Episode 182
After faking Kay’s death, Zeke meticulously set the wheels in motion to fracture the Syndicate from within.
Rumors of internal discord were spread, and under the guise of purging traitors, several Syndicate leaders were made to appear dead and secretly relocated to the southern continent.
Zeke ensured their identities were thoroughly cleansed, instructing them to lay low in the Kingdom of Cusco for the time being. Once the dust settled, they would be deployed to dismantle the cartel operations within Cusco.
Having shut down all Syndicate hideouts, Zeke moved his base from Mycenae to the Duchy of Troy. There, he planned to recuperate while keeping an eye on Abel and Narak’s movements. A break was long overdue.
Yet, there was still work to be done. Zeke summoned Fainan to the Troy estate to wrap up ongoing matters.
When Fainan arrived a few days later, he looked noticeably worn out.
“Is everything alright?” Zeke asked, concerned.
Fainan shook his head. “Jeff and Al… sigh, never mind.”
It seemed the young, eccentric, and demanding alchemist twins had been giving Fainan a hard time. Zeke, feeling sympathetic, patted Fainan on the shoulder.
“If Jeff and Al cause trouble again, I’ll come with you next time.”
Fainan’s face brightened at Zeke’s offer. He finally relaxed and asked, “I heard there have been major developments in the Syndicate while I was away?”
Fainan was well aware of the upheaval within the Syndicate. He knew how much Zeke trusted Kay and how diligently she worked, making her betrayal hard to believe. The news of Zeke labeling her and several leaders as traitors and purging them had been shocking.
Zeke led Fainan into a room within the castle and spoke quietly. “Fainan, Kay isn’t actually dead.”
“What? What do you mean…?”
Zeke revealed the parasite that had been inside Kay and explained the events that had transpired. Fainan’s face turned pale with shock.
“Who could use such vile magic…?”
Zeke gestured for Fainan to follow him. “There’s something else you need to see.”
He led Fainan to the castle’s underground, where a captured Zion was held.
“Let me out of here, damn it!” Zion shouted, pounding on the cell door.
Fainan was taken aback by the sight of the imprisoned boy. “Who is he?”
“He’s one of the elite bloodline users sent by the Nostra family.”
“That young boy?”
“Don’t be fooled by appearances. His powers are currently sealed, but he possesses strength on par with at least a Red Knight.”
“Really? I’ve never heard of a bloodline user being that powerful.”
Suddenly, Zion, who had been cursing, began to tremble violently and collapsed in a seizure. Zeke quickly entered the cell and used healing magic on him.
As Zeke’s magic took effect, Zion’s convulsions subsided, and he fell into a peaceful sleep. In slumber, he looked like any other innocent boy his age.
Zeke turned to Fainan. “This is what I wanted to show you. He has these seizures almost daily.”
Fainan approached the sleeping Zion, checking his pulse and eyes, then used his magic to examine the boy’s body. After completing his assessment, Fainan opened his eyes, bewildered.
“This doesn’t make sense…”
“What do you mean?”
“This boy… everything about him is too fast.”
“Too fast?”
“His heart rate, his eye reflexes—everything is operating at about three times the speed of a normal person.”
Zeke nodded at Fainan’s explanation. “The Nostra family is conducting experiments to enhance bloodline abilities through drugs or procedures.”
“Enhancement experiments? That’s clearly illegal research!”
“Being mafia, they likely have no qualms. The troubling part is that the Empire might be involved in these experiments.”
Fainan’s expression hardened at Zeke’s words. He looked at the sleeping Zion and spoke slowly.
“In his current state, this boy won’t live long. He must have been receiving regular doses of something to artificially slow his body’s reactions.”
“Without those drugs, the seizures keep happening.”
“If what you say is true, these seizures are likely side effects of the enhancement experiments.”
Zeke nodded. For now, his healing magic provided temporary relief, but it wasn’t a permanent solution.
Zeke thought of Arina. ‘Perhaps Arina might know a way to heal him.’
Interrogating Zion seemed impossible in his current condition, as he might not survive the questioning.
Arina was currently with Boris, working to rescue the Luvern bloodline members in the Holy Kingdom.
‘Once she returns, I’ll have to show her this boy.’
Zeke asked Fainan to create a temporary remedy.
Fainan nodded. “I can make something to alleviate his condition, provided I have the necessary materials. Oh, and I’ve made some progress on the research you assigned me regarding the golem’s heart, the dragonslayer, and the celestial armor.”
Zeke’s eyes lit up. “Really?”
“Yes. As you suspected, the armor operates on highly compressed mana stones. If it was used during the Liberation War, it could have been a high-output device capable of battling giant beasts.”
“I see. Can it be repaired?”
“It’s an ancient piece, and the circuitry is unlike anything I’ve seen before, so it’ll take more time to study.”
Zeke nodded. “Understood. Keep me updated on any further developments.”
Fainan stayed at the castle to concoct a remedy for Zion’s seizures before returning to Atlas.
Finally, Zeke could take a proper rest and focus on enhancing his equipment.
He gathered the necessary materials to upgrade his orichalcum sword, ‘Roland.’
As he organized his inventory for the upgrade, Zeke paused at one item.
“Unobtainium ingot… it’s harder to come by than I thought.”
Even mid-level managers couldn’t purchase such metal resources from the shop.
While pondering, Zeke stumbled upon a mace he had received from a random box. It was an artifact containing the ‘Punishment of Light’ skill, but he had forgotten about it due to infrequent use.
‘The Luvern Mace… perhaps…’
Zeke placed the mace into the dismantling chamber to check the list of extractable materials.
