Genius Prismatic Mage Chapter 100

#100. Back to where it came from (2)

A flashing arrow that turns into a dot.

That meant there was a Murkred executive in Sector 46.

“That makes me really nervous.”

Philip swallowed hard.

There are currently two executives of Murkred who have appeared.

I heard that it took quite a bit of effort to bring Walter down.

This is a story from when Ray’s skills were lower than they are now.

And in the case of the person named Curiosa, who was said to have been encountered relatively recently in an empty lot─

“You can’t win. Even if you fight under optimal conditions, your odds of winning are 0 percent.”

“It was really scary. It was black, big, and its eyes kept changing shape.”

“What’s that big black thing?”

“Anyway, it was black and big.”

─It was clear that it was an incredibly strong being.

Ray said, reading Philip’s emotions.

“There’s nothing to worry about. We have the right of first descent.”

“Oh, that’s true.”

The binding magic granted to the ring had its settings changed by Curiosa.

This side can detect the location of executives, but the reverse does not apply.

The story was that you could discover your opponent first, figure out their strength, and then devise countermeasures.

“Depending on the situation, we may be able to get through it without fighting at all.”

“Can we just pass by? Didn’t Curiosa say that the doctor would appear only after we defeat the executives?”

Veronica, holding Nero in her arms, approached the two and asked.

Philip was immediately disgusted when he saw Nero.

“Cheeky cat… .”

“This is not a cat, this is Nero.”

“Is he laughing at me?”

“No? Nero?”

While Philip was growling.

Ray looked back at the road he had traveled in his car and answered Berocca’s question.

“I had a feeling that might not be the case.”

Philip and Veronica turned their attention to Ray again.

“What does that mean?”

“Philip, when you think of a boss, what kind of person comes to mind?”

“Uh… the highest person in the organization. In my terms, the top manager?”

Ray nodded.

“That’s right. It’s a position that requires immediate response to all conflicts and clashes that the organization faces. That’s how the organization will run.”

“… … .”

“But it seems like the doctor isn’t doing that.”

Ray continued speaking.

“I stayed in Sector 49 for quite some time after Walter died. But the doctor never showed up.”

“Hmm….”

“Despite making contact with Curiosa twice, no reaction that seemed to be that of the Doctor was seen around him.”

“Now that I hear it, it makes sense.”

“Rather, it was when I met Madame Lenia, who had no relation to Murcred, that I discovered traces of the Doctor.”

There was another basis for the judgment.

The fact that the doctor visits the executives every few years, gives them a lot of orders, disappears, and never appears again until the next cycle.

That was the impression I got.

It seems that he leaves the management of the organization to the executives and does not pay any attention to it, but instead wanders around to achieve some kind of goal.

“So the method suggested by Curiosa cannot guarantee success.”

There is a story that even if you defeat Murkred’s executives, the doctor may not appear.

Therefore, it might have been a better decision to obtain information about the rainbow through negotiation rather than fighting.

If the other person shows emotional abnormalities like Walter or Curiosa.

If so, there may be ample room for exploitation.

So the priorities are set.

First, we need to figure out what kind of person the enemy executive staying in Sector 49 is.

*

The party that entered the sector soon felt something strange.

“The street is strangely quiet.”

“I see…? Did something happen here…?”

The street was quiet and still.

Most of the shops and street stalls had their shutters down or were covered with cloth.

The few pedestrians were walking quickly as if they were being chased by someone.

Philip and Veronica unconsciously flinched at the strange tension lingering in the street.

Thud, thud, thud

The group’s footsteps sounded louder because of the still silence all around.

At first I thought it was just one street.

But as I walked around the sector looking for accommodation, I noticed that this phenomenon was occurring all over the streets.

“… … .”

Ray’s calm eyes scanned the surroundings.

Broken glass windows are visible throughout the store.

The rearview mirrors of cars parked on one side of the road are broken, and broken streetlights groan and crackle.

