The Return of the EX-Class Wizard - Chapter 25

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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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The Return of an EX-Rank Mage Episode 025
[Hidden Quest ‘Just Retribution’ has been completed.]
A quiet fanfare erupted before Choi Kang-mok’s eyes.
A small celebration visible only to him.
A brief explanation followed.
It seemed the correct answer was to forgo Stat 7 and exclude the Busan region entirely.
[‘Just Retribution’ has elevated the inner core effect of the Human-Faced Beast’s Core to maximum potency.]
───────
[Human-Faced Beast’s Core]
The inner core of a lower-grade human-faced beast.
Upon consumption, all stats increase by 10.
───────
‘How did this happen?’
I’d told the Busan Guild to go eat dirt.
Yet somehow it turned out like this.
Above Mayo’s torso, the characters ‘正道歸正’ materialized in kanji.
-When something goes wrong, finding its rightful place again is… often beautiful.
The torso grew slightly translucent.
-Sometimes, though, I just wish it would break instead.
Choi Kang-mok didn’t quite catch the output error of the multi-personality conceptual entity.
His heart raced.
Now I could raise all my stats dramatically.
‘And intelligence increases too!’
Intelligence was the foundation of a mage.
Fundamental growth was within reach.
-It seems you’re quite willing to synchronize with me, user.
-It’s somewhat thrilling, but synchronization that’s too rapid is not recommended.
-I, Mayo, am waiting for a user who is a bit more refined, a bit more complete. 🙂
“….”
Even with Mayo as a latent threat, up to Intelligence 100 should be safe for now.
[Will you consume the Human-Faced Beast’s Core?]
A black orb-like shape.
I placed the Human-Faced Beast’s Core in my mouth and swallowed.
[Strength increases by 10.]
….
[Intelligence increases by 10.]
───────
[Stat Window]
Strength: 20
Stamina: 26
Agility: 30
Intelligence: 30
※Remaining Stats: 0
───────
[You have achieved Strength 20.]
[Abilities related to Strength have increased significantly!]
[You have achieved Stamina 20.]
[Abilities related to Stamina have increased significantly!]
Every 10-point increment in stats grants a substantial boost to abilities.
Agility and Intelligence had both surpassed 30.
I felt as though I’d been reborn.
My body had not merely returned to normal—it had become light as a feather.
“So Strength and Stamina are essential to raise as well.”
Now that I’d done it, I understood.
This newfound lightness would allow me to accelerate my magical research even further.
And Intelligence at 30, no less.
I’d finally raised my Intelligence.
“Breathe. Calm yourself.”
I couldn’t afford to get intoxicated by early growth.
How many lower-floor hunters had I encountered?
Choi Kang-mok had been the same fifteen years ago.
In times like these, caution was paramount.
‘I should run through the 4th Floor a few more times.’
I needed to acclimate to this transformed body.
‘Dil-chik-nu’s’ Intelligence would rise—but what would happen then?
I had to find out.
“Man, honestly, isn’t twelve hours way too long?”
Twelve hours had passed.

* * *
The Busan region had been excluded from the Hidden Stage (Floor 8).
The situation evolved in real time.
[Heard 7 Busan Guild members leaked out lol]
└Stat 5 is pretty substantial
└High-level players might manage, but low-level ones are really in a bind
For those at the core of the Busan Guild, abandoning Stat 5 to leave the guild was nearly impossible.
But what if they weren’t core members?
Abandoning Stat 5 wasn’t easy.
└Ulsan Lord: Grinning ear to ear
└Daegu Lord: Simply pleased
The EX-rank Awakener’s intentions were made public through the Seoul Guild.
[If the Busan Lord admits wrongdoing and apologizes, the conditions will be lifted?]
└Busan Lord, apologize, apologize, apologize
└Why isn’t she apologizing?
└Can’t the guild leader even swallow that much pride for her members?
└ Beat your head now ㅠㅠ
In the midst of that scorching public opinion.
Shin Chae-ryung, the Busan Lord, stepped forward.
Lights flashed.
An expressionless face. Hair tied back more firmly than usual. A measured voice.
“This is all a misunderstanding. I can clarify the full circumstances of every incident. The EX-rank Awakener is currently engaging in somewhat coercive communication. Our Busan Guild intends to resolve this through dialogue, in a peaceful and constructive manner….”
Then.
A system notification sounded across all of Korea.
[The Stage Opener adjusts the conditions.]
[Busan Tower’s Hidden Stage (Floor 8) has been permanently closed.]
Now, the Hidden Stage (Floor 8) would never appear in the Busan Tower again.
[Wow lol the EX-rank Awakener doesn’t back down]
└No backing down real talk lol
└That’s resolve
└Terrifying lol
That wasn’t the end.
[The Stage Opener grants a ‘permanent’ attribute to the Hidden Stage conditions.]
[In 12 hours, Busan Guild members will be permanently unable to obtain rewards from the Hidden Stage (Floor 8).]
The EX-rank Awakener had granted one final window: 12 hours.
Countless citizens worried for Busan’s future, along with families of Busan Guild members, rushed to the guild headquarters and began their protests.
“Apologize! Apologize! Apologize!”
“The Busan Lord must apologize!”
“Apologize even if you did nothing wrong!”
Yet Shin Chae-ryung did not apologize.
“I cannot apologize for something I did not do.”
They had framed the EX-rank Awakener as an arrogant tyrant.
[Busan Lord: “Using an ability monopolized only by yourself to hold the entire Busan Guild and all Busan citizens hostage is a cowardly act and tyranny.”]
└This is definitely tyranny lol
└They keep praising the EX-rank Awakener so much that he acts like he’s above everyone
[Busan Guild: “We simply wanted to clear up the misunderstanding. It was the EX-rank Awaker who refused dialogue.”]
└This could actually be a misunderstanding though, and refusing even one conversation is crazy
└All Busan citizens are suffering because of this misunderstanding
└If this isn’t tyranny, what is?
└Tyranny or whatever, if the Busan Lord actually cared about Busan citizens, couldn’t he at least pretend to apologize? What’s a little stat loss anyway
Shin Chae-ryung, the Busan Lord, bit her lip.
“There’s no evidence anyway.”
Jo Ju-won was unconscious.
She planned to eliminate him when the timing was right.
In any case, no evidence of the shadow currently existed.
If it had, she would have already made it public.
“That bastard.”
Korea’s unshakeable number one.
The Busan Guild’s reputation was being tarnished by a single loach.
“My Lord, the twelve hours he mentioned are approaching.”
“If he had any sense, he wouldn’t do such a thing.”
What fool would make the Busan Guild their enemy within Korea?
This was a battle of pride and a test of strength.
There was no way he would actually close the Tower permanently.
The Player Association and the Grand Lord would not stand idle over such a matter.
“The tyranny frame was well-constructed.”
Of course, there were still protests and noise, but ultimately there was nothing those fools could do.
In the past and now, it was the Busan Guild that led Korea.
With time, things would settle down.
“Twelve hours. Have passed.”
The time the EX-rank Awakener had warned of had arrived.
The dreaded notification never came.
Shin Chae-ryung, the Busan Lord, smiled wickedly.
I knew it.
“Truly worthy of being our Lord.”
Indeed, the Busan Lord.
She had not lost the battle of wills.
Shin Chae-ryung and her followers believed this.
“Make contact with the Seoul Guild. He’ll be willing to talk now.”

