Seyeo’s hand was holding a strangely shaped cane that was emitting smoke.
And the fact that it was the object that created this situation was all too clear.
“Oops, I aimed for the torso, but I missed. This is really hard to use.”
“How dare…!”
Luke, furious at the fact that there was a scar on his skin, moved his body as he did so.
-TAANG–!
Once again, a tear-inducing explosion echoed, accompanied by the ringing sound that spread in his ears.
And feeling that sensation brush past him once more, Luke completely stiffened.
“U-ugh. Don’t come closer. This can only be fired once.”
“You…!”
Luke muttered under his breath, as if chewing on the words.
However, as he said, he couldn’t move recklessly.
As long as he didn’t know exactly what means the opponent possessed, moving would be fatal.
“Hah…”
Luke let out a small breath.
Yes, that’s right.
No matter how much his precious skin had been scarred, he must not be consumed by anger now.
Although he was certainly furious at the unexpected situation, indiscriminate rage would not solve the problem.
In times like this, he needed to regain his rationality with caution and composure.
Luke began to slowly retrace the situation.
First of all, that seemed to be an attack with enough lethality to pierce through his shield.
However, it seemed he had no intention to kill.
There was no malicious intent in his attack.
Seyeo broke the cane in half and took something out from inside, skillfully replacing it with something similar from his pocket and then putting it back inside his robe as he spoke.
“It seems you’ve lost your wits. Was the sound of the cane too loud? But it would be wise to pull yourself together soon.”
That skilled, complex, and leisurely motion felt as if he was handling a toy.
And soon, curiosity took hold of him.
No matter how dangerous the situation might be, it was the plight of a mage that curiosity could not be overcome.
Could that be a necessary procedure for that attack?
If so, that meant there was a finite number of uses like a crossbow or cannon.
That thing that he put in, appearing to be ammunition, resembled the small vial he had seen in the elevator.
Was there some connection?
“Oh, oh. Your eyes have changed; it seems you can’t contain your curiosity about what this is?”
“…”
Luke did not respond, but Seyeo smiled as if he understood.
“Heh, I’ll tell you a bit. The Dwarven Cane, a masterpiece from Helken. It doesn’t require a bit of mana to operate.”
“A Dwarven Cane…?”
Luke, having some knowledge about Dwarven canes from war history, understood inwardly.
‘So that’s why it couldn’t be sensed with magic sight.’
Helken Mountain.
Once a sanctuary of Dwarves, where the finest smiths resided.
However, over the years, it no longer resembled a mountain.
The Dwarves carved down the mountain to construct their buildings, turning the entire mountain into a colossal workshop named Helken, creating the largest state-of-the-art workshop on the continent, giving birth to numerous inventions.
Among them, this was the most discreet invention.
A small cannon that uses explosive power to launch projectiles, commonly known as a Dwarven Cane.
The Dwarves, who lacked magical talent compared to other races, had developed a unique technology that they could easily use during the interspecies war of long ago.
Easier to handle than a bow, with a longer range than a crossbow, and as powerful as magic.
Since everything operates mechanically, it functions the same regardless of the mana environment, leading to a high degree of reliability.
However, while it was undoubtedly an incredible weapon, magic could replace nearly all technologies, and with its intricate parts making maintenance difficult, loud noise, and the Dwarves’ tendency to reduce production lines and not export military supplies after the war, it had become a much more expensive and cumbersome weapon than a cane.
Yet, for those in need of a structure that operates quickly without the use of mana, it was truly the best choice…
Especially in places where mana was unstable, making it difficult to use magic.
In other words, including Draigand, it was a very useful weapon despite being expensive and hard to procure.
However, as of now, it was a technique where the firing delay, preparation, power, and effects were all unknown.
That made it exceedingly disadvantageous.
“…”
Reading the gleam in Luke’s eyes, who was searching for a way to suppress him, Seyeo exaggeratedly gestured.
“Now, shall we begin the match again? Gladiators, please don’t take your eyes off the audience.”
—–!!
When Luke turned around, there stood the Abomination, fully recovered from its broken arm.
It now appeared completely free from pain.
‘….’
“Tsk-.”
Along with Luke’s reaction, the Abomination swung its hand.
——–
-THUD-!!
A heavy impact sound.
“Ugh–!”
