The core of the Genesis Altar was a fortress that surpassed imagination in its enormity.
It was made of a white metal of unknown material, and it looked like it had carved out the brilliant light itself.
More than anything, the altar was over 100km in size, and its existence rivaled that of a satellite.
It usually hid its appearance in the gaps between dimensions, but when a situation arose that threatened the Mental Realm to the point of tilting the celestial axis, it would reveal itself directly.
So far, there were only a handful of times when the altar showed its appearance. The altar’s core was more symbolic than anything else, and what should be truly feared was the suppression power of the system that the altar had established.
Moreover, that was the common perception of the beings who lived in the Mental Realm.
But the perception of the few who had seen the altar move was different.
When the altar moved, it always caused a huge bloodbath, regardless of its intention.
The situation of the Salio Empire proved that.
“What, what is that!”“Is it an enemy?”
Elder Central, the city that could be called the center of the Salio Empire.
The early morning sun should have risen over Elder Central, but now it was swallowed by darkness.
The huge structure floating in the sky.
The fortress of the altar not only occupied the entire city, but also stretched out beyond it, blocking all the sunlight that reached Elder Central and covering the whole city with shadows.
Underneath it, citizens screamed and ran away, and the soldiers of the Salio Empire looked up at the fortress with pale faces.
Soon after, the bottom of the fortress lit up and countless bombardments rained down and swept over Elder Central.
The defensive magic circles installed throughout the city activated and tried to block the shelling, but the firepower of the fortress far surpassed them.
The defense system of Elder Central, which could boast of being able to withstand even a fight between Executors, was nothing but a toy in front of the fortress of the altar.
In an instant, skyscrapers turned to dust and disappeared, and all the people who lived inside were swept away.
“Where is His Majesty! Where is His Majesty!”
“Fight back! Shoot down that huge fortress!”
The Salio Empire raised a flag of counterattack as if it would not just take it lying down.
Airships rose up and headed towards the fortress, and small airships filled the sky. All remaining magic corps mobilated and flew up with wings of light.
Even though there were no lords or executors, the power of the Salio Empire was formidable.
If their opponent was not the altar, that is.
Clang!
A huge sound of something falling rang out and soon after a huge door opened on the bottom of the fortress and light poured out.
The survivors who watched that scene from below forgot to run away and stood blankly in their places looking at that scene.
Soon after, something revealed itself behind the dazzling light.
“Angels?”
They looked like angels from myths, descending with wings made of white light.
But they were not real angels.
They looked like they were wearing hard armor, their bodies were thin and their arms and legs were strangely long.
The name of those white beings sent by the altar was Elohim.
They poured out through the door and immediately glowed red eyes and began to mutter something.
They did not know what language they used so they could not understand their meaning, but those who were on site felt that it was not a friendly attitude at all.
Soon after, a huge power burst out from Elohim and swept over everything around them.
“Aaargh!”
“Evade! Evade!”
“Kill them!”
A war broke out immediately after.
No, could it be called a war?
The fight was a one-sided massacre by Elohim.
“They’re too fast!”
“Pull yourself together! Don’t run away and… cough!”
The well-trained soldiers of Salio Empire collapsed helplessly before Elohim.
They had shining wings, flew in the sky and pierced everything with spears of light. They were like divine punishment for fallen humans.
Airships crashed to ground with flames and magic corps were impaled by Elohim’s spears and hung loosely.
The main force of empire was annihilated in less than 30 minutes. Blood rained from sky.
“Aah, ugh.”
Those who watched that scene from ground could not do anything but be terrified.
The sight of Elohim descending slowly with white flesh covered in red blood was too horrific to call them angels.
“Monsters.”
Someone said that.
Fear does not come from cracks in ground.
True fear comes from sky with light.
“We have to run…”
“Save me… cough!”
Spears of white light rained down like rain on ground.
Elohim without emotions showed no mercy. They just destroyed Elder Central and slaughtered mercilessly like machines that had commands inputted.
Citizens screamed and died. Some begged for mercy, some shouted the name of God, and some asked for help from the wicked emperor.
But the emperor did not come forward.
In the royal chamber of Elder Central, the emperor of Salio Empire who had extended his life with life extension devices was already dead.
There was a small hole in his forehead.
“That was close.”
Outside Elder Central.
At a distance that barely did not touch the fortress of the altar, Yoo Young-min retrieved his sniper rifle and sighed with relief.