* * *
Choi Kang-mok’s heart raced as he entered the 4th Floor to acclimate to his new body.
A familiar dummy loomed before him.
“I can set my target to something other than a dummy.”
I’d learned that on Floor 8.
The vivid memory of striking the ceiling to keep Jo Ju-won at bay crystallized in my mind.
‘Beyond the horizon.’
According to explorers’ records, the 4th Floor was roughly three times the size of Yeouido.
In other words, even beyond that distant horizon, an end eventually existed.
A transparent wall supposedly lay at that boundary.
“When I attacked the wall, the damage halved and bounced back.”
-Yes. It was quite impressive.
-Anyone watching would’ve thought you were a dedicated combat mage. 🙂
-I wish you rapid growth.
Choi Kang-mok flinched.
So I really did look like a combat specialist mage to everyone.
‘If Christine finds out…’
When Christine dreamed of becoming a combat mage, it was Choi Kang-mok of Strongtree who’d led the mockery.
Christine had wept for days because of my ridicule.
‘Early growth is unavoidable anyway.’
Eventually, I’d transcend combat and expand into far greater domains.
Choi Kang-mok focused on the present, envisioning a brilliant future.
‘The mana fragments bouncing off the wall are relatively easy to control.’
The halved damage made all the difference.
And even that would become a weapon.
Through the boss battle, I’d learned and grown considerably.
I walked past the dummy, onward without end.
At last, I reached the terminus.
I’d arrived at the endpoint—a place where forward progress was impossible.
“I need to create adequate distance.”
If I attacked too close, fragments would scatter back toward me.
I maximized the distance to ensure safety.
[Skill Energy Bolt (S) activated.]
“Hah!”
All my stats surged by ten points at once.
If I had to compare it, it felt like suddenly shedding weighted sand bags from my entire body.
My spell generation speed and release velocity were far faster than usual.
It was like transitioning from a walker to a fighter jet.
‘This is manageable.’
So I’d developed myself like a combat mage after all.
I’d grown somewhat accustomed to situations like this.
Now I understood why combat mages prioritized agility as essential.
Agility was crucial for responding appropriately to diverse circumstances.
‘Focus!’
As the energy bolt collided with the wall, mana fragments scattered violently in all directions.
The core of Dilkchiknu lay in manipulating these fragments.
In boss battles, the true terror wasn’t the boss itself—it was the fragments I created.
Dilkchiknu’s enemy was Dilkchiknu itself.
But I had a method.
‘Guide the mana fragments skyward.’
I set an imaginary target in the empty air.
Guiding the mana fragments toward the sky.
I established a phantom enemy in the void and drove the fragments toward it as if a laser were tracking its target.
It was an advanced technique frequently used by long-range mages.
“I pulled it off?”
Well, technically I did.
“Huff… huff…!”
The stamina drain was severe.
I’d merely cast a spell, yet the aftereffects were devastating.
My entire body ached, and even my fingertips could barely move.
‘I’d anticipated some recoil like this.’
The backlash I felt far exceeded theoretical predictions.
Collapsed on the floor, I deduced the cause.
“The increase in intellect is the culprit.”
When intellect rises, all magic-related abilities improve proportionally.
Damage. Efficiency. Mental energy consumption.
But Dilkchiknu was different from ordinary mages.
“The damage increase is overwhelmingly disproportionate compared to other ability gains.”
My body couldn’t withstand that overwhelming surge.
Despite other stats rising by ten points each.
“So that’s how it works.”
Though my body felt like it might shatter, I was genuinely pleased.
“I learned something new again.”
The world of magic was truly boundless.
“If you want to raise intellect, invest in other stats as well?”
In other words, it meant sacrificing intellect to some degree.
The path to becoming a great mage was this arduous.

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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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