Level -99 Archmage - Chapter 46

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Episode 46. The Wager
“…….”
“…….”
“…….”
Everyone reacted the same way.
All fifty members of the Seoul Alliance, including Im Chang-yeol, as well as Kim Byung-han and Kankun himself—all froze the moment they heard Park Chan-woo’s answer.
‘Is he insane?’
‘Has he lost his mind?’
‘What kind of madman is this?’
To anyone observing, it was clear that Kankun favored Park Chan-woo.
He had sensed in Park Chan-woo alone “the fierce scent of a true warrior,” dismissed the others without a second glance, and posed his question solely to him.
If Park Chan-woo despised magic and opposed Adora, then a monster approaching level 83 had just offered to personally take him under his wing.
And yet.
“……You won’t consent?”
《Kankun’s favorability has decreased by 100.》
《Warning: if favorability drops further, there is a high probability that Kankun will attack you.》
《Kankun is a being revered and feared by all orcs alike. He is the Bloodthirsty Slaughterer—one who shows no mercy to those who displease him.》
With the ominous warning came the message.
Kankun’s expression twisted into something monstrous and malevolent.
To choose his faction was to declare an intention to follow him.
Once you had taken that position, it was an absolute statement of will that could not be reversed.
So what?
Won’t consent?
That meant he would not despise magic, would not oppose Adora.
A warrior who did not share the same conviction had no reason to stand with him.
“Krrgh……!”
“My… my body……!”
Kankun unleashed his Killing Intent.
Everyone nearby broke into cold sweat and shrank back.
Some even lost consciousness.
Such was the density of Kankun’s Killing Intent.
And yet.
‘……He’s unaffected?’
Kankun found it strange.
Park Chan-woo faced his aura head-on and did not flinch an inch.
His body should have suffered damage and his spirit should have been broken—anything less would be abnormal.
The pressure alone was enough to affect everyone merely by their proximity.
Yet Park Chan-woo did not even glance away.
‘This human is unlike any I’ve encountered.’
He was certainly different from the humans summoned before.
There seemed to be a reason why the spirits of orcs chose to stand with this man.
Soon, Park Chan-woo opened his mouth.
“Are you afraid?”
“……Afraid? Of what?”
“Of the Death Magic gnawing at your heart. Of Adora, who wields that magic.”
“……Words flow freely from your mouth. There is nothing that can frighten Kankun.”
“Then why do you keep seeking the aid of humans you don’t even respect? Why don’t you try to overcome it yourself?”
The Death Witch Adora had healed the wounds Kankun sustained with her own magic.
The people had helped search for Holy Relics, actively shattered Floor Guardians, and ascended the floors.
But not Kankun.
He stood quietly beside the Altar, simply receiving and consuming the Holy Relics that were brought to him.
Park Chan-woo disapproved of such an attitude.
More than anything else.
‘I can’t stand how he treats magic as something repulsive.’
To gain Kankun’s favor, he could not deny magic.
For a mage, words are truth itself, and denial means the ruin of magic.
If one renounces it, the power of magic inevitably weakens.
Yet it was equally strange to him that he had withstood Kankun’s Killing Intent head-on.
‘Is it because of the Creator’s Natural Enemy title’s effect?’
Creator’s Natural Enemy.
A title that triggered the “Unbreakable Will” effect from the Creator.
The problem was that Kankun was neither Creator nor demon.
Yet his Killing Intent still couldn’t pierce through Park Chan-woo.
‘The Creator is a lord of the Abyss. Orc Master Kankun—he’s a lord of the orcs too.’
That was the only intersection.
Or perhaps…
‘Kankun might have designed this trial itself.’
The Creator who designed this realm could very well be Orc Master Kankun.
Kankun and Adora.
Weren’t they the two most special beings in this Tower of Arrogance?
It was a possibility worth considering.
So then.
“You can’t beat Adora, Kankun.”
“Do you really want to die?”
Kankun’s patience had reached its limit.
He glared at Park Chan-woo as if ready to beat him to death on the spot.
Afraid of Adora of all people.
Unable to defeat that hateful creature!
One more word of nonsense, and he’d crush him.
“I’ll make you win.”
“…?”
Kankun thought he’d misheard.
The promise to help him win against Adora held no reality whatsoever.
With the level of humans summoned here, even millions gathering couldn’t defeat Adora.
Park Chan-woo knew this fact as well, yet he didn’t stop provoking Kankun.
“If you overcome Death Magic on your own, I’ll make you win.”
“…Huh.”
“And a man who yields to magic is no warrior.”
Therefore, Kankun was no warrior.
That was what Park Chan-woo was saying.
Yet it was also true that Kankun himself could never overcome Death Magic.
Less than a single day remained.
Far too little time to accomplish anything.
But if Kankun didn’t even attempt to overcome it himself, defeat against Adora was already certain.
‘He won’t even reach the tenth floor.’
Kankun was strong.
To climb the Tower of Arrogance, Kankun had to change.
He had to become unafraid of magic to achieve victory.
Once you began to rely on Holy Relics, only ruin awaited.
“…You seem confident.”
In that instant, Kankun’s expression turned ice cold.
Kankun continued speaking.
“Bring me a mid-grade or higher Holy Relic within the appointed time. Fail to do so, and all of you will pay with your lives. You dared speak of victory before me—surely you won’t claim you can’t manage even that?”
He’d actually dared to speak rudely in front of him.
I’ll make you win?
Go ahead and try.
Without a mid-grade or higher Holy Relic, there was only destruction.
Park Chan-woo smiled.
“True. But you too must overcome Death Magic on your own. Should you fail even at that, you are no warrior, and no mid-grade or higher Holy Relic will appear before you.”