He finished preparing to leave right away and on his shoulder there was a golden sphere floating.
It was the fragment of Codex that he had killed and retrieved from the emperor of Salio Empire.
‘Yikes.’
Yoo Young-min looked at Elder Central, which had become a sea of fire, and quickly hid his body.
A squad of Elohim was roaming the sky not far from where he was.
They were currently wiping out all the cities under Salio Empire’s rule centered on Elder Central.
Anyone who was in their range would be killed as soon as they were caught.
Yoo Young-min knew that fact and moved carefully so as not to be noticed by Elohim.
‘I didn’t expect them to come here so soon.’
He was more than 100km away from Elder Central.
He had sniped and killed the emperor in the royal chamber in the midst of that chaos.
‘It’s lucky that the emperor was sitting still and couldn’t move.’
Otherwise, it would have taken a lot of time to snipe the emperor.
He would have had to inevitably narrow the distance to Elder Central, and he would have been exposed to Elohim right away.
‘Maxwell’s correction helped too, otherwise I would have been chased by the altar too.’
He was already far away from Elder Central, but he moved even further away just in case and soon realized that it was safe around him.
This should be enough.
Yoo Young-min activated his long-range teleportation skill.
‘I’m here. I’ve retrieved it.’
[Indeed. A splendid and clean job. To pierce the emperor’s forehead from over 100km away.]
‘…Were you watching?’
[Don’t be so upset. I had to be ready in case something went wrong. It’s not bad to be prepared, right? Especially when the fortress that can be called the core of the altar is floating right now.]
‘…’
Yoo Young-min was annoyed, but he couldn’t argue or get angry.
Rationally speaking, the other party was right in every way. But reason and emotion were separate things.
He felt irritated every time he talked to him, like a kind of reflex that he couldn’t help.
‘Don’t forget. We are only temporary allies. It wouldn’t be strange if we turned against each other again. So don’t provoke me too much.’
[I’m sorry if you felt that way. I didn’t mean to. You are one of our most excellent partners, after all.]
‘…Fine. I’ll send you the fragment as soon as possible.’
He was about to cut off the connection, but the other party spoke first.
[By the way, I heard the news. He came back, didn’t he?]
‘…’
[Don’t be like that. Or do you still hate me?]
‘Still? You said still?’
Yoo Young-min’s voice was filled with rage like a roar.
The other party, the false prophet, calmly replied to Yoo Young-min’s attitude.
[I told you. It was a necessary thing.]
‘Even so, it doesn’t erase what you did. If you’re trying to rationalize it, give it up.’
[It’s not rationalization, it’s sincerity. It was inevitable for the sake of the future. A kind of necessary evil, if you will. You must have realized it too, living in the Mental Realm as the King of Mercenaries. There are things in the world that can’t be solved by just following the right path. Sometimes, you have to walk a dirty road to achieve something.]
‘…So, is this also part of that prophecy you’re talking about?’
[Who knows.]
The false prophet, Jin Cheongun, gave a vague answer.
Yoo Young-min cut him off sharply.
‘That’s enough. There’s no point in talking more with you. I’m hanging up.’
[As you wish.]
‘But remember this. You will pay dearly for what you’ve done so far, sooner or later. Jin Cheongun.’
The false prophet, Jin Cheongun, smiled silently at Yoo Young-min’s warning that was almost a threat.
[I know.]
He didn’t say it out loud, but he was surely saying this.
[That’s what I want too.]
***
Yu-hyun stood on the roof of a building and looked down at the cityscape.
He had just heard the news of Salio Empire’s destruction. And five satellite cities around Elder Central had disappeared without a trace.
By the altar, of course.
‘Genesis Altar.’
The origin of the Genesis System that suppressed the world.
A mysterious group that no one knew who made it or what it existed for.
He had never seen them move directly like this before.
‘Why did they suddenly move? And against Salio Empire?’
He knew that Salio Empire had risen to oppose the group of gods, Great Sage.
And their potential was definitely dangerous.
They had made myth-grade weapons even though they were not Divine Spirits but humans.
And not only with pure mystical power or magic, but with science created by humans.
In a way, their destruction was similar to the divine punishment that destroyed Babel Tower in Genesis.
But in Mental Realm, and until now they had maintained neutrality or silence, it was unprecedented for them to intervene directly like this.
Yu-hyun recalled the beings he saw in his dream today.
The white being and the black being.
‘Maybe this incident is also related to them.’