The percentage is too high to simply be attributed to the fact that this area is on the outskirts of the sector and therefore particularly unsafe.

And most importantly,

‘I don’t see any children on the streets. Not a single one.’

Shoe shiner. Newspaper seller.

Delivery man, match seller, etc.

The lowest class of street ecosystems are orphans.

They never leave their posts, because whether or not they can work on the street determines whether they fill their stomachs or starve that day.

The moment you leave your spot, your area is invaded by another group.

Depending on the size of the group, there may be slight differences, but it is common to station a minimum number of people per street.

But the thing is, even those people aren’t visible.

“…war.”

“It’s like war.”

Ray and Philip muttered at the same time.

“It doesn’t seem that small in scale?”

“It seems so. Considering the sector size, it’s amazing that this number of distances is this quiet…”

Ray and Philip’s thoughts were in agreement.

The tense air floating through the streets was something familiar to the two boys who had lived on the streets for a long time.

“…War? You mean the war I know? The one between gangs.”

Veronica asked cautiously.

He grew up in an orphanage and was taken in by Graham.

Because of this, they did not have detailed knowledge or close experience about war, like street children.

“That’s right. That war. Judging from the atmosphere, it doesn’t seem like a war that would happen in a day or two between random organizations.”

Ray agreed with Philip’s words.

Wars usually take place on the streets occupied by each organization.

But among the streets I’ve walked so far, it was hard to find a place that wasn’t filled with a strong sense of tension.

‘It’s a war between organizations of a fairly large scale.’

It came to mind naturally.

An organization that will take charge of one of those axes.

“Still, the power of the organization I led was not small. Rather, it was large.”

Niles was not exactly a man without boasts.

Or that he had 7 lovers.

Or defeating 20 people with your bare hands.

There was never any sign that he was seriously trying to deceive me, but it happened quite frequently.

“It was a time when we had eaten up more than three-quarters of the sector and the growth was not stopping. At that time, we easily had over 200 people.”

But I had a kind of habit of not bragging or exaggerating when I smoked.

“You worked hard. It was a time when I was full of energy and passion. Many of my subordinates were capable as well.”

As he told that story, Niles lifted a thick puff of smoke from his cigarette.

The man’s somewhat complicated face and the boy’s expressionless face were reflected in the murky river flowing under the bridge.

“Well, it’s all in the past. I’ve already left this place, so I have no regrets. It’s none of my business what happens to the guys who are left behind.”

lie.

He was a boy who was not good at reading facial expressions, but was better than anyone at reading the emotions in the heart.

The emotions that filled the man’s bowl were regret and foolishness.

“… … .”

Ray snapped out of his thoughts.

It’s been over a year since Niles floated down the Elton River to Sector 50.

In fact, there was no guarantee that the organization at that time would still be maintained until now.

Fierce struggles for power, conflict, and disputes.

New organizations that keep rising.

Because any organization would have to stop running the moment it got out of control.

The physiology of the streets was that countless organizations were created and destroyed repeatedly.

But Ray had a premonition.

I have a feeling that Niles’ organization is still alive and well, and that it is very powerful.

‘Because it was an organization that Niles, and not someone else, worked for.’

I continued walking down the street with that thought in mind.

In order to operate in the sector, it was necessary to have an accurate understanding of the situation there.

I searched the streets for children to get information, but I couldn’t find a single one because they were all hiding in their hideouts.

‘I guess I’ll have to go and sell it myself.’

Ray stopped walking for a moment and looked back as he spoke.

“I think it would be best if we split up and gather information. Philip, Veronica, you two go up to 32nd Street. I’ll go the other way.”

“okay.”

“good.”

The two people nodded and disappeared down the street.

It wasn’t that far to send, and with Veronica’s magic, it shouldn’t be that dangerous.

Tak─

I started walking again.

After the orphans, the people who were most knowledgeable about the street were the merchants.

I tried to go there myself, but it wasn’t easy to find a store that was open.

While walking along the quiet streets, Ray noticed one thing.

‘There are no watchmen.’