That was the moment.
《A wager with ‘Kankun’ has been established.》
《Bring a ‘mid-grade or higher Holy Relic’ within 23 hours.》
《Upon victory, you will earn Kankun’s recognition.》
《Upon defeat, Kankun will annihilate all who stand with you.》
* * *
“Hey, Park Chan-woo!”
Kim Byung-han cried out, his face drained of color.
Moments before, Kim Byung-han had felt death.
Kankun was genuinely intent on killing every one of them.
“Why did you make a bet on your own like that…!”
“…Not bad at all.”
Im Chang-yeol cut off Kim Byung-han mid-sentence.
Though Park Chan-woo had brushed against death, the wager itself that he’d struck with Kankun held considerable appeal.
If they could pull it off, they’d gain an edge over any faction in this realm.
“So—do you have a plan?”
His voice cut like a blade.
After all, Park Chan-woo had acted alone.
It had a profound impact on team coordination.
If this had been reckless without any contingency, disciplinary action would be warranted.
Of course, there likely was no contingency to speak of—
“I do.”
Contrary to everyone’s expectations, Park Chan-woo spoke with quiet certainty.
“What kind of plan?”
“You remember that all the Holy Relics displayed on the Altar were lowest-tier, right?”
Currently, three Holy Relics were displayed on the Altar.
A Lowest-tier Holy Relic of Strength, a Lowest-tier Holy Relic of Vitality, and a Lowest-tier Holy Relic of Agility.
Three in total, hung in place.
Im Chang-yeol nodded.
“Why does that matter? Doesn’t that just mean higher grades are harder to come by here?”
“But Kankun mentioned ‘intermediate.’ That means it exists here on the first floor—just the hardest to obtain.”
“…What are you getting at?”
“Think about it: where is the most difficult location in the first floor of the Tower of Arrogance?”
“Where the Floor Guardian is…”
Im Chang-yeol murmured the words quietly.
Park Chan-woo nodded in agreement.
“Exactly. An intermediate Holy Relic will be there.”
“So you’re saying we go to where the Floor Guardian is ourselves? Without Kankun?”
Kankun was the one supposed to help them defeat the Floor Guardian.
In other words, it was impossible to kill the Floor Guardian without Kankun’s aid.
Yet Park Chan-woo was suggesting that fifty people in their twenties, fresh from their First Threshold Breakthrough, march in to subjugate the Floor Guardian—it was absurd.
But Park Chan-woo refused to waver.
“Finding Holy Relics is our job. Even if it seems impossible, the system is designed to make it possible.”
“And if something goes wrong? You’ll take responsibility?”
Kim Byung-han interjected.
No matter how he thought about it, the mission felt impossible.
Park Chan-woo shrugged.
“The wager has already begun. All that’s left for us now is success or failure.”
Of course, failure meant total annihilation for everyone here.
That was a certainty.
As if they could flee from someone like Kankun.
Im Chang-yeol let out a short laugh.
“…You really are something remarkable.”
It was calculated from the start.
A deliberately loaded statement—’Let me give you victory’—and with that single phrase, he’d drawn them all in.
‘Dangerous man, indeed.’
An awl that couldn’t stay hidden, no matter how you tried.
In that sense, Park Chan-woo was dangerous.
Nobody could know whether that awl would pierce his own flesh or someone else’s.
But they were already committed.
From the moment Park Chan-woo had accepted Kankun’s Killing Intent and sealed the wager.
As Park Chan-woo had said, the only path left before them was success or failure.
Yet…
Im Chang-yeol was the leader here.
All choices and decisions belonged entirely to him.
A man who rushed ahead on his own needed to be made an example of.
That was how Im Chang-yeol had survived the underworld for so long.
“…Fine. Here, we’ll do this your way. Everyone, head for the Floor Guardian’s chamber.”
Still, Im Chang-yeol stepped back one pace.
He was curious too—what result would Park Chan-woo’s choice bring?
* * *
‘Am I afraid of magic?’
Kankun considered it.
Whether he truly feared magic—feared the Death Witch Adora.
Whether he was turning away because Death Magic frightened him.
‘If I can’t overcome even this, am I not a warrior?’
…Who in all the world would dare speak such nonsense to him?
He was an Orc Master.
A warlord who had commanded tens of millions of crimson-clawed orcs.
No orc—not even an adversary—had ever dared ask him if he was afraid.
One look into his eyes and they would tremble, scrambling to flee. There was no room for such words.
And especially the humans summoned to this place—none of them had even entertained the thought of opposing him.
So what now?
‘I will overcome it.’
Magic held no fear for him.
Death, the Death Witch—all of it was something to be conquered.
But.
……
The Death Magic lodged in his heart did not budge, no matter how much power he summoned.
Instead, it tightened around Kankun all the more viciously.
The Death Witch Adora was the first true match he had ever met.
Her magic had slaughtered all the orcs who numbered in the tens of millions.
‘There is nothing I cannot overcome…’
There isn’t.
There cannot be.
Yet instinctively.
Kankun feared that witch.
By his own admission, he had no confidence he could win if they fought again.
Damn it.
Kankun clenched his teeth.
Ten hours passed. Then twenty.
The promised time drew near.
‘It’s impossible for them to bring back intermediate-tier Holy Relics anyway.’
Just as he could not overcome Death Magic, neither could the humans acquire intermediate-tier Holy Relics. It was the same.
An impossible task.
But.
The moment he was certain they would fail.
“Kankun.”
He appeared from afar.
With his companions.
“I kept my promise. I brought intermediate-tier Holy Relics.”
……And in his hand, he held them.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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