Episode 52
“This is insane…”
The scene before him was nothing short of horrific.
Regardless of age, gender, or race, the remnants of various human experiments were laid bare.
Zeke was trembling with rage when it happened.
“Who goes there!”
A wizard in a lab robe shouted at Zeke.
The robe was stained with blood and debris, suggesting the wizard had just finished an experiment.
Zeke addressed the wizard.
“I’ll give you one chance. Tell me what you’ve done here, and I’ll at least grant you a quick death.”
Realizing Zeke was an intruder, the wizard extended his hand.
“Poison Fog!”
The wizard, likely skilled in poison magic, immediately conjured a toxic mist to attack Zeke.
[Detected: Magic-synthesized poison.]
[The poison exceeds the immunity of your constitution.]
[You are now poisoned.]
The magical poison was beyond the protection of his immunity. However, Zeke’s healing factor worked faster than the poison could take hold, rapidly restoring his body.
Drawing his sword, Bahamut, Zeke charged forward.
“Gah!”
Before the wizard could react, Zeke’s blade sliced through him.
Watching the wizard fall lifelessly, Zeke gritted his teeth.
“Too easy a death for him.”
Though his healing factor allowed him to move without issue, he couldn’t leave the poison unchecked. He retrieved an antidote potion from his inventory and drank it.
Once the poison was neutralized and his body returned to normal, Zeke pressed on deeper into the laboratory.
Passing by tables strewn with experimental subjects, he entered a space lined with various reagents and equipment.
More wizards were there.
“An intruder!”
Before they could react, flames erupted from Zeke’s sword.
Whoosh!
The pure fire consumed the wizards instantly, leaving them no time to scream.
“Mercy is wasted on monsters like you.”
Zeke set fire to the area where the grotesque experiments lay, then searched the wizards’ quarters, gathering experimental data and records into his inventory.
He even tore down sealed items to take with him, planning to examine them later in a safe house.
‘If Princess Melissa was right about the Red Plague being magically engineered, it might have been created here.’
Just as Zeke finished torching the lab and was about to leave the dungeon, a dense poison fog rolled toward him.
[Detected: Magic-synthesized poison.]
Seeing the system’s warning, Zeke quickly retreated.
From within the fog, someone emerged.
“Who dares to defile my laboratory?”
An old man in a black robe.
Zeke noted the emblem and the number of rings on the robe.
‘A scorpion emblem with six rings. Must be an elder of the Scorpion Clan.’
The emblem indicated the wizard’s affiliation, and the rings denoted his achieved circle. A six-circle wizard was typically an elder of a renowned clan or a division leader in a mage corps.
The old man raised his hand, pointing at Zeke.
“Who sent you?”
Zeke didn’t bother to reply, charging forward with Bahamut. He knew there was no benefit in exchanging words with a wizard during battle.
Vroom!
An aura blade surged from Zeke’s sword.
Startled, the old man quickly cast a spell.
Crack!
The old man’s body crumbled like sand, evading Zeke’s aura blade, only to reform at a distance.
Before the old man could cast again, Zeke activated his magic reflection skill.
Buzz!
A field of magic reflection enveloped Zeke.
The old man frowned as his magic failed to respond to his will.
“Damn you! Are you a pureblood Draker?”
A pureblood Draker, with their magic disruption abilities, was a natural enemy of wizards.
In haste, the old man pulled something from his robe and tore it.
A magic circle of sand formed on the ground, and from it, a synthetic chimera emerged.
Zeke grimaced at the sight of the chimera.
‘The Scorpion Clan is always a pain to deal with.’
Based in the desert, the Scorpion Clan was a group of dark wizards who specialized in forbidden magic that others shunned.
They not only created synthetic chimeras and poisons but also researched forbidden methods to create golems and control the dead.
Because of their malevolence, merely being associated with the Scorpion Clan was enough to warrant execution in the Holy Kingdom.
The fact that the Scorpion Clan and the Empire were conducting human experiments together was a scandal that could shake the entire continent.
“Rrrr!”
The chimera, a mix of a desert scorpion’s tail, a southern jungle shark dragon, and a griffin’s legs, bared its teeth at Zeke.
Its saliva, seemingly toxic, sizzled as it hit the ground.
The old man looked at Zeke with a smug expression.
“My greatest masterpiece! Not even a Draker can withstand it!”
The chimera slowly advanced on Zeke.
Zeke used his dragon’s majesty skill, effective against beasts.
The chimera flinched in surprise.
A message window appeared.
[You have instilled fear in a lesser dragonkin.]
[Unique ability: Dragonkin Domination activated.]
[Would you like to subjugate the target dragonkin?]
It seemed the chimera, based on a shark dragon, was recognized as a dragonkin.
Zeke chose to subjugate it.
[You have subjugated a lesser dragonkin.]
His unique ability had worked.
The chimera growled lowly, looking at Zeke with a mix of fear and reverence.
Zeke commanded the chimera.
“Attack him.”
At his command, the chimera turned and charged at the old man.
Caught off guard by the sudden betrayal, the old man panicked.
“No! Not me, attack him…!”
Unable to cast spells properly due to Zeke’s magic reflection, the old man was bitten by the chimera and died instantly.
Reflecting on how easily it was handled, Zeke searched the dead wizard’s robe.
He found identification and other belongings.
“Ghurab al-Rumani? Wasn’t he the second-in-command of the Scorpion Clan?”
For someone of such infamy, it was a rather anticlimactic end.
Scorpion Clan wizards typically excelled in ambushes and assassination, using magic effective in chaotic battles.
They were adept at striking first, usually surrounded by guards, but in a secret lab where security was paramount, it seemed only wizards were present.
Zeke gathered all of Ghurab’s belongings and incinerated the body as he had before.
