The Imperial Hunter

However, as we got closer to the center of the forest, the usual landscape seen through our vision changed drastically. The snowflakes blowing in from outside melted into the warm mist, and even the east wind couldn’t push away the thick, heavy fog. That was only natural; this mist was the forest’s humidity bound by magic. To penetrate its physical restraint, you needed quite a strong wind.

This was also why my subordinates were having difficulty breathing. It felt like the resistance was at the level of wearing a gas mask.

I, too, was breathing heavily, my clothes were damp, and sweat was forming on my forehead. In January, in the Northern Hemisphere, and at an elevation of 2,700 meters?

The perceived humidity was over 100%. It felt like the magic was forcibly trapping more moisture than the maximum saturation point. Droplets of dew had formed on the metal parts of my gun.

Before long, I once again found the symbol of the devil’s cult. Kyung-tae, having seen another gruesome corpse, audibly exhaled.

“These guys, could they be trying to make the forest perceive humans as prey?”

“That’s possible.”

“Hmm. Then could this be a measure against you? A trick to obstruct your code collection.”

“…I’m not sure.”

If this were a measure against me, then it meant that Grace knew about the betrayal of her mentor—she already knew that Eye of the Golden Age had leaked outside Round Table. She wasn’t as close-minded as the fanatics in Round Table’s ranks, so her thoughts might be more open regarding the usefulness of primitive magic and the application of this eye.

But was that possible? That the secretive, confidential, and obscure internal affairs of the Round Table Cabinet had leaked to the devil’s cultists?

‘Maybe something happened during their power struggle.’

The possibility wasn’t zero, which was frustrating. It might be more plausible to see it as a measure against the Round Table, but you couldn’t entirely rule out the possibility.

“If we capture the ones who did this, they might know something.”

I resumed the search with a nod.

The stars drawn by the devil’s cultists were hidden all over the place.

The dense, flowing fog explained why the police hadn’t been able to discover the corpses. The fact that the air was stagnant meant that the smell was trapped. So the police dogs couldn’t pick up the scent, which was one reason, and the security officers were likely scared.

Of course, the search was likely being conducted only around the forest’s perimeter, waiting for support from higher authorities. The limitations of security officers elected by popularity.

I had been responsible for leading from the front since finding the first symbol. Although I had provided Kyung-tae and the others with high-altitude thermal gear, it was nearly useless in these conditions. To use thermal imaging that would work in these conditions, you needed proper, sophisticated equipment.

But there was one thing nice about this fog.

‘The sound doesn’t carry far.’

Ordinary fog actually amplified sound, making it travel further and faster. This was because it had a higher density and elasticity as a medium compared to dry air.

However, mist bound by magic experienced an increased elasticity due to its restraining force. This meant it vibrated less as sound waves. Sounds like footsteps, hushed conversations, or even suppressed gunfire wouldn’t reach as far in this forest. I could clearly see the reduced range.

The sound of leather gloves rubbing. I clenched my fist and signaled my team to stop. Finally, living humans, the devil’s cultists had been spotted. Two of them were visible, probably not as lookouts. One leaned against a tree, while the other sat with their back against it, keeping watch to their sides, so there wasn’t a blind spot. Their fronts were about 10 degrees off from directly facing me.

There was a circle drawn around the tree trunk, as usual, made of torn-apart humans. Of course, there was the usual crimson star drawn where they sat.

Both were armed with submachine guns, devoid of any muzzle brakes, yet they had suppressors attached. Bullet dispersal was impossible, making these bullet-spraying weapons. They each held one in their hands, and their belts were filled with magazines like totem poles.

My team and I took cover behind fallen tree branches, our posture low.

Kyung-tae, having grasped the new trait of the fog, made a nervous comment.

“These guys are using their heads too, huh?”

“Surprising?”

“Kind of. When you think of devil cultists, don’t you picture brains soaked in drugs? They even have their tongue pierced.”

“…”

Coincidentally, both of them were indeed have pierces.

Kyung-tae’s comment about weapons was related to the choice of firearms. Given the severely limited visibility, it was likely better to abandon precise shooting and go for indiscriminate bullet spraying. This decision probably considered the user’s proficiency as well.

The problem was that we needed to capture them alive. The scenario we had in mind was one where we would assassinate them.

These guys were probably using suppressors to be cautious of security officers patrolling the forest periphery. But even so, if they found themselves in danger, shouting loudly would be their signal to the nearby ruffians. In this dense fog, even a shout could serve as a sufficient alarm.

What was surprising was that neither of them had radios.

“How do we subdue them…”

Kyung-tae muttered, showing his concern. If we didn’t need to consider the distance between us and them, he wouldn’t have had this dilemma. He would have approached, subdued them, and made them kneel before me, as always.

“Hyungnim, I’m sorry, but can’t we just quickly take care of them ourselves?”

Kyung-tae suggested this with a hint of hesitation, still disliking the fact that I was taking risks.

“You know. It’ll be over really quickly, I promise.”

“No.”

I looked through the fallen tree branch and the opaque scenery to see the miserable bodies of the devil’s cultists.

“The flow of magic here is particularly violent. They’re already being transformed in real-time.”

“What do you mean?”

“It indicates they’re currently undergoing a state of disarray.”

They already had cancer cells in their bodies. Since this was a type of cancer that absorbed magic power and used it as nourishment, it showed a proliferation rate that was on a different level in environments with an abundance of nutrients.

‘Their bodies’ starting to itch a bit.’

When it came to the impact on life, there was one significant difference between magic power and radiation: the former tended to alter cells more often than destroy them. The evidence was the Satan cultists who fearlessly scratched their bodies with gun muzzles. In a day or two, they’d probably become severe patients.

