The jurisdiction of Ma Hyun High School was filled with many buildings that looked like traditional Korean houses.

To be precise, it was a harmonious blend of modern and traditional, where high-rise buildings incorporated elements of old cultural styles.

The task force vehicles traveled at a distance from each other.

The discipline committee executives, including myself, hid our bodies as much as possible and kept silent.

“It's over there. The radio waves are particularly strange. If we go a bit further, they'll be detected.”

Se-ah, sitting next to me, said.

Soon, the task force arrived at the outskirts of Ma Hyun High School's jurisdiction.

I looked out the window of the moving vehicle. The horizon was filled with empty wilderness, and in one place, there was an abandoned building that looked like construction had been halted.

It was a complete wasteland.

Korea had not fully urbanized the land blessed by the Golden Sheep. To be precise, it had not yet been fully developed.

This area was undeveloped.

It was natural for there to be nothing.

However,

“…The radio waves have become strange.”

As if waiting, the moment we arrived, there was a change.

The communication equipment was disrupted by a strange force, and the radio waves were unnaturally disturbed.

Se-ah looked at me and gave a seductive smile like a fox.

“Looks like they're welcoming us?”

“Seems so.”

This was Moon Chae-yeon's ability.

She had noticed our arrival and started using her unique power.

It was practically a welcome greeting.

Rumble!!

“Aah!”

Suddenly, a strong earthquake shook the task force's vehicles violently.

It had come.

Se-ah was about to fall over. I caught her by the shoulder and held her in my arms.

For a moment, Se-ah's bodyguard, Lee Jung-mi, glared at me sharply, but I ignored it.

There was no other choice.

“Wow. You're reliable, senior?”

Se-ah commented slyly from my arms.

“More importantly, it's coming.”

A large amount of magical energy was approaching.

We immediately turned our heads toward the source of the magical energy.

Dust was rising massively from the barren field.

Something huge was emerging from the ground.

Upon closer inspection, it was shaped like a worm with a round mouth. However, its body was entirely made of machinery.

It was a mechanical device. A very large one.

Bzzzz!

The mouth of the giant mechanical worm opened, and with a soft metallic sound, a swarm of mechanical soldiers poured out.

They were shaped like centaurs, but instead of legs, they had wheels.

Whirring!!

The rapidly spinning wheels.

The mechanical soldiers, spewing mechanical sounds, charged towards us with the dust behind them.

They were ready for full-scale war.

It was clear that Chae-yeon had no intention of underestimating us anymore.

─ Leader, they, they, they are coming...!

I heard Park Min-hyuk's shout from the communication magic tool we brought instead of a walkie-talkie.

‘They must be the soldiers she's been preparing all this time.’

I've seen them in the game too.

There are some of the six sinners whose power increases the longer they take. The technomancer and the gluttonous siblings are prime examples.

The most efficient one is the technomancer Moon Chae-yeon's ability.

She could compose and manifest mechanical soldiers over time and keep them on standby.

Although less dangerous than the gluttonous siblings' ability, in terms of force augmentation and usefulness, Chae-yeon's ability was overwhelming.

Even now, I could feel Chae-yeon's magic in those centaur mechanical soldiers. They were undoubtedly piles of scrap metal born from her unique power.

“…….”

Judging by the magical energy,

They had sheer numbers, but each one's power was not at a level to be wary of.

Those were appetizers.

We couldn't afford to waste time on such insignificant things.

I grabbed the communicator and issued a command.

“Volunteer Club, it's up to you.”

─ Leave it to us.

A reliable answer came from the communicator, from the Volunteer Club leader, Kang Hee-yoon.

─ Hehehe…! Come on…! ─ We will show the righteous blow that crushes evil…! Kaka!

Sinister laughter could be heard beyond the magic tool. It was the Volunteer Club members.

It seemed reasonable to leave it to them.

No, rather, they were perfect for this stage.

The vehicle carrying the Volunteer Club led the way. The other vehicles followed.

Leader Hee-yoon opened the sunroof of the vehicle and stood up. In her hands was a large double-handed axe.

Aseong High School was one of the major academies.

Being one of the top fighters in such a prestigious school, the Volunteer Club leader was a strong individual.

Her power was about to be revealed.

Sssss!

Grayish magic swirled around the axe. They were crystal-shaped particles.

Hee-yoon swung the axe.

Whoosh!!

A sharp, ash-colored energy cut horizontally through the air, swiftly slicing through many mechanical soldiers.

Crack! The mechanical soldiers fell powerlessly like soulless humans.