During wartime, it was common to place watchmen on rooftops to monitor the movements of enemy organizations.

But now, there was not a single person watching the net on the rooftops of the buildings.

This was also a possibility.

One side already has an overwhelming advantage in the war, to the point where there is no need to deploy sentries.

‘… the war may end soon.’

This was welcome news, as it meant fewer restrictions on sector activity.

Then a sound caught Ray’s nerve.

Bang───!

A sound that is engraved in the mind and cannot be mistaken for anything else.

Ray’s head snapped up at the sound of a gunshot from afar.

It was on the other side of the square, inside an alley leading to the next street number.

─────.

The gunshot that tore through the air was shattered under the sunlight along with the rising fountain.

An echo that rings repeatedly in my ears.

Ray walked towards the alley, focusing his attention.

The sound of urgent shouts and footsteps coming from inside the alley faintly reached my ears.

‘There’s a fight going on.’

I walked towards the place where the sound was coming from as if I was possessed.

─Hey… grab it… !

─Just… one guy… I’ll never let him go…!

The moment the sound that was slowly taking shape approached right in front of me.

fault!

A man jumped out from the front of the alley and brushed past Ray.

“There it is! Drive it that way!”

“Don’t miss it! It’s only one guy!”

The group that appeared next also passed Ray and chased after the man.

There were some people who made eye contact with Ray during the process, but it wasn’t for long.

─Grab him…! Leave him alone…!

─No more…! Damage…!

The sound faded away again.

Ray stopped and stared at the alleyway where they had disappeared.

“… … .”

What really got Ray’s nerves was the tattoo on the man’s neck.

A flower blooming precariously with sticky mucus hanging all over its body.

Mud Saki flowers.

A flower that blooms in the mud.

Niles also had a similar tattoo on his right shoulder.

It was an unexpected situation.

Niles’ organization – I thought that if Nishohwa was taking part in the war, then they would definitely have the upper hand.

‘There’s too much distance to chase after.’

Ray glanced around and bounced on top of a trash can next to the wall of the building.

fault!

Then, he climbed up the protrusions on the building’s wall and the signboard one after another, and in an instant, he arrived at the rooftop.

I walked over to the opposite railing and looked down.

─Chase him! Drive him in!

─If you miss it, you’ll have a hard time again!

The tattooed man and his gang, who were continuing the chase, were visible at a glance.

Ray chased them, jumping across the rooftops.

and.

─This fu*king bastard! Gasp… Gasp…

─Ugh… Huh… That guy is running around like crazy. Is that guy really the one who got shot?

The tattooed man was cornered in a dead end alley, and the gang stopped in front of him, breathing heavily.

The tattooed man, who seemed to have made a quick decision, took out a knife and pointed the tip at the gang.

─If you’re confident, come in, come in! You little sh*ts!

Even though he was injured and cornered, the man showed no sign of being intimidated.

Rather, the ones who were chasing were the ones who were overwhelmed by the momentum, and they seemed unable to easily rush towards the man.

─You little idiots. You chased after me like that, but now that it’s time to attack me, you’re probably scared?

─Don’t get involved. You don’t have to listen.

─Okay. Let’s go with a method that catches them safely and with as little damage as possible.

Ray, who was observing the situation, suddenly realized one more thing.

‘Tattoos… It’s not just that guy who has them.’

All of the people shown below had Nisho-hwa tattoos.

Is this an internal conflict?

Or maybe it’s a fake tattoo meant to confuse the enemy.

As they were thinking about the possible scenarios, the gang all pulled out their guns and aimed them at the man.

Clank. Clank.

─Let’s see if you can still talk like that even though your body is a hive of bees.

The man who saw the gun bit his lip.

He spoke as if he was very upset about the situation.

─fu*k, you kids. You’re going to have to live with this fact engraved in your heads until the day you die: You ruined everything that Niles had built.

Niles.

Ray jumped down without delay.

The gang’s trigger was pulled and a gunshot rang out.