TMWD 09

Chapter: 09

The Rampaging Volcano

*Kwaaaaaang!*

The angel Abriel swung her hand.

At that, the massive chain that had been guarding the center of the temple was severed as easily as slicing a block of tofu.

*Clang!*

A crisp shattering sound.

There was no hesitation.

As if she had been waiting only for this moment.

Her touch was relentless.

A strange sense of liberation even lingered on her expression.

‘She must have been sick of it.’

Well, she had been trapped here alone for eons, playing the role of a jailer, so it was understandable.

But the sentiment didn’t last long.

*Kugugugugugu!*

The black orb, its seal broken, began to churn violently.

The entire temple twisted.

Space screamed, and killing intent stormed forth.

**【KRUUUAAAAAH!】**

A howl that gnawed at the soul.

‘Strong.’

Instinct blared warning bells.

In my current state, I wouldn’t even be able to retrieve my bones.

Just then.

[Receive it.]

Abriel spread her wings.

A dazzling light burst from her fingertips.

Simultaneously, the mists that had enveloped the entire sanctuary—the spirits—poured into me.

*Whiiiiing!*

“……!”

My body grew hot.

The mana flowing through my blood vessels raced wildly, as if rampaging.

But it wasn’t painful.

Rather, it was a thrill as if every cell in my body was awakening.

*Ding!*

[The Angel, ‘Abriel,’ has chosen you as her proxy.]

[All spirits of the sanctuary follow you.]

[You are granted ‘Blessing of the Great Spirit’.]

[All stats are temporarily maximized!]

My entire body felt as light as a feather.

Clenching my fist, I felt a power that seemed like it could burst the air itself.

*Ding!*

A subsequent system message.

[A hidden quest has occurred!]

[Quest Name: Slay the Mad God]

[Objective: Cooperate with the Angel Abriel to eliminate the Mad God ‘Tulkacha’.]

[Reward: ???]

‘Tulkacha, huh.’

A rather rough name.

I raised my head to confirm the enemy.

The black orb shattered, and from within, a crimson form crawled out.

Massive horns.

Dark red blood vessels coiled around its entire body.

And the heat boiling up from beneath its feet.

*Chiiiiiiik!*

The marble floor melted away in an instant.

This isn’t just simple heat.

That is…

“Lava.”

The authority of a volcano.

And a disaster viciously corrupted at that.

**【Kill… Burn everything to ashes…!】**

Tulkacha muttered in a seething voice.

As the creature swung its arm, a whip-like streak of crimson lava lashed out.

*Kwaaaang!*

Abriel raised a lance of light and blocked it.

Sacred light deflected the lava.

But it wasn’t enough.

*Sizzle! Sizzle!*

[Ugh…!]

Abriel furrowed her brow.

The noxious heat emanating from the lava was scorching her white wings black.

The compatibility was poor.

For close-quarters combat, the heat the creature emitted was too lethal.

‘I need to help.’

I immediately placed my left hand on the floor.

The method was simple.

When water overflows, you just dig a drain.

“Get out of the way.”

*Woooooong!*

The golden rune on my right hand flashed.

The disaster I had devoured.

The authority of Kartal, the god of minor earthquakes, activated.

*Kurrrrrr!*

The ground beneath Tulkacha’s feet, and around Abriel, cracked open.

This wasn’t a simple fissure.

I limited the range of the authority, boring deep, narrow holes.

A sinkhole.

*Kwaarrrrr!*

“……?!”

Tulkacha was flustered.

The lava it had been spewing gushed down into the cracked earth.

The heat that was about to engulf the surface plunged deep underground, like water draining into a sewer.

Abriel looked at me with surprised eyes.

I shrugged.

She readjusted her grip on the lance.

Seizing the gap left by the dissipating heat, Abriel’s lance pierced Tulkacha’s shoulder.

*Thunk!*

**【KRUUUAAAAH!】**

The Mad God screamed.

But it didn’t die.

Rather, its eyes rolled back in fury.

**【You pitiful worms!】**

*KWAAAAAA!*

Black smoke spewed from the creature’s mouth.

A poisonous miasma that contaminated the mind.

[The Mad God ‘Tulkacha’ is enraged!]
[Mental Contamination begins.]
[The higher the value, the further you descend into madness.]
[Current Contamination: 15%… 20%…]

My head throbbed.

Nausea washed over me, and my vision swam.

Even Abriel staggered.

A mental attack that physical defenses couldn’t stop.

At this rate, we might go mad and kill each other before even fighting.

Just then.

-*Kyaaang!*

The Angragon on my shoulder opened its mouth wide.

Far from being frightened…

…the creature was drooling, as if catching a delicious scent.

*Whoooop!*

Its tiny mouth sucked in the surrounding air like a vacuum cleaner.

The black miasma was drawn into Angragon’s mouth.

*Gulp.*

It swallowed the poison.

And then.

*Pwooo!*

As it opened its mouth as if to burp, a jet-black flame shot towards Tulkacha.

It had consumed the creature’s poison, converted it into ‘Dragon’s Breath,’ and reflected it.

**【Gyaaaah!】**

The black flame engulfed Tulkacha’s face.

It clutched its face and rolled around, writhing.

The shock of having its mental attack reflected seemed quite significant.

“Good job.”

I stroked Angragon’s head.

It wagged its tail contentedly.

The situation improved.

The lava was draining into the sinkhole, and Angragon was blocking the poison gas.

Abriel was unleashing a fierce assault.

But.

‘It’s not enough.’

I analyzed the battle situation coldly.

Tulkacha’s regeneration was monstrous.

