Chapter 470: Special Material

470. Special Material (2)

“…Hello?”

In the middle of the battlefield, just as Philip was about to be attacked, Oliver suddenly appeared and spoke.

It was such an inappropriate greeting given the situation that everyone who had been fighting fiercely just a moment ago stopped and stared at Oliver.

Not only the Pinkman, police, and soldiers, but even the Red Ones’ black magicians and creatures paused.

Only Philip could match Oliver’s offbeat demeanor.

“I heard you were here… Nice to see you in this situation.”

“It’s nice to see you as well, Lieutenant General Philip. Sorry, but can I have a moment of your time?”

“Oh, go ahead.”

As soon as Philip gave permission, Oliver turned to face the black magician across from him, leaving onlookers puzzled.

They were surprised because Philip, a member of the ruling class, was chatting casually with some fixer.

Ignoring the reactions, Oliver politely greeted the black magician from across the way.

“…Hello? I’m Dave, a fixer from Randa’s T-District, Street 30. Nice to meet you. May I ask your name, sir?”

Oliver formally introduced himself and asked for the Red Ones black magician’s name, as it was the polite thing to do.

However, the black magician remained silent, pondering how his shadow was so easily destroyed.

He couldn’t understand it. He had used some extraordinary materials, after all.

Perhaps if Oliver’s shadow hadn’t absorbed the emotions, vitality, and magic power of the Flesh Cook, it would have been difficult to block.

As the awkward silence stretched on, Oliver cautiously spoke again.

“Um… Did I make a mistake, by any chance?”

The fact that Oliver asked if he’d made a mistake to a black magician who had just bombed the city left everyone beyond speechless; they were shocked.

Maybe that’s why the Red Ones black magician finally spoke.

“Yes, you made a mistake… by interfering.”

“Ah… My apologies. But I know Lieutenant General Philip.”

Oliver explained that he intervened because he knew Philip Roer, a Lieutenant General in the Royal Army, the principal of the Royal Magic Academy, the head of the Royal Magic Research Division, Honorary Grand Master of the Tower of Magic’s Pure Magic School, and head of the prestigious Roer Family.

It was an absurd answer in many ways.

“And you threw a dagger.”

“It wasn’t aimed at you, sir.”

“…What?”

“If you misunderstood, I apologize… The target was over there.”

Oliver pointed with his finger.

At the end of his finger was a shadow that had spewed out a multitude of creatures, and sticking out of it was the blood-red dagger Oliver had thrown.

At that moment, the shadow with the dagger embedded in it began to ripple and shrink until something popped out.

It was a shadow. A shadow the size of a child.

“Is this the shadow of the Eternal Child, Fen?”

Recalling the shadow of Fen he had seen in the sewers of Ravely in the Capital of Gallos, Oliver asked, to which the Red Ones black magician flinched in response, as if to confirm.

The black magician was shocked that the identity of the shadow was revealed. Oliver was just as surprised.

He never imagined he would encounter Fen’s shadow again here, nor that the Red Ones black magician and Fen would be connected.

Oliver greeted Fen’s shadow as well.

“Hello, shadow. Long time no see.”

“…”

Fen’s shadow glared while clutching one of its arms.

Though it had no eyes, nose, or mouth, the emotions were clear.

“I apologize for suddenly throwing the dagger. I just wanted to stop you from summoning those creatures.”

Oliver audaciously apologized to Fen’s shadow, despite having thrown a dagger imbued with thousands of diseases.

But Oliver’s audacity didn’t stop there.

“If it’s alright, could you withdraw now? It’s difficult to keep fighting like this, and it seems like you should treat your injuries. I would very much appreciate it.”

“…!!”

“…!!”

Everyone was stunned by Oliver’s sudden proposal.

It was a natural reaction, as the proposal was unacceptable to both sides.

The Red Ones black magician seemed close to capturing his target, and the Pinkman needed to apprehend him to find out his motives, targets, and who was behind him.

And here was some fixer brazenly making such a suggestion.

But Oliver continued to speak without caring about their reactions.

“How about you, sir? It seems like you don’t really want this.”

Oliver asked the black magician who was using special materials. He remained silent, but his eyes showed interest in Oliver’s proposal.

“It seems everyone came here through Fen’s shadow portal. If anything goes wrong, your exit might be blocked. Reinforcements are on the way too, so would you consider retreating?”

Oliver added another point to make his persuasion easier. The Red Ones black magician looked around before making a decision.

He signaled to his fellow black magicians.

Some of them resisted, but a single frown from him made them comply without further complaint.

One of the soldiers from First Step, who had been watching quietly, suddenly shouted.

“What are you doing?! Why are you letting a traitor targeting the prince go?! What gives you the right?!”

The soldier aimed his gun at Oliver, visibly agitated. At that moment, Philip intervened to help Oliver.

“Calm yourself.”

“L-Lieutenant General?!”

“I said calm down. Do you think I’m just standing here doing nothing because I’m a fool?”

The soldier, who had been on the brink of exploding, cooled down immediately under Philip’s stern gaze. The Pinkman and even the police followed suit, falling silent.

Philip’s control was impressive, even from the earlier battle.

With the area secured, the Red Ones black magicians, along with the creatures, retreated into the shadow portal created by Fen’s shadow, sinking into it as if into a swamp.

Once Fen’s shadow had vanished, Philip turned to look at Oliver. His expression was still stern, but softer than before.

“So now, can you explain? Why did you let them go freely?”

“If we had continued fighting, there would have been a massive explosion, enough to turn this place into a wasteland.”

“What’s your basis for this?”

“The Red Ones black magicians had parasite-like creatures inside their bodies.”

