Chapter 68

 

The world slowed down.

 

Everything around him slowed down as if one second became an entire hour.

 

Only one thing continued to function normally.

 

It was Seo Woojin’s mind.

 

An unfathomable demonic energy emanated from the jewel in his hand.

 

‘It is not just magi.’

 

Due to the overwhelming magi, no one could feel it, but there was also a small amount of mana mixed in.

 

Seo Woojin could feel it clearly.

 

Whether it was because he held the jewel or because he was the ‘Demon King’, he couldn’t tell.

 

The only certainty was that magi and mana were slowly being absorbed into his body.

 

In an instant, it filled his body to the brim, and yet, it gradually began to compress.

 

‘Ugh!’

 

Seo Woojin groaned inwardly.

 

As the compression and absorption continued, Seo Woojin felt a hellish pain.

 

It was like a wild horse running through his veins.

 

The pain felt as if his body would burst at any moment.

 

However, there was no way to stop it.

 

The unprecedented mana was relentlessly digging into Seo Woojin.

 

‘My, my mind.’

 

His vision began to blur.

 

The body that had just fully recovered from the recent level-up was twisting and contorting.

 

It felt like he was on the verge of losing consciousness due to the intense pain.

 

How much time had passed?

 

Since time seemed to move slowly, it was impossible to know exactly how much time had passed.

 

It felt as if several days had passed.

 

‘I can’t take it anymore…’

 

Finally, he reached his limit.

 

The magic power that had been compressed over and over again stopped being absorbed, as if Seo Woojin’s body realized that it could no longer absorb it.

 

Thud, thud!

 

Instead, it began to expand and solidify.

 

So that it could receive even more mana.

 

As a result, Seo Woojin was in pain as if his entire body had been torn and broken.

 

The pain he felt while absorbing mana was almost like child’s play.

 

‘Ah, ahhhh!’

 

He let out a soft cry.

 

Seo Woojin barely held on to his fading consciousness.

 

‘I-I have to control it…’

 

Instinctively, he focused his mind to control the mana.

 

He needed to control this enormous energy.

 

However, the mana did not obey Seo Woojin’s will.

 

The mana circuit that was barely holding on began to tear apart under its wild intensity.

 

‘Kuugh!’

 

An overwhelming pain that turned his head white surged through his mind.

 

‘No, this can’t be!’

 

Seo Woojin desperately tried to control the raging mana, but it was not enough.

 

The rampaging mana tore through Seo Woojin’s body, shredding it to pieces.

 

Despair.

 

‘Am I going to die like this?’

 

It was when Seo Woojin, in the midst of excruciating pain, contemplated death.

 

‘…Magi?

 

The magi that had been dormant began to move.

 

The Magi began to heal Seo Woojin’s broken body.

 

Uh-huh

 

The magi that Seo Woojin had felt before were unpleasant and repulsive.

 

But not now.

 

Instead, it felt purer than mana.

 

With each pass of the magi, the injured body healed. The torn mana circuit grew wider and stronger, and the broken bones and muscles were restored to their ideal form.

 

Then, the mana that seemed to be bursting out of Seo Woojin’s body slowly began to calm down.

 

It flowed gracefully through the expanded mana circuit, scattered throughout his body, and was absorbed.

 

A colossal, unimaginable amount of mana had settled in Seo Woojin’s body.

 

However, Seo Woojin was unaware of it.

 

The feeling of comfort caused him to unconsciously lose consciousness.

 

Seo Woojin’s surroundings collapsed when he closed his eyes.

 

The ruins disappeared, revealing a forest.

 

“Mr. Woojin!”

 

“Uncle!”

 

Concerned voices echoed through the forest.

 

* * *

 

“Uh.”

 

Seo Woojin’s eyelids trembled.

 

And soon, he started to slowly open his eyes.

 

“Mister! He opened his eyes! Oh, Mister opened his eyes!”

 

As soon as he stood up, he burst out laughing at Lee Ji-ah’s commotion.

 

“Where is this…?”

 

He had apparently lost consciousness in the ruins, but this seemed to be a different place.

 

There were no such lights on the ceiling of this corridor.

 

“Wait a moment to speak! I’ll call the others first!”

 

Instead of answering, Lee Ji-ah rushed out with a whoosh.

 

‘So noisy.’

 

Watching Lee Ji-ah’s back for a moment, Seo Woojin closed his eyes again.

 

He wasn’t sure exactly, but it felt like he had escaped from there.

 

‘It is probably because Rosie Ruby died, right?’

 

There was no other way to explain it.

 

“Fortunately.”

 

There seemed to be no way, but he somehow managed to escape.

 

Seo Woojin thought that he should thank Baek Siwoo soon.

 

Honestly, he wasn’t someone he wanted to get close to, but it was true that he had received help from him.

 

“But what are these energies?”

 

Mana and Magi.

 

Thinking about the two energies that had erupted when the jewel inside Rosie Ruby broke, it was truly absurdly huge.

 

If Rosie Ruby had been able to use all of them, Baek Siwoo would never have been able to win.

 

“No, we would have all died before that.”

 

Fortunately, that demon couldn’t control those energies.

 

It seemed more accurate to consider Rosie Ruby’s energy and the energy of the jewel separately.

 

‘Is it the power that built the ruins?’

 

That might be a valid way to look at it.

 

The jewel shattered and the ruins disappeared as well, allowing them to escape.

 

Seo Woojin decided to think that way.

 

Who left the jewel, how the energy inside it was absorbed by him, there were many unanswered questions, but he deliberately erased them from his mind.

 

‘It has something to do with Magi.’

 

He had thought about investigating the identity of the jewel just in case, but if it turned out that Magi had been absorbed into Seo Woojin’s body, it might lead to an unpleasant situation.