“There it is! Unobtainium ingot! Perfect!”
As he suspected, the mace was crafted from unobtainium and mithril.
Zeke dismantled the Luvern Mace.
Ding!
With a cheerful chime, the mace was broken down into unobtainium and mithril ingots, leather, and a rune.
“What’s this rune?”
Upon inspection, the rune contained the ‘Punishment of Light’ magic.
“Oh, this would be perfect for Cloné’s mace.”
Combining the ‘Breath of Light’ magic with ‘Punishment of Light’ would undoubtedly enhance Cloné’s combat capabilities.
Zeke set aside the rune and mithril, placing the unobtainium ingot into the enhancement chamber.
Finally, he met the conditions to upgrade Roland.
With a heart full of anticipation, Zeke pressed the enhancement button.
A brilliant light emanated from the enhancement chamber.
Unlike dismantling, enhancements took a considerable amount of time.
‘Considering how long it took to repair Hershion, this isn’t too bad.’
After about ten minutes, the enhancement progress reached 100%.
Ding!
A clear chime signaled the completion of the enhancement.
[Equipment ‘Roland’ has been enhanced.]
[Equipment name changed to ‘Jewel Sword Roland.’]
[The attributes of Jewel Sword Roland have been enhanced.]
Zeke retrieved the enhanced Roland from his inventory.
“Wow, what is this?”
The once rugged-looking Roland had transformed into a dazzling masterpiece.
The scabbard and hilt were intricately crafted with mithril and gold, adorned with jewels.
Zeke was taken aback by the sword’s opulence.
“Is it this extravagant because it’s called the Jewel Sword?”
Zeke checked the information on Jewel Sword Roland.
―Jewel Sword Roland Information―
Description: A masterfully crafted orichalcum sword, enhanced with noble metals and jewels.
Unique Abilities: Punishment of Light (applies only on hit), Veil of Light, Arrow of Light, Will of the Jewel
Special Note: Deals 3.5 times damage to undead and demons. / Randomly activates unique abilities based on the embedded jewels.
The damage multiplier against undead and demons had increased by 0.5, and a new skill had appeared.
“Will of the Jewel? What does this do?”
Zeke drew the sword from its scabbard.
The orichalcum blade gleamed beautifully.
Zeke activated the ‘Will of the Jewel’ skill.
[The skill activates randomly.]
[The Will of the Ruby is activated.]
A fiery aura enveloped the blade.
The ruby embedded in the sword’s hilt glimmered, and suddenly, flames erupted from the blade.
“So this is what they mean by the will of the gems?”
There were seven gems in total attached to the hilt.
It seemed each gem had its own unique will that activated differently.
Zeke decided to try the gem’s will skill once more.
[The skill activates randomly.]
[The will of the aquamarine is activated.]
Whoosh!
In an instant, a chilling frost surged from the sword.
Zeke marveled at the gem-encrusted sword, Roland, as he carefully examined it again.
“Does this mean I can use seven different abilities with just one sword?”
Even though the skills activated randomly, the sword’s value was enough to elevate it from a rare artifact to a unique one.
Just then, a message appeared before Zeke’s eyes.
[The durability of the ruby and aquamarine has decreased by 5% due to skill usage.]
[Repair with new gems before the durability is completely depleted.]
“What? Repair with gems?”
This meant that every time he used a skill, the power of the gems would diminish, requiring constant repairs.
Zeke clicked his tongue as he looked at the gem-encrusted sword, Roland.
“This thing’s a real money pit.”
Even without the gem’s will skills, the sword was exceptional on its own, so it wasn’t a total loss.
Zeke stored Roland in his inventory and took out the sealed iron sword containing Arataso.
This sword could also be enhanced, but unfortunately, he didn’t have any fairy stones at the moment, so enhancement wasn’t possible.
Zeke decided to break the seal and speak to Arataso, who was trapped within the sword.
“Arataso, you still there?”
Despite Zeke’s call, Arataso remained silent.
“Could it be that his spirit has returned to the demon realm?”
Zeke gripped the sword and used the sacred flame skill.
Fwoosh!
The iron sword was quickly engulfed in holy fire.
[Aaaargh!]
Arataso, who had been silent, screamed in agony.
Satisfied that Arataso was still present, Zeke extinguished the flames.
“Why didn’t you answer when you’re clearly here?”
Arataso spoke in a low voice.
[I am the foremost champion of the ‘Clear Green Wish’ and an honorable warrior. You hold my spirit captive and insult me. How can you expect me to answer you willingly?]
Zeke pondered Arataso’s words for a moment before reigniting the sacred flames.
Fwoosh!
[Aaaargh!]
Zeke tightened his grip on the sword and spoke.
“Spare me the talk of honor. Stop spouting nonsense and answer when I call.”
Through the flames, Arataso gritted his teeth and replied.
[You… a terrible curse will befall you! My master will inflict a punishment worse than death upon you!]
“Your master can’t even enter this realm, so stop with the empty threats. Who told you to crawl out here in the first place?”
Arataso ground his teeth at Zeke’s words.
Bound and unable to move, there was little he could do.
Finally, a defeated Arataso asked Zeke.
[What will it take for you to release me?]
Zeke grinned at the baited question.
“Well, let me think about it.”
[If you are a knight, uphold your honor!]
“It’s laughable to hear a demon’s servant talk about honor. Listen, Arataso, there is one way you might get out of there.”
[What is it? Tell me.]
Zeke, with a devilish smile, replied.
“Teach me the barrier magic you used.”