The chimera, observing Zeke, seemed to decide the situation was over and rubbed its head against him.
Amused by its antics, Zeke was prompted by another message.
[Would you like to name the subjugated dragonkin? A named dragonkin can be summoned by the dominator at any time.]
After some thought, Zeke named the chimera.
“Since your former master was Ghurab, let’s call you Ghurab.”
Ghurab seemed displeased with the name, but it was too late to change it.
Registered as Ghurab, the chimera dissolved into sand and disappeared into Zeke’s shadow.
[Summoned creature Ghurab registered.]
Unexpectedly, Zeke had gained a new subordinate.
Having secured the chimera, Zeke finally exited the dungeon at a leisurely pace.
Over the next ten days, Zeke evaded the pursuit of the Pavela Cartel and returned to the territory of the McCain Cartel.
He arrived at Don Juan’s mansion and faced the man himself.
“Truly remarkable. Astonishing.”
Don Juan, cigar in hand, looked at Zeke with admiration.
“Care for a drink, Zeke Murray?”
“No, thank you.”
Don Juan rose from his seat, addressing Zeke.
“To be honest, I didn’t think you’d succeed in this mission.”
“I don’t make promises I can’t keep.”
“Indeed, you’ve proven that. It’s rare to find someone so trustworthy these days.”
“Then will you believe me now?”
Don Juan nodded.
“A brave warrior deserves respect. I’ve always cherished and valued warriors like my own children. I hope you understand that.”
Zeke inwardly scoffed at Don Juan’s words.
‘What a load of crap.’
In the McCain Cartel, at least a few thousand had died as mere cannon fodder.
Knowing the brutal nature of the cartel, Zeke found Don Juan’s pretentious words laughable.
Patting Zeke on the shoulder, Don Juan continued.
“Zeke Murray, as a token of trust, I’ve prepared this for you.”
He retrieved a box from his desk and handed it to Zeke.
From its size and weight, Zeke had a good idea of its contents.
Opening it confirmed his suspicion.
‘The head of the Syndicate’s chairman.’
Glancing around, Zeke saw five more boxes.
Six syndicate leaders had come to McCain for Don Juan’s birthday.
“Do you like the gift?”
Zeke closed the box and nodded.
“I see your trust, boss.”
Don Juan smiled with satisfaction.
He then slowly returned to his chair, adopting a more serious demeanor.
“There’s a bit of a problem, you see.”
“What kind of problem, sir?”
“It seems the Pavela Cartel has caught wind of our attack. They’re spouting nonsense about us deploying knights and wizards from the central continent.”
Zeke’s bait had been eagerly snapped up by the Pavela side.
Don Juan turned to Zeke. “Zeke Murray, I want to send a clearer message to those filthy pirates. They need to understand that the Mekain Cartel rules the southern continent.”
Zeke nodded in agreement. “I’ll go to Pavela and convey your intentions personally.”
“What? Are you serious?”
Don Juan was taken aback. He hadn’t expected Zeke to volunteer for such a dangerous mission.
Zeke continued, “In return, I ask that you support Kay. She needs the backing to fill the void left in the syndicate.”
Don Juan nodded thoughtfully. “Yes, we need to tidy things up on our end to ensure our goods are delivered properly.”
“With your support, the syndicate’s issues will be resolved swiftly.”
Don Juan nodded again. “Very well, Zeke Murray. I’ll personally ensure she has a strong patron.”
He clapped his hands, and from the seemingly empty wall, a man emerged. He had slicked-back hair, an eye patch, and wore a worn military uniform. Zeke recognized him immediately.
‘Simon Zapatero.’
He was one of the Mekain Cartel’s top hitmen and a notorious outlaw along the southern continent’s border.
Don Juan patted Simon on the shoulder. “I’ll assign our best hitman and his unit to assist you. They’ll be invaluable for this mission.”
Simon gave Zeke a curt nod, his expression unreadable. In a past life, Simon had taught Zeke the southern style of martial arts and assassination techniques.
Zeke addressed Don Juan, “I’ll head to Pavela as soon as the unit is ready.”
“Immediately?”
“The longer we wait, the stronger Pavela’s defenses will become.”
Don Juan nodded in agreement. “Alright. Simon, make sure the mission is a success.”
Simon responded with another nod.
As Zeke watched Don Juan, a sharp smile played on his lips. ‘Don Juan, you’re sinking into a quagmire, and you don’t even realize it.’
Footsteps echoed through the charred remains of the dungeon as someone entered.
A man with a mane of fiery red hair strode in. He was Abel Draker, known across the continent as the Lion Sword.
He crouched down, examining the scorched traces with keen eyes. Behind him, William, heir to the Siemens family, appeared.
“Abel, the investigation’s already done. The Imperial Intelligence Agency combed through everything. There’s nothing left to find.”
Abel ignored him, focusing on the faint traces on the floor and walls, piecing them together in his mind. Finally, he spoke.
“There was only one person here, William.”
William was taken aback. “What do you mean, one person? There had to be at least a unit of knights and wizards…”
“No, I’m certain. Someone of at least a Red Knight’s caliber fought here.”
“What? A Red Knight in this backwater? That’s impossible.”
William stared at Abel in disbelief. Abel stood, letting the blackened soil fall from his hand.
“There are signs the Intelligence Agency hastily covered things up. Something’s going on in the Empire that we don’t know about.”
He dropped the soil back to the ground and turned to William. “We need to find out what the Imperial Intelligence Agency is hiding.”
“You want to investigate the Intelligence Agency? How do you plan to handle the fallout?”
Abel’s eyes gleamed. “There’s something here we can’t afford to miss. My instincts tell me so, William.”
He looked at the traces on the ground. “To hold both the Empire and the Draker family in my grasp.”