Then what are their identities? And what is their purpose?
He had so much to do, but new things kept happening and his head got tangled up.
If only he had time, but knowing the future where the real end of the world would come to this world, even that was urgent.
It was as if an invisible giant hourglass was constantly running without stopping. Even if he tried to block it with his hand, the sand would endlessly slip through his fingers.
As he was deep in thought, someone entered through the roof door.
“Are you here?”
“…Choi Do-yoon.”
Yu-hyun replied curtly to Choi Do-yoon who had not yet recovered from his injury.
“What are you doing here with your injury?”
“You’re still grumpy.”
“Don’t you know why?”
“I understand that. Even if I didn’t have any memories of that time, I don’t think I could get along well with you either.”
“…You’re pretty confident.”
Yu-hyun was speechless at Choi Do-yoon’s attitude, but he also admitted that it was like him.
“Are you leaving?”
“…What?”
Choi Do-yoon’s sharp question made Yu-hyun try to dodge, but he soon realized that it was useless and nodded his head with a sigh.
“We’ll only lose if we’re late.”
“So you’re going alone.”
“…It’s dangerous to move with someone else.”
“That’s…”
Choi Do-yoon tried to say something but stopped. He guessed the reason why Yu-hyun said that.
It must have something to do with Baek Seo-ryeon, that woman. He heard that she almost died by Hercules and barely survived.
Even if he didn’t have any memories of that time, he could tell by Yu-hyun’s attitude that he fought Hercules with hatred and emotion. It was not an ordinary thing.
But still, she came back alive.
“What about that power you learned new? Is it because of that?”
“What? You noticed too?”
“I fought with the guy who uses that power, how could I not?”
It was amazing in many ways that he knew it by fighting.
Crazy talented bastard.
Yu-hyun barely swallowed the words that came up to his throat.
Choi Do-yoon had realized the clue to the fire after fighting Hercules.
He should have had a hard time feeling it, but what kind of potential was that?
But now, he didn’t care much.
If Choi Do-yoon got stronger, it would increase their power, so it was good rather than bad.
“When are you leaving?”
“I’d like to say right now, but I have to tell my companions first. I’ll leave by tomorrow morning at the latest.”
“Do you think we can win in the upcoming war?”
“…”
Choi Do-yoon was certain about the war.
It became inevitable when the altar stepped in and eliminated Salio Empire.
He didn’t know why they removed Salio Empire first, and left the alliance alone.
Surely, they had confidence that the alliance’s turn would come someday. That’s why he had to ask.
“I don’t know.”
Yu-hyun answered honestly.
“I don’t even know how strong the altar is.”
“They’re enough to make Great Sage tremble. They either agree with their actions, or keep silent. That means they don’t want to confront the altar either.”
“Then we definitely can’t beat them at our level right now.”
“Right now, huh. You mean you don’t know about the future. Is there a way?”
Yu-hyun pointed at Choi Do-yoon with his finger.
“There’s only one way. Get stronger. That power you got a clue of, master it completely. And the others have to get stronger too. To survive in the upcoming war.”
Yu-hyun looked back at Choi Do-yoon as he spoke.
For the first time, the two men looked at each other properly.
Choi Do-yoon looked at Yu-hyun’s unwavering eyes and nodded his head without knowing it.
“You’re sure about the upcoming war, you say it with conviction. You’ve already chosen your path.”
“Choosing a path, what are you talking about? It’s just that there’s nothing else but this.”
“Even so, walking that path without hesitation is a different matter.”
Yu-hyun stared at him with a look of why are you suddenly saying such nice things?
Choi Do-yoon gave a faint bitter smile.
Yu-hyun was quite surprised by that.
It was the first time he had seen Choi Do-yoon smile, in both his previous and current lives.
So this guy who was like an emotionless robot could smile too.
But that thought was short-lived as Choi Do-yoon turned his back.
“What?”
“I’m done talking, I’m going to train.”
“With your injured body?”
“This little injury is nothing. And… I’m itching to swing my sword.”
“…Do as you please.”
Before leaving the roof door, Choi Do-yoon said softly.
“Thank you for helping my mother.”
He left those words and disappeared from sight.
Yu-hyun felt quite strange after hearing him say thank you for the first time. He knew it was real, but it felt like a dream.
Still.
‘It’s not a bad feeling.’
He thought that for a moment when another person entered through the roof door.
“Ms. Jia?”
It was Kwon Jia, who still wore her hood backwards.
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