The holes pierced by the lance were instantly filled with lava.

This would turn into a war of attrition.

And time was on the enemy’s side.

The duration of the blessing was finite.

Abriel’s stamina would also run out.

A finishing blow was needed.

A single, certain strike capable of killing a god.

I looked at the spirits floating in the air.

Tens of thousands of spirits.

Thanks to the Great Spirit’s blessing, they moved like extensions of my own limbs.

An ordinary warrior might use this power simply to enhance their physical body.

‘But I’m a mage.’

Crushing things with brute force isn’t my style.

A mage is one who pursues truth,

creates formulas, and derives results.

My role is to take the given ingredients and create the best possible dish.

I am Kim Jeong-seok.

The mad mage who once transmuted the ‘Philosopher’s Stone’ using the entire Earth as material.

Could I possibly fail to handle a mere tens of thousands of spirits?

‘The ingredients are here.’

Tens of thousands of spirits filling the air.

They are the purest lumps of magical power in the natural world.

Meaning, they are the most suitable ‘fuel’ for processing.

The opponent is the Mad God Tulkacha.

Its attributes are lava and fire.

A disaster that burns and melts everything.

But.

Even as it rampaged, there was something it couldn’t melt.

Scattered on the temple floor were massive pieces of iron chains.

‘Sealing tools.’

The shackles that had bound the creature for centuries.

Even if broken in half, their form remained intact.

A metal that wouldn’t melt even in lava.

‘The answer is clear.’

I opened my eyes.

Without hesitation, I kicked off the ground.

*Kwang!*

My body shot out like a cannonball.

The target was the broken chain lying at Tulkacha’s feet.

*Tak.*

I landed on the chain.

As soon as I touched it, I felt a chill.

Just as I thought.

‘Everlasting Black Iron.’

A rare metal with properties that repel and solidify corrupted mana.

That’s why it could withstand the Mad God’s corrupted heat.

But this metal has a fatal weakness.

It cannot withstand pure mana and melts away.

“Gather.”

I reached out my hand.

The spirits, blessed by the Great Spirit, responded to my will.

Thousands of spirits enveloped the chain.

*Chiiiiik!*

As the incredibly pure mana touched it, the black iron, which seemed like it would never melt, softened like molasses.

I manipulated the mana.

Like a blacksmith hammering iron.

Shaping it with the formula of a mage.

Solid.

Sharp.

And so that it could pierce the creature’s heart.

It took less than 10 seconds.

The liquefied black iron clumped together in the air and solidified into the form of a massive spear.

A black spear, a full 3 meters in length.

I gripped the shaft.

It was heavy.

I leaned my waist back.

Compressing the muscles of my entire body like a spring.

There was only one target.

The creature’s chest—the heart where crimson lava throbbed.

*Thwack!*

The spear left my hand and tore through space.

Before Tulkacha could even react.

A black flash embedded itself in its chest.

*KWAAAAAANG!*

**【KRUUUUUAAAAAAAAAAH!!】**

The Mad God’s scream shook the temple.

The chilling cold of the Everlasting Black Iron pierced into its heart.

The boiling lava cooled rapidly and hardened black.

‘Now.’

I could see it.

A golden thread extending from Tulkacha’s chest.

A thread of fate connected to the golden rune on my right hand.

‘I can devour it.’

The conditions were met.

It was weakened, and my power was in reach.

The problem was the distance.

Even if its heart had hardened, the area around the creature was still an inferno of extreme heat.

Approaching would mean being roasted alive.

But I had a partner.

“Abriel!”

I shouted.

“Clear a path!”

No explanation was needed.

She spread her remaining wings wide.

**[Light!]**

*Fwaaaaaa!*

A flash burst from her body.

The authority of ‘Sanctuary,’ which held physical interference power.

The light shot out in a straight line, parting the flames and lava blocking the way to either side.

Like the Red Sea parting.

A path was opened for me alone amidst the sea of fire.

**[Hurry!]**

Abriel shouted, spitting blood.

She was at her limit too.

This path wouldn’t last long.

I ran.

Cutting through the wind, passing through the tunnel of light.

The heat of the flames surging on both sides stung my skin, but I didn’t stop.

10 meters.

5 meters.

1 meter.

Finally, I reached right in front of Tulkacha.

It writhed in pain and looked down at me.

**【Dare, yo…!】**

I smiled.

And then I drove my fist into its solar plexus.

*Thud!*

A dull sound of impact.

*Wooooong!*

The golden rune on my right hand spun wildly.

The power of predation, which devours the very rank of existence, activated.

*Crack! Creak!*

Starting from where my fist touched, cracks ran across Tulkacha’s body.

Black fissures spread throughout.

**【No, don’t… My power…!】**

Its scream didn’t last long.

It’s being sucked in.

The lava, the flames, the madness.

Even its divine status itself.

*Kugugugugu!*

A massive vortex formed.

My right hand became a black hole, beginning to swallow the Mad God whole.

**【KRUUUUAAAAAAK!】**

The final death rattle.

Tulkacha’s colossal body shattered into particles of light.

Amidst the thick smoke.

All the particles were drawn into my grasp without exception.

But.

*KWAAAAAANG!*

A huge explosion occurred.

My body was thrown back.

In that instant.

*Ding!*

[You have devoured the disaster, ‘Mad God Tulkacha’.]
[Divine status absorbed.]
[You can now permanently use the authority, ‘Rampaging Volcano’.]
[Hidden quest completed!]
[Contribution: Overwhelming (99%)]
[Level up!]
[Rolling dice (1~66).]
[66! A catastrophic reward is granted!]