 

‘Even if I investigate, I should proceed carefully’

 

With this thought, Seo Woojin opened his eyes.

 

He then checked his physical condition.

 

It wasn’t bad.

 

No, not only was it not bad, it was better than ever.

 

Remembering the pain he felt before he lost consciousness, he stood up from his seat.

 

“Huh?”

 

Seo Woojin tilted his head.

 

Something felt a little strange.

 

“My field of vision…”

 

It got higher.

 

It was a little, but no doubt his field of vision had increased compared to normal.

 

Unconsciously, Seo Woojin’s eyes widened as he lowered his head.

 

“My body feels better too.”

 

Seo Woojin’s physique was originally good.

 

After the hard training in the northern regions, it couldn’t be anything but good.

 

But now it was different from before.

 

It was like a sculpture.

 

The densely packed muscles were compressed to the point where even a needle could not penetrate, and the skin seemed to shine with a glossy sheen.

 

“Huh.”

 

He couldn’t understand what was happening.

 

‘Could it be related to that incident?’

 

Seo Woojin circulated his mana.

 

“Huh!”

 

Then he was surprised.

 

A colossal amount of mana wrapped around his body.

 

If his previous mana was like a stream, now it was like a vast, boundless sea.

 

Faced with the unimaginable amount of mana, he couldn’t close his mouth.

 

Even though he only absorbed a tiny portion of the mana emanating from the gem, the amount was still overwhelming.

 

But the surprise only lasted for a moment.

 

A smile appeared on Seo Woojin’s lips.

 

If it’s at this level, it’s definitely not inferior even compared to Baek Siwoo.

 

No, in terms of mana alone, he might be comparable to Van Slaine.

 

Is that all?

 

It seemed more appropriate to describe the changed body as evolution rather than growth.

 

The overflowing power, almost to the point of spilling over, gave Seo Woojin an unprecedented sense of fullness.

 

“Even if I fight Rosie Ruby again, I will win.”

 

It wasn’t just a casual remark.

 

Right now, it seems that it is possible to win without even using the skills of the ‘Demon King’.

 

Seo Woojin smiled faintly and picked up the shirt that was lying next to the bed.

 

Since Lee Ji-ah had gone to deliver the news, others would be coming soon.

 

He didn’t want to greet them half naked for no reason.

 

As he put on a freshly washed white shirt and buttoned it, the door burst open.

 

“Mr. Woojin.”

 

The first person to enter the room was undoubtedly Irene.

 

She tried not to show it, but her face was full of concern.

 

“Are you okay? What happened all of a sudden?”

 

Next was Kang Byeong-gyu.

 

“Are you okay?”

 

Even Kim Dahye asked about Seo Woojin’s well-being.

 

After that, people came in one by one.

 

Lee Ji-ah, Yu Hongseol, Jin Tae-seong and even Ludian.

 

“I’m fine.”

 

Seo Woojin looked at them and smiled as if to tell them not to worry.

 

It was not just to reassure them.

 

In fact, his condition was better than ever.

 

“We were worried because you suddenly collapsed.”

 

Ludian approached.

 

“Is there a problem with the gem…?”

 

Since Seo Woojin collapsed as soon as he touched the red gem, it was a natural question.

 

“I don’t know what happened either.”

 

When he grabbed the jewel, he felt a strong shock and said that he lost consciousness.

 

He didn’t say anything about absorbing mana and magi.

 

“Is that so?”

 

Ludian seemed to have more questions to ask, but perhaps aware of the stares around him, he closed his mouth.

 

“By the way, what happened while I was unconscious?”

 

“I’ll explain!”

 

Of course, it was Lee Ji-ah who answered Seo Woojin’s question.

 

She looked at him as if asking for permission, her expression eager to speak.

 

“Yeah, sure.”

 

Nodding with a smile, Lee Ji-ah excitedly began to unravel the story.

 

“When you touched the jewel, the magic power suddenly burst out! Everyone was surprised and stunned, and then the ruins started to collapse, you know?”

 

It wasn’t much different from what Seo Woojin had expected.

 

“Unfortunately, we couldn’t find the other knights.”

 

When the ruins collapsed, the people inside returned to the original forest.

 

However, some members of the search party, including Ludian’s subordinates, were missing.

 

No one said anything, but everyone noticed.

 

Those who didn’t show up had all died.

 

“Oh, and Baek Siwoo Oppa’s friends are all safe.”

 

Seo Woojin, who had a dark expression on his face when he thought of the flesh, sighed in relief as if it were good news.

 

“That’s a relief.”

 

Lim Tae-eun disappeared after a short meeting.

 

Unlike her friend Seong Yura, she was polite and instinctively protective.

 

Seo Woojin was worried because even her pet ‘Dragon Horn’ disappeared, so it was really fortunate that she was safe.

 

“This is the academy.”

 

“Academy?”

 

Although he knew it wasn’t the Demonic Realm, he didn’t expect to return to the Academy.

 

“How did we get back?”

 

“One of the empire’s mages, the uncle with ice magic, came to find us. He opened the gate and we came straight here!”

 

At the mention of a mage, Seo Woojin’s face showed a strange expression. 

 

This was because he had never seen a real magician who was not a hero.

 

“That’s right. He asked us to let him know when you wake up. I’ll go see that cold-blooded uncle right away!”

 

Seo Woojin was curious about the mage who changed from an ice mage to a cold-blooded one.

 

‘Good timing.’

 

Coincidentally, Seo Woojin also had some business with the mage.

 

It was an opportunity to find out about the mysterious pattern engraved on the cover of the ‘Chronicles of the Demon King of Another World’.