The unique ability Antithesis. Magic formula type 1, Magic Negation.

A power that neutralizes things made of magic.

Its effect applies only to those made of magic less than half the strength of the magic released by the ability user.

It was a tricky condition.

However, those mechanical soldiers seemed to be made prioritizing quantity over quality. To them, Volunteer Club leader Kang Hee-yoon was practically their nemesis.

But,

─ Ugh…! My throat, it's burning…!

I heard Hee-yoon's lament through the communicator.

The penalty of Antithesis was thirst.

Apparently, the backlash hit her hard instantly due to the large-scale magic formula she wielded at once.

While Hee-yoon gulped down water from the bottle she had prepared, firearms shot out of the vehicle windows.

Immediately after,

Rat-a-tat-tat!!

Many muzzles spat fire.

“Kyakakakak!!” “Keekeke!!”

The sinister laughter of the Volunteer Club members spread as a barrage of magic bullets poured out.

The remaining mechanical soldiers were pierced by the magic bullets before they could retaliate with artillery.

Their shooting skills were precise.

‘Reliable.’

From what I saw in the original, Se-ah didn't bother to recruit useless people into her group.

So I had expected Se-ah's group to be quite capable.

I hadn't expected them to exceed my expectations by this much.

Most people would be frightened in a battlefield like this.

─ Good! We cleared Phase 1 easily...! Huh?

Min-hyuk's voice cut off from the communicator.

Suddenly, with a loud noise, a sense of unease was felt. It was from the direction of the abandoned building.

As I turned my head, I witnessed the strange sight of the abandoned buildings moving gradually.

─ L-leader…!! Th-the buildings…!

I had a feeling something was off.

Buzz!

The holographic video surrounding the abandoned buildings turned off.

Revealing the color and magical flow that appeared when Chae-yeon gave birth to machinery with her ability.

Those buildings were not made of cement but of magical steel.

Rumble!! Bzzz!

The abandoned buildings assembled here and there, forming a giant mechanical golem.

Whirr! The creature lifted its head, emitting a red LED glare.

Another of Chae-yeon's mechanical weapons.

It was an Iron Golem.

─ That's…!

Buzz!

“?”

Suddenly, Min-hyuk's voice cut off, and noise spread from the communicator.

Then, a new voice was heard.

─ Can you hear me?

It was Moon Chae-yeon's voice.

My eyes narrowed, and everyone inside the vehicle was surprised.

This was communication equipment that used magic, considering that the radio waves would be disturbed by Chae-yeon's ability. Magic was replacing the function of wireless frequencies.

A hacker could interfere without permission if they figured out the structure of the magic.

─ Welcome. I didn't expect you to come looking for me like this. “Your welcome greeting seems grand.” ─ Think of it positively. I decided not to underestimate you.

Boom!

As the Iron Golem's massive foot stomped the ground, the earth shook. The golem extended a large fist towards us.

Whirr! Clack!

Cannons emerged from the golem's arm, all aiming at us.

Those weapons would fire magic projectiles independently developed by Chae-yeon. She was an excellent technician.

─ Well, try to block it if you can. I put a lot of effort into that golem. “…Alright.”

In that case,

“I'll handle that.”

─ Oh, you're making it interesting?

I happened to have something I wanted to test.

Se-ah leaned her head towards me.

“Senior, are you sure? No matter what, that's a construct made with immense magic power. I can sense tremendous magic from the main gun.”

It was hard to tell if she was worried or curious about my ability.

I only had one thing to say.

“It's fine. I can handle it.”

“…Wow.”

Se-ah murmured in admiration.

I opened the sunroof and leaped onto the top of the vehicle.

Balancing myself on the equipment loaded on the vehicle, I prevented myself from being blown away by the wind.

Standing up, I stared at the Iron Golem.

There was quite a distance between us.

I summoned my magic.

I had to clear the regret I felt every time I recalled my battle with Moon Chae-yeon, here and now.

─ Then goodbye~.

Bang!!

The cannons fired dozens of times.

Dense and massive magic projectiles streaked across the air, drawing parabolas toward us.

Each projectile, trailing bright magic light like a comet's tail.

Those trajectories of dense magic projectiles would undoubtedly reach us. If so, we would be engulfed in explosions and suffer fatal injuries.

With that level of magic density, the area would surely be devastated.

But I thought I could block it.

What I had repeatedly imagined would be realized here.

I extended my arm and pointed my index finger.

Purple magic flowed from my fingertips.

The power to control space.

Coordinate setting.

I moved my finger sideways, causing a rift.

