
"The concept itself isn't overly complex. It considerably enhances strength, recovery, and stamina at the expense of sacrificing various aspects. It essentially uses flesh and blood as fuel, and when that's inadequate, cognitive abilities, including language skills, appear to deteriorate."
The man had been able to talk and move normally for some time after injecting the drug, but his mind became unstable enough to struggle with forming sentences during the brief instant when Lennok's lightning struck and he endured the assault.
The cognitive capacity would diminish so drastically that it would become perilous if they didn't continuously kill people to consume their blood and hearts.
Considering this, it made sense that he had intentionally spared some of the second squad members rather than killing them outright.
"Black magic…"
The other mercenaries' faces grew somber upon hearing Lennok's response.
In the vast city of Vulcan, learning and mastering black magic is not forbidden.
However, the prerequisites and costs associated with obtaining and utilizing black magic were challenging and hazardous, and since it was highly selective about the user's aptitude, the number of wizards who had learned black magic unique to the dark magic series was relatively small compared to the notoriety of powerful and diverse spells.
Naturally, there were few people who possessed detailed information about black magic or had knowledge of its characteristics, and many of them didn't know how to handle an opponent who had actually reaped the benefits of black magic.
The other mercenaries assembled at the Krimgal Mercenary Office were no exception.
Instead of reacting to the mercenaries' sighs, Lennok narrowed his eyes and gazed down at the struggling man.
More precisely, he was observing the movement of the black mana coursing around the man's body.
Though he had subdued the man using various spells, Lennok had no intention of letting him leave this place alive.
He couldn't afford to leave any loose ends for unforeseen future occurrences.
He wouldn't leave even the possibility of the one-eyed man seeking revenge later on.
And the method was somewhat visible to Lennok's eyes right now… A clue was emerging.
Immediately after injecting the drug, the man's body was filled with flawless black mana, but the mana after being struck by various spells and gunfire was different, displaying gaps here and there.
As if sensing Lennok's stare and trying to evade it, Lennok extended his hand, charged with mana, toward the unnaturally moving black mana.
Thump!
"Kahak!"
He positioned his hand on the man's shoulder and channeled mana into him.
Utilizing the mana he had embedded in the man's body as a hook, he extracted all the black mana flowing through the man.
It wasn't difficult. Employing the repulsion of mana controlled at the particle level was sufficient.
Only a peculiar certainty that this would work filled Lennok's mind.
"Rrrrrrrrr!"
The strength ebbed from the man's body, and his once pitch-black eyes rapidly reverted to their original color, as if being bleached.
With all the black mana drained, the man's face appeared as though it had aged 20 years, utterly withered.
Lennok, who had extracted all the remaining black mana from the man's body, stood up.
"Kill him."
"…Huh?"
"It should be fine now."
Though the mercenaries wore expressions of confusion, Lennok didn't mind.
He had just successfully interfered with another wizard's magic using only his pure mana control ability.
‘What should I do with this?'
He had extracted the black mana, but it was impossible to maintain it for an extended period in its current state. A specially crafted container was required to store it.
Lennok hesitated for a moment but ultimately released all the black mana into the air. He figured that holding onto it would only continue to consume mana and not offer any significant advantage.
He moved to the back of the rooftop and discharged the mass of black mana into the air. The faint particles of mana swiftly dissolved and vanished into the atmosphere.
If only he could have stored it, it could have presented an opportunity to uncover the mysteries of black magic – a lamentable loss.
Swiftly brushing off his lingering regrets, Lennok turned around when a voice unexpectedly came from beside him.
"You're really amazing."
It was Weian, who had been defeated by the Scavenger man and had fallen.
He had assumed Weian was still unconscious and hadn't yet awakened, but since he was away from the battlefield, he seemed to have regained some strength.
Leaning against the rooftop wall, gripping his injured abdomen, he gazed up at Lennok.
"Are you some kind of genius?"
"Genius?"
"Yeah. I could see you manipulating black mana from a distance. I've never witnessed such a mana control ability before. It made me realize just how pitiful my own mana usage is."
Weian said this and laughed self-deprecatingly.
Lennok listened to his words and quietly pondered.
Quite a few people at the Krimgal Mercenary Office dealt with mana, but Weian was the only one who claimed he had seen Lennok's actions of extracting the black mana.
If what he said was not a fabrication, it meant that Weian had accurately captured the process of Lennok manipulating the mana, even from a significant distance.
This was evidence that Weian's mana sensitivity was innately at an extraordinarily sensitive level.
Perhaps his talent was not in close combat, but in a profession dealing with mana.
"I've encountered many people who pretend to be exceptional wizards, but not a single one has managed mana as delicately as you. If I can replicate even a fraction of those movements, could I become stronger?"
As he murmured this, he looked down at the two completely shattered Tonfas lying next to his thigh.
(TO BE CONTINUED)