Itching was both a precursor and a major symptom of cancer, whether it was a solid tumor clinging to an organ or blood cancer developing in the lymph nodes and bone marrow. If you’d ever witnessed a terminally ill cancer patient peeling their flesh off despite taking powerful painkillers, you’d understand how horrifying this itchiness could be.

Magic power cancer, though a form of cancer, shared some superficial symptoms with ordinary cancer. This was the knowledge the Masters of the Round Table gained through experiments on human subjects. I happened to be one of the beneficiaries of this knowledge.

…Whether it could truly be called a benefit, I wasn’t sure.

“Hah.”

Kyung-tae sighed.

“Six meters is right in front of us.”

Six meters. The minimum radius within which my magical field could guarantee safety in this forest. It was only one meter longer than during the time of the “President.” However, considering the overwhelming biological mass and mass-equivalent circuit control strength of “Trembling Giant,” that extra meter wasn’t merely a “mere” meter.

But even in this dense fog, I could see up to ten meters with my naked eyes. In the midst of this, six meters was an incredibly short distance when it came to engagement with an enemy, even if they held a shotgun. It was dangerously close, even if the opponent had a pump-action shotgun. This was what Kyung-tae meant by “right in front of us.”

While deep in thought, I conjured an idea and redirected magical power through my circuits to construct a spell. A strange spell composed of clues gathered from this forest.

A ripple-like vibration spread through the nearby fog.

“Don’t be alarmed.”

I raised my hand to show the subordinates who had witnessed the ripple.

“It’s me.”

Kyung-tae and the others finally relaxed and lowered their gun barrels.

‘It seems like it’ll work.’

I hadn’t completely grasped the principles of this fog yet. Still, I had enough understanding to interfere with the magic the forest was casting. I wasn’t using my power entirely from scratch; I was merely modifying the existing spell, so the strain on my circuit was minimal. It was like achieving a hundredfold result with an output of one.

After a few failed attempts and some refining, I managed to manipulate the fog’s power to guide different fog flows to collide with each other. Right in front of me, a dense white barrier appeared and then settled heavily.

It seemed to work.

Even though it was a small success, it felt exhilarating. This was the first tangible result of the possibilities I had hoped for.

“Let’s do it like this.”

I explained the plan to my subordinates.

“How does it sound?”

According to my plan, the approach itself wasn’t dangerous. We could simply walk until a certain distance. After that, some improvisation might be required, but somehow, it should work.

“Uh…”

Kyung-tae responded with a hesitant expression.

“It sounds good, but are you okay, Hyungnim? Using that much power seems like a strain on your circuit. You still have a long way to go to adapt…”

“Don’t worry. It may look big, but the actual strain is minimal.”

“If you say so.”

“Get up.”

The spell was already active in my circuit. The subordinates who stood up expressed their light amazement at the already-formed white barrier. They had never received this type of magical support in a real combat situation before. The dense fog curtain had a level of opacity closer to smoke screens.

And we began to walk. The wall of fog, flowing like a waterfall, retreated exactly as much as we walked in our direction.

Kyung-tae whispered in amazement, 

“Wow, Hyungnim. This is amazing, really!”

“Don’t make a fuss. You’ll have to get used to things even more remarkable than this in the future.”

We approached the enemy’s flank while circling about 80 degrees around them. 29 meters, 25 meters, 20 meters. The distance kept shrinking. The enemy couldn’t see us, but that applied to my subordinates as well, and tension seeped into their footsteps.

The gap with the prey had come within 15 meters. 14 meters, 13 meters…

One of the prey creatures looked in our direction.

“What’s this?”

We immediately took cover. As the fisherman mentioned during the reconnaissance, there were so many fallen trunks in this forest that it was almost like they were entwined around our feet. Perhaps it was because it was such an old forest.

The cultist focused their gaze on the opaque barrier and poked their companion with their elbow.

“Hey, look here.”

“What?”

“Look over here, you wanker.”

“…Wow! It’s bloody magical, isn’t it?”

Magick, as pronounced by British-origin Satan cultists. It was a simple difference in pronunciation, but it altered the meaning of the word.

The two cultists approached the fog and waved their guns as if searching through thin air. It seemed they were trying to feel for something. Their behavior resembled someone groping in the dark. The gun’s chamber came dangerously close to my control strength’s limit. We couldn’t get any closer because there was a possibility that the impulsive creatures might impulsively pull the trigger.

While this was happening, one of them cautiously tried to step into the fog barrier. I pulled the barrier slightly toward me.

“Whoa.”

The brave one looked back at their companion.

“See? Did you see?”

Then they took one more step. They were still trembling, but more boldly than before. Naturally, I created another ripple in the fog flow by pulling the barrier back a little. It was as if a fisherman shook their bait to lure a fish. My improvisation made the prey excited and thrilled, more than they had been before.

“This is evidence that the eternal power within this forest, the Aeonic power, is growing stronger. Pure magic itself! I never thought I’d see something like this in my lifetime…”

It seemed they didn’t even consider that humans might be using this magic?

This was a matter of knowledge and the limits of imagination. Perhaps, it was because they were not direct descendants of Grace from the mainland. They seemed incredibly ignorant. True magic users would have immediately gone on high alert. They were interpreting the phenomenon in this Poplar forest as a miracle resulting from devilish ceremonies – a result of human sacrifice.

With this, the two cultists had now come fully within the range of my control strength. I sent several signals in succession to my subordinates. These signals included the method of subduing, the timing of subduing, and the actions to be taken after subduing. Kyung-tae and the others returned the signals as they holstered their guns behind them.

Three, two, one. Now.

The moment my four subordinates leaped over the cover and charged like beasts of prey, I immediately dismantled the mist wall, loading a new spell just in time.