***

Parasite-like creatures.

Oliver explained the parasite-like creatures, recalling the time when he received the invitation from the Flesh Cook.

He described how these creatures could cause a massive explosion by feeding off their host.

“You’re telling me those creatures were inside the Red Ones black magicians?”

“Yes, not all of them, but a significant number. I thought they were creations of the Flesh Cook, but apparently not… Anyway, if we had kept pushing, they might have self-destructed.”

At the disturbing thought, everyone fell silent. Although a few looked doubtful, they couldn’t openly express it due to Oliver’s status as a Tower of Magic employee and Philip’s presence.

However, there was someone who needed more confirmation.

A man, likely a soldier from First Step, asked. He seemed like a straightforward person from his demeanor.

“How do you know this so well?”

“I’ve seen the explosion happen firsthand.”

“You witnessed the explosion?”

“Yes, right in front of me.”

Oliver described the movement of the parasite creature just before it exploded.

“That’s absurd… Then how are you still alive?”

The soldier questioned, and it was a reasonable doubt. The explosion could have wiped out an entire district, or at the very least, destroyed several buildings.

Surviving an explosion of that magnitude at point-blank range was hard to believe.

“I was lucky.”

Oliver responded sincerely. He had genuinely been lucky.

At that time, thanks to the black-red branch that absorbed the Flesh Cook’s disciple’s magic, emotions, and vitality, he had been able to block it more easily.

Without it, things could have been bad.

The right object at the right time. Looking back, it was as if the heavens had helped.

Because of that, most of the people, except Philip, had a hard time believing him.

“What he’s saying is true. I’ve verified it myself… So, you’re saying there was a risk of an explosion?”

“Yes.”

“Then, as unfortunate as it is, we had no choice. Better to let them go than risk an explosion.”

Philip thought it over and came to a conclusion. No one dared to object.

Having made his decision, Philip gave an order.

“Colonel.”

“Yes, Lieutenant General.”

“Take your men and go protect Code Gamma with the combat magicians I brought. Even with a Holy Knight and combat magician by his side, one can never be too careful… Do you have a safe place for Code Gamma?”

“Yes, it’s smaller than the previous locations, but the security is better.”

“Perfect. Everyone else, search the area and tend to the injured.”

With Philip’s command, the police and military forces from First Step moved quickly and efficiently. The Pinkman were an exception.

Instead of scattering to carry out their duties like the others, they gathered around. Specifically, they surrounded Oliver.

Several of them were among the Pinkman Oliver had encountered earlier in the back alley.

“Is the middle-aged gentleman not here?”

Oliver reflexively searched for him and quickly found him.

He was now whispering in Philip’s ear.

Oliver caught snippets of their conversation, mostly about Pandora and how Oliver had interfered.

After listening to the explanation, Philip looked down at Oliver with interest.

“I heard some unfortunate news about you, but this is new… Where is the Forest Maiden?”

Forest Maiden. It seemed to be a code name for Eve.

Oliver pointed to the top of the building he had jumped from.

Everyone looked up and saw Pandora peeking over the building’s rooftop.

“Go get her.”

At the middle-aged gentleman’s command, some of the Pinkman immediately moved.

At that moment, Oliver extended his arms and spoke.

“Pandora.”

As soon as he spoke, Pandora jumped off the top of the building.

The World Tree’s artificial spirit, Eve, worth over 3 trillion, leaped without a second thought.

Considering Eve’s value, it was a terrifying sight regardless of personal feelings.

In the midst of it, Oliver chanted.

[Targeting]

As soon as he chanted, a dartboard-like target appeared on his arms and on Pandora’s body.

Thanks to this, Pandora, who was falling, gradually adjusted her trajectory towards Oliver, and Oliver successfully caught her by manipulating the attracting and repelling forces of Targeting and emotion particles.

Everyone stood there, dazed, watching the scene unfold.

“This is Eve, also known as Pandora.”

Oliver introduced Pandora to Philip as he set her down.

Philip stared at Pandora for a moment before speaking.

“…Hello there, young lady. You are quite beautiful.”

“Thank you, Lieutenant General Philip. It’s an honor to meet the head of the Roer Family, one of the leaders of the world’s most powerful army.”

Pandora greeted him naturally and politely. Everyone watched her, dazed.

They were stunned because Eve, who wasn’t human, behaved exactly like one.

It could have been a creepy sight, but instead, no one felt that way. Rather, some found it beautiful.

It was like encountering a spirit, something most people would never see in their lifetime.

Philip looked at Oliver with a hint of admiration and asked.

“So, you know Eve… You’re more sociable than I thought.”

“I read a humor book for an hour every night before bed.”

Oliver said it proudly. Because he was genuinely proud.

“…My cousin mentioned that you interfered with capturing Eve. Can you explain why?”

“Because I know her.”

Oliver answered briefly.

It was a ridiculous statement to anyone, but strangely, when Oliver said it, it sounded convincing.

“Hmm… But you brought her to me. What do you want to say?”

“Could you please not chase Pandora today? I’d prefer if you didn’t pursue her in the future, but it seems that might be too much to ask.”

“Alright.”

Philip agreed far too easily. The Pinkman were shocked, their eyes widening, but Philip continued.

“At least for today, I’ll let it go. But there’s a condition.”

“Name it.”

“We’re going to hunt down the Red Ones black magicians who were behind the terrorist attack. You should join us.”

“Understood.”

In a few short exchanges, a decision was made regarding the situation involving Eve, who was worth over 3 trillion, and the Red Ones black magicians, who might have connections to Fen, the Eternal Child.

Everyone, including the Pinkman and even Pandora, watched in amazement.

It was just too unbelievable.