Rip!

Following the movement of my finger, a long slit like a reptilian pupil appeared in the air about 100 meters away.

With a strange tearing sound, the gap widened, forming a mysterious crack in black and purple harmony.

The radius was beyond my field of view.

The density of that magic was not inferior to the entire barrage of those magic projectiles.

─ Huh?

I heard Chae-yeon's puzzled voice from the communicator.

The barrage of projectiles, hurtling fiercely, all plunged into the rift.

Thunk.

An empty silence followed.

A moment of calm ensued. The rift swallowed everything and vanished like a TV screen turning off.

Swish, I lowered my index finger and set a new coordinate.

At that moment.

Rip!

Suddenly, the same rift appeared behind the Iron Golem.

Sensing danger, the Iron Golem hurriedly turned around, but its massive body was far from agile.

The sound of the projectiles tearing through the air echoed again.

Return to sender.

Boom!

The numerous magic projectiles fired by the Iron Golem shot out of the rift and rained down on the golem.

Each projectile hit the enormous target easily, causing massive explosions.

The explosion filled the barren field.

The relentless barrage of fierce magic projectiles and the massive explosions eventually consumed the Iron Golem. It was an immense firepower.

Slowly, the Iron Golem began to tilt.

Boom!!

The Iron Golem fell helplessly, and a massive cloud of dust rose, enveloping it.

The unique ability to control space. Magic formula type 3, Reverse Dimension.

A technique that manipulates space to return an enemy's long-range attack.

It was difficult to control, and failure was likely if the enemy's attack was too powerful, but I succeeded.

It was an achievement I couldn't have imagined before.

“Wow….”

I heard a voice of admiration from inside the open sunroof. Not only Se-ah but also the members of her group looked surprised.

After today, my ability was bound to be revealed. It was inevitable that Se-ah saw it.

A small rift appeared silently next to me.

A small hand reached out from it and held mine. It was Geumyang's hand.

“Thank you.” “This is no big deal.”

Geumyang replied indifferently from beyond the rift.

While passing the penalty to Geumyang for a moment, I quietly watched the Iron Golem.

As the dust settled, the neutralized Iron Golem was revealed.

It's done.

I brought the communicator to my mouth.

“Is this the best you can do?”

I paused for a moment, enjoying the breeze with my eyes closed.

And then I continued.

“Pathetic.”

Chae-yeon was a technician.

If I easily defeated and dismissed her so-called masterpiece as pathetic, her reaction would be predictable.

─ …You son of a bitch.

It was a straightforward and savage tone, revealing the wound to her pride without restraint.

“Hmm.”

I nodded once.

It was the reaction I had hoped for.

Soon, Chae-yeon would show me what I wanted.

Buzz!

At that moment, noise spread from the communicator again. Simultaneously, a voice was heard from below the sunroof.

“Hacking, intercepted.”

It was Lee Jung-mi, Se-ah's bodyguard.

Her voice held a slight tremor.

─ Leader, can you hear me!?

Min-hyuk's urgent voice came from the communicator.

“I can hear you.”

As Geumyang's hand disappeared, I went back down the sunroof.

Jung-mi, who had been glaring at me earlier, glanced at me meaningfully through the rearview mirror. The driver looked surprised.

Se-ah looked at me with admiration.

“Is that your unique ability, senior?” “Yes.” “Amazing~. Seeing you beat the necromancer, I had a feeling… But this is an unbelievable power you've awakened.” “Well, yeah….”

I didn't deny it.

“We'll talk about it later. Let's keep going.” “Okay.”

Se-ah replied with a bright smile.

At that moment,

─ This is Park Min-hyuk, amazed again by the leader's overwhelming ability…! What now!? It's not stopping…? Huh?

Min-hyuk stopped fussing and seemed surprised again.

Beep! Beep!

The detection equipment loaded on our vehicle began to emit ominous sounds.

It was a welcome sound to me.

“What is this…?”

Jung-mi, Se-ah's bodyguard, looked at the radar in panic.

The reason was obvious.

─ L-leader…! This is bad! There's a massive magical reaction suddenly from underground…! “What's the range?” ─ The entire area!!

Min-hyuk shouted in a terrified voice.

The radar displayed on the detection equipment showed the entire area painted in a deep red. It meant a powerful threat loomed over this entire area.

“Everyone, get ready for battle.”

I said, continuously trying to set coordinates underground and preheating my magic.

“The chimera is coming.”

Moon Chae-yeon's masterpiece, the mechanical weapon chimera, was about to be deployed.