However, what echoed afterward was not the myriad of roars from the Abomination, but the high-pitched, shrill scream of a young girl.
-THUD, ROLLING.
No matter how much mana and combat experience Luke possessed, he was ultimately a mage, not a martial artist.
Even if he saw a chance to cast a strong spell, Seyeo’s interference with that tool made it difficult each time.
As you know, that guy’s glasses could serve a function similar to magic sight, sensing the prelude to magic to some extent.
Furthermore, this Abomination seemed to have felt no pain since it had collapsed.
Even if he dodged all the checkups and unleashed an attack, without any response to the impacts, Luke had no choice but to allow attacks in the end.
‘And… my body is starting to feel heavy.’
Thud-!
Slowly rising, Luke collapsed once more.
Little by little, he was losing strength.
“Gh….”
“Is your body heavy? Well, you’ve moved a lot, so it’s about time the effect kicked in.”
“What…?”
“The bullet I shot at you earlier was actually a very powerful tranquilizer. Guess it must have taken a while to take effect since it just grazed you.”
“…!”
Luke gritted his teeth at his words.
In other words, it meant he never intended to kill him from the start.
Indeed, the lack of malice in his attack was due to this?
‘A tranquilizer.’
If the content used in that bullet was indeed the ingredient he had seen before, it might have penetrated his shield due to mana dampening.
Yes, the possibility was high.
The reason it could pierce his shield was precisely that.
He had gathered some good information.
However, just knowing how it worked didn’t mean the situation would change.
“…”
That said, it wasn’t over yet, so there was still hope.
Luke laid flat, carefully probing the floor with a hand that was hidden and out of Seyeo’s line of sight.
‘Found it.’
It was the combat knife that Liv had just used, hidden behind the body of the Abomination, which he couldn’t retrieve earlier.
However, this knife was too small to cut through the Abomination.
This body, unable to wield the energy of the blade, could not slash the giant like Liv could.
Yet, it was still long enough to slit a human’s throat.
Initially, he hadn’t intended to kill, so he hadn’t picked it up, but now he had to make sure to kill him.
From the start, he had been aimed at and deliberately attacked to be thrown here.
Using magic would reveal him beforehand, and divine power was a last resort.
The methods he hadn’t shown him yet were… only a part of the dragon.
However, with that cane in Seyeo’s hand, the dragon would provide no aid.
No matter how large he grew, it would only increase the hit area.
Probably, he would soon be overwhelmed by the tranquilizer and lose consciousness.
For now, deceiving him was the best plan.
“Still, you’ve held out pretty long with that body, impressive. By the way…”
“…”
“Ah, such incredible value. I want to study your body so much.”
The gaze that looked down at him as if licking him.
Luke tightened his grip on the knife he had hidden in his arms and shot a sharp voice.
“Perverted bastard, that body you’ve been grooming with such care every day is not for you to touch.”
“Oh dear, I’m not so into young girls that much. Well, I do prefer using children as sacrifices… but it’s frustrating to be misunderstood in such ways often.”
His voice, exaggeratedly muttering as if he was wronged, mixed no emotion of distress.
Well, his voice initially bore no emotion at all.
-Soft, soft…
Thus, Luke calculated the distance between them as Seyeo closed in step by step, continuously adjusting the trajectory of the knife that would be thrown.
‘Just a bit, just a bit more….’
Then he hesitated.
Seyeo stopped his footsteps.
Luke panicked inwardly.
‘Could it be, has the ambush been detected?’
No, if that were the case, he would have used ‘the Dwarven Cane’ to shoot fire again by now.
He seemed to be lost in thought.
“Hmmm, wait a second. Looking closely like this… I feel like I’m reminded of something.”
With his differently colored eyes and rich platinum blonde hair, one might think he was simply an unusual feline hybrid, but the girl’s vibe felt far too familiar.
It was as if he had seen her for a long time…
‘Where have I seen her? Did I handle a cat before?’
The tense silence was broken by the sound of Seyeo clapping his hands.
-CLAP-!
“Ah!”
In that moment, a single thought flashed past his mind.
“Now, I understand; the amount of mana and the heartbeat.”
He smiled broadly and continued speaking.
“You are the ‘sample’ that ran away, aren’t you?”
‘Sample?’
What did he mean by ‘sample’?
